HHMI Newsgroup Archives
From: Eddie Chumney
To: heb_roots_chr@hebroots.org
Subject: News of Interest
ECUMENISM
LUTHERANS AND EPISCOPALIANS MOVING TO FULL COMMUNION.
ReligionToday April 13, 2000
Despite opposition, Lutherans will press on toward "full
communion" with Episcopalians, an Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America governing body has decided. The 5.2 million-member
denomination's Church Council, meeting in Chicago last weekend,
voted overwhelmingly to implement an agreement with the
2.4-million-member Episcopal Church on Jan. 1, The Chicago
Tribune said.
Full communion means the two mainline Protestant denominations
agree to share their clergy and congregations, and to express a
common core theology. The ELCA Churchwide Assembly approved the
agreement last summer, and the Episcopal Church is expected to
approve it this summer.
There has been persistent opposition to the pact. The agreement
has been commended as an important move toward Christian unity,
but a sticking point is the role of bishops. Episcopalians elect
bishops for life and believe their authority stretches back in an
unbroken line of succession to Jesus' disciples. The pact
requires that new ELCA bishops be consecrated by Episcopal
bishops who are in that historic succession, known as the
"historic episcopate," and that all clergy be ordained by the
laying-on of hands by properly consecrated bishops.
CHURCH IN ENGLAND 'WILL BE DEAD IN 40 YEARS TIME'
With attendances falling faster than ever, a new report sees the
future for Christianity in Britain as bleak
By Hazel Southam, The Independent, London, 16 April 2000
Holy Week has begun with an expert prediction that the Christian
church in this country will be dead and buried within 40 years.
It will vanish from the mainstream of British life, with only 0.5
per cent of the population attending the Sunday services of any
denomination, according to the country's leading church analyst.
Historic buildings will be left to crumble in neglect, as
congregations vanish and the church infrastructures collapse
without money from the parishes. All claims that Britain is a
Christian nation will finally have to be given up, says the
church attendance specialist, Peter Brierley. "The basic
doctrines of Christianity will be believed much less and there
will be many who actively do not believe them," he says in a new
book to be published this week.
The dwindling band of worshippers has grown used to gloomy
predictions, but these are the worst yet. Church attendance will
be "at an all-time low" in 40 years' time, says Steps to the
Future, published by the Scripture Union. Around 40 per cent of
the population will have some kind of belief, though a third of
them will practise non-Christian religions. Inner-city churches
will face the worst decline, closing or running midweek services
to keep anyone coming in at all.
"This is very sober stuff," says Dr Brierley, best known for
compiling the annual Church Attendance Survey. "Numbers of
Christians will decrease, and the ones who remain won't express
their Christianity by going to church."
The statistics could spell disaster for England's 10,000 listed
Anglican churches."The last thing we want to see is listed
buildings being knocked down, but at some stage, because of
dwindling congregations, the Church of England won't be able to
maintain them." To date, cathedrals have shown more ability to
survive, drawing bigger congregations in recent years thanks to
prestigious one-off services and commemorations. Often, however,
this is at the expense of parish churches nearby.
GORBACHEV CALLS THE POPE THE 'MOST IMPORTANT SOCIALIST IN THE
WORLD'
Copyright 2000 Nando Media Copyright 2000 Agence France-Press
ROME April 3, 2000
Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev on Monday characterized
Pope John Paul II as "the most important socialist in the world,"
lauding him for making the plight of the poor and solidarity key
themes of his papacy. "Globalization can also have destructive
effects but we must pursue, as the pope says, its positive
aspects," the former Soviet leader said in a speech to students
of Rome's Sapienza University. "Wherever John Paul II goes on
his trips, he will always speak of the poor and of solidarity.
He is the most important socialist in the world." If
globalization is to be fair, the gap between North and South must
not be deepened, and political and economic freedom and social
justice must be granted, he added.
PRINCE CHARLES OF WALES
'MULTI-FAITH CORONATION' FOR CHARLES
By Rachel Sylvester London Telegraph 4/10/00 -- Full Text of
story
THE Prince of Wales could be crowned King in a multi-faith
inauguration ceremony rather than the 1,000-year-old Coronation
service, under proposals to tackle "religious discrimination"
being considered by the Government.
A report commissioned by Jack Straw claims that the establishment
of the Church of England causes "religious disadvantage" to other
faiths and Christian denominations. The coronation ceremony,
conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, in which the monarch
swears to uphold the Protestant faith, may no longer be
appropriate in modern, multi-cultural Britain, it says. The
sovereign's role as Supreme Governor of the Church of England and
"Defender of the Faith" should also be reviewed. The paper, an
interim report on religious discrimination, puts disestablishment
of the Church of England firmly on the Government's agenda for
the first time since Labour came to power.
