Free Republic

 A columnist for the Religious Left website Sojourners has just determined that "neo-conservatism" is incompatible with Christianity. Chuck Gutenson, a theology professor at Asbury Seminary in Kentucky, wrote:"We, as followers of Jesus, should reflect on the differences between our calling to be imitators of Jesus and that to which the neocons would call us. And, most of all, we need to recognize the incommensurability of the two ways of being in the world."Gutenson, like many others, employs "neo-conservatism" as a broad and perjorative description for all who favor an aggressive U.S. foreign policy. Of course, neo-conservatism actually more narrowly describes...

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Sunday said Iran bore no hatred towards the United States as he held talks with American Christians in a rare official contact with visitors from Tehran's arch enemy. State television showed Ahmadinejad meeting with a dozen American representatives from various Christian orders who are in Iran for a week-long visit to promote peace and dialogue between the foes. "The Iranian nation does not have any feeling of hatred and opposition towards the American people and we believe that all people are respectful and given the common grounds people have, they could achieve peace and justice," Ahmadinejad...

A group of self-described "progressive" Christian evangelicals calling themselves "Red Letter Christians," and led by the left-oriented Sojourners magazine and left-oriented religious pundits like Jim Wallis and Tony Campolo, has recently emerged in the body politic. These self-proclaimed "progressives" have been making a lot of noise recently complaining about the ties that other Christian evangelicals have long held with the conservative movement in the United States, including the conservative movement in the Republican Party. One policy under attack by these "progressives" is the conservative effort to "cut programs to the poor." They say that such a policy goes against Jesus...

Brian McLaren, chief guru of the "emerging church" movement, feels "dirty" over the execution of Saddam Hussein. A pastor and best-selling author who appeals to "post-modern" evangelicals, McLaren now chairs Jim Wallis' Religious Left Sojourners group. He also is one of Jim Wallis' "Red Letter" Christians, who respond to conservative religionists by insisting that the "red letter" words of Jesus in the Bible actually support causes of the Left. In his latest column for Sojourners, McLaren claimed he is not opining about capital punishment. Instead, he is simply sharing "in personal terms" with "those who support executions" how he reacted...

Democrats turned to an evangelical Christian to give their weekly radio address on Saturday, citing a desire to avoid partisanship after last month's elections that gave them control of Congress. "I want to be clear that I am not speaking for the Democratic Party, but as a person of faith who feels the hunger in America for a new vision of our life together, and sees the opportunity to apply our best moral values to the urgent problems we face," the Rev. Jim Wallis said in his remarks. Wallis, author of 2005's "God's Politics: Why the Right Gets it Wrong...

Religious Leaders Stand Up for Rick Warren, Barack Obama An open letter to pastors across the country Contact: Adam Segal, Faithful Democrats, 202-422-4673, adam@the2050group.com  MEDIA ADVISORY, Dec. 1 /Christian Newswire/ -- The following is an open letter to pastors across the country: Dear Pastor:  Several right-wing religious organizations, including the National Clergy Council, recently blasted Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Church for inviting Senator Barack Obama to speak on World AIDS Day this Friday, December 1. It's unfortunate that these groups would exploit the Christian faith to advance their divisive agenda – an agenda that gives almost exclusive attention to a few...

Can Butts, Obama, Dybul and Rick Warren Save the World? By Brannon Howse Rick Warren’s conference is this coming Friday, December 1st, 2006 at his church. To this day, I don’t have a clue what Pastor Warren thinks can be accomplished by gathering together a group of non-believers that are hostile to Christianity to discuss the world’s problems. Promotion of a social gospel will not save one soul. As you know by now, Rick has invited United States Senator Barack Obama to speak at his church conference. Senator Obama is described by many as left of Hillary Clinton. Now that...

WASHINGTON - Democrats and Republicans should work together to find new ways to end poverty, curb government corruption and strengthen families, Rev. Jim Wallis said Saturday. "Answering the call to lift people out of poverty will require spiritual commitment and bipartisan political leadership," Wallis, the head of the liberal Sojourners/Call to Renewal, an evangelical social justice movement, said in the weekly Democratic radio address. "Real solutions must transcend partisan politics," he said. "It is time to find common ground by moving to higher ground." President Bush has signaled his readiness to consider Democratic priorities such as a federal minimum-wage increase...

When I first filtered into an evangelical church at the age of 14, defining the term "evangelical" was simple, even for a kid my age. Without having to be told I concluded evangelicals preached a solid gospel, emphasized evangelism and missions, majored in soul-winning and minored in social issues, abstained from some worldly values (and occasionally went too far in this department coming close to legalism), were faithful in church attendance, Bible reading, and generally had a biblical worldview. Sure, we were often called "legalistic fundamentalists" but better to lean right than left. I was never and never will be...

A group of self-described "progressive" Christian evangelicals calling themselves "Red Letter Christians," and led by the left-oriented Sojourners magazine and left-oriented religious pundits like Jim Wallis and Tony Campolo, has recently emerged in the body politic. These self-proclaimed "progressives" have been making a lot of noise recently complaining about the ties that other Christian evangelicals have long held with the conservative movement in the United States, including the conservative movement in the Republican Party. One policy under attack by these "progressives" is the conservative effort to "cut programs to the poor." They say that such a policy goes against Jesus...

