Religion & Values » Richard Land

Speaking out on abortion doctor’s murder

Carla Hinton — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 22:40:01 +0000

Numerous leaders of faith groups and anti-abortion organizations have been speaking out on the murder of Dr. George Tiller, who was shot dead at his church on Sunday.

Probably the most extreme comment I’ve read thus far is the one reportedly made by the Rev. Wiley Drake, a Southern Baptist pastor in Buena Park, Calif.

“I’m glad George Tiller is dead,” Drake was quoted in an Associated Baptist Press story today.

According to the story, Drake, a former Southern Baptist Convention second vice president, made the comments Monday on his Crusade Radio broadcast.

“There may be a lot who would say, ‘Oh that is mean. You shouldn’t be that way,” Drake said. “Well, no, it’s an answer to prayer.”

Tiller, who attended Reformation Lutheran Church in Wichita, Kan., was well-known as an abortion provider, particularly of partial-birth abortions.

Among the leaders of faith groups and anti-abortion organizations around the country sharing their comments is an Oklahoma Roman Catholic leader, the Most Rev. Edward Slattery, bishop of the Tulsa Diocese. Slattery, like many of the leaders, condemned Tiller’s slaying.

“Dr. Tiller was one of three doctors in America who was willing to perform late-term abortions. The news of his murder saddens all the members of the pro-life movement in America since it is just such violence that we deplore,” Slattery said.

“For this reason, I want to be among the many in the pro-life movement to publicly condemn this violent action against life,” he wrote in a prepared statement.

“Such violence does nothing to further the cause of life. Rather, it sullies our effort and allows others to dismiss us as terrorists.”

Here are a few other comments from leaders across the country:

Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberties Commission: “Murdering someone is a grotesque and bizarre way to emphasize one’s commitment to the sanctity of human life. People who truly believe in the sanctity of human life believe in the sanctity of the lives of abortion providers as well as the unborn babies who are aborted. … Clearly the killing of abortion profiders is unbiblical, unchristian and un-American. Such callous disregard for human beings brutalizes everyone.”

Melinda Delahoyde, president of Care Net, which runs a network of more than 1,100 pregnancy centers providing help and support to those facing unplanned pregnancies: “Care Net strongly condemns the brutal act of violence that ended the life of Dr. George Tiller on Sunday. It is never consistent with the pro-life ethic to take the life of another human being made in the image of God.”

Rick Scarborough, president of Vision America, part of the “Values Voter” movement: Our hearts go out to his family and friends. May they find comfort in their hour of grief. We condemn this heinous crime in the strongest possible terms and hope the person responsible for Dr. Tiller’s death is brought to justice speedily.”

Andrea Lafferty, executive director of the Traditional Values Coalition: “The pro-life movement is non-violent and does not encouage vigilante justice against abortionists. We seek to bring an end to abortion through peaceful and legal means. As evil as Tiller was in killing late-term babies for profit, he did not deserve to be executived by a vigilante.”

The Rev. Galen Guengerich, board chairman of the Interfaith Alliance, a group which celebrates religious freedom by championing individual rights: “The abortion issue evokes deep passion from people on all sides, but resorting to murder should never be an option. The fact that it happened at a church is all the more distressing.”

The Rev. Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life: “I am saddened to hear of the killing of George Tiller this morning. … Whatever the motives, we at Priests for Life continue to insist on a culture in which violence is never seen as the solution to any problem. Every life has to be protected, without regard to their age or views or actions.”

Shaun Kenney, executive director of the American Life League: “Leaders within the pro-life movement often discuss justice in connection with our mission to end the tragedy of abortion. Today, Dr. George Tiller’s life ended in an act defying those principles.”

(AP PHOTO above: Kip Bloss, of Wichita, Kan., prays outside Women’s Health Care Services in Wichita, Kan., today. Bloss, an anti-abortion demonstrator, was making his regular weekly appearance at the clinic which was owned by Dr. George Tiller who was gunned down during church services Sunday. )

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor

More faith leaders speak out on Obama

Carla Hinton — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 22:05:30 +0000

I promised I’d post more statements and comments from faith leaders and faith-based groups regarding Barack Obama’s election to the U.S. presidency.

Here are a few more that have come across the wire or sent via e-mail:

The Council of Bishops of The United Methodist Church congratulated Sen. Barack Obama today on his election as the 44^th President of the United States and applauded his willingness to articulate a vision of change for the nation “that is based on hope for all the people, especially those who are disinherited and disenfranchised.”

The congratulatory letter was signed by the Council’s president, Bishop Gregory V. Palmer, and sent on behalf of the entire council, which includes bishops from the U.S., Africa, Europe and the Philippines.

