Christian leaders urge sanctions against Iran

UNDATED (AP) - Dozens of Christian leaders have issued an urgent appeal for tough economic sanctions against Iran to deter what they call "the world's most dangerous regime" from obtaining nuclear weapons.
     
The letter to Congress is signed by Catholic and evangelical leaders including Bill Donohue, Charles Colson, the Rev. Pat Robertson, the Rev. John Hagee and the current and past presidents of the Southern Baptist Convention.
     
They warn that Iran could transfer nuclear weapons to extremist groups and spark a nuclear arms race in the already volatile Middle East. The letter notes that neighboring nations "have reason to fear the religious, political and military ambitions of Iran's extremist leaders."
     
The Reverend Richard Land, who heads the Southern Baptists' public policy arm, says, "I think this has the potential to be one of the greatest crises for the world since the Cuban missile crisis."

      Sound:

      [<mos><mosID>APPC.MOS</mosID><objID>09299342</objID><objSlug>PrimeCuts Cut 342</objSlug><mosAbstract>PrimeCuts Cut 342</mosAbstract></mos>] 00:06 "Cuban missile crisis"
      The Reverend Richard Land
      The Reverend Richard Land says Iran's nuclear program puts the
entire world at risk.

Arkansas AG defends state's ban on guns in church

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Arkansas' attorney general is defending a state ban on carrying concealed firearms into churches, telling a lawmaker that he believes the law would survive a court challenge.
     
The opinion was requested by state Rep. Beverly Pyle, who proposed earlier this year that the Legislature allow concealed guns in churches. Her plan was rejected by a Senate committee.
     
Pyle introduced the measure after a series of church shootings across the country. She said it would be up to individual churches whether to allow concealed guns.
     
Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel says he believes a court would find that the current gun ban "does not indicate an intent to regulate religious worship" and does not favor one religion over others.

GOP lawmaker clarifies criticism of Obama

WASHINGTON (AP) - A Republican congressman who called President Barack Obama an "enemy of humanity" now says he should have made clear that he was referring to the president's abortion policies.
     
Trent Franks of Arizona said in a speech to conservatives Saturday that Obama -- quote- "has no ability to see the image of God in these little fellow human beings."
     
Franks said, "if he can't do that right, then he has no place in any station of government and we need to realize that he is an enemy of humanity."
     
In a clarifying statement Tuesday, Franks said he was referring to "unborn humanity."
     
His statement notes that the Declaration of Independence said people are "endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights and chief among those rights is the right to life."

Christian doctors settle case for denying lesbian treatment

SAN DIEGO (AP) - A California woman has settled a lawsuit against Christian doctors who denied her artificial insemination based on her sexual orientation.
     
One of the doctors at North Coast Women's Medical Group referred Guadalupe Benitez to another fertility specialist and she gave birth to three children.
     
But Benitez and spouse Joanne Clark sued the Christian doctors for discrimination. California's highest court barred the doctors from invoking their religious beliefs, ruling that they must comply with state law prohibiting sexual orientation discrimination.
     
Benitez's attorneys released a statement by the two sides which says they settled the case for an undisclosed sum of money. The doctors say they want gays and lesbians to feel welcome in their practice.

Prayers for peaceful end to King sibling feud

ATLANTA (AP) - A follower of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. is invoking the spirit of the civil rights icon and his wife, Coretta, in praying for a peaceful resolution to the legal battle among the King children.
     
The Rev. Joseph Lowery led dozens of clergy, civil rights veterans and others in prayer Tuesday, standing in the shadow of the Kings' crypt and the eternal flame that burns in their honor in Atlanta. Lowery worked with King during the civil rights movement and remains close to the family.
     
Martin Luther King III and his sister, the Rev. Bernice King, have sued their brother, Dexter, over their father's estate, which the three control as a private corporation. On Monday, the siblings held their first shareholder's meeting since 2004, and are scheduled to meet again on Friday.

