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By Staff, Baptist Press
Jun 3, 2010
Afghanistan’s constitution, which is based on sharia law, forbids proselytizing and decrees that converting from Islam to another religion is punishable by death.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–An Afghan parliamentary official has called for the public execution of Christian converts from Islam following a television report that raised the suspicion of proselytizing and resulted in the suspension of two Christian aid organizations.
The report was broadcast by the little-known Afghan channel Noorin TV, described by The New York Times as an “antigovernment gadfly,” and it showed photographs purportedly of Westerners baptizing Afghans and videotapes of Afghans praying to Jesus.
A European diplomat told AFP that Noorin TV had broadcast controversial reports in the past and there might be a “hidden political agenda at a time when stirring up anti-foreign sentiment is quite fashionable in Kabul.”
Church World Service, an American organization, and Norwegian Church Aid, both of which have served in Afghanistan for more than 30 years, were asked to leave the country because of suspicions that they were involved in converting Afghans to Christianity.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai called for an investigation into the organizations and “strongly instructed” government officials to take “immediate and serious action” to prevent further conversions, according to a report by AFP.
The broadcasts triggered a protest by hundreds of Kabul University students May 31, and International Christian Concern, online at persecution.org, said Abdul Sattar Khawasi, deputy secretary of the Afghan lower house in parliament, called for executions.
“Those Afghans that appeared in this video film should be executed in public. The house should order the attorney general and the NDS [intelligence agency] to arrest these Afghans and execute them,” Khawasi said.
Afghanistan’s constitution, which is based on sharia law, forbids proselytizing and decrees that converting from Islam to another religion is punishable by death.
“It is absolutely appalling that the execution of Christians would be promoted on the floor of the Afghan parliament,” Aidan Clay, ICC’s regional manager for the Middle East, said June 2. “Khawasi’s statement sounded a whole lot like the tyrannical manifesto of the Taliban, not that of a U.S. ally. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Christianity, Islam, Middle East Report, Monotheistic Religions, News Articles, Recent Posts on June 4, 2010 - כ"ב סיון תש"ע at 5:35 pm
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By Kasey Barr for www.travelujah.com
Special to ASSIST News Service, May 12, 2010
JERUSALEM, ISRAEL (ANS) – King Solomon dedicated the Holy Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem with a prayer and a precedent that has been followed by Israeli leadership since they reunited Jerusalem in 1967 and took responsibility for the Holy places – the foreigner is welcomed.
“When a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes from a far country for your name’s sake…when he comes and prays toward this house, hear in heaven your dwelling place and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to you in order that all the peoples of the earth may know your name.” (I Kings 8:41-4)
It doesn’t matter if it is the media, history teachers, tour guides, religious leaders, or the Israeli Ministry of Tourism, they all like to refer to the fact that Jerusalem contains holy sites for the three great monotheistic religions of the world. Just not all of those mentioned above are so quick to add that there has only been freedom of worship for every religious group when Jerusalem has been in the hands of the Jews. It isn’t an opinion it is an historical fact and it means a great deal for this foreigner.
Jerusalem Day is important and meaningful for me as a Christian. Despite the atrocious history of Crusader brutality in this city, when Israel unified it in 1967 they didn’t decide to even the scorecard. No, they unfastened the old latches and broke open the ancient doors to welcome everyone. It was like the Old City finally took in a gasp of fresh air after being locked up for thousands of years. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Christianity, Judaism, Middle East Report, Monotheistic Religions, Opinion, Recent Posts on May 13, 2010 - כ"ט אייר תש"ע at 3:42 pm
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Jerusalem will only realize its potential so long as it remains within the full, exclusive control of the state of Israel. "Israel, the only country in the Middle East with a long term and demonstrated commitment to foster peaceful coexistence, with intent to nurture it and protect it, internally and beyond. Not perfect, but striving for it."
By PASTOR ROBERT SHEPITKA AND RABBI YAAKOV KELLMAN
Timesunion.com, May 1, 2010
Attacked by Jordan in 1967, Israel responded to defend herself. And in so doing, Jerusalem was once again reunited with her people. Restored to its essence from the time of King David in 1000 BCE, Jerusalem became the capital of the state of Israel and the spiritual center of the Jewish world.
Jerusalem, the Holy City, cradle of the Judeo-Christian world, destroyed twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times. Jerusalem, mentioned over 650 hundred times in the Hebrew Bible and over 800 times in the Christian Bible.
