AUSTRALIAN PRAYER NETWORK NEWSLETTER * THE COUNTER REVOLUTION TO POLITICAL CORRECTNESS HAS BEGUN IN BRITAIN * NEW ISLAMIC TV STATION LAUNCHED * BRAZIL TOLD TO KEEP GOD OUT OF FOOTBALL * WOMEN MUST BE TOLD UNBORN CHILD IS A HUMAN BEING U.S. JUDGE SAYS * INDIA: PRAYER TEAM BEATEN MERCILESSLY - THEN ARRESTED * CHRISTIANS FEAR FAILED PACT INCREASES RISK OF REPRISALS IN PHILIPPINES * MISSION AGENCIES CONCERNED BY ISLAMIC PUSH FOR ANTI-BLASPHEMY LAWS * IRAQ: CHURCH LEADERS PLEAD FOR HELP ----------------------------------------------- THE COUNTER REVOLUTION TO POLITICAL CORRECTNESS HAS BEGUN IN BRITAIN Peter Davies, the Mayor of Doncaster is enjoying increasing media exposure because of his "outrageous" agenda which, against all the tenets of consensual British politics, consists of doing what the public wants. In his first week in office he cut his own salary from £73,000 to £30,000, which is putting one’s money where one’s mouth is. He also scrapped the mayoral limousine. He is ending Doncaster’s twinning with five towns around the world, an arrangement which he describes as “just for people to fly off and have a binge at the council’s expense”. He intends to reduce council tax by 3 per cent this year. The “diversity” portfolio has been abolished from the council’s cabinet. From next year no more funding will be given to the town’s “Gay Pride” event, on the grounds that people do not need to parade their sexuality at taxpayers’ expense. Black History Month, International Women’s Day and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender History Month are similarly destined to become history. Council funding of translation services for migrants has been scrapped because he believes they should take the trouble to learn English. Officials have been ordered to abandon bureaucratic gobbledegook language. Davies is saving the taxpayers £80,000 by disaffiliating from the Local Government Association and the Local Government Information Unit. He aims to abolish all non-jobs on the council, such as “community cohesion officers”. He is taking advice from the Taxpayers’ Alliance and the Campaign Against Political Correctness. He disregards all “green claptrap” and is creating more parking spaces to encourage traffic in the town for the benefit of business. He has asked the Electoral Commission to reduce the number of Doncaster’s councillors from 63 to 21 (”If Pittsburgh can manage with nine councillors, why do we need 63?”). You may be feeling disorientated, overcome by a surreal sensation, on hearing such extraordinary, unprecedented views. They are the almost forgotten, forcibly extinguished voice of sanity which most people had thought forever excised from British politics. These policies are common sense, which is something we have not experienced in any council chamber, still less the House of Commons, in decades. The establishment is moving heaven and earth to discredit and obstruct Davies. He is the ultimate political embarrassment. If it is good enough for Doncaster however, it is good enough for Britain. Our politically correct politicians must be compelled to follow suit. There has to be an inflexible public will to enforce the country’s wishes on the political class under pain of ejection from public life. That should be the sole agenda for the next general election. The mainstream parties, as currently constituted, are no longer electable. Source: UK Telegraph Editorial ----------------------------------------------- NEW ISLAMIC TV STATION LAUNCHED A new satellite TV channel has been launched by Sunni clerics to discourage extremism and promote the moderate face of Islam. Azhari TV, which traces its roots to Al-Azhar University, faced some opposition during the weeks leading up to its launch. Coptic Christians in Egypt complained of religious favouritism since they are not allowed to have their own TV channel. This new channel is another effort by moderate Muslims to stem the tide of ‘conversions’ of Arab Muslims to radical brands of Islam, to secularism, or to the Christian faith. “The battle to attract the attention of over 300 million potential Arab TV viewers and impact their minds and hearts is intensifying,” explained a spokesman for Arab Vision. “Azhari TV is a significant addition to the Arabic satellite TV platform, but it does not deter us from our goal to produce attractive programs that communicate the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Arab World.” Azhari TV promises to be a 24-hour entertainment and education channel aiming to counter the “distortion of Islam into a violent, intolerant force.” A spokesman for the new channel said its purpose was to “teach the real Islam, which is void of terrorism. We want to tell people that Islam does not