Mormon church posts signs in plaza after kissing incident

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - New signs at a Mormon church-owned plaza in downtown Salt Lake City put visitors on notice that anyone can be asked to leave for any reason.
     
The change follows a much-publicized incident this summer in which two men were cited with trespassing on the plaza after sharing a kiss. City prosecutors did not pursue the charges, saying signs at the plaza failed to adequately warn the couple they were entering private property.
     
Church spokesman Scott Trotter says the new signs include extra text at the suggestion of the Salt Lake City prosecutor's office. They now say the church reserves the right to refuse access to anyone.
    
City prosecutor Sim Gill says the new signs provide clarity. He says with the new signs in place, visitors who refuse to leave could be prosecuted for trespassing.

Lawyer: Church at fault in sex abuse

BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) - A former altar boy's attorney says the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington disregarded the welfare of children when it hired a priest who had been accused of child molestation.
     
Plaintiff's lawyer Jerome O'Neill made the remarks Tuesday at the opening of a civil trial in which a 44-year-old man alleges that Father Edward Paquette molested him when he was an 11-year-old altar boy at Christ the King Church in Burlington.
     
The man says the diocese knew Paquette had a history of molesting boys when it hired Paquette and allowed him to work around children in parishes in Rutland, Montpelier and Burlington.
     
Paquette, who apologized for the incidents in a recent interview with the Burlington Free Press, isn't named as a defendant in the suit.

Seminary grad denies murdering ex-adult film actress

PASADENA, Calif. (AP) - A self-proclaimed preacher who was a contestant in the TV beauty pageant "The Sexiest Bachelor in America" has pleaded not guilty to murdering a former adult-movie actress.
     
Brian Randone was arraigned Tuesday in Pasadena, California. He's being held on $2 million bail.
     
The San Gabriel Valley Tribune reports that the 45-year-old Randone has a bachelor's degree from Moody Bible Institute and a master's degree in divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. The newspaper says he also worked as a mime on the campus of Baylor University in 1996.
     
Randone could face 25 years to life in prison if convicted of beating and choking Felicia Lee on Sept. 11 in their apartment. The 31-year-old Lee had moved in with Randone a few months before her death. Detectives said her body had dozens of recent injuries.
     
A preliminary hearing has been set for Oct. 9.

Court strikes down city's animal slaughter ban

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) - A federal judge has barred the city of Euless, Texas, from enforcing an ordinance that would prevent a Santeria priest from sacrificing animals in his home.
     
Santeria priest Jose Merced's attorney says the ruling means Merced can resume priest ordination ceremonies involving animal sacrifice.
     
Merced's lawsuit accused Euless of violating his religious rights. The city argued the sacrifices jeopardized public health and violated its slaughterhouse and animal cruelty ordinances.
     
Earlier this year, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans sided with Merced, ruling the Euless ordinance placed a substantial burden on Merced's free exercise of religion.

Police: Church collapse in Nepal kills dozens
     
KATMANDU, Nepal (AP) - Police in Nepal say a church collapsed early Wednesday in the eastern part of the country, killing dozens of people. Dozens more were injured.
     
A police official says people had been gathering in the eastern town of Dharan for a Christian conference and most of them were sleeping in the building when it collapsed.
     
The area is about 240 miles southeast of the capital, Katmandu.

Among those killed were at least 17 women and four children.

School must provide prayer room for Muslims

BERLIN (AP) - A German court has ruled that a Berlin high school must provide a room where Muslim students can pray or otherwise be in violation of Germany's guarantees of freedom of religion.
     
The Berlin administrative court, ruling on a suit brought by a 16-year-old Muslim student, said the constitution guarantees "not only the inner freedom to believe or not to believe, but also the freedom to express this belief."
     
Relying on expertise from a scholar of Islam, the court ruled that specific hours of prayer have a high significance for Muslims and therefore "a devout Muslim could not be expected to pray only outside of school hours."

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)     
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