Steve sent me a note saying the paperwork is almost complete to adopt a 5-month-old baby from an orphanage in Ethiopia. “Unfortunately, we are not allowed to show pictures of Keshawn until after the court process in Ethiopia is completed. We have seen pictures and video of him, and he is beautiful, alert and full of life,” Steve said in an email.

You can follow the story of Kewhawn’s adoption at Shonni’s blog here.

Barna with one of the Hassoldts' adopted kids

Please post your congratuations to the Hassoldts below.

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Focus founder Dobson

 family group’s  financial woes.

On Tuesday, Focus announced it would suffer a $6 million shortfall to its yearly $138 million budget, the Associated Press reported. 

The shortfall was the impetus to Focus’ giving up the staging of its controversial Love Won Out program, which started in 1998 and has been held in more than 50 cities worldwide. Taking over the program is Exodus International, an anti-gay Orlando, Fla.-based group  made up of a coalition of ministries, AP said.

Of the migration of Love Won Out, Focus spokesman Gary Schneeberger said Wednesday that “these are challenging times for organizations and individuals all across the globe.

“It is not an inexpensive undertaking to put on a Love Won Out event,” he said in a news release. “And contrary to what our detractors say, the conferences rarely have recouped the financial investment made in them. That is a cost we have always paid because of the positive impact the events have had.”

A recent report by the American Psychological Association has given critics of Love Won Out further ammunition against the program.

On Aug. 5, the APA issued a report saying that trying to change gays into heterosexuals can be damaging psychologically to them, leading to depression and suicidal tendencies.

The report, based on two years of research, states that no solid evidence exists supporting reparative therapy, which purports to change gays into heterosexuals, AP reported.

Focus Action, the political arm of the family group, issued a news release last week calling the report into question.

“The APA is really failing to not only represent science, which is its primary responsibility, but it’s also failing to inform people,” Joe Nicolosi, founder and director of the Thomas Aquinas Psychological Clinic, said in the news release.

Jeff Johnston, gender issues analyst at Focus, said in the news release that the APA report is flawed because the agency begins with the false assumption that homosexuality is OK.

Is Focus in trouble financially because of the recession, or is it a combination of the recession and that its message, including its view of homosexuality, is out of step with the times?

Please comment below.

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Following the revelation of the scandal in November 2006, Jones started training for a new career as a caregiver. 

Mike Jones

In the email he says he was hired two weeks ago by Christian Living Communities.  “I was having praise basked upon me for the excellent job I was doing with the seniors,” he writes. “Then today, I was pulled into corporate and fired for my past.  They had pulled a pile of information off the Internet about me and also had a copy of my book with them as they fired me. 

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I wrote about the family for a story about how Christian couples, churches and ministries are promoting adoption as a manifestation of their faith. (The story will run in The Gazette print edition on July 4 and is online now at gazette.com.)

Barna with 2-year-old Aiden

I enjoyed my visit to the Hassoldts home, though after a while the children began to wear me out a little with their exuberance. I don’t know how Steve and Shonni handle it all so serenely.

The Hassoldts live on five acres in Black Forest. While Steve works during the day as a team claims manager at State Farm Insurance, Shonni home-schools 9-year-old Kiana, born in China, 8-year-old Landon, born in South Korea, 7-year-old Garett, born in Vietnam, and the oldest daughters, Kalyn, 15, and Caresse, 11, both born in Colorado Springs. 

Meanwhile,  4-year-old Corbin, born in Tulsa, Okla., and the Liberia-born Alia, 4, Joeliana, 4, and Aiden, 2, play.

Also during the day, the children perform chores, such as cleaning the house and feeding the chickens.

The younger children can certainly be a handful, especially Alia, Joeliana and Aiden. But they also are a lot of fun. Aiden liked to walk up close to my face and laugh. Alia liked to make faces and bend my fingers. Joeliana liked to leap onto my  lap.

I also got a chance to spend time with Kalyn and Caresse, the two birth daughters, during my visit. They both seemed so mature for their ages. Kalyn’s passion is going on Christian missions. Caresse’s passion is alternative medicine. She talked about natural remedies for upset stomachs and runny noses.

Both girls seem to really enjoy helping raise the children. “They are a lot of fun and you never have a dull moment,” Kalyn said.

I hope to do a followup blog on when the Hassoldts bring home their Ethiopian child next year. Stay tuned!

T0 read more about the Hassoldt family, go to their Web site here.

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Responses from pro-life advocates have been measured, though some, namely that of James Dobson, Randall Terry and Bill Dohohue, have included denunciations not only of the murder but also of the murdered.

Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, said in a statement Sunday that “Tiller recently faced serious charges related to the killing of babies in violation of the law, by the most grotesque procedures administered without anesthetic or compassion …. The doctor had the blood of countless babies on his hands.”

Dr. George Tiller

Terry, founder of the pro-life group Operation Rescue, said Monday that “George Tiller was a mass murderer. We grieve f0r him that he did not have time to properly prepare his soul to face God.”

