Displaying items by tag: Asia

Many participating groups in 2019’s Eurovision Song Contest are already in Tel Aviv, with more arriving daily. The finale will be on 18 May, in the same week as Palestinians commemorate Nakba. This was 71 years ago, when 700,000 people left their homes at the time when Israel was born. Activists say the venue for the competition was built on land of a former Arab village which emptied in 1948. As anxiety mounts, the foreign ministry spokesman, Emmanuel Nahshon, said, ‘This is going to be a huge party with thousands of people participating, but we will remain extremely vigilant in order to make sure that no-one comes here to disturb and destroy,’ The event, watched by a global TV audience, will also become a focus for protests against the country’s treatment of Palestinians. Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu wanted to hold Eurovision in Jerusalem, to add weight to Israel’s campaign for global recognition of the holy city as Israel’s capital.

Blind pastor Balu Saste's case took three years to be settled in court; his acquittal is being hailed as a triumph by Christian persecution watch groups. The pastor, his wife, and eleven church members were violently attacked by a mob during church services. Police arrested him, his wife, and their six-year-old son, stripped them, beat them, detained them without bail for three days, and falsely charged them with forcing Christian conversions. The story is not unique. Violence against Christians has risen significantly. In three months the United Christian Forum and ADF India have documented over 80 violent mob attacks against Christians in 13 different states across India. The attacks often take a similar shape, and rarely receive police attention. Christians face injustice continually, and the ruling in Balu’s case shows that the fundamental rights of religious minorities can and should be protected in the courtroom and through effective legal advocacy.

When Kobani was under siege by IS most of the city was destroyed and thousands fled. But IS’s violence caused a re-examination of Islam by the Kurds. When Christian Kurds are asked, ‘What made you change?’ they reply, ‘What IS did opened our eyes.’ When they saw first-hand the death and destruction wrought by radical Islam, they revised their beliefs, saying, ‘Islam in theory is different to Islam in action’. Brother Rachid said, ‘When we read “Kill the infidels” it’s only a sentence, but when you see the blood - it changes your attitude. The Lord has used these circumstances to bring people to faith. It is still growing like this (pointing upward), accelerating, huge numbers.’ About twenty families (80 to 100 people) now worship at Kobani’s new church. ‘We meet on Tuesdays and hold a service on Fridays. It is open to anyone who wants to join’, he said.

Since March, Iran has been ravaged by record rainfall and unprecedented flash flooding. At least 26 of 31 provinces have been impacted by deadly floods. One city received 70% of its annual rainfall in one day. 76 have died, with hundreds missing. It is the largest disaster to hit Iran this century. Entire villages were washed away in minutes, and countless homes and buildings were damaged or completely destroyed. The story has not reached international news headlines, but hundreds of thousands remain displaced and grieving. Christians in different places have been helping to provide food, clothing and basic necessities for those affected. The Iranian government has been accused of mismanaging disaster response, with residents of afflicted areas complaining that action has been slow and insufficient. Iran complains that US banking sanctions make it impossible to receive donations from outside the country. The US puts the blame on Iran's leaders. See

China has upped its persecution of Christians, with Communist party officials in Guangzhou offering a reward of up to 10,000 Chinese Yuan (approximately £1,162) to those who can provide information about underground churches, secret Christians, religious leaders, and others involved in ‘illegal’ religious activity. Smaller rewards are offered for information about churches and other religious meeting places built or used without official permission. The regulation is called ‘Incentives to Motivate the Masses to Report on Illegal Religious Activities’. The persecution watchdog China Aid says that the new regulations will significantly increase the persecution of Christians in this officially atheist country. Inciting people to report on others with monetary incentives only appeared during the Cultural Revolution, when children would report their parents, a wife would report her husband, and colleagues would report one another.

Evangelicals believe the ‘evangel’ or Good News brings salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. Nearly 10% of the world’s population are now evangelical believers. About 33% of the world’s population identify themselves as Christian. Out of all the regions in the world, India has the fewest Evangelicals or Christians. Unreached peoples and non-believers need missionaries either in their own people group or from abroad to ‘reach them with the message of God’s salvation for them through His Son Jesus Christ’. India is second only to China in having the most isolated peoples, with virtually no Christians of any kind in their own people group. Today almost half of the non-believers are culturally near to significant numbers of believers. The remaining missionary task of reaching these non-believers is smaller than ever before. However, the vast majority of missionaries are still going to the ‘Christian’ areas of the world.

UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has said he is 'appalled' at the ongoing persecution of Christians.

One of the countries clamping down is China. Churches continue to be closed, and Christians have been arrested because of their faith.

That is because the country is officially an atheist state, with freedom of religion guaranteed in the constitution. Sky's Tom Cheshire explains.

Watch the SKYNEWS video on Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZE4y4PSjCw

Pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters in China.

Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has appointed a new chief commander of the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), just days after the United States designated the paramilitary force as a foreign terrorist organization.

Iranian state media reported on April 21 that Khamenei appointed General Hossein Salami as the new head of the IRGC, replacing Mohammad Ali Jafari, who had been in charge for more than 11 years.

Salami, 59, had been serving as a deputy commander in the IRGC. State media gave no reason for Khamenei’s decision to replace the IRGC commander.

