(A2b) Christianity

Only Christians recognize the Existence and Supremacy of the Judeo-Christian God of the Old and New Testaments. Jews recognize the Existence and Supremacy of the God of the Old Testament. They do not recognize the Divinity of Christ nor the God of the New Testament. ******* Strictly speaking, the only Christian church which recognizes the Absolute Supremacy of God is the Catholic Church. Jesus said to Peter "Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my church." The Catholic Church recognizes Peter as the first pope and all succeeding popes as leaders of Christ's Church (singular noun). ******* Non-Catholic Christians do not recognize the leadership of the pope and thereby reject part of Christ's teaching and therefore the Supremacy of God's teaching on that particular point. ****************************************************************************************************************** ******* As of this date, 06-12-25, this folder contains 7 items. ******* item 1 LINDA HARVEY'S TESTIMONY ******* item 2 TYPICALLY GOD: SISTER CHANG'S OBEDIENCE ******* item 3 CHINA'S "GARDEN" OF PERSECUTION ******* item 4 CHRISTIANITY RISES AGAIN IN 2004 ******* item 5 SHOCKING STATISTICS ON WORLD-WIDE PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS ******* item 6 SOME GOOD NEWS - CHRISTIANS INCREASING IN NUMBERS ******* item 7 RECORD NUMBER OF EX-MUSLIMS CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS THIS YEAR ******************************************************************************************************** ******* item 1 LINDA HARVEY'S TESTIMONY ******* Linda is the president of Mission America and a true missionary to people suffering from homosexual attraction ******* THE BLIND SIGHT OF EVIL - A Personal Testimony ******* By Linda Harvey ******* "For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:5) ******* "I have done all that I could To see the evil and the good without hiding. You must help me if you can. ******* Doctor, my eyes - Tell me what is wrong. Was I unwise to leave them open for so long." Doctor My Eyes, Jackson Browne ----------------------------------------------------- What happens in the dark? An arm reaches out, but finds emptiness. Or encounters an object, but can only guess its identity by its shape, size and texture. If it's even touchable. If it's friendly, and doesn't rip the hand off in one ferocious bite. ******* Only timid steps are taken, making sure one doesn't clunk into some unknown object. Or fall headlong off a precipice. ******* Every other sense may be working, but that fifth sense is useless without light. Or, there may be light, but we remain essentially blind. Absent the truth that embodies Jesus Christ, we humans may have every other sense working perfectly, yet our journey unfolds in darkness. And like the fish that doesn't know it's wet, we may have no perception that other, bigger worlds exist beyond our self-imposed boundary of endless night. ******* Once, I believed I had 20/20 vision. Then my eyes were forced open, and in profound shock, I discovered I had never known light before. And at first it hurt -- the stinging, burning pain of self-exposure. There was just no way to avoid it. ******* It was 1992. I had spent months reading the Bible seriously for the first time in my life, and I was trembling on the brink of a stunning decision: to become a Christian, but not just another pew-warmer. I was increasingly tempted � beyond all conventional wisdom -- to accept the Bible as true, which would make me one of "those" Christians. ******* Every time I really thought about it, I broke out in a sweat. It might mean the scorn of family members. Certain friendships would definitely cool, and what about my children? The workable joint parenting with my agnostic ex-husband would certainly be challenged. He would go ballistic, possibly even attempt to gain custody. As a successful trial attorney, there was some chance he could succeed, if determined enough. ******* And my new husband � the handsome, warm-hearted man who had given new meaning to my life after my unwanted, heartbreaking divorce�what would he do? Would he understand? Would he begin a complementary spiritual quest, or let me walk this road alone? Despite substantial misgivings, one clear motive pulled me forward. I saw a light ahead and needed to follow it. ******* I remembered how, as an undergraduate with little religious background, I nevertheless stopped in my tracks before the stone archway of the ivy-covered central classroom building on campus. Apparently as yet unenlightened by the ACLU or other church-state-separation evangelists, the university trustees had allowed in their foolishness the permanent engraving on that building of John 8:32 �"And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." I had stared up at the verse in awe, knowing there was something here terribly important, something still out of my grasp. ******* My schedule took me through the arch several times a day, which surely wasn't an accident. God wanted to storm my senses with the His Word, dividing my soul and spirit. His intention extended I'm sure to whomever else had "eyes to see and ears to hear." It was still but a hazy glimpse behind the veil of what was to come. ******* So in 1992, I had come to that place in the Bible where one of my biggest questions was answered, in simple, uncompromising terms. It was after I had