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From The Associated Press

Lieberman questions IRS on Obama-linked probe

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut is questioning the Internal Revenue Service’s investigation of the United Church of Christ for a speech Sen. Barack Obama gave at the denomination’s national meeting last year after he began his presidential run.

Lieberman asked the IRS in a letter to explain how it could meet the required threshold of a “reasonable belief” that a church has engaged in improper political activity if had not contacted church officials before starting the investigation.

He also called the inquiry “especially troubling” because the agency hasn’t given churches adequate guidance about what’s allowed.

“Throughout my career in the Senate, I have supported the strong and fair enforcement of our nation’s tax laws, including laws applicable to religious institutions,” wrote Lieberman, an independent and former Democratic vice presidential candidate.

“But I am concerned about the chilling effect on legitimate activity by religious organizations ...”

Obama, a member of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, spoke about faith and public life at the denomination’s General Synod in Hartford, Conn., last June.

The IRS said in the letter, made public by the denomination, that it was concerned about articles posted on the church’s Web site and other sites stating Obama had addressed nearly 10,000 people at the event.

The agency also said Obama volunteers had staffed campaign tables “outside the center to promote his campaign.”

Priests in Illinois call for bishop’s resignation

BELLEVILLE, Ill.— In an unusual show of defiance, 45 priests in Belleville’s Roman Catholic diocese are calling for Bishop Edward Braxton to step down amid a financial scandal and other conflicts.

The priests sent a letter calling for Braxton’s resignation to Cardinal Francis George in Chicago, the region’s top church authority, and Archbishop Pietro Sambi, the Vatican’s U.S. ambassador. George also is president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The priests, including 36 of the diocese’s 59 resident parish pastors, wrote that they have become “increasingly frustrated by the lack of collaborative and consultative leadership.”

“Therefore,” they wrote, “it is requested that Bishop Braxton resign from his office as Bishop of the Diocese of Belleville for his own good, for the good of the Diocese and for the good of the presbyterate.”

Another nine priests, including seven retired pastors, also signed the letter, which the group made public. The diocese has about 104,000 Catholics.Braxton, 63, has come under scrutiny for accusations that he misspent about $18,000 dedicated to two special funds, including purchasing a new table and chairs for a conference room and ceremonial garments.

Pastor recommends armed church guards

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The senior pastor at a megachurch where a gunman killed two teenage sisters before being shot by a church volunteer recommends that all churches have armed guards.

The Rev. Brady Boyd, pastor of New Life Church, made the comments just before convening a free forum on church security that drew participants from about 120 Colorado churches.

“We’ve had contemporary experience that can help others,” Boyd said, referring to the Dec. 9 shootings at the church. “We just don’t want this to happen anywhere else.”

Matthew Murray, 24, killed two people at a suburban Denver missionary training center and several hours later killed the two girls in the New Life parking lot. He committed suicide after he was shot and wounded by a volunteer security guard, who was credited with saving untold lives.

Robertson scales back Regent University plan

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Religious broadcaster Pat Robertson is scaling back a plan to build upscale shops, offices and homes on 500 acres along the border of Virginia Beach and Chesapeake.

In 2006, consultants for Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network unveiled plans for the complex.

The plan hinged on an Interstate 64 interchange that the federal government has repeatedly rejected, so CBN is developing portions of the project on a smaller scale.

CBN is preparing to build an office tower on the land, and the Virginia Beach Planning Commission has recommended approval of 150 homes on 46 acres of the parcel near Robertson’s Regent University.