Author: Gordon Govier

For 43 years, Msgr. Thomas Campion was the face of the Catholic Church for thousands of shut-ins. His televised Mass, broadcast Sundays at 7 a.m. on WISC-TV (Ch. 3) in Madison, brought comfort to the homebound and a degree of fame to Campion that he often sought to tamp down.

For decades, the Rev. Alexander Gee has worked to help solve community problems, both as pastor of Fountain of Life Worship Center on Madison’s South Side and as founder, in 1992, of the nonprofit Nehemiah Community Development Corp., which promotes family self-sufficiency. Now Gee, 47, a Madison resident since age 6, has launched a fundraising effort to support Zimele USA, a nonprofit organization that works to develop community self-reliance in a region of South Africa devastated by HIV/AIDS. An October benefit concert in Madison raised about $2,000 for the cause.

The Wrong Stuff is the name of a blog featured by the online magazine Slate, subtitled What It Means To Make Mistakes. The latest installment features a particularly revealing interview with Chuck Colson, the former White House “hatchet man” who went to prison on a Watergate-related plea bargain and then founded Prison Fellowship, a ministry to prisoners. While reading the interview I was reminded that a key event in the growth of Prison Fellowship’s ministry took place at a federal prison just 60 miles north of Madison.

Tony Crescio was drinking and driving when he lost control of the car, flipping it into a ditch, killing his passenger and best friend. He hopes his story can educate people about the dangers of drinking and driving. This was the third time Crescio was caught drinking and driving. It was also the costliest. “I would go to bed at night and pray for him (God) to take me out of this world somehow, just pray for him to not let me wake up the next day I mean, it’s just overwhelming,” added Crescio. Burdened by guilt, Tony turned to…

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–The newest update to the New International Version (NIV) Bible is now online, and scholars, pastors and everyday Christians are debating the changes to what has been the most popular modern English translation. The NIV was first released in 1978 before being revised in 1984, and in September 2009 Biblica, Zondervan and the Committee on Bible Translation announced that another revised NIV was in the works. It won’t be available in print until 2011 but can be read online at BibleGateway.com.

An article in the October 22nd Orange County Register  asks about Steve Arterburn, “Is This Radio Host the Christian Jerry Springer?” Touching on some of the topics discussed on Arterburn’s daily radio program–a lesbian bipolar mother, a baby born out of wedlock, a husband’s pornography habit–the article suggests the content sounds similar. Liz Osborne, the executive director of the CareNet Pregnancy Center of Dane County, has never heard Arterburn’s radio program. But she has heard him speak and says that he has a very compassionate way of addressing people’s most serious problems. Arterburn is the guest speaker at CareNet’s 25th Anniversary…

About six years ago Steve Saint and his friend Mincaye visited Madison and wowed a church audience with their blow-gun skills by popping several balloons high above the congregation with their darts. They also told the story of the Waodani tribe, including Mincaye, who had killed Steve’s father and four other missionaries in Ecuador in 1956. Mincaye and many other members of the tribe eventually became followers of Christ. At that time they were promoting a documentary called Beyond Gates of Splendor, that told the Waodani story. In 2006 a dramatic version of the story was released called End of the…

Christian families sometimes face difficult choices when it comes to Halloween. While the idea of dressing up in adventuresome costumes and getting access to almost unlimited candy supplies appeals to kids, parents are concerned about issues like nutritional balance, cavities, and some of the more pagan and demonic influences of certain Halloween themes and costume choices. What to do?

The biblical standard for giving, the tithe, is ten percent. But at most American churches the tithers are in the minority. And the recession we’ve been experiencing the past two years has not helped. The authoritative source of information on church giving is the annual State of Giving report put out by a small ministry based in Champaign IL called empty tomb inc. An article in the Chronicle of Philanthropy has a short summary on the latest State of Giving Report, released October 15th, which covers 2008.

Now there are two names you don’t typically see in the same headline. George Beverly Shea and Jon Foreman are both Christians who sing and travel and make recordings. Beyond that they would appear to have little in common. Their fans are of two widely separated generations who may scarcely be aware of the other artist’s existence. But one other dubious honor they both share. They both disappointed me.