Posted on 09/15/2008 5:34:45 AM PDT by daniel1212
This is a selection of selected religious news excerpts from spring 08 to now, which i collected from sermonaudio.com Weekly HTML Updates, which you can sign up for through their site. Many good sermons and videos also.
See links after excerpts to full article from original source.
I pray these news clips may help to warn and inform, and many we who who are born of the Spirit seek and serve the Lord better.
(Excerpt) Read more at sermonaudio.com ...
Choice News Select religious news links from www.sermonaudio.com
Persecution
MONDAY, MAR 31, 2008|
Vietnam war rumbles on, Christians branded 'the enemy'
Release International has completed a fact-finding visit and finds the Vietnam War is still rumbling on – with Christians now regarded as the enemy.
Christians in Vietnam are being targeted as ‘agents of America’. They describe torture and near starvation as the authorities threaten to kill them slowly. http://www.sermonaudio.com/new_details.asp?ID=25377
FRIDAY, MAY 2, 2008| 8 comments
Plight of North Korean Christians Draws Plea
Washington - Congressional leaders will release a letter today to the Chinese government pleading with Beijing to protect persecuted North Koreans fleeing their country for food and the right to practice Christianity.
...Kim Jong Il’s regime executed, tortured, and interrogated its countrymen for the crime of seeking refuge in churches. ...
http://www.sermonaudio.com nysun.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
SATURDAY, AUG 2, 2008| 4 comments Print Blog-This!
Franklin Graham arrives in North Korea
Franklin Graham arrived in North Korea on Thursday for a historic four-day visit to meet with high-level government officials, visit relief projects and preach at a newly constructed church in the capital city of Pyongyang.
"I do not come to you today as a politician or diplomat," Graham said after arriving in Pyongyang, according to the relief agency Samaritan’s Purse. "I come to you instead as a minister of Jesus Christ with a message of peace – peace with God, peace in our hearts and peace with each other."
www.churchexecutive.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
TUESDAY, SEP 2, 2008| 2 comments Print Blog-This!
Chinese House Church Leader Released from 'Forced Vacation'
The head of a Chinese house church organization and his wife have been released by authorities after more than three weeks of detention.
Since their arrest on Aug. 6, Pastor Bike Zhang Mingxuan and his wife Xie Fenglan had been on a ''forced vacation'' and moved around between four different resort locations, Pastor Bike told China Aid Association president Bob Fu after his release this past Friday.
www.christianpost.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
SUNDAY, SEP 7, 2008|
Christians kidnapped, then killed in Iraq
Two Iraqi Christians were kidnapped then later killed by Islamic fundamentalists in Mosul within the span of a few days, a news agency with connections to Iraq has reported.
Tariq Qattan, a 65-year-old doctor, was recently kidnapped by a terrorist group. Then on Wednesday, news emerged that he had been killed, according to Assyrian International News Agency.
His family had reportedly paid around £10,000 in ransom money, but it was not enough to free the Christian man. http://www.sermonaudio.com/new_details.asp?ID=26168
TUESDAY, AUG 5, 2008| 2
Saudis to Christians: Get out!
More than a dozen Christians in Saudi Arabia who were accused by government officials of worshipping in their homes have been ordered deported.
http://www.sermonaudio.com www.wnd.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
SATURDAY, MAY 17, 2008| 1 comments Print Blog-This!
Military honchos 'suppress' chaplain's Baptist services
An investigation is being sought by a Christian church organization in the United States after the U.S. Army deliberately shut down a service one of its sponsored chaplains was running for U.S. military service personnel at Forward Operating Base Loyalty in Iraq.
www.wnd.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
SATURDAY, JUN 21, 2008| 1 comments Print Blog-This!
Bible citation costs couple jobs, home
For eight years Daniel and Sharon Dixon, apartment managers in Lake City, Fla., displayed in the apartment complex's management office a stained glass depiction of flowers with the words "Consider the lilies … Matthew 6:28" written in the lower left corner – an act for which they were suddenly fired from their management jobs and evicted from their apartment.
www.wnd.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
WEDNESDAY, JUN 25, 2008| 1 comments Choice News Print Blog-This!
