c. 2006 Religion News Service
Christian Reformed Church Leader Dies After Battle with Brain Cancer
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (RNS) The Rev. David Engelhard, a former Bible professor who guided the Christian Reformed Church through a period of historic change, has died after a yearlong struggle with brain cancer.
Engelhard died Dec. 22, surrounded by his family at Porter Hills Health and Rehab Center. He was 64. His wife, three children and their spouses read from the Bible and sang in his final moments.
“His last breath was very peaceful. That’s what we prayed for,” said his wife, Jeanne. “He was just such a wonderful person, and God’s servant.”
Engelhard’s death came 10 months to the day after he was diagnosed with brain cancer. Colleagues lamented Engelhard’s death at an early age but expressed gratitude his long trial was over.
“The ending is in some sense a relief,” said the Rev. Peter Borgdorff, executive director of the 273,000-member CRC. “But it is a life cut short.”
Borgdorff praised Engelhard’s commitment both as a professor at Calvin Theological Seminary for 23 years, and as CRC general secretary from 1994 until his health forced him this spring to retire early.
“He was a dignified representative of the church in ecumenical settings, and he made his mark as a worthy servant,” said Borgdorff.
Engelhard guided the CRC through a troubled era, steering debates at the annual CRC Synod when it approved women’s ordination in 1994-95.
“He was in every good sense of the word a leader” who valued diversity and debate, said the Rev. Henry De Moor, academic vice president of Calvin Seminary.
_ Charles Honey
Ohio’s `Critical’ Teaching of Evolution Could Become Legal Battleground
(RNS) Now that a Pennsylvania ruling has been made on intelligent design, Ohio could become the next legal battleground over the critical teaching of evolution in public schools.
U.S. District Judge John Jones III ruled Dec. 20 that intelligent design is creationism in disguise and cannot be taught as an alternative to evolution in public school science classes. The 139-page ruling, the result of a high-profile trial in Dover, Pa., is expected to have an impact in Ohio.
Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which helped bring the Dover lawsuit, has obtained boxes of records from the Ohio Department of Education pertaining to the state school board’s adoption of a controversial science lesson plan nearly two years ago, as reported in The Cleveland Plain Dealer.
That action is a prelude to a possible challenge of the lesson, “Critical Analysis of Evolution,” which critics contend is warmed-over intelligent design. Intelligent design is a belief that life is so complex a higher being must have had a hand in its creation.
After the ruling denouncing Dover’s policy, those critics gave Ohio an ultimatum: Get rid of the plan, or face a long, costly and potentially embarrassing lawsuit.
“We hope Ohio takes notice and cleans house,” said Richard Katskee, Americans United’s assistant legal director. “Whether there is a legal challenge really depends on what the Ohio Board of Education does.”
State Education Department spokesman J.C. Benton said the curricula simply requires students to think critically about scientific theories such as evolution, Charles Darwin’s widely accepted theory that life descended from common ancestors.
“There was considerable conversation on these issues and people have passionate opinions,” Benton said. “However, we are confident this process not only took into consideration, but also respected, those opinions on all sides of the issue.”
_ Scott Stephens
List of Top Muslim Corporations More Than Just Oil Companies
(RNS) Although the seven biggest businesses in the Muslim world are all government-owned oil and gas companies, large Muslim corporations are beginning to emerge from other sectors, according to a new analysis.
Rafiuddin Shikoh, editor of Dinar Standard, an online magazine based in Hoboken, N.J., recently released his second annual DS100 list, ranking the top 100 companies, according to revenue, from the 57 nations of the Organization of the Islamic Conference.
Saudi Aramco, based in Saudi Arabia, topped the list, followed by the National Iranian Oil Company. But overall, there were more diversified companies (22) than oil and gas companies (18). There were also 17 finance companies, 12 services companies and 12 consumer product companies.
The ranking’s companies had total revenues of $678 billion, or only 8 percent of the $8.1 trillion in revenue of the 100 companies topping Fortune Magazine’s Global 500 list. Only three DS100 companies were among Fortune’s 100 biggest companies.
Shikoh, a 34-year-old e-business consultant, launched Dinar Standard in December 2004 because he wanted to know why there weren’t any “global brands” coming out of Muslim countries.
“There is a common thread of issues and challenges they face, which are unique to them, as well as opportunities,” Shikoh said.
Muslim countries are lacking in innovation, Shikoh said, because their cultures have discouraged asking questions and challenging authority. Just as there is a Protestant work ethic, Shikoh believes there can be an Islamic business model.
“Islam has so much to offer the corporate community. It supports competition, and provides it in the context of a socially responsible objective,” he said.
The biggest challenge in assembling the list, Shikoh said, was gleaning information about government and private companies, which do not have to make their finances public. Many companies that may have made the list, such as the National Iranian Steel Corporation, were left off because of insufficient information.
Turkey had the most companies on the DS100 list, 25, followed by Malaysia, 18, Saudi Arabia, 15, and Indonesia, 11.
