Portugal: State of Nation debate
17 Jul 2015
On 8 July, Portugal's Prime Minister, Pedro Passos Coelho, opened the State of the Nation debate in parliament - taking place barely three months before the legislative elections. The last State of the Nation debate was on 2 July 2014 when the prime minister called for a national commitment on employment and asked the leader of the opposition Socialists about his position in regard to the European Union budget treaty. This time, Passos Coelho took a message of confidence in the euro zone and the Portuguese economy. The Socialist leader, António Costa, wanted to give a voice to citizens disillusioned with ‘false promises’ in the 2011 general election campaign, adding, ‘three generations have been decimated in three harrowing years.’
Poland: IVF bill divides senators
17 Jul 2015
Senators spent 11 hours debating a bill on IVF on Wednesday 6 July in what has proved one of the most divisive issues in current Polish politics. The bill was passed in the lower house of parliament in late June and regulates state funding for couples seeking the treatment, but has been flatly opposed by chief opposition party Law and Justice. During Wednesday's Senate session representatives of various parties called for amendments to the bill, while others said that as Roman Catholics the prospective law is wholly unacceptable. Law and Justice Senator Dorota Czudowska claimed that ‘we are opening the gates of hell with this act’. Several senators from the ruling Civic Platform/Polish People's Party coalition suggested an amendment that would only allow the treatment for married couples.
Norway: Diocese inflating membership figures
17 Jul 2015
The government of Norway is demanding $5.1 million from the Oslo diocese in compensation for what the government sees as fraud in the inflated reporting of church membership figures. The government charges that the Oslo diocese obtained nearly $6 million in state subsidies by routinely registering immigrants as Catholics if they came from predominantly Catholic countries, without obtaining any evidence of the immigrants’ actual affiliations. The government charges that of the 65,500 new Catholics registered by the Oslo diocese between 2010 and 2014, more than 56,000 were not confirmed as Catholics. After a government raid on diocesan offices, Church officials conceded that they had used ‘unsatisfactory’ methods of identifying members of the Catholic Church, but denied ‘any conscious or intentional fraud.’ The diocese has indicated that it plans to appeal the assessment of $5.1 million, saying that the case is ‘legally complicated.’
Netherlands: Schools are failing pupils
17 Jul 2015
Secondary school pupils in deprived areas are not getting the education they need, the Volkskrant newspaper reported on Thursday 9 July. There is not enough money to pay for extra lessons or for the care some pupils need, and teachers are working unpaid hours to fulfil that need. Schools get extra money from the government for pupils from deprived areas. There are also additional subsidies available from councils. But school heads say this is not enough. In addition, total school budgets are shrinking which is adding to the problem. At a school in Rotterdam teachers work a 60-hour week on a 36-hour contract to provide extra lessons. A head-teacher in Amsterdam said, ‘We have intelligent pupils but they do need extra attention. We offer additional language and maths lessons, but I lie awake wondering how to keep within the budget.’
The Community of Christian Service Workers are in Montenegro with a training and inspirational forum for Christians working in service to others. They are ministers, missionaries, the staff and volunteers of Christian organisations , charity workers, and others who serve in the name of Christ in Montenegro. It is web-based and incorporates Friends of the Great Commission FB3T - a site created for other Christians and supported by the Friends of The Great Commission in the United States and The Great Commission Foundation in Canada. They produce a ‘Learning Together’ series of coaching modules for people serving in Christian missions and church organisations. The first series of free learning modules includes video tutorials that have been developed by the Prairie Digital Media Program. Each learning session also provides a downloadable companion guide booklet compiled through collaboration with workers in Christian service. The first few modules can be found at: http://christianserviceworker.org/social-media-for-missionaries. They are also on Facebook. See https://www.facebook.com/ChristianServiceWorkers
Monaco: Christian outreach
17 Jul 2015
Trans World Radio has been sending out Christian programmes from Monaco for 55 years. The first programme was broadcast from a 100,000-watt shortwave transmitter in Monte Carlo. TWR now utilises the facility to transmit the Good News of Jesus Christ to millions of listeners daily throughout Europe, the Middle East and North Africa in 16 languages. Although YWAM Monaco has no website yet, they do have a presence in the country. Monaco has very few people who understand how to be in a living relationship with Christ. Many homes may have traditional icons of the faith but without the power and vitality behind them. Pray that they may start to understand what a true relationship with Christ looks like. Monaco has the world's lowest poverty rate and the highest number of millionaires and billionaires per capita. As a result, this hedonistic society is far from recognising its need of God. See also: https://www.twr.org/news_and_blogs/2010/10-01/celebrating-50-years-of-broadcasting-from-
Moldova faces different problems
17 Jul 2015
Sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine, Moldova is one of the poorest countries in Europe; children are often abandoned by families trapped in poverty with no hope. Moldova still suffers from a Communist legacy and has a large foreign debt with high unemployment. It is heavily dependent on Russia for energy supplies and Russia has not hesitated to take advantage of this fact as a way of exerting economic pressure. The Orthodox Church has strong political influence. Preaching and planting churches in traditionally Orthodox villages is opposed, frequently with violence. (Pray-Europe reports that 800 villages still have no Christian witness.) Two-thirds of Moldovans are of Romanian descent, the languages are virtually identical and the two countries share a common cultural heritage. See also: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-17601580
Malta: Buying children
17 Jul 2015
On Thursday 9 July police identified a suspect after two women reported a man trying to buy their daughters while walking along the Sliema front. Police said, ‘Investigations are still ongoing to identify the man who allegedly offered them money.’ On Tuesday Anya Soldatova, 31, felt ‘creeped out’ when a Middle-Eastern-looking man, in his early 30s, offered to buy her two-year-old blonde daughter and kept upping the price until he reached €30,000. Just last month through Project Stop a concert was held in Bugibba Town Centre to raise awareness on the problem of human trafficking in Malta. Many in the audience were surprised that human trafficking also takes place in Malta. Through the performances the message was ‘human trafficking robs victims of choice and freedom, takes advantage of vulnerability and leaves a lasting impact on its victims. Survivors carry physical, mental, emotional, and financial scars the rest of their lives.’ See also: http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2015-07-08/local-news/Human-trafficking-awareness-concert-held-many-surprised-human-trafficking-exists-in-Malta-6736138529