by James A. Smith Sr., FL Baptist Witness: Mike Huckabee, Republican presidential candidate and former governor of Arkansas, has withdrawn from the New Baptist Covenant Celebration planned for next January in Atlanta in protest of former President Jimmy Carter's labeling of the Bush administration's foreign policy as "the worst in history." Huckabee, who told the Florida Baptist Witness of his decision to drop out of the Baptist gathering in an exclusive telephone interview May 21, also said the roster of speakers "does seem to tilt left," which gave him concern about participating. Huckabee called Carter's comments an "unprecedented personal attack." The New Baptist Covenant Celebration is being organized by Carter and Mercer University President Bill Underwood under the umbrella of the North American Baptist Fellowship -– a division of the Baptist World Alliance -– to bring Baptists together to work on social concerns and improve what they regard as the judgmental image of Baptists, according to Associated Baptist Press. Also involved in the Jan 30-Feb. 1 meeting will be former President Bill Clinton and former Vice President Al Gore. Like Carter, Clinton and Gore are Baptists who have been very critical of the Southern Baptist Convention. . . .
Huckabee cited the involvement of the "very, very liberal" Marian Wright Edelman, founder of the Children's Defense Fund, as an example of the liberal leaning of the gathering."Had I spoken (at the New Baptist Covenant Celebration) they would have heard a very conservative message which would be unapologetically pro-life, pro-family and by some definitions, fundamentalist in theology," Huckabee said. "But I'm a conservative who's not mad at anyone else and would not want to knowingly participate in a program if the focus was to tear down others instead of to lift Christ up." . . . [Read More]
Tags: Arkansas, Baptists, GOP, Mike Huckabee, presidential candidate, Republican
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