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26 Year Old Christian mother trying to protect her daughter killed in Jharkhand

Two masked Hindu men slit the throat of a 26-year-old Christian mother who refused to hand over her daughter to be raped in Jharkhand's Regadi village.

The two men, who had previously assaulted Christian minors, attacked the young mother at 1 a.m. on July 20 when she refused their demand.

Pastor Jaymasih Nag of Grace Family Ministry (Anugrah Pariwaar Seva), who has been the spiritual guide for the 26-year-old and her family for six years, told Morning Star News that "The two suspects had raped Devi's (name changed for security reasons) minor daughter three times in the past besides three other Christian juvenile girls, and all four of the minor girls belong to my church."

Before the actual attack on July 20, the suspects had called the mother demanding her to surrender her daughter to be sexually abused.

On the night of the attack, Devi saw two men at her window. She stepped out of the house to shoo them away.

"Devi's daughter followed her mother. Before long, the men attacked Devi and she fell on the ground dead. On seeing her mother fall on the ground, the minor girl quickly ran inside the house and latched the door from inside," pastor Nag told Morning Star News.

After killing, the suspects dragged Devi's body and threw it into a river two miles away from her house. The police found the body an hour later and sent it for postmortem.

At the time of attack, Devi was alone with her two sons and two daughters as her husband works in Odisha.

According to pastor Nag, Devi was dealing with the rapists by herself and had not shared about the assailants to her family.

Once an FIR was filed against the two suspects in Khunti police station, they were arrested. They confessed to their crime of raping Devi's daughter thrice and another Christian girl once.

The two men, however, were arrested for rape and not for killing.

Oppression of Christians has increased during Covid-19

Oppression and discrimination towards Christians has only worsened during the pandemic, says Release International.

The charity, which supports persecuted Christians, said many had been denied food and relief aid by governments and NGOs because of their faith.

Some countries have escalated their crackdowns on Christians.

This is the case in China, where there were reports of Christians being arrested for meeting online to worship and pray during lockdown.

Authorities have "totally prohibited" online church services and prayer meetings, Release partners in China said.

"Nothing constituting a religious service is allowed," they said.

They believe the Chinese Government is exploiting Covid-19 to increase its long-running crackdown on Christians.

"They have accelerated campaigns such as the forced demolition of crosses against even government-sanctioned churches," the partners said.

"Pastors have been rounded up for sharing the gospel and distributing facemasks on the street."

In many countries, Christians have experienced crippling poverty during the pandemic.

In Algeria, there is no social security or government support, leaving many Christians struggling to get by.

A Release partner in Algeria said: "Many Christian families have had to stop work because of the lockdown and have lost their income. They have been rejected by society and their families as a result of their faith. The demand is huge."

In Pakistan, the situation has been especially difficult for converts from a Muslim background because the only form of financial support comes from families. Muslim families often withdraw this support to family members who convert to a different faith, Release said.

"These individuals have been rejected by society and their families as a result of their faith," said Release's Pakistan partners.

Just buying food and paying the rent has become a huge challenge for many impoverished Christians, let alone buying face masks and hand sanitiser.

"The government is not able to support Christians in the villages, slums or brick kilns," the partners said.

In Upper Egypt, there have been reports of Christians being refused food and support from organisations distributing aid.

Release partners report: "The authorities are helping Muslims but not Christians. And churches that try to help are being closed by police order."

Release partners are distributing aid packages to Christians in Algeria, Ethiopia, Egypt, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey.

It has launched an appeal to support more Christians during Covid-19.

Release International CEO Paul Robinson said: "Covid-19 is having a devastating impact on the lives of many poor Christians. In places hostile to the faith Christians are experiencing increased hardship.

"Food is now in short supply. They are unable to work and can't earn, and support is being withheld because of their faith.

"Their cries for help are being ignored by local charities who are distributing food packages only to families of other faiths. We can't afford to delay. These Christians need our help."

Will The Apophis Asteroid Fulfill The Wormwood Prophecy Of Revelation?    

We live at a time when giant space rocks are whizzing past our planet with alarming regularity. Sometimes we know in advance that they are coming, and sometimes we don't. In fact, on July 28th an asteroid the size of a car zipped past our planet "at a range that rivals the orbits of some high-flying satellites", but we had only spotted it for the very first time on July 26th.  

If we couldn't see that one until it was nearly upon us, could it be possible that there are much larger potential threats hurtling toward our planet that we currently know nothing about? In 1998, a big Hollywood movie entitled "Deep Impact" imagined what would happen if a very large asteroid hit the Atlantic Ocean.  It is hard to believe that it has been more than 20 years since it first came out, because I can still remember it very vividly.  

In one of the most memorable scenes in the film, a massive tsunami that is hundreds of feet tall slams into the east coasts of the United States causing immense death and destruction. But that is just a movie.  Could something similar actually happen in real life?

On Tuesday, a British news source reminded us that scientists have discovered that such a scenario is actually a very real possibility... A computer simulation of an asteroid impact tsunami developed by scientists at the University of California, Santa Cruz (USCS), showed waves as high as 400 feet sweeping onto the Atlantic Coast of the US.

Steven Ward, a researcher at the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics at UCSC, and Erik Asphaug, an associate professor of Earth sciences, reported their findings in the Geophysical Journal International. Of course an asteroid could potentially hit anywhere on the planet, but in their research Ward and Asphaug specifically focused on the Atlantic Ocean, and what their computer simulation came up with was extremely disconcerting...

For the simulation, the researchers chose an impact site consistent with the orientation of the Earth at the time of the predicted encounter - in the Atlantic Ocean about 360 miles from the US coast. Dr Ward explained that the 60,000-megaton blast of the impact could vaporise the asteroid and blow a cavity in the ocean 11 miles across and all the way down to the seafloor, which is about three miles deep at that point.

Such an impact would send a series of giant waves in all directions, including toward the east coast of the United States. Today, almost 40 percent of the U.S. population lives in a county that directly borders a shoreline, and the population density right along the east coast is particularly dense.

Florida would probably be the first state to get hit by the waves, and it would be particularly vulnerable because most of the state is just barely above sea level...South Florida has two big problems. The first is its remarkably flat topography. Half the area that surrounds Miami is less than five feet above sea level. Its highest natural elevation, a limestone ridge that runs from Palm Beach to just south of the city, averages a scant 12 feet. With just three feet of sea-level rise, more than a third of southern Florida will vanish; at six feet, more than half will be gone; if the seas rise 12 feet, South Florida will be little more than an isolated archipelago surrounded by abandoned buildings and crumbling overpasses. And the waters won't just come in from the east - because the region is so flat, rising seas will come in nearly as fast from the west too, through the Everglades.

In other words, there would be absolutely nothing to keep the tsunami waves from racing across the entire state. Much of the rest of the east coast would be extremely vulnerable as well.  For example, New York City is less than 50 feet above sea level... Despite having some of the tallest buildings in the world and being well-known for its towers and skyscrapers, New York City has a very low elevation of just 33 feet (10 m) above sea level. New York's elevation is so low due to its location right on the coast of the United States.

Boston, New Haven, Jersey City, Newark, Atlantic City, Philadelphia, Virginia Beach, Wilmington, Myrtle Beach, Charleston, Savannah and countless other east coast cities are all also less than 50 feet above sea level. So we are talking about the potential for death and destruction on a scale that is unimaginable.

Washington D.C. would fare a little bit better, because some parts of the D.C. area are up to 410 feet above sea level... Washington D.C. is relatively flat and located at 410 feet above sea level at its highest point and at sea level at its lowest point. So I would rather be in D.C. than New York or Boston when a giant tsunami hits, but without a doubt the devastation would be immense in our capital city as well. We should hope that such an event can be put off for as long as possible, but we have been warned that our planet is apparently "in the midst of an epic asteroid surge"...

NASA's been running these simulations for years, and with good reason: Earth, as it happens, is in the midst of an epic asteroid surge compared to the relative peace and quiet the planet experienced many millions of years ago. When unexpected space rocks do appear on our scopes, sometimes we only get hours' notice of their existence before they streak past. While the chances of a catastrophic impact are exceedingly slim, we're nonetheless unprepared for surprise asteroid strikes, which is why NASA is continually working on plans to help improve our NEO detection and mitigation capabilities. And as I noted at the beginning of this article, we are still discovering more asteroids all the time.  The one that was discovered on July 26th was not a threat, but it did come alarmingly close to us...

A car-sized asteroid discovered over the weekend made a close flyby of Earth (July 28), passing our planet at a range that rivals the orbits of some high-flying satellites. The asteroid 2020 OY4, which was first detected on Sunday (July 26), made its closest approach today at 1:31 a.m. EDT (0531 GMT) when it zipped by Earth at a speed of about 27,700 mph (44,600 km/h), according to the European Space Agency. The asteroid is just under 10 feet (3 meters) wide and posed no impact risk to Earth, but did approach the flight paths of geosynchronous satellites.

Despite all of our advanced technology, we remain extremely vulnerable, and scientists assure us that it is just a matter of time before our luck runs out and a gigantic space rock hits our planet.

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Lebanon, Hezbollah & Israel All Prepare For Post Explosion Ramifications

A day after an enormous blast ripped through Beirut, causing untold destruction, it's still not possible to grasp the true scope of the calamity, a former Israeli Military Intelligence chief has said. Speaking by video conference to journalists, Maj. Gen. (res.) Amos Yadlin, who served as former deputy commander of the Israeli Air Force and is now executive director of the Institute for National Security Studies, noted that Israel has offered medical assistance to Lebanon. "This is a terrible, terrible disaster. The big question is how many people are missing. The numbers are between 1,000 to 4,000."

Analyzing the incidents that led to the explosion, Yadlin said it "started from a small explosion at what looks like a fireworks storage facility. And then the big explosion came," he said, citing the 2,700 tons of reported ammonium nitrate stored at a warehouse at the port's dock.

Ammonium nitrate "is material used to develop explosives," he said. "It is also good for agriculture, but the fact that it was there since 2014 is saying that it was not taken for agriculture. The purpose of this storage was for explosives." Regarding the question of who owned the warehouse and why the material was there, Yadlin said "this is something I guess that the Lebanese authorities are investigating." He added that it cannot be proven at this stage that it was a Hezbollah warehouse. If, however, signs emerge that this is indeed the case, it would form a "very serious allegation against Hezbollah," which could turn into significant political pressure on it to end its role as a military power in Lebanon and delegate that role to the official Lebanese military, he assessed.

Ammonium nitrate has been used before by Hezbollah operatives abroad in planning out a terror attack. In 2015, a Lebanese-Canadian man tied to Hezbollah was convicted in Cyprus after he was found in possession of 8.5 tons of ammonium nitrate in his basement. That same year, the Mossad told authorities in the U.K. of four properties in North West London that contained three tons of ammonium nitrate belonging to Hezbollah. Earlier this year, the Mossad again tipped off Germany on Hezbollah's activities on its soil, including warehouses in the south of the country where Hezbollah stashed hundreds of kilograms of ammonium nitrate.

"This is another blow to the Lebanese state that was already [suffering] a huge crisis," said Yadlin. The factors that created this crisis included severe economic, financial, political and social problems. Even prior to the blast, tensions were rising in the country. In that context, he explained, "what is important is that Hezbollah is using civilian neighborhoods to store weapons. They use civilian neighborhoods as shields for their activity. There are elements in Lebanon and the international community calling on Hezbollah to stop hiding behind the excuse that it needs these weapons against Israel."

Nuclear capability and hegemony in the Middle East

Yadlin pointed out that Israel hasn't attacked Lebanon in 14 years, and that the two countries have "no real dispute" over borders. Even a disagreement over offshore gas-drilling rights in the Mediterranean Sea "was already brokered by the Americans."

Hezbollah, he said, is looking for excuses to keep the conflict going with Israel. "This is a very good time for Lebanese to tell Hezbollah: 'We have so many other problems, give us a break from your excuses for Iranian interests that running behind you.' The issue starts with Iran sending advanced weapons to Hezbollah via Syria."

