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Swedish
pastor’s homosexual hate speech conviction quashed
Stockholm, February
24th, 2005 (ACPress.net).
The ‘Christian
Legal Society’ and ‘Advocates International’ have applauded
a Swedish court's decision reversing Pastor Ake Green's "hate
speech" conviction for preaching what he considered to
be the biblical view of homosexual conduct. All Christians should
be thanking God and applauding the decision too.
The Swedish Court of Appeal held that principles of freedom
of expression protected those speaking on controversial topics
from criminal prosecution. After preaching a sermon about the
Bible's condemnation of homosexual conduct and other sexually
immoral conduct, Green was accused of inciting hatred and showing
contempt in violation of Sweden's hate speech laws. Samuel B. Casey, Executive
Director of the Christian Legal Society, said, "We are
grateful for Pastor Green's resolve and for the Swedish court's
sensible decision."
The decision is a victory for free speech and the preaching
of the Gospel, against a background of an increasingly hostile
environment for Christians in Europe.
Source: Assist. Editing: ACPress.net
Sex-change in the
Church of England
London, February 24th,
2005 (ACPress.net).
The parishioners
of an Anglican Church were surprised to discover one day that
their female deacon had actually been born a boy, but underwent
a sex-change operation a few years ago.
Rev. Sarah Jones, soon to be ‘promoted’ to the rank of parish
priest (‘minister’, in evangelical terms), is a 43-year-old
graduate in Experimental Psychology, which it sounds as if she
(he? it?) has been practising on herself. When the news broke,
she received the unanimous support of her congregation. Whether
the fact that she enjoys playing acoustic guitar at pop festivals
had anything to do with this is not recorded.
Jones was actually christened in the Roman Catholic Church and
was a man until 10 years ago. Just to complete the panorama
of a modern cleric in the liberal wings of the Church, she (sorry,
he) had been married at the age of 20 (ie. to a woman, if you
haven’t lost the plot-line yet), did not have any children,
and the marriage ended in divorce. Since then, Jones has ‘become’
a woman.
The Bishop of Hereford, Anthony Priddis, knew all about Jones’
past when he ordained her as deacon last year and has no doubts
about elevating her to the priesthood this coming September.
If current moves to allow women to become bishops are successful,
Jones could become a woman bishop. She is not worried about
this at present, apparently, saying: “What I want to be is a
good priest. I enjoy working with my parishioners.”
If the Church of England is so confused over sexuality, what
hope is there for society at large?
Source: EFE. Editing: ACPress.net
Christian Medical
Fellowship criticises ‘human Dolly’ approval
London, February 24th,
2005 (ACPress.net).
In the wake of
news that the creator of Dolly the Sheep has been granted a
licence to clone human embryos for medical research, the Christian
Medical Fellowship (CMF) today accused the Government and the
scientific community of a deliberate failure to highlight the
more ethical alternative of adult stem cell research, in an
article published in its Winter edition of Triple Helix.
Peter Saunders, General Secretary of the CMF, said: “The British
media and public have been consistently misled into seeing cloned
embryos as a panacea for treating degenerative diseases through
the Government’s failure or unwillingness to highlight the dangers
and to rectify misconceptions about the properties of the more
ethical alternative of adult stem cells. Such selective interpretation
and presentation of scientific data is both irresponsible and
dangerous because it falsely raises the hopes of vulnerable
people.”
The full text of Peter Saunders’ review of the latest developments
in the stem cell debate, featured in the winter edition of Triple
Helix, can be downloaded from www.cmf.org.uk/. Also included
in the current edition is a look at the controversy surrounding
the rights of parents to smack their children from a doctor’s
perspective, an endorsement of the proposal to ban smoking in
public places and an update on the current debates surrounding
euthanasia, sexual health and eugenics.
The January edition of Nucleus, CMF’s quarterly student journal,
also published recently, contains articles on ‘Intelligent Design’
(an alternative to Darwinian theory), witnessing to patients,
and how to ‘deal with miracles’. Each of these articles is available
from the CMF website, at www.cmf.org.uk.
Source: CMF. Editing: ACPress.net
Increasing
attacks on Christians in Turkey
Istanbul, February
24th, 2005 (ACPress.net).
Attacks on Christians
in Turkey have increased recently, and the Protestant Church in Izmir has been in the eye of
the storm.
The Church is a member of the Turkish Evangelical Alliance and
linked to the Protestant Church in Istanbul. Last month, vandals twice broke church
windows, someone set fire to the gas tank in the building, and
a public protest was held outside the church. Finally, Molotov
cocktails were thrown at the building.
After all these attacks, the Church leaders complained to the
Governor, but neither the police nor the authorities have done
anything about it (other than sending a police car which stopped
briefly outside the church). Many new visitors to the church
are concerned about the attacks and are frightened about attending
again. The sister Church of Istambul has expressed its concern to the authorities in the capital, Ankara, and calls for assistance in dealing with
them.
Source & Editing: ACPress.net
Back-door
church wedding for Prince and his bride?
London, February 24th,
2005 (ACPress.net).
