AUSTRALIAN PRAYER NETWORK NEWSLETTER * MINISTRY TAKING PLACE IN IRAQ DESPITE TURMOIL * SOUTH KOREA CONSIDERS BANNING MISSIONARY WORK IN THE MIDDLE EAST * INDIA STRUGGLES WITH GENOCIDE, ORDER AND IDENTITY * T.V. CHANNEL 'THE NATIVITY' OUT OF BETHLEHEM * ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY URGES RE-THINK ON ABORTION * JAPAN: SEASON OF CHANGE AHEAD * U.S. ABORTION RATE AT LOWEST LEVEL SINCE 1974 ----------------------------------------------- MINISTRY TAKING PLACE IN IRAQ DESPITE TURMOIL Although it is difficult to state how many Iraqi Christians are in the country, the number in 2003, prior to the fall of Sadam Hussein, was around 550,000. The dreadful situation lately has caused many Iraqi people, both Muslim and Christian, to leave the country. Church leaders in Iraq conservatively estimate that almost 75,000 Christians live outside Iraq in places like Syria or Jordan or in the West, and that another 75,000 have fled to northern Iraq. That means only 400,000 Christians remain in mainland Iraq. The depressing circumstances in which Christians live deeply affects everyday life in the Iraqi church. Imagine being an Iraqi teenager questioning the future of your country. What is in store for you and your family? Life is not easy; much courage is needed to remain in the country, and rock solid faith is needed to trust God in these situations. In cooperation with another organization, Open Doors has been holding training sessions for youth and young adults in Iraq. The training teaches them about spiritual warfare, the Kingdom of God, being crucified with Christ, relationships and more. The students showed incredible receptivity towards the teaching; some of them expressed it was the first time they heard teaching on these subjects. In response to the teaching, one participant shared: "God brought me here to teach me how the Cross needs to go to the deepest part of every aspect of my life." It was a joy to see young people coming together from so many diverse backgrounds. They gathered from six different Christian denominations. Despite many who were forced to leave the country, others have stayed to minister to the church and to new believers. Some have witnessed Jesus reveal Himself in miraculous ways, even to terrorists. One Pastor said "Many in our church now are new believers, and in the past four months we baptized six people. We have a generation now in Iraq who doesn't understand the meaning of living in peace, as they've only lived in wartime and in dangerous situations. But we can also testify of miracles, real miracles. Once, a terrorist came to my church. I was alone in the office. I thought he would kill me. And suddenly this tough man asked me, 'how can I get peace?' . "We need to love the Muslim people, because if we do not love them, we cannot evangelize them." Source: Open Doors USA ----------------------------------------------- SOUTH KOREA CONSIDERS BANNING MISSIONARY WORK IN THE MIDDLE EAST After receiving complaints from Middle Eastern countries about the evangelistic efforts of its citizens, the South Korean Government is considering banning missionary work in the Middle East "because of safety concerns." According to an unnamed official who spoke to The Korean Times late last week, among the measures being considered are restrictions on the usage of passports and on departures from South Korea for those who have been expelled for evangelization attempts. Members of missionary groups could be prohibited from entering Middle Eastern countries even if they have no records of expulsion. According to the official, "Some organizations keep sending their members to dangerous areas for missionary work. We've received requests from other countries to have them refrain from doing this." The Voice of the Martyrs is urging the South Korean government to refrain from interfering, even with the best intentions, in the rights of its citizens to carry out their faith even in dangerous environments. They are also urging Christians in free nations to recognize that there are risks in taking the gospel to many parts of the world and to accept the consequences of their obedience. They are calling upon mission and church leaders to better plan short-term ministry trips and prepare participants in ways and means of doing evangelism in religiously hostile environments that are in line with the biblical admonition to be as wise as serpents and as innocent as doves.(Matthew 10:16) * Pray that the South Korean government will withdraw their plans to restrict the religious freedom of their citizens in this way. * Pray that church leaders will stand up and let their concerns be known about these proposals. * Pray that church leaders and missions worldwide will recommit themselves to developing ministries in Muslim countries that are in line with the biblical admonition of Matthew 10:16. Source: Intercessors for America ----------------------------------------------- INDIA STRUGGLES WITH GENOCIDE, ORDER AND IDENTITY Despite the deployment of law enforcement troops, India’s violence continues to inflict daily damage on Christians. At least ten states have witnessed anti-Christian attacks in recent months. The increasingly tense situation is in contrast with the assurances from the provincial governments, which claim to be able to maintain security. Peter Dance with Operation Mobilization (OM) says the international community is becoming more aware of the import of the situation. “They are calling it genocide." The U.S. government has written to the Indian government and said, ‘This is unacceptable.’ The president of France has also said, ‘This is unacceptable.’ It is genocide because it’s targeted at one particular segment of society: the Christians and the Dalits.” Dr. Joseph D’souza, president of the All India Christian Council (AICC), said, “The anti-Christian attacks and the negligence of government in doing anything about them, would be sad if it happened in a dictatorship or a totalitarian regime. The fact that it’s happening in the world’s largest democracy makes it infinitely sadder.” The state governments have been largely ineffective in quelling the violence, and the federal government has not exercised their options of taking over in order to restore peace. 