AUSTRALIAN PRAYER NETWORK NEWSLETTER

* PALESTINIAN MUSLIM SPEAKS UP FOR PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

* NOW THE CHURCH IS BEGINNING TO SHAKE

* EXTREMISTS DEMAND AN END TO CHRISTIAN ACTIVITY IN ORISSA

* GROWING NUMBERS CONVERTING TO ISLAM IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA

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PALESTINIAN MUSLIM SPEAKS UP FOR PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Christians in the Middle East have been facing much discrimination, harassment and persecution in recent years, and very often the perpetrators are members of the Muslim majority. The number of Christians in the Middle East has been declining for decades, and there is fear that in some countries such as Iraq, there is a real push to drive out the whole Christian community. Christians are being persecuted not only in Iraq, but in most Arab countries, regardless of their numbers there. They are subjected to every possible kind of discrimination, as well as expulsion.

Writing for the Palestinian daily Al-Ayyam Palestinian Muslim columnist, `Abd Al-Nasser Al-Najjar, has warned that the expulsion of Christians and the attempt to denounce them as “infidels” was causing great damage to the Arab culture, of which Christians are an essential and original part. In his article he criticised the fact that no one dared to come to the help of persecuted Christian minorities in the Middle East and he condemned the unwillingness of Arab intellectuals, the elite, non-government organisations and leaders of the private sector to act on behalf of Christians. “In Iraq the U.S. occupation, sought to impregnate Iraq with the seed of democracy. But the resulting foetus emerged deformed and weird. The worst outcome of this situation is the carnage against ethnic communities that has swept through Iraq. Neither Sunnis, nor Shi`ites, nor Christians, nor Kurds, nor Turkmen, nor members of other groups have managed to escape it. The problem is that is that neither Arab officials, intellectuals, the elites, non-government organizations, and leaders of the private sector. comprehend the danger with which these crimes are fraught.”

Statistics show that in 2005 the number of Christians in Iraq was as high as 800,000. By early 2008, it had dropped by half, indicating that 50 percent of Iraqi Christians had been expelled from their homes and lands. “Today, this problem is also rampant in Egypt, Lebanon, Algeria, and Palestine – and while the situation may be slightly different in Palestine, the trend is the same. Let us be honest with ourselves and courageously say out loud that Palestinian Christians are taking many severe blows, yet are suffering in silence so as not to attract attention.

“What makes things worse is that those who are plundering the Christians` property are either powerful in their own right or are backed by high-ranking military officials or influential members of large clans. Attempts by the political leadership to partially rectify this situation have failed. Nor has the judiciary system been able to resolve many of the problems. Over the past few years, several Christians have told me of the harm they have suffered, including even death threats, for trying to gain access to their lands after they were taken over by influential Bethlehem residents.

Furthermore, there has been an attempt to marginalize Christian culture in Palestine, even though it is rich and deeply rooted there. This began with accusations of unbelief against Christians. Despite all the injustices against the Christians, no one, Government or otherwise has initiated constructive action to curb it and to defend the Christians` rights. Such action should have been forthcoming not out of kindness and compassion, but due to regarding Palestinian Christians as indigenous to this land, and therefore no different from us, with the same rights and obligations as Muslims.

“But the most fundamental problem here may be related to culture. We continue to instil a horrific culture in our children, one that sees Christians as infidels. We need an injection of human and national awakening; we must raise an outcry and stand up to restore the Christians` rights, of which they have been deprived – and we must do this in order to preserve the demographic balance, which will safeguard the unity of our homeland and the justness of the Palestinian cause.”

Comments by Barnabus Fund: It is very encouraging to read words like these and to know that Muslims are speaking up on behalf of Christians who are persecuted and discriminated against in Muslim-majority contexts. It gives hope that the peaceful co-existence of Christians and Muslims is possible and that mutual respect is a key element to preserving a culture to which both Muslims and Christians have contributed over centuries.

Please Pray

* praising God for Muslims like ‘Abd Al-Nasser Al-Najjar, who dare to challenge the current anti-Christian developments in the Islamic world. Pray that many more will join him and others in promoting respect and equality between Christians and Muslims and demanding an end to discrimination, harassment and violence against Christians in Muslim countries.

Source: Barnabus Fund

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NOW THE CHURCH IS BEGINNING TO SHAKE

In the last two weeks three churches that once enjoyed huge popularity have fallen on hard times. In Tampa, Florida, Without Walls International Church is facing foreclosure. The megachurch, which once attracted 23,000 worshipers and was heralded as one of the nation’s fastest-growing congregations, shrunk drastically after co-pastors Randy and Paula White announced in 2007 that they were divorcing. Now their bank has filed foreclosure proceedings and demanded immediate repayment of a $12 million loan on the property.

In Duluth, Georgia Sheriff’s deputies arrived at Global Destiny Ministries and ordered Bishop Thomas Weeks II to leave the property. Weeks owed more than $511,000 in back rent to the building’s owners. He was escorted out of the building while a church service was in progress. Before that Weeks had defiled his pulpit during a marriage conference when he told men they should use profanity during sex to heighten their experience, and he brought couples on stage to play a game in which men were asked to name their favourite female body parts. Lord, help us.

In another part of the Atlanta area, leaders of the Cathedral at Chapel Hill announced that their church is officially for sale. The massive Gothic building—which at one time housed one of the nation’s most celebrated churches, with a membership of 10,000—has slipped into disrepair after lurid sex scandals triggered a mass exodus. Many parishioners walked out 16 years ago when it became known that Earl Paulk and other staff members were involved in wife-swapping. The church has only had a few hundred members in recent years. The church’s founder, Bishop Earl Paulk, turned the 6,000-seat church (valued at $24.5 million) over to his son, Donnie Earl, who in recent years has abandoned orthodox Christian doctrines and embraced universalism. Today, Donnie Earl now preaches that all people, not just Christians, are saved. He told Charisma last week that the Cathedral “has expanded to include all of God’s creation—Christian, Jew, Hindu, Buddhist, gay, straight, etc.” And this distorted message is broadcast from a pulpit that hosted some of the premier preachers during the 1970s and 1980s.

Editor of Charisma online J Lee Grady writes “I hear the sound of bricks and steel beams crashing to the ground. The wrecking ball of heaven is swinging. It has come to demolish any work that has not been built on the integrity of God’s Word. All of us should be trembling. God requires holiness in His church and truth in the mouths of His servants. He is loving and patient with our mistakes and weaknesses, but eventually, if there is no repentance after continual correction, His discipline is severe. He will not be mocked.

“God is not married to our buildings. If He allowed foreign armies to burn Jerusalem and its glorious temple, He will also write “Ichabod” on the doors of churches where there is no repentance for compromise. Let us pray the fear of God will grip our hearts until we cleanse our defiled pulpits. Let’s examine our hearts and our ministries. Let’s throw out the wood, hay and stubble and build on a sure and tested foundation. It is the only way to survive the meltdown.”

Source: Charisma Online

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EXTREMISTS DEMAND AN END TO CHRISTIAN ACTIVITY IN ORISSA

Two of the anti-Christian extremist groups responsible for the violence against Christians in Orissa, India, are demanding that the state government ban Christian witnessing and officially honour their murdered leader, Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati. At the same time, Orissa’s state government announced that it would give up to 200,000 rupees ($3,990) to the churches whose buildings were destroyed and 100,000 rupees ($1,995) for those that were damaged. Extremist groups have made the following demands of the state government:

1. Arrest the killers of Swami Laxamananda Saraswati.

2. Stop all Christian conversions and the slaughtering of cows in Orissa.

3. Grant national awards to the slain Swami for his service, like those granted to famed Catholic nun Mother Teresa, who ministered to thousands of poverty-stricken Indians in Calcutta during her lifetime.

Anti-Christian extremists have been on a rampage against Christians since August 23. Now they have presented the Orissa government with a list of demands and are threatening to shut down the state on December 25. If these demands are not met by December 15, the extremists say they will organize an illegal statewide strike that will shut down all transportation and commerce, on December 25. Some are saying the ultimate purpose of the threats appears to be preventing Christians from returning to their villages in time to celebrate Christmas.

Extremist leaders say they are simply demanding that Orissa officials properly enforce the “Freedom of Religion” Act. In spite of its name, the law places restrictions on people who choose to follow Christ or become Muslims. Speakers at the rally also lashed out at state and federal politicians who have condemned the violence against Christians, saying they are simply protecting the Swami’s killers. Three people, including two Christians, were arrested for the murder of the Swami, in spite of the fact that the Maoist group known as the Naxalites has taken responsibility for the murder.

Christians have welcomed the offer of government assistance to rebuild churches but also express concern that excessive demands for documentation will prevent the churches from actually receiving the funds. The extremist groups are actively opposing the move, saying the government has no right to spend taxpayer funds to appease the Christian community. Christian leaders are asking for prayer for wisdom for the government in dealing with the extremists’ demands and for the many Christians still hiding out in the jungles and forests as the bitter cold winter weather arrives.

Source: Gospel for Asia

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GROWING NUMBERS CONVERTING TO ISLAM IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA

In Papua New Guinea (PNG) a growing number of people are now choosing to pray at a mosque rather than a church. PNG is experiencing a sharp increase in the number of people turning their backs on Christianity and converting to Islam. “A lot of Papua New Guineans are converting to Islam because they feel comfortable in there,” said Khalid, an Imam who received his training in Malaysia. The practice of Islam is much easier than the other religions. In the religion of Islam you are your own preacher. You learn how to pray.

“God is not only in the mosque, he is everywhere. So if I don’t come into the mosque, the house of prayer, I can pray under the trees, in the house, anywhere.” Papua New Guineans began converting to Islam in the early 1980s, and there are now more than 4,000 followers with recent reports of entire villages converting at the same time. Many are drawn to Islam because of the similarities the religion has with Melanesian customs, says Isa Teine, the general secretary for PNG’s Islamic Society.

“When we greet people we hug them. This is Islam. We don’t shake hands and leave them, so most of our cultures are Islamic,” she said. ‘Islam encourages four wives. Before Islam came in, people already had two, three, four wives. This is Islam. So when the religion came in and said, ‘oh we have to do this, our Islamic culture, we have to do this and that’, people fit in easily. So it’s very easy for Papua New Guineans to embrace Islam. Once the religion itself spread I tell you, I’m just predicting in 20, 30 years’ time, all Papua New Guinea will submit to Islam.”

Church leaders like Pastor Joseph Walters say they do not feel threatened by the rapid growth of Islam. “This nation is a very strong Christian country and I travel around a lot preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God around the nation and the people generally are very strong, very dedicated, very committed to the Christian faith,” he said. ‘And so it may look like a threat to Christian faith in the country, but as a church leader in this country the way I see this, and because I travel a lot in crusades and just talking to people, Christianity is even stronger than ever before.”

But not everyone has embraced the religion, with incidents of discrimination and Islam phobia is quite common. The mosque in downtown Port Moresby has been fire-bombed, there is a bullet hole in one of the windows, and a senior PNG Government minister once said that Islam was dangerous and a serious threat to peace and unity here. An Islamic spokesman said “There is not much understanding at present but attitudes will change as the number of Papua New Guineans converting to Islam continues to increase.

Source: ABC

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