NEW YORK (ABP) — Rep. Ed Schrock (R-Va.), one of Congress' staunchest opponents of gay rights, has declined to seek re-election to a third term in the House after a Washington activist's website claimed the congressman solicited sex with men…
Supporters fund documentary to highlight Bush’s faith image
NEW YORK (ABP) — A group of President Bush's supporters has produced a documentary that attempts to solidify his credentials among American evangelicals in time for the election. Producers held screenings of “George W. Bush: Faith in the White House”…
GOP speakers tout presidential faith in midst of anti-Kerry rhetoric
NEW YORK (ABP) — Amid searing rhetoric on national-security issues, at least two speakers at the Republican National Convention focused on the faith and character of presidents. Renegade Democratic Sen. Zell Miller of Georgia, delivering the convention's keynote address Sept….
Speakers present moderate face of GOP, as religion takes back seat
NEW YORK (ABP) — The Republican platform adopted Aug. 30 calls for reinstating prayer in public schools and banning all abortions. Meanwhile, delegates to the Republican National Convention heard prime-time speeches from leaders with more moderate views on some social…
Gay, other moderate GOPers complain as party delegates approve platform
NEW YORK (ABP) — Shortly before delegates to their party's convention approved a platform that called for amending the Constitution to ban same-sex marriage, the Log Cabin Republicans denounced what the group's director called a hijacking of the party by…
Christian leaders denounce Falwell, Robertson in New York Times ad
NEW YORK (ABP) — Declaring that “God is not a Republican. Or a Democrat,” a broad group of evangelical, mainline and Catholic Christian leaders has issued a high-profile response to recent comments by Religious Right leaders appearing to endorse President…
Longtime Mars Hill president dies following bout with cancer
MORGANTON, N.C. (ABP) — Fred Blake Bentley, president emeritus of Mars Hill College, died August 26 at his home on Lake James, near Morganton. Bentley, 68, had fought colon cancer since it was diagnosed in January 2002. When Bentley became…
SemiNEXT reaches out to strengthen church starters
HOUSTON (ABP) — Church planters worldwide will no longer have to leave their places of service temporarily to receive specialized theological training thanks to SemiNEXT, an online educational program being developed by Houston-area Baptist leaders. This fall organizers are unveiling…
Church re-start in Greenville spearheads future work with rural poor
GREENVILLE, Miss. (ABP) — Leaders in Mississippi are using the rebirth of a church in Greenville to spearhead long-term missions initiatives in the Mississippi Delta and establish a starting point for work with the rural poor. Located in Greenville, Harvest…
New poll on voters and religion shows strengths for both parties
WASHINGTON (ABP) — A new poll suggests that American voters hold complex — and seemingly contradictory — views on religion and politics. The poll's results were released Aug. 24 by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life and the…
Cheney differs with Bush on marriage amendment
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Vice President Dick Cheney surprised many of his and President Bush's most conservative supporters by publicly differing with the president on the issue of same-sex marriage Aug. 24. The next day, Republican Party officials ratified platform language…
Second federal judge rules against ‘partial-birth’ abortion ban
NEW YORK (ABP) — A second federal judge has ruled against the government's ban on so-called “partial birth” abortions, saying the federal law passed by Congress last year is unconstitutional. The Aug. 26 ruling by U.S. District Judge Richard Casey…