Baptist Press Stories for Jul. 17 2012 --------------------------------------- Baptist group pulls 'weeds of injustice' from Jewish cemetery http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38278 Jews 'see God' in Baptist cleanup of graves http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38279 Warren hopes to host Obama-Romney forum http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38286 Effort fails at reversing Calif. gay history law http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38284 Gay benefits case appealed to Supreme Court http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38283 Gen. Boykin named FRC executive VP http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38285 FROM THE STATES: Calif., Okla., Tenn. evangelism/missions news http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38282 FIRST-PERSON: When football becomes a god http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38281 FIRST-PERSON: The tide turning on global warming 'alarmism'? http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38280 --------------------------------------- Baptist group pulls 'weeds of injustice' from Jewish cemetery By Ava Thomas Jul. 17 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38278 PARIS (BP) -- His hands trembled when Benjamin* saw a letter his son-in-law received, stamped with the letterhead of the government offices of Paris' fourth administrative district. In fact he trembled all over, so much that he had to sit down.
It turned out the letter was just asking his son-in-law to renew his driver's license. But it took the rest of the day for the 90-year-old Jewish man to recover from just the sight of the letterhead. It was too much like the letter that summoned him away from his home 70 years ago during the Holocaust and landed him in a German concentration camp for five years. When he returned home, most of his family was dead. Seven decades have passed, but the memory is still fresh for the Jewish grandfather. "Sometimes it's easy for us to think about the Holocaust in terms of, 'That was a long time ago. That kind of prejudice doesn't still exist,'" said Richard Hall*, a social scientist familiar with Jewish history. "But actually we are still in a generation when people can tell their children that the reason they aren't allowed to wear striped pajamas is because their grandma or grandpa had to wear them in prison camps. The memory isn't far removed at all." And if that were not enough for Jews in Paris, there's a message just for them carved into the front of the city's imposing Notre Dame Cathedral, right in the heart of the city's fourth district. It's been there 1,000 years. Ships 20 miles away on the Seine River could see it. Tourists from all over the world have their photo made in front of it. The message is a statue called Synagogua, and it portrays the Jewish community as "damaged goods," Hall said. Synagogua is a woman with a broken staff, broken tablets and a snake wrapped around her eyes to indicate she's been blinded by evil. She sits on the front of the cathedral opposite the statue Iglesia, a strong, stately crown-wearing woman representing the Christian church. "For 1,000 years, the front of Notre Dame has been a billboard to the Jews of what Christians think of them," Hall said. "That's a hard message to overcome." Especially, he said, when Christians seem to be oblivious to the fact that messages like that are still being presented today. But John Simmons* is one person trying to turn some of those messages around by a simple act. He travels from his home in the U.S. to Europe to take care of Jewish cemeteries. There, he and his friends work on walls, pull weeds and clean headstones. "To honor the dead is a very high good deed for the Jews, so to do that for them is a message of love," Simmons said. "We just want to show love, to see the Jews and the Christians reconciled. We are pulling the weeds of injustice, of the things that happened, so the land can be renewed and restored and relationships can be reconciled." It's something Christians should be aware of and working to overcome, Simmons said. "We are just showing the love of Christ," he said. "That is first and foremost." A six-minute documentary ([URL=http://vimeo.com/45358520]http://vimeo.com/45358520[/URL]) on Jews in Paris is available for individuals and churches that want to know how they can be more sensitive and show love to Jewish friends and neighbors. "As Christians, we sincerely want to make the love of Jesus Christ visible to Jewish people," Hall said. "Yet to do so means that we must now express His love in a way that speaks more loudly than the long history of hatred and distrust which Christians and Jews have inherited from the past." --30-- *Names changed. Ava Thomas is an International Mission Board writer and editor based in Europe. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter ([URL=http://www.Twitter.com/BaptistPress]@BaptistPress[/URL]), Facebook ([URL=http://Facebook.com/BaptistPress]Facebook.com/BaptistPress [/URL]) and in your email ([URL=http://baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp] baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp[/URL]). -- End of story -- Jews 'see God' in Baptist cleanup of graves By Ava Thomas Jul. 17 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38279 EUROPE (BP) -- It was a dark day when David Eilenberg* faced the statue of Christ just outside the Catholic church and bellowed, "Where are you, Jesus?" Silence. That day, in the depths of the Holocaust, the Polish Jew hung up belief. Millions of Eilenberg's fellow Jews died and were put in the ground before World War II ended. Then six decades later, in the midst of their graves, he met Dirk Stockton* who was cleaning the cemetery, and something big changed. "I have watched you and what you Baptists are doing in our cemetery," Eilenberg told Stockton, reaching out to touch his chest. "I don't believe in God, but I see God in you." It's exactly what Stockton had hoped for, that wrong relationships might be put right through the love of Jesus Christ. For