Maintaining the exclusive link between Church and state may not
be "the best or the most appropriate way forward in terms of the
need to embody the principles of equity, inclusivity and
participation in the contemporary plural society of the United
Kingdom", it says.
Tony Blair has always shied away from the issue, insisting that
he would not support disestablishment. However, he has become
increasingly interested in the relationship between Christianity
and other faiths. The Government would almost certainly resist
severing the link altogether but senior figures think other
religions should have a greater role in national life, just as
representatives of other faiths are to be given seats in the
Lords along with Anglican bishops.
The Church of England is itself considering ways to be more
"inclusive". The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey, is
reported to have told an audience in his diocese that he expects
the Church one day to be disestablished.
The Home Office report, by Prof Paul Weller and a team at Derby
university, says the next coronation will be the next focus of
controversy which the Government should tackle as a matter of
urgency. It says: "Coronations are state events which,
historically, have expressed the close symbolic relationship
between established religion and the state.
"The religious composition of society has changed significantly
since the last coronation and the next coronation will therefore
highlight a series of very important issues and complexities,
which it would be best to begin giving consideration to as soon
as possible."
Some Anglican bishops, including Dr David Hope, the Archbishop of
York, have already been considering changes to the ritual, which
has been a Christian ceremony since 973, when Edgar was crowned
by Archbishop Dunstan at Bath. Proposals, which include
involving other religious leaders, rewriting the oath and
abandoning the eucharist, have been discussed.
Senior clergymen believe the next coronation cannot take the same
form as the last ceremony, in 1953, when the Queen pledged to
"preserve inviolably the settlement of the Church of England".
The Prince of Wales has made clear that he wants to be the
"defender of faith" rather than the "defender of the faith", in
order to reflect the number of religions practised in Britain.
The Home Office paper criticises the "historically rooted
religious disadvantage" to other faiths and Christian
denominations caused by the establishment of the Church of
England. This includes the fact that Roman Catholics are not
allowed to succeed to the Throne and that the monarch has to
swear an oath of allegiance to the Protestant church, it says.
The ban on the monarch marrying a Roman Catholic - which has been
the subject of debate in the Scottish Parliament and at
Westminster - and on Roman Catholic priests sitting in the
Commons are also highlighted.
Although the report acknowledges that establishment is supported
by many other religious leaders because it raises the profile of
religion generally, it says that the Church of England's "special
position" also makes other faiths feel excluded from society and
should be subjected to "rigorous questioning".
Christianity has had a "privileged presence, sometimes as of
right and sometimes as a consequence of tradition" which Judaism,
Islam or Hinduism have not had, it concludes. Mr Straw
commissioned the report following calls from Muslims for the law
to be changed to ban religious discrimination. At the moment,
Sikhs and Jews are protected because they are classified as a
"race" but Muslims, Christians and Buddhists are not.
The researchers point out that the Human Rights Act, which takes
effect in October, specifically protects people from
discrimination on the grounds of religion and could lead to legal
challenges if nothing is done. A Home Office spokesman said the
report "is being looked at very thoroughly by the Home Office but
nothing has been taken on board yet".
Philip Mawer, secretary general of the Archbishop's Council,
said: "Coronations are primarily a statement of the sovereign's
accountability; they emphasise the duty and service of the
sovereign to the nation under God."
ONE-WORLD
US PROPOSES GLOBAL WATER SECURITY ALLIANCE TO COUNTER CRISES
WASHINGTON, April 10 (AFP) -
Alarmed by potential military and political crises stemming from
shortages of potable water, US Secretary of State Madeleine
Albright on Monday proposed the creation of a global water
security alliance. Albright, in an address here marking Earth
Day, said water-related difficulties posed serious foreign policy
concerns in critical areas of the planet and said the United
States would take a leading role in developing the new alliance.
"I have in mind not an alliance such as NATO that is limited to
certain countries and comprised of governments alone, but rather
a less formal alliance open to all who comprehend the urgency of
working together to conserve transboundary water, manage it
wisely and use it well," she said. To get the alliance --
described by Albright as a "global alliance for water security in
the 21st century" -- moving, the United States will be inviting
major international donors to Washington in the summer to discuss
the concept and ensure that its efforts are coordinated, she
said.
"The goals of our alliance must be to dramatically improve the
management of transboundary water resources, eliminate water as a
source of regional instability and use cooperation on water as a
basis for bringing nations together on other issues," Albright
said.