Donohue, national apologist for Catholicism, said Tuesday that Tiller “proudly took the lives of over 60,000 children.”

Could this kind of rhetoric be construed by fringe anti-abortionists as veiled justification of the murder?  Will conservative Christians who are radically anti-abortion sympathize with the murderer?

Please comment below.

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Tom Hanks in "Angels & Demons"

debate between faith and science.

And the public is interested: The film  grossed $21.7 million over Memorial Day Weekend.

Have you seen the movie or read the book? If so, give us a review and weigh in on its take on religion and science.

A scientist in the story tries to prove the that the Big Bang was created by God. Do you think science will ever prove the existence of God?

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Below are more of my interviews with Donald and Jessie Armstrong.  The highlight of the interviews is Don Armstrong’s response to my asking if his parish is a cult of personality.

But first,  here is a quick run down for those unfamiliar with the facts surrounding Armstrong. For everyone else, please feel free to skip down to the interviews.

Armstrong became rector of Grace Church, 631 N. Tejon Street, in 1987. By most accounts, he was a great leader at the church. In December 2006, however, he was placed on leave by the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado  for alleged financial misconduct. On March 26, 2007, his vestry voted to leave the church and join the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, which is part of the Anglican Communion.

The CANA parish continued to worship at Grace Church, bringing about a law suit between the CANA parish and the diocese regarding ownership of the property . The diocese won the lawsuit on March 24, and the CANA parish, newly named St. George’s Anglican Church, moved out to worship  in a building in the Mountain Shadows area.

Since May 2007, the Colorado Springs Police Department has been investigating the diocese’s allegations that Armstrong engaged in financial misconduct of church funds. Detectives are expected to present evidence to the D.A.’s office before the end of June.

Below are edited excerpts of my in-person interview with Armstrong.

MARK BARNA: What’s your view of the financial misconduct allegations   against you.

DON ARMSTRONG: At the church we have consensus decision making. We talk things over, and when everyone thinks it’s a good idea, we go with it. Grace Church has always operated that way.

But then, at another point, people say, “Well, we don’t agree with that.”

BARNA: Some have said Grace Church became too centered around you. It became a cult of personality.

ARMSTRONG: They are here in spite of me. I am a Type A male, and that gets things done. But at the same time those kind of men aren’t warm and cuddly.

One of the things I do is split the preaching. One week Eric Zolner will preach, then Alan Crippen and me. I’ve tried to give space to others and limit my exposure so that people who didn’t like me or didn’t agree with me… . I wanted to limit my exposure so other clergy could come forth and shine.

My deal is not that my personality has held this place together. My deal is to keep my personality far enough in the back so that it doesn’t hurt anyone. It is the exact opposite.”

BARNA: Are you misunderstood?

ARMSTRONG: My job is not to be understood. My job is to understand. I don’t like to be perceived as a victim. I like to take responsibility for things. I take responsibility for the things I’ve said and done that has alienated people. And I would like to make amends with people on an individual basis of those I have offended.

BARNA: Some people are very angry with you.

ARMSTRONG: I get a lot of displaced anger, which clergy generally do get a lot of that. But on the other hand, what triggered that? Me. So I take responsibility.

There is this disparity between the priest’s own self-image and other people’s image of them. So you can offend sometimes and not even know it.

 Below are excerpts from my interview by email with Jessie Armstrong.

 BARNA: Don says he is a Type A personality, he gets things done. But he can also rub people the wrong way on occasion.

JESSIE ARMSTRONG: He is a loving and compassionate person who is willing to stand up for those unable to protect themselves from powerful and sometimes abusive people.

BARNA: What did you think when you first heard that the diocese was making accusations against Don of financial misconduct?

JESSIE: It was simply incredible and we knew where this came from and the motivation of those involved in this dishonest behavior. Mostly, we were surprised that people who proclaimed to be Christians would treat us this way. We were amazed that Rob O’Neill (bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado) seemed to be able to spread this of us around to those we thought were friends.

BARNA: What are Don’s greatest strengths?

JESSIE: He has many strengths, but one of the most amazing is his ability to forgive. He does not hold grudges and is always the first one to show how our Lord expects us to respond to mistreatment. We also admire his strength in the face of the three-year-long assault on our family.

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Bishop Robinson

December 2008: Robinson, who is gay, opposed Obama’s selection of the Rev. Rick Warren, an opponent of gay marriage, to deliver the invocation at Obama’s inauguration Jan .20. “I’m all for Rick Warren being at the table,” Robinson said, “but we’re not talking about a discussion, we’re talking about putting someone up front and center at what will be the most watched inauguration in history.”

Monday, Jan. 12: Obama’s inauguration team announces that Robinson will deliver the invocation as part of pre-inaugural festivities. Now everything is OK with Robinson. “The fact that Rick Warren and I are each giving invocations during inauguration festivities just shows that the new president means to include all Americans,” Robinson said.