More broadly, the Iranian terror axis of which Hezbollah is part of is under great pressure, said Yadlin. Factors like America's "maximum pressure" campaign on Tehran--added to economic dysfunction, collapsing oil prices, Israel's campaign to roll back Iranian military entrenchment in Syria, the coronavirus pandemic, the recent assassination of Quds Force Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani--have all contributed to growing discontent among the general populace.

"The Iranians are continuing, despite all of the difficulties, with two strategic efforts: come as close as possible to nuclear capability and to have hegemony in the Middle East," stated Yadlin.

So far, Iran has failed operationally to deter Israel, and Syria is focused on what remains of its civil war in Idlib, so Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah decided to step up and attempt to "revenge any Israeli activities in Syria if Hezbollah terrorists will be killed as well. This is what happened last week, and Nasrallah decided to act," he summed up.

Nasrallah attempted to calibrate his actions so that they would on the one hand kill a few Israeli soldiers, but on the other avoid all-out war. "Very much like his Iranian masters, he failed operationally," said Yadlin. Now, in the aftermath of the Beirut explosion, Nasrallah has found his excuse to "remove this issue from the agenda, especially if this warehouse was a Hezbollah warehouse," he said. "And there are already a lot of voices in Lebanon that blame Hezbollah for the financial difficulties. 

There are new sanctions on Lebanon because of Hezbollah. The banking system is collapsing because of Hezbollah. Every Lebanese knows that Hezbollah is the strongest military power in Lebanon with a lot of political influence."

With all of these multiple crises in Lebanon, joined by the latest disaster in Beirut, some Lebanese civilians will likely be thinking "why do they need another dimension of destruction that will come from Nasrallah attacking Israel? So I think he will find a ladder to come down from the tree," said Yadlin. Asked whether the Beirut disaster will set the stage for the International Monetary Fund to provide major assistance to Lebanon, Yadlin said that remains unclear. "It could on the one hand say, 'Let's put aside everything and help Lebanon.'  On the other hand ... the blast may help those who say Hezbollah is the problem, and that this was a Hezbollah warehouse. The IMF could say 'until you move Hezbollah away from its positions that they took in Lebanon, we are not helping you despite the disaster.' "

Your Phone Is Spying On You And Generating Secret 'Surveillance Scores'   

Nothing that you do on your phone is private.  In this day and age, most of us have become extremely dependent on our phones, and most Americans never even realize that these extremely sophisticated little devices are gathering mountains of information on each one of us.  

Your phone knows what you look like, it knows the sound of your voice, it knows where you have been, it knows where you have shopped, it knows your Internet searches and it knows what you like to do in your free time.  

In fact, your phone literally knows thousands of things about you, and all of that information is bought and sold every single day without you knowing.  And as you will see below, there are lots of companies out there that use information collected from our phones to create secret "surveillance scores" that are used for a whole host of alarming purposes.

It is really important to understand that your phone is a surveillance device.  The reason why the advertisements on your phone seem so perfectly tailored for you is because of all the information that your phone has gathered on you previously. To this day, many people are still amazed when they see an ad pop up for something that they were just talking with a friend about, but that doesn't happen by accident.  The following comes from Fox News...

Perhaps you've been talking to a friend about an island vacation, when suddenly deals for the Maldives or Hawaii pop up on your Facebook feed. Or you are talking to your co-worker about yard renovations when advertisements for lawnmowers litter your Twitter, or maybe you were talking about why you stopped drinking and a random sponsored article about the growing trend of "elective sobriety" is suddenly in front of your eyes. Industry experts insist that our phones are not actively "eavesdropping" on us, but they do admit that our phones are "actually spying on us" in other ways...

"It's easy to feel like our phone is spying on us. It is actually spying on us, but it is not eavesdropping," Alex Hamerstone, Government, Risk and Compliance practice lead at information technology security firm, TrustedSec, told Fox News via email.  "The reason why we see ads pop up that seem to be correlated to the exact thing we were just talking about is because technology and marketing companies gather extensive amounts of personal and behavioral data on us, but it's not from eavesdropping -- it's from surfing the web, shopping, posting on social media, and other things people do online."

Most Americans have come to accept targeted ads as a part of life, but what most people don't realize is that the information our phones gather is being used for far more intrusive purposes. "Surveillance scores" are being created, and these "surveillance scores" seem quite similar to the "social credit scores" that China has been compiling since 2014.

In China, if you do good things like paying your taxes or taking a parent to the doctor, your social credit score will go up. But there are also lots of things that will cause your social credit score to go down... It aims to punish for transgressions that can include membership in or support for the Falun Gong or Tibetan Buddhism, failure to pay debts, excessive video gaming, criticizing the government, late payments, failing to sweep the sidewalk in front of your store or house, smoking or playing loud music on trains, jaywalking, and other actions deemed illegal or unacceptable by the Chinese government.

And if your social credit score gets too low, the consequences can be quite dramatic... Punishments can be harsh, including bans on leaving the country, using public transportation, checking into hotels, hiring for high-visibility jobs, or acceptance of children to private schools. It can also result in slower internet connections and social stigmatization in the form of registration on a public blacklist.

Here in the United States, private companies are doing something very similar.  Information collected from our phones is being used to create secret "surveillance scores", and selling those scores has become very big business.  The following comes from the Houston Chronicle...

Operating in the shadows of the online marketplace, specialized tech companies you've likely never heard of are tapping vast troves of our personal data to generate secret "surveillance scores" - digital mug shots of millions of Americans - that supposedly predict our future behavior. The firms sell their scoring services to major businesses across the U.S. economy. And just like China's system, high scores come with rewards and low scores come with punishments.

For example, your scores can determine whether or not someone will rent a property to you, whether or not you will be hired for a job, and even how long you will have to wait for customer service... CoreLogic and TransUnion say that scores they peddle to landlords can predict whether a potential tenant will pay the rent on time, be able to "absorb rent increases," or break a lease. Large employers use HireVue, a firm that generates an "employability" score about candidates by analyzing "tens of thousands of factors," including a person's facial expressions and voice intonations. 

Other employers use Cornerstone's score, which considers where a job prospect lives and which web browser they use to judge how successful they will be at a job.

Brand-name retailers purchase "risk scores" from Retail Equation to help make judgments about whether consumers commit fraud when they return goods for refunds. Players in the gig economy use outside firms such as Sift to score consumers' "overall trustworthiness." Wireless customers predicted to be less profitable are sometimes forced to endure longer customer service hold times.

To me, all of this is extremely creepy. Eventually, it may get to a point where you are basically a societal outcast if you are not willing to conform to a particular set of politically-correct standards, values and behaviors. You may not get thrown in jail the moment you do something "unacceptable", but your phone will be watching you every step of the way. Each mistake that you make will be recorded by your phone, and that information will be stored and used against you for the rest of your life.

I know that all of this sounds very strange, but without a doubt we are living in very strange times. My advice would be to only use your phone when necessary, but of course the vast majority of the population will never listen to such advice. Most of us have become highly addicted to these marvelous little devices, and in the process we are helping the elite construct a system of surveillance and control that is unlike anything ever seen before in all of human history.

Source Link : https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2020/april-web-only/india-churches-covid-19-coronavirus-pandemic-lockdown.html

As churches deal with the reality of increased community needs—since many people are unable to perform their jobs during the lockdown—they face complicated decisions. In the past, many churches were apprehensive when responding to the poor, since they could be accused of having an ulterior motive to convert those they were serving. Many churches also did not have adequate resources or tools to help their non-Christian neighbors who had no interest in the church.

Now, I have heard amazing stories from our multisite congregations across North India where neighbors who once were hostile toward us have come forward and supplied the church with free food and aid to distribute to vulnerable community members. At one of our churches, the neighbors even volunteered to come with our team to provide aid to the community, and shared that it came from the local church.

As the Indian church is expressing its love for those who are suffering the most, previously antagonistic neighbors are partnering with the church in our expressions of help. This marks a new day.

For example: I know a local church community in rural North India that has been struggling even in the best of times. Despite showing genuine love and concern for the community around them, they have continually faced opposition and threats. After COVID-19 hit India and a nationwide lockdown was put in place, the local police showed up at the doors of the church. The pastor was apprehensive. The police brought a request from the government for the church to make 1,000 cloth face masks in its center to be distributed among the community. The officers then accompanied the pastor to a local cloth shop, specially opened for them to procure the necessary materials.

What the police did not know was that this church community had been praying for ways to respond during the lockdown. The Lord answered by providing an opening to serve and the potential for better relationships with the authorities.

Finally, a common refrain being heard in all Indian churches and denominations is to repent. Even in our conservative Indian culture where sins are not openly confessed, people are being more transparent. The church is repenting of its own sins, the sins of the city, and the sins of the nation. We pray this prayer regularly: “Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

The world we will come back to after this pandemic will look very different. Therefore, the church’s priorities must turn from looking inward to looking outward.

I believe the church has been ushered into a new age of growth and engagement with each other and with the world around us. We are witnessing a huge turning after God. The last revival in India was in 1905-1906. If all the nations of the world repent, then we can anticipate a mighty movement from God in our times.

Israel Prepares For Next Hezbollah Attack   

The Israel Defense Forces remain on high alert along the Lebanese border in anticipation of a potential new attempt by Hezbollah to launch an attack in retaliation for the reported killing of its operative in an airstrike last week in Syria.

"In accordance with the situational assessment, the Northern Command will be reinforced with advanced fire capabilities, intelligence collection systems and special units," the IDF announced on Tuesday.

The mobilization of advanced fire capabilities, which likely include precision-guided missiles and special forces, is a clear message to Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and to his Iranian sponsors that any new attempt by the organization to attack will be met with accurate, devastating Israeli firepower.

The Israeli readiness and message of deterrence come after the IDF earlier moved to try and de-escalate the situation. It appears more than likely that the military allowed the armed cell that crossed the Blue Line to retreat back into Lebanon, despite being able to strike it accurately, as a one-time offer to Hezbollah to climb down from the ladder of escalation. It remains far from clear whether Hezbollah will actually do so in light of the failure of its squad to fire on Israeli targets. Israel was in the position to attempt to de-escalate because of the effectiveness of its border-surveillance capabilities. Advanced visual surveillance played a key role in thwarting Monday's attempted infiltration, and because the IDF saw the threat early, it had the possibility to weigh up its options and make do with warning fire.

"Our intelligence cameras spotted them as they moved close to the Blue Line. We monitored and tracked them, even though this is a vegetated area. Shortly after they crossed the Blue Line, we engaged and were able to thwart the attack," stated IDF international spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus soon after the incident.

Although the IDF has not officially said so, the fact that the Hezbollah squad was able to retreat was due to a decision by Israel--and not because of poor accuracy.

'Border Defense Array has tripled its numbers'

The ability to stop threats approaching the border early is largely the responsibility of the IDF Border Defense Array, which operates control rooms on the northern and southern borders, and security surveillance centers in the West Bank.

The control rooms feed regional commands with continuous data and provide real-time alerts to threats. Some of the borders are also equipped with advanced radars, which can detect suspicious movements and direct cameras to them automatically while alerting operators. Hezbollah may well have been searching for weak spots along the border before attempting its next attack.

In 2018, Capt. Argaman Zechariah, head of the recruitment desk at the Border Defense Array, provided JNS with a picture of the Border Defense Array's operations. She said "on a daily basis, we deal with defense. We do this not only when there is combat or war, but every day. ... Our personnel are stationed permanently in arenas, and they know best who the enemy is. When forces that maneuver into enemy territory arrive, they will consult with us first."During routine times, the units of the Border Defense Array gather intelligence on various terror groups, including like Hamas and Hezbollah. In addition, on the northern and southern borders, the military tasks them with finding out information about specific targets that would become of interest in the event of a war, according to Zechariah.