Both nearing the
age of 60, Prince Charles and Camilla Parker-Bowles will finally
stop being lovers and get married. The heir to the British Crown,
56, and the divorcée, 57, are to wed in St.
George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, on April 8th.
Their marriage comes 35 years after a case of love at first
sight which led to adultery, two divorces and a constitutional
crisis. The announcement comes 8 years after the death of Princess
Diana, and although Charles himself would like things to change,
Mrs Parker-Bowles is likely to have to settle for the title
of Princess Consort. A divorcée, she will not be able to be
Queen nor Princess of Wales. She will though have the right
to the title, ‘Her Royal Highness’.
A sign that times have changed is that, in a similar situation
69 years ago, Edward VIII abdicated so that he could marry a
divorcée, Wallis Simpson. In his case there was no adultery
and he enjoyed much public sympathy, as he ‘retired’ to Paris as the Duke of Windsor. However, there are still some reasons why
some believe Charles should not marry. Upon becoming King, he
will become the titular Head of the Church of England. Andrew
Parker-Bowles, Camilla’s ex-husband, is Catholic, but fortunately
Camilla is not.
The two major potential sources of opposition, the Church of
England and the Queen, have both expressed their support. It
is certainly preferable that the Prince and Mrs Parker-Bowles
put their relationship on a legal and moral footing, whatever
has happened in the past. British public opinion seems split
down the middle on the issue. Yet the wedding itself will be
a civil, quiet affair. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams,
will offer a blessing at what will not be a religious ceremony.
So the couple will not actually be married in the Church of
England, while still receiving its blessing in the form of its
highest clergyman.
A few Anglican Bishops have queried the arrangements, pointing
out that the relationship has caused two divorces and does not
offer a good model of Christian marriage. As one put it: “It
does seem anomalous that Prince Charles could become the Head
of the Church of England when not even the Archbishop of Canterbury
is allowed to marry them within that Church.”
Source: EL MUNDO. Editing: ACPress.net
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Pele’s
wife leads praise at mission conference in Peru
Lima, February 24th,
2005 (ACPress.net).
Assíria Do Nascimento,
wife of the Brazilian ex-footballer Pele, was invited as a Christian
singer to lead the praise at a recent mission conference in
the Peruvian capital, led by Pastor Robert Barriger.
Assiria has travelled widely with her message of love through
song, and was in Peru to promote her first album in Spanish, ‘Brillas’ (You shine), which
is produced by Hosanna Music. She was born in Paraná and spent
her youth in Recife. She studied Psychology in New York and found work through a friend who just
happened to be Pele’s secretary. She and the footballer got
to know each other better and, despite warnings against doing
so by various friends, married in a civil ceremony in 1994 in
Las Vegas.
This was followed a month later by a church wedding in an Anglican
Church in Recife, Brazil. Later they had twins,
Celeste and Joshua. Apparently Pele himself wrote some songs
before meeting Assiria, one of which was put to music by Sergio
Méndez. The couple are now celebrating 11 years together and
seem to have proved their doom-mongering friends wrong.
Source: Agencia örbita. Editing: ACPress.net
Brazil church initiative to disarm the population
Brasilia, February
24th, 2005 (ACPress.net).
In an attempt to break
the culture of violence in Brazil,
a group of churches has launched a plan for disarmament in which
people are encouraged to hand in weapons.
The National Council of Christian Churches in Brazil (CONIC)
embraces the Anglican, Methodist, Catholic churches, as well
as a number of evangelical denominations. It was formed in 1982
as an ecumenical organisation and despite their differences,
the group works for the good of society. Last year it launched
a campaign on the wise use of water, and this year’s challenge
is in favour of peace. They chose this issue because of the
high rate of violence in Brazil.
One of the aims is that pastors from their pulpits encourage
people to hand their arms in to the authorities. “A weapon can
be changed for a Bible...in the churches we do not have firearms,
but ones of peace”, says Methodist Bishop, Adriel de Souza,
President of CONIC. The group will not give anyone money for
handing in a weapon. The initiative comes after a meeting with
the Vice-President of the government, and a state plan to collect
weapons, which brought in more than 240,000 over a 6-month period.
According to UNESCO, Brazil has 27.1 murders per 100,000 inhabitants, the fourth highest rate
in the world. About 68% of these murders involve the use of
a firearm.
Source: A.PRESS. Editing: ACPress.net
Evangelical voted
in as Vice-President of Bogota
Bogota, February 24th,
2005 (ACPress.net).
The Councillor
Gustavo Alonso Páez, an evangelical member of the Christian
Union Movement, has been elected to the post of first Vice-President
of Bogota, the capital city.
Páez recieved 27 votes for, with four abstentions. He sits on
the independent benches in the Council and believes he has a
clear vocation to speak on behalf of the people, especially
in the area of social action. He said at a press conference
that he wants to work for the benefit of all, not just those
who voted for him. He wants to encourage other Christians to
get involved in politics, to work towards helping communities
in Colombia who are currently suffering great need
and difficulty.
Páez studied Theology in the USA, is involved in social work, and founded the
Christian church centre, ‘Alabanza Oasis’.
