Where is the line between criticism and blasphemy?

Where is the dividing line between acceptable and unacceptable criticism of religion? How should the media cover issues that offend certain believers? These issues came up at last week’s Catholic-Muslim Forum in Rome and in the public editor’s column in the Sunday New York Times. In both cases, useful distinctions were made. But I’m not sure how much agreement they will produce the next time someone finds a depiction of a religion, its beliefs or its symbols outrageous.The Catholic-Muslim Forum, an unprecedented meeting between Vatican and Muslim leaders and scholars, approached the issue as one of the rights of a minority religion, since cases they are concerned about-such as the Danish caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad-involved criticism of a minority faith by the local majority. They agreed that “religious minorities are entitled to be respected in their own religious convictions and practices … and their founding figures and symbols they consider sacred should not be subject to any form of mockery or ridicule.”When I asked Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, head of the Catholic delegation, whether this meant the Vatican would support moves to limit criticism of religion that some western critics see as censorship, he said: “One must distinguish between a critical spirit, a spirit of criticism, and mockery. Freedom of speech means that we have the right to express opinions about religion, philosophy, philosophers and theologians and founders of religion. That is one thing. But deriding them and mocking them is something else… That impacts the values on which millions of people base their lives. That’s why we talk about mockery. I introduced that term… Mockery is very strong.”New York Times Public Editor Clark Hoyt took up the issue on Sunday in dissecting his paper’s review of a play portraying Jesus as a sexually active gay man. Bill Donohue, the president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, called it a vile play and said the Times liked it “not for artistic purposes but for its assault on Catholicism.” He urged his members to write to the public editor, and more than 150 did. While Hoyt found some of the protests over the top, he noted that the review was one-sided. It called the play “an earnest and reverent spin on the Jesus story, with some soft-spoken, gay-friendly politics thrown in” but never told readers why Christians might be offended. If the review had mentioned the fact that gay sex and same-sex marriage are against the teachings of the Church, the Times would have done its duty in presenting the pros and cons of this issue, he said.We’re going to hear more about this issue in the months to come because Muslim countries are campaigning to have the United Nations approve a ban on published material that defames or promotes disrespect for religion. This will be a central issue at the April 2009 conference in Geneva following up on the 2001 Durban World Conference on Racism. Opposition to this has been gathering steam (see here and here and here).Do you think the United Nations or any government can determine where the line between criticism and blasphemy lies?
Posted by: Tom Heneghan
http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2008/11/10/where-is-the-line-between-criticism-and-blasphemy/?p=2193?tempedition=debatehub
As in the days of Noah...

India, Orissa Violence

Advice to US Christians:"Defend life,prepare for persecution"

With the prospect of a liberal Democratic leadership taking hold on Capitol Hill, two evangelical leaders are counseling fellow believers to stand firm in defense of Christian liberties and freedoms against the possibility of radicals in Congress overreaching their power.Dr. Richard Land, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, says after the devastating defeat at the hands of the liberals, pro-family Christians must be prepared to make solid arguments as they look to the future."They need to point out the mistakes that President-elect Barack Obama makes when it comes to overreaching," Land urges. "I think he'll be pressed hard to overreach by the radicals in the Democratic House and Senate."The Southern Baptist leader has additional advice for his fellow Christians."I think that we need to stay consistent with our message of family values and the sanctity of human life-and we need to find attractive and articulate candidates who will go out and make those cases," he says. According to Land, a number of social conservatives could emerge as the new leader of the pro-family movement."I think there are several contestants for it," he states. "Sarah Palin is certainly going to be a prominent one. Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, Mitch McConnell-who just won re-election in Kentucky-and Bobby Jindal from Louisiana."

Persecution on the horizon?

Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, believes Senator Obama was elected, in large part, because the church in America has failed to address sin in its own ranks and also in society. Perkins says Christians should pray for and return to a biblical model of holiness and righteousness. And believers in America, he adds, should prepare for persecution. "We are going to see, I think, unprecedented attacks against our faith through measures like the hate crimes legislation to the Employment Non-Discrimination Act," he says. "We're going to see attacks on innocent human life through the Freedom of Choice Act, trying to erase all the gains that have been made in the pro-life movement. And I think even our freedoms are going to come under attack." Obama stated during the presidential campaign that one of his top priorities upon taking office would be to sign the Freedom of Choice Act. Perkins says Christians will have to be resolute in defense of what they know to be right. "We're going to have to stand together, and stand in defense of these truths, and be bold about that stance," he counsels. Perkins says many churches are afraid of offending people, and don't challenge members to live out their faith in the public square.

by Chad Groening and Allie Martin

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Church/Default.aspx?id=310956

As in the days of Noah...

SOMALIA:Militants step up fear campaign

Somalia-Voice of the Martyrs is confirming the murder of a Somali Christian in Manyafulka village. It is the latest in a wave of such attacks on Christians in Somalia recent months.Somalia is almost exclusively Sunni Muslim, with less than one percent of the population Christian.There has been a noticeable increase in the number of Christians in Somalia. A number of believers have been martyred, and others have been publicly named as targets for execution.In many hardline Muslim areas, to convert from Islam to Christianity is apostasy, punishable by death.Compass Direct reports militant Islamists caught up to Mohammed, staged a mock trial and pronounced Mansuur Mohammed an apostate and a spy for Ethiopian soldiers.After stirring up the passions of the crowd, the militants beheaded the 25-year-old convert. They then circulated the video in an effort to instill fear in those contemplating converting from Islam to Christianity.
--Ask God to give strength and comfort to the believers.Pray that those responsible will come to know Christ.
--Pray for comfort for those who mourn the loss of these Christians.

--Ask God to give strength and comfort to the people in Manyafulka village and the surrounding area.

--Pray that those responsible for these dark deeds will come to know the light of Christ's love
http://www.mnnonline.org/article/11849

As in the days of Noah....

Statue of Jesus Prompts Apartment Complex Dispute

MUNCIE, Ind. - A 71-year-old man is fighting the management of his apartment complex over whether he can keep a four-foot-tall lighted statue of Jesus Christ outside his patio door.A spotlight has illuminated Daniel Long's statue, casting its shadow on the wall of the apartment building in Muncie, Indiana.Complex manager Mike Desloover removed the light on Friday, but left the statue in place for now.Long insists the statue represents his personal devotion to Jesus and isn't meant to discriminate.But Desloover says the display could offend the religious beliefs of other residents, and he won't permit "anything that's not open to everyone of every race, creed, color and religion."
http://www.thecronline.com/news_article.php?nid=4509&ndate=05/11/2008
As in the days of Noah...

GREATER CHINA NOW WIDE-OPEN TO GOD TV!

