An atheist organization filed recently a lawsuit in New York to bar the presentation of the “World Trade Center Cross” as part of a memorial exhibition to commemorate 9/11.

The American Atheists, which filed its lawsuit last week, said in its suit that the cross is a violation of the Establishment Clause of the Constitution, and that atheists “are being subjected to and injured in consequence of having a religious tradition not their own imposed upon them.”

Atheist group sues over “World Trade Center Cross”

Dan Blair, communications director of AA, told the Wall Street Journal, “We can appreciate people’s emotional attachment to this [memorial] but that shouldn’t override the Constitution,”

On its website, the AA said that the cross is “an impermissible mingling of church and state.”

Small letter “t”

Blair Scott of AA said on Fox News, “It’s not the cross per se that’s an issue. It’s just a small letter ‘t’ among many junctions among thousands that were in the World Trade Center that many consider miraculous. It was blessed by clergy, they held church services at it, it was worshiped at, prayed at, it was turned into a religious idol.”

Martha McCallum, Fox newscaster told Scott, “All the more reason why you shouldn’t object to having it there if it was just a ‘t’ and there were many of them at the World Trade Center. It’s a ‘t’ that happens to have survived and they want to put this ‘t’ that has people’s names inscribed on it in the museum.”

Firefighter, first responder

Tim Brown, who was also in the Fox News program, said of Scott, “He’s stirring up so many difficult emotions again by doing this. We don’t need to be put through this.” A former NYC firefighter and first responder, Brown lost some 100 friends in 9/11.

Brown said on Fox News, “Just because Blair or others don’t like it, doesn’t mean that it can’t be in the museum. They can’t just come in and make rules for everybody in the museum. What if Ladder Three, the fire truck that was lowered into the museum last week was crushed into the shape of a cross? Would he then want that taken out of the museum also?”

Brown said on Fox News that the AA lawsuit is more of a publicity grab “on the backs of my friends who have died on 9/11, who were murdered by Islamic terrorists. It’s shameful what you are doing.”

Scott denied that the lawsuit against the cross is being done for publicity.

Brown is filing a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the cross through the American Center for Law and Justice.

“This is another pathetic attempt to rewrite the Constitution and rewrite history by removing a symbol that has deep meaning and serves as a powerful remembrance to that fateful attack nearly 10 years ago,” Jay Sekulow, chief counsel, ACLJ, said on its website.

“We will aggressively defend the placement of this cross. This memorial, a powerful part of the history of 9/11, serves as a constitutionally sound reminder of the horrors that occurred nearly a decade ago,” Sekulow said.

The World Trade Center Cross is a steel beam in the shape of a cross that stayed put after the collapse of the Twin Towers on Sept. 11, 2001, and was discovered amid the rubble.

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The valedictorian of a school in Vermont was not allowed to talk about Jesus in his graduation speech.

Kyle Gearwar, 18, the high school valedictorian of Fair Haven Union High School, wanted to share his personal testimony of how Jesus changed him and made him the man he is now, but school authorities said it might infringe on the First Amendment.

“I was just sharing a story about my life and how it was changed. And as an American and as a valedictorian I felt that I should have been able to do that,” Gearwar told Fox News.

When Gearwar delivered his truncated speech during the graduation rites, many of the students present felt outrage at the decision of the school officials, and a number of them yelled that Kyle should read it in full, anyway.

Gearwar declined, however, saying that he promised the principal, Brett Blanchard, that he wouldn’t and he would stand by his promise.

“You’re supposed to respect your authority. Even in the Bible it says you should respect the authorities of the land. I wasn’t going to disappoint these men,” Gearwar told Fox News.

While Gearwar complied with the school’s decision, he still honored God.

He said in his speech, “Today my valedictorian speech remains unfinished. I am submitting to those who have authority over me by not reading the half of my speech that has caused issues.”

Gearwar continued, “I respect the administration for the decisions they have made and thank them anyways for the opportunity to speak. I have always dreamed of speaking about God in front of my school as the valedictorian. This was the message God gave to me, and I am not allowed to share it with you even though it is my testimony, the most important change my life has ever experienced, and the one thing that I stand for no matter what.”

Summoned by principal

The situation arose when Gearwar submitted his speech to the principal.

The next day, he was called to the office.

“They told me my speech was going to be a problem – that the school wouldn’t allow me to deliver the speech and they would prevent me from giving the speech if it came down to it,” Gearwar said to Fox News.