a long time, Stockton had been wondering how Baptists could speak into the injustice done to Jews during the Holocaust, when 6 million Jews were systematically killed in camps in Poland alone. "When I approached the Jewish community about bringing Baptist volunteers to clean and restore this Jewish cemetery, I was asked, 'Why do you wish to do this?'" Stockton said. "I simply said, 'Reconciliation.'" That one word began an eight-year journey of renewing Jewish cemeteries and relationships. Matthew Jackson*, who also serves among Jews in Poland, said Stockton and others have done "an incredible amount of work in Jewish cemeteries in and around the city of Warsaw." Stockton said he believes it's making a difference. "I have heard this question many times, 'Why would you, a Christian, do this for us, a Jew?'" Stockton said. "This question presents an opportunity to say simply, 'Love. I love God, and I love my neighbor. I love the Jewish people and I honor them as the root of everything that I know about God, as you have given us the Scriptures.'" His Jewish friends, he said, find it hard to believe. "Some Jews have responded to me by saying, 'If what you are doing, I told to people in Jerusalem, they would not believe,'" he said. They find it even harder to believe that people would come all the way from the United States to help, but the volunteers' intent is to show Christ's love in a practical way, focusing on things Jews and Baptists share. One commonality, Stockton said, is a command to "love your neighbor." "We are seeking to open a dialogue with both Jews and Gentiles about the true nature of God's love," Stockton said. "Love is not an abstract thought or a fleeting emotion. It is action. Jesus said, 'If you love me, you will keep my commandments.'" It's proven to be a striking picture for Polish Jews, he said. "One survivor of the Holocaust told me, 'What you are doing on earth, the angels are proclaiming and rejoicing about in Heaven,'" Stockton said. A six-minute documentary ([URL=http://vimeo.com/45358520]http://vimeo.com/45358520[/URL]) is available for individuals and churches that want to know how they can be more sensitive and show love to Jewish friends and neighbors. --30-- *Names changed. Ava Thomas is an International Mission Board writer and editor based in Europe. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter ([URL=http://www.Twitter.com/BaptistPress]@BaptistPress[/URL]), Facebook ([URL=http://Facebook.com/BaptistPress]Facebook.com/BaptistPress [/URL]) and in your email ([URL=http://baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp] baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp[/URL]). -- End of story -- Warren hopes to host Obama-Romney forum By Staff Jul. 17 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38286 LAKE FOREST, Calif. (BP) -- Pastor Rick Warren says he hopes to host another forum between the major two presidential candidates this year -- similar to what took place in 2008 -- although no formal agreement is in place. [IMG=31870@left@130]The pastor of Saddleback Church in California told reporters during a conference call Monday (July 16) that he has reached out to the campaigns of President Obama and presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney, FoxNews.com reported. The purpose of the forum is "to promote social civility so that people with major disagreements [can] talk without beating each other up," Warren said. The forum would last two hours, FoxNews.com reported him as saying, and he is looking at hosting it the week of Aug. 20. In 2008, Warren hosted Obama and then-presumptive GOP nominee John McCain in an event dubbed "the Saddleback Civil Forum on the Presidency." The candidates were interviewed separately by Warren, who asked identical questions to each. McCain, who was interviewed last, was placed in a room without a monitor and not allowed to know the questions in advance. --30-- Compiled by Michael Foust, associate editor of Baptist Press. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter ([URL=http://www.Twitter.com/BaptistPress]@BaptistPress[/URL]), Facebook ([URL=http://Facebook.com/BaptistPress]Facebook.com/BaptistPress [/URL]) and in your email ([URL=http://baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp] baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp[/URL]). -- End of story -- Effort fails at reversing Calif. gay history law By Staff Jul. 17 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38284 SACRAMENTO, Calif. (BP) -- California's first-in-the-nation gay history law will remain the law for public schools after a signature drive aimed at overturning it fell short for the second time in a year. [IMG=32246@right@100]A pro-family coalition announced Monday (July 16) that it would not be able to gather the 505,000 signatures needed to qualify what it had called the CLASS Act, an initiative that would have repealed SB 48, which was signed last year and went into effect Jan. 1. The coalition's email said about 446,000 signatures had been collected. The California secretary of state likely would have tossed out some of the signatures as invalid, so it's impossible to know exactly how many more signatures were needed. Historically, at least a few thousand are found to be invalid. Monday was the deadline for submitting signatures to the state. The signature drive did not use paid canvassers -- that is, people who are paid to gather signatures. "Placing a measure on the ballot through grassroots efforts alone has not been done in California in recent memory," Kevin Snider, chief counsel to the Pacific Justice Institute, said in a statement. "Although history was against us, our conscience compelled the coalition to fight this battle rather than doing nothing." A signature drive effort last year to overturn SB 48 also fell short. This year's effort aimed to place the CLASS Act on the 2014 ballot. The new law requires social science classes to include the "role and contributions" of "lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans." The latter term includes people who cross dress and physically change their sex. Even more significant, it mandates that "instructional materials" -- including textbooks -- include the history of homosexuals. The law also prohibits instructional materials from "reflecting adversely" upon homosexuals -- language some conservative leaders say would impact what is taught about marriage. Snider had told Baptist Press earlier this year that the Class Act initiative would "bring back a sense of moderation and reason into the study of social science." A person would not "be excluded because he or she belongs to a protected class -- including gays or lesbians -- but nor will that person be included because he or she belongs to a protected class." In the coalition's email, Snider hinted that future efforts at reversing SB 48 could be attempted. --30-- Compiled by Michael Foust, associate editor of Baptist Press. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter ([URL=http://www.Twitter.com/BaptistPress]@BaptistPress[/URL]), Facebook ([URL=http://Facebook.com/BaptistPress]Facebook.com/BaptistPress [/URL]) and in your email ([URL=http://baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp] baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp[/URL]). -- End of story -- Gay benefits case appealed to Supreme Court By Staff Jul. 17 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38283 WASHINGTON (BP) -- Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to decide next term whether the Grand Canyon State will be forced to offer spousal benefits to the same-sex partners of state employees -- adding to the growing list of cases that could force the court to define marriage for the country. The case stems from 2009, when Arizona -- seeking ways to cut state spending and close a $1.6 billion budget hole -- passed a law cutting the benefits for non-spouses of state employees. Gay activists sued, saying that because they cannot marry in Arizona, the new law discriminates against them. Since then, it's been blocked as legal proceedings have gone forward. Both a federal district court judge and a three-judge panel of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the state must continue offering the benefits to domestic partners of gay state employees. In April, the Ninth Circuit denied the state a re-hearing by a full 11-judge panel, prompting Brewer's appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. Judge Diarmuid O'Scannlain disagreed with his colleagues at the Ninth, writing in a scathing dissent that they "all but expressly held that opposite-sex-only marriage rules are unconstitutional -- indeed, that such rules are irrational per se because they can rest only on a 'bare desire to harm a politically unpopular group.' … The panel concluded -- in a way that is veiled but unmistakable -- that rules benefiting only traditional marriage serve no conceivable rational purpose." John Eastman, a lawyer with the National Organization for Marriage, told FoxNews.com that the state wasn't discriminating against anyone, since the benefits package in question didn't just go to same-sex domestic partners, but anyone maintaining a financial relationship with another person with whom he or she had been living for at least a year, including opposite-gender roommates. Only about seven percent of the people receiving the benefits were in homosexual relationships with state employees. The court will decide whether to take the case when it reconvenes this autumn. But given the number of marriage cases piling up on its doorstep, it's likely the justices could make a pivotal ruling with far-reaching implications by next June. In addition to Arizona's domestic-partner benefits case, two challenges to a major portion of the federal Defense of Marriage Act have been rolled into one and appealed to the high court. Meanwhile, the Ninth Circuit's decision striking down California Prop 8 -- which defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman -- is expected to be appealed to the Supreme Court in the next few weeks. "The next Supreme Court term seems to be all about gay marriage," said CitizenLink Judicial Issues Analyst Bruce Hausknecht, "if the Court picks up any or all of these cases." --30-- Compiled by staff of World News Service, where this story first appeared. -- End of story -- Gen. Boykin named FRC executive VP By Staff Jul. 17 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38285 WASHINGTON (BP) -- Retired Lt. Gen. Jerry Boykin has joined Family Research Council as its executive vice president. [IMGONLY=33068@right@200]An outspoken Christian, Boykin was an original member of the U.S. Army's Delta Force and later commander of the Green Berets. He served the final four years of his 36-year Army career as the deputy under secretary of defense for intelligence. Some of his comments about the war on terrorism drew criticism when he couched the conflict in spiritual warfare terms while speaking to churches. Retired since 2007, Boykin now is an ordained minister. His new role with the Family Research Council (FRC) will consist of supervising the day-to-day operations of one of the country's leading pro-family organizations. One of his priorities will be working with FRC's leadership to develop a long-range strategy, Boykin told reporters July 13. Tony Perkins, FRC's president, said in a July 16 news release Boykin's "leadership skills, forged under the most demanding circumstances, combined with his passion for faith, family and freedom will greatly enhance" the organization's work. Boykin, 64, said he and his wife made the commitment to return to Washington after their time with family at Christmas. "It's no longer about me. It's about my grandchildren," Boykin told reporters. "Is it going to be our generation that gives their future away?" he asked. "Or is it going to be our generation that preserves it?" Boykin's expertise will be especially helpful with FRC's work on military issues, Perkins said. The "social experimentation" that has become part of the military -- such as mixing the sexes when it is inappropriate and repealing the Don't Ask, Don't Tell ban on open homosexuality --– does not help combat readiness, Boykin said. He said he thinks "retention and recruitment will be affected by these social experiments." --30-- Reported by Baptist Press Washington bureau chief Tom Strode. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter ([URL=http://www.Twitter.com/BaptistPress]@BaptistPress[/URL]), Facebook ([URL=http://Facebook.com/BaptistPress]Facebook.com/BaptistPress [/URL]) and in your email ([URL=http://baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp] baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp[/URL]). -- End of story -- FROM THE STATES: Calif., Okla., Tenn. evangelism/missions news By Staff Jul. 17 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38282 EDITOR'S NOTE: From the States, published weekly by Baptist Press, relays news and feature stories from state Baptist papers and other publications on initiatives by Baptist churches, associations and state conventions in evangelism, church planting and Great Commission outreach, including partnership missions. Reports about churches, associations and state conventions responding to the International Mission Board's call to embrace the world's 3,800 unengaged, unreached people groups also are included in From the States, along with reports about church, associational and state convention initiatives in conjunction with the North American Mission Board's call to Southern Baptist churches to broaden their efforts in starting new churches and satellite campuses. The items appear in Baptist Press as originally published. Today's From the States features items from: California Southern Baptist Oklahoma Baptist University Carson-Newman College Epic Church thriving in San Francisco's SoMa district By Amanda Phifer SAN FRANCISCO (California Southern Baptist) -- The marathon challenge of planting a church in San Francisco is the stuff of church planter legend. You'd be crazy to take another stab at it, lots of people told Ben and Shauna Pilgreen. "Sure, there were lots of fears embarking on this," the Louisiana native, Ben, acknowledged. "But our greatest fear -- the one that overrode all the other concerns, especially about raising our three boys in the San Francisco public school system -- was that maybe this was the call of God upon our life, and we might miss it. Our greatest fear was that we'd get to the end of our lives and regret that we never went for it. "And really, we've been just blown away so far." Considering the uphill struggle so many new churches face in the fabled City by the Bay, "mind-blowing" might be a good description. Epic Church, as it's called, began two years ago when the Pilgreens plus three other couples relocated from Missouri, Alabama, Louisiana and Florida to the south of Market (SoMa) area of San Francisco. Why a team? Pilgreen explained: "More important to me than the geographical call was doing life and ministry and this church start with people we knew and loved and could trust, and who were also gifted with a calling. It was amazing that when we visited these friends, people we'd known for five, eight or 14 years, and shared our hope and vision, they all said yes." The families moved to San Francisco, and on Oct. 10, 2010, held their first preview service at the W Hotel in the heart of SoMa. Epic was one of more than 40 new churches that were either started or held a significant event as part of California Southern Baptist Convention's 10-10-10 initiative. The SoMa area of San Francisco is in a fast-revitalizing district of the city, awash in artists, techies and corporate executives (think Apple, Facebook and the "next big thing" you haven't heard about yet). They live and work in a zoning mash-up of businesses and residences, much of it new and on the same block. While he expected the young professional demographic, Pilgreen said he's been happily surprised at the ethnic and age diversity the church has attracted. "We have people in our church from 30 different countries!" he said, sounding like he still finds it hard to believe himself. "And it's more multi-generational than I thought it would be, too -- we have all ages from babies to 70-year-olds." The culture shock of moving from student and pastoral ministry in Louisiana, Alabama and Missouri to church planting in downtown San Francisco? "We love the city," he said, without guile. "It's a very neat place, with a lot of community, and a lot of brokenness at the same time. We have people in our church with just all kinds of worldviews and beliefs, and it really keeps us praying a lot and on our toes - and those are good things." Additionally, as their sons are in public elementary school, "We've found we have a great chance to really disciple our boys with things they might not have faced until a lot later in life," Pilgreen said. "There's a lot to evaluate and debrief with them, and honestly I think it's great for them to really learn what we believe, and why, at their young ages." Epic's church planting team is financially supported from several quarters: 19 churches from around the country, including two in the greater Bay Area; monthly assistance from CSBC, partly courtesy of the California Mission Offering. Also, Executive Pastor Tim Milner is a Nehemiah church planter supported both by the state convention and the North American Mission Board. "It's been great having support from all around the country, not just financially but all the prayer support, and especially the chance for me to be mentored by some really great pastors from across the nation," Pilgreen said. "And having the guidance of Linda Bergquist was really invaluable - she helped us understand the Bay Area, see the SoMa community, and imagine what a church here could become." The two Bay Area churches that have provided financial support - South Bay Church in San Jose, itself only about two years older than Epic; and Crossroads Church in Fremont - have also pitched in in other ways. "South Bay being just ahead of us on the time frame, they've been a huge example for us, sharing coaching and their experience," Pilgreen said. "Both churches, when we were first starting and having preview and early services, sent people to help with greeting, nursery, worship band members. They were just really generous." There is in fact quite a chain at work: what CSBC new church starting strategist Berquist calls "intentional multi-generational church planting." BayMarin Church in San Rafael started Crossroads Church in Fremont; Crossroads planted South Bay Church in San Jose; and now both South Bay and Crossroads are pouring into Epic. "And all of this because people in churches give - through the Cooperative Program, through the California Mission Offering," Pilgreen said. "People give, and one generation after another of churches are planted, and the Kingdom grows." Epic Church is spreading the blessing, too. They have had a partnership with Bessie Carmichael Elementary & Middle School, in the SoMa district, since the church began. The congregation also partners with A Woman's Place, the only gender-specific emergency and transitional shelter of its type in San Francisco. And in the second half of June, a team of 14 from Epic traveled to Uganda to minister to the 38 children the church has sponsored through Compassion International, as well as providing start-up and training for a sustainable micro-financing project for nearly two dozen caregivers. "Ben and his team are ministering in an area of the city that's full of people who want to change the world," elaborated Bergquist, who has helped them develop strategy for reaching the SoMa area, "and Epic Church provides opportunities to do that starting right where they are." "The most positive thing, I think, is the church is not just surviving but also thriving," Pilgreen added. "And that God provided a building for us only six months after we started looking for one, when we thought a building was years out, was also great. Now we've gone to three services. It's really been mind-blowing." One great challenge, as Epic is now facing, is the "incredibly" transient nature of the San Francisco population. "We're losing 15 of our strongest families this summer," Pilgreen explained. "That's challenging, but God's also bringing new people." "This is an increasing city phenomenon that's always been true of San Francisco," Bergquist noted. "The city renews itself annually. People move out. The faith factor is: God will replace them. The city is a sending base into the rest of the world, where people come in, get transformed by the power of Christ and go out as missionaries. Leaders have to say, 'God, bring us more people to grow.'" It's no doubt a prayer of faith God likes to honor: "God, bring us more people to grow." ********** OBU students encounter 'People of Peace' in South Asia SOUTH ASIA (Oklahoma Baptist University) -- The coastal area of South Asia boasts a vibrant array of cultures, languages and religions. The region – 9,500 miles from Shawnee, Okla. –- was the destination for a team of students from Oklahoma Baptist University sent on mission from the Avery T. Willis Center for Global Outreach May 22-June 13. In the area where the team served, 70 percent of the people follow Buddhism. Others, whose ancestors have lived in the region for centuries, generally follow Hinduism. Minorities include Christians, Muslims and other religions. The OBU team of seven students and one faculty sponsor joined Southern Baptist representatives who work among the Moors (Tamil-speaking) Muslims, a people group which has little, if any, access to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The goal of the trip was simple, yet powerful: The team walked through neighborhoods, praying for the people and asking God to provide "houses of peace" where they could share the good news of Jesus Christ. The concept is based on Jesus' direction to his followers in Matthew 10 and Luke 10. Jesus commanded, "When you enter a house, first say, 'Peace to this house.' If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him. ... Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you. … Tell them, 'The kingdom of God is near you,'" (Luke 10:5-9, NIV). "Our purpose was that simple!" said Dr. Bruce Carlton, professor of cross-cultural ministry at OBU. Carlton also serves as director of the Avery T. Willis Center for Global Outreach. "The students discovered that this is a very simplistic, yet intentional, way to find people who are open to the Gospel," he said. While team members endured blistering tropical heat –- more than 100 degrees with high humidity each day -– they also discovered people who were welcoming and open to talking to the strangers from America. The beautiful country, generous people, spicy food and amazing scenery left a positive impression on the students. "There were beaches everywhere!" said Abby Fuller, a junior nursing major from Gainesville, Texas, who grew up on the mission field in Africa. "It was some of the best sunrises and sunsets I have seen. You would walk into a person's house, and the first thing they would do is sit you in the best seats, run to the store to get some food, and serve you the entire time." God provided both dramatic and commonplace experiences to allow the students to share their personal faith among the people of the region. "We would get off of a bus, and walk around town praying that God would open up doors for us, and almost every time someone would invite us in to their house," Fuller said. "We would stay there, eat what they gave us (harder than you think), and share our personal testimonies with them. If they were still curious, we would share Creation to Christ with them. We were not looking for them to make a quick jump to Christianity, but rather to establish a bond so the missionaries and nationals could go in behind us and start a lasting ministry." "Creation to Christ" is a method the students learned to use in sharing their personal faith with others. The method conveys the stories of God's relationship with humanity from Genesis through the life of Jesus Christ. Carlton said every day, the team was invited into Muslim homes where they were able to share the Gospel freely. Every home he was in, Carlton said people listened to the team share