_ Omar Sacirbey
`Ten Commandments’ Judge Brings in More than $250,000 from Speaking, Book
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (RNS) Fees from speaking engagements and sales of his book, “So Help Me God,” generated more than $250,000 in 2004 revenues for “the Ten Commandments judge,” former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore.
Moore reported the income in a recent filing with the Alabama Ethics Commission. He did so, as state law requires, soon after his early October declaration that he would be a candidate in next year’s gubernatorial race.
The filing doesn’t include any money Moore might have received during 2005. Candidates are required to report only what was earned in the previous full calendar year.
Moore was removed from office in 2003 for refusing to abide by a federal court order demanding that he move the massive granite Ten Commandments monument out of the state’s judicial building.
That only burnished his image among many Christian conservatives, who view Moore’s efforts to place the commandments in public buildings as heroic. It is these people who have flocked to his speaking engagements throughout the country.
The ethics forms provide income categories, ranging from, “Less than $1,000” to, “More than $250,000.” Moore checked the latter category in disclosing his 2004 income from Roy Moore LLC.
The LLC was incorporated in April 2004 by Moore, his wife, Kayla, and daughter, Heather. Its stated purpose, according to state incorporation records, is “educational/religious.”
“It’s for my speaking out of state and around the country _ my speaking fees and book sales and things like that,” Moore said.
As has been widely reported, Moore is often accompanied on his speaking tours by the Ten Commandments monument, known to many as “The Rock.”
The former chief justice also performs legal work _ such as writing appeals briefs _ for the Foundation for Moral Law. He is not paid for that work, he said. Moore’s only other source of income in 2004 was less than $1,000 in bank dividends.
_ Eddie Curran
`Outdoor Bible’ Built to Withstand the Elements
(RNS) While many believers have long believed the Christian Bible to be infallible, a publishing company has made it waterproof and tear-resistant, too.
The Outdoor Bible, the flagship product of Bardin and Marsee Publishing, consolidates the New Testament onto six waterproof trail maps designed to give spiritual guidance as Christians journey through the woods.
College friends Bobby Bardin and Michael Marsee first envisioned the product upon finding the great outdoors to be less than user-friendly to traditional Bibles. The two embarked on a three-year development process to create a lightweight plastic version capable of withstanding the elements.
“We both do a lot of backpacking and mountain biking. You get into these situations where you’d love to have God’s word but you just don’t bring it with you because it will get ruined,” Bardin said.
Targeted to Christian youth camps, servicemen, missionaries and adventurers of every stripe, the 12.8-ounce product tucked into a burlap bag with a drawstring is said to endure water, sand, heat and general outdoor wear.
While the text of The Outdoor Bible is the New American Standard translation, a King James version is in the works, with a target launch date of 2006, Bardin said. The Outdoor Bible sells for $35.
_ Jason Kane
Few Priests Sign Petition Against Massachusetts’ Gay Marriage Law
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (RNS) Despite the leadership of the Roman Catholic Church urging support for a petition against same-sex marriage, only 20 percent of priests who work in one Bay State diocese signed the petition, according to a Web site tracking the issue.
Of the 154 active priests in the Diocese of Springfield, only 31, or 20 percent, signed the petition that seeks to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
A Web site organized by pro-gay marriage organizations, http://www.knowthyneighbor.org, obtained the certified signatures from the secretary of state and published them on the Web.
The petition seeks to amend the state constitution to prevent gay marriages that became legal in 2004. The initiative must be approved by lawmakers during two successive legislative sessions before going on the 2008 ballot.
Springfield Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell had urged priests and parishioners to support the petition. In a letter to priests prior to the statewide petition drive several months ago, McDonnell wrote, “Help at the parish level is vital. I encourage the cooperation of your parish in this important campaign.”
McDonnell signed the petition, according to the Web site, and various reasons were offered to explain why most priests didn’t sign the petition.
The Rev. James J. Scahill, a priest in East Longmeadow, Mass., who has been outspoken critic of the church’s leadership, said the clergy’s lack of support for the petition reflects the refusal of priests to back an anti-gay measure. He said some of the priests are gay.
Scahill said he didn’t sign the petition because the state wasn’t asking the church to “sacramentalize” same-sex unions.
Larry Cirignano of Catholic Citizenship, which helped organize the petition drive, was at a loss to explain the low percentage of signatures, calling it a “legitimate question.”
He said some of the priests may have signed a petition paper that was disqualified. “Whole sheets were thrown out (at city clerks’ offices and the Massachusetts secretary of state’s office) because of tears, stains and other reasons,” Cirignano said.
Aaron D. Toleos, director of knowthyneighbor.org, said he believes many priests didn’t sign the petition as a form of silent protest against the proposed amendment. He said several priests were disciplined by church leaders for not circulating the petition.