Jesus in China: Life on the edge
With China in the throes of a religious awakening, Christian clerics and worshipers have emerged as an unexpected voice for reform and pluralism. From remote villages to elite universities, Christians form a diverse lobby that is rare in a nation split by class, opportunity and geography.
www.chicagotribune.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
FRIDAY, JUN 27, 2008|
'Religion in private' OK, says ACLU
"One may practice one's religion in private; however, once a religious person comes into the public arena, there are limitations in how the expression of their religion impacts others," she had said. ...
www.wnd.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
Homosexuality
TUESDAY, JUN 10, 2008| 1 comments
ACLU to push 'gay' rights in U.S. heartland
NEW YORK — The American Civil Liberties Union announced by far the largest fundraising campaign in its 88-year history Monday, eying a dramatic expansion of its work on social justice issues in relatively conservative states such as Texas and Florida. www.chron.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
FRIDAY, JUN 27, 2008| 3 comments
Study: Evangelicals Lesser Known than Homosexuals
The latest research by Phoenix-based Ellison Research found that only 24 percent of all Americans who say they are not evangelical know an evangelical person very well and 40 percent have never known any evangelicals at all, even casually. Meanwhile, 53 percent say they know a homosexual person very well and 20 percent know such a person casually.
www.christianpost.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
TUESDAY, JUL 29, 2008| 4 comments
Court Orders that Pro-Homosexual Proselytism by Students be Permitted in Schools
July 28, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A judge in Holmes County, Florida, has ruled that the school board cannot forbid students from "wearing or displaying t-shirts, armbands, stickers, or buttons containing messages and symbols which advocate the acceptance of and fair treatment for persons who are homosexual."
www.lifesitenews.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
THURSDAY, AUG 21, 2008| 13 comments
Now on the Hallmark aisle: Gay marriage cards
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- Most states don't recognize gay marriage -- but now Hallmark does.
The nation's largest greeting card company is rolling out same-sex wedding cards -- featuring two tuxedos, overlapping hearts or intertwined flowers, with best wishes inside.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article biz.yahoo.com
TUESDAY, SEP 9, 2008| 17 comments
California bans 'brides,' 'grooms'
That privilege is only extended to individuals who allow themselves to be called "Party A" and "Party B" on marriage licenses.
ROSEVILLE, Calif. – "Brides" and "grooms" are no longer allowed to marry in the State of California.
www.wnd.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
FRIDAY, AUG 22, 2008|
Gay marriage in Oregon? Tribe says yes
As a federally recognized sovereign nation, the tribe is not bound by the Oregon's Constitution. The tribe recently adopted a law that recognizes same-sex marriage and extends to gay and lesbian partners, at least one of whom must be a Coquille, all tribal benefits of marriage.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.oregonlive.com
SUNDAY, AUG 31, 2008|
Man sues Bible publisher for discrimination
Bradley Fowler says the biggest misconception about his lawsuit against the world's largest Bible publisher is that he has a problem with the Word of God.
In the suit, Fowler, who is gay, claims he began experiencing mental anguish and medical problems in 2007 when he came across several Zondervan-published Bibles that used the term "homosexual" in certain Scriptures, particularly 1 Corinthians 6:9.
"When I realized what they had done, I was so furious that I couldn't sleep for at least two days," he said, noting he feels the term was added to push an agenda. "This is a sacred book and the Scriptures say that no one is to add or take away (from the Word)." ...
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.hometownlife.com
SATURDAY, JUN 14, 2008|
Northern Ireland's first lady accused of hate crime
Iris Robinson, considered Northern Ireland's first lady as the wife of First Minister Peter Robinson, has been accused of "hate crimes" and is facing both a police investigation and the possibility of a civil complaint, according to reports.
A report in An Phoblacht, an online political weekly in Ireland, said Robinson had been invited onto the BBC Radio Ulster's "The Stephen Nolan Show" to talk about a recent physical assault on a homosexual by a team of thugs described by the reporter as "gay-bashing."
She condemned the violence, then described homosexuality as "disgusting, nauseous, shamefully wicked and vile," and said, "It's an abomination." ...
www.wnd.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
WEDNESDAY, AUG 6, 2008|
Free Presbyterian advert ignites fresh anti-gay storm
The Advertising Standards Authority is investigating whether an advertisement placed by the Kirk Session of the Sandown Free Presbyterian Church in a Northern Ireland newspaper ahead of the Gay Pride Parade last week breached advertising codes.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk
WEDNESDAY, JUN 25, 2008|
PCUSA removes 'gay' condemnation from faith document
A committee in the Presbyterian Church (USA) approved on Monday changes to a translated version of a document of the Reformed Christian faith – changes opponents say are a smokescreen effort to remove a negative reference to homosexual behaviour.
http://www.sermonaudio.com/new_details.asp?ID=25799
THURSDAY, SEP 11, 2008|
Australian Christians sued by homosexuals
Homosexuals in Australia are using a Christian camp's refusal to host a pro-homosexual group as a test case to attempt to overturn legal exemptions that exist for religious groups in the Equal Opportunity Act. The Act, similar to other Western "anti-discrimination" measures, exists to "eliminate sexual and racial harassment in the workplace, educational institutions and accommodation."
Owners of the Christian Phillip Island Adventure Resort located in Victoria, Australia, are facing legal action for their decision to deny use of their facilities to the homosexual youth group, Way Out. ...
www.lifesitenews.com CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article
ISLAM
WEDNESDAY, JUN 25, 2008|
Blond, white 12-year-old schoolboy is al-Qa'eda extremist, say police
A schoolboy aged 12 has been identified as an al-Qaeda inspired extremist after sending beheading videos to his classmates, police have disclosed.
