Anne Graham Lotz: Daddy is deaf
Evangelist Billy Graham is "doing very well," says his daughter and fellow evangelist Anne Graham Lotz, "although I'd say in the last month he's just gone totally deaf." She made the comments to Knoxville, Tenn., radio station WNOX.
Fortunately, says Graham spokesman A. Larry Ross, the hearing loss is temporary. "He has a fluid buildup in his inner ear as a consequence of a chronic sinus infection and as a result it has temporarily affected his hearing," the publicist tells The Knoxville News-Sentinel.
Sadly, sinus infections and lung ailments keep recurring for the 83-year-old evangelist, and he's currently receiving outpatient treatment at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville. He isn't being treated for hearing loss there, says a clinic spokesman.
Also ailing is Ruth Graham, who broke her pelvis in a recent fall. That news comes from Franklin Graham, who talked to the Grahams' hometown paper, The Charlotte Observer, Tuesday.
Franklin also spoke about Billy's 1972 Oval Office comments about Jews. His father was never anti-Semitic, the younger Graham said, and was instead talking about "a handful of elitists who had control of the major outlets at that time . …The issue has never been Jewish people. His concern was liberalism in that time in the media. And it's changed."
A few more responses have since come to light over the last week. First, LA Times reporter Tim Rutten finally got around to interviewing Colson. The Prison Fellowship head again acknowledged using staffwriters, adding, "When we Christian leaders use the talent of others, we are ethically obligated to publicize that." The Christianity Today column had its genesis, Colson said,
when I read a piece on the problem in The New York Times. I drafted a memo to the staff saying this was something we should tackle. Later, when the Stephen Ambrose plagiarism controversy came up, Anne [Morse] drafted, and I edited, a radio commentary. I told her I wanted to turn it into a longer piece for Christianity Today and she did. It's a pretty good example of the way we work . …Anne [Morse] was the one who finished the column for CT. I have no problem with telling anybody that. I complimented Anne on the job she did because I thought it was the best work she'd ever done.
Morse herself says Colson deserves more credit. "Mr. Colson's columns have far more than his 'fingerprints,' on them," she said in a letter to Christianity Today. "He is an active participant at every step in the writing process. His columns are indeed his own words. Moreover, Mr. Colson … has never hidden the fact that he employs writers to assist him. Indeed, it would be difficult for him to be more open about this."
Nevertheless, Colson continues to take some heat in the media for the column. Yesterday's Washington Times, for example, covered Rutten's original accusation and the ensuing debate.
Pakistan still probing church attack | Investigators say they need more time to determine how law enforcement agencies failed to prevent bombing (Associated Press)
BFA lawyers strive to save Andersen settlement | Lawyers for the bankruptcy trust of the Baptist Foundation of Arizona are scrambling to salvage a $217 million settlement that accounting firm Arthur Andersen scrapped last week (Arizona Daily Star)
Monument honors Wedgwood seven | For the loved ones of the seven shooting victims killed in 1999 at Wedgwood Baptist Church, Saturday night's memorial service was all about the hereafter and moving on after tragedy (Fort Worth [Tex.] Star-Telegram)
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Punishment in pastor attack needs meaning | Witnesses say a teen leaned out the window of a passing car and punched a Methodist minister as he was riding his bicycle (Editorial, Eastside Journal, Seattle suburbs)
Jailed killer is ordained a priest | Osman Charles Fero, a former principal serving a life sentence for killing his school superintendent, was ordained a priest of the Catholic Apostolic Church of Antioch (Associated Press)
Church & state:
Free speech at risk | Focus on the Family Canada calls for "transparent and fair" media complaints process (ChristianWeek, Canada)
Church shelters fight zoning laws | Legal experts and homeless advocates say churches are increasingly willing to face off with municipal zoning committees because the number of homeless is on the rise. (Associated Press)
The church's candidates? | If The Houses of Worship Political Speech Protection Act passes, there will be fewer unbelievers in Congress than in a proverbial foxhole. (James L. Evans, The News & Observer, Raleigh, N.C.)