discriminate against people on grounds of their colour, gender or religion." The Egyptian government sought to block the start of the channel before its launch, stressing that it is opposed to any religious channels originating from within its borders. Analysts explain this public stance of the government as an attempt to quell claims of religious favouritism by Coptic Christians who have called the launch of Azhari divisive. It is not yet clear how the government impasse was resolved to give the new station the green light to proceed. The timing of the launch, at the commencement of Ramadan is not surprising. Television watching figures soar during Ramadan, as Muslims break their day-long fast with their families typically huddled around the TV set at night. Azhari will air a daily sermon by the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, as well as documentaries about Al-Azhar, conversational programs and cartoon series derived from the Qur’an. Source: Arab Vision ----------------------------------------------- BRAZIL TOLD TO KEEP GOD OUT OF FOOTBALL Soccer's world governing body FIFA (The Federation Internationale de Football Association) -- has sparked controversy after disciplining the Brazilian team for overt displays of Christianity during a match. AC Milan soccer star Kaka and his Brazilian team-mates have been told to stop making overt displays of their Christianity during matches. Real Madrid forward Kaka and captain Lucio wore T-shirts with devout slogans such as 'I Belong to Jesus' and 'I Love God' during the Confederations Cup final last month. FIFA reminded Brazil of its guidelines banning players from making displays of a personal, religious or political nature on the football pitch. A warning letter was sent to the Brazilian football federation 'to remind them of the relevant regulations, so that such incidents do not recur in the future.' Brazilian players, and Kaka in particular, are well-known for their strong religious beliefs. The entire squad together with backroom staff formed a large circle and sank to their knees in prayer after the recent victory over the USA. In the subsequent team photographs, many players were wearing the Christian T-shirts, with captain Lucio prominent as he lifted the trophy. In the light of Brazil's high-profile display of faith, seen around the world by millions of television viewers, the head of football in Denmark wants all religious statements banned from football. Jim Stjerne Hansen, secretary general of the Danish football association, said: "Just as we reject political manifestations, we should also say no to religious ones. There are too many risks involved in clubs, for example, with people of different religious faiths." FIFA rules specifically ban the use of T-shirts or other undergarments, but there is nothing that outlaws prayer or other displays of religious belief. Law 4, which deals with players' equipment, reads: "Players must not reveal undergarments showing slogans or advertising. The basic compulsory equipment must not have any political, religious or personal statements." Brazil has escaped sanction, just as they did following a similar display of T-shirts after their 2005 Confederations Cup win, but football has made its intention clear to keep religion, as well as politics, out of sport. Source: ASSIST News Service ----------------------------------------------- WOMEN MUST BE TOLD UNBORN CHILD IS A HUMAN BEING U.S. JUDGE SAYS A Federal Court has upheld the constitutionality of a South Dakota law requiring doctors to inform patients that abortion kills a human being. U.S. District Judge Karen Schreier handed down the ruling in a lawsuit against the state filed by Planned Parenthood objecting to a law requiring that full information be given to women seeking abortions. Judge Schreier ruled that the new law was valid in requiring that a woman must be told that abortion "will terminate the life of a whole, separate, unique, living human being." In the same ruling Schreier overturned a requirement that women be informed that abortion increases the risk of suicide and suicidal thoughts. Schreier called these disclosure provisions "untruthful and misleading." Also struck down was a provision requiring doctors to tell a woman that she has an existing, legally protected relationship with her unborn child. Schreier ruled that "in the legal context, a pregnant mother cannot have a 'relationship' with a 'human being,' as that word is defined in the statute." South Dakota recently attempted to ban abortion within the state entirely. Attorneys with the Alliance Defence Fund (ADF) who had filed a brief on behalf of the Family Research Council, said, "A woman's life is worth more than Planned Parenthood's bottom line, so