Millions of Chinese viewers can now receive life-changing Christian programming following one of the greatest breakthrough miracles in GOD TV's distribution since the network launched 13 years ago.For the past four years global Christian broadcaster, GOD TV has been slowly making inroads into the Far East with daily broadcasts in Hong Kong, but now, in an unprecedented development, the whole of Greater China can access GOD TV 24-hours-a-day.This follows the launch of GOD TV's dedicated Greater China service on 16 October 2008, which is broadcast directly from Jerusalem onto two new satellites for GOD TV - providing the entire Far East region with Christian programming that is packaged specifically for Chinese viewers and their time zone.The two new satellites are Agila 2 which is among the most popular in the region, proving direct to home (DTH) access to millions of viewers and the IS-4 satellite which has a very wide footprint across the Far East. Through the powerful combination of these two satellites GOD TV is now available across the whole of Far East Asia including Mainland China, Vietnam and Korea and as far away as The Philippines and Japan."In 2004 we became the first English language Christian broadcaster in Hong Kong with a growing Chinese viewership, but we have always wanted to do so much more in this region," said GOD TV founder and chief executive, Rory Alec. "Now, God has opened up Greater China to us - a door of utterance which is literally unprecedented and which we believe is going to be one of the most significant outreaches in our history as we reach millions of new viewers." "For years we've waited for this, prayed for this... and now the dream God seeded in our hearts, and in so many of our partner's hearts, is becoming a reality," said GOD TV co-founder and director of television, Wendy Alec. "A dream that will enable millions of new viewers in a region that has been closed to broadcasting the Gospel for generations - to receive Christian television with a radical new prophetic voice."
Click here for more information about GOD TV and how you can watch it in your area.

http://www.god.tv/china_press_release

As in the days of Noah....

Persecution in India is 'Religious Genocide,' Says Ministry

The persistent and vicious attacks against Christians in India have a Christian ministry leader who has been going into the persecution hotspot of Orissa state calling the violence “religious genocide.”“This has been a religious genocide according to the U-N definition of genocide, where persistently and systematically it is planned and not stopped,” maintains Ramesh Landge, founder and director of Cooperative Outreach of India (COI), according to Mission Network News.“It falls in that category of genocide, and we do agree with that.”Landge, whose ministry works with U.S.-based Partners International, has been visiting the eastern state of Orissa, where the anti-Christian campaign is most fierce, to help the displaced Christians there.More than 50,000 Christians have been displaced by the violence, and 30,000 of them live in relief camps while others hide in the jungles.Since mid-August, over 4,000 Christian homes, churches and businesses have been destroyed by Hindu militant mobs. The number killed in the clashes, overwhelmingly Christian, range from 40 to nearly 100 depending on the source."There has been a lot of intimidation. There has been a lot of persecution. People have not been able to go back [to their homes],” Landge said. “If they do go back, the Hindu fundamentalists parties want them to reconvert."But the ministry leader readily emphasized that although Christians have been suffering they have not renounced their faith and are continuing to stand strong as followers of Jesus Christ."This is the very first time in Indian history that such a long onslaught against Christians has taken place, and in a sustained way,”he observed.“In a way, the government was part of it. They never tried to stop it. They were just silent spectators.”The global ministry Partners International, which supports local Christian ministries in the least Christian regions of the world, is trying to help provide relief items to the displaced, especially since winter is nearing, Landge informed.He asks Christians elsewhere to help by praying for those being persecuted, advocating on their behalf in their respective countries, and donating to help physically ease the suffering of those being persecuted.

http://www.christianpost.com/article/20081104/persecution-in-india-is-religious-genocide-says-ministry.htm

As in the days of Noah...

FREEDOM of RELIGION in the US:What Would an Obama Presidency Look Like?

ONE VOTE Will Make a DIFFERENCE

Christians On the Run in Iraq

Religions and ethnicities in Iraq

A church burns in Baghdad after a series of coordinated bombings in 2004. These were the first attacks on Christian places of worship in Iraq.

