To:            heb_roots_chr@hebroots.org
Subject:       UN Millenium World Peace Summit


THE MILLENIUM WORLD PEACE SUMMIT - INT. NETWORK

There is one issue that stands out as controversial indeed, and from a
Christian standpoint an issue of absolute contradiction, in the event
presented below, namely "Forgiveness and Reconciliation". The exclusion of
the Lord of lords, our saviour, Jesus Christ from any peace process is but
building on sand and is at the closing of the books an act of intellectual
as well as spiritual suicide. Repentance and a thorough turning to God, the
Creator - He who calls himself the God of Israel - for grace and forgiveness
through Jesus Christ will not turn up
even as a possible option during the sessions to be held. The men moving
along these paths need much prayer, and the world is still worth all the
solid covering from their activity as is possible according to what the Lord
has planned within the framework of the prophetic end time scenario. The
Book paints a picture that includes events of this category as a preliminary
to the great tribulation. Let
us seek the Lord for much strength and for extended time to be spent in
prayer chambers for the benefit of miracles of true Reconciliation.

Lars Widerberg

THE MILLENNIUM WORLD PEACE SUMMIT FACT SHEET

WHAT
For the first time in history, approximately one thousand of the world's
preeminent religious and spiritual leaders will gather for the World Peace
Summit opening at the United Nations on August 28. This landmark event  ill
seek to coordinate religious leadership as a driving force for building
tolerance, fostering peace and encouraging inter-religious dialogue among
all regions of the  orld. In addition to inviting religious leaders to sign
a Declaration for World Peace, the Summit will create the  nternational
Advisory Council of Religious and  piritual Leaders that is designed to
serve as an ongoing interfaith ally to the United   actions in its quest for
peace, global understanding & international cooperation.
 
WHY 
During the past 50 years, armed conflict has claimed approximately 27
million lives worldwide. It is estimated that civilians represent 85 percent
of the casualties, with a majority being children and the elderly. In the
last decade, there have been more than 100 armed conflicts in over 70
different locations and in every region of the world. With approximately 83
percent of the world's population  dhering to some  ormal religious or
spiritual belief system, religion and spirituality is a dynamic force that
the World Peace Summit will seek to develop for peace advocacy and conflict
prevention and resolution.

EXPECTED OUTCOMES
In addition to a signed Declaration for World Peace and the ongoing
International Advisory Council of Religious and Spiritual Leaders, the
intention of the Summit is to engage the world's religious and spiritual
leaders in the following activities to improve the prospect for peace in the
new millennium. Identifying early warning signs where conflict could erupt;
alerting local, national and regional authorities; and suggesting actions
that might prevent potential conflicts; Working to resolve conflicts after
they have erupted by consulting with United Nations' officials, regional
religious and spiritual leaders, political leaders and local grassroots
organizations; and Providing advice on the healing process after conflict
has been halted and recommending steps to ensure that peace is sustained.

SUMMIT LEADERSHIP
The Secretariat's office for the World Peace Summit, with Bawa Jain as
Secretary-General, is managing Summit operations and leading all planning,
programming, fund-raising and strategic partnership efforts. The
International Advisory Board for the World Peace Summit, with Chairman
Maurice Strong, is identifying participants, advising on the event program
and providing input on the
Declaration for World Peace. The Executive Council oversees administration
of the Summit and is led by Chairman David Finn; Co-Presidents Gillian
Sorenson, The Very Reverend James Parks Morton and Tim Wirth; and Vice
Chairman Dena
Merriam. The Summit's Advisory Council of Interfaith Organizations provides
ongoing counsel and introductions to leading religious officials. Ted Turner
serves as Honorary Chairman of the Summit.

