Syria in Revolt
Reuters News Agency reported that Syrian security forces shot dead at least 34 demonstrators in the Syrian town of Hama on Friday, as once again protesters were mown down as they left Friday’s noon prayers. The revolt against President Bashar al-Assad is in its 11th week and security forces, including snipers, fired into a crowd of thousands in an attempt to bring it to an end. “The firing began from rooftops on the demonstrators. I saw scores of people falling in Assi square and the streets and alleyways branching out. Blood was everywhere,” a witness who gave his name as Omar told Reuters from Hama. “It looked to me as if hundreds of people have been injured, but I was in a panic and wanted to find cover.” Funerals for the martyrs have already started, “he said. History may be repeating itself in Hama, where Bashar’s father, Hafez, slaughtered at least 30,000 of his own citizens in 1982, in order to suppress a revolt…
According to human rights groups, security forces have killed more than 1,000 civilians since March. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who originally called Assad a “reformer” has said that his legitimacy “had nearly run out.” Although the United States has joined NATO operations in Libya aimed at toppling Qaddafi, who has also killed his own citizens, no similar actions have been announced against Assad. The EU, Australia, and the United States have passed sanctions against the regime. Assad has responded to this continuing revolt against his rule with violence accompanied by promises of reforms, which protestors have dismissed as irrelevant. The media blackout instituted by the regime has made a mockery of those promises, and news is dependent on activists who manage to communicate via the web. A 13-year-old boy, Hamza al-Khatib, who is said to have been tortured to death, has become the symbol of the human rights outrages perpetrated by Assad’s forces. His picture is seen at protests.
From: “Anneli Dietz” Subject: Syria Bloody Friday in Hama, Syria as History Repeats Itself by INN Staff
Please pray for a just government to arise that will serve the people and that the current oppression by Assad’s administration will cease.
Exploding Christian Movement in Iran Puts Christians at Risk
“A major spike in the harassment and arrest of Iranian Christians in recent months is revealing just how nervous the Islamic republic is about the prodigious success of house churches, say Iranian Christian leaders. At least 202 Christians in 24 cities faced "arbitrary" arrest between June 2010 and January 2011, according to Elam Ministries. Elam, run by Iranian expatriates, counted 80 arrests over 2008 and 2009 combined. "[Iran] has been substantially more public in its oppression of Christianity," said Todd Nettleton, a spokesman for Voice of the Martyrs. "Announcing it on the news, having the mullahs talk about it in their Friday sermons—it's just become a lot more out in the open." "Persecution has escalated to an unprecedented level," said Abe Ghaffari, executive director of Iranian Christians International.
While Iran's historic Armenian and Assyrian congregations usually enjoy freedom of worship, Farsi-speaking house churches hosting converts from Islam work under significant threat. … The government is concerned, observers say, because more and more Iranian Muslims are converting to Christianity. The house church movement is booming, with converts estimated in the hundreds of thousands. Evangelists are distributing large numbers of New Testaments, and satellite television continually beams Christian programs into the country. "The government always used to deny that Iranians become Christians," said Elam's David Yeghnazar, but now the church has become too strong to ignore. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei declared the house church network "enemies of Iran" in an October speech, which analysts labeled a rare public acknowledgement of the movement. …
Resentment against the reigning regime is spreading and deepening—especially since the disputed 2009 national elections. … "The Iranian public basically doesn't trust the government anymore," Ghaffari said, "and they don't trust the Muslim clergy anymore, because they have seen a lot of double standards and hypocrisy." Converts in smaller communities still risk persecution from their own families, but tolerance is growing in urban areas and among the younger generation. "In fact," said Dibaj, "in places like Tehran and more educated communities, if you say, 'I have become a Christian,' they will respect you because of your courage and your independent thinking." If anything, government persecution has made Christianity much more attractive, said Yegh-nazar. "When government officials are on television telling people not to read the Scriptures, that generates more interest in the Scriptures."
Excerpted from Christianity Today, June 6, 2011.
Lord, let your Gospel continue to speed on and triumph throughout Iranian society! Please strengthen and protect your workers who are bearing the brunt of the opposition by political and religious authorities.
Phone hacking: David Cameron bows to calls for public inquiries
Labour MP Chris Bryant successfully pushed for an emergency commons debate into calling for a public inquiry into phone hacking. The Speaker John Bercow granted the rare emergency debate which resulted in David Cameron agreeing to hold a full public enquiry into allegations against journalists hacking phones and subsequent police investigations. Pressed by Ed Miliband to conduct the full public inquiry, the Prime Minister agreed that it was important that the inquiries should be ‘public, independent, and have public confidence’ adding that the inquiries could not be started immediately because of the major police investigation currently under way, though it may be possible to start some of the work earlier. He said the two vital areas were why the original police inquiry failed to ‘get to the bottom of what happened’, and the behaviour, practices and ethics of journalists and media organisations.
Pray: for all that is hidden to be revealed. (Ps.45:4)
More: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/06/david-cameron-phone-hacking-inquiry
Barnabas Fund seeks to boost teaching Christianity in schools
An Ofsted report last year stated the quality of RE lessons at many primary schools was ‘not good enough’ and ‘only six out of 10 schools are ‘satisfactory’ in teaching RE'. In response to this Barnabas Fund has launched a new resource pack to enrich teaching of Christianity within Religious Education called, ‘Assisting Christianity Teaching in Schools (ACTS)' and they are asking Christians to donate packs to local schools. Ofsted said ‘In many cases, the study of Jesus focused on an unsystematic collection of information about His life, with limited reference to His theological significance within the faith.’ The pack aimed at ages 7 to 11 covering basic Christianity, Bible reference, character development, the life and teachings of Jesus through children’s fiction and biographies, posters, maps, Bible guides, fact books, Bible story books, time lines, animated DVDs, activity workbooks and presentation slides.
Pray: that many churches will be able to step into this opportunity to meet educationl need. (Ps.34:11)
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/barnabas.fund.seeks.to.boost.teaching.of.christianity.in.schools/28250.htm
