Teacher Ordered to Stop Praying with Children Before Lunch

A first-grade teacher who prayed with her class before lunch every day has been told to stop due to a complaint from a parent and an atheist organization.

The unidentified teacher at Norwood Elementary School in Birmingham, Ala., led her class in prayers each day at lunchtime, according to a letter from the Freedom From Religion Foundation to the school superintendent. The teacher also allegedly taught her students Bible verses and Christian songs. 

“Public school teachers and administrators may not promote religion by leading students in prayer, encouraging students to pray, participating in student-initiated prayer, or otherwise endorsing religion to students,” attorney Christopher Line of the Freedom From Religion Foundation wrote to the Birmingham City Schools superintendent.

The same letter alleged the principal began meetings with prayer.

A Birmingham City Schools attorney wrote back this month, telling the Freedom From Religion Foundation that the teacher and principal were told to stop praying with students and faculty. 

“It is our understanding that no further complaints have been received,” Birmingham City Schools attorney Ashaunti Parker wrote. 

A teacher-parent conference also was held to “address the parent’s concern,” Parker said.

“The teacher was advised to refrain from conducting any religious instruction and teacher-led prayer,” Parker wrote.

Armed Gunmen Kidnap 19 Christians, Kill One in Kaduna State, Nigeria

Suspected Fulani herdsmen stormed a church choir practice and kidnapped 17 Christians in north-central Nigeria the night of May 18, and the same night gunmen killed a Christian and kidnapped two others at a Baptist church, sources said.

Each attack took place in Kaduna state, where assaults on Christians with impunity have recently ramped up in the increasingly lawless country.

In Dankande village, in the Dogon Dawa area of Birnin Gwari County 120 kilometers (75 miles) west of the city of Kaduna, the gunmen attacked Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) after midnight, at 12:30 a.m. on May 19, as a combined choir made up of members of two churches was at a 9 p.m.-to-1 a.m. rehearsal, one of the choir members said.

“As we were in the church, Fulani herdsmen numbering over 20 just surrounded the church and started shooting,” Ezekiel Ishaya told Morning Star News. “Everybody was terrified, but there was no way we could run because they had already surrounded the church. They were asking for the pastor’s house, and they threatened to shoot us if we don’t show them the house. Some of them went to the pastor’s house while others kept watch over us.”

The Rev. Nathaniel Waziri, chairman, of the ECWA Zaria District Church Council, confirmed in a press statement on Thursday (May 23) that the gunmen kidnapped the Rev. Zakariya Ido, his daughter and 15 other church members, including the son of the pastor of an Assemblies of God Church.

“The gunmen came and asked everyone in the church to surrender phones and thereafter demanded the whereabout of the pastor,” he said. “After threatening the choristers, they became afraid and showed them the pastor’s house.”

Ishaya said besides the ECWA pastor and his daughter, 10 females and five males were abducted.

“It was in the midst of the confusion that I escaped from the attackers,” Ishaya said.

The Rev. Emmanuel Ibrahim, chairman of the Birnin Gwari chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), confirmed the assault and said Nasara Baptist church in Guguwa-Kwate village, in the Rigasa area of Igabi County 37 kilometers (22 miles) north of the city of Kaduna, was attacked the same night.

“One member was killed and two other members were kidnapped the same night by another group of Fulani herdsmen,” Pastor Ibrahim told Morning Star News, identifying the slain Christian as Obadiah Samson. 

Kaduna Kidnappings 

Christians and churches in Kaduna state have been under attack for years by either herdsmen or Muslim terrorist groups.

Armed herdsmen in May 2017 kidnapped pastor James Effiong Okon of The Apostolic Church in Zaria while he was on his way from Zaria, Kaduna state, to the city of Kaduna. Pastor Okon was area superintendent of the Apostolic Church in Lawna, Cote D’Ivoire, before being transferred to Zaria.

There has been no word of him since he was kidnapped.

In March 2016, a Fulani gang kidnapped three pastors. The president and vice president of the United Church of Christ in Nigeria (HEKAN), the Rev. Emmanuel Dziggan and the Rev. Illiya Anthony respectively, along with the Rev. Yakubu Dzarma, were abducted from Dutse village in Kaduna state. Pastor Anthony fell ill and was reportedly left in the forest to be found by relatives, while the other two church leaders were held for nine days before a ransom was paid for their release.

Christians make up 51.3 percent of Nigeria’s population, while Muslims living primarily in the north and middle belt account for 45 percent.

Nigeria ranked 12^th on Open Doors’ 2019 World Watch List of countries where Christians suffer the most persecution.  

Pastor and His Daughter Kidnapped with More than a Dozen Church Members in Nigeria

Suspected Fulani herdsmen stormed a church choir practice and kidnapped 17 Christians in north-central Nigeria the night of May 18, and the same night gunmen killed a Christian and kidnapped two others at a Baptist church, sources said.

Each attack took place in Kaduna state, where assaults on Christians with impunity have recently ramped up in the increasingly lawless country.

In Dankande village, in the Dogon Dawa area of Birnin Gwari County 120 kilometers (75 miles) west of the city of Kaduna, the gunmen attacked Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) after midnight, at 12:30 a.m. on May 19, as a combined choir made up of members of two churches was at a 9 p.m.-to-1 a.m. rehearsal, one of the choir members said.

The Rev. Emmanuel Ibrahim, chairman of the Birnin Gwari chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), confirmed the assault and said Nasara Baptist church in Guguwa-Kwate village, in the Rigasa area of Igabi County 37 kilometers (22 miles) north of the city of Kaduna, was attacked the same night.