PARTNERS
The Scholar's Group at Harvard Divinity School
Harvard University Center for the Study of World Religions
The United Nations University for Peace
The Earth Council
World Faiths Development Dialogue
Modi Foundation
World Conference on Religion and Peace
Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions
Interfaith Center of New York
Hinduja Foundation
Alliance of Religions and Conservation
Appeal of Conscience Foundation
Forum on Religion and Ecology
National Conference on Community and Justice
Appeal of the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates for the Children of the World
World Resources Institute
Sternberg Centre
Global Dialogue Institute

SPONSORS
UN Foundation/Better World Fund
Ford Foundation
Ruder Finn Inc.
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Carnegie Foundation
Modi Foundation
Sukyo Mahikari
Korean Delegation
Japanese Delegation
Greenville Foundation
Sternberg Foundation
Appeal of Conscience Foundation
Waldorf-Astoria

Bawa Jain, Secretary-General, The Millennium World Peace Summit of Religious
and Spiritual Leaders For the last seven years, Bawa Jain has been a lead
organizer in the interfaith movement, creating and participating in global
events that bring together religious leaders from many faith traditions to
address critical issues. For the past two years, he has been organizing with
the office of the UN Secretary General, the Millennium World Peace Summit of
Religious and Spiritual Leaders that will open at the United Nations on
August 28th, 2000. Mr. Jain is one of the founders of the World Movement for
Nonviolence, an initiative that promotes the principles and practices of
nonviolence in daily life. As Co-Director of the Season for Nonviolence, he
develops programs on nonviolence, with a focus on youth, that have now
spread to 115 cities and 15 countries. Mr. Jain serves as
Vice-Chair of the Council for the Parliament of the World's Religions and is
Vice President of the Interfaith Center of New York, where he organizes each
year an Interfaith Service to mark the opening of the United Nations General
Assembly. He is active in the United Religions Initiative, where he convened
an Indo-Pakistani Dialogue Forum in 1998. He also counsels religious
organizations on deeper involvement in interfaith activities and global
initiatives. Mr. Jain is on the Earth Charter Initiative International
Resource Team and on the advisory board
of the Center for Religion and Diplomacy.

SELECTION OF PREEMINENT RELIGIOUS LEADERS ATTENDING THE  MILLENNIUM WORLD
PEACE SUMMIT

His Eminence Francis Cardinal Arinze, President of the Pontifical Council
for Inter-Religious Dialogue at the Vatican Cardinal Francis Arinze was born
in Eziowelle, Nigeria, on November 1, 1932, and ordained on November 23,
1958. He taught at the Bigard Memorial Seminary and then served as Regional
Secretary for Catholic Education for Eastern Nigeria. Later he was named
Auxiliary
Bishop of the Onitsha archdiocese. In 1979, Arinze was elected President of
the Nigerian Bishops' Conference, and on April 8 of the same year, John Paul
II called him to head the Vatican's Secretariat for Non-Christians. He was
made a cardinal by John Paul II on May 25, 1985. On June 28, 1988, the
Apostolic Constitution Pastor Bonus renamed the Secretariat for
Non-Christians the Pontifical Council for Inter-Religious Dialogue. Arinze
stayed on as President. His duties are to promote and regularize relations
with non-Christian individuals and groups, and with those who, in any way,
are inclined toward religious belief. Francis Cardinal Arinze is one of
those rare persons who can communicate with others by simply looking at
them. The first thing that impresses one about him is the smile in his eyes,
a concrete sign of a life that is dedicated to sharing the love of Christ
with people. Such a gift for communication serves the cardinal well in his
work as President of the Pontifical Council for Inter-Religious Dialogue, a
post he has
held since 1985 - the same year in which he was named cardinal by Pope John
Paul II.

Reverend Konrad Raiser, Secretary-General of the World Council of Churches
Reverend Raiser is the fifth General Secretary of the World Council of
Churches (WCC), founded in 1948. The WCC has approximately 400 million
Christian members represented through more than 330 churches, denominations
and fellowships in 100 countries and territories throughout the world.
Founded in 1948, WCC works towards the universal calling, "one human family
in justice and peace." Reverend Raiser's publications include To be the
Church, Challenges and Hope for a New Millenium (1997), and Ecumenism in
Transition (1991).
 
Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson The son of impoverished parents living in South
Carolina, Jesse Jackson graduated Chicago Theological Seminary in 1965 and
was ordained a Baptist minister in 1968. During the early years of his
ministry he was a close associate of Rev. Martin Luther King, and following
Dr. King's
assassination, became one of the leaders of the Southern Christian
Leadership Conference. The Executive Director of Operation Breadbasket, Rev.
Jackson founded and led Operation PUSH (People United to Save Humanity).
Jesse Jackson was the organizer of the Rainbow Coalition and has been a
prominent figure in American Politics for many years.

Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, Chief Rabbi of Israel Rabbi Israel Meir Lau was born
in 1937 in Pyotrekov, Poland. A survivor of the Buchenwald concentration
camp, he lost both of his parents in the Holocaust. In 1946 he immigrated to
Israel, where he lived with his uncle and studied at a state religious
school in Kiryat Shmuel. He then studied at three yeshivas: Kol Torah in
Jerusalem, Knesset Hizkiya in
Zichron Ya'akov and Ponovitz in Bnei Brak. In 1971 he was ordained as a
rabbi. In 1993 he was elected Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel. Rabbi Lau's
publications include Yahadut - Halacha Le'maase (1975) on the practice of
Judaism, and Yachel Israel (1993), two volumes on medicine, ethics and
Jewish customs.

His Excellency Abdullah Salaih Al-Obaid, Secretary-General of the Muslim
World League Abdullah Al-Obaid is Secretary General of the Muslim World
League (WML). The WML was founded in 1962 to promote Islamic unity, and to
safeguard and advance the Islamic cultural and political world. His Eminence
Abdullah Al-Obaid has been especially vocal and active in identifying and
publicizing tragedies that have struck the world's Muslim population. Under
his guidance, the WML has effectively mobilized the Islamic community as
well as the broader international community into action.

Most Reverend Kuni Kuniaki, The Jingu Daiguji of the Grand Shrine of Ise
According to Shinto, the indigenous religion of Japan, the sacred is
concentrated in select places and environments. There are more than 100,000
Shinto  sanctuaries in Japan, which are at the center of spiritual life.
Historically, the Grand Shrine at Ise (simply called Jingu), has held the
most honored place among all Shinto sanctuaries. It is considered to be the
spiritual home of the Japanese people, most of whom wish to make a
pilgrimage to Jingu at least once during their lifetime. In fact, more than
six million pilgrims and worshipers come to Jingu every year.

His Eminence Sheikh Ahmad Kuftaro, Grand Mufti of the Syrian Arab Republic
His Eminence, Sheikh Ahmed Kuftaro, the Grand Mufti of Syria, Head of the
Supreme Council of Fatwa, was born in Damascus in 1915, son of Muhammad Amin
Kuftaro (1875-1938), a great scholar of his day. Since 1938, at the death of
his father, he has been the head of the Naqshabandi order, preaching and
calling for the pursuit of the universal knowledge, freedom of religion,
moral rearmament among the Muslims of the world, interfaith cooperation, and
more recently, for
protection of the global environment and for American moral leadership in
the world. The major commitment of Sheikh Ahmad Kuftaro throughout his life
has been to interfaith understanding and cooperation in pursuit of
peace-even at times when this commitment was not clearly understood or
appreciated. In 1987, His Eminence Sheikh Ahmad Kuftaro held a summit
meeting with Pope John Paul II in Malta and gave a lecture entitled
"Co-Existence in the Mediterranean." In 1981 he addressed the Academy of
Science in Moscow on "Islam and Peace," and at the Inter-Religious
Conference in May 1992 in Moscow he delivered an address on "The Principles
of Peace in the World Religions." The goal of this address was to increase
the awareness among professional clergy of their unique
responsibility in helping to avoid potential conflicts that can lead to war.

Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, Leading Talmudic Scholar An original thinker, Rabbi
Steinsaltz was born in Jerusalem and has written various works that have
been translated into a number of languages. He is a leading scholar in the
world of Talmud, having worked for the past decade on an edition of that
classic work which is intended for the contemporary student. Dr. Steinsaltz
has been a member of the Institute of Advanced Study at Princeton, and has
been involved in
interfaith activities for the realization of world peace.

His Grace Njongonkulu Ndungane, The Archbishop of Cape Town In 1960,
Njongonkulu Ndugane was involved in anti-apartheid demonstrations while a
student at the University of Cape Town. In 1963, he began a three-year
sentence on Robben Island as a political prisoner. "We have emerged from a
crucible of fire where many people have been wounded and scarred," the
bishop said. "An urgent task for the church is the transformation of agents
of brokenness into angels of healing." It is in this spirit that the
Archbishop continues the work of Archbishop
Desmond Tutu.

His Holiness Karekin II, Patriarch of the Armenian Orthodox Church His
Holiness Karekin II is the 132nd Catholicos of all Armenians. In 1965 he
entered the Theological Seminary of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin and
successfully graduated from the Seminary in 1971. On October 23, 1983, he
was ordained a bishop in the Cathedral of Holy Etchmiadzin. In November
1992, he was granted the rank of Archbishop. On November 30, 1998, upon the
Pontifical order of His Holiness Karekin I, Karekin II was appointed the
Vicar General of the Catholicos and served as the Vicar General till July 4,
1999. His Eminence is a member of the Supreme Spiritual Council.

Venerable Samdech Preah Maha Gosananda, Buddhist Nobel Prize nominee
The Supreme Patriarch of Buddhism for the Kingdom of Cambodia has been
nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize five times. He is famous for leading
peace marches throughout Cambodia and former Khmer Rouge territory (where 17
of his brothers and sisters were killed), as a form of active
reconciliation. He has been a scholar at Nalanda Buddhist University in
India, and speaks fifteen languages. Maha Ghosananda is widely recognized
for his efforts to safely remove the land mines which plague Southeast Asia.

The Venerable Master Sheng-yen Ven. Sheng-yen is widely recognized as one of
the foremost teachers in contemporary Buddhism. The impact of his teachings,
social engagement, writings and personal example has been felt throughout
the Far East, and increasingly in the West. Born in Shanghai, Ven Sheng-yen
was ordained at 13, and at 28 he had a deep spiritual experience after which
he
completed a six-year solitary retreat. Master Sheng-yen has received Dharma
transmission in the two major branches of Ch'an Buddhism, the Lin-Chi
(Japanese Rinzai), and the Ts'ao-Tung (Japanese Soto). In Zen genealogical
terms, Master Sheng-Yen is a seventy-second generation descendant of
Bodhidharma (ca. 530), the First patriarch of Ch'an, and the sixty-seventh
generation descendant of Hui-Neng (638-713), the Sixth Patriarch of Ch'an.
Within the Lin-Chi lineage, Master Sheng-yen is a sixty-second generation
descendant of Master Lin-Chi (ca.866), and a third-generation descendant of
Master Hsu-Yun (1840-1959). Master Sheng-yen is also the founder of the
Chung-Hwa Institute of Buddhist Studies in Taipei, Taiwan.

Sri Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi Sri Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi (Amma)
is considered a living saint from India who has transformed the lives of
millions of people all over the world. This benevolent humanitarian has
inspired an extensive list of charitable institutions including hospitals,
orphanages, schools, 25,000 homes for the poor, and monthly stipends to
50,000 destitute women to help alleviate human suffering and poverty. "The
world today needs solid proof that our human values are useful," said Indian
Prime Minister Attal Vajpayee at the inauguration of Amma's 925-bed Amrita
Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS) hospital for the poor. "Amma's work in
the field of spiritualism, as well as social service, provides us with the
much needed proof." Though born into the Hindu faith, Amma steadfastly
supports all great religions, encouraging adherents to go  eeper in their
own traditional path. Regarding religious rivalry, Amma says, "Hundreds
fight and die in the name of religion, but only a few realize that religion
is something that needs to be lived."

