The current head of the National Institutes of Health, Francis S Collins, told a CNN news reporter that he came to faith after he set out to disprove God. ‘I had always assumed that faith was based on purely emotional and irrational arguments and was astounded to discover that one could build a very strong case for the plausibility of God. My earlier atheist’s assertion that "I know there is no God" emerged as the least defensible.’ Collins' work gave him a spectacular view into the magnificence, order and finely-tuned perfection of the DNA molecule, God’s software for every living thing. He also reported to the National Geographic, ‘At the most fundamental level, it’s a miracle that there’s a universe at all.’
Muslims in Egypt have donated money towards the building of a Coptic church in Al Manufiyya, north of Cairo, signalling another step towards solidarity in a country previously divided along sectarian lines. Coptic Orthodox Bishop Benyamin, of the Diocese of Al Manufiyya, began a collection of donations for the church, which will be dedicated to the Virgin Mary. According to Fides news agency, a number of Islamic leaders in the area encouraged local Muslims to contribute, a suggestion that was taken up most eagerly by young people and children. Pleased with the success of the initiative, Bishop Benyamin has urged other communities to follow suit, and said there is a message to learn from the way that Christians and Muslims are working together. Though Egypt has in the past been plagued by sectarian violence, members of both faiths have been making a concerted effort to unite in the wake of brutality perpetuated by Islamic State in the Middle Eastern region.
The Northern Ireland Assembly has rejected same-sex marriage legislation by an outright majority for the fourth time. (See last week’s Prayer Alert) Today MLAs voted 49 to 47 against a motion calling for the redefinition of marriage. There were three abstentions. Traditional marriage supporters had warned that the motion sought to limit the free speech of Christians. Callum Webster, spokesman for The Christian Institute, said: ‘This is now the fourth time in three years this motion has been defeated. We’re thankful to those MLAs who have resisted this constant and co-ordinated pressure from activists to redefine marriage.’ He had previously highlighted that a sentence supporting ‘freedom of religion’ in last year’s motion was deleted from this year’s version. Mr Webster said this indicated that supporters of gay marriage only want to allow free speech within church services.
‘Killing Jesus,’which aired on the National Geographic Channel on Sunday (29 March), scored an all-time high for viewership at 3.7 million. The TV movie also received a rating of 1.0, the highest rating since the premiere of ‘Killing Kennedy’ in November 2013. Both ‘Killing Jesus’ and ‘Killing Kennedy’ were based on books of the same titles by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard. ‘Killing Jesus’ will be featured again on the Fox News Channel this Friday at 8:00pm and on Easter Sunday at 8pm. It will also air across the globe in 171 countries. The film features Haaz Sleiman as Jesus, Kelsey Grammer as King Herod the Great, and Stephen Moyer as Pontius Pilate.It also includes Rufus Sewell as Caiaphas, Emmanuelle Chriqui as Herodias, Eoin Macken as Antipas, and John Rhys Davies as Annas.
Eric Pickles has welcomed the passing of a new law which ensures all councils have the right to hold prayers at the start of meetings. The Local Government (Religious Observances) Act received Royal Assent from the Queen on Thursday 26 March after clearing its final stages in Parliament this week. The bill means councils at any level can be 'beyond any doubt' that they can chose to start meetings with prayer without fearing discrimination accusations. The legislation which was supported by the Government was taken through Parliament by Jake Berry MP and Lord Patrick Cormack after a number of legal challenges by individuals - some of whom had been supported by the National Secular Society. Communities and Local Government Secretary and Minister for Faith, Eric Pickles said: ‘The right to worship is a fundamental and hard-fought British liberty, and the fight for religious freedom in British history is deeply entwined with the political freedoms we take for granted.’ (See Prayer Alert 01-2015)
Israeli professionals are finding Jesus
09 Apr 2015
For 2,000 years it would have been shocking to claim that Jews can believe in Jesus! It is today no longer so uncommon to find Jewish people who believe in Yeshua (Jesus) as the promised Messiah of Israel, and within a Jewish context. Still, these people are often disregarded by mainstream Judaism as confused or disillusioned. The Israeli Messianic online ministry ‘One For Israel’ has set out to demonstrate that Jewish people of the highest standing, and most certainly in their right minds, are indeed coming to a realisation that Yeshua is Messiah. On their facebook page One For Israel stated, ‘We are proud to announce our new project I MET MESSIAH. Dynamic video testimonies of Jewish professionals who met their Messiah!’ Over a period of ten weeks, the team, in partnership with Chosen People Ministries, interviewed 35 Jewish professionals who are today believers in Yeshua. Their video testimonies are online at::- imetmessiah.com.
‘Just moments ago, I left the field after the final meeting of the Gospel Campaign here in Douala, Cameroon. 370,000 people attended the four days of meetings, and many thousands responded to the Gospel. After I preached the Gospel and prayed for the sick, we heard wonderful testimonies. For example, a woman suffering from an issue of blood was healed. The lump in a woman’s breast vanished, and all pain left. A woman with multiple painful fibroids was healed and many more. After taking testimonies, I pronounced blessing after blessing upon the nation, the city, the economy, the churches and the people gathered. They received it with joy and great faith. We depart now with a confidence that something historic has taken place this week. Douala will never be the same again in Jesus name!’ Evangelist Daniel Kolenda, together with Reinhard Bonnke, Peter van den Berg and the whole Christ for all Nations team.
An anonymous donor has given £1.5 million in an ‘ordinary-looking envelope’ to Bath Abbey to help with its £18 million restoration scheme. The donation is the largest the Abbey has ever received from a private individual. The donor explained that the main reason behind the gift was that he was: ‘much impressed by the care and the consultation which has been put in by the Abbey, which is such a vital part of Bath's future.’ He continues by saying that: ‘This generation has a solemn duty to ensure the Abbey is fit and able to carry out its service to the city and the community for the next hundred years.’ The money will go to the Abbey's £19.3 million Footprint project, aimed at stabilising the building's collapsing floor and introducing an under-floor heating system using Bath's famous hot springs as an energy source. It will also improve the Abbey's visitor facilities.