already navigated Genesis and Exodus, discovering that creation in six days, the Garden of Eden, and an evil serpent were treated as authentic history, not myth. There was also the tale of Sodom and Gomorrah. It was only one of many stories, and at this point I was still just collecting data. Like Scarlett O'Hara, I had decided I�d think about all of it tomorrow. ******* And then for the first time, I'd actually read the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20.In and around contemplating the implications of having "no other gods" but the God of Scripture, I also mulled over the zero tolerance policy for adultery. It might mean a change in how I viewed some of my friends and co-workers, but having just entered a terrific marriage, it was easy for me personally to accept this boundary as just and right. ******* So I continued on, hopeful in the joy of discovery. Plodding through the morality code passages in Leviticus � lambs being sacrificed, how to deal with boils and leprosy-- I concluded some of the messages were symbolic, some were particular to that specific ancient time, while other messages were timeless. It was one of those timeless verses that stopped me cold. ******* "You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination." ******* Whoa. If ever there was a definitive statement, this was it. I read it again, then continued on a little farther, looking for the escape clause. Not finding any, I read the passage again. Then I did some cross-referencing to find relevant verses about homosexuality in both the Old and New Testaments. This led me to Leviticus 20, Romans 1, and 1 Corinthians 6, passages conveying a consistent platform, strong and uncompromising. I mulled it over for a while, recognizing that it was probably a sub-category of the commandment against adultery. And for a woman thoroughly grounded in heterosexual desires, I had a very interesting reaction. I closed the Bible and stopped reading it for several weeks. ******* THE TRUTH BEHIND THE TRUTH ******* Even though the scriptural position didn't come as a huge surprise, I was still keenly disappointed. I had been hoping for something "better," something more culturally palatable. ******* A troubling internal debate threatened my new faith. Even back then in 1992 � ancient history in the "gay rights" movement � I had absorbed the notion that only obtuse bigots opposed homosexuality. Every enlightened person knew that the freedom to practice homosexuality --responsibly, of course -- would surely not threaten the mainstream, but would simply meet the needs of a small, harmless and kind of pitiful minority. ******* Early in my twenties I had briefly dated a fellow who it turned out was a kind of neo-Nazi. We went to parties where his friends, their wives, children and even the grandmas spewed an anti-Semitic, white supremacist party line. I had some familiarity with racism, having lived as a child in rural Florida, but it had never been this proudly displayed. I fled from the relationship in no time flat, anxious to be de-contaminated from the emotional poison. ******* Was being a Christian going to be like that? I didn't know many Bible-believing Christians. What kind of people were they? Would I have only Klan members for friends? Would I become another Anita Bryant? She was the former Miss America who, because of her outspoken opposition to a Dade County "gay" rights ordinance, was discarded as America's sweetheart and became instead reviled, as only the mainstream media can do, as a shallow Southern bigot. ******* For several weeks I stewed about this, strongly tempted to return to the comfort of my familiar plastic beliefs. Opposing forces wrestled for authority in my mind and heart as I considered first one, then an alternative view of "truth." What was the reality behind this issue? It was the first time, but not the last, where I would encounter a Joshua 24 moment. I needed to "choose this day whom I would serve." I didn't recognize the moving of the Holy Spirit yet, how He presents evidence before each of us in unique ways to drive us toward understanding. In deciding what to believe, or even how to sort it all out, I would be starting a journey toward either one or the other kingdom of two completely different masters. ******* THE GOOD WITCH ******* As I have come to understand, the issue is one of worldview. People either look at reality through the lens of Christ, or they look at it through some other ultimately deficient model of truth. The secular American model asks us to believe in a wholly different set of assumptions than the Bible does. These assumptions take us in a very different direction. ******* Before I could even get to the evaluation of the essence of that verse-- whether homosexuality was an "abomination" or not-- it seemed that something else was blocking my path. What was it? ******* I had to decide, it seemed, whether I wanted to figure this out. Assuming that solid reasons could be put before me to change my opinion, first I had to decide if I wanted to be convinced. It was like peeling back layers of resistance. ******* There seemed to be a huge obstacle of identity. Who was I going to be? I had been deluding myself, perhaps, that this was going to be an easy transition. Was I going to buy the portrayal of Christians that a hostile, uncomprehending culture had created? Like osmosis, I had absorbed the negative impressions without being