“The United Methodist Church has a long history of publicly-expressed concern for social justice based on Christian principles. Our desire for justice extends to the natural world, the nurturing community, the social community, the economic community, the political community and the world community,” the letter stated. “We are praying that God will grant you wisdom, courage and protection in your presidential leadership. We are also praying for all the leaders of the world’s nations who will collaborate with you in the arena of common concerns that impact the global community.”

The Baptist Press reported today that Southern Baptist ethics leader Richard Land applauded the meaning of Obama’s election while acknowledging his opposition to the president-elect’s policies.

“There are tens of millions of Americans who did not vote for President-elect Obama, as well as those who did, who are very, very pleased that an African American has been elected president of the United States,” said Land, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. “The fact that this could happen in a country with as tragic a racial past as America’s says something noble and fine about the American experiment and the glorious ‘opportunity democracy’ it has spawned. After much struggle, we as a nation have chosen to live up to the promises of our founding documents: We believe ‘that all men are created equal.’

“For the millions of us who came of age during the civil rights era and were inspired by Dr. [Martin Luther] King, it is very gratifying to watch our nation elect a person of color to the highest political office in the land, even so one for whom we may not have voted because of serious policy differences,” Land told Baptist Press.

Alexia Kelley, executive director of Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good, issued the following statement today:

“The election of Barack Obama represents a historic moment for our nation. Across the often bitter divides of race and class, Americans united behind a shared vision for the common good. We hope that President-elect Obama will live up to his promise to build a new kind of politics that brings Democrats and Republicans together to confront the urgent challenges we face here and around the world. As faithful citizens, we will challenge his Administration to bring a responsible end to the

Iraq war, ensure all Americans have health care, and enact comprehensive solutions to reduce abortions. Catholics in
Alliance will continue to challenge all elected officials to put human dignity and the common good before narrow partisan agendas or rigid ideologies. We congratulate Sen. McCain on running an honorable campaign and affirm his patriotic and gracious call for unity and bipartisanship.”

Jane Hansen Hoyt, president of Aglow International, a worldwide women’s ministry based in Seattle, issued this statement:

“We congratulate Barack Obama, the new president-elect of the United States and commit to pray for him and his family, as we have done on behalf of our leaders for decades. As a worldwide women’s ministry with thousands of members across the U.S., we are praying for two crucial issues he will face that, we believe, will have an effect on our nation for generations: Support for the nation of Israel, and the appointment of U.S. Supreme Court justices. May he make those decisions with wisdom and a desire to seek righteousness.”

Meanwhile, Jon O’Brien, president of Catholics for Choice, issued a statement today on the U.S. election results and the priorities for the next president.

“Initial results show that 54% of the Catholic vote went to President-elect Barack Obama. This shows that the majority of Catholics voted their conscience when deciding who should be the next president, and ignored the single-issue dictates of a few bishops who declared that it was unacceptable to vote for him because of his prochoice position.

“The next administration will have to work hard to repair the damage done during the last eight years. Undoubtedly, concerns about America’s economic security and military engagements overseas will garner a great deal of attention. However, the next administration and Congress must also work for advances in reproductive health care in the U.S. and abroad.”

Carla Hinton

Religion Editor

Faith in the voter’s booth

Carla Hinton — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 13:15:36 +0000

I was struck by the simplicity of Richard Land’s (pictured at right) message when I visited with the Southern Baptist Convention leader during his visit to Oklahoma City this week.

I interviewed Land briefly at last year’s convention annual meeting in San Antonio and had been to previous news conferences where the president of the SBC’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission held sway. I had always enjoyed talking to him because he doesn’t mince words nor does he appear to hesitate to speak exactly what’s on his mind (every reporter’s dream come true!).

So when I asked him to explain his general message to Southern Baptist these days I shouldn’t have been surprised that it was so simple and direct:

Find out where you need to go vote.

Become informed about the candidates and …

Vote.

Land said that is the essence of his message — and he implores his audience of evangelicals (Land said one in three Oklahomans is a baptized member of a Southern Baptist church) to vote according to their Judeo-Christian value system.

The message is getting through, he said.

Land said Americans see the necessity of the seperation of church and state — a point emphasized by the country’s founding fathers. Americans don’t want government-sponsored faith, but they do want people of all faiths to have an opportunity to make their point in the public square, Land added.

He predicted that this will be borne out come the presidential election in November.

Meanwhile, here’s a heads up about a new prayer initiative that Land’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission is leadin.

The Nashville, Tenn.-based commission is partnering with the SBC’s North American Mission Board for a prayer initiative calling all Southern Baptists to engage in a time of prayer for personal spiritual revival and national renewal this fall.

The initiative, called the “40/40 Prayer Vigil,” will feature 40 days of prayer beginning Sept. 23 and concluding with a dedicated 40 hours of prayer that will begin at 4 p.m. Oct. 31 and end at 8 a.m. Nov. 2.

For more information, go to ilivevalues.com.