U.S. President Donald Trump's administration on April 8 designated the IRGC as a terrorist organization in an unprecedented move that drew Iranian condemnation.

Tehran responded by designating the U.S. military's Central Command as a terrorist organization.

The estimated 100,000-strong IRGC is a branch of the military that also plays a major role in Iran’s economy.

It is in charge of Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear programs and runs its own intelligence operations.

The IRGC has been involved in enforcing Islamic codes and crushing dissent at home, experts say, while taking part in covert operations, arms smuggling, and other efforts aimed at expanding Iran's influence abroad. It answers directly to Khamenei.

The United States has already blacklisted dozens of entities and people for affiliations with the IRGC, but not the organization as a whole.

More:https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-s-supreme-leader-appoints-new-chief-of-revolutionary-guards/29894970.html?ltflags=mailer

Pray that the devious and manipulative actions of the IRGC will be thwarted
Pray for the people of Iran, who yearn for freedom of speech and true democracy

Elections in Israel were yesterday.  This afternoon (Wednesday) with some 97% of votes counted, the Likud with Benjamin Netanyahu and the Blue and White party with Benny Gantz were tied, each having received 35 seats each in the new Knesset. 

However, because the two religious parties, the Sephardic Shas and the Ashkenazy United Torah Judaism, received an astounding eight seats each, and have vowed to join a Netanyahu government—and there are still several other right-wing parties expected to do the same,

Netanyahu is being seen as winner (President Rivlin will almost certainly give him the task of forming a coalition after the final military and write-in votes are counted tomorrow).  This will be Netanyahu’s fifth term.  It means that Israel will go into this next season with a proven, strong defense stance against the threat from Iran.  It will continue with a leader whose prowess as a statesman is respected (if not always loved) in the international community.  There should continue to be a government with strong feelings for Israel’s right to a presence in the Covenant Land of the Mountains of Israel—Judea & Samaria—the West Bank.  And, extremely important for the present time, the relationship forged between Prime Minister Netanyahu and U.S. President Trump continues in a realm of mutual favour no new Israeli leader could hope to imitate.

On the other hand, a coalition so strongly impressed with the religious parties means one which will likely continue with a “double standard” related to religious and civil responsibilities of citizens (most ultra-Orthodox demand to be allowed to study Biblical commentaries of rabbis rather than to fulfill those responsibilities).  And the Shas party will almost certainly demand to maintain control of the Ministry of the Interior and other offices related to immigration—thus deciding who is considered a “Jew”, and discriminating against Messianic Jews and others it considers not lining up with its narrow religious views. 

In general, a far-right government is far less concerned with civil rights of Israeli citizens.  Any overtures the government might wish to take, for example, towards allowing other streams of Judaism to have access to their own portion of the Western Wall, can (as happened two years ago) be nipped off at the bud by a threat from one of the religious parties to leave and bring down the government.

Another question mark relates to the “Deal of the Century” for solving the Israel/Palestinian questions, which President Trump is due to release within a few weeks after the new government is on its feet.  Will it “allow” Israel to annex portions of the Mountains of Israel, and for Jerusalem to remain undivided?  Will the present relationship with Mr. Trump and America be able to remain close if there are tenets of the plan which Israel finds impossible to accept?

The Prime Minister Elect will have a month to put together a coalition; if that fails, he may ask for one short extension.  That failing, the country goes again to new elections.

PLEASE PRAY:

• That the God of Israel will watch over and guard the building of the new government. That none will be allowed to be formed which would restrict His path of mercy for his covenant land and people during the coming season.
• That grace will rest upon Mr. Netanyahu—a grace which leads to humility, and to seeking heavenly counsel for his governance during this term.
• That no occult powers would be able to influence the forming of the new coalition.
• That the most recent Shas leader (a convicted felon) will not be allowed to again hold the office of Ministry of the Interior. That the anti-Messiah spirit would not be allowed to reign over that office.

Martin & Norma Sarvis

Jerusalem

The Situation in the North

In the weeks following the Hanoi Summit, the issue of North Korean denuclearization has been in the news a lot.  As evidence mounts that the North is rebuilding a major missile launching site that it had been dismantling, Trump has been warning against just that. The commander of U.S. forces in South Korea states that North Korea's activities are "insconsistent" with denuclearization.  While the U.S. also believes that North Korea wants to continue denuclearization talks, the North has threatened to discontinue them. In the meantime, the U.S. has been reaching out to China to help with the situation.  To be honest, I don't thing anyone really knows what will happen; however, the website, 38 North, has a number of very thoughtful articles on the whole denuclearization process.  I recommend taking a look.  There are some hopeful developments in Trump cancelling additional sanctions and the UN lowering sanction barriers for humnitarian work, specifically by the Mennonite Central Committee.  Pray for things to open up for other humanitarian organizations as well.

A few brief items.  Here's a story on how Russian technicians keep the North Korean leaders' bodies looking fresh.  North Koreans are managing to get outside media through new smartphone aps and as workers overseas.  Pray that they learn about the things that are really important and don't spend all their time on dramas...

Remembering Our Brothers in Prison 

We continue to pray for six South Koreans held in the North as well as Daily NK journalist, Choi Song Min (alias). Here's information on the pastors and others who have been detained and released.  Please remember them in your prayers.