Enter the pastor and the rabbi. The rabbi, closely aligned with the Orthodox Jewish world, has been to Jerusalem so many times that he walks its streets with the familiarity of home. The pastor, closely aligned with the Evangelical Christian world whose love of Jerusalem is unwavering, rode not on personal experience (for he had never been there) but rather on the evolution of his faith and the Scriptures of his people.
For a few precious days this past March, the pastor and the rabbi walked the streets of Jerusalem together. Although now a cosmopolitan city, the shared interest was not so much the upscale restaurants of Jerusalem or its myriad shops and tourist attractions. This was our pilgrimage, an opportunity for the pastor and the rabbi to meet on common spiritual ground, while each basked in the history and essence of his own faith.
Traveling through the back alleys of the Old City of Jerusalem, through the Christian, Armenian, Muslim and Jewish quarters, we were joined by the sounds of church bells ringing in harmony with the call to prayer of the muezzin, on our way to the Holy Wall with its constant hum of Jewish prayers. The Holy Wall, the last remnant of two Temples and the symbol of hope for the coming Messianic days.
As we walked the streets of the New City of Jerusalem, where the garb of the traditions of Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths share the markets, buses, human services and safety provided to them by the state of Israel, we found ourselves wondering, could such peaceful coexistence happen in any of those countries that surround Israel?
The world does not understand Jerusalem. Jerusalem, capital of Israel, a country surrounded by governments who are sworn to drive it into the Mediterranean Sea, which prostitute the religion of their ancestors to suicide bombers and human shields. Israel stands alone in the region as a bastion of democracy, and in 1967 Jerusalem became again a portal of access for the faiths of many people.
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Christianity, Judaism, Middle East Report, Monotheistic Religions, Opinion, Recent Posts on May 2, 2010 - י"ח אייר תש"ע at 10:59 am
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It may sound like start of joke, but it’s true. Hundreds of Catholics, Jews, and Muslims participated Sunday in a marathon between Bethlehem and Jerusalem that kicked off Pope John Paul II’s sporting events, being held for the seventh year.
For the first time since the second intifada in 2000, the Israeli runners were allowed to enter Bethlehem in order to join the rest of the contestants on their run after special preparations were made by the Civil Administration together with Palestinian officials that were ultimately authorized by the Central Command.
Running for peace. Marathoners in Bethlehem (Courtesy of the Tourism Ministry)
Upon arrival at the Bethlehem crossing, hundreds of participants signed a joint declaration calling upon believes throughout the world to visit the Holy Land and take action promoting peace and co-existence. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Middle East Report, Monotheistic Religions, News Articles, Recent Posts on April 30, 2010 - ט"ז אייר תש"ע at 8:01 am
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by Gadi Adelman, Monday, 19 April 2010
Christians are killed by the hundreds for no reason other than they are Christian. Where is the world outcry and at what point will someone we know be next?
It’s a shame that people in this country don’t believe those of us who warn about creeping Sharia and Islam. To a certain extent, it’s understandable, especially when the media just ignore not only global massacres but the obvious happening right here in our own back yard. There is enough blame to go around. I mean, we have such important things to concern ourselves with here; health care reform, unemployment, the price of gas and let’s not forget the Toyota recalls that seem to be never-ending.
Would it make the headlines if over a thousand Christians had been killed in, say, a South Carolina town for no other reason than they are simply Christian? Well, per capita, that is exactly what is happening in Nigeria. Funny how, when I do see a story on it, it is usually buried somewhere inside the paper or it’s just a small 30-second story on the television news.
The stories are horrifying, the pictures are stomach wrenching – men, women and babies, yes, babies being hacked into pieces by machetes.
The BBC reported on it back in March, “Hundreds of people, including many women and children, were killed in ethnic violence near the city of Jos in Nigeria at the weekend, officials say. They said villages had been attacked by men with machetes who came from nearby hills. Many of the dead in the villages of Zot and Dogo-Nahawa are reported to be women and children.”
The report continued, “Mark Lipdo, from the Christian charity Stefanos Foundation, said Zot village had been almost wiped out.”
He said: "We saw mainly those who are helpless, like small children and then the older men, who cannot run, these were the ones that were slaughtered."