able to identify the source. As I understood the choice before me, I had to either go back to my old way of thinking, or accept the Bible's version of truth. And with that came an entire package of "other stuff." ******* I had been without realizing it a postmodernist. It was perfectly plausible, as the postmodernist thinks, to operate in a mindset where I had a reality different from Susan's, which could be different from Bill's, which could be different from Maria's. And yet all of us would somehow be able to peacefully coexist in Mr. Rogers' neighborhood. The first thing I had to realize was that this condemnation of homosexuality -- for which I still felt no clear reason was provided -- meant I would have to have a very strong viewpoint about someone else's life and behavior. It didn't fit my worldview to be my brother's keeper in any way, but on the contrary, it was important in the worldview of Oz to be infinitely tolerant and accepting-- or to seem to be. ******* How tolerant was I really? Hadn't I had opinions all along, but just didn't express them? Was part of this minding my own business in reality more love for myself and a need to please others--regardless of the cost? Wasn't I actually deficient in genuine concern for others? ******* I didn't like the revelations coming at me here. Maybe I wasn't a very nice person after all. It had been so much more pleasant to be able to believe--to delude myself, actually-- that I was functioning with benevolent motives. What if I wasn't? Like Glenda along the yellow brick road, was I a nice person, or a witch? Or-- some creature in between, a "good" witch? Is the land where I had been dwelling a fantasy of what might be if we could arrange things as they really weren't? What if there was really no such thing as a "good witch" at all --but it was an either-or deal? ******* What kept cropping up again and again, was the essential question: what did I want? Did I want a life of fantasy, or did I want truth? ******* MOVING OUT OF OZ ******* Many people prefer fantasy. I'd always believed the dreamer in us brings out our best, but as I probed this assumption I wondered if most of our human dreams are in reality futile "vain imaginations," like re-arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Could it be that we spend more time trying to see things in a nice way, even if disaster is only an iceberg away, than pursuing goals that are beneficial in God's eyes? ******* I had to get real with myself, and the result was a struggle of will. It was only the first of many. ******* If I got back to the issue at hand--homosexuality -- this might mean that a person would have to speak out in warning even if people didn't understand at the time, in order to keep some from disaster. What about doing the unpopular thing? Could I be a Christian like that? And, could I tell people about Christ when they weren't ready to hear? ******* Maybe there was a way to explain this so people would understand. Yet I still didn't comprehend why homosexual behavior was an "abomination." Why didn't God provide us with clear talking points? I searched Scripture for a list of reasons. Yes, there was the Sodom story, but I wasn't yet ready to accept this as literal. Something--was blocking that understanding. ******* I continued to cling to the idea, also drilled into me from unidentified sources, that homosexuality is a victimless "sin." Why would God be so harsh as to condemn people to a life without sex, if this was what these poor people felt? Isn't sex necessary to happiness? Weren't they born this way? How else could one explain doing things that were so -- so-- disgusting? ******* Ahh, yes. So I did know the truth. So I didn't really totally accept it. Here's where I began to really sit down with myself. Now, why didn't I know that I believed this all along? As I thought about sex between people of the same sex, I was, yes, repulsed. Yet as I probed my beliefs further, I did not discover --as I'm sure the homosexual activists would claim --some secret "hatred" for homosexuals. I found great pity and compassion --but, yes, still disgust for the activities. So, that's why it's an "abomination." I really didn't need for God to explain it further, at least at one level. Life itself has revealed this to every person, once they learn the sordid details. I mean, anal sex between two guys? A woman--wanting to do that to another woman? No way. ******* Now I was baffled. I had thought I understood my belief system and values. I had "prided myself" (that looming thing again) on having very decided opinions and "self-awareness." Now, I only felt confusion. ******* By now, I had become accustomed to praying every day, but that diminished as my doubts swelled. Why couldn't people arrange these sexuality issues themselves? If homosexuality didn't hurt someone -- as in adultery -- except the person himself, why couldn't a person make this decision? Of course God might have a problem with it, because a loving God wouldn't want to see people be self-destructive, but if it could be managed more safely-- wouldn't that work? . ******* But a voice of reason was telling me something else: it would never be able to be as safe as it would need to be. And both participants are hurt, both by what they do, and what they choose not to do. They will never conceive and raise children with the person they love. They will not leave grandchildren as a heritage. It