| February 16, 2009
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To the angel of the church in Smyrna
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Revelation 2:8-11
"And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: The first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life, says this: `I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich), and the blasphemy by those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. `Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. `He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death.'
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Psalms 35:1-3
A Psalm of David. Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me;
Fight against those who fight against me.
Take hold of buckler and shield
And rise up for my help.
Draw also the spear and the battle-axe to meet those who pursue me;
Say to my soul, "I am your salvation."
2 Timothy 3:12
Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.
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1 Peter 4:12-14
Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.
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Job 5:19
"From six troubles He will deliver you,
Even in seven evil will not touch you.
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| Shalom in Christ Jesus, |
For those who have not
recently visited the Moriel website, please do. It has been recently been
updated and improved with many new features that you will have to browse and
experience for yourselves as there is just too much to try and list and/or
explain.
Currently, the online
written sermons by Jacob Prasch are being updated on the site as some are
completed and others are still in the old format. If you have not viewed the
new format, may I suggest a sermon I believe the church needs to hear most desperately
in these last days, "Egypt, Babylon or the Palm of God".
May the Lord bless you and
keep you,
BE/\LERT!
Scott
Brisk |
| Behead a Christian, raise your rank |
Islam's Shariah cited in 7 of 10 worst nations worldwide
WORLDNETDAILY - By Bob Unruh - February 3, 2009
Reports that at least 10 Christians were abducted and killed for their faith - sometimes by beheading - during 2008 has pushed Somalia into the Top 10 among nation's that aggressively persecute Christians, according to a new report from Open Doors USA.
The organization today released its 2009 World Watch List, which cited Korea - for the seventh straight year - as the nation that persecutes Christians more intensely than any other around the globe.
But Somalia rose from 12th in 2008 to 5th this year because of the growing level of attacks there, according to the report which noted two of the worst three nations, Saudi Arabia and Iran, are nations governed by Islamic Shariah law, and seven of the Top 10 nations fall into that category.
Paul Estabrooks, the organization's minister-at-large, told WND that those Islamic nations "certainly are impacted significantly by Shariah."
According to reports from Compass Direct News, it was only about 12 weeks ago when an aid worker was beheaded in Somalia specifically for converting from Islam to Christianity.
Witnesses told the organization Muslim extremists had gathered a crowd in Manyafulka village by telling them of a feast that was being prepared.
Eyewitnesses who insisted on anonymity because they feared reprisals said the Islamics carried guns and swords and dragged a handcuffed Mansuur Mohammed with them. They reported one Muslim pulled back Mohammed's head, another recited the Quran and another twisted his head so an executioner could slit his neck.
The killers then displayed the severed head to the petrified crowd, the report said.
The report said a video taken on a mobile telephone later was circulated in what many saw as a strategy to terrify anyone contemplating conversion from Islam to Christianity.
Open Doors said Afghanistan, Somalia and the Maldives are fourth, fifth and sixth, with Afghanistan moving up three spots because of an aggressive effort from Taliban officials during 2008.
In seventh is Yemen, Laos is No. 8, Eritrea, a newcomer to the Top 10, is No. 9 and Uzbekistan No. 10.
Estabrooks told WND Eritrea's jump into the Top 10 was because of its dictator's decision to place as many as 3,000 Christians in prison cells - many made of no more than steel shipping crates - without court hearings.
China dropped from No. 10 to No. 12 this year and Bhutan dropped from No. 5 to No. 11, although they remain of high concern, officials said.
The top offenders influenced by Shariah are Saudi Arabia, Iran, Afghanistan, Somalia, Maldives, Yemen and Uzbekistan. North Korea and Laos are communist while Eritrea is a dictatorship.
The World Watch List is compiled from a specially-designed questionnaire of 50 questions covering various aspects of religious freedom. A point value is assigned depending on how each question is answered. The total number of points per country determines its position on the World Watch List of countries that are the worst persecutors of Christians.
"It is certainly not a shock that North Korea is No. 1 on the list of countries where Christians face the worst persecution," said Carl Moeller, president of Open Doors USA. "There is no other country in the world where Christians are persecuted in such a horrible and systematic manner."
The rights of Christians deteriorated in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Afghanistan, Somalia, Pakistan (13), Iraq (16), Mauritania (18), Algeria (19), India (22), Northern Nigeria (26), Indonesia (41), Bangladesh (43) and Kazakhstan (50) for the 2009 report, Open Doors said.
Persecution continued "unabated" in Saudi Arabia, where the daughter of a member of the nation's religious police force was killed for writing online about her new faith in Christ.
According to the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information, Saudi police also just two weeks ago arrested a man "because of his opinions and his testimony that he had converted from Islam to Christianity."
In Iran, Islamic crackdowns have been boosted aggressively on house churches, in Afghanistan, a Christian was killed after being accused of "spreading" Christianity, and India's ranking rose from 30 to 22 because of the "worst outbreak of religious violence on record for Christians in ... the state of Orissa," the report said.
The organization estimates 100 million Christians worldwide suffer interrogation, arrest and even death for their faith in Christ, with millions more facing discrimination and alienation.
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Live Teaching Engagements
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Commentary on the Be Alert! Blog
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US: PETITION TO BLOCK CONGRESSIONAL ATTACKS ON FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND PRESS
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WORLDNETDAILY - February 3, 2009
The petition calls on all three branches of government to protect the speech freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment.
It urges Congress to "immediately drop all legislative efforts to re-impose the so-called 'Fairness Doctrine' and that the president of the United States veto any so-called 'Fairness Doctrine' legislation approved by Congress and that the U.S. Supreme Court overturn as unconstitutional any so-called 'Fairness Doctrine' legislation approved by Congress and signed by the president."
"The notion of a so-called 'Fairness Doctrine' for the media, mandated by government and policed by a system devised by government, should be anathema to every American who understands liberty and the First Amendment," said Joseph Farah, founder, editor and chief executive officer of the leading independent online news source. "This is not just a threat to broadcasters. It's a threat to the Constitution and every American. This should not even be a matter of controversy - but, unfortunately, it is. We've lived through shameful period in which government regulated broadcast content. When it ended in 1987, we witnessed an explosion of new voices and lively debate. It's time for the American people to show we don't want to go backward."