their faith. At least one Muslim man came to faith in Jesus, and several others expressed genuine interest in hearing more and learning more. "Seeing the students become more bold as each day went by was also very encouraging and rewarding," he said. "I believe God broke down some stereotypes about Muslims on this trip." Team members helped Southern Baptist workers lead seminars to train local pastors and other church members how to share the Gospel with Muslims. The women on the team also participated in "henna ministry," a concept where they put henna on their own hands (and sometimes others') that told a Bible story. The art – popular in South Asia – became a bridge to tell people about the Gospel. Even on their "day off," when the students traveled to visit a lighthouse on a beach, they prayed God would provide them opportunities to have conversations with the indigenous people. Walking down the beach, they saw a group gathered at the water's edge and realized a father had saved his daughter from drowning. OBU student Kyle Motsenbocker is a lifeguard in America, but his local Christian friend translated to the crowd that he was a doctor. The crowd parted, and Motsenbocker performed the Heimlich maneuver on the girl when he realized she had swallowed too much water. "After that everybody wanted to know why we were there and what we were doing," said Motsenbocker, a sophomore nursing major from Callisburg, Texas. "God allowed us to share with up to 40 people that day. He definitely was working the hearts of those that were there that amazing evening. "I never thought I'd be using the skills I learned as a lifeguard and a nursing student in another country. God really does work in mysterious way." Like any cross-cultural experience, the trip presented challenges and opportunities for growth. Each day was a test of faith in God's care and provision, Carlton said, noting the potential of physical persecution and opposition. But God demonstrated his faithfulness, his protection and his sovereignty every day, Carlton testified. "The most challenging part of the trip was trying to find a way for the team as a whole to best overcome the shock of living in a new culture," said Joshua Caudill, a team leader from Winfield, Kan. "Every person on the team hit some bumps and had moments where we weren't sure what we were doing or were unsure if we were going to be able to handle the cultural differences, but in the end, we were all able to grow a lot." Fuller said she found it challenging to be a woman in a male-dominated culture, especially in the Muslim areas. But the experience also created an appreciation for the women who live in South Asia. "(The) women are some of the most amazing people I have met," she said. "They raise their families, cook meals and do so many things without complaint. Many wear Muslim garb in the hottest temperatures. I fell in love with these women because they are beautiful on the inside and out." OBU's mission compels students to integrate faith with all areas of knowledge and to engage a diverse world. More than 60 OBU students, faculty and staff have embarked on Global Outreach (GO) Trips during the summer 2012 semester, sharing their faith around the globe under the leadership of Dr. Joy Turner, director of global mobilization. "I think that the GO experience is invaluable to OBU students," said Caudill, a junior biblical languages major who plans to work overseas one day translating Scripture in areas that do not have Bibles. "For many students, these experiences can open their eyes and their hearts to the reality that God is calling them to go, perhaps more long-term, and to serve. "And even for those God is not necessarily calling to live overseas, the experience of acclimating to a new culture is incredible, and there is no replacement for seeing first-hand what God is doing among the nations." Located in Shawnee, Okla., OBU offers 10 bachelor's degrees with 84 fields of study. The Christian liberal arts university has an overall enrollment of 1,871, with students from 37 states and 27 other countries. OBU has been rated as one of the top 10 comprehensive colleges in the West by U.S. News and World Report for 20 consecutive years and has been Oklahoma's highest rated comprehensive college in the U.S. News rankings for 18 consecutive years. For 2011-12, Forbes.com ranked OBU as the top university in Oklahoma. ********** China trip opens doors for C-N By Mark Brown JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. (Carson-Newman College) -- Carson-Newman College President Randall O'Brien's recent trip to South Korea and China granted him several opportunities to celebrate personal and institutional friendships while laying the foundation for continued growth with partners in both countries. The first fruits of the venture include a new scholarship fund and plans for a motion picture which will feature C-N's campus. O'Brien traveled with his wife Kay, Danny Hinson, C-N's dean of Global Education, and Hinson's wife Jan, an instructor in C-N's English Language Institute (ELI). The group began their outreach in South Korea where they were hosted by Billy Kim, pastor emeritus of the 15,000-member Suwon Central Baptist Church and former president of the Baptist World Alliance. It became quickly evident that the most important part of the trip "was showing up," said O'Brien. "It just meant everything to them that we had come. Everyone (there) wants to come to the States, and those with the means do, but for Americans to visit them is not as common. It conveyed supreme honor that we'd come to thank them in-person for entrusting us with their students and for allowing them to study with us." While C-N has had covenant agreements with Namseoul University and Sungkyul University for several years, Hinson said he thinks "the non-stop trip" may well lead to "opportunities we just haven't had before." Some mornings began as early as 4:50 a.m. to prepare for a 6:00 prayer breakfast where O'Brien was able to talk about C-N and share a devotional message with some 3,000 people. "There were several opportunities we do not normally have during a trip like this," said the dean. "The relationship Dr. O'Brien has with Billy Kim opened opportunities that will serve us as we seek to serve more students in the near future." In his role as chairman of Korea's Far East Broadcasting Company (FEBC), Kim invited O'Brien and company to attend the Far East Forum, where U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Sung Kim (no relation) spoke, and to attend the thanksgiving service for and inaugural broadcast of FEBC's Gwangju station. O'Brien first met Kim when he had the chance to host the internationally known pastor during his tenure as Baylor University's executive vice president and provost. Beyond campus engagements, O'Brien invited Kim to preach at the church he served as interim pastor. "He is a great evangelist and highly respected across the country, and here as well," O'Brien said. It was not long after his appointment as C-N's president four years ago that O'Brien heard from the Baptist statesman with an invitation to travel to South Korea. Like most American evangelicals, O'Brien knew of Kim's billing as "the Billy Graham of Korea," but says the trip offered him a much greater understanding of his friend's kingdom impact. FEBC is a 65-year-old Christian radio operation that ministers to listeners in 50 countries through some 130 languages. O'Brien said FEBC's slogan — "Making Christ known to the world by radio" — is closer to reality than some might think, given that three billion people, almost half the world's population, live within reach of the network's signals. The Korean stations also advertised information sessions where the president and dean talked about what C-N offers, including its Center for Global Education and ELI. Events include a Central Christian Academy event, hosted by Joseph Kim, son of the noted pastor. Some of the daytime sessions drew as many as 200 moms, given that their children were in school and their husbands at work. "They had lined me up to speak at breakfasts, lunches and dinners with leading businessmen and women, and school officials; there were presidents, principals, pastors and church leaders. Every meal was important," said O'Brien, who chairs the Consortium for Global Education. The 40-institution group facilitates and supports education at domestic and international colleges and universities. Between the two of them, O'Brien and Hinson preached eight times and were able to meet scores of businessmen interested in helping students grow through American educational opportunities. "It's the Great Commission — doing what the Bible says do" said O'Brien. During one gathering, O'Brien surprised his friend by announcing the establishment of the Billy Kim Scholarship Fund, whereby Korean students will have assistance to study on the Jefferson City campus. Hinson said the news created a sense of excitement he believes will result in donations and ultimately even more students. The dean said since returning to East Tennessee on June 1 he has heard from two students seeking information in hopes of fall admission. The couples made a quick trip to China before heading home, traveling through Beijing to Yantai University, located near the Yellow Sea in the city for which it is named. O'Brien signed documents that will continue C-N's partnership with the 28,000-student institution by establishing a "two-for-two" faculty exchange program that Hinson says could begin as soon as January. He further expects C-N students will have the availability of summer study programs there by next year. Hinson said they learned that a Chinese film producer has in the works a screenplay based around a courtship and subsequent marriage that began at Carson-Newman several years ago. The producer hopes to grant authenticity to the story with location shooting on campus during the fall term. Hinson said those behind the idea hope for a large release in that country and that he and O'Brien expect to learn more as the summer progresses. "It was a busy, busy trip, but an important one for us to make," Hinson said. "The Korean economy is booming at this point and we were able to make some very important connections that moved Carson-Newman up to the next level. China opens possibilities that we could not have imagined not too long ago. The more we learn there, the more it can help our students and serve our mission in the future," Hinson said. --30-- -- End of story -- FIRST-PERSON: When football becomes a god By Eric Geiger Jul. 17 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38281 NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) -- The report from former FBI Director Louis Freeh regarding the Penn State scandal is both shocking and sickening. Our hearts break for the victims and our anger burns against those who knowingly put children in the path of devastating danger. The report shows that key leaders at Penn State, including former head coach Joe Paterno and former president Graham Spanier, intentionally covered up allegations that Jerry Sandusky was sexually abusing young boys. Their deep-seated commitment to protect their sacred football program put children at risk. They literally allowed a monster to prey on children rather than potentially tarnish the football program which provided them their identity and worth. Questions abound: What were they thinking? How could they possibly sleep at night? How did they justify the horrific decision to shrug off the safety of children? Seventeenth-century scientist and Christian author Blaise Pascal wrote, "Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from a religious conviction." For these men, football was their religion. And they were filled with conviction that the renown of their sacred football program was worth more than the safety and dignity of children. Their religion led to evil. For these men, football was clearly the god that needed to be served above all else. Football was the god that was worthy of sacrifice, even if innocent children became the unwilling sacrifices. With a hypocritical self-righteous indignation, Spanier once had an agent disgraced and barred