Gearwar noted, “You can burn a flag but we’re not able to speak about God. I just don’t agree with that,” according to Fox News.

Federal law

“We are absolutely strong supporters of free speech,” Blanchard told Fox News. “The federal law limits the kind of religious speech that’s permitted at a commencement at a public high school.”

One of the statements that was removed was the following: “I have peace and can finally enjoy every moment God has given me, good or bad. I wouldn’t be standing before you without the blessings God has given me through my tough situations. He is the reason I am the man I am today, made new through Jesus’ death on the cross,” Fox News reported.

Nothing but respect

Blanchard spoke highly of Gearwar and told Fox News he was glad that the student kept his word. “He stuck to his word and his agreement. I think it speaks highly.”

Gearwar, who will be going to the University of Connecticut said in turn that he has “nothing but respect for Blanchard and the school’s assistant principal,” Fox News reported.

“They were very nice and they are awesome people and they were just doing what they were told to do,” he told Fox News. He expressed surprise that the speech, which he wrote “for God’s glory,” has attracted so much attention.

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Carrie Underwood said recently that her being raised as a Christian and her faith played a big hand in her success.

The Grammy winning country singer said she had a typical Christian upbringing which included going to service on Sundays, bible study and summer camps with other children from her church, according to Fox News.

Underwood said, “I grew up in church and have a wonderful family that always supported that. I grew up going to church camp and reading my bible and having different faith books and movies in my life,” Fox News reported.

Soul Surfer

Her life has taken a huge curve after she won in American Idol. She is now 28-years-old, has a number of hit records, and has taken on her first acting role in the movie Soul Surfer, costarring with Dennis Quaid, Helen Hunt and AnnaSophia Robb who plays the lead character Bethany Hamilton in the film, Fox News said.

Soul Surfer is the true-to-life story of Bethany, a professional surfer who in 2003, at the age of 13, was attacked by a shark and lost her arm. The movie tells of Bethany’s journey back to the sport that she loves, where she continued to reap many more awards and became an inspiration for thousands of others, the Los Angeles Times said.

Underwood plays the role of Sarah Hill, a member of the church that the Hamiltons go to. Hill plays a pivotal role in helping Bethany recover from the emotional trauma of her accident. Through her guidance Bethany manages to cope with her life and gain new perspective from her tragic experience, NewsOK said.

The film largely stays true to the Christian faith that characterizes Bethany and her family. According to the LA Times, the Hamiltons said they would only give their support to the venture if their faith was not compromised.

Underwood told Fox News that she is hopeful that audiences will appreciate the role that faith can play in healing. “I hope that it is very clear that the faith in this movie is more than an undertone, and that the reason Bethany got through everything was because of her faith in God.”

Underwood told Fox News, “[T]his story is about having faith when the chips are down and how to deal with that. We can all learn something from Bethany’s story, even when the little things in our lives don’t go so well, we can take a lesson from her and realize how small that problem really is.”

Underwood said her acting debut was made easier by her experience in music videos, “but it’s a completely different thing being with other actors and trying to make a movie and try to make it good,” NewsOK reported.

Underwood was familiar with the story of Hamilton from the 2003 newspaper reports of the shark attack, but she never knew about the strength of their Christian faith until after reading the script, NewsOK said.

While admitting that acting was out of her comfort zone, she felt right about doing the film. She told NewsOK, “I always said if something came along and it was for the right reasons, we could fit it into an already busy schedule. And it just sounded like a wonderful idea.”

She was excited, she told NewsOK, about meeting with a youth group “and learn[ing] a lot about people that we could all be more like.” And of meeting the Hamilton family she said, “[T]he original is way cooler.”

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A woman who posted an ad seeking a Christian roommate on her church bulletin board is being accused of violating the Fair Housing Act.

The complaint against the unnamed, 31-year-old woman was filed by the Fair Housing Center of West Michigan, a local nonprofit group under executive director Nancy Haynes, according to WOOD 8.

Haynes told Fox News, “It’s a violation to make, print or publish a discriminatory statement. There are no exemptions to that.” The complaint states the ad “expresses an illegal preference for a Christian roommate, thus excluding people of other faiths.”

Haynes told WOOD 8, “What if it said, ‘looking for a black roommate,’ or ‘looking for a white roommate’ or ‘looking for a Hispanic roommate’?” She said the case is now in the hands of the Michigan Department of Civil Rights.

