Brussels: Christians ‘the most persecuted’
04 Dec 2015
In a high-level meeting on religious persecution in Brussels, the President of the European Parliament (EP) said that Europe cannot afford to continue ignoring the fate of Christians, who are clearly the most persecuted group in the world. EP President Martin Schulz said that the persecution of Christians is ‘undervalued’ and does not receive enough attention, which also means that it has not been properly addressed. For Islamists, Christians are the new ‘crusaders’ of Europe. Because of Islamic persecution in the Middle East, more than 70% of Christians have fled from Iraq since 2003, and a further 700,000 Christians have been forced to leave their homes in Syria since the outbreak of civil war.
Russia accuses Erdogan of buying oil from IS
04 Dec 2015
Russia's deputy defence minister, Anatoly Antonov, has accused the family of Turkish President Erdogan of being directly involved in the trade of oil with IS. Mr. Antonov said Turkey was the biggest buyer of ‘stolen’ oil from Syria and Iraq. Mr Erdogan said Russia had no right to ‘slander’ Turkey. The Syrian conflict has given rise to an extensive war economy in which murky deals are struck between a host of partners, even including groups that are fighting each other on the battlefield (see also this week’s Prayer Alert World article no 1). ‘It is not possible to explain Russia's allegations by reason,’ said Turkish prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu, rejecting Russia's claims at a meeting of businessmen in Ankara. US officials have previously said they have information suggesting Turkish ‘middlemen’ are involved in the illegal IS oil trade.
Finding new life in Croatia
04 Dec 2015
Croatia typically makes headlines these days because of the 460,000 refugees that have passed through it to reach safe havens like Germany. Cold weather and stricter border controls are slowing down the mass movement of peoples, but refugees are still undeterred. Today, though, there is a different movement of people that is saving lives. It began last year when God put it on a woman’s heart to create a life giving ministry in Croatia. With prayer support and training from crisis pregnancy centres in neighbouring countries, she began ‘Choose Life Ministry’. Now desperate women learn about Christ’s forgiveness and redemption, find hope and new life in a crisis moment, and hear about the life-giving message of Jesus Christ as they choose life for their children and hope for their future.
Bharat held a good government job in India and lived a comfortable life. Then ugly white patches spread across his body. All his savings went on unsuccessful treatments. He lost his job and became bitter. The future looked bleak, he lost hope and quarrelled and fought with everyone. Then someone gave him a Trans World Radio programme guide and suggested he listen to The Word Today programme in his language. The man also prayed with him. Through the programme Bharat moved closer to Jesus Christ and pondered daily on what he had heard. His life changed, he had hope, he refrained from alcohol and stopped quarrelling with others. He said, ‘Peace trickled into my life and the lives of my family members. When prayers were said on the radio, our family prayed along. Now my whole family believes in the Lord Jesus Christ and have accepted him as our Saviour.’ God also removed 90% of the patches on his body.
Tashfeen Malik, the woman involved in California’s mass shooting, is the latest in a growing number of extremists using social media to publicise their crimes. Facebook said she used an alias to praise IS online shortly before, or during, the attack. Malik's posting echoes similar bids for attention by violent perpetrators; for example, a disgruntled Virginia TV broadcaster recorded himself shooting two co-workers and then posted the video online, and a Florida man killed his wife and shared a photo of her body on social media. Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and other social media companies do their best to block or remove posts that glorify violence, but experts say it's an uphill battle. The advent of new services enabling people to stream live video from events makes the task more challenging. Online services use automated software to help detect posts depicting or encouraging violence; however, all the policies in the world won't help unless companies devote staff and resources to enforcing them.
Australia: trafficking women for sex
11 Dec 2015
In a country that promotes gender equality, it’s a sad fact that women are being trafficked to Australia and sold for sex. The problem is bigger than most people realise. The UN and the USA have identified Australia as a destination country for trafficked persons. Research shows that there is a clear link between legalising prostitution and human trafficking. Women are trafficked into Australia and into brothels. Prostitution is a trap for the exploitation of women. The Australian Christian Lobby believes that the solution would be for public policy to tackle the demand for prostitution and criminalise the purchase of sex. This would lead to a drop in the number of prostitutes, and fewer people being trafficked into the country.
Lebanon: Islamist militant activity
11 Dec 2015
Lebanon is bordered by Syria and Israel, and is at the crossroads of the Mediterranean basin and the Arabian heartland. It had a rich identity of peaceful religious and ethnic diversity. Recently the army carried out a series of raids after two IS suicide bombs killed 44 people in crowded commercial and residential areas of Beirut. Then, on Saturday a suspected IS terrorist killed himself, his wife and mother when he blew himself up during an army raid on his home near Tripoli. At least ten other people were wounded in the blast, including four security personnel. Security forces carried out further raids in the same town after the incident, and arrested several Lebanese and Syrian nationals. Last week a Lebanese court charged 26 people with belonging to IS. 23 of them were directly linked to a Beirut bombing in November which targeted a Shi'ite Muslim suburb.
Argentina: Mauricio Macri sworn in
11 Dec 2015
Military dictatorship and the failed Falklands / Malvinas war, followed by economic disaster, have led Argentina into spiritual hunger and receptivity to the gospel of Christ. Operation World states that evangelical numbers, under one million in 1980, reached 3.7 million by 2010. But spiritual openness is also seeing many drawn into Umbanda occultism from Brazil as well as some churches with questionable teachings. As Mauricio Macri takes over as president of Argentina, pray that he will be able to harness its vast natural resources to revive an economy that has for decades fallen short of its potential. Pray also for investments to stream into the country, bringing with it Christians to reach out to the highly-educated workforce. See also https://missions-history.wikispaces.com/Argentina