Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.
In today's edition:
- Survey: Journalists Admit Liberal Leanings, Lack of Exposure to Faith
- Minister Remembers 'Ben Hur' Star Heston as Humble Man
- Kay Warren Challenges Rwandan Women to Forgive
- Pope Faces Divide in U.S. Church
Survey: Journalists Admit Liberal Leanings, Lack of Exposure to Faith
Baptist Press reports that just 6 percent of national journalists describe themselves as conservative, compared with 36 percent of the overall population, according to an annual survey released in March by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press. The State of the Media report said 2 percent of the journalists and news executives surveyed consider themselves very conservative, while 53 percent of national journalists described themselves as moderate, 24 percent as liberal and 8 percent as very liberal. Overall, only 8 percent of journalists at national media outlets said they attend church or synagogue weekly. Almost two-thirds of the journalists in the survey admitted that their political leanings impact their reporting as the line between reporting and commentary is blurred.
Minister Remembers 'Ben Hur' Star Heston as Humble Man
Christian Newswire reports that the Reverend Rob Schenck remembers American film icon and political activist Charlton Heston, who died Saturday at 84, as one of the most humble men he encountered in Washington. "The first impression I had of this towering legend was just how humble he was. An elder statesman in Washington who worked with Mr. Heston in the civil rights movement told me, 'Charlton Heston was an everyday guy. Working with him you'd never know he was so famous.' That was my sense of the man after talking with him." In 1998, Schenck awarded Heston the Ten Commandments Leadership Award on behalf of the National Clergy Council for the actor's pro-life and pro-family advocacy. Heston was also known for being a vocal part of the NRA, and for his roles in "Ben Hur" and the 1956 epic "The Ten Commandments," in which he played Moses.
Kay Warren Challenges Rwandan Women to Forgive
According to a release from A. Larry Ross Communications, on the weekend before the 14th National Week of Mourning for the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, which was to be commemorated beginning Monday, April 7, Kay Warren addressed a group of several hundred women at the Jali Club in Kigali. The topic was, “Overflowing Grace.” Mrs. Warren spoke personally and candidly about the biblical principal that reconciliation starts with forgiveness. “These are days of mourning and reflection, but also days of hope and healing,” Mrs. Warren said. “Rwanda is becoming known – not just for genocide, but for what you are teaching the world about reconciliation. But true reconciliation is not possible without forgiveness.” Mrs. Warren and her husband, Rick, pastor of Saddleback Church in California, have been in Rwanda for more than one week, meeting with government, business and church leaders and inspecting the progress on their massive Western Rwanda HIV/AIDS Healthcare Initiative Project.
Pope Faces Divide in U.S. Church
According to the London Free Press, when Pope Benedict visits the U.S. later this month, he will find an American flock wrestling with what it means to be Roman Catholic. This younger American generation, the Press states, considers religion important, but doesn't equate faith with going to church. Other issues dividing American Catholics include: lay people wanting a greater say in how their parishes operate; seminarians hoping to restore the authority of priests; Catholic colleges and universities trying to balance religious identity with free expression. Additionaly, the third of U.S. adult Catholics who are Hispanic worry about being considered a separate, ethnic church. Despite these divisions, the Press reports, Catholics are energized by the Pope's trip.
