These two controversies have hit the news, or at least the web, but I just wanted to fill in the Presbyterian angle.

The first is in the campaign for the U.S. Senate seat from North Carolina.  Incumbent Elizabeth Dole has raised an issue, if not eyebrows, with the charge that her challenger, state Senator Kay Hagan, attended an event which was a “secret fund raiser” put on by leaders of the political action committee Godless Americans.  While the connection with Godless Americans is not necessarily denied, Ms. Hagan does deny that she herself is “godless” as the commercial says, and points out that she is a elder and Sunday school teacher at First Presbyterian Church of Greensboro, a PC(USA) congregation. (Boston Herald article)  I do not see her name among the elders currently serving on the Session, but I do see a Chip Hagan listed among the trustees.  And some may point out that just because you are at a PC(USA) church does not mean you are not godless, but we would expect that leadership in the church is a pretty good sign.

The second controversy is more humorous and probably well know to many of my readers:  The “All Dogs Go To Heaven” church sign battle.  It is in many places around the web but it is a hoax, although an amusing one, and you can read the discussion and see the signs over on snopes.com.  It was done with the Church Sign Generator. (an interesting piece of technology in its own right that has given my family several minutes of amusement)  But one of the interesting aspects of this piece is how it reflects the modern take on religion and spirituality.

There is an interesting additional piece, and that is the fact that in the pictures, the church taking it seriously is the Beulah Cumberland Presbyterian Church.  This resulted in the national office of the CPC to issue a statement that the signs are a “prank” and “that this is not a true Cumberland Presbyterian church sign.”  They don’t say if dogs do go to heaven.