Read and Sign the Petition Here
Read Full Report
See Also:
Silencing the Watchmen
OLIVE TREE MINISTRIES - By Jan Markell
America is changing at break-neck speed and many of the changes are not helpful! While Americans were eager for "change," it is doubtful they anticipated the loss of free speech.
So let me explain the unfair "Fairness Doctrine." My radio program, Understanding the Times, is in the target range.
The National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) met last weekend in Memphis and according to President Frank Wright, experienced an ominous shroud cast by the issue of the "Fairness Doctrine." They intend to fight this issue as much as that is possible. However, they may not even be given the opportunity to fight it as they would wish.
In an article posted online by Human Events on February 6, "Christian broadcasters say they will be targeted once President Obama's appointees gain control of the Federal Communications Commission."
Warren Kelley, president of Point of View, the first Christian talk show to go on the air via satellite 37 years ago, states, "The Left Wing will immediately start filing complaints, and it will in short order shut Christian broadcasting down." He concludes, "I think it will so limit what they say that, in essence, they will cease to be Christian broadcasters."
Read Full Report
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North Korea - 7 years running as worst persecutor
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ONE NEWS NOW [American Family News Network] - By Allie Martin - February 4, 2009
Once again North Korea has retained its title as the worst persecutor of Christians in the world.
According to the 2009 World Watch List compiled by Open Doors, the communist nation of North Korea -- described by the group as a nation with "severe persecution" -- is the number-one worst persecutor of believers for the seventh year in a row. Saudi Arabia is number two and Iran is in third place. Both of those countries are ruled by Shariah law.
Dr. Carl Moeller, president of Open Doors, says the World Watch List is a reliable way to evaluate the level of persecution against Christians.
"The World Watch List is an annual ranking of the worst persecutors on earth that we measure using a 50 question survey that our co-workers put together and assign a point value to each one of those questions. In the process we get a first-hand assessment of the intensity of persecution and the nature of the persecution around the world."
Afghanistan, Somalia, and the Maldives take the fourth, fifth, and sixth positions. Yemen is number seven, followed by Laos, Eritrea, and Uzbekistan.
Countries still imposing "severe limitations" on believers but showing a positive trend over the last year (i.e., whose persecution rating decreased noticeably) include Bhutan, China, Turkmenistan, and Vietnam. Those showing a negative trend (increased persecution) include Pakistan, Iraq, Algeria, and India.
Original Report
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Egypt: Judge tells Christian: 'I would kill you'
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Reportedly threatens woman who chooses to worship Jesus
WORLDNETDAILY - January 27, 2009
The oracle concerning Egypt.
Behold, the LORD is riding on a swift cloud and is about to come to Egypt;
The idols of Egypt will tremble at His presence,
And the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them. - Isaiah 19:1
A woman arrested at the Cairo airport because her identity card described her as a Christian has been threatened for her faith by the judge in her case, according to a new report.
As WND reported, authorities in Egypt deprived the woman's two children, ages 2 and 4, of food to try to coerce her to abandon Christianity and return to Islam.
According to the Assyrian International News Agency, a woman identified as Martha Samuel Makkar was arrested Dec. 13 as she, her husband, Fadl Thabet, and two sons were trying to leave Cairo for Russia.
Makkar, formerly known as Zainab Said Abdel-Aziz, was accused of carrying forged government documents, because she identified herself as a Christian. Islamic law forbids Muslims from abandoning the faith.
Now, according to Compass Direct News, she has been granted bail, and released to rejoin her husband and sons at home pending her forgery trial.
However, the release was not without complications.
Makkar's lawyer, Nadia Tawfiq, reported that Judge Abdelaa Hashem questioned Makkar closely about her Christian faith during a courtroom hearing.
The decision to grant her bail came Saturday in the hearing before Hashem after Makkar told the judge about her new Christian faith and her abandonment of Islam.
Tawfiq told Compass Direct "the judge then said, 'I want to talk with Martha alone,' so we all left the room, and he said to her, 'Nobody changes from Muslim to Christian - you are a Muslim.'
"And she said, 'No, I am a Christian.' He told her, 'If I had a knife now, I would kill you,'" the lawyer said.
Makkar, 24, has said she's been enduring death threats from police and members of her extended family for the five years since she converted.
There is no established legal precedent in Egypt for allowing people to leave Islam. And national law doesn't provide a channel through which to change the religious designation on an identity card.
The Compass report said George Abyad, 67, and Masood Guirges, 55, employees of the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate in Alexandria, also were arrested on suspicion they aided Makkar with her papers.
Egypt formally recognizes Islamic Shariah law as the source of justice, and Christians have faced persecution there for generations.
The American Center for Law and Justice has participated in a fight to keep a man who fled Egypt from being deported from the U.S. A recent decision from the 3rd U.S. District Court of Appeals gave Sameh Khouzam the right to challenge Egypt's "diplomatic assurances" that he would not be tortured on his return to the Middle East nation.
Egypt has been demanding his extradition in a homicide case he alleges is trumped-up. The case has been highlighted by spokesman Sam Grace of Coptic News. He praised U.S. District Judge Thomas Vanaskie's earlier ruling that Khouzam "most assuredly has a right not to be tortured."
Grace earlier told WND Christians in Egypt are hostages.
"We live in a time that is really as bad if not worse than the time of the martyrs," he said.
Multitudes of Christians have been attacked, and many killed, yet not one Muslim ever has been convicted in the attacks, he said.
"The why is very simple, because Shariah law says the blood of the Muslim should not be shed for the blood of an unbeliever," he said.
Grace said since Egypt's constitution concludes laws derive from the Quran, persecution of Christians is not only allowed but endorsed by the government.
"In the last 10 years, more than 5,000 Christians have been massacred in Egypt," he told WND. "Hundreds of businesses and homes first have been looted, then burned and destroyed. Churches have been burned and destroyed."
Grace told WND that attacks, lootings and burnings are common in Egypt on Fridays, after the local imam preaches violence against Christians at his mosque.
"The life of a Christian in Egypt is now worth zero. Every Muslim now knows killing a Christian [is not prosecuted]," he said.
A report from the Coalition for the Defense of Human Rights concluded Coptic Christians in Egypt have been harassed, tortured and killed by Muslims for 1,400 years. ...
