September 2, 2002
Moderate Baptist publisher makes run for
Congress with Religious Right's backing
___By Bob Allen
___Associated Baptist Press
___ROME, Ga. (ABP)--The principal owner of the publishing house of choice for many Southern Baptist moderates is running for Congress--as a conservative.
___Cecil Staton, president of Smyth & Helwys Publishing in Macon, Ga., faces a Sept. 10 runoff for the Republican nomination for the U.S. House of Representatives in Georgia's newly formed 11th congressional district.
___In his first bid for public office, the 44-year-old Staton finished second in a three-way primary race Aug. 20, gaining 33 percent of the Republican ballot (10,186 votes), behind state Sen. Phil Gingrey, a 60-year-old obstetrician from Marietta, with 39 percent. The third Republican, Bob Herriott of Carrollton, got 28 percent, setting up a runoff between Staton and Gingrey.
"AS A MEMBER of the NRA, I understand that one of the most endangered freedoms in our democracy is our right to keep and bear arms," Staton is quoted as saying on his campaign website, where this photo of Staton also is posted.
___The winner of the runoff will face Roger Kahn, a millionaire businessman from Rydal, in the general election this fall. Kahn won the Democratic primary over former Congressman Buddy Darden.
___Staton and three others started the for-profit publisher Smyth & Helwys in 1990 amid concerns that books published by the Southern Baptist Convention would offer only a "fundamentalist" point of view. The company started publishing curriculum for Sunday School in 1991. It is counted among the partner ministries of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship but receives no funding from CBF.
___Through the last two decades, fundamentalists who have gained leadership roles in the SBC often have been identified with conservative and ultra-conservative Republican politicians. The convention has passed numerous resolutions positioning itself with the Religious Right.
___The CBF, meanwhile, is generally viewed as more moderate and tolerant of differing views. Former President Jimmy Carter claimed the CBF as his spiritual home when he publicly severed his lifelong ties to the SBC two years ago. Bill Clinton also has said he is more comfortable with the SBC's moderate wing, which is embodied in the CBF.
___Some moderates are surprised, therefore, when they log onto the Internet site www.statonforcongress.org, and find the moderate Baptist leader endorsed by Religious Right figures such as Phyllis Schlafly, Gary Bauer and Alan Keyes. One prominent SBC conservative pastor in Georgia, former Home Mission Board Chairman Clark Hutchison, pastor of First Baptist Church of Cartersville, also backs Staton, while another, Nelson Price of Marietta, supports his Roman Catholic opponent.
___Staton, who describes himself as a lifelong Republican, also touts conservative positions on issues including guns, abortion and parental choice in education. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution described him as the "most conservative" candidate in the three-way Republican primary.
___When he chose a name for his alternative publishing venture in the early 1990s, Staton honored two figures from Baptist history. John Smyth and Thomas Helwys were Baptist leaders in England in the 17th century, once described in an article by Staton as "two individuals who stood for the separation of church and state and the freedom of the soul before God."
___A press release on the candidate's Web site, however, quotes Staton as saying: "The phrase 'separation of church and state' does not appear in our constitution. Only Republicans are willing to appoint judges to the bench who say what the constitution says--not what the liberals want it to say."
___Smyth & Helwys has published numerous books on the topic, with titles including "The Myth of Christian America: What You Need to Know about the Separation of Church and State." Some see that as a contradiction.
___"I don't think there's a single Smyth & Helwys publication that takes (Staton's) perspective," said James Dunn, a Wake Forest Divinity School professor who has written for the firm. "I respectfully disagree with Cecil and his perspective on church-state separation."
___"I'm shocked and surprised at Cecil's statements, because they represent a sharp divergence from things he's said in the past about church-state separation as an essential corollary for religious freedom," said Dunn, former director of the Baptist Joint Committee on Public Affairs.
___Staton declined to comment on the record about his campaign.
___David Cassady, executive vice president and acting publisher, said Staton's political campaign is "wholly separate" from his work at Smyth & Helwys. Staton has been on leave of absence since last fall. His campaign headquarters is in Rome. "I have not even spoken with him in weeks," Cassady said in an e-mail. "I understand he is rarely in Macon."
___Cassady said Smyth & Helwys editors have the same freedom they have had since 1991 and haven't changed in their basic values. "Our commitment to the separation of church and state is as solid as ever," he said.
___Some individuals who work at Smyth & Helwys have contributed to Staton's campaign, but the corporation is not involved, Cassady said.
___"I am honored to know and to have worked with Cecil Staton for many years," Cassady said. "He is a person of intellect, integrity and vision. If he is elected, I believe he will do great things. However, his campaign is wholly separate from the work of Smyth & Helwys."
___The race for the 11th Congressional District, which covers 17 counties from Columbus in the south nearly to the Tennessee state line in the north, was the fourth-most expensive race in the country, with candidates spending nearly $3.5 million by mid-August, according to research reported by the Baptist Center for Ethics.
___According to the Center for Responsive Politics Web site, opensecrets.org, Staton raised more than $650,000, including more than $500,000 of his own money. ___
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