"The Border Defense Array has tripled its numbers, and it will only grow," she said. It is such capabilities that gave the IDF a head start in responding to the infiltration attempt by Hezbollah. The extra forces Israel has sent to the Lebanese border in recent days should be seen as a message, stating that if the next attack does not end so well, Israel's response will be fierce.

Hezbollah, under massive domestic pressure in Lebanon due to a failed economy and growing political unrest, will have to think long and hard before deciding whether or not it wishes to prove its point and risk escalation again. 

Thousands of Iranian Muslims Accept Christ in Spiritual 'Pandemic of Hope'

As Iran continues to struggle with the coronavirus pandemic, internal strife and its conflict with Israel, many of its Muslim citizens are turning to Jesus Christ.

According to CBN News, despite the Iranian government issuing a show of force by conducting executions, such as the killing on Monday of Mahmoud Mousavi-Majd who was accused of spying for the CIA and Israeli intelligence, many Muslim Iranians are converting to Christianity, a move that could get themselves killed or arrested as well.

"This is a regime that's facing a possible rebellion in the near future, regime officials talk about it, so they are executing a lot of people to put fear into the public," Alireza Nader, an Iranian expert with Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told CBN News.

Nevertheless, many Iranians are fed up with its Islamic government and are turning to Christ by the thousands.

"That's why we are calling this a pandemic of hope," said Mike Ansari, director of operations for Mohabat TV, a popular Christian satellite channel in Iran. The outlet has recorded a tenfold increase in online conversions as opposed to this time in 2019.

CBN News notes that since the coronavirus pandemic hit Iran in March, there have been 3,000 conversions to Christianity each month.

"We are registering around 3,000 personal decisions by Iranian Muslims to leave Islam for Christianity during this revival," Ansari said.

"People in Iran are just not happy the way their economy is going, the way the government is robbing them of their national resources and exporting Shia Islam to the neighboring countries, so they just don't trust their government," he added.

Converting from Islam to Christianity is considered heretical in Iran and many converts are arrested, especially if they choose to share their newfound faith.

According to Open Doors USA, Iran is currently ranked number 9 as one of the worst countries for Christians to live in. The watchdog organization explains that “the rights of and professional possibilities for Christians are heavily restricted” by Iran’s Islamic law.

At the same time, however, the growth of Christianity in Iran is spreading faster in Iran than in any other country worldwide.

“India: Christian woman killed, the fifth victim in two months

Source Link : https://www.vaticannews.va/en/church/news/2020-07/india-bishop-laments-killing-of-christian-woman.html

In the wake of the recent murder of a young Christian woman in Jharkhand, Bishop Binay Kandulna of Khunti appeals for religious tolerance, saying that "we have to respect all."

By Vatican News

A young woman, constantly harassed for her Christian faith, has been murdered by unknown assailants in Redhadi, a village in the Khunti district of Jharkhand.

Suman Munda, a 25-year-old Christian, was discovered dead in a deserted place near her home on 19 July after a search by family relatives who had come to visit her but could not find her.

This sad development makes Suman Munda the fifth victim in a disturbing trend of murders of Christians in India in the past two months.

On 24 June, another Christian, Ramji Munda, 27, was killed on the outskirts of his village in Khunti district in Jharkhand, Eastern India.

Lamenting the situation, Bishop Binay Kandulna of Khunti said that “it is a matter of serious concern because the state witnessed a Christian man killed only last month in the same district.”

Local media reports indicate that the Police are questioning four suspects in connection with the murder.

Christians worried

According to a local pastor, Munda converted to Christianity about six years ago and had since then been continuously harassed by some radical Hindu nationalists for her decision. He pointed out that other Christians in that area are still faced with that challenge.

“We are scared and our people are shattered,” the pastor said expressing his concerns.

“We have to respect all”

Calling for religious tolerance, Bishop Kandulna said, “Persons of faith are a creation of God and we have to respect all.”

But, he pointed out, “some vested interest groups are trying to target minorities in the state to spread hatred among various faiths who are otherwise peace-loving people.”

“We condemn the killing and appeal to the administration to take strict action against the culprits,” he said, adding that “it is very unfortunate that we have lost a precious life.”

Other victims

Between 25 May and 10 July, four Christians – a man, a woman, a teenage boy and a pastor have been killed for their faith in the Asian country.

The killings took place in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Maharashtra.

Persecution Relief, an ecumenical forum that supports persecuted Christians in India, recorded 527 cases of Christian persecution in 2019 compared to 447 in 2018, 440 in 2017, and 330 in 2016, with 293 cases in the first half of 2020.

Between January 2016 and June 2020, therefore, there were 2,067 crimes inspired by religious intolerance against Christians in India.

Links : https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/topics/i/india/

https://www.christianheadlines.com/topics/india/

https://www.persecution.org/category/news/

http://www.christiantoday.co.in/

Source Link : https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2020/april-web-only/india-churches-covid-19-coronavirus-pandemic-lockdown.html

The Pandemic Lockdown Is a Godsend for the Indian Church

As churches deal with the reality of increased community needs—since many people are unable to perform their jobs during the lockdown—they face complicated decisions. In the past, many churches were apprehensive when responding to the poor, since they could be accused of having an ulterior motive to convert those they were serving. Many churches also did not have adequate resources or tools to help their non-Christian neighbors who had no interest in the church.

Now, I have heard amazing stories from our multisite congregations across North India where neighbors who once were hostile toward us have come forward and supplied the church with free food and aid to distribute to vulnerable community members. At one of our churches, the neighbors even volunteered to come with our team to provide aid to the community, and shared that it came from the local church.

As the Indian church is expressing its love for those who are suffering the most, previously antagonistic neighbors are partnering with the church in our expressions of help. This marks a new day.

For example: I know a local church community in rural North India that has been struggling even in the best of times. Despite showing genuine love and concern for the community around them, they have continually faced opposition and threats. After COVID-19 hit India and a nationwide lockdown was put in place, the local police showed up at the doors of the church. The pastor was apprehensive. The police brought a request from the government for the church to make 1,000 cloth face masks in its center to be distributed among the community. The officers then accompanied the pastor to a local cloth shop, specially opened for them to procure the necessary materials. What the police did not know was that this church community had been praying for ways to respond during the lockdown. The Lord answered by providing an opening to serve and the potential for better relationships with the authorities.

Finally, a common refrain being heard in all Indian churches and denominations is to repent. Even in our conservative Indian culture where sins are not openly confessed, people are being more transparent. The church is repenting of its own sins, the sins of the city, and the sins of the nation. We pray this prayer regularly: “Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

The world we will come back to after this pandemic will look very different. Therefore, the church’s priorities must turn from looking inward to looking outward. I believe the church has been ushered into a new age of growth and engagement with each other and with the world around us. We are witnessing a huge turning after God. The last revival in India was in 1905-1906. If all the nations of the world repent, then we can anticipate a mighty movement from God in our times.

LGBT Heresy-Hunters Now Targeting Christian Politicians     

One of the perverse things about today's progressives is not simply that they are so often wrong, but that they often mean precisely the opposite of what they are saying but do not realize it. The promoters of "diversity" and "tolerance," for example, make the witch-burners look positively relaxed as they ruthlessly hunt heretics and hound them from their jobs. 

Diversity is acceptable only within the narrowest of lanes -- you can, for example, support the LGBTQIA2S agenda, but nobody will get too fussed if you just say you support the LGBTQ agenda, because it is presumed that you mean the same thing. Any indication that you do not support whatever the newest thing is, however, will not be tolerated.

The latest would-be victim of the heresy-hunters is British Columbian politician Laurie Throness, the MLA for the constituency of Chilliwack-Kent. Throness and several other MLAs, as it turns out, had run ads in a Christian publication that, to the horror of Chilliwack Progress editor Paul Henderson, apparently holds Christian views on sexuality:

The controversy started when it came to light that Throness and several other MLAs, including [Andrew] Wilkinson, used taxpayer dollars to advertise in "The Light Magazine," a Langley-based Christian publication that frequently runs articles that express antipathy towards the LGBTQ community in various ways.

Three MLAs have since apologized, and party leader Andrew Wilkinson tweeted out the required statement that there is no place for any anti-LGBT sentiment in the B.C. Liberal Party. The B.C. Liberals also announced that they would be reviewing their advertising policies to ensure that no ads were placed in such magazines. As CTV put it:

The Liberals had already pledged to review their advertising policy after critics pointed out ads for the party that ran in The Light Magazine, a Christian publication that has opposed B.C.'s Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) policy in public schools.

Apparently, opposing BC's radical sex ed curriculum, which foists dangerous gender ideology on children, is beyond the pale. Throness, at least, has noted that he will continue to advertise in the magazine as he shares its "Biblical Christian values," noting that "Biblical Christians follow their Lord in their sexual practice. 

They don't attack other people, they don't condemn other people, because Jesus did not condemn other people. They withdraw from sex outside of a marriage between a man and a woman. That has nothing to do with intolerance, it has everything to do with following their conscience and following their Lord."

To anyone familiar with what Christianity teaches, that's pretty standard stuff. But to progressives, this is genuinely offensive. NDP MLA Spencer Chandra Herbert sent a letter to the B.C. Liberal Party demanding that Throness be kicked out of caucus or fired from his job as opposition critic for the Ministry of Children and Family Development. 

The Vancouver Pride Society even took the dramatic step of threatening to ban the B.C. Liberal Party from marching in the Pride Parade over the ads, stating that the magazine has "published articles elevating anti-trans and pro-conversion therapy rhetoric targeting LGBQAI2S+ people."

"Despite being reassured by the B.C. Liberal leader that that was no longer going to happen, they continue to invest in this magazine," Michelle Fortin, co-chair of the Vancouver Pride Society, noted ominously. "We've basically said to the Liberals until you take action and stop investing in that kind of publication, and until you deal with MLA Throness, you will not be allowed into the parade."

Fortin even gave the B.C. Liberal Party a deadline: the deadline for parade registration for the virtual parade being held on August 2. Throness must be "dealt with" before then. Like the NDP, the Pride Society wants Throness either evicted or fired from his critic role. In short, they want a scalp. Throness is refusing to disavow Christian standards and will not disassociate himself from others who share those standards. Thus, he must be punished. "In 2020, a B.C. Liberal Party that still thinks it's OK to support transphobic or homophobic messaging[.] ... It's appalling," said Fortin.

Every political party will be forced to respond to such demands in the future. Organizations like the Pride Society are not demanding diversity or tolerance; they are demanding that politicians conform to their standards or else. Media folks like Paul Henderson of the Chilliwack Progress, a bigot who spends much of his time fulminating on his editorial page about the wickedness of those who disagree with him on LGBT issues and abortion (that would include Christians, Orthodox Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, and Buddhists, just for starters), ensure that these non-stories get the coverage they need. 

Thus, a Christian politician posting an ad in a Christian publication that frequently covers issues from a Christian perspective becomes a threat to civilized society in the minds of the progressive heresy-hunters.

Pathway to the Mark - Digital Identity, Health Records & Payments Merge Into One     

A biometric digital identity platform that "evolves just as you evolve" is set to be introduced in "low-income, remote communities" in West Africa thanks to a public-private partnership between the Bill Gates-backed GAVI vaccine alliance, Mastercard and the AI-powered "identity authentication" company, Trust Stamp.

The program, which was first launched in late 2018, will see Trust Stamp's digital identity platform integrated into the GAVI-Mastercard "Wellness Pass," a digital vaccination record and identity system that is also linked to Mastercard's click-to-play system that powered by its AI and machine learning technology called NuData. 

Mastercard, in addition to professing its commitment to promoting "centralized record keeping of childhood immunization" also describes itself as a leader toward a "World Beyond Cash," and its partnership with GAVI marks a novel approach towards linking a biometric digital identity system, vaccination records, and a payment system into a single cohesive platform. 

