European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 28, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 the stars and stripes religion saturday november 28, 1992 religious leaders assail Christmas commercialism new York apr with the annual Holiday shopping frenzy at hand a National coalition of religious leaders is complaining that commercialism has reduced Christmas to a a carnival of mass  a consumption has taken on an almost religious Quality malls have become new shrines of worship a the 25 protestant and roman Catholic leaders said tuesday in a letter to hundreds of regional and local Church organizations. The coalition urged that a fall people of Faith to speak out against the Over commercialization of Christmas in our Media and  the leaders said sermons and other Church efforts should direct the focus of Christmas to thoughtful giving and helping others. A we have seen the spirit of Christmas reduced to a carnival of mass marketing a the letter said a regrettably Many people find it Ever More difficult to separate Christmas from Commerce a it said. A Good will towards All concern for our communities and love for our families Are goals that come from the  the statement was coordinated by the Center for the study of commercialism based in Washington. Signers included Catholic Bishops and several Heads of protestant denominations As Well As leaders of ecumenical and social concerns organizations. A Christmas ought to be a Lime when we let our hearts be touched by gods enormous gift of love a said a a. Have seen the spirit of Christmas reduced to a carnival of mass  a letter from Church leaders the Rev. Joan Brown Campbell general Secretary of the National Council of churches and one of the signers. A Only those who sit in darkness believe that love can be bought and  a making Christmas real Means in part making giving personal altruistic and reflective a the letter said. A for some this May mean giving the gift of family baking and breaking bread with old and Young alike. It Means opening our hearts to family and friends and More to those we do not know personally hut whose needs we  other signers included Bishop Herbert w. Chils trom head of the evangelical lutheran Church in America Catholic Bishops John e. Mccarthy of Austin Texas and Thomas Gumbleton of Detroit the Rev. Paul Sherry president of the United Church of Christ and the Rev. Daniel Weiss general Secretary of american Baptist churches. Public Confidence in clergy hits Low 66% by the new York times the image of the clergy once one of the most respected groups in the nation continues to slip in the Public Eye. According to a Survey by the Princeton religion research Center Public Confidence in the nations priests ministers and rabbis has reached an All time Low. A majority of respondents 54 percent gave members of the clergy a High Quot or a very High Marks for honesty and ethics. T hat compared with 66 percent for pharmacists 52 percent for doctors and 50 percent for College teachers and dentists. A it Here was a time when the clergy was at the very lop of the list of american occupations ranked by the Public As having High standards of honesty and ethics Quot the research Center said in its publication emerging trends. T he report said positive ratings for clergy peaked in 1985, when 66 percent of americans ranked them highly. But by 1988, when the scandals involving Jim Bakker Jimmy Swaggart and other television evangelists began to Confidence in professional people a Survey by the Princeton religion research Center indicates the percentage of people giving Quot High or Quot very High Quot Marks for honesty and ethics to people in the following professions 54% 52% 50% 50% 11%  clergy doctors College teachers dentists lawyers Congress used car salesmen a amps unfold favourable ratings dropped to 60 percent. But the clergy need not be despondent they can take Comfort in the fact that the Are rated higher than lawyers 18 percent a a High or a very High members of Congress 11 percent and used car salesmen 5 percent. Lutheran Branch attacks physician assisted death from wire reports Chicago the evangelical lutheran Church in America says it opposes a the legalization of physician assisted death which would a allow the private killing of one person by  a Public control and regulation of such action would be extremely difficult if not impossible a said the denominations interim policy making group the Church Council. Quot the potential for abuse especially of people who Are most vulnerable would be substantially  the statement draws a Sharp contrast Between Quot taking life and a allowing death a saying that withholding extraordinary measures can be a morally responsible when not considered helpful to the patients underlying condition. However the Church affirms that Quot deliberately destroying life created in the image of god is contrary to Christian  hindu offering nets bundle new Delhi India a hindu priests collecting the Days offerings in a Temple found a wad of notes Worth $65,713 in the collection news reports said wednesday. The bundle of Bills is about 50 years salary for the average White Collar Indian worker. Press Trust of India said the Money was found tuesday in the Venkateswara Temple in the town of Tirumala in Southern Andora Pravesh state. 