Read Full Report
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Egyptian Christians Sent to Prison after Brutal Police Raid
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COMPASS DIRECT - By Roger Elliot - February 2, 2009
ISTANBUL - Following a brutal raid on six Christian brothers and their café because they had opened for business during Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting, a judge on Jan. 22 sentenced them to three years in prison with hard labor for resisting arrest and assaulting authorities.
Last September, 13 police officers raided the café in Port Sa'id, a city in Egypt's Nile delta, overturning tables, breaking chairs and smashing glasses and hookah pipes, according to the Coptic Christians' lawyer. They beat the brothers with sticks, leaving two with broken arms and a third needing 11 stitches for a head wound.
"The police attacked these people and assaulted them unjustifiably," said Ramses el-Nagar, the Christians' lawyer. "Police did not want to see people eating during Ramadan. This is unfair, because whatever people's beliefs are, the law is something else and they should not be mixed."
There is no law in Egypt under which the brothers could be prosecuted for opening their café during Ramadan. When they tried to defend their café, the brothers, all in their 30s, were arrested on Sept. 8 and charged with resisting arrest and assaulting authorities. They were held for 30 days before being released on bail, set at 12,000 Egyptian pounds (US$2,173).
At the trial last week, defense counsel showed a video of the incident shot by an onlooker as evidence of police brutality. The footage did not sway Judge Mohammed Hassan El-Mahmody, prompting some Coptic activists to claim religious zeal and prejudice as the true motives behind the convictions.
"The police very often pressure the Copts to accept unfair situations," said El-Nagar. "Unfortunately, with the power of the police and Egypt being a police state, we don't have the inclination to take the police to court."
The names of the imprisoned Christian brothers are Ashraf Morris Ghatas; Magdy Morris Ghatas; Osama Morris Ghatas; Nabil Morris Ghatas; Walid Morris Ghatas; and Hany Morris Ghatas.
Ibrahim Habib, chairman of advocacy group United Copts of Great Britain, told Compass that Egypt needs to take certain steps for progress toward justice.
"What we would like to see is the government implementing the law, showing fairness, maintaining total separation between the state and religion, and removing the second article from the Egyptian constitution," which makes Islamic law the source of statutory law, he said. "We would like to see Egypt free and treating all citizens equally."
El-Nagar has 30 days to appeal the decision before the Court of Cassation, a high appeals tribunal. He said he plans to do so.
Original Report
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| Beijing holds secret talks with banned churches as 100 million defy party rules |
THE TIMES of LONDON [News Corporation/Murdoch] - By Jane Macartney in Beijing - January 26, 2009
A secret meeting between Chinese officials and leaders of the banned underground Protestant Church has marked the first significant step towards reconciliation in decades.
The discussions, which were held in an office in Beijing, were the first time that members of the Government and stalwarts of the outlawed "house churches" had sat down as negotiators rather than foes, The Times has learnt.
The timing was significant: this year is the 60th anniversary of communist power and the Government is keen to ensure that there are no disturbances to mar its celebrations. The Year of the Ox also begins today and Beijing is anxious to usher in a year of stability despite economic difficulties.
For three decades China has allowed officially sanctioned churches to operate within strict limits. Protestants are supposed to worship under the aegis of the official religious body, the Three-Self Patriotic Movement - standing for self-governing, self-teaching and self-supporting. Catholics can worship in churches run by the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association. Other Christian organisations are illegal.
In recent years the number of Christians has soared. Officials privately estimate the total at 130 million - far outstripping the 74 million members of the Communist Party. Most are Protestants and are affiliated with unofficial house churches.
Church leaders believe this is one reason why the State Council Development Research Centre - an official party think-tank - called the two breakthrough meetings late last year. The first involved about a dozen academics and lawyers, many known to be members of the unofficial Church. The second brought together six house church leaders.
No representatives of the underground Catholic Church were invited - the Vatican is still viewed by the Communist Party as a rival force and tentative talks yielded little progress.
Pastor Ezra Jin, who started the Zion Church about two years ago, said that he felt the invitation had been inevitable. "The Government has a more open attitude towards religion so when they asked me to come I didn't need them to explain why," he said.
Church leaders said that the Government - including the police, who have raided and crushed underground churches for years - had realised that the time for confrontation had passed.
Several hundred worshippers gather each Sunday with Pastor Jin to sing hymns and pray in an anonymous office building in the capital; many more crowd into living rooms across China to worship together, even if they cannot find someone to officiate.
The official Church puts the number of Protestants at about 21 million and Catholics at about 5 million. That means more than 100 million Christians are worshipping independently.
Pastor Jin told The Times: "The Government is anxious to work out the way to go forward. They have understood that the Protestant Church is not an opposition force but a force for stability and harmony."
He added that the Government wanted to discuss the position of house churches and to evaluate whether they posed a threat to the regime. They also wanted to know why the house churches could not accept the leadership of the official body.
Even more surprisingly, they appeared to want advice. "They wanted to know our requirements when it comes to setting future policy," Pastor Jin said, without elaborating.
In a report on the meeting, another house church pastor wrote that one of the main topics was the difficulty of keeping the unofficial church under the Government's heel. Pastors say that raids, fines and even punishments such as re-education through labour are no longer effective; if one church is broken up new ones are started.
A senior economist, who openly declares his faith, said: "The closer understanding may have come in meetings between jailed pastors and the police, and those changes in attitude meant this day could come."
Faith in China
- There have been several attempts to introduce Christianity to China since about the 7th century but most failed until the start of the 19th century
- Robert Morrison is regarded by Protestants as being the first Christian missionary to China - he arrived in Macau in 1807. He produced a Chinese translation of the Bible
- The Government officially recognises five religions: Taoism, Buddhism, Islam, Catholicism and Protestantism. Each has a state-sponsored religious body
- Article 36 of the Chinese Constitution guarantees freedom of religion, although there are numerous restrictions including prohibitions against proselytising and other activities deemed to "disturb public order"
Sources: Council on Foreign Relations, Times database
Original Report
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2 more arrested in massacre of Christians
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Suspects in deaths of trio killed at publishing house
WORLDNETDAILY - February 13, 2009
Two more men have been charged in connection with the deaths of three Christians at a publishing house in Malatya, Turkey, including a former volunteer worker at the business, according to a new report.
WND has reported on the case since a widow of one of the slain Christians created a tidal wave of reaction in mostly-Muslim Turkey by expressing forgiveness for the attackers.