Joel Oster of the Alliance Defense Fund, who is defending the woman, called it a constitutional issue. He told WOOD 8, “They’re quibbling. She has a first amendment right to free speech. She has a first amendment right to the free exercise of religion. And what they’re basically telling her is she cannot go out there and seek out a Christian roommate.”

Fox News reported that the Fair Housing Act does not allow people to publish an ad that states their preference of religion, race or handicap with respect to the sale or rental of a dwelling. Harold Core, director of public affairs with the Michigan Department of Civil Rights said there are exemptions in the law for gender.

Oster called the case “outrageous,” adding, “Christians shouldn’t live in fear of being punished by the government for being Christians. Not content to just lock Christians and their beliefs into the four walls of their church or home, some groups also want to invade those walls and force their own ideas upon them by force of law,” The Christian Post reported.

Haynes told Fox News, “If you read it and you were not Christian, would you not feel welcome to rent there?” She said they will pursue the case as a lesson to others. If the unnamed woman loses, she may have to pay several hundred dollars and go through fair housing training.

Oster pointed out that the woman is not a landlord, just a single person seeking a roommate. He cited the 1968 U.S. Fair Housing Civil Rights Act and the Elliot Larsen Rights Act to show that the woman did not violate any federal law or state law, The Christian Post said.

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Former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said recently that Christians should get involved in politics, even as he said the fourth of July is “holy,” and urged Americans to thank God for their freedom and for their founding fathers, the Miami Herald said.

Before a 1,800 audience at Charlotte’s First Baptist Church Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor and Baptist preacher, said evangelical Christians should play a larger role in restoring the country’s moral grounding, the Miami Herald said.

“What America really has is not a money problem, it is a moral problem,” Huckabee said. He also said that since the 2000s, Wall Street became “Las Vegas East, a legitimized casino,” and decried the loss of ethical principles among traders, the Miami Herald said.

Huckabee hosts a weekend TV talk show on Fox News and will soon release a daily news show with Fox this month, the Miami Herald said.

The former presidential candidate said America suffers from a moral problem rather than financial. Noting that the country’s founders envisioned a limited government, Huckabee said America’s failure to be faithful to the vision is because of a failure to adhere to the Golden Rule. “If we all lived by that one … rule, we’d have no need for other laws, and it gets real expensive when we don’t live right,” the Miami Herald said.

During the event Huckabee also signed books and handouts. Rev. Mark Harris, senior pastor of First Baptist said Huckabee fit with the church’s theme that year urging Christians to make a difference. Churches cannot legally endorse candidates, the Miami Herald said.

After Huckabee’s speech Fox News asked his opinion on Charlotte’s recent billboard war. Huckabee said, “If people want to spend their money to tell everyone they don’t believe in God, the joy, beauty, and incredible greatness of America is we let them do it and don’t shoot them for it.  What I would hope is that people who believe in the power of Jesus Christ like I do would put 10 billboards for every one like that,” Fox News reported.

When asked if he would run for the presidency again in 2012 Huckabee said, “Having been there before, I’m not ruling it out, it’s a tough hill to climb.” He added that he would probably dwell on his options after the midterm elections, Fox News said.

Comments he made on other issues:

Gulf oil spill: Huckabee said the BP “deserves a good kick in the rear” but also said President Barack Obama handled the operation like “a college professor” with lack of management experience, the Charlotte Observer said.

On unemployment benefits: Huckabee expressed support for unemployment benefits to a certain level, but not to the point that people already depend on the benefit and no longer want to work, the Charlotte Observer said.

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Mosab Hassan Yousef, the son of a founder of Hamas, will not be deported and may now apply for U.S. asylum.

Yousef was stunned when he found out in the immigration court that the Department of Homeland Security had changed their minds and withdrew their case, Fox News said.

Yousef’s father, Sheik Hassan Yousef, is a founder of Hamas, a Palestinian terror group that wants a strict Islamic law to be imposed in Palestine and Israel, the Washington Times said.

The elder Hamas is now in prison in Israel. Yousef converted to Christianity and spied for Israel’s Shin Bet for 10 years before moving to the U.S., the Washington Times said.

His Shin Bet handler, Gonen Ben-Itzhak went to San Diego to testify on Yousef’s behalf and said that Yousef saved Israeli and American lives as an informant, the Washington Times said.

The U.S. Jewish community backed Yousef, as did members of Israel’s parliament and some members from the U.S. Congress. Letters were sent to Attorney General Eric H. Holder noting that if Yousef were deported to the Middle East, his conversion to Christianity and work with Shin Bet would put him in grave danger, The Washington Times said.

