c. 1999 Religion News Service

United Methodist agency supports appeal of Boy Scout ruling

(RNS) The United Methodist agency that oversees scouting ministries has decided to support an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court concerning a New Jersey court ruling against the Boy Scouts of America.

At a meeting held Sept. 17-19, the Commission on United Methodist Men voted 13-4 to argue against the decision by New Jersey’s Supreme Court that the Scouts’ ban on homosexuals is illegal under state anti-discrimination laws.

United Methodist Men officials said they believe the Aug. 4 court decision incorrectly allows government to dictate the religious beliefs of a group.

The commission plans to join the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in filing a friend-of-the-court brief to the U.S. Supreme Court, the United Methodist News Service reported.”It is important for us to join the appeal,”said Larry Coppock, director of the Office of Scouting Ministry, which is under the auspices of the Commission on United Methodist Men.”We are the number one charter organization of Boy Scouts of America and it is our belief that the Boy Scouts should be able to select and recruit leadership in accordance with their guidelines and principles.” Alexander Dushku, an attorney representing a law firm of the Mormon Church and a drafter of the amicus brief, told the men’s commission that the appeal is based on a belief that the Boy Scouts of America have a”First Amendment right to govern themselves and how they are going to conduct their affairs.” The Rev. Joseph Harris, the commission’s top executive, called the decision to join the appeal”a statement for the traditional Boy Scout way of choosing its leaders.” Not all of the commission members embraced the decision.”I voted against the amicus brief because I cannot support any view that would imply that a person’s gifts, participation or place in the church is dependent on his or her sexual orientation,”said the Rev. Faith Conklin of Escondido, Calif.

Membership in the Boy Scouts through local United Methodist congregations totals more than 421,000. More than 8,000 United Methodist churches charter at least one Scout unit.

Church of the Nazarene joins World Methodist Council

(RNS) The Church of the Nazarene, a 1.3 million-member denomination, has joined the World Methodist Council.

The council’s executive committee unanimously approved membership for the denomination Sept. 19.”It is not only the largest Wesleyan body to seek membership for many years, but the largest church in our tradition that is not a member church,”said the Rev. Joe Hale, the top staff executive of the World Methodist Council.

The denomination has members in 150 countries, the United Methodist News Service reported.

Churches responding to aid victims of the aftermath of Floyd

(RNS) While Hurricane Floyd did not live up to its advance billing as the storm of the century, its aftermath created havoc in a number of states and at least 65 deaths have been blamed on storm-related flooding.

Church relief agencies began responding immediately.”The need is great,”said Barbara Tripp, disaster relief chairperson for the United Methodist Church’s North Carolina Conference.”We have large trees on houses. People have been driven from their homes because of the flooding waters. We cannot get into some areas to assess damage, and this will continue until the waters move out.” The United Methodist Committee on Relief committed an immediate $100,000 to Carolina relief efforts.

Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, the relief arm of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), committed $50,000 to New Hope and Coastal Carolina presbyteries (regional bodies)”and stands ready to provide additional financial assistance to other affected presbyteries as damage assessments become available,”the denomination said.

Church World Service, the aid agency of the National Council of Churches, said it is seeking $100,000 from its member communions for Floyd-related relief along the East Coast.

Funds will go to CWS cleanup kits, blankets, tents and other material resources, the agency said.

Catholics give $10 million for anti-poverty efforts

(RNS) The Catholic Campaign for Human Development has announced a new round of $10 million in grants to fight poverty in the United States. The grants will go to 306 community-based groups.

Officials said the $10 million in grants is the highest dollar amount awarded in the program’s 29-year history.”This is grass-roots funding to meet grass-roots needs,”said the Rev. Robert Vitillo, the CCHD executive director.”While some donations are large, many are small, and are from people who give what they can. Individual Catholics have put their dollars into the collection basket because they recognize that not everyone enjoys the same level of dignity and comfort in the United States.” CCHD bills itself as the largest private funder of anti-poverty programs actually controlled by the poor in the United States _ a stance that has sometimes generated controversy for the campaign from conservative groups who dislike the tactics and ideologies of some of the grant recipients.

