The Taliban reportedly killed three Christian aid workers in Pakistan last week.
Compass Direct News has reported the bodies of the three have been recovered and were sent to the U.S. Embassy. The names of the workers and their organization have been withheld for security reasons.
The aid workers were helping flood victims in Pakistan's northwestern Swat Valley. The Taliban had warned that it would attack foreign and Christian aid workers in the region.
"These sort of threats are not new," said Martin Tuelan, national executive officer of Catholic Mission, a mission aid agency.
Hundreds of thousands of Americans came together in the National Mall in Washington, D.C. this weekend for Fox News talk show host Glenn Beck's "Restoring Honor" rally.
Former Gov. Sarah Palin, R-Alaska told the crowd it was time to restore America and Beck said this nation is turning back to God.
For all the controversy the rally stirred up in advance, in the end it turned out to be about exactly what it said it would be. Not politics and the Tea Party -- but about honor -- restoring it, teaching it and honoring those who live by its virtues.
Palin appeared and honored servicemen and women who have given so much and have also suffered for the country they so love.
"Though this rally is about restoring honor, for these men and women, honor was never lost," Palin said.
Beck said it's time for all Americans to become everyday heroes and people of virtue.
Nearly two years after large-scale anti-Christian violence broke out in India’s Kandhamal district, Orissa state, a team working against human trafficking on Aug. 9 rescued a 16-year-old Christian girl – one of at least 60 people sold into slavery after being displaced by the 2008 attacks.
The recovery in Delhi of the girl represented the cracking of a network that has trafficked Christian girls and women from Orissa to the national capital, sources said.
“Human trafficking agents operating in the tribal belt of Orissa have targeted the Christian girls who are displaced by the Kandhamal communal violence – we have been receiving complaints of missing girls from Kandhamal after the violence broke out in 2008,” said attorney Lansinglu Rongmei, one of the rescue team members. “Roughly 60 girls are estimated missing and have been trafficked to different states.”
Former President Jimmy Carter has helped free a U.S. Christian who was detained for the past seven months in North Korea.The two are expected to return to Boston, Mass., Friday afternoon.
According to The Carter Center, Aijalon Mahli Gomes was granted amnesty by North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il after having been sentenced to eight years of hard labor for entering the reclusive country illegally.
Singer-wife of a prominent pastor faces criticism over her high-profile celebrity lifestyle.
WHEN Singapore church leader Ho Yeow Sun decided to pursue a secular singing career in 2002, no one quite expected the move to prove so contentious down the years even though the career switch was not usual by any standard.
A music director and counsellor with the non-denominational City Harvest Church for a decade before she struck out for the music world, her fledgling pop career was acclaimed a success but took a turn towards controversy when the Singaporean media reported that the church was updating members on Ho’s career moves and offering her albums for sale.
Ho’s foray into entertainment has been controversial as she is not just a former church leader. Her husband is Reverend Kong Hee, City Harvest’s founding pastor and one of the keenest supporters of her pop music career.
Media interest in Ho over the years did not lessen as she has attracted adverse reactions over her daring dress sense as she attempted to break into the US music market after she had released five best-selling Mandarin albums.
Ho, or Sun Ho as she has fashioned herself in the States, faces criticisms that have largely pivoted on her status as a pastor’s wife as well as her intimate involvement with a church for more than a decade. Some have asked how she could be so liberal in her dressing when she is so steeped in religion.
When it emerged that she has been living in a S$28,000 (RM65,000)-a-month house with a swimming pool in Los Angeles while pursuing her American ambitions, critics asked if it was right for a former church leader and a pastor’s wife to be leading the high life.In Ho’s case, the question is really about whether it is appropriate for a pastor’s wife and a church leader to be a pop singer and a celebrity.
Her supporters have countered that there is nothing wrong with living the high life as she is a successful singer and celebrity, and suggested that Singaporeans should be proud of her accomplishments, which include having four singles reach the top of the Billboard charts since she began her American conquest in 2004.
They also point to her humanitarian work, which included donations towards the building of some schools in China as well as her trip to Haiti after the Jan 12 earthquake to perform relief work there. Proceeds from her album sales also go to charity.
It is clear that there is usually great tolerance when celebrities who practise a religion use their fame and influence in support of it.
Richard Gere, for instance, is a tireless supporter of Tibetan Buddhism and has been very vocal in his support for the Dalai Lama, even speaking out against China for what he views as the repression of Tibet.
His religious involvement has done no harm to his acting career. In fact, Gere’s fans as well as his fellow actors have been known to be influenced by his beliefs.