His Holiness Sri Jayendra Saraswathi Swamigal Sri Jayendra Saraswathi
Swamigal is the presiding Peetathipathi of Kamakoti Peetam, one of the
foremost Hindu institutions in the world. This ancient religious centre,
just south of Chennai in Tamil Nadu, was founded by Sri Adi Shankara.
Jayendra Saraswathi is the moving spirit behind the Sri Kanchi Kamakoti
Peetam's progressive projects. He has travelled widely all over the country
to spread the message of
'Vedanta'. In 1991, he established a Science and Arts College in the name of
Sri Adi Shankara at Ennathur.

His Excellency Dr. Mustafa Ceric, Grand Mufti of Bosnia Dr. Mustafa Ceric
has been a strong voice for both the recognition of and forgiveness for the
crimes against humanity that have occurred in the Balkans. He is also deeply
concerned with creating a stronger, peaceful relationship between Islam and
the West. In his words, "The threat is not in Islam but in our spiritual
disability to meet the
universal moral demands; the evil is not in the West, but in our cultural
insecurity. It is time that Islam be seen as a spiritual blessing in the
West and the West be seen as a call for an intellectual awakening in the
Muslim East."

Chief Oren Lyons, Faithkeeper of the Onondaga Nation Chief Oren Lyons is
Faithkeeper of the Onondaga nation of the Six Nations of the Iroquois
Confederacy, or the Haudeenosaunee. He is also professor of American Studies
at SUNY Buffalo. Lyons is an internationally recognized advocate for the
rights of indigenous peoples. He has worked with the UN on indigenous
peoples issues since the 1960's, and is a principal figure in the
Traditional Circle of the
American Indian Elders and Youth. A graduate of Syracuse University, Chief
Lyons was an All-American in Lacrosse, and is also a well-known artist.
 
His Holiness Swami Dayananda Saraswati Swami Dayananda Saraswati is a
traditional teacher of Vedanta and an eminent scholar of Sanskrit. He was
born into a traditional family in 1930 in a village in Thanjavur District,
the cultural hub of Tamilnadu. Swamiji has established three institutions of
learning and culture, two in India and one in the USA. Swamiji's teaching
and scholarship have generated international recognition as one of the
foremost authorities
of Vedanta. Swamiji has conducted many courses and delivered countless
public lectures throughout the world since 1976. It is through this medium
that he has made the wisdom of the Upanishads available to the modern world.
 
Honorable Coretta Scott King Born in Alabama in 1927, Coretta Scott is the
widow of the Reverend Martin Luther King. Following his death she assumed a
critical role in the leadership of the Civil Rights Movement, and has been
at the
forefront of the campaign to deal with issues of poverty and race in
America.

His Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj Swami Maharaj is the fifth spiritual
successor of Lord Swaminarayan, the principal deity and spiritual head of
the Bochasanwasi Swaminarayan Sanstha (BSS). Even at the age of 78, he
continuously travels, having personally counseled over 500,000 people, and
read and replied to 435,000 letters. Swamiji has also visited over 12,000
villages and
250,000 homes. His compassion for humanity, deep concern for its problems
and conscious efforts to alleviate them have given rise to numerous
international moral, social, educational, cultural and spiritual projects.
Swamiji leads the austere life of a brahmacharya-celibacy, without personal
wealth or comfort.
 
Most Venerable Eshin Watanabe, Patriarch of Tendai Buddhism The Most
Venerable Watanabe is the Patriarch of the Tendai school of Buddhism in Mt.
Hiei, Japan. The Tendai school is the cradle of Japanese Buddhism, &
represents a common historical lineage for all the various schools of
Japanese Buddhism. He is renowned for his Buddhist scholarship throughout
Japan and internationally.

Metropolitan Pitrim
(Text coming soon.)


Dada Jashan P. Vaswani Dada Jashan P. Vaswani is the spiritual head of Sadhu
Vaswani Mission in Pune, India. Dada Jashan is endowed with the gift of
oratory and eloquence. He was invited to speak at U.N.O. on Universal Peace
and at the House of Commons, London, on World Without Wars. He spoke at the
World Hindu Conferences in Sri Lanka and the United States. He was the
Keynote Speaker at the Centennial Celebrations of the World Parliament of
Religions in  New York. His fiery, thought-provoking speeches have aroused a
great deal of interest in Indian religion and culture.

AGENDA
Saturday 8/26 and Sunday, 8/27
Most Summit participants arrive in New York. Those arriving at airports will
be met by Summit volunteer staff from the BAPS organization and driven to
the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. Volunteers will wear badges and carry signs
identifying themselves as Summit representatives. At the hotel, participants
will be met by Summit staff and guided to the registration area, where they
will receive UN-approved Security badges.

Sunday, 8/27 12:00pm-7:30 pm
Registration at the Waldorf for religious leaders, their delegations, the
Summit's special guests, and observers.

Monday 8/28 9:00am-3:00pm
Registration at the Waldorf continues.
2:15pm-3:15pm - Buses and private cars (designated by UN Security placards)
leave the Waldorf for the United Nations. Buses will make two trips, at 2:15
and

3:00 p.m. Participants leading prayers in the General Assembly will be
escorted separately.

2:30pm-3:30 pm Participants and observers arrive at the 46th Street and
First Avenue entrance to the United Nations.

3:45pm-4:00pm
Walking Meditation / Solemn Procession into the General Assembly by
preeminent religious and spiritual leaders.

4:00pm-4:15pm
Opening Invocations.

4:15pm-4:20pm
Opening Statement by Bawa Jain, Secretary-General of the World Peace Summit.

4:20pm-4:25 pm
Welcome by H.E. Theo Ben-Gurirab, President of the General Assembly.

4:25pm-6:20pm
Prayers and meditations by religious and spiritual leaders from different
traditions, with intervals of music.

6:20pm-6:30pm
Closing Benedictions.

6:30pm-6:40 pm
Taiko drum performance.

9:00am-3:00pm
Buses depart for the Waldorf.

Tuesday 8/29
The General Assembly Hall, United Nations
8:15am-8:45am
Buses leave the Waldorf for the United Nations.

9:30am-12:30pm
Opening Blessing: The Archbishop of Capetown.

Introductory remarks by Bawa Jain. Keynote Speech by the Secretary-General
of the United Nations, Kofi A. Annan.

Session I: "A Call to Dialogue."
Addresses by religious leaders.
Music.

Session II: "The Role of Religion in Conflict Transformation."
Addresses by religious leaders.
1:00pm-2:45pm
Official Banquet Luncheon, with the Secretary-General and Mrs. Annan, in the
Delegates' Dining Room for approximately 500 religious leaders and special
guests. (Summit observers will be directed to the UN cafeteria and other
venues.)

3:00pm-6:00pm
Session III: "Towards Forgiveness & Reconciliation." Addresses by religious
leaders. - Music.

Session IV: "Ending the Violence of Poverty and Environmental Degradation."
Addresses by religious leaders.

6:15pm-6:45pm
Leaders and delegations leave the U.N. for the Waldorf.

8:00pm-10:00pm
World Peace Summit Music Concert at the Waldorf.

Wednesday, 8/30 - Waldorf-Astoria
9:00am-10:50am
Opening Plenary introducing four themes, based on a series of trialogues
that highlight key issues:

* Conflict transformation
* Forgiveness and reconciliation
* Elimination of poverty
* Environmental Preservation

11:00am-1:00pm - Working Session I
* Conflict Transformation: The Balkans
* Forgiveness and Reconciliation: Focus on nations rebuilding after
conflict.
Poverty: Is This How the World Should Be?
* Focus on Guatemalan challenges and initiatives.
Environment: The Scope of the Crisis

1:00pm-2:45pm - Lunch
3:00pm-5:30pm - Working Session II

Conflict Transformation:
* Group A: Russia and Central Asia
* Group B: The Middle East
Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Poverty: Revitalizing the Resources of Religion
Development issues in Asia and Africa, and the role religious communities
play in the elimination of poverty.
* Trustees of the Environment: The wisdom of the indigenous
traditions.
* Evening
Free time for private meetings among delegates.
Thursday, 8/31
Waldorf-Astoria

8:30am-9:30am
Press breakfast with selected religious leaders.

9:30am-12:00pm
Working Session III
Conflict Transformation:
* Group A: Indonesia and Sri Lanka
* Group B: Africa

12:30pm-2:30pm - Lunch
3:00pm-5:00pm
Concluding Plenary: Reports from Working Sessions on Initiatives.

5:00pm-5:30pm - Closing Prayers and Music.
6:30-8:00 pm - Closing Reception.

*******************************************************

From: David T. Lemmon [mailto:lemmonet@newave.net]
To: David T. Lemmon
Subject: Christianity Attacked at U.N. Summit

Turner Attacks Christianity at U.N. 'Peace Summit'

Austin Ruse
Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2000

Any pretense that the "World Peace Summit" is anything other than a
cover for a left-leaning agenda was stripped away as American media
mogul Ted Turner addressed nearly 1,000 hooting delegates Tuesday in
the U.N. General Assembly Hall.

New Age billionaire Maurice Strong introduced Turner by saying he had
done more for peace, the environment and the United Nations than any
other person. Turner bounded toward the podium as the cheering crowd
seemed to welcome a conquering hero.

Immediately Turner denounced his own childhood Christian faith. The
crowd's laughter turned to approving whoops as Turner explained he
turned away from Christianity when he discovered "it was intolerant
because it taught we were the only ones going to heaven. That confused
the devil out of me since that would have left heaven a very empty
place."

Turner's meandering, off-the-cuff speech praised "indigenous"
religious faiths and then wandered through a paean to the things all
humans have in common - "culture, language, love of birds,
butterflies, wives and flowers." In his spiritual search Turner
realized that there was one God and multiple ways he manifests himself
and that it makes little difference which one is chosen. This approach
is precisely what evangelical Christians fear about the World Peace
Summit.

Among a small group of conservative Christians monitoring the event,
Darren Logan, foreign policy analyst for the Washington-based Family
Research Council, called Turner's speech "the most blasphemous thing I
have ever heard in my life."

Logan said Turner advanced the notion of "reductionism," which
suggests that all religions are essentially the same. "Turner believes
true tolerance means doing away with the uniqueness of all faiths, and
marginalizing all faiths that profess an exclusive component like
Christianity and Islam," said Logan.

Contrasted with the enthusiastic reception for Turner's left-leaning
remarks, the delegates gave an icy reception to the Patriarch of
Ethiopia, who urged protection for unborn children. The same reaction
greeted the assistant secretary general of the Muslim World Congress
when he urged delegates to recognize only marriage between "a man and
a woman" and denounced all "abnormal sexual activities."

Minutes later a Buddhist "master" received a standing ovation when he
condemned all attempts at religious conversion, something at the heart
of Islam and Christianity.

As it is, the summit is taking place under a cloud for excluding the
Dalai Lama under pressure from the government of China; and
evangelical Christians have pointed out that only one representative
from their ranks, the Rev. Billy Graham's daughter, has appeared at
the podium.

The reaction of the delegates fuels the growing suspicion that the
permanent advisory to be established here will simply rubberstamp the
agenda of Ted Turner, Maurice Strong and other powerful leftists
working within the U.N. system.

Also see Three U.N.
<http://www.newsmax.com/articles/?a=2000/8/28/193748> Summits Alarm