OUR COLUMNISTS Time for the Church to Demand Commentary by Matt Friedeman A high level of ideological commitment to evangelistic action and a lower level of secularism separates the church significantly from, say, the Rotary Club. Today, one senses that people yearn to belong to something with greater meaning and sense of purpose than the local civic organization. Planning to Have an Emergency Commentary by Jane Jimenez The recent debates about emergency contraception rely on one thing ... our failure to know a true emergency when we see one. The T.O. Show Commentary by Brad Locke When does someone stop being worth the trouble? When do an athlete's shenanigans start costing a team more than a fat contract? When do you deliver an ultimatum? Amnesia Commentary by David Sisler What would it be like to wake up and not remember the evil that you had done, the people you had hurt, the sins you had committed? What would you pay for a little selective amnesia? A Rebuttal, Promises, and Challenge to the Raleigh News & Observer Commentary by Mark Creech Columnist Mark Creech responds to charges from a North Carolina newspaper that he misinformed readers and thereby created "negative perceptions of traditional media."

...Responding to widespread destruction in the Southeastern U.S. caused by Hurricane Katrina, World Relief has announced that it will be equipping churches in the affected area with resources needed to clean up and rebuild. According to a Religion News Service release, the Baltimore, Maryland-based international relief and development organization recognizes that churches in Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Louisiana already make up a grassroots volunteer network that can be mobilized immediately given the proper resources. This approach to disaster relief follows the response model World Relief used in Indonesia after the December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami disaster as well as in other relief efforts led by the ministry during its 60-year history. World Relief will be working with participating churches to provide assistance solely on the basis of need, thus encouraging outreach to entire communities. In the coming weeks, relief volunteers will need chainsaws, containers to haul away debris, tools, and other items that will require a cash influx. Donors wishing to contribute to the agency's Hurricane Relief fund may do so at www.worldrelief.org or by calling 1-800-535-5433. [Jenni Parker]

...A new poll shows that efforts by the Democratic Party to attract more of America's religious voters is so far proving to be a failure. In the aftermath of the Democrats' 2004 election loss, party officials have been working to try to find some way to attract the bloc that has become known as the "values voters." But the new poll from the Pew Research Center finds that the campaign is not only not succeeding -- but it may even be backfiring. John Green is a senior fellow in religion and American politics at the Pew Center. He notes that, according to the Center's research, "Last summer, about 40 percent of Americans said that they thought the Democratic Party was friendly towards religion, and in our most recent survey it had fallen to 29 percent." And Green says the recent poll also asked people how they felt about creationism being taught in public schools, and once again, the results were unexpected. "Much to our surprise," Green tells Associated Press, "a very large proportion of the population, about two thirds, said, 'Gee, let's teach both. Let's teach something of the creationist perspective but also something from the evolution perspective.'" The poll of 2,000 adults was carried out in the first few weeks of July. [Fred Jackson]

...The United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, plans to continue having its chaplains say grace before mandatory lunch for its more than 4,000 midshipmen, despite a policy issued this week by the U.S. Air Force to discourage most public prayer. The Air Force's new policy says prayer "should not usually be included in official settings such as staff meetings, office meetings, classes or officially sanctioned activities." The Naval Academy is the only U.S. military institution that holds formal prayer at lunch, a ritual that might date to its founding in 1845. The Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in 2003 that mealtime prayers at the Virginia Military Institute violated the First Amendment. The Air Force Academy holds 20 seconds of silence before lunch, and no prayer precedes the noon meal at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York. [AP]

...A recent Barna Research Group survey finds that 67 percent of Alabamians can be classified as "Born Again," making theirs the state with the highest concentration of born-again Christians in the United States. Christian Coalition of Alabama president John Giles says that means "Alabama ranks first place in the nation in Christianity" since the state "leads the nation in the percentage of residents that claim faith in Christ." Giles believes this high ranking explains many of the state's powerful dynamics, which he sees as playing a role in the defeat of the expansion of gambling, the demand for good stewardship in government spending, and increasing positive influences on the legislative agenda. "If anything good needs to happen or if anything bad needs to be blocked, Alabamians can meet that challenge," the CCA spokesman asserts. He also feels the Barna survey results explain why citizens of his state are so generous to the poor. According to the 2004 Generosity Index published by the Catalogue for Philanthropy, Alabamians ranked 38th in personal assets but 7th in giving, resulting in an overall rating of 5th in the nation. The fact that Alabama currently leads the nation in Christianity is "a testament to our fine and tirelessly dedicated clergy across this state," Giles contends. In light of the Alabama faith community's powerful dynamic, he looks forward to the 2006 State Primary, when he says the Christian vote will potentially bring about the largest percentage of state support for protecting traditional marriage to date. [Jenni Parker]

...A New York-based coalition in hoping the U.S. Department of Homeland Security secretary is going to follow through on his pledge to get tough on the illegal immigration problem. Amanda Bowman, president of the Coalition for a Secure Driver's License, says she is encouraged that Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff has recently said he is taking a renewed look at the problem of illegal immigration. Bowman says her organization hopes the result will include enforcement of the Real I.D. Act, which prohibits illegal aliens from obtaining valid state driver's licenses. "What we realized," she explains, "was that it was an American driver's license that was the singular document that enabled the [9/11] terrorists to board planes, open bank accounts, transfer funds, et cetera. The reason we are waging this fight is not because we're targeting illegal immigrants per se. But what we are trying to do is to get an authenticated identity behind a drivers license." Bowman adds that the Homeland Security Department also needs to compel governors such as New Mexico's Bill Richardson, Pennsylvania's Ed Rendell, Iowa's Tom Vilsack, and Arkansas' Mike Huckabee to obey the Real I.D. Act. [Chad Groening]

...Some American religious leaders have crossed the border from Arizona into Mexico, where they spoke with teens who had been caught trying to enter the United States. Rev. Raul Trevizo, vicar general for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson, says, "Regardless of how many walls are built, how many Border Patrol agents are hired, religious leaders have a grave responsibility to look at this from a humanitarian perspective." He was joined by Rev. Bob Edgar, general secretary of the National Council of Churches. They agreed to work toward creation of a legal means for workers and their families to migrate to the United States safely with their rights fully protected. [AP]

...One conservative analyst sees the just completed joint military operations involving Russian and Chinese forces as a threat the United States needs to take more seriously. Howard Phillips of the Conservative Caucus says, "This is another wakeup call -- there have been dozens of them -- about the fact that Communist China is a gathering threat to the security of the United States." In fact, he contends the joint military operations are nothing short of "a challenge to President Bush. Basically they're saying, 'Well, what are you going to do about it?' And unfortunately, we're not doing very much at all." Moreover, the Conservative Caucus spokesman points out that China has been steadily building up its naval forces while the U.S. has reduced its fleet from 600 to 289 ships. "The Communist Chinese are building their capabilities," he says, and he is convinced they are doing so with definite purpose. "This latest joint venture with Russia is in preparation for a potential military assault [by] the Republic of China on Taiwan," Phillips says. [Bill Fancher]

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