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http://www,thecharlottepost.com tCIie Cljarlotte $ost THURSDAY, JUNE 30, 2005 8B RELIGION Life 1B character Matthew 5:1-12 Tb Be Lowly and to Monm (w. 1-4) And seeir^ the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his dis ciples came unto him. Jesus is at the hei^t of His populaiity. Large crowds gather to watch Him heal the sick (Matthew 4:23-25). They are also attracted to Jesus because they are astonished at his doctrine; for he tai^ht them as one having authority, and not as the scribes (7:28, 29). Jesus speaks hke a man who knows what He’s talking about. When Jesus goes up into a mountain, it could be anyone of many possible locations in the bills of Galilee. The hilly location perhaps weeds out the people who are merely curious, and it provides a nat ural amphitheater for those who are willing to make the dimb. As Jesus sits down to teach, He adopts the accepted pos ture of teachers in syna gogues or schools (Luke 4:20). There pai'allel account in Luke 6:17-26 has Jesus standing. Putting together the accoimts of Matthew and Luke, we see hints of a multi day affair. Sometimes Jesus sits, sometimes He stands, depending on a variety of fac tors. The disciples include both the apostles and other followers who are serious about hearing the Master. 2,3. And he opened his mouth, and taught them, say- ii^. Blessed ai'e the poor in spirit; for theirs is the king dom of heaven. It is important to catch the flavor of he word blessed in the Beatitudes. In the com mon language of the daj^dthe woixl is used to describe peo ple who are saying, in effect, “How foiTunate are the poor in spirit.” He is not feeling sorry for them as losers in the game of life; He is congratu-* lating them as 'the ultimate winnei's. Those who are poor in spirit are, in fact, better off than those who ai*e arrogant and smug. People who recognize their owns spiiitual bank ruptcy are moie likely to be ready to turn to God and receive salvation. (Dniy those who humble themselves can entei* the kingdom of Heav en—both now and in the life to come. The church is an expression of (jod’s kingdom on earth. After Jesus ascends, the first century church will be made up of “not many wise men after the flesh, not many mi^ty not many noble” (1 Corinthians 1:26). The final expression of the kingdom is heaven itself Those who humble themselves will be exalted; they will have a home in heaven. The best is yet to come. 4. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be com forted. Of all the Beatitudes, this one seems to be the most para doxical. How can it be fortu nate of happy for people to mourn? Theie are two senses in which mourning is good. First the concept of mourning is found often in the Old Tfes- tament w'hen people are expressing sorrow for sin. Those who repent are obvi- Please see CHRISTIAN/7B #•0 Black churches work to increase AIDS awareness Outreach part of prevention and support THE ASSOCIATED PRESS SEATTLE-The Rev. Carey G. Anderson wants his congregation to realize not only that HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, dispro portionately affects the lives of black Americans—but to respond to that crisis. Anderson, senior pastor of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church, hopes that his church can not only help black Americans avoid HIV infection but also sup port those in the lai’ger com munity who live with HIV and AIDS. “The cry must be heralded not only from the pulpit but also from the hands,” he said. Anderson’s chuiTh, which hosted an HTV testing day June 12 and plans aware ness workshops, is pai*t of an increasing number of black churches nationwide that are becoming more active in HIV/AIDS educa tion and support work in their commimities, AIDS activists say Tferesa Holmes is a spokes woman for The Bahn in Gilead, a New Ydrk City- based organization that tries to combat the epidemic by mobilizing black church- Black churches want more people to get tested for HIV, African Americans than any other racial group. es. icans are believed to be liv- PHOTO/WADE NASH which infects more As part of National HIV testing day Monday, The Balm in Gilead gave chiuxrh- es infonnation on how to encourage black people to get tested. Duiing the past few days, churches nation wide conducted HIV test ings and rallies. Holmes said. More than a million Amei*- ing with Hiy according to the Centex^ for Disease Control and Prevention. And an estimated 25 per cent of those with HIV don’t even know they have it. The latest CDC estimates indicate blacks account for 47 percent of HIV cases; gay and bisexual men make up 45 percent of those Hving with the vims, the health agency believes. When the disease first emerged 20 years ago, many black chmxh lead- el's considei’ed it mainly a pmblem of gay white men. Holmes said. Now “it’s infecting and affecting people of color,” Andereon said. See CHURCHES/7B Judge rejects arguments against web site THE ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge has rejected arguments fi-om the American Civil Liberties Union that rehgious references tied to the Louisiana governor’s sexual absti nence Web site constitute a govern ment endorsement of religion. In a decision handed down late Thursday, U.S. District Judge Thomas Porteous refused to hold the Governor’s Program on Abstinence in contempt of a 2002 agreement to stop promoting religion with taxpayer money Porteous found that the religious references, along with several finks that lead to other sites that openly promote prayer and repentance, do not constitute an excessive entangle ment between ^vemment and reli gion _ a standard by which federal courts judge compliance with the Establishment Clause of the Consti tution forbidding government endorsement of religion. Gov Kathleen Blanco’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday Joe Cook, executive director of the Louisiana ACLU, pointed to several references to God connected with the site, including one that referred to sex outside of marriage as “one sin above all others as the most destructive to your soul and spirit.” “If telfing kids that abstainii^ fium sex will bring them closer to God isn’t rdigion, I don’t know what is,” Cook said. ‘Taxpayer money shouldn’t be used to deliver sermons.” Cook said an appeal was being con sidered. In its arguments, the state said material on the main abstinence site was seculai’ and the religious refer ences in the linked material did not constitute government endorsement of religion. The ACLU had asked for a third paity to monitor the site, a move that Porteous rejected. In July 2002, Porteous foimd that Please see JUDGE/7B S.C. Baptists help find illegal gaining maehines THE ASSOCIATED PRESS COLUMBIA— South Caroli na’s largest religious giuup has volunteered to help police find illegal gambling machines. The Southern Baptist Conven tion will use its 725,000 mem bers and 2,000 churches to seek out the filegai machines starting this Friday The ^up plans to post pictui'es on its Web site of machines considered illegal by the State Law Enforcement Divi sion while encouraging members to report machines they think are illegal to a Columbia office. The office will then for\vard the tips to state police. SLED agents have seized 3,400 illegal gambling machines since video poker was outlawed in 2000. ‘We’re averaging almost 100 per month,” said SLED Chief Robert Stewart. PHOTOS/THE STOCK MARKET Church literature and Ihe denomination’s news paper, which has a circulation of 100,000, will run articles about the effort, said Southern Baptist Convention member Joe Mack. Mack served as the church’s liaison to lawmak- New label, new sound for Hayes Dr. Chai’les Hayes & The Wandoi'S The Remix Various pi*oducers Icee Inspirational Di’. Charles Hayes and his Cosmopolitan Chmx:h Chom ai'en’t strangero t^ gospel. Hayes arid company have ti’aveled the world, basically off the success of ‘Work It Out,” a rousing statement on God’s power to provide. But many young folk, or folk who mainly go for contempo- raiy gospel don’t know much else about this chom That’s^ about to change. Hayes has decided to get a bit nioro con- temporaiy on a new label and updated sound. “The Remix” brings Hayes and this eneigetic* chofr into this centuiy It’s not a di*astic change, moi*e like tweaking. Make no mistake, though. . This is stfil clos- 31* to a ti'adi- t i o n a 1 ers dming Statehouse battles about the machines. The church is going to act as SLED’s eyes and ears, Mack said. But efforts to identify just which machines are illegal could get harder. A Charleston-area company is asking the South Carolina Supreme Court to gi’ant the right for a jmy trial each time police seize a machine and claim it’s illegal. That could cause major prob lems for police and prosecutors because the same type of machine could be considered Ille gal by one jury and legal' by another. Assistant Attorney Gen eral Bob Cook said. “The operators of the industry have chosen not to suri'ender,” Cook said. “They have continu ously fou^t to make video gam ing legal.” a n ; thing else. But it’s choir’s revisiting of its ‘80s hit ‘Work It Out” that’s got secu- lai’ radio stations hopping. It’s basically the same soi^ with a more hyperactive beat. It also incorporates the woixls “crib” (house) and “bling-bling” (gaudy jewelry), something I didn’t think I’d five to hear*. There’s even a slick video for the song. Who’d a thunk it? Anyone lookir^ for nioi’e of that sound maybe disappoint ed. There are no other refer ences. What’s left is a strung and compeUing body of work that lifts the spirit. “He Laid Hjs Hands On Me” gets a rous ing ruworking, but more Pen- . tecostal than contemporary Hayes gets a chance to lead this song and shows that tra ditional vocals are not outdat ed. Hayes may miss the mar’k on pulling in new listeners. This isn’t quite the crossover power house his record company is touting. Nevertheless, this is a solid recording that deser’ves to be heard. Ratings Classic; Excellent Good Fair Why? No stars — Amess Church News The deadline to have your church announcement added to the calendar is 5 p.m. on Fridays. July 9 Trinity Park Baptist Church, 9115 Trinity Road, will host a Community Outreach/cookout and Health Fair fium noon to 3 p.m. There will be fiue blood pressure, cholesterol, glu cose and hearing screenings. Also information on HIV, diabetes, stress management, fiue refiush- ments and much, much more. July 16 BET Gospel Explosion will be held at Para mount’s Kings Dominion through July 17. Fea tured artists include Kurt Karr, TVe Tribette and others. For more information, call (804) 876-5000. Kings Dominion is located in Richmond, Va. Gospel Festival beginning at 3p.m. The event will be held at Hoskins Avenue Baptist Church, 101 S. Hoskins Road. July 17 A Gift of Love Ministry will host its semi-annual August 15 Friendship Baptist Church will host the 108th annual session of the Lott Carey Foreign Mission ary Convention. For more information, contact Doretha L. Leak at DUeakSSi?^ aol.com.
The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, N.C.)
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June 30, 2005, edition 1
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