A resident of Dogo-Nahawa said that the attackers had fired guns as they entered the village before dawn on Sunday in defiance of a curfew.
“The shooting was just meant to bring people from their houses and then when people came out they started cutting them with machetes," Peter Jang told Reuters news agency.
Some witnesses said villagers were caught in fishing nets and animal traps as they tried to escape and were then hacked to death. Mud huts were also set on fire.”
The reason I bring this up now, again in April, is because mass graves of people are still being found and I still hear little or nothing about this. When do we as Americans, as people, as human beings start to look around us and say ENOUGH!
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Christianity, Islam, Monotheistic Religions, Opinion, Recent Posts on April 22, 2010 - ח' אייר תש"ע at 7:10 am
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The convergence of Easter, Passover and on Friday, the weekly Muslim holy day, brought Jews, Christians and Muslims together in the Old City.
Linda Gradstein Contributor
AOL News
JERUSALEM (April 3) — The convergence of Passover and both Eastern and Western Easter has led to tens of thousands of tourists descending on the narrow alleyways of Jerusalem’s Old City and its Jewish, Christian and Muslim shrines. A spokesman for Israel’s Ministry of Tourism said they expect some 105,000 tourists to visit Jerusalem this week.
On Good Friday, the Via Delarosa was packed with pilgrims carrying wood crosses as they traced Jesus’s steps.
Oded Balilty, AP
Ethiopian Orthodox Christian pilgrims hold candles during the procession of the Holy Fire at Deir El Sultan in in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher on Saturday.
"Just to know that I’m walking on the same path that He walked is overwhelming," said Rula Pricone, 37, who is visiting Jerusalem for the first time with her husband Michael. "Every time we talk about it, I just start crying."
Pricone, a Jordanian-born Catholic who lives in Chicago, was visiting family in Jordan when they decided to come to Jerusalem for a few days. Their relatives said it was too dangerous and declined to come. Pricone, who is six months pregnant, is afraid of getting jostled by the crowd.
"My back hurts and then I think about how much Jesus went through for us," she said.
The Via Delarosa was lined with hundreds of police officers on Friday. Jerusalem police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said 2,500 police officers are deployed in the Old City.
"We are imposing heightened security to make sure that all of the religious ceremonies go according to plan and that there are no disturbances in the Old City," Rosenfeld told AOL News.
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Christianity, Judaism, Middle East Report, Monotheistic Religions, News Articles, Recent Posts on April 4, 2010 - כ' ניסן תש"ע at 12:04 am
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We call upon our supporters to petition the government of Israel for change, and are inviting all who feel a connection to the place of the Holy Temple to join us as we ascend the Mount.
By Yitzchak Reuven, YNet News, March 12, 2010
Enshrined in Israeli law are two cardinal principles of democracy: freedom of access to places of worship, and the freedom of worship to practitioners of all religions. Successive Israeli governments have proudly and rightly cited Israel’s unflinching assurance of the freedom of worship for Muslims and Christians in the city of Jerusalem. This fact is presented in its case to maintain Jerusalem as a united city under Israeli sovereignty. Ironically, in the very heart of Jerusalem lies a parcel of real estate which has been granted de facto some sort of extra-legal, extraterritorial status, a veritable “wild West” where the rule of law does not exist and the most basic and inalienable democratic rights are not honored. This is the Temple Mount.
The facts on the ground are as such: The Muslim Waqf, controlled by the Palestinian Authority, has been granted absolute say over the administration of the Mount. Illegal destruction of archaeological remains of the first and second Holy Temples takes place on a daily basis, as does illegal construction. The Waqf’s unambiguous and oft-stated aim of this policy is the destruction of evidence of the Holy Temple and the transformation of the entire Temple Mount plateau into one massive Mosque, thus achieving exclusivity to the site for Muslims.
But no less pernicious is the manner in which non-Muslims are treated both atop the Mount and upon approaching it. And this discriminatory policy is enforced by the Israeli police. Non-Muslims are simply not allowed to carry with them a Bible or prayer book and are not allowed to pray. Jews who ascend the Mount, in accordance with Jewish law (first immersing in a ritual bath, and only treading on areas that are permissible according to halacha), are singled out and discriminated against in an abusive, humiliating and derogatory fashion. They are detained at the security booth, their identification cards are inspected (not the case for non-Jews), they are given oral instructions on what they cannot do, (stop in any one spot for more than a few minutes, pray, silently move their lips or sway their bodies. Jews are even warned not to cry, sing or close their eyes).