Blair adviser sent to settle school creationism row | Tony Blair is brokering a secret compromise deal with an evangelical Christian businessman to allow the promotion of creationism in state-funded schools. (The Daily Telegraph, London)
Also: 'Creationism' in schools attacked | Religious fundamentalism should not be allowed to interfere with science lessons, the Liberal Democrat education spokesman has warned (BBC)
Also: An unlikely marriage broker | Americans don't think the government should develop programs to encourage people to get married and stay married (David S. Broder, The Washington Post)
It's strictly secular | Bush's frequent use of the word "evil" has little to do with his Christianity. Rather, it's a word that evokes something real. (Charlotte Allen, Los Angeles Times)
The wings of an idea | Bush's volunteer program has an earnest champion in John Bridgeland (The Washington Post)
Washington adds bishop of Harare to sanctions list | Washington has added the Anglican bishop of Harare and Zimbabwe's richest businessman to its list of Robert Mugabe's close associates subject to sanctions (The Guardian, London)
Bill Simon's albatross | Will the Christian Right drag down a GOP gubernatorial hopeful? (Bill Berkowitz, WorkingForChange.com)
Education:
Dobson: Get kids out of California public schools | Children "in every classroom in the state [are] being taught homosexual propaganda and these other politically correct, post-modern views" (CNSNews.com)
Florida House passes education overhaul | Bill allows student-led prayer and gives permission for students to distribute religious literature (Florida Capital News)
Rights of Miami's gays under threat | Christian Coalition wants to remove words "sexual orientation" from local government's Human Rights Ordinance (BBC)
Also: Are we losing our religion? | Fewer Nova Scotians are attending church, but that doesn't mean we're turning our back on the divine (The Daily News, Halifax, N.S., Canada)
The first holy war | During the Crusades, East and West first met-on the battlefield (U.S. News & World Report)
Jerusalem body 'has links to the Crucifixion' | A 2,000-year-old shrouded body found in a tomb near Jerusalem could be that of a witness to Christ's crucifixion, a British archaeologist believes (The Daily Telegraph, London)
Jesus or Jacques? | Bradford University scholars claim they can link science and history to prove that the face on the Shroud of Turin is that of a priest whose followers helped Scotland to win independence from England in the 14th century. (The Scotsman)
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In the beginning was … confusion | Francis Xavier, the first Catholic missionary to set foot in Japan, began linguistic babel (The Japan Times)
A golden reign of tolerance | A thousand years ago on the Iberian Peninsula, an enlightened vision of Islam had created the most advanced culture in Europe. (MarÍa Rosa Menocal, The New York Times)
Vatican file shows pope pardoned massacred Knights | Vatican documents have come to light showing that the wholesale massacre of the Knights Templar in the Middle Ages for alleged "heresy, idolatry and sexual perversion"—an episode still shrouded in mystery—took place even though the Pope had exonerated them in a secret trial. (The Times, London)
Greek Orthodox Church facing a power struggle | A dispute in the United States' Greek Orthodox Archdiocese over the way it is governed was worsened when parishes were given just two weeks to respond to a proposed new charter. (Associated Press)
Easter challenge: Keep faithful coming back | Some rely on the power of the worship service itself, others hope the friendliness and opportunities provided by the congregation will be noticed. Still others will unveil new building plans, hoping to catch the interest of even the most casual guest (The Tampa [Fla.] Tribune)
Charitable flock answer rector's heartfelt prayer | Parishioners concerned that their vicar would have to wait a year for a heart bypass raised £15,000 for him to have the operation privately. (The Times, London)
Church protesters standing on tradition | Group opposes modernization of parish in North Hollywood, but pastor says there is no set agenda for changes. (Los Angeles Times)
Pints in the pews | Redundant churches are now being put to some curious uses. It's better than demolishing them, anyway (The Economist)
Workers stay up late to worship | Far from home, camp residents find comfort in late-night gatherings (The News-Press, Ft. Myers, Fla.)
Sermon stealing:
Bible-bashers caught in a Web | Why should churchgoers be subject to droning deliveries from the pulpit when they could just as easily access material tailored to their interests directly and at a time of their choosing from the Net? (Chris McGillion, The Sydney Morning Herald)
An era when the art of the sermon has declined | The ease with which one can assemble an instant sermon from the words of others is leading ministers into temptation (The New York Times)
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