Five individuals earlier were named as suspects in the attack at the Zirve Publishing Co. office in Malatya April 18, 2007. All five already have appeared in court to answer counts stemming from the deaths of Tilman Geske of Germany and Turkish nationals Necati Aydin and Ugur Yuksel.
Authorities reportedly have said the three met several Muslims for a Bible study, then were tied up, stabbed and tortured for several hours before their throats were slit.
According to Compass Direct, which has been documenting the case, a Turkish court in its most recent hearing charged a former volunteer worker as well as a former journalist suspected of having ties to a group that allegedly tried to engineer a political coup. ...
Read Full Report
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Imprisoned believers die in Eritrea
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ONE NEWS NOW [American Family News Network] - By Allie Martin - January 23, 2009
Two more Christians have died for their faith while imprisoned in Eritrea.
This month, two Christians died while being held in government-run prisons. Reports say one of the believers died as a result of ongoing physical torture and complications from an illness.
Jerry Dykstra with Open Doors USA says there are approximately 3,000 Christians being held in Eritrea simply because of their faith in Christ.
"It just seems unfathomable that this little country of about five million people located between Sudan and Ethiopia on the Red Sea, really targets Christians," he contends. "And they've been on our World Watch List with Open Doors, and they're also on the 'Countries of Particular Concern' list issued by the U.S. government."
In 2002, Eritrea's government began a systematic crackdown on Christian activities, churches, and ministries.
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Mutilated Christian girl, 10, forgives attackers
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'They were out of their minds, they do not know the love of Jesus'
WORLDNETDAILY - By Chelsea Schilling - December 16, 2008
Hindu extremists may have burned a 10-year-old Christian girl's face, inflicted shrapnel wounds on 40 percent of her body and forced her family to hide in a forest and flee to a refugee camp in Orissa, India, but her plight hasn't shaken her faith and thankfulness to God this season.
"Christmas is a time to thank the baby Jesus who saved me from the fire and saved my face which was disfigured and wounded," Namrata Nayak told Asia News.
Nayak's face was severely mutilated after Hindu extremists bombed the home where she was staying on Aug. 26. They broke into the house and burned it while Nayak and her siblings hid in a small bathroom. Before exiting the home, they left a bomb in a dresser, according to the report.
While the little girl surveyed the destruction, the bomb detonated and burned her face.
The explosion also lodged shrapnel into her face, hands and back.
Nayak's mother, Sudhamani, came running out of the forest where she was hiding.
"We saw everything burned, and feared that everyone had died in the flames," Sudhamani said. "Instead, thanks to God, everyone was safe. Only that my daughter had been wounded. But Jesus took care of her. We took her to the hospital in Berhampur, still unconscious and badly hurt."
Nayak spent 45 days recovering in the hospital. Despite all her troubles, she is cheerful and giving thanks to God for healing her. ...
Read Full Report |
UK: Foster parent who has looked after 80 children struck off...because a Muslim girl in her care became a Christian
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LONDON DAILY MAIL [Associated Newspapers/DMGT] - By Jonathan Petre - February 7, 2009
A foster mother has been struck off by a council after a teenage Muslim girl in her care became a Christian.
The carer, who has ten years' experience and has looked after more than 80 children, said she was 'devastated' by the decision.
'This is my life,' she revealed. 'It is not just a job for me. It is a vocation. I love what I do. It is also my entire income. I am a single carer, so that is all I have to live on.' ...
The girl is understood to be back with members of her family, who have not been told of her conversion. A second girl the woman was fostering has been moved to another carer.
The woman insisted that, although she was a Christian, she had put no pressure on the Muslim girl, who was 16 at the time, to be baptised.
But council officials allegedly accused her of failing to 'respect and preserve' the child's faith and tried to persuade the girl to reconsider her decision.
The carer, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is now preparing to take legal action against the council with the support of the girl, now 17, who also cannot be named.
Her case follows the controversy over Caroline Petrie, 45, the Christian nurse in Somerset suspended without pay in December for offering to pray for an elderly woman patient. She was reinstated this week.
Yesterday, Christians expressed outrage over the foster carer's treatment, saying that it was a basic right for people to be able to change their religion and the woman should be praised, not punished.
Mike Judge, a spokesman for the Christian Institute, a pressure group which is funding her case, said: 'I cannot imagine that an atheist foster carer would be struck off if a Christian child in her care stopped believing in God.
'This is the sort of double standard which Christians are facing in modern Britain. In recent months, we have seen grandparents, a nurse, adoption agencies, firemen, registrars, elderly care homes and now a foster carer being punished because of the Christian beliefs they hold. It has got to stop.'
The carer, a mother-of-two in her 50s, has worked with young children for much of her life and became a foster parent for the local authority in the North of England in 1999.
In 2007, she was asked to look after the girl, who had been assaulted by a family member.
She told council officials that she was very happy to support the girl in her religion and culture.
'We had a multicultural household and I had no problems helping the young person maintain her faith of birth,' she said. 'I have always prided myself in being very professional in what I do. If something works for a young person, whether I agree with it or not, I am happy to support them in that.'
But the girl, whom the foster mother describes as caring and intelligent, defied expectations by choosing not to wear overtly Muslim clothes or to eat Halal food.
The girl, whose interest in Christianity had begun at school some time before her foster placement, also made it clear that she wanted to go to church.
The carer, an Anglican who attends a local evangelical church, said: 'I did initially try to discourage her.
'I offered her alternatives. I offered to find places for her to practise her own religion. I offered to take her to friends or family. But she said to me from the word go, "I am interested and I want to come." She sort of burst in.'
The carer said that the girl's social workers were fully aware that she was going to church and had not raised any objections.
The girl had told her auxiliary social worker of her plans to convert before she was baptised in January last year, and the social worker had appeared to give her consent.
'At that point the brakes were off,' the carer said. 'I couldn't have stopped her if I had wanted to. She saw the baptism as a washing away of the horrible things she had been through and a symbol of a new start.'
Three months later, however, senior officials complained that they had not been fully informed of the girl's intentions to become a Christian.
They said that she should have undergone counselling to ensure that she understood the implications, especially as such conversions are dealt with harshly in some Muslim countries.
The foster carer said, however, that the girl had thought about her decision very carefully and was aware that members of her family might react strongly, so she was adamant that they should not be told.
