National Prayer Day Continues To Divide Americans, AU Charges
and more headlines
http://www.au.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=8252&abbr=cs_
[EXCERPT]
National Prayer Day Continues To Divide Americans, AU Charges
Once again, Religious Right leaders and politicians used last month’s
National Day of Prayer (NDP) observances to politicize religion and divide
Americans.
Americans United criticized the annual event, which takes place by federal
law on the first Thursday of each May. According to AU, the observance
gives Religious Right groups and their allies in public office a platform
to push their political agenda and attack church-state separation.
In recent years, religious broadcaster James Dobson and his wife Shirley
have assumed a leadership role in promoting the event. In materials
released by the National Day of Prayer Task Force, a group based in
Colorado Springs with annual revenues of just under $2 million, Shirley
Dobson bluntly states that only Christian groups that endorse the Lausanne
Covenant, an evangelical statement from the 1970s, should be invited to
take part.
This year’s theme was “America, Honor God,” based on a passage from the
first Book of Samuel.
“At a time when so many principles found in Scripture have been rejected by
society, it’s all the more vital that God’s people stand firmly in defense
of the precepts He’s laid out in His Word,” said Shirley Dobson. “As we
wage this cultural battle, however, none of our efforts are assured success
without constant, fervent prayer for God’s intervention.”
The Dobsons organized and attended a White House ceremony marking the NDP.
Other Religious Right leaders present included Richard Land of the Southern
Baptist Convention and Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council.
During his remarks, President George W. Bush said, “America is a nation of
prayer. It’s impossible to tell the story of our nation without telling the
story of people who pray.”
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THE MORE HEADLINES:
House Members Seek To Advance Sectarian Prayer At Military Events
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Moderate Baptists Fend Off SBC Attacks On Public Education
CORRECTION
In the May issue of Church & State, AU Bulletin, “Senate Schedules Marriage
Amendment Vote For June,” we misspelled the web address of Clergy for
Fairness. It should be: www.Faithforfairness or Clergyforfairness.org.
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