Douglas Cannon elected as RCC president
Apr. 11, 2008
NOTE: Photographs and a related story are available at http://umns.umc.org.
By the Rev. Kathy Noble*
CHANTILLY, Va. (UMNS)-A United Methodist communicator will lead the Religion Communicators Council for the next year.
Douglas F. Cannon of San Antonio was elected president during the international interfaith council's 79th annual convention April 3-5.
Reporters, political insiders, clergy and religion communicators shared the podium as 125 participants met near Washington, D.C.
Cannon said he wants "to promote faith perspectives, in the plural, in the public discourse" and to have the council recognized as the oldest public relations association in the United States. Now an international interfaith organization, RCC was formed in 1929 by mainline Protestants who believed "they needed to get together to promote religion in the marketplace," he said.
Cannon, communications and public witness director for the Southwest Texas Annual (regional) Conference, will serve a one-year term and is eligible for re-election. He succeeds Philip Poole, executive director of university communications, Samford University, Birmingham, Ala.
Others associated with The United Methodist Church also were elected to leadership roles.
Voted treasurer was Deb Christian, director of customer relations, UMR Communications, Dallas, which produces United Methodist Reporter, an independent weekly newspaper.
Joining the RCC board of governors are Paul Black, Springfield, Ill., director of communication ministries, Illinois Great Rivers Conference, and Sandra Brands, Saratoga Springs, N.Y., director of communications, Troy Conference.
Continuing on the board of governors are Cindy Feldman, Des Moines, Iowa, and Amelia Tucker-Shaw, United Methodist Communications, Nashville, Tenn.
Politics, religion never separated
Media interest in the religion of current and recent presidential candidates and how their faith shapes them was fodder for plenary sessions exploring the conference theme "Faith and Freedom: The Intersection of Politics and Religion."
While the mainstream media increasingly gives more attention to candidates' religion and faith, "The deep religiosity of those who wrote the Declaration (of Independence) and the Constitution shows it has never been in Americans' character to have a separation of religion and politics in the public realm," said Mike McCurry, a United Methodist who served as press secretary to President Bill Clinton during Clinton's first term.
"The ability of Americans to choose among candidates on substantive points" is driving the media to scrutinize how faith influences the current candidates, McCurry said.
Americans are engaging in "politics of gut instinct, not of their pocketbook," he said. With that comes interest in the moral and spiritual character of candidates as they are asked how faith has shaped them and how it would shape their policies in office.
A desire among 18- to 40-year-old voters in "bringing right and left together" is affecting denominational as well as national politics, according to McCurry. Citing the 2008 United Methodist General Conference later this month, he said church leaders' efforts are "trying to revitalize a deeply divided denomination, trying to transcend discussions of homosexuality, trying to transcend some of the political divisions."
"We are seeing a coinciding of a movement of political changes with a movement of a new social gospel."
Sharing the podium with McCurry was James Rosebush, chief of staff to former first lady Nancy Reagan.
Rosebush called President Ronald Reagan "a spiritual figure and a communicator who assumed the bully pulpit."
He said he "begged" the couple to profess more of their faith publicly, "to come out as moral leaders, (but) both of the Reagans felt they had to be authentic to their faith. If not, the American public would see it."
While President Reagan was not a churchgoer, "spirituality motivated him, and he had a walk with faith that permeated every decision he made," Rosebush said.
The media's attention to the presidential candidates also was discussed by five Washington journalists in a panel moderated by the Rev. Martin E. Marty. Of the candidates' participation in religious groups, Marty, professor emeritus at the University of Chicago and longtime columnist for The Christian Century, said, "There has not been the intensity of media attention to it."
Helping faith, politics intersect
Chaplain Barry C. Black, 62nd chaplain of the U.S. Senate, opened the council's meeting. Citing examples of politics and religion intersecting, he said his role enables him to influence decisions and the decision-making process, both through private conversations and events such as the five Bible studies he leads each week.
Black recalled how former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R.-Tenn.) asked him to join a meeting in his office. As Black entered, Frist said, "'Chaps, we'd like you to give us a five-minute bio-medical-ethical slant on the (Terry) Schiavo case."
In another instance, while he was still Navy Chief of Chaplains, Black said he "made the case that Operation Iraqi Freedom was antithetical to principles of a just war" in a conversation at Camp David with a person he declined to name. "I had the opportunity to make an impact and make a case for waiting," Black said. The person took Black's counsel under advisement.
Black is frequently asked questions such as: "Where does faith and politics intersect?" "How can I be a responsible ambassador of Jesus Christ and not be accused of using religion for my advantage?" "Do I vote what my constituents want, the majority of them, or do I vote my conscience?"
Marty honored with Wilbur
Presentation of the Wilbur Awards was among the meeting's highlights. The awards honor secular journalists, authors, broadcasters and film producers for outstanding work addressing religious issues, themes and values.
Marty received a special Wilbur for promoting open and appropriate public discourse on religion.
Among the 11 other Wilbur winners were the producers of the feature film "Amazing Grace," along with The Wall Street Journal, CBS News and the Canadian Broadcasting Corp.
RCC is an association of nearly 600 communicators working for faith-related organizations in print and electronic communication, marketing and public relations. For more information about the council, visit www.religioncommunicators.org.
*Noble is editor of Interpreter Magazine, a publication of United Methodist Communications.
News Media Contact: Kathy Noble, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5441 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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United Methodist News Service Photos and stories also available at: http://umns.umc.org
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