Baptist backlash

Speaking of 'religion problems'...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Southern Baptist Convention, a conservative denomination closely aligned with President Bush, said it was offended by the Bush-Cheney campaign's effort to use church rosters for campaign purposes.

"I'm appalled that the Bush-Cheney campaign would intrude on a local congregation in this way," said Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.

When I saw the list of 'coordinator duties' BC04 distributed to its church supporters, I thought the solicitation of church rosters was the most dubious of the lot. Good on the SBC for calling them on it, and reflecting a glimmer, however dim, of the once proud Southern Baptist commitment to the separation of church and state.