The effort, since its launch nearly two years ago, has been funded via $3.8 million in GAVI donor funds in addition to a matched donation of the same amount by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

In early June, GAVI reported that Mastercard's Wellness Pass program would be adapted in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Around a month later, Mastercard announced that Trust Stamp's biometric identity platform would be integrated into Wellness Pass as Trust Stamp's system is capable of providing biometric identity in areas of the world lacking internet access or cellular connectivity and also does not require knowledge of an individual's legal name or identity to function. 

The Wellness Program involving GAVI, Mastercard, and Trust Stamp will soon be launched in West Africa and will be coupled with a COVID-19 vaccination program once a vaccine becomes available.

The push to implement biometrics as part of national ID registration systems has been ongoing for many years on the continent and has become a highly politicized issue in several African countries. 

Masking ulterior motives

Trust Stamp's biometric identity system, largely funded by Mastercard's massive investment in the company in February, utilizes a technology it calls Evergreen Hash that creates an AI-generated "3D mask" based on a single photo of a person's face, palm or fingerprint. Once this "mask" is created, much of the original data is discarded and encryption keys are created in place of a person's name or other more traditional identifiers.

"Only a small percentage of the data that originally existed is in the hash," Trust Stamp CEO Gareth Genner has stated. "What you have is something safer for storing because it can't be used to directly identify you. No one would recognize you in this huge jumble of numbers." The result, according to Genner, is an "irreversible non-personally identifiable information" system that "protects privacy, reduces potential for misuse and allows effective inclusion when there is no other form of legal record."

Genner also explained in a recent press release that the unique "hash" is capable of "evolving" as a new hash with updated health information is created every time a child or individual gets a vaccine. Trust Stamp's AI algorithms can accurately determine if different hashes belong to the same individual, meaning that "the hash evolves over time just as you evolve," said Genner.

It is unclear how much the Wellness Pass initiative is motivated by public health concerns as opposed to free market considerations. Indeed, the GAVI alliance, largely funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates and Rockefeller Foundations, as well as allied governments and the vaccine industry, is principally concerned with improving "the health of markets for vaccines and other immunization products," rather than the health of individuals, according to its own website.

Similarly, Mastercard's GAVI partnership is directly linked to its "World Beyond Cash" effort, which mainly bolsters its business model that has long depended on a reduction in the use of physical cash.

Trust Stamp also shares this market-focused vision for its digital identity system as the company has stated that it is looking for new commercialization options for its Evergreen Hash technology, specifically with prison systems. 

Talks with private and public prison systems have revealed an interest in their utilization of Trust Stamp's technology to provide identification for individuals on parole "without making them pay for pricey ankle bracelets that monitor their every move," as Trust Stamp's platform would ostensibly provide that same function but in a "touchless" and less expensive manner.

Trust Stamp's interest in providing its technology to both COVID-19 response and to law enforcement is part of a growing trend where numerous companies providing digital solutions to COVID-19 also offer the same solutions to prison systems and law enforcement for the purposes of surveillance and "predictive policing."

For instance, contact tracing software originally introduced as part of the COVID-19 response has since been used by police departments across the U.S. to track protesters during the country's recent bouts of protests and civil unrest. Similarly, a controversial Israeli tech firm currently being used in Rhode Island offers AI-powered predictive analytic to identify likely future COVID-19 hotspots and individuals likely to contract COVID-19 in the future, while also offering governments the ability to predict future locations of and participants in riots and civil unrest.

What is perhaps most alarming about this new "Wellness Pass" initiative, is that it links these "dual use" digital solutions to cashless payment solutions that could soon become mandated as anything other than touchless, cashless, methods of payment have been treated as potential modes for contagion by GAVI-aligned groups like the World Health Organization, among others, since the pandemic was first declared earlier this year.

Renounce Christ or Lose Government Assistance, China's Low-Income Christians Are Told

Christian citizens in China who receive social welfare payments have been ordered to abandon their faith or risk losing government support, according to a new report.

The policy impacts low-income religious citizens who receive government assistance, according to Bitter Winter, a watchdog that monitors reports of persecution in China.

Multiple cities and towns across the country have implemented the policy.

In April, officials from several villages in Shanxi province were called together for a meeting and ordered by the government “to remove crosses, religious symbols and images from the homes of people of faith who receive social welfare payments” and replace them with portraits of former Chinese leader Mao Zedong (1893-1976) and current President Xi Jinping.

A Christian in one of the villages told Bitter Winter that officials tore down Christian imagery in his home and hung a picture of Zedong.

“Impoverished religious households can’t receive money from the state for nothing – they must obey the Communist Party for the money they receive,” the Christian told Bitter Winter.

A house church pastor said village officials visited his home in May and replaced a cross with a picture of Zedong.

“All impoverished households in the town were told to display Mao Zedong images,” the pastor said. “The government is trying to eliminate our belief and wants to become God instead of Jesus.”

In Jiangxi province, government officials withdrew a monthly disability allowance and a living subsidy from a man who is disabled and Christian.

“Officials told me that we would be treated as anti-Party elements if my husband and I continued attending worship services,” the man’s wife told Bitter Winter.

Sometimes, there’s little warning. 

A Christian elderly woman in her 80s lost her government assistance after she said “thank God” while receiving her subsidy in January. She lives in Jiangxi province.

“They expected me to praise the kindness of the Communist Party instead,” she said.

Government officials in Shangqiu city in the province of Henan cancelled the government assistance for an elderly woman in her 70s after they discovered a cross image on her door.

“They tore it down immediately,” the elderly Christian told Bitter Winter. “Afterward, both my minimum living allowance and poverty alleviation subsidy were canceled. I am being driven to a dead end. I have diabetes and need injections regularly.”

Said a neighbor, “This little money she received from the government was her bread and butter. But it has been canceled because of a cross image, causing great harm to this woman.”

Christian Father of Two Killed in Jharkhand State, India

HYDERABAD, India, July 3, 2020 (Morning Star News) – When Kande Munda heard a knock on his door one night last month, the Christian father of two knew it was likely the same thugs and their colleagues in his area of Jharkhand, India who had harassed him for nearly four years.

They were particularly upset that Munda had reported them to police for a 2018 assault on his mother-in-law. The assailants, followers of tribal Adivasi religion, had opposed her conversion to Christianity by labelling her Christian prayers as “witchcraft” and gang-raping her.

Munda and his family were already in bed after a hard day of work on the night of June 7 when they heard the knock on the door. Munda told his wife not to answer it.

“He was suspicious that they must have come for him,” his wife, Bindi Munda, told Morning Star News.

Three men forced the door open and entered, while four or five remained outside, she said. Darkness obscured their faces.

“One of them pointed a gun at my husband and told the other two men that they should first rape me and then kill my husband,” Munda said.

Their children, ages 1 and 3, were asleep. The armed assailants seized her husband by the neck as he knelt and pleaded with them not to kill him, she said.

“I have done nothing wrong – please don’t kill me,” he cried repeatedly, according to his wife, who picked up their children, holding one in each arm, and fled into the wilderness. She hid there briefly before running into the village screaming for someone to save her husband.

 “But by the time I had returned to our shanty with some neighbors, he was not there,” she said. “I went about half a mile on foot to a believer’s home to get their help to search for my husband."

That night Kande Munda’s youngest brother, returning to Bari village on a motorbike, found his corpse in a pool of blood under a tree by the side of the road to Latardih village. The mutilated body was barely recognizable.

“He suspected that the body was that of his brother,” the wife of the deceased told Morning Star News. “He rushed to our shanty looking for us, and as he could not find us there, he called on my husband’s phone. I picked up the phone, and he told me that there was a corpse lying by the road, and it looked like that of my husband."

Kande Munda, also known as Philip Munda, was 27.

It was the second killing of a Christian for his faith in India last month. On the night of June 4 in Odisha state, followers of tribal religion abducted 16-year-old Sambaru Madkami for his faith before stabbing and stoning him to death. In Uttar Pradesh state on May 28, villagers tried to kill pastor Dinesh Kumar in an ambush that left him unconscious.

MIXED MOTIVES

Munda and his family previously practiced their traditional, animistic religion as tribal Adivasis. After he put his faith in Christ in 2017, his wife soon converted, and when her mother came for an extended visit in 2018, she too received Christ, Bindi Munda said.

 After Adivasi villagers abducted her mother from their home, took her into the woods and gang-raped her, Kande Munda filed a police complaint, she said.

“The police investigated the matter and arrested some of the accused,” she said. “Since then, opposition against my husband and our Christian faith increased.”

Sanjay Sandil, a member of Siyon Church in the area, said the primary suspect remained at large. After police arrested some suspects, he said, one of Munda’s cousins continually harassed Munda with the help of some militant Maoist colleagues, pressuring him to withdraw the charges.

The cousin and Maoists issued an ultimatum about three months ago that Munda should drop the case or “face consequences,” Sandil said.

“Every time he would inform us about the harassment, we supported him as a church and stood by him,” Sandil told Morning Star News. “We always reached Bari village in the next couple of hours and ensured that the Maoist group did not lay hands on him or sister Bindi Munda.”

In May eight men surrounded their home, and Sandil and other Christians arrived to stand with the family, he said. Police also arrived and gave assurances that they would not let any of the accused go free, Sandil said.

The day of the attack (June 7), police had received word that the primary suspect was in Bari village and were searching for him, he said.

“They could not catch him, but in the night at around 8 p.m., the men unleashed the attack by forcefully entering his house,” Sandil said. “It is more likely that the same persons who gheraoed the house in May must have showed up at their shanty that night. Brother Philip Munda was brutally hacked to death with machetes. The marks can be seen clearly on the back of his body.”

NOBLE SOUL

On June 8, officers at the Saiko police station registered cases against the eight men under sections for kidnapping or abducting to murder (Section 364) and murder (Section 302) of the Indian Penal Code.

“The persons who abducted and murdered Kande Munda have absconded from the crime scene soon after they committed his murder,” Superintendent of Police Ashutosh Shekhar told Morning Star News. “The investigation and search for the accused are still underway. We have been able to list the names of suspects, and a few other names also had surfaced during the investigation. All the accused persons would be arrested very soon.”

Sandeep Oraon, Jharkhand legal aid coordinator for advocacy group Alliance Defending Freedom India, visited Munda’s family at their new location on June 24. He assured them of legal assistance in the matter and prayed with them.

Sandil recalled Munda as a noble soul – a selfless, skilled construction and field worker who would agree to work for half the normal wage for people who could not afford to pay more.

“He was providing for his family by working very hard,” Sandil said. “Now the small children do not have a father to provide and raise them.”

Bindi Munda has relocated with her children to another village, as the killers could come after her since she witnessed the abduction of her husband, he said.

“After Brother Philip Munda’s funeral service, the church members spent some time with sister Bindi, counselling her and telling her to remain strong in faith,” Sandil said. “She shared that her husband told her that he could be killed and asked her to bring up their children in a godly manner.”

 The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom on April 28 urged the U.S. State Department to add India as a “Country of Particular Concern” to its list of nations with poor records of protecting religious freedom.

India is ranked 10^th on Christian support organization Open Doors’ 2020 World Watch List of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian. The country was 31st in 2013, but its position has worsened since Narendra Modi of the Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in 2014.

From Drug Lord to Pastor: How a New York Man Found Freedom Behind Bars

Herman Mendoza had it all—money, success, mistresses, and a beautiful home in the Poconos. But the kingdom he had built came toppling down when he was arrested for selling drugs, forcing him to his knees where he eventually accepted Christ.

According to CBN News, Mendoza’s experience with drugs started young as a teenager with his brother. He continued experimenting for years until he lost his job in his 20s.

“I was married and living with my wife and I was laid off from a job that I was working at,” Mendoza told The PureFlix Podcast. “And so I was desperate for money.”

He partnered with his brother and the two sunk deep into the drug trade, largely selling cocaine. Soon, the money started to flow in and Mendoza felt on top of the world. He bounced around from party to party, traveling the Eastern Seaboard with his brother distributing drugs and collecting mistresses. Eventually, he had a home in the Poconos for his nuclear family and a string of apartments around the city for his mistresses.