In Iraq, the persecution of Christians continues, as murders and a mass exodus contradict Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's promise of security for everyone. Churches are trying to help the refugees, and some may come to Germany-if the government settles on a plan.The long trip from Mosul to Baghdad traverses a bombed highway along the Tigris River, through a wasteland in central Iraq left behind by five years of war. For Rami Kamil, 43, his wife and their children, the journey was an escape from the growing prospect of being murdered in Mosul.Last Tuesday, at 6 a.m., the family started off in their small green Hyundai. They hid their jewelry and cash under a mountain of towels and sheets, the dowries of the two daughters. The small cross that once dangled from the rear-view mirror had been removed some time ago. Drawing attention to oneself with Christian symbols at checkpoints in Iraq is not a good idea.Kamil and his family realized that they could no longer remain in Mosul when their fourth neighbor, a jeweler and also a Christian, was killed.Unknown assailants shot him in front of his shop, while his son, paralyzed with fear, stared out the window.Now Kamil is sitting in his cousin's garden in Baghdad, almost too exhausted to complete a sentence and unsure what to do next."I am a mathematics teacher," he says. "These days, who needs a Christian who teaches mathematics?"Since the US invasion of Iraq in March 2003, Christians in Mosul have had to fear for their lives.Churches have been set on fire, and priests, doctors, engineers and businesspeople have been murdered. In March, aides found the body of Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho on the outskirts of the city. A new series of killings that began in late September has already claimed 18 lives.To stop the Christians who are fleeing Mosul, their persecutors set up fake checkpoints along the roads leading out of the city. They are often robbed, beaten and even killed. In the Sadik neighborhood, masked men recently stopped a man with his child. When they saw a Christian name on his identification card, they shot the man on the spot. When the boy said the man they had just killed was his father, they shot him as well.Church members who have not yet fled are finding flyers in their apartments with a "Warning to all Christians." "If you do not leave," the flyers read, "you will be slaughtered in three days."These are not empty threats. At the beginning of October, 15 masked youths broke into the house of a Christian family living on the east bank of the Tigris in Mosul. First they collected the family's mobile phone, and then one of the masked intruders held a gun to the head of the eight-year-old son. The attackers shouted that everyone in the family should abandon the house and leave their belongings behind. Then they carried in large amounts of explosives. Although the neighbors had alerted the police, they did not arrive in time to save the building, which exploded in front of their eyes and those of the victimized family.
Empty Promises, from Baghdad to Berlin
About half of Mosul's 20,000 Christians have left the city since September, according to official figures released by the Ministry of Displacement and Migration in Baghdad. Since the US invasion in 2003, more than one third of a Christian population that once numbered about 800,000 has fled the country.The ongoing persecution of Christians contradicts the promise of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who assured German Chancellor Angela Merkel during a visit to Germany in July that Christians were safe in his country. At the time, his assurances led the German government to temporarily halt the process of accepting a refugee contingent of religious minorities from Iraq.Germany's two major Christian denominations are especially incensed by the German reversal. The churches have repeatedly pleaded with both Chancellor Merkel and Interior Minister Wolfgang Schäuble on behalf of the persecuted Iraqis. They have sent representatives to the region several times this year, who-after returning from Syria, Jordan and northern Iraq-concluded that swift help for Iraqi Christians is urgently needed.
The new chairman of the German Catholic Bishops' Conference, Robert Zollitsch, and his Protestant counterparts, like Munich Bishop Johannes Friedrich, want Merkel and the states' interior ministers to change their policies to reduce the amount of red tape refugees must endure to be accepted into Germany."The facts are all very well known," complains Thomas Prieto Peral, an official with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria.But even those refugees who have already made it to Germany can face obstacles. In the western city of Essen, a full 3,000 kilometers (1,863 miles) from Mosul, lives a family named Jalal who left their home on the Tigris in the summer of 2007. Armed men had broken into the Jalals' house, berated them for being Christians and shot the mother in front of her seven kids.The surviving members of the family had the good fortune to make it to Damascus, where the German embassy, as an exception, helped them enter Germany. Despite the great solidarity of officials in Essen and the energetic assistance of the Catholic aid organization Caritas, the Jalals were not spared a humiliating examination process.Fifteen-year-old Naseem and his grandmother spent four hours in a strict interrogation with an "individual case decision-maker" from Germany's Federal Office of Migration and Refugees in the northwestern city of Bielefeld.The teenager's fingerprints were taken, and then he was photographed and questioned with undisguised hostility. In the end, the grandmother and her grandson were officially recognized as refugees.It is precisely this sort of treatment that the churches want to prevent. They've proposed a resettlement solution with a streamlined acceptance procedure ending in a permanent residency permit. But before approving the plan, German politicians insist that Iraqi Christians should have no reasonable prospects in other countries that accept Iraqi refugees, like Syria and Jordan. A return to Iraq must also be out of the question.But no agreement has been reached. The German states' rigid stance on refugees is only gradually starting to soften. Since last spring, officials in Lower Saxony have considered a plan to house close to 1,000 refugees in centers in Friedland and Unna-Massen for "initial intake with integration courses." The immigration centers have stood empty. Now, after state parliamentary elections in Bavaria, Joachim Herrmann, the state's interior minister, has shown a willingness to talk with church representatives.
A 'Life-Threatening Situation'
An important Iraqi Christian who once agreed with Maliki in opposing the Christian exodus from Iraq now appears to have changed his mind. He is Cardinal Emmanuel III Delli, the patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church in Iraq. He recently visited the Bishops' Synod in Rome. He also, apparently, is planning a trip to Berlin. He's told the German pope, Benedict XVI, what he intends to say to Chancellor Merkel. The latest pogroms in Mosul are "evidence of the life-threatening situation of Christians in Iraq," he told Benedict.The persecution affects a community with roots in Mesopotamia stretching back almost 2,000 years. This community has been consistently loyal to the Iraqi state, founded in 1921 under a British mandate. Christians served Iraqi kings as ministers and bankers; they served the rebels of the 1960s as military doctors and professors; and they served the former dictator Saddam Hussein as government bureaucrats and helicopter pilots. No one had to ask them twice in 2003 when it came time to build a new Iraq. But because the Christians, once were courted by Saddam, were always among Iraq's most well-educated and affluent citizens, they were also targets of resentment.The ongoing power struggle over resources and territories that started with the US invasion now threatens to crush the shrinking community of Christians. In Baghdad, thousands of Christians have fled al-Qaida's (Sunni) terrorist gangs. They've fled the southern city of Basra, which is primarily Shiite, in response to pressure from criminal gangs and religious fanatics. And now the animosity toward Christians has erupted in the largely Kurdish north, where tens of thousands had earlier fled from the south.It's a silent war in the ethnically and religiously mixed northern provinces. Kurds claim the city of Kirkuk and large parts of Tamim and Nineveh provinces. Muslim Arabs, many of them settled there by Saddam Hussein, oppose the Kurds. Christians are caught in between, along with Yazidi and Shabak minorities.Elections to Iraq's provincial parliaments are scheduled for next spring. But in late September, the Baghdad parliament revoked a law guaranteeing minorities a fixed number of seats. The attacks by gangs began when Christians in Mosul protested the government move. But no one knows for sure what motivates the attackers.When Rami Kamil reached the capital last Tuesday, having fled Mosul, his already dwindling confidence in the government had vanished. A few days earlier Prime Minister Maliki had promised to send additional police brigades to the north to protect Christians. But Kamil saw no evidence of police on the road from Mosul. "All I saw were columns of refugees heading to the east or south," he said.
Translated from the German by Christopher Sultan

By Peter Wensierski and Bernhard Zand

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,587345,00.html

As in the days of Noah....

Christianity to be restored in U.S. Capitol:New visitors center will document religious heritage

Documentation of the Christian heritage of the United States will be restored, at least partly, to a new $600 million Capitol Visitors Center in Washington which earlier had been scrubbed of references to the religious faith and influences of the Founding Fathers.WND reported several weeks ago when it was revealed that the center, with acres of marble floors and walls, photographs of Earth Day, information about an AIDS rally and details about industry, would not include America's Christian heritage.The plans drew objections from members of Congress and even drew an inquiry from Chuck Norris about whether he could help fix it.The new 580,000-square-foot center, mostly built underneath the grounds just east of the U.S. Capitol to protect the scenic views of the historic building, is about three-quarters the size of the Capitol itself, has exhibition galleries, theaters, a 550-seat cafeteria, gift shops and myriad other features.But according to members of Congress, the project run by the office of the architect of the Capitol was on course to lack a full picture of the U.S.Rep. J. Randy Forbes, R-Va., organized a letter eventually signed by 108 members of Congress expressing concern the historical content simply was inaccurate.Now he's announced that the Committee on House Administration and the Senate Rules and Administration Committee have agreed to include references to the nation's religious history in the new project."Historical buildings like the Capitol Visitor Center are there to tell the story of our nation. When religious history is removed from these displays, the American public is not able to observe an accurate depiction of our nation’s story," said Forbes. "We are pleased that the Committee on House Administration and Senate Rules Committee have acknowledged this important part of our nation's history and have agreed to correct the omission of historical religious content in the Capitol Visitor Center."He continued, "Thousands of visitors will walk through the Capitol Visitor Center each day, and the efforts of the Congressional Prayer Caucus and the 108 Members of Congress that have joined in this issue will enable those visitors to experience an accurate depiction of our nation's heritage."He said among the changes that have been approved are:

-References to the nation's motto will be clarified so that visitors don't misunderstand it to be "E Pluribus Unum" instead of "In God We Trust."
-That the words "In God We Trust" be engraved in stone in a prominent location within the Capitol Visitor Center and that the panel describing the engraving include the proper recognition of this phrase as the national motto.
-That the Pledge of Allegiance be engraved in stone in a prominent location within the Capitol Visitor Center.
The members of Congress had expressed concern the center was delivering inaccurate and incomplete information, including the omission of the national motto and mistakes regarding Christian church services held in the actual Capitol as well as the excising of references to "religion, morality, and knowledge" in the Northwest Ordinance.According to Forbes, officials also have agreed to the research and development of a permanent religious history display and have agreed to make every effort to erect the display as soon as possible.Revisionist attempts to remove God and Christianity from America's history in Washington have been documented by WND's coverage of the work of Todd DuBord, the former pastor at Lake Almanor Community Church in California. He now serves as a special chaplain for Chuck Norris' organizations.Dubord was leading trips of tourists to Washington and nearby areas to review the nation's Christian heritage when he started noticing what appeared to be a deliberate campaign to remove references to the Bible and Christianity.He revealed when tour guides at the U.S. Supreme Court building called depictions of the Ten Commandments the "Ten Amendments," and he followed up by disclosing a number of other apparently related efforts to wipe Christianity from U.S. history, including efforts at Jefferson's Monticello, where tour guides told him they were unable to talk about the religious influences there.He later documented how officials at the Washington Monument had placed a replica of the 100-ounce solid aluminum capstone, which is inscribed with the Latin "Praise Be to God," so that visitors could not read the words and a resulting investigation by the National Park Service prompted a change in that procedure.His large body of research, including documentation and photographs, now has been assembled on his website, NationalTreasures.org.WND also has reported on efforts to make history politically correct, such as calling Europeans' arrival in North America an "invasion," for the 400th anniversary of the Jamestown Settlement last year, even though the first goal of those sent out to America was to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.Forbes also has worked with the Congressional Prayer Caucus, whose members' signatures were among those on the letter, to restore "references to our religious heritage in the past."Officials running the Capitol also have tried to strip the mention of God from flag-folding ceremonies at veterans' funerals and previously attempted to edit "God" from congressional flag certificates, which are statements issued with flags that have been flown over the Capitol.DuBord's work also was highlighted in Norris' new book, "Black Belt Patriotism," which gives a no-holds-barred assessment of American culture, hitting everything from family values to national security.An organization called Wallbuilders also has posted a YouTube video about the attacks on the Christian history in Washington, which can be seen here:

DuBord told WND that Norris was concerned about the editing of Christianity from America's history at the new center."He told me last night to get hold of the Prayer Caucus to see if there is anything we can do to help them rectify the situation," he said WND at the time.

By Bob Unruh

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=79514

As in the days of Noah....

Supporters defend troopers' memorials from atheists:Organization sued to have roadside crosses banished

When members of the Utah Highway Patrol lose their lives in the line of duty, their families often place roadside memorial crosses in their memory and honor. Now support for the memorials is flooding into the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver in response to an appeal by atheists who contend they are unconstitutional.The nonprofit Alliance Defense Fund, which is defending the memorials, says friend-of-the-court briefs have been coming into the appeals court on behalf of the troopers' families."One of the friend-of-the-court briefs was filed by Robert Mackey, who organized a 1995 effort to erect 14 crosses to commemorate the death of his son and other firefighters who died while fighting a Colorado fire in 1994," the organization said. "The American Legion; the Utah Sheriffs' Association; Utah legislators together with the city of Santa Fe, N.M.; the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty together with the states of Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma; and the Foundation for Moral Law also filed friend-of-the-court briefs in support of the memorials."The ADF's brief representing the Utah Highway Patrol Association against demands from the group American Atheists also has been filed."It's ridiculous that a small group of offended atheists would seek to stop the families of slain troopers from honoring their loved ones as they fit," said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Byron Babione. "Stamping out these symbols of sacrifice is the first step to forgetting the people who daily risk their lives to keep America safe. The groups and officials filing briefs in support of the memorials underscore the importance of this case."American Atheists Inc. filed suit against the Utah Highway Patrol and Utah Transportation Department in 2005. In 2006, the court allowed the Utah Highway Patrol Association to intervene in the case to defend the memorials. UHPA is represented by ADF attorneys, ADF-allied attorney Frank Mylar and the National Legal Foundation.A district court judge in 2007 ruled against the atheists,finding no state or federal constitutional violations. He ruled that no public money or property was used to support the memorial cross program, but atheists, dissatisfied, appealed.The district court ruling said, "It is not the place of law or government, using Establishment Clause jurisprudence, to exhibit hostility toward religion."The Utah Highway Patrol Association is a private organization that supports highway patrol officers and their families.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=79540

As in the days of Noah....

Pastor's son:Forgive father's killer;Cincinnati minister killed while attending N.Ky. funeral

WEST END - The message was difficult, but the congregation shouted “Amen” and “Hallelujah,” telling the young pastor his words were “right on time.”Rev. Ronald Glover, the stepson of Rev. Donald Fairbanks, asked hundreds on Sunday to practice the power of forgiveness. Let go, and let God handle their loss, Glover said, sharing his message only a day after a gunman killed his father, the pastor of the New St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church, and injured Dowdell Cobb, a deacon there.“I have to forgive. Justice will be served. Vengeance is not mine, but it is the Lord’s,” Glover preached from the pulpit. “Until we learn as a church to forgive, we can’t move forward. Regardless of how severed the circumstances, we’ve got to forgive.”Members of the congregation gathered at the church where Fairbanks had ministered to them for more than two decades, searching for comfort and answers to what they called a senseless death. They shared long embraces, comforting words and grief-filled looks through tearful eyes. Today they mourned, but eventually, they told each other, this too will pass.So, they did the only thing they could do, the thing their late pastor would have wanted them to do: They prayed.They prayed for the Fairbanks and Cobb family. They even prayed for Frederick Lee Davis, 40, of Covington, the man police charged with the shootings.“I immediately blamed God, but I had to realize that God needs pastor up there more than we needed him here,” Glover said. “We are to love our enemies. …(and sometimes) it’s a hard pill to swallow when your enemies have no regard for your life.”Covington police provided no motive this weekend for what they described as an ambush attack. According to officers, Davis opened fire once the men stepped out of a black Cadillac. First, he allegedly fired at Cobb. Then, he shot Fairbanks. Police say Davis chased Fairbanks to a nearby park pavilion and then shot him at least once more.Fairbanks was taken to St. Elizabeth Medical Center where he died. Cobb is recovering at University Hospital. Cobb’s oldest son, Xavier, said his dad is alert and sitting up in his hospital bed.Members say Davis attended the New St. Paul church years ago. But at some point, the relationship between the pastor and his former member soured.Hamilton County court records show a yearlong court battle that ended with a judge ordering Davis to stay away from Fairbanks, his family and the church.Last summer, Fairbanks filed a complaint, alleging Davis called and threatened his wife, saying, “I’m going to make you feel what I feel.”According to court records, Davis told Elizabeth “Cookie” Fairbanks that her husband, who was out of town at the time, was with Davis’ ex-girlfriend. In that same complaint, Fairbanks denied the claim.Davis violated his parole twice, although it is unclear what he did wrong. The most recent violation was 16 days ago.The men were attending the funeral of Alice Turner, a 71-year-old great-grandmother, when they were ambushed on Ninth Street about 10:50 a.m., Russo said.On Saturday morning, Fairbanks and Cobb were attending Turner's funeral to support one of her family members who attended their church, said the Rev. Richard Fowler, pastor of Ninth Street Baptist."As is our practice in the ministry, we like to support our family members regardless of where they are at the time," he said. "If there are family members they are grieving over, we like to offer our support."Fowler said he was shocked that a shooting would take place during a funeral outside his church."To think that somebody would have total disregard for the family, they're already bereaved over the loss of a family member," he said. "For someone to have so little regard for how they are feeling and going through at that moment. And to not be concerned about safety either as far as the number of people who are here, and not even be concerned about who else could be affected. It's beyond thinking."You used to think that church was a safe place," Fowler said."He preached about love and nonviolence," said Deacon Fuqua, referring to Fairbanks. "At our church everybody was welcome. This church is really going to be hurting."Fairbanks, 62, played the piano at the 300-member church and led the choir, Fuqua said.Bennie Doggett, Covington's Eastside Neighborhood Association president, was in the neighborhood when the shooting occurred. Doggett, who attends Ninth Street Baptist, went to high school with Fairbanks at Taft High School."Rev. Fairbanks was one of the outstanding ministers in Cincinnati," she said. "He was well-respected."Doggett said Fairbanks was able to keep an active congregation even though the population around his church had moved away."They had one of the most outstanding choirs in the Cincinnati area," she said.A friend of the family, Keon Hankerson, 27, said words couldn't describe what the pastor's death would mean to the church.
"He was his church," said Hankerson. He called Fairbanks a mentor to him and others. "He taught all of us young guys," he said."You never expect this," he said, "especially to someone who is always kind to everybody."Cobb works at Duke Energy as a supervisor, said his sister-in-law Kim Wright.