Source: ALC. Editing: ACPress.net
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Kuwaiti
man cuts his daughter’s head off to send her to paradise
Dubai, February
24th, 2005 (ACPress.net).
A Kuwaiti citizen cut
his 13-year-old daughter’s head off and explained to police
that he did it because that way she would go straight to paradise.
Adnan Ali al Maarouf, known for his intransigence, had just
got back from a pilgrimage to Mecca when he committed the atrocity. He tied his daughter’s hands making
her believe it was part of a game, then he made her recite the
‘Shahada’, an Islamic chant, and kept telling her that she was
going to go straight to paradise.
The father even called in his other, younger, children so that
they could witness the act and, despite the continual screams
of the girl, took out a knife and hacked at her throat until
the head was separated from the rest of the body. The other
children ran out horrified into the street and shouted for help
to neighbours. The police were thus able to capture the murderer
almost immediately.
Source: LA RAZÓN. Editing:
ACPress.net
Catholics grow by 15 million in
a year
Rome, February
24th, 2005 (ACPress.net).
Catholicism may be on
the decline in Europe and there may be a crisis in the number of
candidates for the priesthood, but worldwide the religion continues
to grow.
Statistics may be worse than lies, especially when to be a ‘Catholic’
all you need is to have been ‘done’ as a baby. However, the
figures show that there were 1,086 million Catholics across
the world in 2004, which is 15 million more than the previous
year. Almost half of them live on the American continent, especially
in Central and South America. America accounts for 49.8% of all Catholics, Europe for 25.8%, Africa 13.2% and Asia
10.4%.
The Vatican considers the figures a good sign regarding the propagation of their
religious ideas. The continent which has best resisted the Roman
onslaught is Oceania where
Catholics only make up 0.8% of the population. Growth has been
registered in four continents – 4.5% in Africa, 2.2% in Asia, 1.3% in America
and 1.2% in Oceania – but Catholicism has remained static in
Europe.
Source: LA RAZÓN. Editing:
ACPress.net
Evangelical aid to tidal wave victims continues
New Delhi,
February 24th, 2005 (ACPress.net).
Evangelical aid in the
wake of the Asian tidal wave continues unabated, though there
is still a great need of material assistance and volunteers.
Sam David, General Secretary of the Evangelical Medical Union
in India, says there are 9 teams working hard in Chennai, distributing medicine,
carrying out surgeries and helping with infrastructure such
as shelters and drinking water. They are working alongside other
Christian groups and other non-governmental agencies. The group
is also operating in Sri Lanka, especially in one of the worst-hit towns,
Nagapatinam. There is a need there for trained nurses, to help
with health, hygiene and other advice.
Other Christian medical teams have gone from South
Africa and South Korea to help with the situation in Sri Lanka and Indonesia. They ask for prayer for their difficult task. Indonesian Christian
groups such as CMF and Perkantas are working in Medan, northern Sumatra, where a team
went to Nias Island, near the epicentre of the seaquake. The
majority of the population are Christians but it has proved
difficult to distribute aid there because of logistical problems.
However, the situation on the island is improving with medicine
and other help from churches.
At least 20 more doctors and 20 nurses are required in Aceh
for a further fortnight. Two traumatologists are needed to deal
with serious infections including gangrene. Teams need to be
relieved by others so that they can rest. Water and drainage
experts are also required.
Source: ICMDA , UME. Editing: ACPress.net
More
Christians arrested in Eritrea
Eritrea,
February 24th, 2005 (ACPress.net).
Another 31 Eritrean Christians
have been jailed over the past 10 days, making a total of 187
arrests for "illegal" Christian activities since the
beginning of the year.
Fourteen members of the Kale Hiwot Church in Adi-Tekelzan were arrested
on February 4th during a Bible study at the home of their pastor.
The previous day, Professor Senere Zaid of the agriculture faculty
at Eritrea University was detained in Asmara, while a doctor identified as Dr. Segid in
Keren was taken into police custody during the last week of
January. More recently, 15 Christian women were jailed at the
police station in Keren. Local authorities reportedly described
the evangelical believers as "a threat to national security."
However, "all the sisters exposed to imprisonment and insult
by the authorities in Keren were gathered merely for the purpose
of prayer, not any political purpose," one of their colleagues
confirmed.
Source: Compass. Editing:
ACPress.net
A.C.Press:
The News Agency of the AEE (Spanish Evangelical Alliance)
Digital magazine at
the website: www.ACPress.net
Telephone: 91 747 14
89; Fax: 91 747 59 24; E-mail: noticias@ACPress.net. Postal
address: Apartado 59198, 28080 Madrid, Spain. Co-ordinator
of A.C.Press News: Jonathan Dawson, E-mail: jdawson@protestantedigital.com
A.C.Press is part of the Spanish Evangelical
Alliance, whose E-mail is: oficina@AEEsp.net (www.AEEsp.net)
The Alliance is a forum for fellowship, reflection and the development of Christian
thought, produces various publications, and is involved in
the struggle for religious liberty. It is also part of the
European and World Evangelical Alliances.
A.C.Press news items may be reproduced as long
as their source is mentioned (ACPress News) |
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