Of course, Robinson wanted to be part of the inaugural festivities for symbolic reasons: He is at the center of the controversy over the role of gays in Christian leadership. By being part of the inauguration, Robinson is showing that gays have a place within Christianity and that gay rights are important to the Obama administration.

Great.

But was it necessary he be part of the festivities?  After all, the inauguration already includes the Rev. Joseph Lowery, who is in favor of gay marriage and will give the inaugural benediction.

It will be interesting to see if Robinson drops any references about gay marriage in his invocation.

Is Robinson politicizing the inauguration? What are your thoughts?

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Ted Haggard

Early in “The Trials of Ted Haggard,” an HBO documentary that will premiere Jan. 29, there is a scene showing Ted Haggard driving a U-Haul truck on an Arizona highway. Multiple cameras film Haggard as he talks and drives.

It is a surreal moment because of what it suggests about Haggard: a man willing to open not only himself, but also his wife, Gayle, and five children, to an HBO film crew.

The scene looks staged, and it seems a bad portent for things to come. But what saves the film is Haggard. As cameras follow him on a job interview, golfing, doing his laundry, moving into a house, selling insurance and dining in a restaurant, Haggard is extremely forthcoming.

He rattles on about his same-sex attraction, bitterness toward New Life, revised view of the Bible (he relates more to the stories of strife and sorrow) and difficulty in his new career as an insurance salesman.

Throughout the film, he swings from self-loathing to self-aggrandizement to self-pity, yet only once does he seem to express real emotion. That occurs as he drives down a lonely highway to make stops to sell insurance. Close to tearing up, the 52-year-old former pastor says, ”At this stage of my life, I am a loser.”

Besides admitting he still has same-sex attraction, he also says in seventh grade he had a same-sex encounter. “I did some same-sex sex play when I was in the seventh grade, then all all that blew up when I was 50,” he says.

For most of the film, Haggard talks honestly, but at times seems disembodied from his words. It is like an actor who knows his lines but doesn’t feel them. The film ends with Haggard reading a Psalm alone in the Arizona desert.

Below are some quotes from Haggard from the film.

* On his same-sex attraction:

“I did some same-sex play when I was in the seventh grade, then all that blew up when I was 50. I had to analyze myself — a heterosexual, a homosexual, gay, straight, bisexual? What are you Ted Haggard? I wrestled with it, fought with it, argued with it.”

“I am who I am. I am an evangelical, and continue from time to time to struggle with same-sex attraction.”

* On why he didn’t come out about his sexuality while New Life senior pastor and head of the National Association of Evangelicals:

“I didn’t think I could. I was a representative voice to 30 million people. My responsibility was to get worked out.”

* Wife Gayle on Haggard’s sexuality:

“I think I know from time to time that there wasn’t the level of intimacy.”

“I was not aware of the depth of struggle going on within him.”

* Haggard says it was a pastor friend, not himself, who declared that he was “completely heterosexual” after Haggard quit the  restoration program, which was supposed to release him from his same-sex attraction.  Haggard says he has never claimed to be completely heterosexual.

* Haggard credits therapists, not clergy members, for helping him better understand his sexuality.

“After my crises, the therapists were the ones who gave me answers. All these years I thought I was a dog, worthless, an awful person. Then I sat down and talked with an experienced therapist. And he said, ‘We can help you through that.’”

* On his mental state:

“I lie awake in angst because I’ve lost so many friends. I certainly understand that people can’t stand me.”

“I was suicidal for a while.”

* On New Life Church:

“I am their business, somebody struggling with sin is the purpose of church on Earth.”

“The church has said go to hell.”

“The church chose not to forgive me.”

* On his new career selling insurance:

“This is the only company that will let me work with them.”

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In the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections, Bush presented himself as a social conservative evangelical. But on Dec. 8, Bush made a number of interesting disclosures about his Christian faith in an interview with ABC News. You can read a summary of the interview here. 

It appears that Bush has either changed his Christian beliefs or was not fothcoming about them during most of his presidency. For example:

* Evangelicals tend to believe in a literal interpretation of Scripture. Bush believes the Bible is “probably” not  literally true.

* Evangelicals tend to believe in creationism. Bush believes in Darwinian evolution.

* Evangelicals tend to believe that God “speaks” to them and directs their decision-making. Bush told ABC that God was with him as he made big decisions, but that the decisions were his.
“George W. Bush has to make these decisions,” he said.

* Evangelicals tend to believe there is only way to God, and that is through the Christian faith.  Bush seemed to imply to ABC  that religons are culturally created, and beneath the crust of culture is the same Supreme Being : “I do believe there is an almighty that is broad and big enough and loving enough that can encompass a lot of people,” Bush said.

So is Bush  (A) an evangelical, (B) a Christian liberal, (C) an evangelical confused about his beliefs,  or (D) none of the above?

Please place your comments below?

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