Ghana: Economic woes and Christianity
28 Dec 2014
Twenty-five years ago the Christian message in Ghana was, ‘Repent and accept Jesus and you will be saved.’ Today, in many places, salvation is presented as an experience with Jesus Christ that will give Ghanaians the power to be successful in life, rub shoulders with the rich and be happy. The word ‘faith’ has a changed meaning in many Christian quarters to mean a power to ‘get what you want’. Theologians call it Prosperity Gospel. Also Ghana’s once stable economy is no longer on a firm footing. There are sharp rises in inflation, frequent power cuts, crumbling roads and dramatic plunges in the value of the currency that is causing unrest. The government recently requested a bailout from the International Monetary Fund, despite discoveries of vast oil reserves. Many are saying Ghana has gone the way of other African oil producers who became riddled with corruption when oil was discovered. See also:
Pakistan: Peshawar school massacre
28 Dec 2014
145 families have lost precious members after six gunmen walked from classroom to classroom in a school killing-spree. It’s Pakistani Taliban’s deadliest attack to date. They shot at random until army commandos arrived at the scene. ‘My son was in uniform in the morning - he is in a casket now,’ said Tahir Ali, who lost his 14-year-old son. ‘My son was my dream. My dream has been killed.’ Local hospitals are treating dozens of the injured. 136 children and nine staff have died. Mourners staged candlelit vigils overnight. Pakistani Nobel Prize winner Malala Yousafzai said, ‘I, along with millions of others around the world, mourn these children, but we will never be defeated.’ A Taliban spokesman said the attack was revenge for Taliban members being killed by Pakistani authorities. His organization, Tehreek-e-Taliban, is a military group working to overthrow the Pakistani government.
Nigeria: Preparations for 2015 Elections
12 Dec 2014
Nigeria will hold a presidential election on 14 February and many are beginning to speculate on President Goodluck Jonathan’s second term bid and how political parties will address issues affecting Nigeria’s economy, terrorist and political challenges. In the coming weeks there will be quarrels over who is to be a delegate as well as many issues that may arise through primaries. Although a President can never solve all the problems in his country we can pray that the candidates for the next presidency will be men or women who have a heart to make positive differences to Nigeria’s future.
Egypt: Lawyer convert still in jail
12 Dec 2014
The first Egyptian citizen to attempt to change his legal religious identity from Muslim to Christian, Mohammed Hegazy, has been in jail for twelve months awaiting a verdict on separate misdemeanour charges, (due on 28 December). He faces five years in jail if an appeal court upholds his June conviction of ‘illegally filming anti-Christian demonstrations.’ His lawyer, Karam Ghobrial, said he is optimistic that the appeal court judge will overturn the conviction because no evidence was produced to prove the allegations against his client. Mr. Ghobrial contends that the real reason for the arrest and custody was because he is publicly known for a case he tried to open in 2007 to legalize his conversion to Christianity.
A week after the burning to death of Christian couple Shama and Shahzad in the Punjab, police accused Qaiser Ayub, 40, from Lahore of an alleged act of blasphemy. Mr Ayub is a Christian with a masters degree in computer sciences and a well-known blogger. He was accused of using derogatory language against the Holy Prophet in his blogs and of making threats. He went into hiding. He was found and arrested on 14 November. According to the chairman of Sharing Life Ministry Pakistan, his wife Amina Bibi and three children are in safe custody and will be taken care of while legal assistance for his case is organised. Qaiser Ayub remains in jail during the judicial investigation. Sources claim police are hiding the case and keeping the investigation secret while requesting the media to keep it in low profile. See also
Iraq/Syria: ISIS trains ten year olds
12 Dec 2014ISIS has released photographs showing children around ten years of age in soldier uniforms being trained to use assault rifles such as AK47s to kill people in Iraq and Syria. The children are also seen performing military drills, and marching before ISIS' black flag. The terror group has also been accused multiple times of carrying out extreme violence against children. Earlier this month, the vicar of Baghdad revealed that four Iraqi Christian children were beheaded by the terror group for refusing to convert to Islam. A CNN report in September shared the story of a 13-year-old boy who escaped a training camp and said that he witnessed militants carry out beheadings, stoning and a crucifixion. Chaldean-American businessman Mark Arabo said this week, ‘They are systematically beheading children, and mothers and fathers. The world hasn't seen an evil like this for a generation.
Australia: Attorney-general heckled
12 Dec 2014On Wednesday Dec.10th, the day after the CIA released a report on an American torture programme in Guantanamo Bay, the Australian Federal Attorney-General George Brandis was heckled by a former Guantanamo Bay detainee, David Hicks, at an awards ceremony in Sydney. ‘Hey, my name is David Hicks!’ he shouted, ‘I was tortured for five-and-a-half years in Guantanamo Bay in the full knowledge of your party! What do you have to say?’ As Senator Brandis walked off the stage at the Museum of Contemporary Arts, Mr Hicks told reporters Mr Brandis was a coward for not answering his question.
Congo: Victims need justice and support
12 Dec 2014DRC has stunning landscapes and is rich in natural resources (literal goldmines are beneath the ground). It's extremely hot at certain times of year and rainy at others. But life is brutal. During recent weeks the town of Beni has been repeatedly attacked by militia. Photos of 100+ raped and mutilated corpses of women and children were too awful for the media to print. On Saturday night 37 people were massacred by militants in Oicha village in what the French call 'arme blanche', no guns – only machetes and knives. These attacks are becoming crueller and more frequent. In June an ‘Ending Sexual Violence in Conflict’ summit in London devised an international protocol, describing ways to bring rapists and their commanders to justice and commitments to help sexual violence survivors to report crimes and get the support they need. Prayer is needed for international funding for this initiative. See also: