* CHRISTIANS FLEE AS VIOLENCE ESCALATES IN INDIA * CHRISTIAN GIRL MARTYRED IN SAUDI ARABIA * HOMEOWNER OFFERS BURGLAR BREAKFAST * IRANIAN HOUSE CHURCH MOVEMENT EXPERIENCING SPECTACULAR GROWTH * STARTLING BREAKTHROUGH IN REPROGRAMMING OF ADULT STEM CELLS * BAHAMIAN CHRISTIAN LEADERS PRAY AND WORK TO REDUCE VIOLENCE IN SCHOOLS ----------------------------------------------- CHRISTIANS FLEE AS VIOLENCE ESCALATES IN INDIA Violence in India's Orissa state continues to escalate, with reports that as many as 20 churches were destroyed and up to 500 Christian families burned out of their homes. At least 36 Christians have been murdered, but no one knows the overall death toll. Christians are fleeing for their lives into the forests, said Gospel for Asia President K.P. Yohannan, "and some have been in hiding for three days without food or water. "Several pastors are in the forest along with their church people, with one saying he would rather die with his people than leave them." Dr. Yohannan called the situation "unprecedented in his 30 years of ministry in South Asia." "I have never seen persecution so bad in my life," Dr. Yohannan said, "and I have seen a lot of opposition to the Gospel over the years."Orissa, the state where Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two sons were burned to death in 1999, has a long history of opposition to the Gospel. "Yet this past year, we have seen more people place their faith in Jesus Christ in Orissa than in any other Indian state," Dr. Yohannan noted. "So it is no surprise that opposition is increasing." The latest reports include a long list of specific attacks against pastors, missionaries and their followers. One believer was hacked to death with the body being cut into seven pieces. "They are also gang raping Christian girls" Dr. Yohannan said. "We are praying that the women on our Bible college campus will remain safe. There are 250 students there, and 90 of them are girls. A handful of police officers are trying to protect them, and that is a blessing. We have had people come on campus and attack students in the past, so we ask for all Christians to pray for their protection." The violence began after the murder of Swami Laxmananand Saraswati, a top leader of the VHP (World Hindu Council) and an outspoken opponent of Christianity. He was killed in an attack by 20 men armed with guns and hand grenades. While the murderers are suspected of being Maoist rebels, the Hindu radicals seized on the killing as an excuse to incite violence against the area's Christian community. "What is most disturbing," Dr. Yohannan said, "is that the radicals have not only incited this violence, but they are also orchestrating it. Sources in the government of Orissa have confirmed that Christians were not believed to be behind the killing of Saraswati. Their assessment was that Christians had no role in the killing, and that the probe was leading to Maoist culprits. They said that evidence available to police was "consistent with the Maoist stamp in the kind of operation they undertake." The swami's goal was to stop the spread of Christianity, and an attack on him last December incited a similar wave of violence against Christians. "Then some 730 Christian homes and more than 100 churches were destroyed," Dr. Yohannan recalled. "Several dozen Christian women were sexually assaulted, and more than 40 shops owned by Christians were looted. Most of the victims were Dalits, formerly known as Untouchables," he noted. "Basically, what we are facing is genocide and ethnic cleansing against Christians, and so far, no government has spoken out against it." Please pray: * that God will intervene in this situation, that His peace will descend on the people of Orissa, and that His message of love will fill the hearts of all of India's people. Source: Gospel for Asia ----------------------------------------------- CHRISTIAN GIRL MARTYRED IN SAUDI ARABIA Reports are coming in of increasing persecution of Christian believers in the Saudi Arabia. A Saudi man recently cut the tongue of his daughter and burned her to death for converting to Christianity, according to a report by the United Arab Emirates-based Gulf News. The victim frequently wrote on various Web site blogs about her conversion from Islam. It is believed that she converted to Christianity after learning about the faith on the Internet and through Christian media. The girl's father is an employee of Saudi Arabia's Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice - the arm of the government that enforces the nation's prohibition of Christianity and conversion to Christianity. Sources close to the victim said that the father was being investigated for "honour killing" rather than murder, Gulf News reported. Shariah-ruled Saudi Arabia, where all Christian worship is forbidden, is ranked No. 2 on Open Doors' 2007 World Watch List of nations where Christians are persecuted for their faith. Under the kingdom's strict interpretation of Islamic law, apostasy is punishable by death if the accused does not recant. According to International Christian Concern (ICC), Saudi Arabia deported 15 Christians last month for holding private worship meetings in a house. The deportation runs contrary to recent attempts to portray the kingdom as a beacon of reconciliation among Christians, Muslims and Jews. Saudi Arabia recently hosted an interfaith conference in Madrid, when King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia called for reconciliation among various religions. "Deporting Christians for worshiping in their private homes shows that King Abdullah's speech is mere rhetoric and his country is deceiving the international community about their desire for change and reconciliation," ICC President Jeff King said. Please pray: * for the girl's martyrdom to lead to the ban of death for apostasy. * that her father and entire family will come to know the Lord Jesus Christ. * that her death will lead to a harvest of multiple thousands of souls for the Kingdom of God. * for true religious freedom in Saudi Arabia. * for God's protection and wisdom for all Saudi Christians. * that the Christians who were deported be allowed to return and to continue working in the country without persecution. * for Saudi Arabia to stop deporting Christians. Source: Windows International Network ----------------------------------------------- HOMEOWNER OFFERS BURGLAR BREAKFAST A man had a heart-to-heart conversation with an armed burglar over a cup of coffee after he found him stealing his belongings from his home in San Antonio. Steve Swanson said he found a man, whom police suspect is Armando Hernandez, stealing items from his home. "I said, 'What are you doing here?'" Swanson said. "He said, 'I'm taking your stuff, and it's too bad you showed up." Swanson said the man was carrying a knife and a gun but he didn't panic. "I said, 'You don't want to do this. First of all, if you harm me or kill me, I'm just going to go to heaven. You're going to go to prison forever,'" Swanson said. Swanson said he gave the burglar all the money in his wallet and offered to listen to his problems over breakfast. He said the man told him he couldn't pay his bills or afford to buy food for himself. Swanson said he ended their conversation with a prayer and a hug. He convinced the man to give him back two pillowcases full of stolen items. However, Swanson said, the burglar still got away with some of his wife's expensive jewellery. Swanson said he notified police only for insurance purposes. Swanson said he would have upheld his promise to let the thief go had he not taken the items. Swanson said he believes the men crossed paths for a reason. "I do believe God put us together and protected me", he said. Source: KSAT-TV ----------------------------------------------- IRANIAN HOUSE CHURCH MOVEMENT EXPERIENCING SPECTACULAR GROWTH In recent years, an increasing number of Muslims throughout the Middle East have converted to Christianity through watching Christian satellite television programs. "The house church movement has seen spectacular growth," according to Stefan De Groot, Open Doors Middle East field worker. This is not happening just because of dreams and miracles," he said, as is common among Muslims. "The majority of people now come to faith through the multimedia, and especially satellite-TV. Nobody can control which programs Iranians watch." SAT-7 is the first Arabic language Christian satellite channel to broadcast successfully in the Middle East and claims a viewership of 8-10 million in the Middle East and North Africa. It also broadcasts 24-hours-a- day in Farsi and Turkish through SAT-7 Pars, which takes its name from the Farsi word that embodies the Persian culture. Source: Christian Post ----------------------------------------------- STARTLING BREAKTHROUGH IN REPROGRAMMING OF ADULT STEM CELLS Biologists at Harvard have found a way to "reprogram" adult stem cells to change into the cell that is needed for the medical situation. For example, the scientists "pinpointed three crucial molecular switches that, when flipped, completely convert a common cell in the pancreas into the more precious insulin-producing ones that diabetics need to survive. Douglas A. Melton, co-director of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, who led the research, explained, "It's kind of an extreme makeover of a cell. The goal is to create cells that are missing or defective in people. It's very exciting." The experiments were performed on mice, but researchers were said to be "optimistic" that the method could be used to treat conditions in humans. Another plus is that adult stem cells present no ethical problems since there are no human embryos destroyed in the process of using them. Source: Washington Post ----------------------------------------------- BAHAMIAN CHRISTIAN LEADERS PRAY AND WORK TO REDUCE VIOLENCE IN SCHOOLS Bishop John Humes, the president of the Bahamas Christian Council - the largest religious body in the Bahamas-has formed a committee to bring a solution to the violence that has begun erupting in their nation's schools. Their findings will be submitted to the government's Ministry of Education. "Apart from praying for the violent atmosphere around schools to change, we have developed a committee that would allow churches to adopt schools for the next three months, to offer counselling as well as spiritual instruction," said Humes. The committee will also visit the homes of students to develop relationships with their parents. "We are hopeful that this committee can effect a positive change," Humes said of the "adoption" program. "It's not a band-aid approach and we want to do something that would bring forth results". Source: The Nassau Guardian http://www.ausprayernet.org.au/ Sept 8, 2008
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