Rev. Robin Hoover's Border Maps

Common Sense Says Maps Are not the Answer

For some strange reason Pastor Robin Hoover of Tucson, Ariz., and the founder of Humane Borders has decided to print maps for distribution in Mexico. These maps show routes that illegal immigrants can use to cross the desert into Arizona. Additionally, the map indicates water locations, rescue beacons and future plans call for maps to indicate locations where cellular phone service is optimal.

I have heard the argument that this organization has an agenda of compassion and only wishes to save lives. It is at this very moment that I disagree with their mission. If they were really trying to save lives, they would not be printing maps to encourage non-citizens to cross the parched Arizona desert. These maps will most certainly increase the numbers of illegal immigrants, thereby increasing the number of people dying in the desert.

As with most issues, this is a complex problem with many tough decisions to be made. Most importantly, this is a national security crisis. In recent weeks, there have been Mexican military incursions into the United States, reports of an unlicensed Spanish radio station in Texas broadcasting the locations of Border Patrol agents, two more tunnels found for drug trafficking; and yet the immigrants still make their way, only this time they have a map, compliments of Pastor Hoover and the First Christian Church.

The negative impact that illegal immigrants have in Arizona is wide ranging: from a $31 million healthcare bill for illegal immigrants in 2005, to over crowded jails, $5 million last year in welfare and food stamps to illegals, public education problems, increased crime rates and many more. If Humane Borders distributes their maps, these numbers will surely increase at an alarming rate. But what if the Border Patrol Agents, while chasing a group of illegal immigrants, is distracted and a terrorist comes across the border with a dirty bomb? Is there any doubt that Pastor Hoover and Humane Borders are jeopardizing national security?

Solving this crisis is going to take a plan that involves two primary components: we must begin with a plan that does not reward law breakers on either side of the border, and we must not create a program that encourages future illegal immigration.

Based on these guiding principles, there needs to be stiffer penalties for American employers and laws calling for the mandatory verification of employees’ legal status. Penalizing companies that knowingly employ illegal immigrants is a key component to curbing the influx of immigrants. Other such solutions to solving this national security crisis on the border include: building a fence and securing the border with our military technology, increasing penalties for alien smuggling and, finally, put an end to “anchor babies,” wherein a child born in the United States of an illegal immigrant does not receive citizenship.

The guest worker plan touted by Senators McCain and Kennedy is not realistic. Any plan that requires registration and return to Mexico is simply not going to be effective. Additionally, history has shown the guest worker programs do not work. From the recent riots in France, youth of Muslim guest workers residing in Paris ghettos, to Saudi Arabia and its reported six million guest workers, these programs only cause for a caste system to be created within the country. It is also important to note that these guest worker programs do not hold Mexicans accountable for creating substandard living conditions and an economy that cannot support its population. These guest worker programs help Mexico as American dollars keep being pumped into the Mexican economy.

Maps are not the answer for illegal immigration. Pastor Hoover is mistaken and he is endangering the lives of those in Mexico, harming the economy of Arizona and endangering the lives of all Americans. Illegal immigration is about nation security first and foremost; join me in telling Rev. Hoover to stop printing and distributing these maps.

Robertson Should Step Down

Robertson Should Step Down

As Prime Minister Ariel Sharon lies in a hospital fighting for his life and perhaps for the future peace of Israel, Pat Robertson boldly exclaimed that Sharon’s stroke was punishment from God “for dividing God’s land.” Robertson continued his comments, aired on his television program, The 700 Club, by saying that Sharon “was dividing God’s land and I would say woe unto any prime minister of Israel who takes a similar course to appease the EU, the United Nations or the United States.”

For years, Christians have widely regarded Robertson as a preacher who is often misquoted or misunderstood. As one who has been in the Christian media for over 14 years, I would suggest to you that when Robertson opens his mouth, Christians should hold their collective breath. For many years, Pat Robertson has been excused for his repugnant comments by Conservatives, by Christians and by followers of his television ministry. While we (Christians) have been busy excusing him, the rest of the world remains puzzled as to why Robertson continues to get a free pass for comments that oftentimes are anything but Christian. It is my opinion that we need to stop issuing apologies, stop offering excuses and start letting Robertson know that his inflammatory, ill-timed remarks are not acceptable.

Robertson has been in the public eye for many years and clearly understands that when you make public comments, they will be scrutinized. Therefore, I do not accept any explanation that any of his comments are misquoted or misunderstood. If this is the case, then perhaps retirement from public life may be a better option.
In fairness to Rev. Robertson, he has done good works, has brought people to church, has spread the Gospel; however, these good works do not give him permission to make outrageous remarks.

Golden Globes, Hollywood and Christians

If anyone bothered to watch the Golden Globe Awards on television the other night, they may have been as shocked as I was at the winners. With the exception of a Johnny Cash movie, Walk the Line, and a Sunday evening medical drama, Grey’s Anatomy, the award winners were all based upon projects and characters with anything but family values.

The pro-homosexual cowboy film, Brokeback Mountain, was the clear winner with honors for best drama, best director, best song and best screenplay. Not to be outdone, Felicity Huffman, of ABC’s Desperate Housewives fame, won best actress for her portrayal of a transsexual in a film adeptly named, Transamerica. Other poor examples of what Hollywood is peddling as entertainment include: Weeds, HBO’s series about a stay at home mother who sells marijuana in her upscale California neighborhood; and George Clooney’s (no surprise here) anti-American film, Syriana. After watching the awards show for a few minutes on Monday evening, it became evident that Hollywood executives were using this national exposure as a means of promoting their liberal, anti-American, pro-homosexual agenda.

