AP : 9/11 Conspiracy Book by Presbyterian Publisher Stirs Controversy

9/11 Conspiracy Book by Presbyterian Publisher Stirs Controversy

By The Associated Press | August 17, 2006

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - A controversial book about the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks printed by the official publishing house of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has upset some of the congregation's members.

The book, "Christian Faith and the Truth Behind 9/11," alleges that the Bush administration was behind the attacks on the World Trade Center.

The author, David Ray Griffin, a professor emeritus at Claremont School of Theology in California, argues that the towers collapsed because of explosives and not because airliners crashed into the buildings.

Some conservative members of the Louisville-based denomination are disappointed that the publishing house, Presbyterian Publishing Corp., decided to print the book.

The church has struggled recently with financial troubles, declining membership and a controversial General Assembly vote to open the door to ordaining gays.

"It is sad that at this time in the life of our denomination, yet another silly and inflammatory step would be taken by the church's bureaucracy," said the Rev. Michael Walker, executive director of Presbyterians for Renewal, a conservative group based in Louisville.

The Rev. Parker Williamson of the North Carolina-based Presbyterian Lay Committee wondered how "these wild accusations make it through the editorial process."

The publishing house is funded by book sales and has independence in deciding what to publish. Its president, Davis Perkins, said the book's stances are not those of the corporation or of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

Griffin is part of a small movement that has challenged the widely-accepted version of what happened on Sept. 11, 2001. In the book, Griffin claims that the U.S. military could have intercepted the four hijacked jets and that the hijacker accused of slamming an airliner into the Pentagon lacked the flying skills to do so.

Griffin's book calls on Christians to oppose the Bush administration's foreign policy, just as ancient Christians opposed the Roman Empire.

Perkins said Griffin's claims "will not be universally accepted by his readers, but the arguments supporting those claims merit careful consideration by serious-minded Christians and Americans concerned with truth and the meaning of their faith."

Griffin said at first he believed the attacks were carried out by Arab terrorists, but he was later convinced by skeptics that they were "an inside job." He has written two previous books on this theme under different publishers.

The publisher has printed 7,500 copies, though it has not said how many of the books have sold.

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