“One member was killed and two other members were kidnapped the same night by another group of Fulani herdsmen,” Pastor Ibrahim told Morning Star News, identifying the slain Christian as Obadiah Samson. 

Germany 1933 or Europe 2019?

Are we seeing a repeat of Germany 1933?

Jewish shop owners are hounded, threatened and run out of town. Their businesses are the targets of prolonged campaigns of intimidation, culminating in months of demonstrations at their doors with up to a thousand angry protesters at a time shooting red paint bombs and mutilated dolls at employees.

Owners of these businesses threatened with death and (real) bombings. The threats including their families. Police refuse to step in, saying the protesters are behaving lawfully. In fact, a top politician supports and is listed as a patron of the organization behind the protests.

Germany 1933? Or the UK in 2019? Actually both. Since we know how the Nazi boycott of Jewish businesses which began in 1933 ended, let's talk about what's happening in today's UK.

The Palestine Solidarity Campagin, of which Labour party head Jeremy Corbyn is a patron, has, in reality, been waging this campaign against Jewish businesses that sell Israeli products (both those originating from inside Israel proper as well as those made in the disputed territories) since 2001. They have not only targeted Jewish businesses but also the Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall, an Israeli theater company at Shakespeare's Globe and an Israeli LGBT event in London.

The group is prominent in the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement against Israel, which has been deemed anti-Semitic at its core by the U.S. State Department's definition of anti-Semitism. Most recently, the group has forced shops selling Israeli cosmetics to close, like the one owned by UK citizen Nissan Ayalon, 33, who was forced to move his business three times, starting from scratch each time, before finally giving up and fleeing the country. "Eventually, I lost faith in being able to make a life once again in Britain," Ayalon said in a newly-released film called Hounded, which documents the on-going campaign of intimidation of Jews who sell products from Israel. "I just couldn't keep moving to a new city every two years. I had a family to look after."

The true litmus test of anti-Semitism is whether the actions are against Jews per se (biogtry) or simply making a political statement. The BDS movement holds Jews to a different standard than in similar conflicts worldwide. It is a clear case of anti-Semitism. Moreover, it is a known fact that while the movement has created little damage to Israel, the movement significantly harms the Palestinian people (another litmus test of its real raison d'etre: anti-Semitism). Businesses that are targeted in Israel and forced to close because of the movement are mainly located in the disputed territories, which are known for employing large numbers of Palestinians (and paying them at a higher rate than they would receive working for Palestinian companies.

These jobs not only benefit the individuals themselves but also translate to more tax income for the Palestinian Authority - not to mention the good will and peace building atmosphere these companies have been known to create among their Jewish and Palestinian workers. But the story doesn't end there (and if it did, it would be bad enough).

Germany's interior minister and the Berlin mayor allowed the annual pro-Iranian/pro-Hezbollah Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day rally to take place in Berlin. The purpose of the rally is traditionally to call for the destruction of the Jewish state. The U.S. embassy in Germany tweeted, "Germany's federal courts decided years ago that Hezbollah is a unified organization dedicated to the destruction of Israel. Symbols of Hezbollah are banned, why not the entire organization?" Ironically, just days after the rally, Angela Merkel, Germany's leader, said, "There is to this day not a single synagogue, not a single daycare center for Jewish children, not a single school for Jewish children that does not need to be guarded by German policemen."

The rally also came on the heels of an unprecedented report released by Germany's domestic security agency about how anti-Semitism among the country's Muslim population is a major problem in the country. Not only has Merkel and her interior minister blatantly refused to ban the internationally-recognized terror group Hezbollah dedicated to the destruction of Jews, they have refused to even entertain the question.

Small wonder that every Jewish establishment in Germany needs police protection.

China Forcibly Removed Church’s Cross on Easter Sunday

China has escalated its crackdown on Christianity in recent weeks, forcibly removing crosses from Protestant and Catholic churches, destroying unregistered church buildings and even demolishing the structure of a legal Three-Self congregation. 

The actions come amidst an official campaign, known as Return to Zero, to eliminate unregistered house churches. 

“The Communist Party is afraid that having a large number of people who believe in God will threaten their rule,” a house church pastor told Bitter Winter, which monitors religious persecution.

Government officials in Shandong province used a huge crane on Easter Sunday to remove the cross of a Protestant congregation, Grassland Church. A week later, officials in Henan province used a crane to remove two huge crosses atop a Catholic church. Shandong is the second-most populous province with 95 million people. Henan is third, with 94 million people. 

ChinaAid, another organization that monitors religious persecution, reported the incidents.   

“Since the Chinese government wrongly believes religions are an attempt by foreign powers to infiltrate China, they often restrict religious practice and expression, including cracking down on religious symbols being displayed on buildings,” ChinaAid reported.

Elsewhere, entire church buildings have been destroyed. 

Government officials in Chumen, Zhejiang, used an excavator to destroy the building of Sola Fide house church, Bitter Winter said. Police forced the pastor to sign a statement pledging not to lead a meeting of the congregation again. Zhejiang is the smallest province in China by population (54 million). 

Even legal churches aren’t safe. Members of East Street Church – a registered Three-Self congregation in Sunfuji, Henan – watched helplessly as officials destroyed their church on Good Friday, ripping up floors and removing valuables. Officials claimed the structure was built too close to the village’s committee building, even though East Street had the permits showing the building was legal. 

“These officials are just like bandits. They confiscated and burned everything,” one Christian told Bitter Winter.

Churches within China are required to register with the government. But such churches – part of the Three-Self movement – are regulated heavily. In many locations, children cannot attend Three-Self churches. Sermons also must be approved. 

The regulation of Three-Self churches has forced millions of Chinese Christians underground.

