OUR COLUMNISTS Religious Communities Hardly Score with TIME Commentary by Matt Friedeman You'd think that in trying to identify a hundred people who have had a positive influence in the world over the past year, that TIME Magazine could drum up a healthy list of those known for their relationship with God and service to those less fortunate. Think again. GOWYL (Get On With Your Life) Commentary by Jane Jimenez Much of the dialogue about marriage is focused on the problems of modern marriage. Is marriage doomed to failure ... even extinction? My 'Worthless' Job Commentary by Brad Locke Ever wonder why you are doing what you're doing? Not all of us are given lead roles. But God does not look down on the supporting actors, if you will, or think them less important than anyone else. The Gospel of Judas: A Betrayal of the Truth Commentary by Mark Creech It's being hailed as the greatest archaeological find in the last 60 years. But those who either promote or embrace extra-biblical revelation such as the Gospel of Judas betray the truth, even as the real Judas Himself did, and crucify the Son of God afresh.

...Responding to a judicial ruling it says ignored the law as well as the will of President Bush, Congress, and local citizens, the Thomas More Law Center (TMLC) says the final chapter has not yet been written about a mountaintop cross in San Diego. Last week, U.S. District Judge Gordon Thompson ordered that the cross atop Mt. Soledad, which has been an integral part of a veterans war memorial since it was erected in 1954, be removed within 90 days or face fines of $5,000 per day thereafter. The Mt. Soledad cross has been the center of an ongoing legal battle since 1989, when atheist Philip Paulson sued for its removal, claiming it violated the so-called "separation of church and state." TMLC president and chief counsel Richard Thompson says he finds the judge's decision last week troubling. "[Judge Thompson] not only ignored the change in the law and facts since his 1991 order [which precipitated the legal scuffle]," says the attorney, "but he ignored the will of Congress and the United State President that made the Mt. Soledad cross a part of a national memorial, and he ignored the will of San Diego citizens who overwhelmingly voted to maintain the cross as the centerpiece of this memorial." The TMLC spokesman is referring to a December 2004 Capitol Hill designation of the cross and the surrounding land as a national veterans memorial -- and to a subsequent voter initiative (July 2005) approved by 76% of San Diego voters that authorized transfer of the property to the National Park Service. "[W]e will do everything we can to correct this miscarriage of justice to Americans of all faiths who have been honored by this memorial," says the attorney. That includes several options, he explains, including: asking President Bush to take the land under the federal government's powers of eminent domain; continuing to offer its legal services pro bono should the city of San Diego choose to appeal this latest decision; and seeking a stay of that decision through a higher court so that appeals can take place. The Thomas More Law Center has been intimately involved in the legal battle since 2004, when it devised the legal plan to designate the land a national veterans memorial. [Jody Brown]

...The trend toward accommodating religious needs at work means more than giving time off during Passover or on Good Friday or other religious holidays. Religion and spirituality also are seeping into work settings across the country -- often in ways that were taboo just years ago, says Associated Press. The changes may be driven by spiritual awakening by employees seeking fellowship as they spend added time at work or by executives' realization that moral and ethical standards are part of the values of a good business. Workplaces are getting doses of faith via mission statements, prayer breaks, study groups, spirituality retreats, grief counseling services, and advertisements. Although some businesses shun the phrases "Merry Christmas" and "Happy Easter," many employers say they are accepting or welcoming workers' search for spirituality at the office. Employers and workers also say that although spirituality is growing, they also must respect the views of employees and customers. Kent Humphreys, president of Christ@Work, an Oklahoma City-based group for Christian executives, says it is hard to count the number of at-work prayer groups, but that there has "just been an explosion of interest." [AP]

...A teacher in Kentucky is considering what to do about being suspended from her job after officials learned she appeared in an adult movie more than ten years ago. The teacher tells WKYX in Paducah that she was in the adult entertainment business for only a matter of hours, recognized her mistake, and turned her life around. Now, she is a Christian -- and wants the Bible Belt community to practice forgiveness. She explains she has bipolar disorder and agreed to appear in the 1995 movie because she had no home or income and her disease was not being treated. She is hopeful the community will stand up for the Christian standards it preaches. "We are in the Bible Belt, right? We're supposed to be known as Christians in this region -- and that's really what I'm asking for," she says. "I've found Christ. I've found medication for bipolar disease. I got an education, which was something I never thought I could do, and became a teacher." She has supporters. One mother took her daughter out of school to attend a rally in support of the teacher. [AP]

...An official with Concerned Women for America is upset over a Harvard study that challenges the authenticity of pledges made by teenagers to abstain from premarital sex. According to the Harvard study, teens who pledge to save sex for marriage break their vows within the first year; and those who have premarital sex are likely to say they never made a vow of abstinence in the first place. Dr. Janice Crouse, senior fellow of the Beverly LaHaye Institute at CWA, says teenagers who vow to remain abstinent until marriage should be encouraged. "We have seen dramatic turnarounds," the family advocate says. "The left and every expert out there thought that some of these trends were not reversible -- there was just no way you could turn them around. But now we're seeing teen pregnancies are down, teen abortions are down. Of the teens that started early sexual activity, two-thirds of them say they wish they had waited." Crouse contends abstinence education is the only effective tool to teach young men and women the dangers of promiscuous behavior. And yet liberals often try and debunk abstinence programs, says Crouse, because there are millions of dollars in federal funds at stake. [Allie Martin]

...A pro-family organization in Michigan is mobilizing forces to protest magazine displays in grocery story checkout lines. Bill Johnson's American Decency Association says he is tired of the risqué magazine displays along the checkout line, and his group wants to do something about it. "If there's a place where Christians can win the battle against indecency, it ought to be at the checkout counter," says Johnson. "And it's greatly concerning to us because we believe there are numbers of people who are really alarmed by the pornographic nature, the verbiage, the actual pictures themselves [on the magazine covers]." The vulgar nature of many of the magazines can wield an influence, he contends. "Little by little, that which we tolerate and that which we then accept ... does work its way down into the very moral fiber of our country," eventually becoming the "cultural norm," he says. Particularly upsetting to Johnson's group is the current issue of Cosmopolitan, which is devoted to sexual fulfillment techniques for women. The American Decency Association website offers several strategies individuals can take when they encounter indecency at the checkout counters. [Bill Fancher]

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