However, one of the crucial reasons it is all right for celebrities to be religious is that they are seen as moving towards the light, that is, many see it as a sign of their efforts to better themselves, especially as they are often engaged in humanitarian work through their religions.
After all, celebrities are closely associated with the leading of ostentatious, extravagant lifestyles with liberal and hedonistic tendencies. So religion is good for them.
There are also cases where religious figures such as Billy Graham, an American radio and television Christian evangelist, acquire celebrity status and even appear on entertainment programmes. But they are on the programmes to discuss moral and theological issues, so there is no disconnect between their religious and celebrity roles.
On the other hand, a pastor’s wife and former church leader who becomes a pop singer and a celebrity is seen as moving away from the light; that is, many would see it as a sign of a descent into a decadent life, despite the humanitarian work Ho continues to perform.
It really doesn’t help that Ho dresses sexily, makes music videos that raise temperatures, and seems to be revelling in the celebrity lifestyle. Or that she is living in a house where the monthly rental is the equivalent of some Singaporeans’ annual income.
To be fair, there have been celebrities who have led scandal-free lives and done their part for charity, but in general, the entertainment world is not known for being a place for the virtuous.
In this day and age, no one expects their religious leaders to be leading simple lives with no material wants and needs. Few would begrudge them a comfortable life. But for a religious leader, albeit a former one, to become, or to want to become, a celebrity of the Hollywood kind is deemed to have crossed the line.
Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr. on Thursday said that police may have caused the bloody ending to a hostage crisis on Monday in Manila.
During a Senate hearing on the hostage-taking that played out at Quirino Grandstand in Manila’s Rizal Park (Luneta), Revilla noted that the arrest of Senior Police Officer 2 Gregorio Mendoza by fellow policemen agitated the hostage-taker into killing eight of mostly Chinese captives.
Gregorio is the younger brother of hostage-taker and former Police Senior Insp. Rolando Mendoza, who was said to have been killed by a police sniper toward the end of the incident seen live on television worldwide.
“Isa lang nag-trigger niyan . . . yung order ng pagkaka-aresto ng kapatid niya [Gregorio] [Only one factor triggered the violent ending . . . it was the order to arrest the brother of Gregorio],” Revilla told police officials during the first hearing on the hostage crisis.
He and other senators grilled government and police officials on the 12-hour hostage drama that later led to bitter words from Hong Kong, hometown of the slain Chinese and their 14 compatriots who survived the incident.
Three Filipino captives were also found alive inside the bus that had carried them and the foreigners from Fort Santiago to Rizal Park.
But Sen. Jose Miguel Zubiri said that President Benigno Aquino 3rd was not to blame for the deaths.
President Aquino “should only be ready for responses to foreign governments. He should be isolated from this [fallout from a apparently bungled police rescue attempt]. Hindi niya ito gawain [It is not his job to resolve the crisis],” he explained.
Chief Supt. Rodolfo Magtibay, the director of the Manila Police District (MPD) who has gone on leave because of the apparent fiasco, told the senators that it was Mayor Alfredo Lim of Manila who had ordered the arrest of Mendoza’s brother after it was discovered that Gregorio “conspired” with the hostage-taker.
Magtibay said that they had received information from Supt. Orlando Yebra, the chief negotiator in the hostage drama, that Gregorio was allegedly interfering with negotiations to end the stand-off with Mendoza.
He added that he was with Lim when the mayor gave an order to “escort [Gregorio] Mendoza to the general assignments section.”
Lim, however, denied ordering the arrest, saying that he even decided not to be visible during the negotiations because he was the one who had ordered Mendoza’s dismissal from the police force.
“[The order] was based on a report from Supt. Yebra that [Gregorio] conspired with [Mendoza] . . . that was the impression [that we got],” Magtibay said.
Gregorio was overheard to have told Mendoza, “Tol, wag ka muna bibigay, hindi pa isinasaoli ang baril ko [Brother, don’t surrender yet because they haven’t returned my gun yet].”
Not a negotiator Magtibay clarified that Gregorio was not part of the original negotiating team, but that he was allowed to escort Yebra, who was to deliver a letter from the Office of the Ombudsman to Mendoza.
The letter carried the Ombudsman’s promise to personally review Mendoza’s case.
The slain hostage-taker was dismissed in 2009 on extortion charges and stripped of his retirement benefits.
But the disgruntled former police officer, who was demanding to be reinstated to the police service, “threw the letter as garbage,” reports said.