Adding insult to injury is NBC’s new Friday series, “The Book of Daniel.” This outrageous new show features none other than Jesus and creates opportunities for the audience to laugh at him or with him - neither of which I was comfortable with, much less entertained by. Starring Aidan Quinn as Daniel Webster, a Vicodin addicted Episcopalian priest who struggles with his family and his church; this drama makes use of the dysfunctional family and takes it to a new low with comments by Jesus. His wife is an alcoholic. His son is gay. His daughter sells marijuana, and his Bishop is having an affair with his father!

I support my friends at the American Family Association and their call of a boycott, and applaud them in their efforts to contact advertisers and tell them how this show repulses Christians all over the country. Strangely, the Episcopalian Church supports the show with one diocese even posting a web blog.

Isn’t it time for Christians to say enough is enough? Gone are shows with values and movies with messages. They have been replaced with desperate housewives and gay cowboys, pill-popping priests and dope-selling mothers. Join me is supporting the AFA to challenge Hollywood for better programming so we don’t have to witness another Golden Globe awards like this year.

2006 List of Most Influential Christians

Today we announced the list of Most Influential Christians. Please make sure your read the opening remarks and note that this is not a list put togehter by me or my staff. We accepted the nominiations of over 150,000 people.

Congratulations to everyone who received this recognition and thanks to ll of you who took a moment to send the staff your nominations.

If you wish to share your comments, please feel free to do so in this space as opposed to sending me a personal email so that we can all discuss this list.

Most Influential Christians

I have received some rather interesting postings regarding the Most Influential Christians in America listing in the January issue. I have reminded those critical of the choice of President Bush that the readership was soley responsible for the nomination of these people. I will give you a sample of something I received just yesterday:

Your cover with George Bush on it offends me and the thought of him as the model Christian offends me! He lied to the country about the war, continues to kill innocent Iraqis and our own young people, and claims, oh so piously, that he is fighting terrorism. What nonsense to anyone who is a thinking person! I do not believe Christ would have agreed with the invasion of Iraq. In fact, his followers wanted him to rise up against Rome militarily and his message was one of love, not conquest. If we were to take the billions of dollars spent on this useless, sad, immoral war and spend it instead on humanitarian aid to help Iraqis and others around the world, what better good we would do! I find George Bush arrogant, stubborn, and unable to consider any opinion other than his own, evidenced by his firing of those who speak the truth to him and keeping those who fictionalize current events! Do NOT send me another issue of your ridiculous magazine!

I left off this person's name, but I certainly find it interesting! If you have differnet opinions that you would like to share, please feel free to post them here. I would like to hear your feedback.
I also received an intersting note from the December issue about the Marketing column on the 40 Days of purpose article that I thought you may find interesting:

Editor, I received this magazine at a church I work at. We teach through the Bible here, we don't use some author's 'best-seller' to dictate what people want or need. The whole idea of the Church being a place where people can find what they need may include the radical idea that they really don't know what they need because they are blinded by a life of sin and living for self. The Church is -or should be- peculiar, set apart, even unloved by the world; and still a rescue mission for those who are lost and dying! It's for those who seek to find the treasures of Jesus and eternal life through the vehicle of the cross and repentance from dead works.
The Bible speaks to the radical notion that we as humans are sin-sick and need a Saviour, not a best-selling author like Rick Warren. I am appalled and angered by statements like those of Maurilio Amorim "Lessons From the 40 Days of Purpose" - Jan 05) that ''Suddenly, we have the entire church reading the same book together, (so do we; it's called the Bible), listening to messages that relate to their daily reading (so do we, it's called the Bible), and discussing in small groups the same content (so do we, it's called the Bible). I hope to heaven that 'cutting-edge churches' will NOT adopt this model, even though I know in this Biblically- illiterate world that will NOT be the case; it's already too late. We here do remember our Pastor's last message; we DO look forward to the next one and we know where he is going to be teaching each week because it follows an order in the Scriptures. We are too sharp here Biblically to be pulled in to the latest fad blowing through the church to soothe those 'itching ears'. Shocking as this may sound, not everyone is interested in turning their precious fellowship into a 'corporate model'.
His comment at the beginning of the article about the God factor is woeful. It only proves what I already know; that this purpose-driven drivel is a work of the flesh and if we have to talk about some ethereal 'God-factor' and whether or not the phenom can be re-created is further proof of my point. I predict the purpose-driven marketing trick has a shelf life AND an expiration date. And I have no idea where he gets those statistics at the beginning about a "20 percent increase in worship" and "102 percent increase in group attendance" for purpose-driven churches. Some scientific data is warranted here, don't you think?

I am looking for the voice of reason in the midst of this movement. I am looking for someone to stand up and say this is the arm of the flesh, not a work of the Spirit. I am looking for a voice in the wilderness who might just have a complete thought outside of this bandwagon and declare that there is a much more insidious force at work here. May I suggest you and your staff read "Deceived on Purpose" by Warren Smith and think about the dangers of this movement in which the church is fast becoming humanistic and dead when it thinks its alive!

mary

PS. That list of the top 50 Christians is suspect too; is Mel Gibson a Christian? Is Jesse Jackson? Is this list just a media popularity contest? And why is Chuck Smith at #38, when there are well over 1000 Calvary Chapels birthed as a result of his work. No mention of that at all; no one else I can see on your list comes close to that.

I found this to be very interesting, but way off base.

Until next time,

Jason T. Christy
Publisher/Editor in Chief