The DHS did not give a reason for withdrawing their case. However it is believed that congressional support, public pressure, media and testimony from Yousef’s handler were the reasons, Fox News said.

Fox noted that they had aired their exclusive interview with Itzhak the day before the DHS withdrawal.

Yousef said he was pleased with the court’s decision, and he plans to continue to speak publicly against terrorism and Islam. He also said he would like to expose the ideological dimension of terrorists, and raise the security awareness of Americans, The Washington Times said.

He also said he felt he had a “responsibility to my own people,” noting, “They are deceived because they think they have the right to kill innocent people or kill anyone,” The Washington Times said.

Of his Christian faith Yousef said, “When we talk about God’s grace and unconditional love, I believe that if people believe in these concepts, the world will be better. You don’t have to believe in Christianity to believe in love and God’s grace. But it is good to share with others something that I believe has been good for my life,” The Washington Times said.

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A college journalist released his taped interview with Mike Huckabee after the former presidential candidate and now Fox newsperson slammed him for sensationalizing his comments, misquoting him and being deceptive.

A college journalist released his taped interview with Mike Huckabee after the former presidential candidate and now Fox newsperson slammed him for sensationalizing his comments, misquoting him and being deceptive.

In a statement Huckabee demanded release of the tape, harshly condemned the student and said, “the young college student hopefully will find a career other than journalism.”

Huckabee also claimed he was misquoted regarding his views on Michael Steele as GOP chairman.

He said he offered his support to Steele, but the article said he “Rip(ped) into Steele.”

The article that Huckabee complained of appeared in The Perspective, the news magazine of The College of New Jersey in Ewing, N.J.  The same article, upon publication, was sourced by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, MSNBC and wire agencies such as the Associated Press, among others.  It was also quoted in the blogosphere.

The tape is now available to the public here:

Follow up reports from the media on the incident also included sourced transcripts and old questionnaires Huckabee had filled out, including an Associated Press 1992 questionnaire which Huckabee filled out as a senatorial candidate in Arkansas.

In this questionnaire, regarding homosexuality Huckabee wrote that it was crucial that the country not “legitimize immorality”.  He wrote, “I feel homosexuality is an aberrant, unnatural, and sinful lifestyle.”

He also advocated isolating AIDS patients from the general public, saying it was necessary to confine “carriers of this plague.

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During this week’s regularly scheduled evening edition of “Fox News Sunday,” notable Fox senior political analyst Brit Hume weighed in on the controversial scandals surrounding pro golfer Tiger Woods by suggesting the allegedly Buddhist sportsman “turn to Christianity.”

Hume noted that “Tiger Woods will recover as a golfer. Whether he can recover as a person is a very open question.”

Woods, 34, continues to endure negative media coverage after confirmed rumors of his multiple affairs.

The legendary golfer recently announced his plans to take a hiatus from the sport and admitted that he was unfaithful to his wife, according to the Associated Press.

Hume believes Woods’ recovery depends heavily on his faith. “He is said to be a Buddhist,” commented Hume.

“[But] I don’t think that faith offers the kind of forgiveness and redemption that is offered by the Christian faith. My message to Tiger would be ‘Tiger, turn to the Christian faith and you can make a total recovery and be a great example to the world.’”

Woods, who recently lost several of his multi-million dollar sponsors and endorsements, admitted to Reuters in 2008 that he does “practice meditation.”

He also added, “In the Buddhist religion, you have to work for it yourself, internally, in order to achieve anything in [this] life and set up the next life. It’s all about what you do.”

In a Monday night guest appearance on Fox News’ “The O’Reily Factor,” Hume admitted he has received several letters regarding his comments about Woods, many of which have condemned him for his remarks and even accused him of belittling the Buddhist faith.

Hume denied accusations of proselytizing and told host Bill O’Reily, “Tiger Woods is somebody I’ve always rooted for as a golfer and as a man. I’ve greatly admired him over the years and I’ve always said to people that it was the content of his character that made him […] so admirable. Now we know that the content of his character was not what we thought it was.”

He added that, “Jesus Christ offers something that Tiger Woods badly needs.”

Hume, previously divorced and now married to Fox News Vice President Kim Schiller Hume, lost a son to suicide in February 1998.

Ten years later, during his 2008 departure from the Fox News segment “Special Report,” he commented on the affect his son’s death had on his faith.

“I want to pursue my faith more ardently than I have done,” said Hume.