Pastor and His Daughter Kidnapped with More than a Dozen Church Members in Nigeria

A pastor, his daughter, and more than a dozen churchgoers were kidnapped in an attack by a team of gunmen in the Kaduna state of Nigeria on Sunday that left one person dead.

Rev. ZakariahIdo, 11 girls, and five men were among those kidnapped in the early morning hours on Sunday. Sources have indicated that 20 gunmen attacked.

According to an online Nigerian newspaper called TheCable, the gunmen surrounded the church while choir members were practicing. “It was at about 12:30 midnight. We had combined choir practice in the church with other neighboring communities. We normally hold the combined choir practice from 9:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.,” the witness said. “Everybody was terrified but there was no [way] we could run because they had already surrounded the church.”

The gunmen demanded everyone’s phones and asked where to find the pastor, according to Pastor NathWaziri, the district church council secretary. Parishioners showed them the pastor’s home, where he, his daughter, and several others were abducted. During the attack, one of the church members was killed.

“We are helpless because there's nothing we can do other than to report to the police when such incidents happen,” another eyewitness said. “We have no arms and we cannot stand them, we are just at their mercy because they are well armed and they always come in large numbers.”

According to locals, this is the fifth attack on their community by gunmen. Although no group has yet to take credit for the kidnapping, this Nigerian region has witnessed an alarming increase of attacks from Fulani extremists. This little known terror group has wreaked havoc on the middle belt of Nigeria, ranking them the fourth deadliest terrorist organization in the world, according to the Independent. Boko Haram, another powerful extremist group, dominates the north of Nigeria.

Christian Post reported that in March, the governor of Kaduna state issued a dusk-to-dawn curfew with the growing violence, targeted largely at Christians.

“It is really simplifying catastrophic incidents in Nigeria by saying ‘herder-farmer conflict’ and that does not solve the problem,” Stephen Enada, who co-founded the nongovernmental organization International Committee on Nigeria, told the Christian Post in March. “We need to face reality on the ground and call a spade a spade. In Southern Kaduna, a village is almost wiped out and over 200 people have been killed in the last week.”

The attack comes only weeks after Boko Haram kidnaped another pastor in Borno State. Nigeria ranks as the 12th worst country for Christian persecution, according to Open Doors. The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom has expressed apprehension for Nigeria, asking the State Department to designate the country of “particular concern” for religious freedom violations.

Shocking Replacement Theology Altar Call - "Repent For Standing With Israel
          

Jesus is my All in All. He is my Lord, my God, my Savior, my Redeemer, my King. He is my Life. Outside of Him, I have nothing. Outside of Him, I am nothing. Jesus is also the Messiah of Israel, and as Israel's Messiah, He confirms -- not cancels -- the Father's promises to the patriarchs.

These are Paul's exact words in Romans 15:8-9: "For I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God's truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, 'Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.'"

How could it be otherwise? How could it be that Israel's Redeemer would cancel the promises God gave to Israel? How could it be that the long-awaited Messiah would nullify the oath God swore to the patriarchs? Yet this is what is being taught aggressively by an evangelical news network, a network that is spreading lies, misinformation, and exaggeration about Israel and the Jewish people on a regular basis.

TruNews' Altar Call

In fact, in what must be one of the sickest moments in the history "Christian" broadcasting, one of the hosts of this network -- ironically named TruNews -- gives an altar call for Christians to repent for standing with Israel. I kid you not. Watch it for yourself here, starting at 1:20:28 until 1:22:41.

The host, Doc Burkhart, leads his audience in a "sinner's prayer." He tells viewers to confess to God, "Lord, I'm so sorry. I don't how I was so deceived. I don't how I was so bewitched by all of this.

"I thought it was a good thing to support the people of Israel. I thought it was a good thing to help Israel. But now I see it's just people using the name of Israel, people using the people of Israel in order to line their own pockets, in order to build their own kingdoms, in order to make themselves feel important."

Help us champion truth, freedom, limited government and human dignity. Support The Stream » Burkhart then calls his viewers to repent of this and turn the other way, confessing, "Jesus, You are my Zion. Jesus, You are my Promised Land. Jesus, You are my Temple. Jesus, You are my Eternal Capitol, Lord." And in true "evangelical" fashion, Burkhart then urges those who responded to this prayer to contact his network.

How judgmental. How unchristian. How deceived.

What an ugly mixing of truth with error.

Jesus Confirms God's Promises

To repeat: Jesus is my All in All, my Everything. And He confirms, not cancels, God's promises to the patriarchs. Chief among those promises was the promise of the Land of Israel as a lasting inheritance.

As the psalmist wrote: "He remembers His covenant forever, the word that He commanded, for a thousand generations, the covenant that He made with Abraham, His sworn promise to Isaac, which He confirmed to Jacob as a statute, to Israel as an everlasting covenant, saying, 'To you I will give the land of Canaan as your portion for an inheritance.'" (Ps 105:8-11)

To repeat Paul's words: "For I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God's truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs."

Sorry, TruNews, but I'll stay with Scripture. Sorry, Doc Burkhart, but I'll not repent of standing with the purposes of God.

For the record, I have called out TruNews publicly (see here and here) and reached out privately several times, to no avail.

TruNews' Invitation

Initially, in response to my challenge, TruNews invited me to come on their show, and I responded immediately with an enthusiastic "Yes." I simply requested that, for the sake of fairness, their leader, Rick Wiles, join me on my show as well.

He was not willing. I then I suggested we have a public debate. They said they were not interested in debate, but that I should rebuke Ben Shapiro as an antichrist. (I'm not making this up.) Finally, when their anti-Israel, anti-Jew campaign became even more pitched and ugly, I told them I would join them on their show as long as I was given equal time with their panel and that the show was aired unedited.

