April 22, 2002
___ Kim to speak at HPU. Billy Kim, president of the Baptist World Alliance, will deliver Howard Payne University's commencement address to more than 250 graduates April 27. The university also will grant honorary doctorates to Trudy Kim, Beth Moore and Britt Towery Jr. Billy Kim is pastor of Suwon Central Baptist Church in Suwon, Korea. Trudy, his wife, is superintendent at Suwon Central Christian Academy. Moore is a popular Bible teacher and author from Houston. Towery is a former Southern Baptist missionary to Taiwan and Hong Kong.
___ DBU offers leadership camps. Dallas Baptist University will offer two sessions of its PaceSetters servant leadership summer camps. The dates are June 3-7 and June 10-14. The camps are held on the DBU campus. The weeklong adventures are for high school students who want to impact their world as servant leaders. PaceSetters combines teaching and worship with opportunities to serve. Glowing Heart, DBU's music ministry team, will lead worship and serve as mentors of small groups. Cost of the camp is $110, which includes meals, lodging, T-shirt and camp notebook. A $50 non-refundable deposit, which is applied toward the total balance, must be received by Wednesday, May 15, for early registration. For more information, call (214) 333
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| ANN BELL |
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___ Singles conference meets. Ann Bell (above), associate pastor of Woodland Baptist Church in San Antonio, speaks to the Texas Single Adult Conference held earlier this month at Riverbend Baptist Church in San Antonio. The annual conference is sponsored by the Baptist General Convention of Texas.
___ Murchison to Baylor. Former Dallas Morning News columnist William Murchison has been named a visiting professor of journalism at Baylor University. From 1986 to 2001, his weekly column was syndicated nationwide by Creators Syndicate. At Baylor, he will teach "Religion and the Media" and "Editorial and Column Writing."___ Bush & Cheney charitable gifts noted. President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, gave nearly 12 percent of their income to charity in 2001, down from the 16 percent they gave the previous year. The Bushes reported an adjusted gross income of $811,100 and charitable donations of $82,700. Vice President Dick Cheney and his wife had a taxable income of $4.3 million in 2001 and gave $79,275 or 1.8 percent to charity.
___ TV sex & violence down. The amount of television entertainment involving sex and violence dropped between 1999 and 2001, according to a study by the Washington-based Center for Media and Public Affairs. The study found the amount of sex decreased by 29 percent and the amount of serious violence fell by 17 percent. The media research think tank found much of the decline occurred on the four major broadcast networks, ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox. Overall, the amount of sex on broadcast and cable television decreased from 17 scenes per hour in the 1998-99 season to 12 scenes per hour in 2000-2001. In prime-time television series across the board in 2000-2001, there was an average of 15 violent scenes per hour, a 17 percent decline from the average of 18 scenes per hour in the 1998-99 season.
___ Falwell's church wins case. In response to a lawsuit from Jerry Falwell, a federal court in Virginia has ruled that the state's 18th century law barring churches from incorporation is unconstitutional. "Unlike other groups in Virginia, members of 'a church or religious denomination' are unable to incorporate the organization to which they belong," wrote U.S. District Judge Norman Moon in a decision issued April 15. "They are therefore denied the benefits of incorporation because of their religious status," which is unconstitutional.
___ Dobson dismisses California schools. James Dobson is urging parents not to send their kids to public schools in California for fear they could be corrupted by a pro-homosexual agenda. "In the state of California, ... if I had a child there, I wouldn't put that youngster in a public school," Dobson told his Focus on the Family radio audience March 28. His reason: "they're being taught homosexual propaganda and these other politically correct, post-modern views." Tom Adams, administrator for California's department of education "curriculum frameworks," said he was unaware of any pro-homosexual curriculum being taught in the state's public schools.
___ Thousands rally for Israel. They came all the way from Los Angeles and Canada with flags and banners. They were hot and tired--many of them riding buses and trains for hours. But for the tens of thousands of people who came to a pro-Israel rally held on the Capitol grounds April 15, it was a small price to pay for a chance to show their solidarity with Israel. "I've ... come here today ... to thank all of you for standing up for the Jewish state when so many outside America sit silent," said former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, one of the speakers. Malcolm Hoenlein, executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations, organizer of the event, said the "unbelievable" turnout reflected a shared commitment for Israel to defend itself.
___ Christian groups criticize kid porn ruling. Conservative Christian groups criticized an April 16 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that struck down the Child Pornography Prevention Act. In a 6-3 decision, the high court found that portions of the law banning virtual child pornography were unconstitutional. The Supreme Court said the First Amendment protects pornography or other images that merely appear to depict real children or teenagers involved in sexual activity. "The Supreme Court clears the way for pornographers to use the First Amendment as a shield and gives them a green light to engage in this kind of Internet activity," said Jay Sekulow, chief counsel of the American Center for Law and Justice. "The court failed to close a legal loophole that can only diminish efforts to protect children and punish pornographers."
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