By night time of Monday, Magtibay, who was the ground commander during the hostage crisis, said that he had ordered MPD’s assault team “to save the remaining hostages who might still be alive” after Mendoza fired several shots inside the tourist bus.
Lim reacts From Manila City Hall, Lim also on Thursday said that Magtibay apparently had been rattled before the Senate hearing because he told reporters during the hostage crisis that it was he who ordered the arrest of Gregorio.
Vice Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Dumagoso of Manila also told the media that Gregorio was very calm when the police escorts told him to come with them.
But, Dumagoso said, Gregorio ran to where the reporters covering the hostage crisis converged and made a scene there.
“This scene created by SPO2 Gregorio which was caught on television was the one that triggered the hostage-taker to become violent, not the arrest” the vice mayor added.
Also on Thursday, the Philippine National Police (PNP) began carrying out ballistic tests to determine if the policemen who took part in the assault to rescue the hostages fired any of the bullets that killed the eight Hong Kong tourists.
“We are examining the firearms used in the assault, including the 200 firearms used by the assault team,” PNP Spokesman and Senior Supt. Agrimero Cruz told Agence France-Presse.
Cruz said that the M-16 rifle and .45 automatic pistol used by Mendoza were also being tested.
The hostages were killed as a police team attempted to storm the bus, only to be held at bay for about an hour, as Mendoza fired at them, using some of his captives as human shields.
The apparently ill-prepared police team eventually made their way into the bus and shot Mendoza dead.
President Aquino and the police have admitted that many mistakes were made during the hostage crisis, and the four leaders of the assault team were suspended on Wednesday.
Cruz said that the PNP would give regular updates on results of its investigation.
Media role Also on Thursday, ABS-CBN said that they would have supported a news blackout during the hostage crisis if authorities called for it.
Media have been getting part of the blame for the bloody ending to Monday’s hostage crisis because the hostage-taker was able to monitor movements of police through television.
In a statement, ABS-CBN said that their team that covered the hostage drama practiced “self-restraint.”
“No. 1, we refused to air the hostage-taker’s threats live at 3 p.m. deadline to avoid fueling public fear. No. 2, we refused to air the hostage-taker’s interview until after negotiations were finished. No. 3, we refused to be part of hostage negotiations,” the network added.
ABS-CBN said that they kept their cameras 400 meters away from the bus and that their team never crossed the police line.
“Although we had access to members of the police reaction team, we held back interviews which could compromise their plans and/or location,” the network added.
ABS-CBN said that when Gregorio was being arrested by police, their team “physically stepped back to comply with police request.”
“After the assault began, we tried to limit our shots to avoid showing police movements. We stayed with extreme close-ups or wide shots,” the network added.
ABS-CBN called on the media to put into place measures “to collectively decide when we stop live coverage in the absence of government presence of mind.”
17 Aid Workers murdered and 19 abducted this year.
It's been a bad week for Christian aid groups in two of the world’s most challenging nations.
In Afghanistan, ten workers for the International Assistance Mission (IAM) were found shot in the northeastern region of Badakhshan. Beyond veteran ophthalmologist and team leader Tom Little, whose wife recently wrote for CT on the Christian call to suffering in mission, the now-identified dead include Glenn D. Lapp, who worked with the Mennonite Central Committee, and 32-year-old Cheryl Beckett, a pastor’s daughter from Tennessee and a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University. Out of the 1,500 aid groups registered in Afghanistan, 17 aid workers have been murdered and 19 abducted this year.
A pastor has angered Christians in South Africa by preaching a sermon entitled "Jesus was HIV-positive" in an attempt to break what he regards as a conspiracy of silence by the South African church.
Xola Skosana said that HIV is stigmatised as evil and a sin in the country that has the world's biggest caseload.
Skosana, 43, underwent a HIV test in front of his congregation last Sunday at the non-denominational Way of Life church in Khayelitsha , Cape Town. The test was also taken by 100 young people from the impoverished township.
The pastor said he chose the title for his three-part sermon to draw attention to "a very serious issue".
Gary Russell, international director for China Harvest, Todd Nettleton, director of media development for the Voice of the Martyrs USA, and Jonathan Brooks, president of the Voice of China and Asia Missionary Society, weigh in on whether Christians should continue to smuggle Bibles into China.
The best way to illustrate the need for Bibles in China today is to share the testimony of a longtime friend, Brother "Han."
Born a peasant, Han came to Christ while in university. While planting churches in urban centers, he found the number of available basic Bibles growing. Getting enough Bibles was not the problem. That need, he concluded, was being met on a nationwide basis.