The Red Letter Christians, a "progressive" group, says it offers an alternative to the religious right in the discussion about moral values in American politics. The liberal group claims Christian conservatives focus too heavily on abortion and homosexuality. "Since the 2004 election, the term 'values voters' has become a mainstay of the political discussion, and we're hearing it again this fall. But the discussion has generally been very narrow and discusses particularly one specific type of voter -- a conservative, white, evangelical, Republican," said Rev. Jim Wallis, founder and editor of Sojourners Magazine, at the National Press Club in Washington,...

WASHINGTON - Liberal evangelicals, weary of a Republican-centric image, launched a campaign Monday to promote Christian values beyond the issues of abortion and same-sex marriage. Red Letter Christians, a project of Sojurners/Call to Renewal, announced plans to establish a grass-roots network of 7,000 moderate and progressive clergy members. "A debate on moral issues should be central to American politics, but how should we define religious values?" said Jim Wallis, an activist and executive director of the Christian ministry, which also publishes the liberal Sojourners Magazine. The project's name comes from the color of some Bible's type, with words directly attributed...

Religious left gears up to face right counterpart By Thomas Ferraro Tue Jul 25, 8:16 AM ET WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The religious right, which helped re-elect President Bush in 2004 by rallying opposition to abortion and gay marriage, is now facing a pushback from the religious left. With a faith-based agenda of their own, liberal and progressive clergy from various denominations are lobbying lawmakers, holding rallies and publicizing their positions. They want to end the Iraq war, ease global warming, combat poverty, raise the minimum wage, revamp immigration laws, and prevent "immoral" cuts in federal social programs. Some, like the...

Brian McLaren on The Da Vinci Code An interview by Lisa Ann Cockrel With The Da Vinci Code poised to go from bestseller list to the big screen on May 19, pastor and writer (and Sojourners board member) Brian McLaren talks about why he thinks there's truth in the controversial book's fiction. What do you think the popularity of The Da Vinci Code reveals about pop culture attitudes toward Christianity and the church? Brian McLaren: I think a lot of people have read the book, not just as a popular page-turner but also as an experience in shared frustration with...

Covenant News Covenanters Join Marches in L.A., Chicago LOS ANGELES (May 3) - Two Evangelical Covenant Church conference leaders were among those participating in the immigration reform demonstration here Monday, and a Covenant pastor in Chicago says it was important that he and several students participated in the Midwest city's march the same day. Two walks occurred in Los Angeles, and Greg Yee and Walter Contreras found themselves near the front of the second event, walking alongside Cardinal Roger Mahoney. They were subsequently joined by other Covenant pastors participating in the march, which police say attracted some 500,000 individuals. Yee...

Interfaith group launches social justice campaign Plans to raise single voice on social justice issues By William HersheyDayton Daily News COLUMBUS | More than 300 people gathered Tuesday in Columbus' First AME Zion Church to celebrate the launch of We Believe Ohio, an interfaith group with the goal of making a unified cry for social justice heard in the public square.In other faith-and-politics developments: • Republican Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell, a candidate for governor, met Tuesday in Cleveland with United Pastors in Mission, seeking support from black pastors usually considered friendly to Democrats. Blackwell, a black conservative, said...

CPT Statement:  CPTers Released23 March 2006Our hearts are filled with joy today as we heard that Harmeet Singh Sooden, Jim Loney and Norman Kember have been safely released in Baghdad. Christian Peacemaker Teams rejoices with their families and friends at the expectation of their return to their loved ones and community. Together we have endured uncertainty, hope, fear, grief and now joy during the four months since they were abducted in Baghdad. We rejoice in the return of Harmeet Sooden. He has been willing to put his life on the line to promote justice in Iraq and Palestine as a...

All the remaining members of the Christian Peacemaker Teams held hostage in Iraq were rescued by multinational forces. In a statement describing their release the organization said: Our hearts are filled with joy today as we heard that Harmeet Singh Sooden, Jim Loney and Norman Kember have been freed safely in Baghdad. ... They went, motivated by a passion for justice and peace to live out a nonviolent alternative in a nation wracked by armed conflict. They knew that their only protection was in the power of the love of God and of their Iraqi and international co-workers. We believe...

Integrity It is more than simple honesty. It's the key to success. Do you want to learn how integrity can make you a success? These essays explore the many ways we can find purpose when helping other people on a personal level, nurturing the environment, or when working with others toward a larger goal. Read More... See! Hear! Study! Enjoy! • Bibles • Bibles on CD • Bibles on MP3 • Bible Software • Electronic Bibles.... and more... Read More... See this? Advertise here! Evangelical Christianity, born in England and nurtured in the United States, is leaving home. Most evangelicals...

In a recent USA Today op-ed, Tom Krattenmaker argues that “playing the God card” has backfired on President George W. Bush. The president’s favorability has fallen through the floor, Krattenmaker argues. And surely God would never side with unpopular presidents. “The God’s-on-our-side rhetoric is looking even less credible now, after more than a year of frequently bad news for the president and his administration,” he writes. As for the actual “God’s-on-our-side” rhetoric, Mr. Krattenmaker’s examples are pretty lame. He quotes an obscure alternate delegate to the 2004 Republican National Convention and New York Governor George Pataki (no favorite of the...