Poundland’s 'OMG' slogan
17 Mar 2017
OMG stands for Oh My God. Poundland has a nationwide advertising campaign using 'OMG'. Many believe the advert blasphemes God's name and sends the message that God has no space in our national life except to advertise bargain products. A supporter of Christian Concern contacted them after seeing the advert. Christian Concern suggest complaining to Poundland if they share this concern. Points to raise could be: a) finding the advert offensive because OMG treats God's name as an advertising gimmick; b) for millions of UK Christians, God's name is holy and due reverence and respect; c) our nation is historically Christian, and many of the freedoms we enjoy result from the influence of God's people living out their faith in society - OMG suggests that God is no longer a serious part of our national life; d) other religions have a presence in the UK, and would Poundland consider running a slogan treating the name of their gods or gods in the same way?
Scotland: named person scheme
17 Mar 2017
John Swinney MSP, Deputy First Minister and cabinet secretary for education, has outlined his intent to relaunch the controversial Named Person Scheme. The Scottish Government was compelled to rethink its approach following the success of the No to Named Person Coalition, which argued before the Supreme Court that the scheme was incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights. CARE also raised concerns that the scheme is an unwelcome intrusion which will undermine parental authority and potentially misuse private data; in practice, parents are best placed to take care of their children. Mr Swinney has not clarified whether the scheme will be proactive or will be responsive to parents’ needs. Whilst CARE is pleased that there has been a consultation on how data will be shared, there has been little attempt to define key terms in the bill which could potentially lead to huge discrepancies in its operation.
The election has seen changes in how Stormont will look in the future. People have gone, party allegiance has shifted for many, and the outlook for the governance of Northern Ireland is uncertain as talks begin to form a power-sharing executive. The former first minister Arlene Foster will lead the Democratic Unionists into negotiations aimed at rebuilding power-sharing. She wants the discussions to deliver a new regional government, and vowed to work with all parties to achieve that. Sinn Féin and its leader Michelle O’Neill also insist that they want the negotiations to succeed. Many believe the prospect of the parties reaching a power-sharing agreement in the three-week timeframe imposed by Northern Ireland secretary of state James Brokenshire appears remote. If that deadline passes, the Government must either call another election or put Stormont in cold storage and reintroduce direct rule, which nationalists strongly oppose.
Thy Kingdom come
17 Mar 2017
We recently highlighted THY KINGDOM COME 2017, launching a time of prayer from 25 May to 4 June. It is gathering momentum - not only in the UK but worldwide. An updated website is now live with more information on this call to pray individually, as families and as churches together, from Ascension Day to Pentecost. The site has a wide range of excellent resource material which can be downloaded and copied free, or bought if people prefer. Pray for awareness to continue to grow, through networking ministers and prayer groups talking to other local churches about joint prayer times. Pray for the communities of praying people to explore new ideas and ways of engaging people in prayer across their communities, towns and cities. The theme of the ten days is 'Praying that people come to know Jesus Christ'.
Fake news
17 Mar 2017
When prayer becomes intercession, we need to know what we are interceding for. It sounds simple, but this is one of our greatest challenges in today's society. We are bombarded with information and we often have neither the time nor the ability to check the facts. Even as Christians we can be cocooned in our own cultural, religious or denominational bubble where we only believe what agrees with our own views. As intercessors for Europe, we need to be aware of the realities of what is called a 'post-truth' society, where fake news becomes fact and what is popular and self-satisfying becomes my truth. The good news is that as Christians we have an open heaven and a God who wants to guide and correct us. We can be fervent in prayer as we navigate the minefield of information and opinions out there. We can look outside our bubble.
Wycliffe work in Europe
17 Mar 2017
The Roma people, often referred to as Gypsy, are originally from India and now live scattered all over the world, especially Europe. After attending a training workshop, Marlute works with a Roma man on a OneStory project in a Central Romani dialect in Romania. OneStory works with mother-tongue speakers to develop and record worldview-sensitive, chronological Bible story sets. The whole project will take about two years. The team has drafted several Bible stories and is testing them. New-Neighbour-Bible.org was recently launched by Wycliffe Germany. The website provides information about Scripture resources in the languages spoken by the people arriving from other nations now living in Europe. Links to Bibles, Bible stories, videos and audio recordings are listed for the languages of Syria, Iraq and Lebanon. Resources for other countries will be added soon. Pray that churches and Christian refugee networks will find out about and use this site.
Egypt: terrified Copts flee Sinai
17 Mar 2017
‘Are you a Christian?’ These were the last words 45-year-old Medhat Saad Hakim heard before he was shot in the head on his doorstep last month. The gunmen dragged Hakim's screaming mother outside the house before going back inside and shooting his father dead. The attackers then looted the house before torching it. Medhat Saad and Saad Hakim are the sixth and seventh Christians killed in the town of Al-Arish in a month. All are targeted by Al Wilayat Sinai, a local affiliate of IS waging a low-level insurgency on the peninsula. The two killings, followed by another one 48 hours later, prompted Christians to flee the coastal town; over 500 have arrived in Ismailia, 200 km away, since 21 February. Those who cannot leave have sent their children away to relatives outside Sinai. Terrorists have threatened taxi and minibus drivers with death if they take fleeing Christians from Al-Arish.
The UN warns of genocide, officials accuse the government of war crime atrocities, and Bishop Santo Doggale of Juba denounced President Kiir’s ‘National Day of Prayer’ as a ‘political prayer’. The president had called the nationwide day of prayer for peace and forgiveness on 10 March. They repented and prayed to forgive each other for problems they might have committed to each other. But the bishop told Voice of America, ‘Why should I go to pray where there is no holiness, where there is no forgiveness? It is a joke to hear the president of the country calling for prayers while soldiers are hunting people across South Sudan.’ In February, Kiir called on groups fighting his government to lay down their arms and focus on developing South Sudan but added, ‘If they don't listen to the call for peace, I will declare war against them. I don't think there is any one of you who will blame me.’