The carer said that as the auxiliary social worker knew about the baptism, she had not thought it necessary to tell the fostering team as well.
But she received a phone call from the fostering manager who was 'incandescent with rage' that the baptism had gone ahead.
The carer said: 'Up to that point, we had had a good relationship, so I was quite taken aback. I was very shocked.'
In April, council officials told the girl that she should not attend any church activity for six months, so that she could reconsider the wisdom of becoming a Christian.
The carer was also instructed to discourage the girl from participating in any Christian activities, even social events. The council then told the carer there had been a breakdown of trust and in November removed her from the register.
'It never occurred to me that they would go that far,' she said. 'I was concerned that the council seemed to view Christianity in such a negative light. I wonder whether if it had gone the other way - if one of my Christian young people had decided to embrace another faith - there would have been this level of fuss.'
She added that the girl has been devastated by the experience.
The carer's solicitor Nigel Priestley said: 'There is no doubt that the event that provoked the council was the decision by the girl to be baptised. This girl was 16 and has the right to make this choice, so for the council to react in this way is totally disproportionate. Even at this late hour, we hope that the council will resolve the issue.' ...
Read Full Report
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UK: Primary school receptionist 'facing sack' after daughter talks about Jesus to classmate
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LONDON DAILY TELEGRAPH [Barclay] - By Caroline Gammell - February 12, 2009
A primary school receptionist, Jennie Cain, whose five-year-old daughter was told off for talking about Jesus in class is now facing the sack for seeking support from her church.
Mrs Cain sent a private email to close friends to ask for prayers for her daughter after she was called into the school where she worked in Crediton, Devon, to be reprimanded.
Her daughter Jasmine had been overheard by a teacher discussing heaven and God with a friend and had been pulled to one side and told off.
Mrs Cain contacted 10 close friends from her church by email but the message fell into the hands of Gary Read, the headmaster of Landscore Primary School where she works.
The 38-year-old mother of two is now being investigated for professional misconduct for allegedly making claims against the school and its staff.
Mrs Cain has been told she may be disciplined and was warned she could face dismissal.
Her case is being supported by the Christian Institute who said Mrs Cain was the latest example of a Christian being persecuted by society. ...
Mrs Cain, who was not suspended, said he refused to tell her where he had got the email but said two independent governors would be taking statements and calling witnesses.
"He said the investigation could be followed by disciplinary action up to and including dismissal because of this private email."
Mrs Cain said she still did not know how Mr Read came into possession of the email but she said the school was sending mixed messages by allowing carols at Christmas and celebrating the Hindu festival of divali. ...
Read Full Report
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UK: Nurse threatened for praying reinstated
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'I am pleased that I do not have to separate my faith from my work'
WORLDNETDAILY - February 6, 2009
A Christian nurse in Britain threatened with dismissal for offering to pray for her patients' recovery has been reinstated to her position, according to a report from the Christian Legal Centre.
"North Somerset Primary Care Trust, in a statement issued on 5th February, said that they recognized that Mrs. [Caroline] Petrie had been acting in the 'best interests of her patients' and that nurses did not have to 'set aside their faith' in the workplace, and could 'continue to offer high quality care for patients while remaining committed to their beliefs,'" the legal organization announced today.
As WND reported, Petrie was suspended and faced further discipline because her employer claimed she failed to show a "personal and professional commitment to equality and diversity" when she suggested the prayer.
Petrie, 45, a wife and mother of two, is a community nurse who works for North Somerset Primary Care Trust. As part of her job, she visits patients who are sick and elderly. Petrie said she never forced her Christian beliefs on any of her patients but simply asked if an elderly woman would appreciate the blessing.
She said at the time she couldn't believe she was suspensed over the issue.
"I knew I hadn't done anything wrong. All I am trying to do is help my patients, many of whom want me to pray for them," she told the London Telegraph.
The Christian Legal Centre report said the "dramatic turnaround" came "days after extensive media coverage and news reports" on the case.
While Petrie is "thrilled" to return to her work, the legal organization said it has concerns "the Trust's statement is deliberately vague in places about the conditions that the Trust might seek to impose on Christians in the work place." ...
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First Report:
Persecuted for praying: Nurse who faces the sack after offering to pray for sick patient
LONDON DAILY MAIL [Associated Newspapers/DMGT] - By David Wilkes and Neil Sears - February 2, 2009
A nurse could be sacked and even struck off for offering to say a prayer for an elderly patient.
Caroline Petrie, a community nurse and devout Christian, has already been suspended for an alleged breach of her code of conduct on equality and diversity.
She now faces disciplinary action, even though the patient involved did not make a formal complaint.
The case has outraged the Christian community, which warns its members are becoming 'the most discriminated against people in society'.
They cited previous instances including that of Heathrow check-in worker Nadia Eweida, who in 2006 was banned from wearing a cross around her neck at work.
Last night Mrs Petrie, 45, insisted she was not trying to force her beliefs on others, but was simply offering a little spiritual help.
She said: 'I have trouble understanding how offering to pray for someone could be upsetting. I feel it's a nice thing to ask and a way to give hope that circumstances can change.'
She made the prayer offer to May Phippen, 79, in December, at the end of a home visit.
Mrs Phippen, a widow who lives with relatives, mentioned the offer in passing to another nurse the next day.
The great-grandmother told the Mail last night: 'It didn't worry me, it just struck me as a strange thing for a nurse to do. She finished dressing my legs and before she left the last thing she asked was would you like me to say a prayer for you? I said "no thank you" and then she went.
'It was the first time I'd seen her. She was a nice lady, did the job properly and was quietly spoken. Personally I wouldn't want to see her sacked for something like that.
'I have Christian beliefs myself and maybe she meant well. But it could perhaps be upsetting for some other people if they have different beliefs or thought that she meant they looked in such a bad way that they needed praying for.'
Mrs Petrie claims she was confronted the following day, December 16, by a nursing sister who told her the patient had been 'taken aback' by the offer.
The next day the mother of two, of Weston-Super-Mare, north Somerset, received a message on her home phone from her co-ordinator telling her that disciplinary action would be taken. She was then suspended. ...