“I’m not claiming it’s impossible to do when you work in this business. I was kind of a nominal Christian for the longest time. When my son died, I came to Christ in a way that was very meaningful to me. If a person is a Christian and tries to face up to the implications of what you say you believe, it’s a pretty big thing. If you do it part time, you’re not really living it.”

During his talk with O’Reily, Hume concluded by noting that a conversion to Christianity by Woods would be so noticeable that it would “shine through in his being” and would be “a magnificent thing to witness.”

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Penn State University is all abuzz with complaints…or should we say six complaints out of thousands of students…about a new school T-shirt design that resembles a cross.

There is no cross. The T-shirt, which is intended to advertise the football team’s annual “White Out” game, does not bear a cross. A few students who are offended by any hint of the Bible choose to see a cross in the t-bar shaped design. And because of one student letter, the Anti-Defamation League’s Philadelphia office is now involved. Readers can see a photo of the imaginary cross T-shirt here at a FOX News story.

This makes PSU the latest school with a broo-ha-ha over the imagined “separation of church and state” (see the Underground’s previous article about cheerleaders’ posters in Georgia).

Many other Penn State students have voiced their opinion to the school newspaper, The Daily Collegian, stating they are “OK” with the design; and 30,000 T-shirts have been sold so far. The design was intended to resemble the blue stripe on the football helmets.

According to the FOX story, the school bookstore has no plans to remove the T-shirts from its shelves. That is, probably until the school gets slapped with a lawsuit by the ADL or the ACLU on behalf of the six students who feel they are being “defamed.”

“There must be a separation,” one student who didn’t buy the T-shirt told FOX. The FOX reporter might have done well to ask her to point out the phrase “separation of church and state” in the First Amendment. It isn’t there.

On the other hand, an Eastern Asian studies student told the school paper the whole thing is ridiculous, and that if you look hard enough, you can see crosses in many other designs around the school.

Frankly, this reporter/editorialist thinks it would be wonderful if people started at least seeing God, if not Jesus, in more places. We can’t keep catering to the few who are “offended” by taking away the rights of the thousands who are not. Unless, of course, it really is the end times and unbelievers must be left to their own defenses against spiritual darkness.

“Blessed are you when people insult you, peresecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven…“  Matthew 5:11-12a (NIV)

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FOX News: Fri. October 9, 2009

Atheistic scientist Richard Dawkins attending the 35th annual Atheists Convention.

Evolutionary scientist, best-selling author and self-professing atheist Clinton Richard Dawkins has a new book out. And you should know about it. In an exclusive appearance on the FOX News Network’s The O’Reilly Factor today, Dawkins debated with conservative political commentator Bill O’Reilly about the existence of God, evolution versus Creationism and everything in between. The discussion also included news of his most recent bestseller “The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution.”

Dawkins has a longstanding history of adamantly speaking out against the theory of Intelligent Design in nature and is known for criticizing religion and faith in a “higher power” at every opportunity. And he is good at what he does.

In the 2008 documentary film “Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed”, longtime actor and comedian Ben Stein investigated the controversial issue of academic freedom in regards to Creationism and Intelligent Design. Dawkins was interviewed by Stein, among several other notable scientists, on the possibility of Intelligent Design in nature.

The famed atheistic professor naturally denied any such notion. However, by the end of their intense discourse, even Dawkins was unable to account for the origins of certain microbiological processes in creation. He did, however, remain steadfast in his belief that faith in an intelligent Creator is complete lunacy.

In his previous book “The God Delusion” (2006), Dawkins went so far as to claim that the very notion of the existence of a supernatural Creator is absurd and actually qualifies as a psychological delusion.

Today’s mainstream media and the education establishment of the U.S. are becoming increasingly intolerant of professors and scientists who assert even the possibility of Intelligent Design in nature. Countless university level teachers, professors and faculty have either been reprimanded or completely cut for merely suggesting such a theory.

We live in a world where science and God, science and religious faith, have been separated. Many believe the conjunction of the two is simply politically incorrect. Unfortunately, you cannot have science without God or God without science. Not to mention that any science professor has the right to at least present Creationism in their classroom as a possibility for the origins of life, just as Evolution is presented.

There is a cultural call to Christians everywhere to guard their minds against Dawkins and others like him and to “demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God” and “take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5, NIV).

Research, study, learn and be prepared to defend your beliefs and faith whenever needed.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction…Happy is the man that finds wisdom and gains understanding.” (Proverbs 1:7 and 3:13).

You can watch the official square-off between Dawkins and O’Reilly in this YouTube re-post of the interview.

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