Prayer Network Newsletter
**Rowland Croucher**
Does anyone get this? Good material for your private/group/
congregational prayers... It's collated from mostly conservative
Christian news-sources, so some of you might want to supplement these
with items from elsewhere...
*****
AUSTRALIAN PRAYER NETWORK NEWSLETTER
November 9 2009
* YWAM BASE THWARTS ISLAMIC ATTACK AND SEES ATTACKERS TURN
TO GOD
* A STATEMENT BY THE CHURCH OF PAKISTAN
* MASSIVE RECONVERSION EVENT IN INDIA AIMED AT CHRISTIANS
* SOMALIA'S EMBATTLED CHRISTIANS ALMOST EXPUNGED
* U.S. SPONSORS U.N. PLAN TO RESTRICT FREE SPEECH
* HIV/AIDS HAS REACHED EPIDEMIC STAGE IN
PAPUA
-----------------------------------------------
YWAM BASE THWARTS
ISLAMIC ATTACK AND SEES ATTACKERS TURN TO GOD
A few months ago Taliban-trained militants from Iran marched to
within 300 yards of one of our YWAM campuses, destroying much
along the way. They had already burned 27 Christian churches in the
area killing hundreds of Christians within a few hours. Thankfully
God protected our brave and committed YWAMers and the army stopped
them just 300 yards before they could burn us out too. They were
beheading Christians who would not renounce Jesus. Their goal is to
take over Nigeria, the largest and the most oil rich nation in
Africa, to make it a Moslem nation.
The Nigerian President is a Moslem, though 45% of the population is
Christian. 35% are Moslem, the rest animist. The stakes are high. As
Nigeria goes, so goes the continent. In the "Christian" south, there
are now thousands of militants, mostly angry university students,
made bitter by corruption and injustice. They have grown stronger
over the last decade. The militants now control much wealth, land and
weapons and sell one-fifth of the nation�s oil supply on the black
market to nations needing cheaper oil, to pay for the militants� war.
After the attack the YWAM DTS outreach team, after much prayer, knew
God was leading them on outreach to the camps of the militants. Into
the camps went the prayed up YWAMers. One of the most ruthless
murderers, armed with a large knife, approached the YWAMers with his
knife poised over his head. The school leader, Alex, started walking
toward the man. Alex spoke firmly but calmly �you need Jesus.� Over
and over, he said it, as he drew closer to the drawn knife�s point.
The man replied �No! Run or you die!�
When Alex was just a few feet away, the man fell to his knees, threw
down his weapon and began weeping. He was saved and delivered, as
were many others. Many of the militants had made oaths with Satan.
One would go into a trance, moving like a crocodile and eat whole
eggs, until the demons were appeased. He too was delivered and
saved. As a result of this encounter the militants have started
to encourage their men to go to YWAM. 300 former militants have just
been through a YWAM three-week training course. Another 600 will
start into a second course soon.
Three former militants gave their testimonies on the campus.
One shared, �My job was to kidnap white people but I have been
transformed by the power of God.� This is such a huge breakthrough!
We now have a new base in a village controlled by the militants.
The Government, has declared they want YWAM bases in each of the 36
states of Nigeria and have asked YWAM to rehabilitate the militants.
Their testimonies reveal such darkness, satanic covenants, murders,
the worst of the worst. But when they come to Jesus and get set free,
they speak of freedom with such gratitude!
Source: YWAM testimony by Loren
Cunningham
-----------------------------------------------
A STATEMENT BY
THE CHURCH OF PAKISTAN
The recent tragedy where nine Pakistani Christians were burnt to
death by a frenzied mob, has raised yet again the whole issue of
the security of the religious minorities in Islamic countries. The
incident highlighted in a very painful way, the experiences of
Pakistani Christians, who so often are victimized under the false
pretext of either having desecrated the Quran or insulted the Prophet
of Islam. Such cases have become rampant during recent decades as
Pakistani society has become increasingly intolerant of those of
different religious identity.
This attitude has been sharply accentuated by new Blasphemy Laws,
which are being blatantly and maliciously abused for the harassment
and marginalization of Christians. It is overwhelmingly evident that
almost all such cases arise out of personal disputes and malice or to
gain some political points or even for some sinister covert
operations. All this of course has created a deep sense of
insecurity, anxiety and fear amongst the Christian community,
especially in vulnerable places like remote villages and 'bastis'.