By Amber Ellis

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20081102/NEWS0107/811020409

As in the days of Noah....

Church leader due back in court in Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan-International Christian Concern confirms that Pastor Hamid Shabanov is due back in court today in Azerbaijan. Shabanov's family and lawyer complain that his detention is illegal as the court-ordered deadline for holding him ran out on October 21st and that none of his representatives know what the indictment is.The 52-year-old was falsely accused of having an illegal weapon, according to church members in Aliabad. Shabanov was arrested in June after a police raid. Authorities also confiscated Bibles and Christian books.His is not the first arrest on suspicious charges. Fellow-pastor Zaur Balaev was freed from prison in March but is still being hounded by the government.Their congregation has also repeatedly had registration applications blocked since the mid-1990s. While church registration is not required under Azerbaijani law, several incidents of churches being closed or destroyed for not registering have been reported.Interestingly, since the June arrest, police have not interfered in the church's services. Fellow believers have not let down their guard. They feel the efforts at prosecution are overt attempts to get the community to fall apart and stymie its growth.Outside resourcing help would be difficult. Expatriate Christians are forbidden to engage in religious propagand, and there are severe restrictions on distribution of literature for "nontraditional" religious groups. The government must approve all religious literature, but approval is rarely granted, and thousands of religious books have been destroyed.
The greatest source of help is prayer.
--Pray that there will be opportunities for the churches to reach out to the ethnic Azeri people with the Gospel.
--Pray for churches facing government pressure, that they will stand firm in their ministry.
--Pray that opposition from the government and media will cease and that Christians will be free to worship without fear.

Source:MNN

As in the days of Noah...

American presidential election could affect religious freedom

USA-It's being called an historic election. Americans will be heading to the polls tomorrow to choose their next president, as well as legislative leaders. According to Craig Parshall, Senior Vice President and General Counsel of the National Religious Broadcasters Association, depending on who's elected, Christian radio and other religious freedom could be negatively affected.He says the Democrats have gone on the record saying they wanted to reinstitute the fairness doctrine. The fairness doctrine was overturned in the 1980's because it limited free speech. Parshall says, "We think it would be a real travesty to Christian broadcasters because it would convert Christian broadcasting into anti-Christian broadcasting. Christian broadcasters would be required to air the opinions of atheists, members of major world religions, pro-abortion proponents, pro-homosexual activists and so forth."NRB also opposes hate crimes legislation, which many of the democrats support. Parshall says it has very little to do with crime prevention and more to do with restricting free speech and religious freedom. He says the legislation protects the rights of gay activists and alternative religions other than Christianity."If Christians come out and speaks against Islam, if they feel harassed or intimidated or verbally attacked, they could actually go to the local federal prosecutor and have the speaker and those involved in the conference charged with hate crimes," Parshall says.According to Parshall, if the democrats win the U.S. election, Christians are at risk under this legislation. "In every country in the world where hate crimes have been instituted, it has migrated very quickly into hate speech, suppression of speech, and the targets have usually been Christian evangelists and Christian preachers."
He says that has a direct affect on Christian radio and television. "There would be no question in my mind that federal prosecutors would be asked to prosecute those that make statements over the airwaves that may result in someone feeling harassed, intimidated or insulted."Parshall says the candidates have two different views on the fairness doctrine."Senator Barak Obama has indicated that he wants to mandate a creation of diverse viewpoints. In other words, he doesn't necessarily like the way the viewpoints are situated right now in the broadcast media. He wants to create different opinions by federal mandates. John McCain has come out and said he very much opposes fairness doctrine and anything that would mandate that kind of required diversity."He says Republicans oppose hate crimes legislation, while the democrats have gone on the record supporting such measures.
While there are many other issues separating the candidates, says Parshall, "On these very essential ones affecting the Christian church and our freedom not only to broadcast, but to proclaim the whole truth of the whole Gospel to the whole culture, I think there's a very distinct difference between the two parties and the two candidates."

--Pray that Christian radio and television would be protected no matter who wins the election.
--Ask God to encourage His people to go to the polls to help protect religious freedom.

http://www.mnnonline.org/article/11841

As in the days of Noah...

ELECTIONS USA:Urgent Call To Prayer

Dear Friends:

Countries around the world go through changes politically that have an impact on Christians and their religious freedom. We've told you about legislation in Australia and Canada that's restricted religious freedom. MNN has also told you about changes in leadership that's affected religious freedom.Some of those stories have hit close to home, but never as close as it is has this year.If you live in the United States,I'd like to encourage you to go to our website Monday http://www.mnnonline.organd/mnnonline.org

and read our top story. While we aren't endorsing any candidate in the U-S elections this year, we are providing you sobering information that you may be able to use as you go to the polls on Tuesday.

Tuesday's presidential and legislative elections results could have an impact Christian radio as we know it, public education and even evangelism.

If you don't live in the United States, please be in prayer for the U-S elections.

Greg Yoder, Anchor & Executive Director

Mission Network News

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As in the days of Noah....

