Briefly noted

Christian Century, Dec 15, 1999

* The next battle over Florida's "Choose Life" license plates may be in the courtroom. Republican Governor Jeb Bush and four members of his cabinet approved the controversial tag November 23. Two Democratic members of the cabinet voted against it. Former Democratic state Representative Barry Silver said he plans to work with the National Organization of Women to seek a court injunction against the plate. He and other critics think the plate, which costs $22 more than the standard tag, makes a political statement opposing abortion. "The legislature rejected language that said `Choose Adoption,' which was the supposed basis for the plate," said Silver, a Boca Raton attorney.

* A new study by the evangelical Barna Research Group has found that the probability of people who will say that they accept Jesus Christ as their personal savior drops off dramatically after age 14. Data from a nationwide representative sampling of more than 4,200 young people and adults indicate that youth from ages five through 13 have a 32 percent probability of accepting Christ as their savior. Young people from the ages of 14 through 18 have a 4 percent likelihood of making that choice, while adults ages 19 and older have a 6 percent probability of doing so. The data challenge the widely held notion that the teenage years are a prime time for evangelistic activity. The research was based on three separate surveys of adults, which had a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points, and two separate surveys of youths, which had a margin of error of plus or minus four percentage points.

* The percentage of babies born to unwed parents has increased fivefold since the 1930s, a new U.S. Census report reveals. The report, released November 9, examined first births to women between the ages of 15 and 29. In the period from 1990 to 1994, 41 percent of these births were out of wedlock, compared to just 8 percent in the period from 1930 to 1934. The report also gave details about how many couples marry after learning that they have conceived a child, but before it is born. Until the 1960s, about 50 to 60 percent of couples married after learning of a pregnancy. That figure dropped to 29 percent in the early 1980s.

* An investigating committee has recommended that the United Methodist name and logo be removed from a campground that has been accused of treating a homosexual couple inappropriately. The committee of the Northern Illinois Conference Board of Church and Society has investigated allegations concerning the Historic Methodist Campground, run by the Chicago District Campground Association in Des Plaines, Illinois. Trustees allegedly violated the UMC's Social Principles by refusing to rent a cottage to Robert Carroll and Russell Elenz because of their sexual orientation. The committee recommended removing the UM insignia "until such time that a working relationship and covenant with the Northern Illinois Conference is clarified and established." Marjorie Cilley, president of the campground trustees, issued a statement claiming that the campground's side of the story has not been heard.

* Augsburg Fortress, the publishing house of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, has fired 34 staffers as part of a reorganization plan. The employee reduction is part of a $3 million cut in expenses, said Marvin L. Roloff, Augsburg Fortress president and chief executive officer. "Augsburg Fortress revenues have been in decline over the past ten years and the company has not responded as well as it should to the needs of our markets," Roloff acknowledged in a memorandum to employees. "We have worked hard during the past 18 months soliciting feedback from our customers, significantly updating our technology capabilities, revising products and developing a strategic plan." The Minneapolis-based publishing house expects to have operating losses in 1999 and 2000. Before the staff reductions, Augsburg Fortress had a staff of 240 people at its corporate offices in Minneapolis and 114 people at 16 other sites in North America.