They said no to my offer, offended that I characterized their views as antisemitic. Sorry, but when you claim that the sexual revolution was a Zionist conspiracy -- among a litany of other accusations -- you're being antisemitic.

Now, TruNews is leading Christians in a sinner's prayer for standing with Israel. What's coming next?

The Truth of Scripture

As for the idea that Jesus is our Temple, our Zion, and our Promised Land, this is not Scriptural.

Rather, in Him, we have become a holy Temple, with Jesus as the chief Cornerstone (see 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; Ephesians 2:19-22; 1 Peter 2:5). Jesus is not "our Temple."

And nowhere in the New Testament is it written that Jesus is our Promised Land or our Zion. Instead, the Gospel authors tell Zion -- meaning Jerusalem and the Jewish people -- that Jesus, the King, is coming to Zion (see Matthew 21:5; John 12:5; quoting from Zechariah 9:9).

And Paul says that God will lay in Zion a Stone of stumbling (speaking of Jesus), and that He, the Redeemer, will come from Zion (Romans 9:33; 11:26; quoting from Isaiah 28:16; 59:20-21).

Even the heavenly Zion is a place, not a person (see Hebrews 12:22). In fact, Jesus, the Lamb, stands in Zion (see Revelation 14:1). He is not Zion -- or the Promised Land.

Tragically, Burkhart relies on his viewers' love for Jesus to confuse the issues, as if they are being unspiritual -- not Christ-centered -- by standing with Israel or recognizing God's hand at work in our day.

Nothing could be further from the truth. To say it once more: Christ, the Messiah, confirms God's promises to the patriarchs, and those promises include the Land of Israel as a lasting inheritance.

Burkhart's Mistake

Burkhart and TruNews might just as well urge a starving person to repent for taking bread from a Christian missionary, leading them in a prayer of repentance that said, "Lord, forgive me for my sinfulness. I was being so carnal. I confess that Jesus is my Bread of Life."

That's just as ridiculous as the prayer he led his viewers in, confessing their "sin" of standing with Israel (not to mention slandering those who do as stand with Israel, branding us as duplicitous, money-grubbers).

The only difference in the two prayers is that Jesus, in fact, is our Bread of Life, whereas He is not our Promised Land or our Zion (whatever that even means).

Nothing Christian About This

TruNews has now crossed a precarious, ugly line. Let the viewers beware. Had they simply brought valid criticisms against the State of Israel, I would not be writing this. I would even affirm some of those criticisms myself.

Had they simply questioned where the nation of Israel today is a fulfillment of biblical prophecy, I would not have called them out. I recognize that Christians can differ over prophecy.

Had they simply brought legitimate criticisms against the Jewish people as a whole, I would not be concerned. I bring such criticisms as well. But they have now equated Christian Zionism with rebellion against God and denial of the centrality of Jesus, at the same time spreading all kinds of libels against the Jewish people and the Jewish religion. There is nothing Christian about this. I urge them to repent.

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‘We Have No Regrets’: Hong Kong Pastor Facing up to Seven Years in Prison Shares His Testimony before Court

After Pastor Chu Yiu-ming and eight others were convicted on Tuesday of crimes related to being a part of the pro-democracy Occupy Central with Peace and Love Movement and the Umbrella Movement protests, he stood in a Hong Kong courtroom and gave the sermon of his life.

According to Christianity Today, Chu – who is the leader of the Chai Wan Baptist Church and a pro-democracy advocate– shared his personal testimony before the court recalling how his difficult childhood lead him to Christ, to a life in ministry and to fighting for human rights.

According to an English translation of Chu’s testimony published in the Hong Kong Free Press, the pastor said, “I am a Christian minister committed to the service of God. I have resolved to live a life of friendship with the weak and the poor, praying that God’s justice be manifested on earth as it is in heaven, and that the gospel of love and peace be proclaimed among the people.”

He continued, “But today, old and grey, I find myself in the Defendant’s dock, making a final plea as a convict. It looks so absurd, if not outright shameful for a person holding holy office.

“And yet, at this very moment, my heart tells me that with this defendant’s dock, I have found the most honourable pulpit of my ministerial career. The valley of the shadow of death leads to spiritual heights.”

The pro-democracy advocate also stood behind his belief in a free nation saying, “We strive for democracy, because democracy strives for freedom, equality and universal love. Political freedom is more than loyalty to the state. It professes human dignity.”

Chu continued, “Every single person living in a community possesses unique potentials and powers, capable of making a contribution to society. Human right is a God-given gift, never to be arbitrarily taken away by any political regime.”

Christianity Today reports that while Hong Kong is closer to democracy than mainland China, many are fearful that communism will encroach on the region.

While Chu and eight others prepared to face up to seven years in prison, not far away, 200 Christians met to pray for them. Christianity Today reports that the Christians met at Kowloon Union Church, the place where Chu and others first announced the Occupy Central campaign many years ago.

According to the Los Angeles Times, in 2013, Chu and two scholars named Benny Tai and Chan Kin-man started the Occupy Central Movement. The campaign is a non-violent pro-democracy movement that advocates for an electoral system in Hong Kong and universal and equal suffrage. The Occupy Central Movement is often credited with being a motivating factor for the Umbrella Movement protests which led to the 79-day occupation of Hong Kong by protestors. 

This led to the three being found guilty of “conspiracy to commit public nuisance,” Christianity Today reports.

“We have no regrets. We hold no grudges, no anger, no grievances. We do not give up,” Chu proclaimed before the court. “In the words of Jesus, ‘Happy are those who are persecuted because they do what God requires; The Kingdom of heaven belongs to them!’ (Matthew 5:10)”

Chu is awaiting his sentencing hearing set for later this month where he can face up to seven years in prison; others could get longer sentences as they have additional convictions.