“I thought, ‘Hey, this is an easy way to make money and get rich,’” he said.

But the high didn’t last long. Mendoza’s newfound success stopped when police discovered cocaine in the trunk of his car, marking his first arrest. He was stunned, terrified of what might happen to his wife and child while he was in prison.

He faced 25 years to life but struck a deal with prosecutors to be released early. Though the arrest shook him, his freedom didn’t change his behavior.

“I was a fool…and I went right back into what they call in the streets, ‘the game,’” he said.

It wasn’t until his second arrest after being released that changed the drug lord. As his legal struggles mounted, God was at work with his brother. He had become a Christian behind bars and encouraged Mendoza to do the same. And in time, he did.

“I gave my life to the Lord ... there was no other recourse," Mendoza said. "I said, I need to try God, I've tried everything else. ... I had millions of dollars, but it was never satisfying."

In his book, Shifting Shadows, he recalled the experience of trusting Christ as liberating.

“Suddenly, it didn’t matter anymore that I was behind bars; I was freer here than I had ever been,” he said.

After being released again, Mendoza chose a new path. As an international speaker, he travels the world to declare God’s love and serves as an associate pastor at Promise Ministries in New York.

“I was a walking dead man, and now I’m alive in Christ.”

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The Supreme Court Expands the Scope of Religious Free Exercise

(RNS) — In a closely watched case handed down Tuesday (June 30), the Supreme Court took another step in expanding the scope of religious free exercise in America. It looks as if it won’t be the last.

The case, Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, concerned a state program that provided scholarships for use in private schools. Because Montana’s Constitution has since statehood barred direct or indirect public subsidies of religious schools, several parents were denied the opportunity to use the scholarships to send their children to a Christian school.

The parents sued, and in due course the Montana Supreme Court threw out the entire program for failing to indicate that the scholarships could not be used in religious schools. In a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court found that Montana’s no-aid constitutional provision violated the First Amendment’s free exercise clause.

With the four liberals dissenting, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the court’s conservative majority. His argument turns on sharply differentiating “religious status” from “religious use,” the idea being that religious schools as a class cannot be denied public benefits but that specific kinds of religious instruction can be.

Two prior cases are critical to this distinction. In Locke v. Davey (2004), the court decided that a student in the state of Washington could not use a state scholarship to pursue a devotional theology degree. In Trinity Lutheran v. Comer (2017), the court decided that a Missouri church could apply for a state grant to resurface its outdoor playground. Roberts’ claim was that Espinoza is equivalent to Trinity Lutheran, not Locke.

The liberal justices weren’t buying and neither (despite formally joining Roberts’ opinion) was conservative Neil Gorsuch. “Not only is the record replete with discussion of activities, uses, and conduct, any jurisprudence grounded on a status-use distinction seems destined to yield more questions than answers,” wrote Gorsuch in a concurrence. “Does Montana seek to prevent religious parents and schools from participating in a public benefits program (status)? Or does the State aim to bar public benefits from being employed to support religious education (use)?”

In dissent, Stephen Breyer pointed out that in its 2012 Hosanna-Tabor decision the court for the first time recognized a ministerial exception to employment discrimination law precisely because “some teachers at religious schools see their work as a form of ministry.” If teaching is a ministry, how can having the state underwrite education in a religious school not constitute paying for religious instruction a la Locke? And if it is paying for religious instruction, wouldn’t that run afoul of the First Amendment’s establishment clause?

For Clarence Thomas, the original sin in the court’s modern religion jurisprudence came when the establishment clause — originally designed to let the states have their own religious regimes — was “incorporated” (federalized) in 1947. “Properly understood, the Establishment Clause does not prohibit States from favoring religion,” Thomas wrote in a concurrence of his own.

According to him, under a proper interpretation of the clause, “robust and lively debate about the role of religion in government is permitted, even encouraged, at the state and local level.” The result of such debate could be, of course, that some states (and localities?) might decide to establish religion in any number of ways — such as by permitting state funding of theological education or by allowing teacher-led prayer in the public schools.

Thomas’ desire that the establishment clause be “dis-incorporated” has long been seen as an eccentricity on the court. Gorsuch just made it significantly less eccentric by signing on to Thomas’ concurrence. Put that together with Roberts’ willingness to read the precedents as he has and it’s a solid bet that the court will be continuing to expand the scope of free exercise for some time to come.

New Law in Iran Threatens More Arrests of Christians, Rights Advocates Say

June 30, 2020 (Morning Star News) – Legislation passed by parliament in Iran could make it easier to arrest and imprison Christians and other religious minorities, rights advocates said.

Under amendments to articles 499 and 500 of the Islamic Penal Code, those found guilty of “deviant psychological manipulation” or “propaganda contrary to Islam,” whether in the “real or virtual sphere,” could be labeled as “sects,” according to advocacy group Article 18.

The law enables the regime to ban any group as a sect and may lead to punishment that could be escalated to include the death penalty, said Hamid Garagozloo, U.S. representative of The International Organization to Preserve Human Rights (IOPHR), while moderating a recent webinar panel discussion with representatives of religious minorities who could be affected by the law.

Expanding the margin for Iranian authorities to justify discriminatory actions against Christian converts, the law would make it more difficult for lawyers to defend them and other religious minorities, according to a Middle East expert at advocacy group Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW).

While the amendment has been in the pipeline for two years, it was recently approved by parliament in the middle of May, according to a researcher at advocacy group Middle East Concern (MEC).

“The last couple of weeks, religious minorities have started to take notice and are thinking about what to do and how to raise awareness,” he said. “It is quite worrying, because the amendments made, rather than protecting religious freedom at all, try to define exactly who is following fundamental theology or not.”

Before the law is implemented, it must be approved by the Guardian Council in Iran, he said, adding that it is unclear when that decision could be made.

The government has been arresting Christian converts and giving them sentences of up to 15 years under vague terms such as, “acting against national security,” said Mansour Borji, advocacy director of Article 18 in the webinar hosted by IOPHR. In the past decade, these charges have been used to replace more obvious religious charges such as apostasy, he said. This obscuring of religious freedom violations by shying away from terms like "apostasy" was largely due to international pressure, according to Article 18.

Advocates believe this effort to extend greater control could be the regime’s reaction to losing credibility among its people amid economic difficulties and poor handling of the novel coronavirus pandemic. As crises in the country mount, they said, religious minorities and Western Christianity may become an easy scapegoat.

“Many Christian groups and church leaders are worried because this would add another layer to their ongoing suffering at the hands of the Islamic regime,” said the expert at CSW.

Other religious minorities that would be affected by the law include Sunni and Sufi Muslims and the Baha’i.

Aside from Shia Islam and Judaism, Christianity is one of the three recognized religions in Iran. Protections, however, apply only to a small number of approved Christian groups, namely ethnically Christian Assyrians and Armenians.

All but a handful of churches who offered their services in the national language of Farsi have been forced to close since the Islamic revolution in the 1970s, Borji said in the webinar. The remaining churches are monitored to make sure that no Muslim-born Iranians attend them. Converts are forced to practice their faith in secret, underground churches and are routinely harassed and arrested, he said.

RECENT ARRESTS

Most recently, four Iranian Christian converts accused of endangering state security and promoting Zionism obeyed a summons issued at the end of May and presented themselves to Evin Prison to begin serving sentences of five years each, according to MEC.

Hossein Kadivar, Khalil Dehghanpour, Kamal Naamanian and Mohammed Vafadar had been released on bail of about $13,000 each last July. All but Vafadar are married with children.

The four were among nine Christian converts belonging to the Church of Iran who were arrested at the beginning of 2019 over a four-week period. In October 2019, all nine were convicted of “acting against national security” and given five-year sentences, which were held on appeal in February.

“It is very sad, of course, for those people involved,” the MEC representative said. “It’s easy to say five years, but for the people who actually experience this, it’s so difficult.”

The remaining five men out of nine have been in Evin Prison, unable to post bail following a disagreement with a judge over their choice of a defense lawyer.

About a year-and-a-half ago, Iran set which lawyers would be able to defend political prisoners. The five were unwilling to let go of the lawyer they chose, who was not on the list. This angered the judge and caused him to set the exorbitant bail, according to the researcher at MEC.

They were immediately transferred to Evin Prison after not being able to meet the bail amount of $130,000 each, according to MEC.

REDUCTION IN SENTENCES

After an appeal, three other Christian converts who had been handed sentences of 10-years were given a reduction of their sentences.

Sentences against Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani and Zaman (Saheb) Fadaie were reduced to six years, and for Mohammadreza (Yuhan) Omidi, to two years, according to MEC.

Omidi was expected to be eligible for release in July. The decision regarding a fourth church member who was arrested and convicted at the same time, Yasser Mossaybezadeh, was not yet known.

The men will appeal again, said the expert at CSW.

The men and their families were hoping that the sentences would be completely overturned, said the expert at MEC, as they should never have been in prison in the first place.

“On the one hand it’s great that it’s been reduced, but on the other hand, they were expecting more,” he said.

HEARING DELAYED

An appeal hearing to review the cases of Pastor Victor Bet Tamraz, his wife Shamiram Issavi Khabizeh and three Christian converts was canceled with no reason given, according to MEC.

Advocates are not sure why the appeal has been delayed but it could be because the case of Tamraz has become publicized, said the researcher at MEC. There are many inconsistencies and mistakes in handling the case, he said, which could be another reason for the delay. Continually delayed hearings are also often used as a form of harassment, he added.

NEW ARRESTS

Four other Christians belonging to the Church of Iran denomination were accused of spreading “Zionist Evangelical Christianity” and “home church meetings,” according to a CSW press statement.

They received a summons from the third branch of the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office of Tehran on June 19, according to the release.

Judges Hassan Babaie and Zenjani signed a verdict based on Article 498 of the Islamic Penal Code, which criminalizes the establishment of groups that aim to “overthrow the system,” according to CSW.

Iran was ranked ninth on Christian support organization Open Doors’ 2020 World Watch List of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian.

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Globalists Reveal That the 'Great Economic Reset' Is Coming In 2021

For those not familiar with the phrase "global economic reset", it is one that has been used ever increasingly by elitists in the central banking world for several years. I first heard it referenced by Christine Lagarde, the head of the IMF at the time, in 2014. The reset is often mentioned in the same breath as ideas like "the New Multilateralism" or "the Multipolar World Order" or "the New World Order". All of these phrases mean essentially the same thing.

The reset is promoted as a solution to the ongoing economic crisis which was triggered in 2008. This same financial crash is still with us today; but now, after a decade of central bank money printing and debt creation, the bubble is even bigger than it was before.  As always, the central bank "cure" is far worse than the disease, and the renewed crash we face today is far more deadly than what would have happened in 2008 if we had simply taken our medicine and refused to prop up weak parts of the economy artificially.

Many alternative economists often wrongly attribute the Fed's habit of making things worse to "hubris" or "ignorance". They think the Fed actually wants to save the financial system or "protect the golden goose", but this is not reality.  The truth is, the Fed is not a bumbling maintenance man, the Fed is a saboteur, a suicide bomber that is willing to destroy even itself as an institution in order to explode the US economy and clear the path for a new globally centralized one world system. Hence, the "Global Reset".

In 2015 in my article 'The Global Economic Reset Has Begun', I stated:

The global reset is not a "response" to the process of collapse we are trapped in today. No, the global reset as implemented by central banks and the BIS/IMF is the cause of the collapse. The collapse is a tool, a flamethrower burning a great hole in the forest to make way for the foundations of the globalist Ziggurat to be built....economic disaster serves the interests of elitists. Now in 2020 we see the globalist plan coming to fruition, with the elites revealing what appears to be their intent to launch their reset in 2021. The World Economic Forum officially announced the Great Reset initiative as part of their Covid Action Platform last week, and a summit is scheduled in January 2021 to discuss their plans more openly with the world and the mainstream media.