But Vitillo defends the program’s aims of empowering the poor and keeping the issue of economic justice before the Catholic community.”These grants make our communities stronger and enable them to attack the cause of poverty and the ills associated with it,”he said.”When local leaders are empowered to make tangible changes, then families, neighborhoods and communities thrive.”The poor are not a class or a group set apart. They are people with unique dignity who need a hand up rather than a handout,”he said.

The local projects, ranging from self-help economic programs to projects aimed at preventing public housing residents from becoming homeless, will go to groups in 44 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

Anglicans take up issue of debt relief for poor nations

(RNS) The issue of debt relief for poor nations must be seen not in financial or economic terms but in terms of human lives, according to Bishop Leo Frade of Honduras.

Frade, in a presentation to the Anglican Consultative Council on Monday night (Sept. 20), called on Anglicans around the world to continue with their struggle to make the effort a reality.”This is not giving money away,”he said.”Remember, the debt has already been paid several times over.” The ACC, the gathering of 70 of the top lay and clerical leaders of the worldwide Anglican communion, is expected to pass a strong resolution on the issue at its concluding session on Friday urging action by Anglicans but also by governments and international financial institutions.

The outcry of churches, relief organizations and even rock stars has resulted in some relief, he noted, adding:”We must continue our struggle to end the slavery and misery of the debt, and never cease to call for its cancellation.” He provided an illustration of what was involved, citing the case of the loan the Honduran government obtained nearly 16 years ago from the Inter-American Development Bank to build a hydroelectric dam at El Cajon to provide electricity for the country.

The loan was for $90 million, but in 10 years Honduras has paid $196 million just to service the debt and still owes the original $90 million.

Loans of this kind make self-evident what Honduras and the world’s other poor nations are saying:”It is not that we do not want to pay our debts. No, the debts have been paid more than once already. What we want are humane terms devoid of usury and exploitation,”Frade said.

In Honduras the situation had been made much worse by Hurricane Mitch a year ago.”Before Mitch we thought that we were poor,”Frade said.”After Mitch we wished that we could be as poor as before.”More than 2 million people were displaced in a population of nearly 6 million, many towns and villages were destroyed, more than half the country’s bridges were wrecked, most roads were made impassable, and most schools and hospitals were damaged.

Meanwhile, Honduras’ total debt is $4.3 billion and the country is spending over $600 million a year just to service this debt. This means the country has to pay $5.81 for each $1 it receives in loans simply to service the debt. Internally, it means a third of revenue goes to debt servicing _ money that could be spent on health or education in a country with high infant mortality and an illiteracy rate close to 50 percent.

Frade said none of Honduras’ present debt was due to the military. Military aid was given free from the United States under President Reagan.”Sadly there is always money for bombs and guns, but very little for schools and hospitals,”he said.

Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey also called on the ACC to produce a strong resolution on debt relief.

Pope to meet Israeli and Palestinian young people

(RNS) Pope John Paul II will offer a special blessing to the children of the Middle East during a meeting Wednesday (Sept. 22) at the Vatican with three teen-agers from Israel and the Palestinian Authority representing the Muslim, Christian and Jewish faiths.

The youths will meet the pope at the Vatican during his regular weekly address and present the papal leader with a copy of a new”peace calendar,”a joint project of the Israeli-based Peres Center for Peace, the Palestinian Authority and UNESCO.

The Peace Calendar features a trilateral display of the religious holidays of the three major faiths against a background of drawings by Israeli and Palestinian children. It is being produced and distributed to help fund creation of new computer centers in Israel and the Palestinian Authority where Arab and Jewish children can link up with one another on the Internet.

Quote of the day: Pastor J. Donivan Smith Jr. of Fort Worth, Texas

(RNS)”This man’s action is a reminder of how needy a mission field America is. We must rededicate ourselves to community evangelism and one-on-one evangelism. It’s made me more conscious of the needs of people in my own neighborhood.” _ Pastor J. Donivan Smith Jr., of Arlington Heights Assembly of God in Fort Worth, Texas, responding to the Sept. 15 fatal shootings at nearby Wedgwood Baptist Church by gunman Larry Gene Ashbrook. He was quoted by the Assemblies of God News & Information Service.

DEA END RNS