“He spoke openly of his wish to be a sniper and spoke of his curiosity of what it would be like to kill someone.” ...
Anti-terrorism chiefs have said the example revealed how violent extremism is spreading “like a virus infecting young minds”.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.telegraph.co.uk
THURSDAY, AUG 21, 2008|
Coca-Cola celebrates Ramadan
Coca-Cola plans to celebrate Ramadan this year by decorating cans with a crescent moon and star – a widely recognized Islamic symbol.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.wnd.com
WEDNESDAY, MAY 28, 2008|
Muslims equate Christians with terrorists
Christian missionaries are "as dangerous as terrorist activities or the illegal drug trade," Islamic theologians in Uzbekistan declared.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports a new documentary called "In the Clutches of Ignorance," featuring Uzbek experts, state officials and representatives of Orthodox and Catholic churches in Uzbekistan, claims missionaries pose a serious threat to the Islamic republic.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.wnd.com
SATURDAY, JUN 28, 2008|
Islam is real threat to church
Divisions in the Church of England over homosexuality and women bishops are nothing compared with the threat it faces from Islam, a prominent member of its governing body has warned.
Alison Ruoff, an evangelical lay member of the Synod and a former magistrate who is at the Gafcon summit in Jerusalem, told The Daily Telegraph that the church needs to get past these divisions and concentrate on fighting the rise of Islam in Britain.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.telegraph.co.uk
Spiritual and moral decline
THURSDAY, JUL 17, 2008|
Can Britain Save Its Wayward Youth?
Britain is a rich country, but a sizable minority of its children live in squalor, their prospects occluded by their bad start in life. Social mobility is low compared to other advanced nations — 31% of children in inner London and 22% nationally are growing up in poverty, which will be deepened by spiraling fuel and food costs and a stuttering job market. More than 9% of 16- to 18-year-olds are not currently in any form of education, employment or job training.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.time.com
SUNDAY, JUN 15, 2008|
Most Americans say moral climate is getting worse
Few Americans give the country's moral climate high marks, and the latest survey revealed that they feel it's only getting worse.
According to a Gallup Poll released Thursday, 81 percent of Americans say the state of moral values in the country as a whole is getting worse while only 11 percent believe it's getting better.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.churchexecutive.com
SATURDAY, AUG 9, 2008|
The King James Bible
More even than William Shakespeare, the KJV sculpted the English language and thus the way anyone who uses English thinks. It is also the language's largest source ever assembled of metaphors, clichés and plots waiting to be cribbed. You cannot read a 19th-century Canadian parliamentary debate or replay a stump speech by any 20th-century U.S. presidential candidate or go through movie channels on your TV set tonight without running into words, phrases, allusions and narrative turns that are straight from the scriptures. The bible-belting in Pulp Fiction and the constant cinematic threats of Armageddon come from the same source. ...
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.theglobeandmail.com
WEDNESDAY, SEP 10, 2008|
Confession: fewer know their Bible
IT MIGHT be the greatest story ever told, but Bible literacy is slipping and not just among atheists. Devout churchgoers, especially Catholics, are losing touch with the scriptures of their faith, research shows.
Of those Australians who go to church, 21 per cent read their Bible daily, 14 per cent open it a few times a week and 6 per cent once a week.
But 24 per cent said they read their Bibles only occasionally, 18 per cent hardly ever and 17 per cent said they never read the Bible on their own as a private devotional activity, according to the research, which is based on the 2006 National Church Life Survey of 500,000 people who attended church from 22 denominations. ...
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.smh.com.au
THURSDAY, JUN 12, 2008|
NY Times: The Great Seduction
The people who created this country built a moral structure around money. The Puritan legacy inhibited luxury and self-indulgence. Benjamin Franklin spread a practical gospel that emphasized hard work, temperance and frugality. Millions of parents, preachers, newspaper editors and teachers expounded the message. The result was quite remarkable.
The United States has been an affluent nation since its founding. But the country was, by and large, not corrupted by wealth. For centuries, it remained industrious, ambitious and frugal.
Over the past 30 years, much of that has been shredded. The social norms and institutions that encouraged frugality and spending what you earn have been undermined. The institutions that encourage debt and living for the moment have been strengthened. The country’s moral guardians are forever looking for decadence out of Hollywood and reality TV.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.nytimes.com (sign up required)
WEDNESDAY, AUG 20, 2008|
Survey: Pastors' Pay Rises to More than $80,000
The average senior pastor in U.S. churches today makes more than $80,000 a year, a recent national survey shows.