The WEF also posted a rather bizarre video on the Reset, which consists of a series of images of the world falling apart (and images of factories releasing harmless carbon emission into the air which I suppose is meant to scare us with notions of global warming). The destruction is then "reset" at the push of a button, with everything reversing back to a pristine human-less world of nature and the words "Join Us".

The reset, according to discussions by the IMF, is basically the next stage in the formation of a one-world economic system and potential global government. This seems to fall in line with the solutions offered during the Event 201 pandemic simulation; a simulation of a coronavirus pandemic that was held by the Bill And Melinda Gates Foundation and the World Economic Forum only two months before the REAL THING happened at the beginning of 2020. 

Event 201 suggested that one of the top solutions to a pandemic would be the institution of a centralized global economic body that could handle the financial response to the coronavirus. Is it not convenient that the events of the real coronavirus pandemic fall exactly in line with the Event 201 simulation, as well as directly in line with the global reset plans of the IMF and the World Economic Forum? As they say, let no crisis go to waste, or, as is the motto of the globalists "Order Out Of Chaos".

With civil unrest about to become a way of life for many parts of the world including the US, and the pandemic set for a resurgence of infections after the "reopening", creating a rationale for a second wave of lockdowns probably in July, the economy as we know it is being destroyed. The last vestiges of the system, hanging by a thin thread after the crash of 2008, are now being cut.

The goal is rather obvious - terrify the population with poverty, internal conflicts and a broken supply chain until they lobby the establishment for help.  Then, offer the "solution" of medical tyranny, immunity passports, martial law, a global economic system based on a cashless digital society in which privacy in trade is erased, and then slowly but surely form a faceless "multilateral" global government which answers to no one and does whatever it pleases.

I remember back in 2014 when Christine Lagarde first began talking about the reset. That same year she also made a very strange speech to the National Press Club in which she started rambling gleefully about numerology and the "magic number 7".  Many within the club laughed, as there was apparently an inside joke that the rest of us were not privy to. Well, I would point out that the World Economic Forum meeting on the global reset in 2021 will be held exactly 7 years after Lagarde gave that speech. Just another interesting coincidence I suppose...

The new world order, the global reset, is a long running scheme to centralize power, but in a way that is meant to be sustained for centuries to come. The elites know that it is not enough to achieve global governance by force alone; such an attempt would only lead to resistance and eternal rebellion. 

No, what the elites want is for the public to ASK, even beg for global governance. If the public is tricked into demanding it as a way to save them from the horrors of global chaos, then they are far less likely to rebel against it later. Problem - reaction - solution. The pandemic is not going away anytime soon. Everyone should expect that state governments and the federal government will call for renewed lockdowns. With these new lockdowns, the US economy in particular will be finished. With 40 million people losing their jobs during the last lockdowns (46 million as of today - Ed.), many states only partially reopened, and only 13% to 18% of small businesses receiving bailout loans to survive, the next two months are going to be a devastating wake-up call.

The real solution will be for people to form more self-reliant communities free of the mainstream economy. The real solution should be decentralization and independence, not centralization and slavery. The globalists will seek to interfere with any effort to break from the program.  That said, they can do very little if millions of people enact localization efforts at the same time. If people aren't reliant on the system, then they cannot be controlled by the system.

The real test will come with the final collapse of the existing economy. When stagflation spikes even harder than it is right now and prices of necessities double or triple yet again, and joblessness skyrockets even further, how many people will clamor for the globalist solution and how many will build their own systems?  How many will be bowing in submission and how many will be ready to fight back. It is a question I still don't have an answer to even after 14 years of analysis on the issue.

Christian Missionary Opens Up about Life in China amid the Coronavirus Pandemic

As China recovers from COVID-19, the lingering effects of the virus on the country and believers in China can still be felt. Recently, Christian Headlines was granted an exclusive interview with an underground missionary and resident of China to help explain the effects of the virus on the country and people of faith. Because China is a closed country to the gospel, we have withheld the missionary’s identity and the name of their missions organization out of an abundance of safety. What has life been like in China post-COVID-19?

China has been gradually returning to normal life with restrictions lifting across the country, but citizens are still very wary of a potential second wave of coronavirus cases, particularly in the original epicenter, Wuhan. As the country opens for business again, China has had to be much more vigilant about international visitors and their own nationals returning home with the virus.

To ensure there isn’t a second outbreak at the epicenter, China is now testing all 11 million residents of Wuhan. While a prudent course of action, long lines of residents queuing to be tested show little regard for physical distancing.

Travel restrictions inside China are gradually lifted. There are still partial lockdowns in some areas, counties and villages, but the situation varies from place to place. In some places, more strict restrictions are still enforced, e.g. outsiders are not allowed to enter residential buildings, isolation of 14 days at home is required when a citizen comes back to their hometown from another place.

Local authorities in some cities have allowed citizens and businesses to return to normal life in order to avoid an economic plunge.

When did you realize that COVID-19 was serious?

On 31 December 2019, the Hygiene and Health Committee of Wuhan City publicly announced 27 cases of an unusual type of pneumonia. In early-January, Chinese media, inside China and overseas, extensively reported the potential for an epidemic. In mid-January, cases in other countries like Thailand, Japan and South Korea were reported. By January 20, hospitals in Wuhan were already overwhelmed by hundreds of patients each day, each showing symptoms of the new virus.

On January 20^th, Professor Nanshan Zhong (a pulmonologist from southern China and the face of China’s fight against the virus) confirmed in the media that the virus could be spread from human to human and was highly contagious.

Wuhan city went into lockdown on Jan 23^rd.

What would most Americans be surprised to learn about life in China?

The ‘Health Barcode.’ This is a QR code issued by health centers to individuals who have tested negative for coronavirus. The code is downloaded to the person’s mobile phone and scanning the code gives them access to public places and facilities such as public transport, office buildings, shopping centers, etc. The barcode app tracks the person’s movement which facilitates faster identification of virus outbreak clusters.

Some Chinese people live in modern apartment buildings within residential zones that are managed and monitored by a governing office. Under COVID-19, these offices issue families with a residence card that restricts the number of times and the areas in which each family can shop for food each week.

What is the spiritual temperature like in China?

Christians who are able to connect online are doing so much more regularly than before. It has been the normal life of Chinese Christians to stay connected with each other spiritually on Chinese social media, and even listen or watch sermons and attend Biblical training online. While many churches have the capacity and motivation to conduct online services and fellowship, some small churches choose to stay low profile. They choose to connect believers one-on-one or in small groups on social media and meet with a few fellow believers in public areas when the situation permits.

Under lockdowns, believers join online services, listen or watch online sermons, pray and use the word of God to encourage one another online, more than usual. The spiritual hunger and growth are tangible.

Some local churches join together to set up praying platforms. They encourage believers to pray more fervently for their local communities, cities, and government. One pastor from Wuhan told us that the 15+ cell groups in his church used to meet once a week, but during the pandemic, they were all meeting daily online! The pastors in his church are preaching online every day too. They introduced a two-hour prayer meeting each week, and now offer a range of online bible classes. In fact, all church meetings in this Wuhan church are being held more frequently now. The pastor said they feel closer than ever before!

Besides just preaching from the bible, churches have realized the pastoral needs of brothers and sisters in their churches in a way that may have gone unnoticed if there wasn’t a pandemic.

More and more churches, including those at the virus epicenter, have risen to the challenge to serve their communities. They have reached out to provide food, face masks, protective clothing and friendship and comfort to those directly affected by COVID-19, as well as to poor and isolated residents who have no other support networks.

What is family life like in China?

As in other countries, families have had to deal with educating their children at home, dealing with loss of income and isolation, and the inevitable relational challenges that arise from whole families being restricted to very small apartments with no gardens to escape to!

Parents who in modern China often work long hours have had to stay home, and children who get up very early for long school days followed by excessive amounts of homework have enjoyed some reprieve. It remains to be seen whether family relationships have improved or suffered during the lockdowns, but we hope that families have grown closer and learned to love each other better during this ‘enforced’ time of bonding.

What is church life like in China?

Churches around the country have mostly stopped physical services, but many have started to use online platforms to connect, pray and study the bible together. As sad as this pandemic is, church life has been given a boost as believers congregate online to care for each other and serve their communities.

Once restrictions began to lift, Christians began to meet in small groups of 4 or 5 people to enjoy each other’s company again, pray, sing and help each other.

So far, no church facilities have re-opened.

How can we be praying for you?

Please pray that Christians across China continue to reach out to their neighbors and communities with the love of Jesus. We shouldn’t have to wait until a pandemic erupts to do this! We have so much to offer but we so often just keep it to ourselves.

Please pray that our government makes wise decisions about the ongoing challenges of this virus, and that rather than persecuting the church, they would see us as a positive force of love and support.

Can you also pray that this new hunger to connect with other believers and grow closer to God on a daily basis would gather momentum? The New Testament church used to meet together in their homes all the time – we need this so much.

10 Christians, Including a 3-Year-Old Girl, Killed by Extremists in Nigeria

Nigerian Christians are facing continual persecution from religious extremists in a series of coordinated attacks.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) reported that 10 people were murdered in a brutal attack at the hands of Fulani militants on June 3, according to CBN News.

The assault was carried out at around 5:00 am in the Tudun Agwalla community in Kajuru, Kaduna state in northwest Nigeria.

One of the ten victims was a three-year-old girl named Elizabeth Samaila who was struck multiple times in the head by a machete. The young girl was taken to a hospital where she died the next day.

The other nine victims were killed after the Fulani militants hacked them to death using machetes. Six of the victims have been identified as Richard Yusuf, Kefas Yusuf, Fidelis Wada, Kachia, Genesis Soja, and Rahab Soja who were all buried in a mass grave.

Rita Friday, 8, also suffered an injury to the head during the attack.

Attacks on Christians have persisted despite COVID-19 restrictions that began in March.

“Southern Kaduna is steadily being transformed into killing fields, either due to a gross failure of governance, or official indifference and acquiescence,” CSW's Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas said.

“International pressure must now be brought to bear on both the state and federal authorities to ensure protection for these vulnerable communities, and that effective action is taken to disarm all armed non-state actors, and bring the perpetrators of these horrific atrocities to justice,” Thomas added.

In a separate incident, a Nigerian pastor and his wife were shot dead by Islamic militia on June 1 in the town of Mararrba in Donga LGA, Taraba State. They are survived by eight children between the ages of one and 19.

As Christian Headlines previously reported, 2 Republican senators called for President Trump to send a special envoy to aid Nigerian Christians who were being persecuted.

Both Senators noted in the letter to the President that 40,000 Nigerians were killed by Boko Haram, an Islamic terrorist organization.

It was also reported that Boko Haram killed more than 600 Nigerian Christians in the first five months of 2020.

Open Doors' 2020 World Watch List ranks Nigeria as the 12^th most difficult country for Christian’s to live because of persecution.

Rumors Of Wars: China, India, North Korea, South Korea, Israel And Turkey

As if we didn't have enough already going on in 2020, now we are facing the possibility that several regional wars may erupt.  China and India had both been pouring troops into a disputed border region, and now there has been an incident where they were actually killing each other. On the Korean peninsula, North Korea just blew up "a joint liaison office" that it had used for talks with the South Korean government. And in the Middle East, Turkey is warning of grave consequences if Israel goes ahead with a plan to annex portions of Judea and Samaria.  

If a major regional war erupts at even one of these flashpoints, it will be another devastating blow for a global economy that is already imploding, and there is a very strong probability that the U.S. and other major western powers could be drawn into the conflict.

Right now, most Americans are focused on our internal problems, and so they are paying very little attention to the growing crisis on the border between China and India.

Both nations had sent substantial contingents of troops to an area of the border that has long been disputed, and a meeting that was supposed to defuse tensions actually resulted in soldiers killing one another...