Furthermore, unlike any other group of human beings ascending the Mount (and thousands of tourists from around the world do so every day), Jews are not allowed to be on the Mount in gatherings of more than 10 or 20 at a time, and they are accompanied during the entire duration of their visit by police officers and a Waqf official to ensure that they do not violate the prohibitions. Needless to say, prayer books, the Tanach, tefillin or a tallit are strictly forbidden. Non-Jews (by and large, non-Israelis), who accompany Jewish visitors to the Mount (and many do so out of a desire to experience the Temple Mount from a Jewish perspective), are accorded the same shabby treatment. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Middle East Report, Monotheistic Religions, Opinion, Recent Posts on March 11, 2010 - כ"ה אדר תש"ע at 10:53 pm
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We must pray for Jerusalem not because we want to prosper, but because we love that city, that Land, that People, and above all, the God of Israel who has set His Holy Name on that city. We pray that Jewish people around the world may stand firm for their God and for His Land and that those Jews who do not really know the God of Israel will soon come to know Him and return to Torah.
By David Rushton, Canada Free Press, February 14, 2010
First, may I say how thankful I am for the many readers that have made very positive comments about this short series of articles. They have more than made up for the two or three atheists and hate-mongers who tried to make themselves obnoxious (or maybe they were not even trying). Obviously, what I have written has been my own opinion backed up with facts, but I do realize others have a right to their opinion too.
As far as I know this will be the last in the series about Israel and the Jewish people. Of course if this generates comments that I am forced to answer, in the words of the Governor of California, “I’ll be back.” I believe that the foregoing articles need and deserve a conclusion. We have shown that Israel has a right to the Land. We have even seen that the Koran backs this up. We have seen that anti-God Islam is the key to just about all terrorism and anti-Semitism in the world today. So the question is, “What can you do? What should you do to support Israel?”
First as a matter of recapitulation with a little added information let me emphasize the point that the Koran, bloodthirsty and hate filled as it is actually states that God gave the Land of Israel to the Jews (and not to the Arabs or Muslims). Here I quote three Koranic verses found in Suras 5, 7, and 17. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Middle East Report, Monotheistic Religions, Opinion, Recent Posts on February 15, 2010 - א' אדר תש"ע at 12:20 pm
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Three churches in Malaysia were firebombed early Friday as religious tension continues over a court decision that allows a Catholic publication to use the word ‘Allah’ for God, which Catholics claim is a long-standing practice.
By Tom A. Peter, Christian Science Monitor
posted January 8, 2010
Three churches in Malaysia were firebombed early Friday morning as its government works to quell religious tensions following a court ruling – and a subsequent government appeal – that allows the country’s Christians to use the term Allah to refer to God. Only one church was seriously damaged and no one was injured.
Mosques throughout the country also small organized protests during their Friday prayer services and there are reports of cars with Christian stickers having their windshields smashed.
The controversy began when The Herald, a Roman Catholic newspaper in Malaysia, challenged a ban against the periodical using Allah in the Malay-language section of their newspaper to refer to God in a Christian context. Though Allah has been incorporated into the Malay language to mean God and the Koran teaches (Surah 29:46) that Christians, Muslims, and Jews share the same God, many Malaysian Muslims contend that Allah only refers to God for Muslims. Many allege Christians are using Allah in an effort to convert Muslims to Christianity, reports The Times of London. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Christianity, Islam, Monotheistic Religions, News Articles, Recent Posts on January 8, 2010 - כ"ב טבת תש"ע at 10:00 am
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Editorial, Wall Street Journal Europe, January 7, 2010
Such atrocities—and there are scores of other examples—are grim reminders that when it comes to persecution, few groups have suffered as grievously as Christians in Muslim lands. Fewer still have suffered with such little attention paid. Now a new report from the non-profit ministry, Open Doors USA, shines a light on the scale of oppression.
In its annual World Watch List, Open Doors ranks eight Muslim countries among the 10 worst persecutors of Christians. The other two, North Korea (which tops the list) and Laos, are communist states. Of the 50 countries on the list, 35 are majority Muslim. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Christianity, Islam, Middle East, Monotheistic Religions, Opinion, Recent Posts on January 8, 2010 - כ"ב טבת תש"ע at 9:42 am
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