Christians are now acquiring personal firearms for self-protection
which shows the extreme tension under which these communities are
living. The motivation and the impetus for such actions come from the
exploitation of faith and thus religion is used as a 'red rag' to
incite the masses. Unfortunately, it seems that the 'genie' is out of
the bottle and the bull is on the rampage. The challenge before us is
as to how do we contain this situation and lead it towards its
healing and restoration.
We the Church of Pakistan on behalf of all the Christians of
Pakistan:
* Call upon the Government of Pakistan to implement and introduce
effective legislative and administrative measures, which would
contain and control the situation. This concerns especially the
repeal of the Blasphemy Law which seems to have become a tool for
ultimate abuse of any civil law and even a curse for the religious
minorities.
* We urge the Authorities to legislate such positive and affirmative
actions which would redress the prevailing inequality being
experienced by the Christians of Pakistan, especially in the job
market and the public sector at large.
* We strongly demand that our Political Parties resist all
temptations to use the 'religion card' for political gain and instead
use their influence and network to foster peace and harmony among all
communities. We invite all who believe in equality, justice and equal
opportunities for all, to join us to eliminate discriminatory
practices and help in building bridges with the majority community,
leading towards a harmonious society.
* We finally challenge ourselves and our allies in approaching the
militants/extremists groups and challenge them for the redeeming of
this unfortunate situation by realizing that we hold so much in
common. We need to join hands in bringing peace and harmony for the
good of us all as citizens of Pakistan.
Source: Press release from the Church of
Pakistan
-----------------------------------------------
MASSIVE
RECONVERSION EVENT IN INDIA AIMED AT CHRISTIANS
Hundreds of tribal Christians were reportedly �reconverted� to
Hinduism recently at a ceremony led by a Hindu nationalist cleric.
Swami Narendra Maharaj�s goal was to �reconvert� 6,000 Christians in
the so-called purification ceremony, but press reports put the number
of �reconversions� at around 800. Hindu nationalists believe all
Indians are born Hindu and therefore regard acceptance of Hinduism by
those practicing other religions as �reconversion.�
Maharaj is known for opposing the proclamation of Christ, and has
allegedly led anti-Christian attacks in tribal regions. Hindu
nationalists attack Christians in tribal areas because they provide
social and development services, regarded as competition by rightwing
Hindus seeking to woo tribal voters. Sociologists maintain that
India�s tribal peoples are not Hindus but practice their own ethnic
faiths. Hindu nationalists run one-teacher schools in tribal regions
to �Hinduize� local villagers and repel conversions to other faiths.
These schools are operating in over 27,000 villages.
A spokesman for Maharaj said he has a plan to �reconvert� 100,000
Christians in the next two years. He said that those who
�reconverted� were not coerced. �We teach them the precepts of the
Hindu religion, and they decide to convert to Hinduism on their own
after repentance. They are not forced.� The reconversion ceremonies
include rituals involving cow�s milk, seeking forgiveness from
ancestors, installation of idols of the Hindu gods Ganesh and Vishnu,
and an offering ritual performed by priests.
The basic philosophy of Hindu nationalism is that only those who have
their ancestral roots in India and consider it as their holy land,
should have full citizenship rights. It claims superiority of
Hinduism over all other religions and cultures. �In this land, Hindus
have been the owners, Parsis and Jews the guests, and Muslims and
Christians the dacoits [bandits],� he said. Differences between the
moderate and extremist sections within the Hindu nationalist movement
have deepened to unprecedented levels in recent times. In
frustration, the extremists have accelerated their activities.
Source: Intercessors
Network
-----------------------------------------------
SOMALIA'S EMBATTLED
CHRISTIANS ALMOST EXPUNGED
Somalia is currently the hardest place in the world to be a Christian
citizen. There are thought to be no more than a thousand Christians
in a resident population of 8m people, with perhaps a few thousand
more in the Diaspora. The Islamist Shabab militia, which controls
most of southern Somalia, is dedicated to hunting them down.
Christian men attend mosques on Fridays, so as not to arouse
suspicion. Bibles are kept hidden. There are no public meetings, let
alone a church. Churches and Christian cemeteries have been
destroyed.
The only Christian believers left are local Somalis. Catching and
killing them is useful propaganda for indoctrinating its young
fighters and suicide-bombers in the belief that America, Britain,
Italy and the Vatican, are all �crusaders� trying to convert Somalis
to Christianity. The transitional government of Sheikh Sharif Ahmed,
is unlikely to speak up for anyone caught with a bible. Though
professing moderation, he promotes a version of sharia law whereby
every citizen of Somalia is born a Muslim and anyone who converts to
another religion is guilty of apostasy, punishable by death.
