[Faith-talk] "Republican Party Needs to Leave God Behind"

Thu Nov 27 12:32:59 UTC 2008

First, "Happy Thanksgiving!"  ;-)

I thought this might be of interest to some of you. 
There's stats below on the news coverage, or lack of 
it, in the recent election.  There's also an absolutely 
ignorant quote by one of the media's leaders.  What a 
putz.  Yet the sentiment is typical from unbelievers. 
They think God is merely a tool for poolitical 
posturing.

To that I share this bit of scripture:

Romans 1:19-22
"Since what may be known about God is plain to them, 
because God has made it plain to them.
For since the creation of the world God's invisible 
qualities--His eternal power and divine nature--has 
been clearly seen, being understood from what has been 
made, so that men are without excuse.
For although they knew God, they neither glorified him 
as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking 
became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.
Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools."

Talk about being blind, huh?  Anyway, the summary and 
link to the stats are below, for anyone interested.

Strive On--and God Bless Your Efforts,
Everett
www.everettgavel.com

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "CitizenLink" <citizenlink at family.org>
Sent: Wednesday, November 26, 2008 6:05 PM
Subject: Nov. 26: Election News Coverage Ignored 
Religion

CITIZENLINK DAILY UPDATE
Nov. 26, 2008

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Subject line: Election News Coverage Ignored Religion
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EDITOR'S NOTE
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The CitizenLink team will be spending Thursday and 
Friday with friends
and family, so your next Daily Update will arrive 
Monday, Dec. 1. Happy
Thanksgiving!

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TURN SIGNAL
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Dustup in California Highlights the Plight of Kids in 
Foster Care

http://capwiz.com/fof/utr/1/OVBSJMKYOO/NWAPJMKYRL/2669646891

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TOP STORY
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Election News Coverage Largely Ignored Religion
by Jennifer Mesko, editor

SUMMARY: 'The mainstream media are utterly clueless as 
to how to cover
religious issues.'

Just 4 percent of the general election news coverage 
focused on
religion. More than half of those stories dealt with 
Sen. Barack Obama,
while 8.5 percent featured Sen. John McCain.

Social issues - including abortion, same-sex "marriage" 
and
stem-cell research - accounted for less than 1 percent 
of campaign
news overall.

These are some of the findings of a new study conducted 
by the Pew
Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism 
and Pew Forum
on Religion & Public Life. The study examined 
religion-focused
election coverage in 48 news outlets between June 1 and 
Oct. 15.

"The study confirms what was obvious throughout the 
campaign: the
mainstream media are utterly clueless as to how to 
cover religious
issues," said Bruce Hausknecht, judicial analyst for 
Focus on the
Family Action. "They gravitate to the sensational, 
ignore or
misreport the ordinary, and show a propensity for 
belittling religious
belief in general. The media's disdain for religion was 
never more
apparent than in the coverage of Governor Palin, which 
ranged from the
ridiculous to the malicious."

Washington Post columnist Kathleen Parker recently 
concluded that, in
order to survive, the Republican Party needs to leave 
God behind.

http://capwiz.com/fof/utr/1/OVBSJMKYOO/JCVUJMKYRM/2669646891

"Shifting demographics suggest that the Republican 
Party - and
conservatism with it - eventually will die out unless 
religion is
returned to the privacy of one's heart where it 
belongs," she
writes.

Dr. James Dobson, founder and chairman of Focus on the 
Family, said
Christians will not be silenced - efforts of big media
notwithstanding.

http://capwiz.com/fof/utr/1/OVBSJMKYOO/MFWWJMKYRN/2669646891

(NOTE: Referral to Web sites not produced by Focus on 
the Family is for
informational purposes only and does not necessarily 
constitute an
endorsement of the sites' content.)

(JMM/1 hour/ AP)

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NEWS
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Florida Judge Rules against Gay Adoption Ban

A Florida judge Tuesday ruled that a state law banning 
homosexuals from
adopting children is unconstitutional.

Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Cindy Lederman said the 
31-year-old law
violates equal protection rights for the children and 
their prospective
gay parents.

John Stemberger, president and general counsel for the 
Florida Family
Policy Council, called the ruling "classic judicial
activism."

"Everywhere in the law where children are affected, the 
standard
must always be what is in the best interest of the 
child," he told
the Associated Press. "What is stunning to me is that 
when it
comes to dealing with gays, that standard goes out the 
window. Children
do better with a mother and a father."

The Florida Department of Children & Families plans to 
file an appeal.
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Obama Appoints Abortion Activists to His Team

President-elect Barack Obama hasn't wasted any time 
advancing his
radical pro-abortion agenda.

Over the weekend, Obama appointed Ellen Moran, 
executive director of
Emily's List, as his White House communications 
director. Emily's List
is a group that spends hundreds of millions of dollars 
funding
pro-abortion Democrat candidates.

Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, 
said it comes
as no surprise to those who followed Obama's record 
that he is forming
such a strongly pro-abortion team:

"Ms. Moran's fealty to abortion is so strong that after 
the
Supreme Court upheld the ban on partial-birth abortion, 
she saw it as a
call to arms to raise more funds for her group to work 
towards
overturning the decision and cut off funding for 
politicians who voted
to ban the gruesome practice."

Obama also recently named Melody Barnes, who formerly 
served on the
boards of Emily's List and Planned Parenthood, as his 
director of
Domestic Policy Council.

"President-elect Obama was arguably the most 
pro-abortion member
of the U.S. Senate," said Ashley Horne, federal policy 
analyst for
Focus on the Family Action. "As such, his selection of 
staff who
share his pro-abortion views is disappointing but not 
surprising."

FOR MORE INFORMATION

The Susan B. Anthony List is a national Political 
Action Committee
dedicated to raising money for pro-life candidates and 
counterbalance
Emily's List.

http://capwiz.com/fof/utr/1/OVBSJMKYOO/ISFQJMKYRO/2669646891/

- Devon Williams

(NOTE: Referral to Web sites not produced by Focus on 
the Family is for
informational purposes only and does not necessarily 
constitute an
endorsement of the sites' content.)

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Good News: 'Merry Tossmas' Inspires Shoppers to Take a 
Stand for Christmas

After watching "Merry Tossmas 2008," a video commentary 
in
which Stuart Shepard asks retailers to acknowledge 
Christmas, a
California shopper was inspired to do her part.

http://capwiz.com/fof/utr/1/OVBSJMKYOO/EORWJMKYRP/2669646891

Theresa Stinchfield, of Sacramento, was shopping at her 
favorite
Raley's grocery store when she noticed a bin of 
"Holiday
Wreaths" for sale. Stinchfield respectfully shared her
disappointment with management and explained that she 
couldn't spend
money in stores that avoid use of the word "Christmas."

To Stinchfield's surprise, the store agreed to 
immediately change the signs.

"When I left out the same door with my $120 worth of 
Thanksgiving
groceries, the signs had indeed been changed," she 
said.
"They now read: 'Christmas Wreaths $12.99.'

"I can't change the world, but piping up made for a 
change in one
tiny corner of mine! Thank you for the inspiration to 
quit being a
whiny bench warmer!"

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Listen to Friday's broadcast about redeeming the 
Christmas season.
http://capwiz.com/fof/utr/1/OVBSJMKYOO/IOYFJMKYRQ/2669646891

Join the "I Stand for Christmas" campaign, and let your 
voice
be heard.
http://capwiz.com/fof/utr/1/OVBSJMKYOO/BXGCJMKYRR/2669646891

View our Christmas-Friendly Shopping Guide
http://capwiz.com/fof/utr/1/OVBSJMKYOO/JTTPJMKYRS/2669646891

- Devon Williams
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ALSO OF NOTE
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Facing the Holidays after Divorce

A first step is to be honest about your emotional pain 
and give
yourself permission to grieve.

http://capwiz.com/fof/utr/1/OVBSJMKYOO/KEXEJMKYRT/2669646891

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Family News in Focus

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QUOTEWORTHY
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"We can only be said to be alive in those moments when 
our hearts
are conscious of our treasures."

- Thornton Wilder, author

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