"Speechless...Silencing the Christians" returns this Saturday night

Be sure to tune into the new episodes of “Speechless...Silencing the Christians” beginning tonight. The program airs at 9:00 p.m. Eastern on the INSP network.You can also watch on the Internet at http://www.afa.net.
Click on the Speechless banner.Saturday night’s episode is titled “Christians Need Not Apply - Part 1.”All across the country, Christians are being hounded out of jobs, simply because of their beliefs.On this episode of “Speechless...Silencing the Christians", you’ll learn why two women were fired from the University of Texas at Arlington for praying for a co-worker after hours. How a counselor lost her job for sticking to her religious convictions, and why a receptionist at a family services agency was harassed for her Christian faith.What does this intensifying battle mean for you, and your freedoms? Find out tonight!
Check local listings for the INSP cable channel. Also, INSP is now available on DIRECTTV (Channel 364) and DISH network (Channel 259).
By Donald E. Wildmon
Founder and Chairman
American Family Association
http://www.afa.net
As in the days of Noah...

IRAN:Muslims converting to Christianity

PS:Remember our brothers and sisters in Iran and PRAY for them!!!!!!!!!!

As in the days of Noah...

Eritrea among worst violators of religious rights

Eritrea-The latest U.S. State Department International Religious Freedom Report indicates Eritrea has made little positive progress on religious liberty.Adelle Konyndyk with Voice of the Martyrs Canada says, "They're trying to crackdown on evangelical Christians as a means of controlling or even ridding Eritrea of Christianity. The government basically is cracking down on anyone who is outside of those registered bodies."In May 2002, the government's first step led to the ban and closure of all independent churches not operating under the umbrella of the Orthodox, Lutheran, Catholic, and Muslim religious structures.Authorities want to quash the spread of anything they consider "too radical," which appears to be aimed at stopping the growth of Christianity. Konyndyk says, "The military seeks to imprison key leaders, making it hard for these churches to publicly worship and spread the Gospel in Eritrea." "The Eritrean government, itself, maintains that no groups or persons are persecuted in Eritrea for their beliefs or their religion," says Konyndyk. However, in 2004 the State Department designated Eritrea as a Country of Particular Concern on a list of the worst violators of religious freedom.Further, although Eritrea provided for religious freedom in a 1997 constitution, a border war with Ethiopia delayed the implementation.Of the more than 2,000 Christians under arrest in police stations, military camps and jails across Eritrea for of their religious beliefs, many have been incarcerated for years. No one has been charged officially or given access to judicial processes.According to Konyndyk, that means leaders of large unregistered bodies like the Full Gospel Church and Rhema Church are viewed as threats.Keep praying, because it is making a difference. "It is a positive sign that human rights organizations and the U.S. Department of State are publicly taking notice of the persecution that is going on here. "Pray for believers in prison to be strengthened and stand firm in their faith.Pray too, that the government will stop the campaign against evangelicals and allow freedom of religion for all.
If you can support the body of Christ in Eritrea, click here. http://www.mnnonline.org/article/11812
As in the days of Noah...

British Aid Worker Gayle Williams Buried in Kabul

Slain British aid worker buried in Afghanistan

KABUL-Surrounded by tight security, some 50 mourners gathered in the Afghan capital on Sunday for the funeral of Gayle Williams, a British aid worker killed by Taliban gunmen on her way to work a week ago.The killing, together with the shooting of a South African and a British man in the city on Saturday, has led to fears Taliban insurgents could target Westerners to scare off aid workers and undermine efforts to bring development and security.The Taliban said they had killed Williams, 34, because she worked for SERVE Afghanistan, a British-based Christian aid organisation that the militants said was trying to convert Afghanistan's fiercely conservative Muslim population.SERVE denies it tries to spread Christianity and says its work concentrates on teaching children with disabilities."A completely defenceless young woman with a heart of love for the people of Afghanistan, was walking alone to work to care for the people who were defenceless here in this country," said the man leading the service, who declined to be named."Two armed men gunned down a young defenceless girl. It is hard to see this as anything other than a cowardly act that brings shame on the people who carried out this murder," he said.Family, friends and colleagues, including her mother Patricia and her sister Karen, attended the funeral at the British Cemetery in the heart of the city.Dozens of police surrounded the cemetery and blocked roads to traffic, a stark reminder of Afghanistan's deteriorating security. Police patrolled the hill overlooking the ceremony.

AID WORKERS A TARGET

Williams' mother sat beneath the shade of a tree, at times weeping as friends and colleagues paid tribute."Gayle was a special colleague, she was a precious sister to all of our SERVE staff," said one of Williams' colleagues. "She was a joyful and courageous woman. We lost a dear co-worker."In the weeks before her death, Williams had attended the funeral of a friend at the same cemetery and had expressed her desire to be buried there if she were to die in Afghanistan."Now we have seen this cemetery, and if I die here, I know where I will be laid to rest," Gayle had told friends.A friend paying tribute, said Williams had discussed the possibility of one of them coming to harm in Afghanistan."'These bodies are only temporary. When I get to heaven I will have a new body'," Williams had told her friend.Taliban insurgents have increasingly targeted aid workers this year in their campaign to spread an atmosphere of fear and undermine claims by the Afghan government and its Western backers that they are bringing security to the nation.Some 4,000 people, a third of them civilians were killed this year. There were more than 120 attacks on aid programmes in the first seven months of this year, the United Nations says.Thirty aid workers have been killed and 92 abducted.The cemetery was built in the 1870's during the second Anglo-Afghan War and there are several headstones of British soldiers from that time, but most graves are of Kabul's European residents buried there up to the 1970s. Following the funeral, Williams' mother and sister were taken to meet President Hamid Karzai who wished to express his condolences.

http://www.reuters.com/article/homepageCrisis/idUSISL231298._CH_.2400

As in the days of Noah....