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| UK: Silenced Christian soldiers: Sandhurst chaplain bans Creed 'so services won't offend minority religions' |
LONDON DAILY MAIL [Associated Newspapers/DMGT] - By Matthew Drake - January 30, 2009
Sandhurst military academy has dropped the Church of England Creed from services over fears that it may offend religious minorities.
The move has outraged worshippers who say centuries of religious tradition have been sacrificed for the sake of political correctness.
Senior chaplain Reverend Jonathan Gough dropped the Christian declaration of faith in God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, when he took office earlier this month.
Mr Gough - nicknamed the 'Right On Rev' by some of his flock - says he wants avoid offending non-believers.
But Christian cadets and civilians were furious when the traditional Anglican service abruptly ended without the Creed being read last Sunday.
Although no official announcement was made, a fellow Chaplain said it had been removed 'to stop upsetting cadets who do not believe in God'.
Last night the Ministry of Defence confirmed the Creed, which also refutes heresy, had been withdrawn from services at the Royal Memorial Chapel to make the church more inclusive. ...
The Creed, found in the book of Common Prayer, begins: 'I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried'. ...
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* Emphasis Added
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| UK: Presenter sacked for 'supporting the Bible's teachings' on radio |
A radio presenter is taking legal action after he alleged he was sacked for offending Muslims by defending Christianity on air.
LONDON DAILY TELEGRAPH [Barclay] - By Andrew Alderson - January 11, 2009
The Rev Mahboob Masih, a Church minister, claims he was unfairly dismissed and that the action taken against him was a case of religious discrimination.
He had been host of a regular Saturday morning show on Awaz FM, a community radio show in Glasgow, for six years before the row with the station's management blew up.
After a lively religious debate, the radio station management took exception to the content of the discussion. The Rev Masih was accused of not being balanced enough on air. However, Awaz FM refuses to detail anything specific he said that might have offended its listeners.
The Rev Masih and his co-presenter Afzal Umeed were discussing the views of a prominent Muslim speaker, Zakir Naik, who the Rev Masih accuses of belittling the Christian faith on Peace TV, a digital channel.
The Rev Masih says that Mr Umeed asked Asif Mall, a Christian on-air guest, about Mr Naik's remarks. Mr Mall said Mr Naik's comments showed a lack of knowledge of the Bible and of the Koran.
In particular, Mr Mall disputed a claim by Mr Naik that Jesus Christ was not the only prophet to be "the way, the truth and the life". The Rev Masih, 37, who is the minister in West Kirk, East Kilbride, says that he reluctantly made an on-air apology in an attempt to defuse the row. However, he says he refused a request from a senior station official to deliver an apology in person at the Central Mosque in Glasgow because he felt intimidated and his safety could have been endangered. He also insists he had nothing to apologise for to Muslims. ... Read Full Report |
| UK: Home for retired missionaries loses grant - because it won't ask residents if they are l-sbi-ns |
LONDON DAILY MAIL [Associated Newspapers/DMGT] - By Jonathan Petre - December 28, 2008
A care home where elderly Christian residents refused to answer 'intrusive' questions about their s-xu-lity is at the centre of a bitter legal battle after its council grant was axed.
Brighton & Hove Council told the home to ask pensioners four times a year about their s-xu-l orientation under its 'fair access and diversity' policies, which stem from New Labour equality laws.
Council chiefs also accused the charity that runs the home of 'institutional discrimination', before cutting a £13,000 grant towards warden services.
Pilgrim Homes, which operates ten schemes for elderly Christians across the UK, says it has never breached the law and is now suing the council, accusing it of religious discrimination.
Andrew Jessop, the charity's chief executive, said: 'The council has taken overzealousness to the extreme. People in their 90s are very vulnerable and shouldn't be treated in this way.'
Tensions began last year when the council imposed stricter criteria on organisations it supported to 'comply' with the Equality Act 2006 and the Equality Act (S-xu-l Orientation) Regulations 2007. ...
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See Also:
Christian care home loses funding over h-m-s-xu-lity stance
CHRISTIAN TODAY - By Maria Mackay - January 9, 2009
Brighton & Hove City Council has pulled thousands of pounds worth of funding from a Christian care home because of its religious beliefs on h-m-s-xu-lity. ...
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| UK: Teenager banned from wearing Christian chastity ring at school |
LONDON DAILY MAIL [Associated Newspapers/DMGT] - By Luke Salkeld - December 4, 2008
A 12-year-old girl has been banned from wearing a silver chastity ring at school.
The item of jewellery owned by Kioni Lansbury represents her intention to stay a virgin until she marries.
But her school has deemed it potentially dangerous and against uniform rules.
Kioni, who is a regular church-goer, was inspired to wear the ring by the American pop group the Jonas Brothers, who have all made pledges of celibacy.
Purity rings are popular in America where organisers have persuaded a vast number of teenagers to abstain from s-x. ...
Yesterday, Mrs Jarrett defended the ban and said: 'The ring would be extremely dangerous in PE, technology or science lessons. ...
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| Christians are becoming social pariahs in Britain, claims Jeremy Vine |
LONDON DAILY TELEGRAPH [Barclay] - By Jonathan Wynne-Jones - January 19, 2009
The Radio 2 host said that he feels unable to talk about his faith on his show because he fears how people would react.
He argues that society has become increasingly intolerant of the freedom to express religious views.
"You can't express views that were common currency 30 or 40 years ago," he said.
"Arguably, the parameters of what you might call 'right thinking' are probably closing.
"Sadly, along with that has come the fact that it's almost socially unacceptable to say you believe in God."
His comments follow the claim from Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, the head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, that Britain is an "unfriendly" place for religious people to live.
Mr Vine, 43, is a practising Anglican, but says he would be compromised by being more open about his faith on air.
"Just blurting it out would be destructive," he said.
"Just because something's true doesn't mean you can say it. That's quite an important principle.
"Once I put my cards on the table about my faith in discussions, it becomes problematic."
In an interview with Reform, a magazine published by the United Reformed Church, Mr Vine says that he is forced to separate his personal beliefs from his role as a presenter.
"One of the things that I think, which may sound bizarre, is that Christ is who he said he was.
"I don't think I'd put that out on my show; I suppose there's a bit of a firewall between thinking that and doing the job I do."
Last year, Mark Thompson, the director-general of the BBC and a practising Roman Catholic, suggested that Islam should be treated more sensitively by the BBC than Christianity. ...