Chinese state media described the incident Monday night in the Galwan River valley where both countries have deployed troops in recent weeks as "the most serious clash between Chinese and Indian soldiers so far," confirming casualties but offering no further details about them. Indian government sources speaking on the condition of anonymity told The Times of India that 20 Indian army personnel had died in the fighting.

American intelligence believes 35 Chinese troops died, including one senior officer, a source familiar with that assessment tells U.S. News. The incident took place during a meeting in the mountainous region between the two sides - both of which had agreed to disarm - to determine how the two militaries would safely withdraw their presences from the region. This is the very first time in decades that Chinese and Indian troops have killed each other, and apparently very little shooting was involved...

The meeting grew tense and resulted in a physical confrontation between the troops. According to the assessment, all of the casualties were from the use of batons and knives and from falls from the steep topography, the source says.

That sounds like a scene from an overly gory Hollywood war movie, but reportedly this actually happened.

Hopefully the leaders of the two nations will be able to cool tensions for a while, but the Chinese have a very long history of very bitter border disputes with their neighbors, and without a doubt China will continue to make attempts to exercise sovereignty over this area.

Meanwhile, tensions on the Korean peninsula have risen to a level that we haven't seen in many, many years.  On Tuesday, North Korea actually blew up a building that had been used for negotiations with South Korea...

North Korea has blown up a joint liaison office used for talks between itself and South Korea, the latest sign that ties between the two longtime adversaries are rapidly deteriorating. North Korean state media reported that the four-story building, which is located in the town of Kaesong just north of the demilitarized zone that divides the two Koreas, was "completely destroyed by a "terrific explosion" at 2:50 p.m. local time.

That is certainly one way to make a statement. And this comes just days after Kim Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, had issued a very ominous warning...

In a cryptic statement late Saturday, Kim Yo Jong vowed her country would "soon take a next action" against South Korea -- a move she suggested would be carried out by the country's military. "By exercising my power authorized by the Supreme Leader, our Party and the state, I gave an instruction to the arms of the department in charge of the affairs with enemy to decisively carry out the next action," Kim said in the state-run Korean Central News Agency.

All of a sudden, North Korea's approach to relations with South Korea has dramatically shifted, and that shift has coincided with Kim Yo Jong taking a much more prominent role in national affairs.

I believe that there is much more going on in North Korea than we are being told, and Kim Yo Jong appears to favor a much more militant approach than what we have become accustomed to in recent years.

Over in the Middle East, the Times of Israel is reporting that the IDF is gearing up for a "state of war" as Israel prepares to annex portions of Judea and Samaria...

Just over two weeks before a possible Israeli annexation of some as-yet unspecified portion of the West Bank, the Israel Defense Forces is preparing for a wide range of scenarios for potential regional fallout -- up to and including a large-scale wave of terror attacks -- while still not being told exactly what the government has in mind.

The military is gearing up for possible massive unrest, Channel 12 reported Sunday evening, including what it is calling a potential "state of war" characterized by a Second Intifada-style onslaught of suicide bombing attacks.

This week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu once again made it clear that he does not intend to alter his plans, and that means that the process of annexation could start as soon as the beginning of July.

A few weeks ago, I wrote an entire article about how this could potentially spark a major war in the region, and Arab leaders continue to make it clear that there will be "consequences" if Israel goes through with this...

Israel's plan to extend its sovereignty to the Jordan Valley, and parts of Judea and Samaria, will "destroy all hopes" for lasting peace in the Middle East, Turkey's top diplomat said on Wednesday.

"If the occupying power [Israel] crosses the red line, we [Muslim countries] must show that this will have consequences," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said during a special meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Executive Committee, according to Turkey's Anadolu Agency.

We shall see what happens.

I think that Netanyahu is convinced that Donald Trump is probably going to lose in November, and so that means that he probably believes that he only has a window of a few months in which he could annex portions of Judea and Samaria with U.S. support.

It appears that Netanyahu is absolutely determined to move forward, and it also appears that Israel's Arab neighbors are prepared to respond very forcefully.

In just a few weeks, missiles could start flying back and forth, and the entire Middle East could erupt in flames.

This is such a critical time, and let us pray for peace.

But without a doubt we are living during a time of "wars and rumors of wars", and it certainly isn't going to take much to unleash a major conflict.

Supreme Court Cannot 'Overturn the Word of God,' Franklin Graham Says of LGBT Case

Evangelist Franklin Graham says the U.S. Supreme Court exceeded its authority and may have infringed on religious liberty with its decision Monday expanding the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to include sexual orientation and gender identity.

The high court, in a 6-3 decision, ruled employers cannot fire someone merely for being gay or transgender under federal law. 

In comments on social media, Graham said he’s concerned how the decision will impact Christian ministries. 

“As Justice Alito has pointed out, the majority went too far – he called it a ‘brazen abuse of our authority.’ The Supreme Court exists to interpret the law, not to make new laws – making laws is the job of our Representatives in Congress, elected by the people,’ Graham wrote. “I believe this decision erodes religious freedoms across this country. 

“People of sincere faith who stand on God’s Word as their foundation for life should never be forced by the government to compromise their religious beliefs. Christian organizations should never be forced to hire people who do not align with their biblical beliefs and should not be prevented from terminating a person whose lifestyle and beliefs undermine the ministry’s purpose and goals.”

Justice Neil Gorsuch, writing for the majority, acknowledged the justices were “deeply concerned with preserving the promise of the free exercise of religion enshrined in our Constitution” and that other cases may arise with “free exercise arguments that merit careful consideration.” 

“But how these doctrines protecting religious liberty interact with Title VII are questions for future cases,” Gorsuch wrote.

Religious liberty organizations are hopeful the court eventually will carve out religious exemptions. 

“As a Bible-believing follower of Jesus Christ, my rights should be protected,” Graham said. “Even if my sincerely held religious beliefs might be the minority, I still have a right to hold them. The same holds true for a Christian organization. These are the freedoms our nation was founded on.

“The Supreme Court does not override and will never overturn the Word of God,” Graham added. “One day we will all have to stand before God, the Righteous Judge, whose decisions are not based on politics or the whims of culture. His laws are true and are the same yesterday, today, and forever.”

Hopes Wilt for Teaching Christianity in Schools in Sudan

JUBA, South Sudan, June 18, 2020 (Morning Star News) – Hopes that the transitional government in Sudan would bring back Christianity as a school subject alongside Islam wilted when officials omitted it from an academic schedule released last week, sources said.

Doubly disappointed when an expected TV broadcast of school lessons on Christianity was omitted from the government-owned Television Station Khartoum International Channel this week, Christian parents suspected Islamist elements within the transitional government were influencing Khartoum State Ministry of Education planning.

The only Christian woman appointed to the council that oversees transition to civilian government in Sudan, Raja Nicola Eissa Abdel-Masih, told a group of Sudanese church leaders in an online meeting on Tuesday (June 16) that council members were working to resolve the issue.

“I have been in communication with the undersecretary in the Ministry of Education in regards to the removal of Christian Religion from the time-table of the subjects for the Basic School Certificate for the year 2020,” Abdel-Masih told the church leaders.

A Coptic Christian who long served as a judge in Sudan’s Ministry of Justice, Abdel-Masih was one of six civilians appointed to the 11-member Sovereignty Council last August. Christians who have suffered under the regime of Omar al-Bashir, deposed in April 2019, have hoped that she and others in the new government can counter an entrenched Islamist mindset.

'ISLAMIZATION'

The Rev. Yahia Abdelrahim Nalu of the Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church (SPEC) said the larger issue is that Christian students obliged to study Islamic Religion as a school subject are often forced to convert to Islam.

“Unfortunately, this is what is happening – most Christian students sit for Islamic Religion for the sake of obtaining the certificate, but they end up victims of Islamization,” Nalu told Morning Star News.

The situation is worse in remote areas where there are no churches or Christian schools to teach Christianity and students are forced to take Islamic Religion, he said.

Pastor Sami Yousif Rahal of the SPEC, a teacher in the eastern Sudan state of Al-Qadarif, said at Tuesday’s online conference of Christian leaders that more than 650 Christian students in the state were forced to study Islamic Religion.

“As a result, most of these students were forced to be converted to Islam as part of Islamization over the past years,” Rahal told the church leaders.

Effectively prohibiting the teaching of Christianity at government schools by barring the government from hiring Christian teachers, Bashir had left instruction on Christianity to churches and Christian schools.

School operation on Sundays in Sudan also has been contested. In July 2017, the Bashir government ordered all Christian schools in the capital to regard Sunday as a work day, but a Transitional Military Council on April 22, 2019 issued an order to restore Sunday as an official weekend recess day for Christian schools throughout the country.

Disregarding Sunday as a worship day for Christians, Sudan even before Bashir had scheduled exams for both primary and secondary schools on Sundays. In March Sudanese Minister of Education Mohamed Al-Amin Al-Toam said the government would consider excluding Christian holidays and Sundays in scheduling national exams

Following the secession of South Sudan in 2011, Bashir had vowed to adopt a stricter version of sharia (Islamic law) and recognize only Islamic culture and the Arabic language. Church leaders said Sudanese authorities demolished or confiscated churches and limited Christian literature on the pretext that most Christians have left the country following South Sudan’s secession.

In April 2013 the then-Sudanese Minister of Guidance and Endowments announced that no new licenses would be granted for building new churches in Sudan, citing a decrease in the South Sudanese population. Sudan since 2012 had expelled foreign Christians and bulldozed church buildings. Besides raiding Christian bookstores and arresting Christians, authorities threatened to kill South Sudanese Christians who did not leave or cooperate with them in their effort to find other Christians.

After Bashir was deposed, military leaders initially formed a military council to rule the country, but further demonstrations led them to accept a transitional government of civilians and military figures, with a predominantly civilian government to be democratically elected in three years. Christians were expected to have greater voice under the new administration.

The new government that was sworn in on Sept. 8, 2019 led by Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, an economist, is tasked with governing during a transition period of 39 months. It faces the challenges of rooting out longstanding corruption and an Islamist “deep state” rooted in Bashir’s 30 years of power.

In light of advances in religious freedom since Bashir was ousted in April, the U.S. State Department announced on Dec. 20 that Sudan had been removed from the list of Countries of Particular Concern (CPC) that engage in or tolerate “systematic, ongoing and egregious violations of religious freedom” and was upgraded to a watch list.

Sudan had been designated a CPC by the U.S. State Department since 1999.

Sudan ranked 7^th on Christian support organization Open Doors’ 2020 World Watch List of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian.

World Health Organization Promotes Cashless Society Over Virus Fears      

Following reports that Beijing had "quarantined" dirty cash, the WHO warned on Monday that the virus could survive on banknotes, potentially spreading Covid-19 within communities, and across the world. To reduce the risk of being infected by money, the NGO advised citizens in countries struggling with outbreaks to favor digital payments when possible, the Daily Telegraph reported.

That the WHO is telling the public to avoid cash is hardly a surprise: research has found that coronaviruses have been found to live on surfaces for as long as 9 days. During the statement, a WHO spokesman referenced a Bank of England study claiming that banknotes "can carry bacteria or viruses" and urged people to wash their hands. Other studies have shown that 90% of US $1 bills had bacteria present, and one Swiss study found that viruses had survive on the faces of Swiss francs for days.

The WHO's warnings follow the People's Bank of China last month started disinfecting currency deposited at Chinese banks using ultraviolet light, before quarantining the bills for a week before releasing them back into circulation.

Brits, and their fellow Europeans, should be increasingly careful as the virus spreads across Europe, the WHO warned, via the Telegraph: "We know that money changes hands frequently and can pick up all sorts of bacteria and viruses," a spokesman told the Telegraph.

"We would advise people to wash their hands after handling banknotes, and avoid touching their face. When possible, it would also be advisable to use contactless payments to reduce the risk of transmission."

Of course, that one of the world's major NGOs is seizing the opportunity to proclaim the virtues of 'paperless' money is hardly a surprise: the globalist push toward a 'cashless society' has been underway for years now, having had its biggest successes in Scandinavia. Sweden has gone virtually "cashless", and in such a short time, they've already confronted the many drawbacks of relying exclusively on digital money.