25 pastors and their families have been moved to an OM base for safety and protection. Within Orissa, attacks are spreading again. According to the AICC, leaders have reliable reports of 315 villages damaged, 4,640 Christian houses burnt, 53,000 Christians homeless, 57 people killed, 18,000 Christians injured, 2 nuns gang-raped, 149 churches destroyed, 13 Christian schools and colleges damaged. The OM team is acting as the hands and feet of Christ, but “we’re so restricted in what we can do going into the area. Basically, our focus right now is those that are able to come out, are coming to the church. We’re doing what we can, financially, to take care of medical needs, also food and clothing and housing.” Please pray for these traumatized brothers and sisters in Christ. Source: Intercessors Network ----------------------------------------------- T.V. CHANNEL 'THE NATIVITY' OUT OF BETHLEHEM The Nativity, the only Christian TV station in the Holy Land, has stopped its broadcasts because of reported death threats, trouble with the Palestinian authorities and insurmountable financial debts. The station had been broadcasting since 1996 and had become known as a unique voice for Christianity in the Middle East. Christians have never been allowed much space in the public media of the Arab World; public space is seen as space for Islam. It is very sad that the one clear voice for the Gospel on TV in the Palestinian territories is now silenced. The station had been broadcasting Masses and other Christian services, a weekly Christian program, news and entertainment, and even Muslim prayers on Fridays. It was particularly popular during the siege of the Church of the Nativity in 2002 as it covered the event 24 hours a day for six weeks! The director and owner of The Nativity, Samir Qumsieh, is a member of the Greek Orthodox Church. He and his family have personally funded the start-up of the station, but with a reported annual debt of $63,000, the operation is no longer financially viable. "My brothers told me to stop this waste, but for me it was very hard to close the television station because it is something that involved the whole community," Qumsieh said. Qumsieh had been receiving death threats and intimidation for over a year. His five siblings have already moved abroad and he now expects to follow them. Christian exodus from the Holy Land - and indeed from other parts of the Arab World - has raised serious concerns about the long term survival of Christianity in the region. These concerns are shared by Arab Vision as it expands its TV production work in the region to compensate for the loss of crucial platforms like The Nativity. "The reality is that Christians in the Arab World are evermore dependent on satellite TV, where Christian programs are beamed from the outside," continued the Arab Vision International Director. "We are eager to continue giving the Christians of the Arab World opportunity to watch Christian programs throughout the day. But the real loss is that we are pushed out of the public space in our own lands." Source: Arab Vision ----------------------------------------------- ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY URGES RE-THINK ON ABORTION There were nearly 200,000 abortions in England and Wales done annually, according to the Department of Health, and a recent survey by the medical journal Lancet reported that one-third of pregnancies in Europe ends in abortion. Abortion is becoming commonplace and people are insufficiently troubled about terminating pregnancies, the Archbishop of Canterbury said. The spiritual head of the world's 77 million Anglicans said people needed to think harder about the consequences of their actions." Recent discussion on making it simpler for women to administer abortion-inducing drugs at home underlines the growing belief that abortion is essentially a matter of individual decision and not the kind of major moral choice that should involve a sharing of perspective and judgment," Rowan Williams wrote in an article published in the Observer newspaper. "Something has happened to our assumptions about the life of the unborn child." The Archbishop made no direct call for legislation to be tightened, but he pointed out the paradox he saw between those who campaign for greater "foetal rights", condemning women who smoke during pregnancy, but fail to speak out about abortion. Source: Intercessors for America ----------------------------------------------- JAPAN: SEASON OF CHANGE AHEAD Japan’s opposition swept to a historic victory in elections last month following the theme of “change.” In a country known for its traditional ways, this could mean many open doors for the Gospel. Tim Clark with Asian Access says, “People of all ages are chanting, ‘Yes, we can! Yes, we can!’ I think that shows a desire for change. And then this week’s election is really very remarkable as decades of rule have ended, and political shift has been dramatic.” More importantly, it signals a paradigm shift in thinking. “Asian Access missionaries, along with Christians throughout the country, are hoping that this change will really come forward in a desire for change, spiritually.” Clark says people are very open to the Gospel now, making it a ripe harvest for summer evangelism teams. “These teams were able to build relationships with many non-Christians who normally would not be at a church. But because of this new openness and this new search for hope and encouragement, they found their way to a church." Source: Intercessors Network ----------------------------------------------- U.S. ABORTION RATE AT LOWEST LEVEL SINCE 1974 According to the latest survey by the Centre for Disease Control (CDC), abortions performed in the U.S. have hit their lowest mark since the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized the ending of an unborn baby's life. The latest available statistics reveal that 839,226 abortions occurred during the previous 12 months. That number is apparently the lowest since 1974, the first year of legalized abortions in America. While the decrease is good, it is nonetheless a startling fact that in that first year alone, the total amount of reported legal abortions was 763,476. Source: Breaking Christian News
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