Read Full Report |
Atheist bus adverts: Christian refuses to drive bus declaring 'there's probably no God'
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A devout Christian has become the first driver to refuse to get behind the wheel of a bus bearing an atheist poster declaring God probably does not exist.
LONDON DAILY TELEGRAPH [Barclay] - By Martin Beckford, Religious Affairs Correspondent - January 16, 2009
Ron Heather, 62, walked out in protest after seeing the advert declaring: "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life."
He told his managers he could not drive the bus because the slogan, placed on the side of 800 buses across the country last week after a fundraising campaign raised £140,000, went against his faith.
They have now agreed to accommodate his religious beliefs by letting him drive buses in Southampton that do not bear the controversial message, which has been supported by atheists including Professor Richard Dawkins, the evolutionary biologist.
It comes after more than 200 people complained to the Advertising Standards Agency about the posters, which were created by Ariane Sherine, a comedy writer, as an antidote to religious adverts on public transport that "threaten eternal damnation" to passengers.
The watchdog is now considering whether to investigate the campaign on the grounds that it is offensive, or that its central claim about God's existence cannot be substantiated. ...
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US: Stimulus is 'anti-religious'
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THE POLITICO [Allbritton Communications Co] - By Andy Barr - February 10, 2009
Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee warned supporters Tuesday that the $828 billion stimulus package is "anti-religious."
In an e-mail that was also posted on his blog ahead of the Senate's passage, Huckabee wrote: "The dust is settling on the 'bipartisan' stimulus bill and one thing is clear: It is anti-religious."
The former Republican presidential candidate pointed to a provision in both the House and Senate versions banning higher education funds in the bill from being used on a "school or department of divinity."
"You would think the ACLU drafted this bill," Huckabee said. "For all of the talk about bipartisanship, this Congress is blatantly liberal."
"Emily's List, radical environmental groups, etc. all have a seat at the decision making table in Washington these days," he continued. "Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid are in charge and they are working with an equally 'progressive' President Obama (remember his voting record is more liberal than Ted Kennedy!)."
In the e-mail, Huckabee concedes that there is little that conservatives can do in the near term, but advocated mobilization to defeat those "masquerading as 'conservative Democrats.'"
"This is the opening round of the Democrats' campaign for big government," he wrote. "We cannot afford to sit round one out, because if we do, they will only become more emboldened and their grab for power more audacious and damaging to our country and our freedoms."
Original Report
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Christian attorney sees threat to parental rights
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ASSOCIATED PRESS - February 14, 2009
An attorney with the Christian Law Association sees a growing threat to the rights of parents to decide how their children should be educated.
David Gibbs III says he and other Christians believe they will have to stand before God and give an account for how they have raised and taught their children. But he fears that the new administration in Washington may try to exert more control over education, limiting the options of parents who do not like what their children are being taught in public schools.
He says the Christian Law Association defends parental rights, including the right to home school children.
"To successfully rear a child for God, it requires the church, it requires mom and dad, it requires education. It's a combined effort. We pray and diligently try to make the best decisions we can for our children because, you know what, we'll stand before God and give an account of the choices that we've made," he contends.
"I see some greater battles in the days ahead with the administration in Washington, DC, saying, 'We want to take over healthcare, we already control education, we want to increase control.' I think you're going to see the rights of parents coming under greater attack. We're watching an assault on the right of mom and dad to be what the Bible commands them to be."
Original Report
NY parents grilled in 'religious sincerity test'
ONE NEWS NOW [American Family News Network] - By Pete Chagnon - February 11, 2009
A family in New York is fighting for the rights of parents to opt their children out of vaccines.
Ron and Rita Palma of Bayport, New York, have been fighting for the right to opt their children out of the vaccines that public schools require children have before attending school. Parents are allowed to opt out of the medical requirement if they cite objections on religious grounds. The Palmas did so, citing their Catholic faith as a reason, but they were met with resistance from the Bayport-Blue Point Union Free School District. ...
But Palma says she and her husband were grilled for two hours by the school's attorney, David Cohen. She refers to the session as a "sincerity interview." Following is an excerpt from that meeting: ...
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US: Prof calls Christian student 'fascist b------'
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Lawsuit filed after speech met with: 'Ask God what your grade is'
WORLDNETDAILY - By Bob Unruh - February 13, 2009
A student at Los Angeles City College has filed a lawsuit against the institution after a professor called him a "fascist b------" and told him to "Ask God what your grade is" following the student's speech about morality.
The case has been filed by the Alliance Defense Fund on behalf of Jonathan Lopez after his encounter with Professor John Matteson in a speech class.
The lawsuit alleges Lopez was participating in a class assignment to give a speech on "any topic" from six to eight minutes.
"During the November, 24, 2008 class, Mr. Lopez delivered an informative speech on God and the ways in which Mr. Lopez has seen God act both in his life and in the lives of others through miracles. In the middle of the speech, he addressed the issues of God and morality; thus, he referred to the dictionary definition of marriage as being between a man and a woman and also read a passage from the Bible discussing marriage," the ADF explained.
At that point, the professor interrupted him and refused to allow him to finish his speech, ADF said. Matteson then called Lopez a 'fascist b------" and dismissed the class.
Later, the professor left an evaluation form on Lopez's backpack without a grade, instructing him to "Ask God what your grade is."
The professor also warned on the evaluation form, "proselytizing is inappropriate in public school."
Yet several weeks earlier, Matteson has announced to the class, in connection to the California vote Nov. 4 in support of a constitutional amendment defining marriage as being between one man and one woman only, that, "if you voted yes on Proposition 8, you are a fascist b------."
A spokeswoman for the school said she had consulted with the school's legal counsel, and since they had just been notified of the case, they would have no comment. ...
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| US: Christian TV special being stifled |
ONE NEWS NOW [American Family News Network] - By Charlie Butts and Jody Brown - February 12, 2009
The American Family Association (AFA), a pro-family group based in Mississippi, has encountered resistance in its attempts to air a television special called Speechless: Silencing the Christians.
According to the website SilencingChristians.com, the majority of Americans get their information about the h-m-s-xu-l movement from Hollywood and the secular news media -- outlets that deliver what AFA says is a message "tainted by pro-h-m-s-xu-l propaganda." That is why the pro-family group produced the 14-episode Speechless series that initially aired on the INSP Network, and then put together a one-hour special based on the series.