As we noted previously, here is what happens next:

...the virus spreads throughout the US and Europe and governments respond the same way China's government has; martial law and full blown concentration camp culture. This would lead to civil war in the US because we are armed and many people will shoot anyone trying to put us into quarantine camps. Europe is mostly screwed.

The establishment then suggests that paper money be removed from the system because it is a viral spreader. China is already pushing this solution now.

Magically, we find ourselves in a cashless society in a matter of a year or two; which is what the globalists have been demanding for years. Everything goes digital, and thus even local economies become completely centralized as private trade dies.

A viral outbreak is a significant danger to us all, but an even greater threat is the supposed cure. Trading our economic and social freedom in the name of stopping the coronavirus?  No matter how deadly the bug, it's just not worth it.

Bible Is 'More Than a Symbol' or 'Prop,' American Bible Society Says in Bible Giveaway

The American Bible Society on Tuesday launched a free Bible giveaway and said God’s Word was “more than a symbol” or a “prop in a noisy news cycle,” one day after President Trump walked to St. John's Episcopal Church and held up a Bible.

The article on the ministry’s website doesn’t mention Trump or even St. John’s, but it uses language that many on social media interpreted to reference Trump’s church visit. It was posted one day after the controversy.

“In this time of pandemic fear and social isolation, in this time of racial injustice and senseless violence, in this time of economic uncertainty and generational pain, we should be careful not to use the Bible as a political symbol, one more prop in a noisy news cycle,” wrote Whitney T. Kuniholm, a member of the senior leadership team at the American Bible Society.

“Because, more than ever,” he wrote, “we need to hear what’s true. ‘Let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!’ (Amos 5:24 NIV). ‘Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me …’ Psalm 23:4 KJV). 

It’s not the first time the American Bible Society has given Bibles away during a news cycle. Last year, the American Bible Society gave away more than 10,000 free Bibles following the release of Kanye West’s faith-centric album.

Kuniholm, in his article, listed a diverse group of well-known people who have relied on Scripture.

“Whether you are person of faith or not, there’s no denying the Bible has been an important part of our American experience, especially in times of crisis,” he wrote. “From John Quincy Adams and Abraham Lincoln, to Dorothy Day and Martin Luther King Jr., leaders of all political stripes have solemnly held up the Bible and used it as inspiration in our most difficult moments.

“But why? Why do Americans turn to the Bible in times of national trauma?” Kuniholm asked. “Why are we instinctively drawn to a dusty old volume in our darkest moments? What makes that book so special? Answer? Because the Bible is more than a symbol. It’s a message of unity, justice, hope, love, faith, and liberty. It’s a message of Good News for all people. That’s what gives it power.”

The Bibles, he wrote, are free.

“At American Bible Society we call Americans of all faiths or no faith at all to look beyond the symbol and read the Bible for yourself,” Kuniholm wrote. “If you don’t have a Bible or would like one, go to abs.bible/free and request it. No cost. No proselytizing. No strings. It’s your opportunity to experience the Bible’s timeless message of healing and hope for yourself.”

Christian Boy, 16, Stabbed and Stoned to Death for His Faith in Eastern India

NEW DELHI, June 11, 2020 (Morning Star News) – Incited by Hindu extremists, followers of traditional tribal religion in eastern India last week stabbed and stoned a 16-year-old Christian boy to death for his faith, sources said.

The mutilated body of Sambaru Madkami was found on Friday (June 5) buried in the jungle of Malkangiri, about six kilometers (less than 4 miles) from his village of Kenduguda, Malkangiri District, Odisha state. The village animists had seized him on Thursday night (June 4) after deciding to kill the male heads of the three Christian families in the village, area sources said.

“They had come for me,” Sambaru’s father, Unga Madkami, told Morning Star News, “but I was not at home. I had taken my daughter who was sick to the doctor.”

Living at home instead of the hostel of his school in Bhejaguda because of a COVID-19 lockdown, Sambaru had been leading daily meetings of a house church whose founding pastor, living in another town, dared to appear only twice a month due to villagers’ growing opposition. The only three Christian families in the village of 210 families met at Sambaru’s house.

“Sambaru knew the Word of God the most from among us,” his cousin told Morning Star News. “So he was the one who led us in a time of prayer and learning from the Bible every day in his house.”

ABDUCTION

Some seven to 10 villagers came to his family’s home at about 11 p.m. on June 4 and called for his father, said an area resident whose name is withheld for security reasons.

As Sambaru’s father was staying overnight at a relative’s house en route to the hospital several miles away where he was taking his daughter for treatment, the villagers abducted Sambaru, the source said. 

“They took him a few meters further, where a huge mob was waiting for him,” the eyewitness told Morning Star News, translated from the tribal language by an area pastor. “They tied his hands and started to beat him.”

The assailants then went to the house of Sambaru’s cousin, like his father also named Unga Madkami, and called for him, but his wife stopped him from going out and urged him to run for his life toward the jungle, the cousin told Morning Star News.

The attackers then called out to the third Christian male targeted, 18-year-old Sukka Padiami, who jumped out his back window and fled toward the jungle.

“Both I and Sukka ran all night across the jungle,” Sambaru’s cousin told Morning Star News. “We ran for almost 20 kilometers [12 miles] and then called our pastor, who directed us to go to his friend’s house, and we took refuge there.”

MURDER

“The villagers were instigated to attack the Christians at the behest of Hindu extremists,” said area pastor Bijay Pusuru, a close friend of Sambaru’s family.

The assailants dragged Sambaru six kilometers from the village to the jungle, “completely” ripping off the skin on his back, Pastor Pusuru said, citing information from an autopsy report.

Sambaru’s village house church pastor, Inga Madkami, said information from police and the autopsy report indicated the assailants broke the young Christian’s legs and hands, put him in a sack and stabbed him with a knife.

“Several knife stabs are visible on his back, we were told,” Pastor Madkami said.

The autopsy indicated the assailants untied the knotted sack, tore open Sambaru’s mouth from both sides and smashed his face with a huge stone, the pastors said.

“His eyes, nose and face were not visible,” said Pastor Pusuru, sobbing. “It was all smashed.”

The autopsy indicated that the killers then struck the back of Sambaru’s head with a stone before slitting his throat, the pastors said.

“They dug a shallow pit and put his dead body there and covered it with mud and leaves,” Pastor Pusuru told Morning Star News.

ARREST AND CONFESSION

Police arrested six people after Sambaru’s cousin filed a complaint, and two of the suspects, Deba Madkami and another whose identity is unclear, confessed to the kidnapping and murder and led officers to Sambaru’s body, according to Inspector Ram Prasad Nag, the investigating officer who is also Station Head Officer of the Malkangiri police station.

“At the confession of two of the arrested, we were able to trace Sambaru’s mutilated body,” Nag told Morning Star News. “We are still in the process of investigation, and with new facts surfacing, the sections of the FIR [First Information Report] are being changed accordingly.”

FIR No. 180, registered on Friday (June 5), names four suspects – Deba Madkami, Budra Muchaki, Aaita Kabasi and Ramu Madi.

Police found Sambaru’s body at 7 p.m. on Friday (June 5) but didn’t recover and transport the body away until the next morning. After the autopsy, Sambaru’s family buried his body at a funeral service officiated by Pastor Pusuru on Saturday (June 6) in the deceased’s native Kenduguda, under police supervision at 9 p.m., Pastor Madkami said.

Sambaru’s cousin stated in his police complaint that Sambaru was abducted and killed for his Christian faith, but those arrested told officers that they killed him because he and the other targeted Christians were practicing “black magic,” according to Nag.

“In the last few weeks, 15 people have died due to various reasons in the village,” Nag told Morning Star News. “Some had swelling in their hands and legs; the villagers were suspecting Unga [Madkami, Sambaru’s father] to be involved in black magic and witchcraft.”

Sambaru’s relatives roundly denied the allegations, reiterating that the motive for the killing was, in the words of one, “purely our Christian faith.”

Mobbing villagers appeared little restrained by the arrests.

“Killing Sambaru was not enough, the villagers gathered together [on Friday, June 5] and decided to kill all the members of the three Christian families,” Pastor Pusuru told Morning Star News.

All members of the three Christian families had to lock their homes and flee from the village, he said.

To celebrate the gruesome murder, the villagers prepared a feast, Sambaru’s anguished cousin said.

“Villagers the next day looted one of Sambaru’s pigs and two quintals [about 440 lbs.] of rice from his house and went to the jungle, where they cooked the pig and the rice and celebrated ‘Odia Bhoji’ [a festival showcasing food from the Odisha state],” he said.

FALSE PROPAGANDA

Local media have repeated the false allegation of “black magic” as the motive for the killing, which in the minds of many villagers justifies horrific murder.

Pastor Pusuru said contaminated drinking water led to the recent deaths in the village, as local news channels had reported prior to the killing. The accusation of Christians practicing black magic as the cause of the deaths was later fabricated as an attempt to justify the killing, he said.

The Rev. Vijayesh Lal, general secretary of the Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI), said his heart grieves with the family.

“The manner in which Sambaru was killed was most gruesome,” Lal told Morning Star News. “A promising young life was snuffed out because of the hatred that seems to have permeated the very soul of this nation, seeping into the very grassroots.”

The attempt to shame the victim evident in made-up stories of witchcraft is an indicator of the hostility that persists against the minority Christian community in India, he said.

“I know that Sambaru’s sacrifice will not be in vain – only God can bring good out of it, and my prayer is that He will,” Lal said.

Pastor Madkami, 27, who began visiting Kenduguda in 2018 and was leading Sunday and Friday fellowships in Sambaru’s house, said villagers had threatened him many times, telling him to stop visiting their village for prayer and fellowship.

“They planned to attack me several times, but somehow God saved me,” Pastor Madkami told Morning Star News. “I used to be very scared to go to their village. Though our scheduled meetings were on every Sunday and Friday, there were months when I only went twice a month on Fridays, fearing attack from the villagers.”

The church would worship silently, refraining from singing, and he would visit for only 30 minutes and leave immediately, he said.

“The complete village was against the Christian families and threatened them every now and then, trying to force them to leave Christianity,” Pastor Madkami told Morning Star News.

For his part, Pastor Pusuru said he had complained twice at the Malkangiri police station about rising threats against the Christians in the village, without effect.

REMEMBRANCE

“At such a young age, Sambaru had great zeal for God and for ministering to God’s people,” Pastor Pusuru said, in tears.

Pastor Madkami said Sambaru was a great soul.

“Sambaru was my church youth leader,” he said. “He was selected for children’s ministry as well. He would minister to the children whenever he came to my home church.”

Shibu Thomas, founder of advocacy and aid group Persecution Relief, said the murder has exposed the mentality and attitude of religious fanatics today.

“This by far has to be the most disturbing case of Christian persecution that I have encountered in the past four years,” Thomas told Morning Star News. “I am dumbfounded at the brutal nature of the crime.”

Dibakar Parichha, secretary for the Diocesan Commission for Justice Peace and Development from the Archdiocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar, said it is not acceptable that such crimes continue to happen during the coronavirus pandemic.

“The government should take the toughest action towards the perpetrator of the crime so that peace can be brought to the locality,” he said.

Lal said EFI’s Religious Liberty Commission has chronicled at least 10 incidents of persecution against Christians in Odisha state this year.

On June 11, two lawyers from the Human Rights Law Network visited Sambaru’s family, as well as the two other targeted Christians, and recorded their statements. The HRLN team aided by local lawyers expects to petition the High Court of Odisha for a high-level inquiry into the case.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom on April 28 urged the U.S. State Department to add India as a “Country of Particular Concern” to its list of nations with poor records of protecting religious freedom.

India is ranked 10^th on Christian support organization Open Doors’ 2020 World Watch List of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian. The country was 31st in 2013, but its position has worsened since Narendra Modi of the Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in 2014.