Nearly 300 People Dead after Suicide Bombers Strike Churches and Hotels across Sri Lanka in Easter Sunday Attack

Nearly 300 people were killed and some 500 injured across Sri Lanka as the result of six suicide bombings at churches and hotels on Sunday.

According to the BBC, 24 people were arrested after six suicide bombers entered three churches and three hotels in the Easter Sunday attack. 

Reportedly, it is not known who is responsible for the attack yet, but Fox News reports that authorities believe the attack was carried out by a “radical extremist Islamist group” called National Thowheed Jamath.

According to the BBC, the first reports of an explosion came in around 8:45 a.m. local time, and five more blasts quickly followed suit.

Three churches, one in Negombo, one in Batticaloa and one in Colombo’s Kochchikade district, were all targeted during Easter services. The Shangri-La, Kingsbury and Cinnamon Grand hotels – all three considered luxury hotels – were also attacked.

Police were able to seize three other bombs, the BBC reports. Authorities carried out two raids – one in Dehiwla and one in Colombo – where they found two bombs. Three officers were killed during the raids.

Authorities discovered the third bomb, seemingly abandoned, near the airport in the capital, Colombo. 

According to reports 35 foreigners including Chinese, British, Portuguese, Turkish, Australian, Dutch, Japanese and American citizens are among the 290 dead. The Daily Telegraph reportsthat among the dead are a British television Chef and her daughter, a family member to British politician Tulip Siddiq and an 11-year-old American boy named Alex Nicholson and his 42-year-old mother Anita. 

Following the bombings, the Sri Lankan government implemented a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew and social media platforms have been blocked in an attempt to stop the spread of false information. 

This was the bloodiest attack in Sri Lanka since its civil war ended nearly a decade ago. The government is working to quickly seek justice for the deadly attacks as Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe fears the massacre could offset the stability in the country.

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Chinese City Pays Citizens $1,500 to Be a ‘Mini Judas’ and Turn in Christians

China’s crackdown on Christianity escalated March 20 when the government of the fifth-largest city began issuing rewards to those who report “illegal religious activities,” including house church meetings. The Bureau of Ethnic and Religious Affairs in Guangzhou said it would reward prizes of 3,000, 5,000 and 10,000 yuan ($450, $750 and $1,500 U.S.) to Chinese citizens who spot and turn in their neighbors to government officials, according to Asia News.

The size of the prize will depend on the scale of the illegal activity. All churches in China are required to register with the government. Some churches, though, face severe restrictions in how they worship and practice their faith. Because of this, millions of Chinese Christians worship underground.

“The authorities could not have picked a better time, just before Easter to introduce these measures,” a priest told AsiaNews. “At this time, we often meditate on the passion of Jesus and Judas’ treachery for 30 pieces of silver. The Guangzhou government wants to turn people into many mini Judas.” Guangzhou, with 11 million people, is the fifth-largest city in China and the capital of the province of Guangdong.

Last year Guangzhou authorities shut down the 5,000-member Rongguili Church, but members still meet in homes, Asia News reported. Referencing the new regulations, one Christian woman told the website, “Now here in China we live in a Big Brother atmosphere.” Under the new law, citizens can report suspicious Christian activities at the government office, by phone or via letter. The law lists as dangerous people who “establish religious places without authorization; non-religious groups; non-religious institutions; non-religious places, temporary places of worship, religious activities and religious donations.” This includes “organizing unauthorized religious courses, conferences, unauthorized pilgrimages,” AsiaNews said. 

Chinese Police Beat 60 Christians, Close Church and then Bury Bibles

More than 100 Chinese police officers and SWAT team members closed a newly constructed church and beat dozens of Christians who were guarding it, and then buried Bibles and hymnbooks before leaving. The incident in Henan – China’s third largest province – took place in January and was reported by BitterWinter.org April 10. Chinese officials also seized the church’s cash and other possessions. 

“As soon as they entered the church, they smashed the donation box and pocketed the money, which totaled thousands of [yuan – likely hundreds in U.S. dollars.] They also questioned us about where all of our church’s money was kept,” a church member told Bitter Winter, which monitors religious persecution in China. 

The congregation, True Jesus Church in Anping, had opened a new building in July 2018 that cost around $300,000 U.S. But the Chinese accused the congregation of being in contact with foreign governments. The Chinese plan on converting the building to a nursing home, Bitter Winter reported.

Officials arrived Jan. 4 in dozens of vehicles to take over the building. When 60 or so church members barricaded the entrance with benches, more officers were called to the scene and stormed into the church. They beat the believers, leaving about 15 Christians on the floor moaning in pain. One woman who is in her 70s also was beaten, Bitter Winter reported. 

Police dug a pit and buried the Bibles and hymnbooks. They also removed the air conditioning units, audio speakers, washing machines, a computer and a piano.

Police detained the church’s director for 15 days.

Haven’t defeated

"Since my youth they have often persecuted me, yet they haven't defeated me.  Wicked people ploughed over my back, creating long-lasting wounds." Ps 129:2-3

When a child is born in the family of a righteous man, the dark world is terrified. From the day of its birth, or even from the day of its conception in its mother’s womb, satanic world will start plotting against it and might try even to prevent its birth. For this cause, satan might  use even its own  mother by making her sick, getting the father  lose his  job, creating misunderstanding between parents, family members.  Satan might  use even doctors to kill or damage the chid by their negligence.  From its birth there  will be  a terrible fight between darkness and light. Satan might instigate its own siblings against the chosen child of God.