Every month several Somalis are killed for being Christian. Christian
groups monitoring Somalia from abroad, report at least 13 members of
underground churches have been killed in the past few months. Most
were Mennonites. They include a 46-year-old woman shot dead after a
Swahili-language bible was found in her shack; a 69-year-old man
killed after Shabab fighters found 25 Somali bibles in a bag he was
carrying; and two boys, aged 11 and 12, who were beheaded by the
Shabab after their father refused to divulge information about an
underground church.
Hundreds of Somalis may have been killed for being Christian since
the Shabab arose in 2005. Such atrocities � and reports that the
Koran has been read over the victims even at the point of their
beheading � are upsetting to evangelical Christians. Mr Ahmed�s
government sorely needs money to shore itself up. But if he fails
even to hint that Christians should be tolerated, he may find
America's Congress increasingly loath to help bail him out.
Source: Intercessors
Network
-----------------------------------------------
U.S. SPONSORS U.N.
PLAN TO RESTRICT FREE SPEECH
A proposal sponsored by the Obama administration at the United
Nations seeks protection for "freedom of opinion and expression"
whilst actually calling for a worldwide crackdown on freedom of
speech. The United States led resolution, demands that nations
condemn and criminalize any advocacy of national, racial or religious
hatred that incites discrimination, hostility or violence.
Critics are alarmed that the United States is pursuing a plan that
would protect "freedom of opinion and expression" by cracking down on
statements critical of other religions.
The resolution cites the "right to freedom of opinion and expression"
as "one of the essential foundations of a democratic society." It
also expresses deep concern over "violations of the right to freedom
of opinion and expression." and cites the responsibility of states to
"encourage free, responsible and mutually respectful dialogue." The
resolution then demands "that all states take measures to prevent
such violations, by ensuring that national laws comply with
international human rights obligations."
An Egyptian spokesman told the assembly, that freedom of expression
sometimes has been "misused to proliferate negative racial and
religious stereotyping and incitement to racial and religious
hatred." He said "This resolution condemns 'negative stereotyping of
religions and racial groups,' an oblique reference to jihad doctrine
and Islamic suprematism. Secretary General of the Organization of
Islamic States, Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, warned, "We want a clear
message sent to the West regarding the line they cannot cross"
regarding free speech about Islam and terrorism."
In practice, hate speech laws are used in most of the world to
silence dissent, not protect vulnerable minorities." The 57 member
nations of the Organization of the Islamic Conference have lobbied
for the "anti-defamation" plan, which is based on the Cairo
Declaration of Human Rights in Islam, since 1999. The Cairo
declaration states "that all rights are subject to Shariah law, and
makes Shariah law the only source of reference for human rights."
Source:
WorldNetDaily
-----------------------------------------------
HIV/AIDS HAS
REACHED EPIDEMIC STAGE IN PAPUA
HIV/AIDS prevalence in Papua has already reached the �generalized
epidemic� stage, according to the health program coordinator for
World Vision Indonesia. �HIV and AIDS in Papua are no longer
exclusive to high-risk groups, but also common among the general
public,� Dr. Ronald Gunawan said in the provincial capital Jayapura
on Tuesday. He said that among the indigenous population, the
prevalence rate had reached 2.8 percent, much higher than the rate of
1.5 percent among immigrants.
Gunawan said the highest rate, 3.2 percent, was found in coastal and
remote areas where health services were scarce.�There are still many
obstacles to reducing the spread of HIV/AIDS, particularly among
indigenous people who live in remote areas,� he said. Information on
the HIV threat and how it spreads, he said, has not yet reached many
people because of geographical obstacles and language barriers. He
said poverty, education and the quality of health care also played
roles in the spread of the disease.
Gunawan said the spread of HIV/AIDS could be checked if the public
was made more aware and given adequate information. He said it was
important for the government to improve the quality of education,
particularly in remote areas and to recruit doctors and health
workers and post them around Papua to improve the quality and
delivery of health services. Gunawan said his organization was
actively building a network with regional governments, the National
AIDS Commission, other public social agencies and the media to fight
the spread of the disease.
Source: The Jakarta
Globe
http://www.ausprayernet.org.au/
Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher
Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/