Soldier Protecting Christians Mutilated, Killed in Orissa, India

NEW DELHI-A paramilitary soldier assigned to protect Christians from Hindu violence in Kandhamal district, Orissa was mutilated and killed by a mob in Sisapanga village on Oct. 13.The body of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) soldier was recovered from a nearby forest. He was believed to have been hacked to death by tribal people in the wake of the worst anti-Christian violence in the history of modern India.“Police recovered the body on Monday night-he has injuries on his torso and head,” District Superintendent of Police S. Praveen Kumar told national media. “It appears he was first beaten up by sticks and then killed by a sharp weapon.” Sisapanga village is under Raikia police jurisdiction.“The soldier had been to Sisapanga village, accompanied by a driver, to buy provisions. A group of six-seven men attacked him from behind, dragged him into the jungle and hacked him to death,” Kumar told The Times of India (TOI). “The driver fortunately managed to escape.”The death marks the first time that central security personnel have been targeted in Orissa in the riots that have raged since Hindu extremists insisted on blaming Christians for the Aug. 23 murder of Hindu leader Laxmanananda Saraswati, even though Maoists admitted killing him and four associates.“The murder of the CRPF jawan [soldier] comes in the wake of persistent demands from the tribals to withdraw the paramilitary force,” a police spokesman told TOI. “The CRPF has made mass arrests, mostly of tribals, during the past two weeks.”A local source who wished to be unnamed told Compass that the attackers have warned authorities through local media that they will carry out more killings of CRPF soldiers if the forces are not withdrawn.
Assurances, Assurances
Amid several assurances of protection by the state government, a mob demolished a Church of North India building on Oct. 11 in Sikuli village, Kalahandi district. The same day, the gang burned down two Christian houses in the village.Two women who previously were driven from their homes when Hindu extremists set the structures on fire have died from illnesses. Minakshi Pradhan, 22, contracted malaria after fleeing to a refugee camp, later developing typhoid, and was admitted to MKCG Berhampur hospital, where she died on Thursday (Oct. 16).“She has a 4-year-old child she left behind,” said a local source who wished to remain unnamed. Also survived by her husband, Anand Pradhan, Minakshi Pradhan was from Murudipanga village, Raikia block division, in Kandhmal district.Another woman, Mili Pradhan, had a tumor detected in her stomach after her house was burned on Aug. 29, and she and husband Joshi Pradhan had to flee to Berhampur. Doctors operating on her detected blood cancer, and she died in the same hospital on Wednesday (Oct. 15.) She left behind an 18-month-old daughter.Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said in an interview to television channel NDTV that half of the 1,000-odd people arrested in the state for rioting belonged to the Hindu extremist Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP). He added that he considered the Bajrang Dal a fundamentalist group.In reaction, Subash Chouhan, national co-coordinator of the Bajrang Dal, said “It’s not the Bajrang Dal but Naveen Patnaik who is the real fundamentalist...He is trying to show his secular character by trying to implement the Christian organizations’ agenda.”Orissa police have arrested one of the “most wanted” in the anti-Christian riots in the state’s Kandhmal district.
Manoj Pradhan, a key tribal leader, was reportedly arrested at a lodge in Berhampur on Wednesday (Oct. 15) night.“While investigating the case, we are finding it to be one of the most complicated cases in the state,” Arun Ray, inspector general of police, told media. “The crime was planned much before. We have identified the perpetrators of the crime. We have arrested three people and are likely to arrest some more people in the near future.”

To read more go to:
http://www.opendoorsusa.org/content/view/802

As in the days of Noah...

Christians of Iran

Australian Lawmaker Puts Lord's Prayer Up for Debate

CANBERRA, Australia-The speaker of Australia's Parliament has called for a public debate about whether the country's lawmakers should end the practice of starting each session with the Lord's Prayer.Lawmakers have started every day of Parliament with the Christian prayer for more than a century-a tradition inherited from Britain during colonial rule.But some are now questioning whether a prayer adopted by the first Australian Parliament in 1901 remains relevant in an increasingly secular and religiously diverse nation. Dumping the prayer is unlikely to happen any time soon, though, as Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull said Sunday said they wanted to keep the prayer.More than 65 percent of Australians still identify as Christians, and there are no Muslims or Aborigines among Australia's 226 federal lawmakers. The only two Jewish lawmakers, both members of the government, did not return calls by The Associated Press on Monday.Speaker of the House of Representatives Harry Jenkins told News Ltd. newspapers that lawmakers and members of the public had repeatedly raised the issue with him since he took office in February. "One of the most controversial aspects of the parliamentary day ... is the prayer," Jenkins was quoted on Sunday as saying."On the one end of the spectrum is: Why have a prayer?"Jenkins declined to be interviewed Monday but issued a statement saying he had "received a wide range of opinions about the opening prayer" and its relevance "in modern Australia."Sen. Bob Brown, leader of the Australian Greens, a minor opposition party, wants the prayer replaced by a period of silent reflection, while independent lawmaker Rob Oakeshott wants each day to begin with a recognition of Aborigines as Australia's original inhabitants.Brown failed in 1997 to replace the prayer with a period of silence. He has said he plans to propose 30 seconds of silence after the prayer, as a "period of reflection" for those who did not want to pray.Ikebal Patel, Australian Federation of Islamic Councils president, said he did not object to the prayer, but supported Brown's proposal as more inclusive."There should be an attempt to try and be a little bit more generic and inclusive," Patel said.Aborigines and other religions should be acknowledged, he said."Parliament shouldn't be seen to be a Christian club," he added. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,444217,00.html

As in the days of Noah....

Iraq:"We are killed because we are Christians"

The Christians in Iraq, although they have lived there longer than the Muslims have and have nothing to do with the United States, are considered, because they share the religion of the American "Crusaders," to be kuffar harbi-infidels at war with Islam-and thus by the terms of Islamic law their lives are forfeit. Persecution of Christians in Iraq Update: "'We are killed because we are Christians,'" by Deborah Haynes in the Times, October 27 (thanks to James):
One grey-haired woman understands more than most the fear that has gripped Iraq's beleaguered Christian community over the past month.Her brother, Bashar al-Hazim, was among the first to be murdered in a wave of targeted killings that has forced more than 2,000 Christian families to flee the northern city of Mosul.Masked gunmen walked up to Mr Hashim as he stood with his two children outside their house in the east-side of Mosul in late September.They demanded to see his identity card, confirmed he was Christian and executed the 41-year-old on the spot."I could have died when I found out. He was a dear brother and was killed in a very despicable way," said the woman, 60, who was too afraid to give her name.She, like thousands of other Christians who have left the city since the start of October, claims to have no idea who carried out the attack. Fear of potential repercussions appears to prevent many in the region from speaking their mind."We're peaceful people. When my brother was executed he had no enemies. Why was he killed? He was not a member of a party. There was no reason except for being Christian," the woman, dressed in a black gown, said....
Read it all.
Posted by Robert

http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/023255.php

As in the days of Noah....