we're pleased the abortion industry failed in its attempt to strike down this law. Leslee Unruh, founder of the pro-life Alpha Centre pregnancy counselling centre, said the ruling is a "huge blow" to the abortion lobby and a step forward in the "unravelling" of Roe v. Wade. Unruh told the New York Times that her organization will appeal the decisions on the suicide and relationship provisions. Source: LifeSiteNews.com ----------------------------------------------- INDIA: PRAYER TEAM BEATEN MERCILESSLY - THEN ARRESTED The Christian community of Chhattisgarh state is rattled after a gruesome mob attack and torture. Hindu nationalists broke open the door of a house where a three-day prayer meeting was taking place and attacked participants as they slept – ultimately forcing two Christians to beat one of their own prayer partners unconscious under threat of death. The mob beat the participants, including women, and dragged three of them from the house. It was thought they were taken to the police station, but instead they were taken to a secluded place where the beatings continued. Meanwhile in a separate incident a paramilitary soldier assigned to protect Christians from Hindu violence in Orissa was mutilated and killed by a mob in Sisapanga village. The body of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) soldier was recovered from a nearby forest. He was believed to have been hacked to death by tribal people. “The soldier had been to Sisapanga village, accompanied by a driver, to buy provisions. A group of six or seven men attacked him from behind, dragged him into the jungle and hacked him to death,” police said. The driver fortunately managed to escape. The death marked the first time that central security personnel have been targeted in Orissa. “The murder of the soldier comes in the wake of persistent demands from the tribals to withdraw the paramilitary force,” a police spokesman said. Source: Intercessors Network ----------------------------------------------- CHRISTIANS FEAR FAILED PACT INCREASES RISK OF REPRISALS IN PHILIPPINES Militant Islamists in the Philippine island of Mindanao have stepped up their attacks on majority-Christian villages since the failure of a peace agreement that would have enlarged an existing Muslim autonomous region there. With Muslim commanders of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in the southern Philippines saying ongoing support from the international community was necessary to prevent full-scale war breaking out in Mindanao, both Muslim and Christian residents in the disputed territories were fearful of what the future might hold. “The problem is that many people living in these areas don’t want to be part of a Muslim autonomous region,” a source in Mindanao who preferred to remain anonymous said. “The closer you get to these zones, the more nervous people are.” A Christian family from the area said many people were afraid to sleep at night because they kept hearing reports that they would be attacked. Source: Intercessors Network ----------------------------------------------- MISSION AGENCIES CONCERNED BY ISLAMIC PUSH FOR ANTI-BLASPHEMY LAWS Attempts by Islamic nations to push for International Anti-Blasphemy laws is drawing the ire of evangelical mission groups. Carl Moeller with Open Doors explains, “Anti-blasphemy laws are putting a ‘chilling effect’ on Christian work around the world, and that is a very troubling development. Such laws are used to intimidate believers and spread Sharia law. Moeller says, “The reality is that wherever Christianity and Islam come into relationship with each other, the net effect has been for Christian evangelism to be silenced or to be intimidated through these kinds of law.” Moeller urges prayer because “the slope is so slippery because everything that purports to criticize Islam is considered ‘blasphemy.’ Anything that promotes another religious viewpoint, like Christianity, is considered ‘blasphemy.’ It really becomes the ultimate weapon against free religious speech around the world.” Source: Intercessors Network ----------------------------------------------- IRAQ: CHURCH LEADERS PLEAD FOR HELP Iraqi church leaders have appealed directly to the Iraqi Prime Minister for increased efforts to curb the continuing attacks against Christians in that country. The heads of 10 Iraqi churches have urged the prime minister to use the army to watch over Christians in the country. Church leaders said police efforts to curb violence were insufficient and more needed to be done to stabilize the country. The Prime Minister assured the church heads that he would do whatever was in his power in cooperate with them. Source: Intercessors Network
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