But the truth is that  nothing can defeat the child of God. Even from its childhood, whether it is born of  believer parents or not, God becomes its protector. When the child  becomes mature, God will remind these incidents one by one. Recollecting all the incidents,  where the enemy tried to injure it, harm it or even kill it and how God came to save him. It happened in David’s life.

It will happen in each one’s life. Recollecting them  and thanking the Lord is  our only  duty.

David said, “they ploughed over my back”. For some it will be back pain, spinal chord injuries. For  some others, the  enemy might plough over their heart, mind, or any part of the body, creating long lasting wounds.  In order to defeat these enemies,  to overcome them and to have  the wounds healed, Jesus has taught us one method.

Mat 5:44-45  But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.

Whatever may happen in our lives, when we come forward to forgive all those who stood against us, worked against us and fought against us, we become  stronger because we are promoted to the status of the  “sons of God”.

Americans with "No Religion" Increases By 266% Over Last 3 Decades

Over the last 30 years, there has been a mass exodus out of organized religion in the United States.  Each year the needle has only moved a little bit, but over the long-term what we have witnessed has been nothing short of a seismic shift. Never before in American history have we seen such dramatic movement away from the Christian faith, and this has enormous implications for the future of our nation.  According to a survey that was just released, the percentage of Americans that claim to have "no religion" has increased by 266 percent since 1991...

The number of Americans who identify as having no religion has risen 266 percent since 1991, to now tie statistically with the number of Catholics and Evangelicals, according to a new survey. People with no religion - known as 'nones' among statisticians - account for 23.1 percent of the U.S. population, while Catholics make up 23 percent and Evangelicals account for 22.5 percent, according to the General Social Survey.

In other words, the "nones" are now officially the largest religious group in the United States. At one time it would have been extremely difficult to imagine that one day the "nones" would someday surpass evangelical Christians, but it has actually happened. And the biggest movement that we have seen has been among our young people.  According to a different survey, two-thirds of Christian young adults say that they stopped going to church at some point between the ages of 18 and 22...

Large numbers of young adults who frequently attended Protestant worship services in high school are dropping out of church. Two-thirds of young people say they stopped regularly going to church for at least a year between the ages of 18 and 22, a new LifeWay Research survey shows. These are the exact same patterns that we saw happen in Europe, and now most of those countries are considered to be "post-Christian societies".

The young adults of today are going to be the leaders of tomorrow, and they have a much higher percentage of "nones" than the population as a whole.  According to a study that was conducted a while back by PRRI, 39 percent of our young adults are "religiously unaffiliated" at this point... Today, nearly four in ten (39%) young adults (ages 18-29) are religiously unaffiliated--three times the unaffiliated rate (13%) among seniors (ages 65 and older). While previous generations were also more likely to be religiously unaffiliated in their twenties, young adults today are nearly four times as likely as young adults a generation ago to identify as religiously unaffiliated. In 1986, for example, only 10% of young adults claimed no religious affiliation. To go from 10 percent during Ronald Reagan's second term to 39 percent today is an absolutely colossal shift.

Right now, only about 27 percent of U.S. Millennials attend church on a regular basis.  Most of them simply have no interest in being heavily involved in organized religion. And even the young people that are involved in church do not seem very keen on sharing their faith with others.  According to one of the most shocking surveys that I have seen in a long time, 47 percent of Millennials that consider themselves to be "practicing Christians" believe that it is "wrong" to share the gospel with others...

A new study from the California-based firm Barna Group, which compiles data on Christian trends in American culture, has revealed a staggering number of American millennials think evangelism is wrong. The report, commissioned by the discipleship group Alpha USA, showed a whopping 47 percent of millennials -- born between 1984 and 1998 -- "agree at least somewhat that it is wrong to share one's personal beliefs with someone of a different faith in hopes that they will one day share the same faith."

These numbers are hard to believe, but they are from some of the most respected pollsters in the entire country. Politically, these trends indicate that America is likely to continue to move to the left.  Those that have no religious affiliation are much, much more likely to be Democrats, and so this exodus away from organized religion is tremendous news for the Democratic Party.

In a previous article, I documented the fact that somewhere between 6,000 and 10,000 churches in the United States are dying each year. That means that more than 100 will die this week. And thousands more are teetering on the brink.  In fact, most churches in America have less than 100 people attending each Sunday...

A majority of churches have fewer than 100 people attending services each Sunday and have declined or nearly flatlined in membership growth, according to a new study from Exponential by LifeWay Research. The study, which was conducted to help churches better understand growth in the pews, showed that most Protestant churches are not doing well attracting new Christian converts, reporting an average of less than one each month.

But even among all the bad news, there are some promising signs for the Christian faith.  The home church movement if flourishing all over the country, and many of those home fellowships are focused on getting back to the roots of the Christian faith.  All throughout history there have been relentless attempts to destroy the Christian faith, and yet it is still the largest faith in the entire world. However, there is no doubt that Christianity is in decline throughout the western world, and churches are dying one after another.

This is what one pastor had to say about the slow death of his church...

'My church is on the decline,' he said. 'We had 50 (congregants) in 2005 and now we have 15. We're probably going to have to close (in a few years).'

'Mainline Christianity is dying,' he added. 'It's at least going away. It makes me feel more comfortable that it's not my fault or my church's fault. It's part of a bigger trend that's happening.'

John Adams, the second president of the United States, once said the following about our form of government...

Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.

As America has turned away from the Christian faith, we have become steadily less moral and steadily less religious.

If we continue down this path, many believe that the future of our nation is going to be quite bleak indeed.