The secretary pointed out several regions -- particularly Africa
and the Middle East -- where water management holds significant
interest outside the environmental realm. A recent drought in
the Horn of Africa and devastating flooding in Mozambique have
led to humanitarian catastrophes, while in the Middle East water
rights are seen as central to achieving a comprehensive peace
between Israel and its Arab neighbors, she said. Albright also
mentioned Southeast Asia's Mekong River, river systems in Central
Asia's Aral Sea Basin and the Nile as possible problem points.
In addition to sponsoring the summer donors conference in support
of the new alliance, Washington will be placing greater emphasis
on water in its own foreign policy and bilateral and multilateral
aid programs, she said. "We will be patient as well as urgent
for although the stakes are high, creating truly effective
regional arrangements can take years, even decades," Albright
said.
She vowed the new alliance would be a "long-term effort" and
maintained that its success would be key not only in ecological
and health matters but also in promoting democracy around the
world. "Every great civilization has grown up around water," she
said. "From the Ganges to the Mississippi, the Amazon to the
Zaire, the history of rivers is the history of us. "And there is
no more unifying or naturally democratic force ... as they flow,
chanelled by swerve of shore and bend of bay, they cleanse,
nourish and refresh all people -- in metropolis and village, from
the millionaire to the child who knows no other cup than the
human hand."
MARK OF THE BEAST
GRANNY MISSING? NO WORRY WITH SATELLITE TRACKING
TOKYO (Reuters) Friday March 31
Japanese companies have solved the problem of straying senior
citizens - - track them by satellite. A device for finding old
people unable to take care of themselves uses a satellite-based
global positioning system and a cellular phone network. Local
governments in Tokyo and Japan's Kikuchi City plan to test the
device, developed by a group led by trading house Mitsui & Co
``We are definitely expecting a market to develop for the
system,'' a Mitsui spokesman said. A transmitter attached to the
body or on clothing beams coordinates of the person to a local
server. Concerned relatives just need to send a request by
portable terminal and up pops the runaway's location on a
computerized map. Systems already exist in Japan for finding
lost people but they rely on technology for personal handyphones
-- a type of mobile phone -- and do not work well if the escapee
jumps on a train or takes to the mountains. And the idea is not
simply pie in the sky given the graying of Japan's population.
Already there are an estimated 1.88 million elderly people in
Japan suffering various degrees of senility. The device will be
tested later this year with a planned launch in early 2001.
PAPACY
POPE BECOMING A PRISONER IN HIS OWN BODY - CARDINAL
PARIS (Reuters) 4/23/00
Pope John Paul is suffering from a progressive paralysis that is
making him a prisoner in his own body, the Cardinal-Archbishop of
Paris said in an interview published Sunday. In some of the most
frank comments on the Pope's health yet made by a senior churchman,
Archbishop Jean-Marie Lustiger told weekly newspaper Le Journal du
Dimanche that despite his physical ailments the Pontiff, who turns 80
on May 20, remained mentally sharp.
``One knows that his illness is leading to a progressive
paralysis of the body, but his spiritual faculties remain
intact,'' Lustiger was quoted as saying. `This man, who used to
be an athlete, is becoming more and more a prisoner of his own
body. But he maintains a spiritual force, an intellectual
capacity and a memory which are extraordinary for a man who will
be 80 next month.''
The Pope's health has been visibly faltering in recent years and
he is believed to suffer from various illnesses including
Parkinson's disease, although the Vatican has never officially
confirmed that he has the debilitating illness.
The president of the German Bishops Conference, Bishop Karl
Lehmann, suggested earlier this year that the Pope could retire
if his health prevented him from doing his job, but Lustiger
appeared to rule this out. ``He shows evidence of great freedom
with respect to his physical limitations. So much so that God
will not relieve him of his mission. He accomplishes it
faithfully, courageously, like a good servant,'' Lustiger said.
**********************************************************************
From
the Website:
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20000425/ts/court_abortion_2.html
Supreme Court Considers 'Partial Birth Abortions'
By James Vicini
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In an important abortion rights case, a number
of U.S. Supreme Court justices on Tuesday questioned whether states
may prohibit a surgical abortion procedure without allowing
exceptions for a pregnant woman's health.
Returning to the divisive abortion issue for the first time in eight
years, the high court's liberal and moderate members appeared
skeptical about whether states may outlaw a procedure that opponents
of abortion call ``partial birth abortion.''
As both sides in the abortion battle demonstrated outside the
building, Justice Antonin Scalia, a fervent abortion foe, expressed
the strongest support for the ban, saying the laws may reflect a
state's interest to prevent infanticide.