In an internal Nov. 23 memo to priests, diocesan spokesman Mark Dupont told priests that the media might examine the petitions to discover which priests didn’t sign them.
_ Bill Zajac
NCC to Focus Efforts on Protecting Wilderness
(RNS) Noting that wilderness journeys were central to the spiritual lives of Moses, Jesus and the prophet Muhammad, the National Council of Churches said it will dedicate 2006 to protecting wilderness areas.
The NCC’s Public Lands Stewardship Initiative will develop a theological reflection on the importance of undeveloped lands and urge congregations to lobby to protect wilderness areas.
“Wild lands are the connective tissue that holds together the glorious web of life by providing space for wildlife and undisturbed natural cycles,” said Christine Hoekenga, a land specialist for the New York-based NCC.
“But God’s gift of wilderness is increasingly threatened by our swelling cities, growing highways and increasing demand for resources like oil, gas, timber and minerals.”
According to the Bible, God appeared to Moses in the burning bush in the countryside, and Moses led the Israelites through the wilderness for 40 years during their exodus from Egypt. Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness prior to beginning his public ministry.
Muslims believe Muhammad was annointed as God’s prophet to mankind during his solo retreats in a cave in the wilderness, where he would immerse himself in spiritual meditation.
The NCC is an umbrella group representing 35 mainline Protestant, Orthodox and historically black church bodies.
_ Kevin Eckstrom
Schuller Announces Son Will Be Next Pastor of Crystal Cathedral
(RNS) The Rev. Robert H. Schuller, the longtime pastor of the Crystal Cathedral in southern California, has announced that his son, the Rev. Robert A. Schuller, will become the church’s new senior pastor on Jan. 22.
The younger Schuller, 51, will assume leadership of the megachurch in Garden Grove, Calif., the church said. His father, 79, will remain as chairman of the board of Crystal Cathedral Ministries and will hold the title of founding pastor.
The consistory, or church board, of the Crystal Cathedral called Robert A. Schuller to be the next pastor.
The transition has been expected for a decade. In 1996, Robert A. Schuller was publicly named as his father’s eventual successor and vice chairman of Crystal Cathedral Ministries.
“My father and I will continue as pulpit partners on many Sunday mornings for years to come,” the younger Schuller predicted during the Jan. 1 service.
The two men plan to continue joint appearances on the church’s international television broadcast, the “Hour of Power.”
“I have plans and goals over the next 10 years and will use my 50 years of experience as founding pastor to assist Robert as he assumes the position as senior pastor,” the elder Schuller said.
Robert H. Schuller marked 50 years of ministry in Orange County, Calif., last year. Affiliated with the Reformed Church in America, he began with a drive-in church that eventually grew into a much larger ministry, including the landmark glass-walled edifice with a congregation of more than 10,000 members.
_ Adelle M. Banks
Judge Says Archdiocese Owns Parishes, Schools
PORTLAND, Ore. (RNS) A bankruptcy judge has ruled that Catholic parishes and schools in Western Oregon are not separate from the Archdiocese of Portland, a decision that could help plaintiffs who are seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in priest sex-abuse claims.
Judge Elizabeth Perris, however, left unanswered whether selling churches and schools would be an undue burden on the religious freedom of Catholics.
The Archdiocese of Portland became the nation’s first Roman Catholic diocese to file for Chapter 11 protection after multimillion-dollar sex-abuse lawsuits in 2004.
The issue before Perris was whether parish property belongs to individual parishes or to the Archdiocese of Portland, which encompasses 124 parishes, three high schools and about 400,000 parishioners.
The Dec. 30 ruling could determine whether the parishes’ estimated $500 million in real estate, cash and investments are available to pay millions of dollars in child sexual-abuse claims.
The bankruptcy came the same day that the archdiocese was scheduled to go to trial in a $135 million sex-abuse lawsuit involving the late Rev. Maurice Grammond.
The archdiocese already has made settlements totaling $53 million for more than 130 previous claims.
The bankruptcy froze dozens more claims seeking hundreds of millions more in damages. Perris’ ruling covered ground from obscure real estate law to broad constitutional questions of religious freedom.
Church lawyers argued that Portland Archbishop John G. Vlazny made a sacred vow to uphold canon law, which prohibits him from seizing assets that church law says belong to the parishes.
In the main bankruptcy case, the archdiocese recently filed its reorganization plan, which asks Perris to set aside $40 million to pay the remaining sex-abuse claims.
Many plaintiffs argue that the figure should be significantly higher. Perris has set Feb. 14 as the hearing date for arguments on the plan.
_ Ashbel “Tony” Green and Steve Woodward
Quote of the Week: Christian Songwriter Gloria Gaither
(RNS) “I think a great message set to simple music is a piece of portable theology. Hardly any of us remember the sermons we have heard. But songs, time and time again, have gone with people to the bathtub, the coal mines, wherever they went, and made a difference.”
_ Christian songwriter Gloria Gaither, quoted by Charisma magazine.
END RNS