Kay Arthur Reminds Churches to Stick to the Bible for Truth

Before there was Beth Moore, Priscilla Shirer or Joyce Meyer, there was Kay Arthur. 

Arthur set a trend among women bible teachers long before it was fashionable. As ‘the beloved’ – the title she says God calls all of His children – she is clear that her main purpose in doing ministry is to teach the Bible. 

While Arthur says she appreciates the ‘trailblazer’ compliments, she is aware first and foremost that she is a servant of God! She believes that God put her on earth at ‘such a time as this’ to teach the Bible and provide resources for people to study the Good News. 

Arthur told Christian Headlines that her mission is to help every man and woman have a chance to study the Bible. 

As Arthur sits down of our interview, I notice the bustling of adults and kids scurrying around us in order to make it to class on it. We are sitting in Arthur’s ‘Precepts’ ministry's Chattanooga Campus. 

Arthur shared that she can remember teaching a class on the campus lawn before the buildings were even there. 

Despite the busyness around us, as Christian Headlines sat down for a rare interview with Arthur, it was clear that she was not distracted by all the movement. 

As Arthur speaks, she is deliberate and purposeful. She moves at ease when she walks and talks. She makes sure that she acknowledges everyone that she comes into contact with, intentionally making them feel loved. 

When asked about her views on what the church of today is lacking, Arthur stays true to her call and mission. She says the universal church needs to stick to the Bible!

Abortionists could face up to 99 Years in Prison under Proposed Alabama Law

Strict anti-abortion laws have swept conservative states in the country and Alabama has just upped the ante. If passed, HB 314 and SB 211 would make performing an abortion a Class A felony, the most serious felony, punishable by up to 99 years in prison, according to AL.

Lawmakers anticipate challenges and lawsuits to the bill since it is unconstitutional. Their hope is to push the bill all the way to the Supreme Court. Rep. Terri Collins, the Republican representative who sponsored the bill, told AL, “It is meant to actually use some of the same language that is addressed in Roe vs. Wade. So, hopefully, it just completely takes it all the way to the Supreme Court eventually to overturn.”

Over 60 representatives out of 105 in the Alabama House have co-sponsored the bill. It will go to the Senate the week of April 15.

Staci Fox, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Southeast called the bills a “death sentence for women across the state.” She also argued, “In a state that already suffers from a physician shortage, high rates of infant and maternal mortality, cervical cancer mortality, unintended pregnancy, teen births, rural health care crisis, and opioid addiction, our lawmakers should be focused on increasing access to care - not restricting it.”

Tuscaloosa News reported this bill is more extreme than any of the other two dozen anti-abortion bills proposed in conservative states this year. The Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health and rights advocacy group, have stated that the “extreme nature of this year’s bills are unprecedented.” Georgia and South Carolina have proposed similar bills, according to WND. 

The law would only punish doctors who perform abortions, not the women. It also allows abortions in case of serious harm or death to the mother. There is no exception for rape or incest.

During last year’s mid-term elections, Alabama passed Amendment 2, which “provides constitutional rights to fertilized eggs and fetuses,” according to Rolling Stone. In March, the state made headlines when the court gave an aborted fetus full legal rights, the first in the United States.

Senate Judiciary Committee and chairman Sen. Cam Ward is supportive of the bill, as long as taxpayers don’t pay the price. Since Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union plan on suing, Ward wants to include amendments to the bill to specify how legal expenses are paid. “I want some restrictions on where this money comes from,” Ward said. “I want to make sure we’re not just sending a message with a huge price tag to taxpayers.”

In 2017, over 6,700 abortions were performed in Alabama, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health. Over 5,700 happened at or before 12 weeks of gestation. Current law bans abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy.

Police in India File Charges against Pastors for Refuting False Account of Attack, Sources Say

HYDERABAD, India, March 22, 2019 (Morning Star News) – Three pastors in western India have been criminally charged in retaliation for refuting a false account of a Hindu extremist attack on six Christians that left a teenage girl unconscious, sources said.

Three of the six Christians beaten in Maharashtra state this month were also charged in retaliation for reporting the assault that left them with injuries requiring hospital treatment, said pastor Pandharinath Bhagya Gowri, one of the accused church leaders. 

Police who took exception to Pastor Gowri and two other pastors trying to correct a false report about the beating later charged them with the same accusations filed against the assailants, such as house trespass with intent to assault, even though the church leaders were not even present during the attack, he said.

Hard-line Hindus in Bandhan village, Palghar District in February had cut the Christians’ water supply and warned them that worse would happen if they did not renounce their faith, Pastor Gowri told Morning Star News. On March 1 a mob of Hindu extremists showed up in the neighborhood of three Christian families, burst into their homes and started beating and kicking them, he said.

“At least six Christians including women and children got injured in the attack,” Gowri told Morning Star News.

Teenage Christian Sapna Dodhade was beaten unconscious, and the Hindu extremists continued striking her and the five others even after they fell limp, the pastor said.

“The young Christian could not take their beating, she fell unconscious,” he said, adding that a team of local pastors rushed to Bandhan that day to bring the injured to a hospital in a nearby town. “Her condition was serious. While she was getting treated at the government hospital in Palghar along with other injured Christians, police officers came to record the victims’ statements.”

As the victims told Inspector Shidava Jaybhave about the ordeal they had suffered for attending church services at a neighboring village, another officer accompanying her “interrupted the victims, and he began narrating his own version of events,” Pastor Gowri said.

“It was totally a false narrative, and he was misguiding officer Jaybhave by telling lies,” he told Morning Star News. “I informed her, ‘Madam, the constable is trying to divert the matter,’ but she shouted at me and asked me to shut my mouth.”