3 jewish leaders honoured the three major branches of Judaism recently paid tribute to their larger than life modern leaders. On thanksgiving Day the orthodox Union saluted rabbi Joseph b. Soloveitchik who is known in orthodox circles simply As a the  the tribute marked the 50th anniversary of his teaching at Yeshiva University a rabbi Isaac Elchanan theological Seminary in Manhattan. On nov. 19 the hebrew Union College jewish Institute of religion honoured the memory of rabbi Stephen s. Wise a Reform Leader and a founder of the school who died in 1949. On the same Day at the Morningside Heights Campus of the jewish theological Seminary in upper Manhattan the Chancellor rabbi Ismar so Borsch gave a lecture on rabbi Abraham Joshua Csc Hal As part of a commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the death of the conservative , circumstances affect teens behaviour l editor s note these questions and answers Are excerpted from the Book. Quot or. Dobson answers our questions a question our 15-Yenr-Ohl son literally seethes with hostility at Home a at his Mother and me at his Sisters at the world. Believe me we have done nothing to provoke his anger and 1 done to understand what has caused it. But other parents of teens report the same problem. Why Are so Many adolescents angry at their parents and families sometimes they seem to hate the people who love them the most or. Dobson at least Pari of the answer to that question can be explained by the a in Between stages of teen agers. T hey live in an Era when they enjoy neither the privileges of adulthood nor the advantages of childhood. Consider the plight of the average 15-year-old. All of the highly advertised adult privileges and vices Are forbidden to him because he is a too  he can to drive or marry or enlist or drink or smoke or work or leave Home. Anti his sexual desires Are denied gratification at a time when they scream for release. Hie Only thing he is permitted to do it seems is stay in school and read his dreary textbooks. T his is an overstatement of course but it is expressed from the viewpoint of the Young Man or woman who feels disenfranchised and insulted by society. Much of the anger of today a youths generated by their perception of this injustice. There is another Side to this Issue of adolescent volatility. In a now convinced that the hormonal changes occurring in a developing body May be More important to feelings than we thought earlier. Just As emotions Are set on Edge by premenstrual tension menopause and extreme fatigue it is entirely possible that the adolescent experience is largely hormonal As Well. How else can we explain the universality of emotional instability during these years having watched thousands of children sail from childhood to Early adolescence it still amazes me to witness textbook characteristics suddenly appearing on schedule As though responding to a pre Prog r a m m e d co m p u l e r. Question All right so my kid feds disrespected and hostile. I still have to impose some limits and discipline on him done to 1? or. Dobson yes. But in is possible to Lead teenagers without insulting and antagonizing them unnecessarily. I Learned this lesson when 1 was a Junior High school teacher. It became Clear to me very Early that i could impose All manner of discipline and strict behavioural requirements provided i treat each Young person with genuine dignity and respect. I earned their Friendship before and after school during lunch and through classroom encounters. I was Tough especially when challenged but never discourteous mean or insulting. I defended the underdog and tenaciously tried to build each child s Confidence and self respect. However i never compromised my standards of deportment. Students entered my classroom without talking each Day. They did not Chew gum behave disrespectfully curse or Stab one another with ballpoint pens. I was clearly the Captain of the ship and i directed it with military Zeal. The result of this combination of kindness and firm discipline stands As one of the most pleasant memories of my professional life. I loved my students and 1 had every reason to believe that i was loved in return. 1 actually missed them on weekends a fact my wife never quite understood. At the end of the final year w Hen i packing my books and saying goodbye there were 25 or 30 teary eyed kids who Hung around my gloomy room for several hours and finally stood sobbing in the parking lot As 1 drove a a. And yes i shed a few tears of my own that Day. Tooson is president it focus on the family a non profit organization dedicated to me Preservati on of too Home correspondence to Dobson should be addressed to focus on me family p o to 12. Colorado Springs. Colo. 603c3