Jonathan Brooks, president of the Voice of China and Asia Missionary Society, Todd Nettleton, director of media development for the Voice of the Martyrs USA, and Gary Russell, international director for China Harvest, weigh in on whether Christians should continue to smuggle Bibles into China.
To answer the question about smuggling Bibles into China, it's helpful to better understand how Bibles printed within China are distributed. The city of Nanjing is home to Amity Printing, the world's largest Bible-printing facility and the only legal Bible printer in China. Its mission is to print Bibles for distribution inside China. Amity also exports Bibles in many languages throughout the world.
Because Bibles printed inside China do not have an isbn number, they cannot be sold in Chinese bookstores. The only place one may legally purchase a Bible is in a registered Chinese church.
Todd Nettleton, director of media development for the Voice of the Martyrs USA, Jonathan Brooks, president of the Voice of China and Asia Missionary Society, and Gary Russell, international director for China Harvest, weigh in on whether Christians should continue to smuggle Bibles into China.
Several years ago, my wife and I delivered a small suitcase of Bibles into the hands of a Chinese house—church pastor. When he opened the suitcase and saw the treasure inside, his face displayed the same look I'd seen on the faces of my young sons on Christmas morning, when they realized "Santa" had left a basketball hoop in our driveway: sheer, unfettered joy.
President Obama told Christianity Today in 2008, "I am a Christian, and I am a devout Christian." According to a new Pew Forum survey, only a third of Americans believe him. This is only slightly more than the 18 percent who think he is a Muslim. Among evangelical Christians, 29 percent believe Obama is a Muslim, but only 27 percent think he is a Christian.
Since March of last year, the percentage of Americans who think Obama is a Muslim has increased from 11 to 18 percent, while the percentage who think he is a Christian dropped from 48 to 34 percent.
Ex President USA Jimmy Carter (L) and (R) Aijalon Mahli Gomes
The North Korean government says they will free a Christian activist they sent to prison in April—as long as former President Jimmy Carter is the one who comes to get him.
CNN reported that Carter is gearing up for a trip to North Korea to free Christian activist and American citizen Aijalon Mahli Gomes. North Korean officials say they will release Gomes to Carter.
Yesterday evening, CNN reported that Florida’s Dove World Outreach Center had arranged for an armed militia group to protect the Qur’an-burning event they scheduled for September 11.
This morning, it appears, the militia is having second thoughts.
“Right Wing Extreme has pulled support for the International Burning of the Koran day and will not attend the event,” the group announced in a 1:50 a.m. press release on its website. “After much thought and prayer the organization’s leadership determined this event does not glorify GOD in way that leads the lost to Jesus Christ.”
The group, which bills itself in the release as an “armed Christian conservative group,” says they got started in April 2009 after a department of Homeland Security report called “Right Wing Extremism,” which highlighted the radical far right’s revitalization since President Barack Obama took office.
The group considers Islam a “cult” and blasts the President for his support of the Park51 Islamic center which a Muslim group plans to build near Ground Zero in New York. But they do not think burning Islam’s holy scripture will solve any problems.
“Dove World Outreach are our brothers and sisters in Christ,” the release says. “However we ask that they not hold this event for the reason that it may diminish the work of the Holy Spirit to witness to Muslims.”
The release also quoted James 1:19: “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.”
Posters on the group's forum were divided on the issue.
“I support the desecration of the Koran,” wrote “RushLimbaughFan,” “because not Only is Islam a Heathen Religion, it is also the only one that Preaches Hate and Kill thy Neighbor in the Name of spreading Islam across the Globe.”
“This could be the stupidest idea ever in the history of stupid ideas,” wrote “Kevin.” “What do you think the net results of this action will be? You will give the left ammunition right before the November elections.”
“You are all horrible human beings and Christians,” retorted “empire.” “Jesus taught in the bible to turn the other cheek and respect other people. Is this what you call that?!”
"What happened, Shannon? Who got to you?" wrote Fran Ingram, who said she was a "proud member" of the Dove World Outreach Center, to Right Wing Extreme founder Shannon Carson. "I cannot believe you wrote your latest press release. I call it totally cowardly."
"I will be removing my membership from your forum," she added.
Dove World Outreach Center’s Pastor Terry Jones told CNN that Right Wing Extreme must have “bowed to fear or to pressure from other organizations, other groups.”
After receiving threats by phone and email and meeting with the FBI, Jones had hoped the group would be able to protect them during the Qur'an burning event.
"This is just a typical giving in to pressure and fear,” he said.
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