Antiabortion Bishop Among Choices For Office Of Faith-Based And Neighborhood Partnerships

President Obama filled the remaining seats on the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships this week, appointing an antiabortion-rights Pentecostal bishop among his last nine selections to complete the 25-person panel, the AP/Chicago Tribune reports. Bishop Charles Blake is a presiding bishop of the Church of God in Christ, a predominantly black Pentecostal church with about six million members. At a Democratic National Convention interfaith service, Blake called on Obama to adopt policies to reduce the need for abortion and criticized those who show "disregard for the lives of the unborn." The White House has asked the council to address four priorities, which include economic recovery, reducing the need for abortion, "encouraging responsible fatherhood" and improving interfaith relations, according to the AP/Tribune.

Obama also selected Anthony Picarello, general counsel for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Many bishops have criticized Obama's abortion-related policies, and more than a dozen have protested the University of Notre Dame's invitation to Obama to deliver its commencement address and receive an honorary degree. The other appointments include: Harry Knox, director of the religion and faith programs at the Human Rights Campaign; Anju Bhargava, founder of Asian Indian Women of America; the Rev. Peg Chemberlin, president-elect of the National Council of Churches USA; Nathan Diament, director of public policy for the Orthodox Jewish Union; Dalia Mogahed, executive director of the Gallup Center for Muslim Studies; Nancy Ratzan, board chair of the National Council of Jewish Women; and Sharon Watkins, the first woman president of the Disciples of Christ. Obama also invited former Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy to sit on the panel, but Dungy declined (Gorski, AP/Chicago Tribune, 4/7).


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