As darkness fell in Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a ‘woman of the night’, wandering aimlessly, noticed a large crowd forming on the outskirts of the city and went to investigate. People were slowly filling up an empty field where a large, white screen had been erected. 'What is this all about?' she wondered. There seemed to be a buzz of excitement and anticipation in the air. She knew she should begin looking for her next customer, but something was drawing her to stay. She lingered a few more minutes, then sat down among the crowd. A movie began that was like no other she had seen: the JESUS Film. She learned about the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, his death and resurrection, and that he reached out with healing hands to the last, the least, and the lost. On bended knee, she wept over her sins. When the invitation was given, she stood up to receive Jesus as her Saviour and Lord.
The Church in North Africa is growing, most notably in Algeria. Mustapha Krim, pastor and former president of the Protestant Church of Algeria, reports, ‘The Church started out very small. In the beginning we saw very little growth, but then the growth became like a rolling snowball, growing bigger and bigger. Now, there are zeros at the end of the growth numbers.’ He said growth followed the 1990’s persecution. Then Christian radio broadcasts and screening the Jesus film started. ‘The media is the most important tool for bringing people to Christ. I give thanks to the Lord because every day new people are saved. People in the north are less opposed to Christians than in the south. Even in our part of the country, people sometimes call me to insult me. That is part of being Christian. But even when we are mistreated or insulted we end up winning the confidence and respect of the people.’
On 22 April Pastor Lee Stoneking stood in front of the General Assembly at the United Nations in New York City to address the problem of violence taking place around the world in the name of religious ideology. Stoneking did just that, but first he shared his story of resurrection. He had suffered a massive heart attack and paramedics tried to revive him but he was declared dead and put into the ambulance as a corpse. After being clinically dead for 45 minutes, Stoneking’s heart started to beat. The paramedics and doctors were amazed by this miracle. A doctor discovered his DNA had been altered to strip heart disease from his genetic makeup. ‘You have defied all laws of medical science,’ he told Stoneking. Stoneking replied, ‘I didn’t but I know the one who did. His name is Jesus.’ In his UN address he went on to preach the gospel. His UN speech is on YouTube and has been viewed 3 million times.
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)