from the university because he paid for a graduate's suit before a bowl game. Yet as he was "protecting the integrity of the program" through this disciplinary action, he was simultaneously allowing Sandusky to roam as a predator. By insisting on moral excellence on such issues in the football program, he continually removed the speck from the eyes of others while his own eye was filled with a massive plank. How could these men live with themselves? One of the first things learned in Psychology 101 is that "everyone's behavior makes sense to them." When Penn State football and their personal reputation were the gods to be served, the choice to cover up wickedness was acceptable simply for the sake of their religion and the worship of their gods. Depravity was on full display. When anything other than God becomes our god, evil abounds. May God lead us to continual repentance of placing something other than Him on the throne of our lives. Because when we do so, not only do we destroy ourselves, we also destroy others. --30-- Eric Geiger serves as vice president of the church resources division of LifeWay Christian Resources. Prior to joining LifeWay, Geiger served eight years as executive pastor of Christ Fellowship Miami. This first appeared at [URL=http://ericgeiger.com]http://ericgeiger.com[/URL]. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter ([URL=http://www.Twitter.com/BaptistPress]@BaptistPress[/URL]), Facebook ([URL=http://Facebook.com/BaptistPress]Facebook.com/BaptistPress [/URL]) and in your email ([URL=http://baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp] baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp[/URL]). -- End of story -- FIRST-PERSON: The tide turning on global warming 'alarmism'? By Penna Dexter Jul. 17 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38280 DALLAS (BP) -- Most people didn't notice the United Nations convened down in Rio de Janeiro June 20. But we should be paying attention. Lots of mischief is attempted at these U.N. conferences. British Lord Christopher Monkton was a guest in June on the Point of View radio program, calling in from the Rio Plus 20 conference. He told us that at last year's climate conference in Durban, South Africa, the U.N. was about to grant Mother Earth the right to sue any Western nation in a new International Climate Court (no kidding), and to cut allowable carbon dioxide emissions by half (thereby killing most economies). CO2 is what people exhale, so it's not surprising that Lord Monkton described a poster he noticed at the conference which "showed the sun dressed as a doctor diagnosing the Earth's disease: 'I'm afraid you've got it: humans.'" He spoke of the overarching goal of U.N. planners, which is to enact some kind of a global tax, perhaps on financial transactions, and to assess developed nations billions in order to help developing nations fight global warming. Cooler heads prevailed. But climate change -- with us since the earth began -- continues to be the boogeyman of choice for the U.N. To them, the way we live, with things like cars -- and air conditioning -- is simply not sustainable. Global warming hawks have been fairly successful in creating an aura of scientific consensus around global warming. But that's changing. Sixteen prominent climate scientists have signed a document to try to dispel the myth that something needs to be done about global warming. One of them, Nobel Prize-winning physicist Ivar Giaever publicly resigned last September from the American Physical Society. He declared he could not live with the group's policy statement that the evidence for global warming is "incontrovertible" and its alarmist warnings about what will happen if "no mitigating actions" are taken. The Wall Street Journal recently published the 16 scientists' statement in an article entitled, "No Need to Panic About Global Warming." The article highlights this defection from global warming orthodoxy and states that, despite institutional persecution and the fact that there's more money in the climate alarmist camp, the number of scientists joining the ranks of "heretics" is large and growing. The scientists' statement emphasizes that there's been a "lack of global warming for well over 10 years." Plus, over the last 22 years, the planet has not warmed as much as computer models predicted. These models have also greatly exaggerated the amount of warming carbon dioxide could possibly cause. We hear less lately about CO2 causing warming because there isn't the evidence. Instead, the alarmists are now claiming we have to cut greenhouse gasses because they cause "weather extremes" -- events like hurricanes and storms. As stewards of the earth, man should do his best to protect the environment. But when nations get together to figure out how to do that, they ought to drop the presumptuous idea that man can control the climate. While they're at it they should stop trying to penalize the wealthier nations for their success. When economies grow, they can better afford policies that protect the environment. The statement by the 16 scientists cites a recent study of policy options by Yale economist William Nordhaus that showed one of the best growth scenarios for less-developed nations could be achieved with "50 more years of economic growth unimpeded by greenhouse gas controls." Someone ought to propose that to the United Nations. --30-- Penna Dexter is a conservative activist and frequent panelist on the "Point of View" syndicated radio program. Her weekly commentaries air on the Bott and Moody radio networks. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter ([URL=http://www.Twitter.com/BaptistPress]@BaptistPress[/URL]), Facebook ([URL=http://Facebook.com/BaptistPress]Facebook.com/BaptistPress [/URL]) and in your email ([URL=http://baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp] baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp[/URL]). -- End of story -- Copyright (c) 2013 Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Press 901 Commerce Street Nashville, TN 37203 Tel: 615.244.2355 Fax: 615.782.8736 email: bpress@sbc.net