Nun Meena Lalita Barwa tells of brutal rape by Hindu mob in India

A Roman Catholic nun who says that she was raped and paraded half-naked through the streets by a Hindu mob in eastern India emerged from hiding yesterday for the first time to make an emotional public appeal for justice.With her head and face covered by a black scarf, Meena Lalita Barwa, 29, described how she was attacked at a prayer hall in the eastern state of Orissa in August during the worst anti-Christian riots in India in decades.The violence-which the Catholic Church says killed 60 Christians and left 50,000 homeless-has drawn international criticism from the Pope and President Bush and prompted calls for a ban on India's powerful Hindu nationalist movement.Sister Meena said that a mob of up to 50 men armed with sticks, axes, spades, crowbars, iron rods and sickles dragged her and a Catholic priest from the house where they were sheltering on August 25.One of the mob raped her, while two more held her down, and then a fourth tried to rape her again, before they paraded the priest and her, minus her blouse and underwear, along a road, she said.When the crowd passed a group of a dozen policemen she begged for help, but they ignored her and talked in a “very friendly” manner to her attackers, she said.“State police failed to stop the crimes, failed to protect me from the attackers,” she said. “I was raped and I don't want to be victimised by the Orissa police.God Bless India, God bless you all.”She demanded that her case be handled by the Central Bureau of Investigation-India's FBI-rather than the Orissa police, who have been criticised for their inaction during the violence.Sister Meena went into hiding after the attack to protect herself from Hindu extremists but decided to come forward after the Supreme Court turned down her initial request for a CBI inquiry earlier this week.Her public appeal comes as pressure mounts on the Indian Government to ban Bajrang Dal, one of India's Hindu extremist groups, for their alleged role in violence in Orissa and elsewhere.The Government fears that such a move would provoke a backlash from other Hindu extremists and mobilise votes for the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of national elections, due in May.The accused groups deny any involvement in the Orissa violence, saying that it was a spontaneous reaction to the murder of Swami Lakshmananda Saraswati, a local Hindu nationalist leader, on August 23.They blame Christians for the murder, although Maoist rebels have claimed responsibility and accuse Christian missionaries of bribing and coercing poor Hindus to convert.However, victims in Orissa, church leaders and rights groups accuse Hindu extremists of executing the attacks to stir up their supporters ahead of next year's elections.Father Thomas Chellan, the priest who was with Sister Meena when she was allegedly raped, told The Times that many of the mob were chanting Hindu slogans and were wearing the trademark saffron bandannas of the Hindu nationalist movement.He said that they forced him to kneel on the ground and doused him in kerosene. One man brought out a box of matches and fumbled with it. “I thought, my God, now I will die.”Another member of the mob interrupted and said that they should “burn him where others could see”, prompting the crowd to parade him and Sister Meena along the road.

Jeremy Page in Delhi and Rhys Blakely in Bombay

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article5010294.ece

As in the days of Noah...

Christianity in Iran

See how Christians are thriving under the Islamic government in Iran with this story from CBN News...

"HATE CRIMES LAW":The 'how-to' plan to criminalize Christianity

A growing movement that experts believe could end up in the criminalization of Christianity in the United States is being exposed in a new documentary being prepared for airing on October 26, officials at Coral Ridge Ministries have announced."Hate Crime Laws" is a half-hour exposé that shows how Christians in America, Canada, Australia, and Sweden have been arrested and prosecuted for expressing opinions that are rooted in the Bible regarding homosexual conduct, Islam or other topics about which Scriptures express clear teachings. "On the surface, hate crime laws might sound like a good idea," said Jerry Newcombe, of Coral Ridge, who hosts the special. "After all, none of us advocates hatred or violence against another person. But if you look below the surface, suddenly you realize that these laws are really thought crime laws."The program will air on The Coral Ridge Hour time slot and local airing times are available online.WND has reported previously on hate crimes plans at the local level. In Colorado, for example, Gov. Bill Ritter(picture left) signed into law earlier this year a plan that analysts believe effectively bans publication of the Bible in the state. The gender "anti-discrimination" law bans publication of statements that can be perceived as being negative toward those individuals choosing alternative sexual lifestyles.WND also has reported when family groups with alarm have warned constituents about pending plans in Congress to institutionalize nationwide such laws.Pro-homosexual advocates long have sought such a law, but opponents fear it would be used to crack down on those who maintain a biblical perspective that condemns homosexuality as sin. Observers note it would criminalize speech and thought, since other criminal actions already are addressed with current statutes.Canada already has an aggressive "hate crimes" law, and there authorities have gone so far as to tell a Christian pastor he must recant his faith because of the legislation that bans statements that can be "perceived" as condemning another person.Some states already have similar statutes, too, and in New Mexico, a photography company run by two Christians was fined $6,600 by the state for declining to provide services to a lesbian couple setting up a lookalike "marriage" ceremony.The documentary cites the New Mexico case, as well as others."Canadian youth pastor Stephen Boissoin wrote a letter to the editor in 2002 criticizing homosexual activism and offering compassion and hope for people trapped by homosexuality. A human rights tribunal took notice and slapped him with a $5,000 fine, ordered him to apologize in writing, and snuffed out his free speech rights by placing a prior restraint on his public expression of any 'disparaging' opinions about homosexuality," Coral Ridge officials said."In Sweden, Pastor Ake Green spoke out against homosexual conduct in a 2003 sermon and was prosecuted for 'hate speech,'" the announcement continued.In Australia, all it took to bring two ministers into a courtroom on charges of vilifying Islam was a seminar in their own church about Muslim beliefs.The late Coral Ridge founder D. James Kennedy repeatedly had warned such developments would endanger Americans' civil rights."This will silence churches, which is their great desire – that churches ... may not be able to say anything negative about homosexuality," he said in an earlier presentation.An online presentatiion on the issue features Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council."Homosexuals know they must silence the church in this country, and that's what's behind this," he warns.Robert Knight, director of the Culture and Media Institute, also appears.The goal, he said, is the "criminalization of Christianity. If you say traditional morality is now a form of hate and bigotry, and bring the full weight of the government, you have criminalized basic Christian moral doctrine."Other guests include Richard Land, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention; Matt Barber, director of cultural affairs at Liberty Counsel; and Tristan Emmanuel, a Presbyterian minister who resigned from the pulpit to found the Equipping Christians for the Public Square Centre.Opponents of such actions note the deceptiveness of some of the proposals. In Colorado, for example, "Section 8 of the bill makes it a crime to publish or distribute anything that is deemed a 'discrimination' against the homosexual and transsexual lifestyle," according to the Christian Family Alliance.Mark Hotaling, executive director for the Alliance, said initially supporters and even some opponents of the bill explained that there was an exception for churches and church organizations. However, lawmakers then attached to the bill a state "safety clause" which is supposed to deal with laws that are fundamental to protecting the lives of residents.That, he said, simply stripped away any potential allowances for churches and church groups."Anyone who claims that there's an exception for churches really doesn't know the ins and outs of the bill," Hotaling told WND."So the religious exemption is purely window dressing and very deceptive," he said. "The Word of God literally now is banned, and that's a legitimate slam-dunk First Amendment issue there."President Bush has fended off at least one federal plan by deciding it was unnecessary and promising a veto if Congress would pass it.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/?pageId=78339

As in the days of Noah...

Judge Rules in Favor of Religious Speech

A federal judge has decided in favor of a Wisconsin man who was threatened with arrest for distributing Christian literature. The judgment came after the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) challenged a city ordinance that restricted the Michael Foht's constitutional right to free speech.“Christians shouldn’t be penalized for expressing their beliefs,” ADF Senior Counsel Nate Kellum said.“Exercising your First Amendment rights is not a crime. The ordinance was unconstitutional for that reason, so we are pleased to reach this agreement for the benefit of all residents who value their free speech rights.”
by Devon Williams
http://www.citizenlink.org/content/A000008467.cfm
As in the days of Noah...

Aid threatened in Afghanistan