Pastors Sainath Ambo Rawate and Navashu Mangalya Jadhav joined him in telling her that Christians had been beaten severely enough to be hospitalized and that the matter should not be taken lightly, but she refused to listen and threatened to file charges against them, he said.

“We told her, ‘Had police booked cases and taken action against villagers who were harassing Christians, this day would not have come,’” Pastor Gowri told Morning Star News. “But this went wrong with her. It must have chafed her ego that ‘illiterate villagers’ were questioning the police.”

On March 3, pastors received a phone call from police informing them that Inspector Jaybhave had summoned them to Manora police station, he said. There the three pastors discovered that a counter case had been filed against them and three of the victims of the attack on the same charges filed against the Hindu extremists: House trespass with intent to cause assault, unlawful assembly, rioting and criminal intimidation.

“After a few moments passed by, she told us that we are in her custody and cannot go from there unless we furnished the bail procedure by paying some amount,” he said. “We were not even present at the site of attack, and the victims are helpless, bedridden because of the assault, but police booked us.”

With the help of an attorney, the pastors were released on bail after spending the day in custody.

Inspector Jaybhave was not available for comment, and officer Avinash Dakre of the Manor police station claimed that she “has no role in this.”
Dakre told Morning Star News that Pastor Jadhav was arrested because the Christians’ opponents told him that he visits the village often, “hence we suspect his involvement in this matter.”

Asked the basis for arresting and charging the pastors in the Bandhan attack, Dakre said, “That is not an issue; if they are not involved, I will consider striking down the charges before filing the charge sheet.”

He declined to comment on Hindu extremist targeting of Christians for holding worship services, saying he was only recently posted to the police station and that the investigation was ongoing.

Pastor Gowri said area Christians had been facing harassment for three months prior to the March 1 attack, leading them to file three police complaints. Police registered First Information Reports (FIRs) but failed to name the accused and closed the cases without investigating, he said.

As opposition to Christian worship rose, Mahima Dumada had filed a police complaint on Feb. 11, and police registered cases charging hard-line Hindu villagers with insults to provoke breach of peace and criminal intimidation, he said. In retaliation, the villagers cut the supply of water to Christian families.

“By March 1, it was already three days since the water pipeline was disconnected,” Pastor Gowri said. “They threatened the Christians, warning them to stop attending the church and renounce Christianity if they wanted the water supply back, or face the consequences.” 

Another Attack

On Feb. 24, members of the Hindu extremist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) stormed into a house church in Gadgapara village, also in Palghar District, where at least 30 Christians were gathered for Sunday worship. They disrupted Holy Communion and assaulted the Christians, including women and children, sources said.

The Maharashtra unit of legal advocacy group Alliance Defending Freedom-India brought the matter before the area police inspector, identified only as Ganshyam, and the harassment stopped.

Following complaints to Superintendent of Police Gaurav Singh, officers at Virar East police station filed cases against assailants for unlawful assemblies, rioting, voluntarily causing hurt, insult intended to provoke breach of peace and criminal intimidation.

ADF-India recorded five incidents of hostilities against Christians from Maharashtra in the first quarter of 2019, including an attack on a catholic institution in Kolhapur District. There has been a significant rise in attacks against Christians in Maharashtra since 2014, according to Baban Kamble, a Christian leader and human rights defender from Maharashtra.

“Particularly in Palghar District, we have seen the highest number of attacks,” Kamble said. “Every next week, there have been mob attacks on churches. In Manor and Virar areas of the district, churches have long been shut after they came under the attack of Hindu extremist mobs.”

Life-threatening attacks have taken place such as one in Kowad, and cases have been filed and the accused brought to court, “but the real faces who are behind these attacks have not been exposed yet,” Kamble said.

“Recently, a Christian’s leg had to be amputated after he was brutally attacked by Hindutva [Hindu nationalist] activists,” Kamble said. “We are in the mission of building a pack of young Christian volunteers who can reach out to the victims in cases of persecution. We need to be prepared to deal with incidents of violence and discrimination against

Christians and must raise our voice through peaceful protests, and also before the parliament and legislative assemblies of the states.”

India is ranked 10^th on Christian support organization Open Doors’ 2019 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 been worse each year since Narendra Modi of the Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in 2014. 

China Shuts Down, Changes Locks on 1,000-Member Church

China shut down a well-known 1,000-member Beijing church over the weekend and then changed the locks to prevent members from returning to the building.

The congregation, Shouwang Church, made worldwide headlines five years ago when it stood up to Chinese leaders and refused to register with the government. Its senior pastor, Jin Tian-ming, remains under house arrest.

In the latest confrontation, more than 20 Chinese police and government officials raided a children’s Bible school class Saturday and told church leaders the congregation could no longer meet, according to International Christian Concern (ICC). 

Chinese officials also ordered the pastor, Zhang Xiaofeng, to sign a document claiming the church “has conducted activities as a social organization without registration, which is in violation of Regulations of Religious Affairs and Regulations on the Registration and Management of Social Organizations.”

Government officials then changed the building’s locks. Shouwang is one of the largest house churches in Beijing, according to ICC.

Churches are required to register in China. Registration comes with restrictions on how the Christian faith can be practiced.

“China’s disregard of religious freedom for its 1.4 billion citizens is deplorable,” said Gina Goh, ICC’s regional manager. “Christians outside of the state-sanctioned churches can no longer worship without fearing of harassment, detention or even imprisonment. Even official churches face increasing pressure to exalt the Communist Party over God. The international community should continue to press China over its human rights abuses until it is willing to make positive change.”   

Said Bob Fu, president of ChinaAid, “China’s oppression against house churches will not be loosened. A systematic, in-the-name-of-law crackdown will continue to take place."