Compensation packages, including benefits such as retirement, life insurance, health insurance and continuing education allowances, have increased to $81,113 per year for the average senior pastor. And pastors who hold a higher academic degree are paid up to $30,000 more per year than pastors without any post-secondary education.
The statistics come from the 2009 Compensation Handbook for Church Staff
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.christianpost.com
THURSDAY, JUN 26, 2008|
PCUSA reports biggest drop in nearly 30 years
The Presbyterian Church (USA) lost more than 57,000 members last year, the denomination's largest decline since 1981, church leaders announced at a churchwide General Assembly in San Jose, Calif.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.usatoday.com
FRIDAY, APR 25, 2008|
So. Baptists Now a 'Declining Denomination'
For the first time, Southern Baptists can say membership has reached a tipping point and the nation's largest Protestant denomination is now declining, says one long-time Southern Baptist.
"The decline that many of us have already believed is there is now becoming real," said Ed Stetzer, director for LifeWay Research, in an interview featured on MondayMorningInsight.com, a Web site for pastors and church leaders.
Baptisms in the Southern Baptist Convention fell for the third straight year in 2007 to the denomination's lowest level since 1987, dropping nearly 5.5 percent to 345,941, according to LifeWay Christian Resources' Annual Church Profile (ACP), which was released this week. ...
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.christianpost.com
SUNDAY, APR 27, 2008|
Satanic cults in fashion in Rome
Satanic cults are on the rise in an unexpected location – Rome, says a Catholic priest.
"There is a greater openness towards the devil," said Father Gabriele Amorth, the Vatican's Chief Exorcist, to the Christian Broadcasting Network.
Father Pedro Barrajon, a Catholic priest in Rome, stated, “Satanism and the occult are in fashion.”
The overwhelmingly Roman Catholic nation of Italy has an estimated 800 satanic cults, with more than 600,000 followers. But Rome, home to Vatican City and the pope, is where the fiercest spiritual battle is taking place. ...
http://www.sermonaudio.com/new_details.asp?ID=25510
MONDAY, JUN 30, 2008|
Neopaganism growing quickly
Give them that old-time religion — ancient religion — and then watch an exploding population of modern pagans give it contemporary twists.
Their numbers roughly double about every 18 months in the United States, Canada and Europe, according to the Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance.
Neopaganism, whether a careful reconstruction of ancient practice or a completely modern interpretation of ancient lore, is now among the country's fastest-growing religions.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.denverpost.com
THURSDAY, MAY 29, 2008|
Radical Islam taking advantage of Christianity's decline
Radical Islam is threatening to fill a “moral vacuum” in Britain as a result of a decline of Christian values, a senior Church of England bishop has said.
The Bishop of Rochester, the Right Rev Dr Michael Nazir-Ali, claims that the Church dissolved its influence over the country’s morals during the social and sexual revolution of the 1960s. He said that the waning influence of Christianity had created a lack of principles that was allowing radical Islam to push its “comprehensive” claims.
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.timesonline.co.uk
SATURDAY, AUG 2, 2008|
Royal Seal of Prophet Jeremiah’s Accuser Found
JERUSALEM—During the last days of the kingdom of Judah, the Prophet Jeremiah warned the residents of Jerusalem of their impending captivity at the hands of the Babylonian army. But instead of heeding that warning message, the princes of King Zedekiah’s administration attacked the messenger and plunged him into the depths of a miry dungeon (Jeremiah 38:1-6).
One of Jeremiah’s accusers, Gedaliah the son of Pashur, had his name stamped on a small clay seal that was recently discovered about 600 feet south of the Temple Mount. Dr. Eilat Mazar, one of Israel’s top archaeologists, found the bulla earlier this year, in mint condition, while wet-sifting debris excavated under a tower at the north end of the City of David—the original site of ancient Jerusalem. ...
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article www.thetrumpet.com
FRIDAY, AUG 22, 2008|
Study: Large Earthquake Could Strike New York City
The New York City area is at "substantially greater" risk of earthquakes than formerly believed, scientists said Thursday.
Damage could range from minor to major, with a rare but potentially powerful event killing people and costing billions of dollars in damage.
A pattern of subtle but active faults is known to exist, and now new faults have been found. The scientists say that among other things, the controversial Indian Point nuclear power plants, 24 miles north of the city, sit astride the previously unidentified intersection of two active seismic zones.
The findings are detailed in the Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America. ...
CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article news.yahoo.com
(Mat 7:24-27) "Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: {25} And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. {26} And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: {27} And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it."
(Luke 20:17-18) "And he beheld them, and said, What is this then that is written, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner? {18} Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder."
(Acts 4:10-11) "Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. {11} This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner."
(1 Pet 2:7-9) "Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, {8} And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. {9} But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:"
If there be any doubt that this nation overall has rejected this Rock, and we are in desperate need of repentance, see http://peacebyjesus.witnesstoday.org/RevealingStatistics.html
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