A decision in the case, expected by the end
of June, could have far-reaching impact as
some 30 states have adopted such laws and
President Clinton has twice vetoed a similar
federal ban adopted by the
Republican-controlled Congress.
The last Supreme Court ruling on abortion occurred
in 1992, when the justices by a 5-4 vote reaffirmed the core holding
of its landmark 1973 Roe vs. Wade ruling that women have a basic
constitutional right to an abortion.
Case Has Political Overtones
The case also has political overtones for the presidential race as
Democrat Al Gore (news - web sites) has come out in opposition to
bans on partial birth abortion while Republican George W. Bush (news
- web sites) has supported them.
During the hour-long arguments, Nebraska Attorney General Donald
Stenberg defended the law as prohibiting a ``little-used form of
abortion that borders on infanticide.''
He argued the law only applies to the abortion method called
``dilation and extraction,'' which involves partially extracting a
fetus, legs first, through the birth canal, cutting the skull and
draining its contents.
Stenberg maintained the law -- which itself is unclear -- does not
apply to a more common abortion procedure called ''dilation and
evacuation.''
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, a moderate and key swing vote on the
divided court, asked, ``There is no exception under this statute ...
for the health of the mother?''
Stenberg acknowledged no exception existed, but said other
alternative abortion methods would be available for the woman.
Justice Stephen Breyer asked what would happen when the alternative
procedure might be more risky for the woman's health.
Justice John Paul Stevens said that for an estimated 10 to 20 women
each year in Nebraska the banned procedure represents the most
appropriate one for them.
Justice David Souter asked, ``Why should the legislature be more
cavalier in overriding the medical judgement in this instance?''
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said the 1992 and 1973 Supreme Court
decisions recognized the interest of the health of a woman and of the
potential life of the fetus.
She said the law at issue does not take into account the health of
the woman and does not further the potential life of the fetus
because it allows other forms of abortion to be used. ''It doesn't
serve either of the purposes,'' she said.
Simon Heller, an attorney for the New York-based Center for
Reproductive Law and Policy, argued that the law should be struck
down, saying doctors and not state legislatures should decide which
abortion procedure should be used.
Justice Scalia Cites Infanticide
Justice Scalia said many cultures accept infanticide and said the
state may be worried about society becoming callous toward
infanticide. ``I think it's a concern about seeing a live human
creature outside the womb being dismembered,'' he said.
The Nebraska law makes it a crime for doctors to perform partial
birth abortions, and they may face up to 20 years in prison.
The law defines partial birth abortion as a procedure in which a
person ``deliberately and intentionally delivers into the vagina a
living unborn child, or a substantial portion thereof, for the
purpose of performing a procedure'' that the person knows ``will kill
the unborn child.''
********************************************************************
From
the Website:
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20000425/ts/life_gay_2.html
Same-Sex Union Bill Heads to Vermont Governor
By Kevin J. Kelley
MONTPELIER, Vt. (Reuters) - The Vermont House of Representatives on
Tuesday passed a bill granting the full benefits of marriage to
same-sex couples, making enactment of the most sweeping gay
partnership law in the United States a virtual certainty.
The bill, which would allow same-sex civil unions as soon as July 1,
now goes to Democratic governor Howard Dean, who has promised to sign
it into law.
The approval, after a debate marked by emotional and religious
comment from the bill's opponents, brings to a close a legislative
process started last December when the state's highest court ruled
that gay people are entitled to the same marriage benefits as
heterosexuals.
In
its ruling, the Vermont Supreme Court said
it
was up to the legislature how to structure
a
law, but that the result must offer equal
protection
to both categories of couples in
the
small, mostly rural New England state.
Advocates hailed Tuesday's action, calling it a giant
step forward in gays' quest for equal protection under the law.
''Boy, that's great, that's great,'' said Mary Bonauto of Gay &
Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, when informed of the House vote by a
reporter.
``It's really a breathtaking step forward for gay people and their
families,'' said Bonauto, one of the lawyers who argued the original
case before the state's high court. ``It provides all sorts of
protections that did not exist yesterday.''
The civil union bill will have no impact on federal law relating to
marriage. But it is expected to have a profound effect on many state
laws, including adoption, inheritance and health care.
Gay advocate groups also hope Vermont's moves will have far-reaching
ramifications for a growing national debate about the rights of
same-sex couples.
Earlier this year, California voters passed a ballot measure that
recognized only marriages between a man and a woman in their state.
In December, Hawaii's top court dismissed a lawsuit that sought to
allow same-sex marriages, saying it was rendered moot by a 1998
amendment to the state's constitution, which allowed the Legislature
to enact a law banning gay marriage. Hawaii's lawmakers have not
passed such a measure, but the state in 1996 passed a law that
defined marriage as being between a man and a woman.
A nationwide Harris poll conducted in January found that 56 percent
of those questioned favored expanding laws that ban discrimination
against gays.
Vermont's bill was approved 79-68 on Tuesday -- an even wider
majority than when the House first voted on the measure in March and
passed it 76-69.
Tuesday's session saw the measure's opponents launch impassioned
attacks. Republican Nancy Sheltra, one of the bill's most vocal foes,
took to the House floor and in an appeal against approval noted that
in 19th century, sodomy was punishable by death in the state of
Vermont.
``Why would you encourage anal sex, sexually transmitted diseases and
AIDS among a part of our society?'' she asked, as about a dozen
supporters of the bill stood and walked out to protest her remarks.
Approval came after Republican George Schiavone, who said Vermont's
citizens were not behind the bill, tried to delay passage until the
November elections.
``We are running way ahead of the people,'' Schiavone said. ''The
people are choking on this bill. Give us time to do better.''
Schiavone's motion to delay voting was defeated 84 to 63.
Tom Little, the Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee
where the civil union law originated, said it was time to act.
``We have worked as thoroughly, and even more thoroughly, on this
bill as any I have worked on during my time here,'' he said, noting
that delay was unfair to the citizens whose suit led to the court's
ruling.
**********************************************************************
From
the Website:
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/issue/000410/marriage.htm
Helping
'two people who love each other'
Reform
rabbis vote to recognize gay unions
By
Linda Kulman
Two
weeks after Vermont legislators took the
first
step toward recognizing same-sex unions
in
the eyes of the law, the nation's Reform
Jewish
rabbis became the largest religious
denomination
in the country to officially
sanction
such unions in the eyes of God. The
resolution
that passed overwhelmingly last week
at
the annual gathering of the Central
Conference
of American Rabbis, representing 1.5
million
Jews, declared gay couples "worthy of
affirmation
through appropriate Jewish ritual."
"It's
a forceful statement for a religious
organization
to make," says Rabbi Paul
Menitoff,
executive vice president of the CCAR.
But
it came as little surprise to
participants-particularly
since the resolution
allows
rabbis to officiate at same-sex
ceremonies
but does not mandate that they do
so.
Menitoff sees the vote as "the natural
outgrowth"
of steps the Reform movement has
taken
over the past 25 years to create a
"hospitable
environment" for gay men and
lesbians.
In 1977, the rabbis called for an end
to
discrimination against homosexuals. In 1990,
they
moved to allow ordination of gay men and
women;
many of the 1,800 rabbis had begun
performing
same-gender ceremonies already.
Yet
their embrace of gay and lesbian couples is
not
reflected in the Torah, which calls
homosexuality
an abomination. Reform Jews do
not
interpret the document as the literal word
of
God, believing instead that it was written
by
men responding to their time, place, and
situation.
"We have more information," says
Menitoff.
"Sexual orientation isn't something
we
decide. We are who we are."
Justyn
Lezin, 28, and Kim Haveson, 33, tied the
knot
at a ceremony outside San Francisco last
June.
"A commitment ceremony didn't do it for
us,"
Lezin says. "It lacked the weight. A
potluck
in the park was too alternative." Rabbi
Susan
Schnur of Princeton, N.J., who
officiated,
says, "When you do a gay wedding,
it's
like pushing back on apartheid. It feels
morally
irresponsible not to help two people
who
love each other."
Wedge
issue. Orthodox and Conservative Jews do
not
agree. "It's driven another wedge between
[Reform
Jews] and the rest of the Jewish
religion,"
says Mandell Ganchrow, president of
the
Orthodox Union.
The
debate over homosexual unions is also
expected
to dominate this year's United
Methodist,
Presbyterian, and Episcopal Church
conventions.
Other denominations have taken
strong
stands against homosexuality. But
Reconstructionist
Judaism, the Unitarian
Universalist
Association, and the United Church
of
Christ have blessed same-sex marriages. Many
gay
Jewish couples are waiting for the day when
they
can have a civil ceremony. Meanwhile,
because
many people look to the pulpit for
sanction,
Lezin observes, "more families will
be
experiencing [same-sex unions] as a joy and
not
as a curse."
********************************************************************
Return to
Newsgroup Archives Main Page
Return to our Main Webpage
©2011
Hebraic Heritage Ministries International. Designed by
Web Design by JB.