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Bill who?
Bill Simon Jr won the Republican nomination in the California governor race on Tuesday. It's the shocking political upset of the … of the week, anyway. Everyone, including President Bush, expected former Los Angeles mayor Richard Riordan to be the victor. The two men were former fellow parishioners, but ran very different campaigns: Simon took strong political stands while Riordan hemmed and hawed on his positions. There are countless articles this week rushing to explain who this newcomer is, but Christianity Today readers will be interested in these details. His father was Nixon and Ford Treasury Secretary William E. Simon, whose courageous stands posthumously earned him the Wilberforce Award from Charles Colson's Prison Fellowship Ministries. He's also one of the major financial backers of PAX-TV, and served as vice chairman of the family-friendly network. He also used to host a Sunday morning show on the network, "Sunday With Simon" (guests included Colson, VeggieTales head Phil Vischer, and Os Guinness). He's also the vice chairman of Catholic Charities of Los Angeles, chairman emeritus of the crisis shelter Covenant House of California, and served on the board of The Heritage Foundation and other organizations. Oh yeah, and he's a big-time lawyer, too. (Marvin Olasky profiled Simon in World magazine last November.)

Politics:

• Bush meets with Orthodox leader | Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I talks about Iran, Middle East (Associated Press)
  
  
• Marriage proposal | Debate looms over Bush plan to spend $300 million promoting unions (ABCNews.com)
  
  
• Views on AIDS unchanged, Helms says | Senator cites extent of health crisis in his support for efforts in Africa (The News & Observer, Raleigh, North Carolina)
  
  

Church & State:

• Religion, county's rules hit head-on at rabbi's home | Josef Konikov simply ignores that his neighborhood is for residences only and continues to use his living room as a synagogue, outraging his neighbors. (The Orlando Sentinel)
  
  
• Posts bearing hamlet's anti-Satan proclamation stolen | Mayor says the posts will be replaced by 8-foot posts anchored into the ground with concrete. (Associated Press)
  
  
• Earlier: The Holy City | A mayoral ban in Inglis, Florida, designates the town free of Satan (Christianity Today, Feb. 12, 2002)
  
  
• Pastor thankful ex-sheriff lent help | New Jersey officials are investigating work prisoners did at church (The Bergen [N.J.] Record)
  
  
• Christian wings in jails win reprieve | Director of Prison Service says he's "content for it to continue" though he remains concerned about its "evangelical slant." (The Daily Telegraph)
  
  

Religious liberty:

• Student actor who refused to swear asks court to reinstate suit | Christian film group, theologians file briefs supporting Mormon woman's appeal to 10th Circuit (Associated Press)
  
  
• Woman receives payout after employer forces her to take religion blessing | Boss thought employee was possessed (Ananova)
  
  

Catholicism:

• Pope taking it easy for a few weeks | Appointments canceled on advice of doctors (Associated Press)
  
  
• A mystic in our midst? | A priest with the markings of something more (Kathryn Jean Lopez, The Wall Street Journal)
  
  
• Two more scholars censured by Rome | One is a German Benedictine who is also a Zen master, the other reportedly is accused of denying the divinity of Jesus (National Catholic Reporter)
  
  
• Priest not only 'Father,' but also husband, dad | David Medow, an ex-Lutheran minister, is the first married priest in the Chicago area. Many of his parishioners hope it's a sign of the future. (Chicago Tribune)
  
  

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March (Web-only) 2002, Vol. 46