AFA is now buying prime-time slots on the nation's television stations to present that special to provide factual, Christian-based information on the topic. But the pro-family group reports it has run up against blatant "silencing" of that message. "There's a real threat to our First Amendment and free-speech rights because Christians are being shut down and shut out and shut up by the very people who say they champion freedom of speech," asserts AFA president Tim Wildmon.
For example, WSXY in Columbus, Ohio, has refused the air the program. WSPA in Greenville, South Carolina, aired it, but then ran an apology from the station manager. And in Grand Rapids, Michigan, WOOD-TV agreed initially to air the show Monday evening, then bumped it to Wednesday, then proposed to run it on Saturday afternoon -- and now has cancelled it entirely.
WOOD-TV general manager Diane Kniowski told The Grand Rapids Press that the station made a "fair offer" to AFA, but received no response regarding the Saturday airing.
"Our station is being bombarded with calls and messages, and we find ourselves in the middle of someone else's fight," Kniowski stated. "Ours was a fair offer and we are removing ourselves from this matter."
Wildmon sees outright irony in what is happening. "It's ironic that the very issue we're bringing up -- that Christians are being rendered speechless when they talk about this issue -- is actually happening to us when it comes to the program itself," he observes. ...
But the AFA president predicts they will. He argues that the TV special simply tells the truth -- and he urges people to visit SilencingChristians.com, where segments of the show can be viewed. Wildmon also encourages people in cities where the show is scheduled to contact their local TV station and voice their support for airing it.
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US: Homeschoolers under attack - again!
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Proposal would require review by 'credentialed educator'
WORLDNETDAILY - February 5, 2009
Homeschoolers in recent months have weathered the turmoil of a California court opinion that appeared to ban the activity, and while the threat later was removed, proposals that would hinder parents who want to teach their own children remain pending.
That's according to the Home School Legal Defense Association, which monitors the situations closely. The newest warning, the organization said today, comes from New Hampshire.
Pending in the state legislature is a plan by Rep. Judith Day that would "radically" rewrite the testing and assessment demands under the state's existing laws.
"If passed, New Hampshire would have one of the most restrictive homeschool laws in the nation," said Mike Donnelly, staff attorney for HSLDA.
WND reported just weeks ago the homeschooling movement is sweeping the nation - with 1.5 million children now learning at home, an increase of 75 percent since 1999.
The Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics reported homeschooling has risen by 36 percent in just the last five years.
"There's no reason to believe it would not keep going up," NCES statistician Gail Mulligan told USA Today.
HSLDA noted homeschooling is thriving "since all the research shows that homeschoolers significantly outperform their peers on standardized tests."
In New Hampshire, the existing law already is more burdensome than many other states, because in addition to an annual notice to school districts, homeschoolers must give an annual statement of academic progress and maintain two years' of records. ...
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Educators: Explore hom-s-xuality but not Bible
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Lawsuit alleges Christians face policy discrimination
WORLDNETDAILY - February 5, 2009
A New York school district faces a lawsuit for encouraging students to explore homosexuality while trying to prevent them from studying the Bible.
The action has been brought by the Alliance Defense Fund on behalf of a student identified only as A.Q. against the Lindenhurst Union Free School District near New York City.
The suit alleges the district allows and encourages hom-s-xuality by providing special services to organizations including the G-y-Straight Alliance, Key Club, Chess Club, Fishing Club and Ski Club. It contends the district illegally has discriminated against students seeking a Bible Club, instead forcing them to apply for permission to use school facilities as an outside group.
"Christian student groups shouldn't be discriminated against for their beliefs," said ADF Senior Legal Counsel David Cortman. "The First Amendment and federal law both prohibit such actions on the basis of religion, and this has been established by years of court precedent."
The public interest law firm said for more than four months, Lindenhurst High School officials repeatedly have refused to grant official recognition to the club because of its religious nature, despite the presence of other non-curriculum-related student clubs that are given benefits and privileges. ...
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US: School outlaws moment to reflect
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ONE NEWS NOW [American Family News Network] - By Charlie Butts - February 1, 2009
For now, Illinois' Moment of Silence law is out of commission -- but it may soon have another day in court.
A federal judge struck down the law as unconstitutional, saying it crossed the line of separation of church and state. According to the Associated Press, Judge Robert Gettleman sided with the ACLU, who claimed the law was "a thinly disguised effort to bring religion into the schools."
David Smith of the Illinois Family Institute disagrees, calling the law harmless. "The law did not promote a particular religion or the acknowledgement of God," he notes. "All it did was gave the students a moment to reflect silently on the day or to pray." ...
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Canada: Gift bag bomb explodes at Christian missionary's home
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Neighbors fear pink-wrapped package may have targeted daughters
WORLDNETDAILY - November 11, 2008
Christian missionary Gary Stevenson thought the pink, gift-wrapped bag he found on his doorstep was a present left for one of his toddler daughters, but when he brought it inside his home, the bomb within the bag exploded.
Stevenson suffered multiple lacerations and burns, deep cuts on his head and chest, and underwent surgery to remove shrapnel from his liver. But he is expected to make a full recovery.
His daughters, age 1 and 3, were away with their grandmother at the time, the Vancouver Province reports about the attack in Langley, British Columbia, but his wife and three others who were helping the family in the process of moving to a new home were in the house. Only Gary was injured in the blast, which scattered pink tissue paper throughout the residence and punched shrapnel holes in the walls.
"What's really terrifying is who would put a bomb in a gift bag that was in pink?" Miles Forrest, a friend of the Stevensons told the Province.
"Was somebody trying to kill his daughters? He was going to give it to them but ... luckily, in a way, he opened it ahead of time," said Forrest.
Stevenson is a missionary with Power to Change, a ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ Canada, serving on the campus of Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia. ...
"At this point in the investigation," Royal Canadian Mounted Police Const. Holly Marks said in a statement, "police have not yet determined whether this incident was targeted or random."
Guy Saffold, executive director of ministries at Power for Change told CTV British Columbia that Stevenson is recovering well, asking for chocolate and his Bible to be by his side.
The ordeal, however, has left the Stevenson family shaken, reports Saffold. ...
Saffold said Stevenson "was asking people to pray that he gets better soon, [and he is] also asking people to pray that police would find some leads, to know why this was done and have some closure."
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