Exposing the Covert War Against the Mainlines

On May 21, Air America's "State of Belief" program took a look at the attemtpted takeover of mainline Protestantism by a group of extremists. The program was hosted by Interfaith Alliance head C. Welton Gaddy. His guests were Dr. Bruce Prescott, Executive Director of Mainstream Oklahoma Baptists, Dr. John Dorhauer, minister for the St. Louis Association of the United Churches of Christ and Dr. Andrew Weaver, a United Methodist pastor and research psychologist. Talk to Action, co-sponsors of the program, has provided us with a transcript of the show. Here's a few interesting bits:

...Weaver: You could easily call the Institute on Religion and Democracy "The Institute of Sex and More Sex". Because, if you Google homosexuality on their site, an incredible percentage of everything they do is a gay-bashing attack that works, and it really is fearmongering. To the point that the Ku Klux Klan, last summer, endorsed and encouraged on their site, one of the attacks that the Institute of Religion and Democracy made against the United Methodist group with over a dozen bishops attended, in celebration of gay and lesbian Christians. So their target is really fearmongering that turned, in this case, into the Ku Klux Klan endorsing them. That's the level of vitriol that is involved in these groups...

...Prescott: What I think is happening is that they're keeping the mainline congregations in turmoil with wedge issues, and then that allows people that have a secular political agenda to accomplish whatever it is that they're trying to do. I think when you talk about the Institute of Religion and Democracy, you're talking about Catholic neoconservatives who've got some of the same ultimate political goals as neoconservatives in the religious right. And not even the religious right--they just are right. And they're accomplishing those objectives by keeping the mainline congregations' voices silent...

...Weaver: Well, the IRD began out of the first Reagan White House as an attack really on Liberation Theology in Central America. It has morphed over time into a direct attack on mainline churches. The key players , and one of the most disturbing parts of this, are neoconservative Roman Catholics. Six of them sit on the board, that is 35% of the board members. There is not one cent, Welton, spent on any change in the Roman Catholic church, this I consider, and others, the most significant breach in ecumenical good will since Vatian II. ...
These Roman Catholics are the power center of this, that get the money from Scaife and other neocon sources, and the other people involved in this are very minor players. So, the IRD is funded by secular money as a propaganda machine against these churches, and the leadership is also Roman Catholics, which is something that responsible Roman Catholics need to address...

...Weaver: Half of all the money the IRD spends is in attacks on the United Methodist Chuch. It is the big battleship. And if you take out the 45 million people that are represented by the National Council of Churches, you're going to hollow out one of the cores of this democracy. So there's an attack on all of them, the Presbyterians, the Episcopalians, the United Chuch of Christ... And when Rev. Thomas spoke up recently, the head of the UCC, there was a full blast smear of him. And people are intimidated. The United Methodist bishops must have the courage to stand up and take this on, because our church is in peril of being split, and certainly being muted in terms of its conscience...

This is also being talked about in a diary at Daily Kos. Note to the author of that piece; thanks for the kind words about Jake's place.

We have previously discussed the influence of the IRD on the Episcopal Church, and their connection to the American Anglican Council/Network here and here. Daniel Webster's recent commentary, This Schism Brought to You by the IRD provides us with more information. Jim Naughton's report, Following the Money pulls together much of the information into to one place.

We can no longer "play the ostritch" regarding this matter. There is clearly an orchestrated attempt being made by the right (not necessarily the "religious right" btw, who appear to simply be pawns) to take over our churches. It is time for us to challenge this covert attempt, and expose it to the light.

Our ability to witness to the world of the transformative power of God's love made known to us through Jesus Christ is already hindered due to the checkered past of Christendom. We cannot allow another dark chapter to be written. Stand up and speak out. And take heart; you do not stand alone.

J.