Wyoming 'faith-based' funds draw questions.Wyoming state government has come under scrutiny for doling out public dollars to religious organizations. The Wyoming Constitution has a provision that states, "No money of the state shall ever be given or appropriated to any sectarian or religious society or institution." Nonetheless, Gov. Dave Freudenthal David Duane "Dave" Freudenthal (born October 12, 1950) is an American politician from the U.S. state of Wyoming. A Democrat, Freudenthal is currently the governor of Wyoming, having been re-elected to a second term on 7 November, 2006. and Attorney General Pat Crank have defended state grants to a Baptist church and other religious organizations. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a report by the Associated Press, the state has been funneling public dollars to religious groups via a private organization called Faith Initiatives of Wyoming (FIW FIW Feature Interaction Workshop FIW Fighter Interceptor Wing FIW Future Individual Weapon ). The news service reported that the Wyoming Department of Family Services has an $80,000 contract with FIW, a company headed by an ordained or·dain tr.v. or·dained, or·dain·ing, or·dains 1. a. To invest with ministerial or priestly authority; confer holy orders on. b. To authorize as a rabbi. 2. minister. Beyond helping the Baptist group improve its community center, FIW has provided public dollars to LifeChoice Pregnancy Center, whose Web site describes the group as "an outreach ministry of Jesus According to the Canonical Gospels, the Ministry of Jesus began when Jesus was around 30 years old, and lasted a period of 1-3 years. In the Biblical narrative, Jesus' method of teaching involved parables, metaphor, allegory, sayings, proverbs, and a small number of direct sermons. Christ." In late May, Freudenthal told reporters he was "fairly comfortable" with the state's financing of religious groups. The AP reported that Crank does not believe the Wyoming Constitution provides an "absolute" bar against the public funding of religious groups. |
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