will be a dead- end passion. It will change the way they see themselves as male or female. And most of the people I knew who were homosexuals seemed to be, once the veneer was stripped away, very troubled. ******* DOUBLE DEALING WITH GOD ******* But I had never put any of this together until confronted by verses of Scripture. How quaint. How suddenly unenlightened I felt. How blind I had been. And, most embarrassing, I really hadn't understood myself at all. ******* I had both believed homosexuality was okay, and that it was disgusting. I had believed it was something to nod tolerantly about, and yet obviously involved very damaging behaviors. I had believed it was probably genetic, and also that it arose from a background of hurtful experiences. ******* How can a sane person believe such contradictory things simultaneously? ******* Okay, okay-- I thought, as if I was in a debate with God --it's probably wrong. Still, I felt ill- equipped to debate this with others. I kept feeling my mind being pulled toward a "Who cares?" sentiment, the default position of non-interference. At the same time, I really wanted to trust God, to believe the Bible in all the other ways, to continue on with my spiritual journey. I really wanted to want to believe. ******* I had the sense that God was using the issue of homosexuality to make me confront my pride about needing the approval of "everyone." In needing this approval, I had been willing to swallow an operative worldview of -- lies. Not just contradictory beliefs that could not both simultaneously be true, but the lie of comforting myself that I had even really cared about such people. In my heart, I hadn't cared enough to sort all this out. And I hadn't cared to really notice the troubling characteristics of these people, and to really think about the acts involved, and how damaging they were to people. Even more smugly, I had topped off all of these nonsensical attitudes by assuring myself all the time that I was well-informed on this issue, and that I was really knew my own mind! ******* Somewhere amidst all this, I also felt the Holy Spirit convicting me that there were other issues where I would also discover that my "love had grown cold." Was I really such a completely self-focused person? After all, I was a wife and mother. Didn't I really care about these people? Of course I did, but�. I was only beginning to understand the limited nature of "love" devoid of Christ. ******* Sobered and humbled, I began to understand that the journey to becoming a Christian was going to be one where the biggest obstacle I would have to overcome would be myself. ******* I was still only getting the picture to a point. Part of me held something in reserve, my human heart was still drawn toward being "deceitful above all." When I finally sat down to pray, I tried to make a deal with God. ******* I told God that I wasn't totally sure of all the dimensions of this issue, but that essentially, I was willing to buy the Bible's disapproval of homosexuality. I prayed that He would show me more reasons that would support this position. And I told Him I wanted to believe the Bible in other ways, too, beyond this test of trust. ******* "Lord," I continued, "I know that the Bible must be right about homosexuality being a sin. And I'm glad now that I have that private understanding. I'm sure it will help me to understand many more issues to come. But, Lord, could I maybe not have to talk about it with anyone? Can I keep this just between You and me?" ******* Have you ever said something and knew immediately that it was totally the wrong thing to say? As soon as this request took form in my mind and was sent out of my spirit to God's, I knew it was a big clunker. I have often imagined what the Lord thought. Certainly He was disappointed, though not surprised, at one more evidence of my sinfulness, my pride morphing itself into yet another ugly creature. Part of me also imagines, though, Him drumming his fingers on a celestial desk, shaking His mighty head, and slowly smiling an ironic smile. "Aha. So you don't want to talk about this, eh? Well, we'll just see about that." ******* My cowardice and pride became offerings at the foot of the cross, and I believe crafted my future service to God. A divine hand has showed me why and how to speak out precisely on this issue, which I so wanted to avoid. That's how God works -- to get us to the point where we even want to do that which was once so undesirable. And in the process, the Potter molds a changed vessel, a new creation in Christ. ******* Little by little, I began to be an apologist for the Bible's position on homosexuality. It's totally weird --and totally God. Even in the midst of people sometimes writing me awful e-mails, I am now grateful for this ministry and how it has helped me grow as a Christian. I also hope it's made a tiny difference to the American culture and to some individuals along the way. ******* All contents copyright � 2003 - Mission America ******* To contact Mission America, send E-mail to [email protected] *********************************************************************************************************************** ******* item 2 TYPICALLY GOD: SISTER CHANG'S OBEDIENCE ******* From: "Robert A Jason" ******* Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 11:30:55 -0500 ******* Dear Friends: ******* It is so delightfully heart-warming to see the success of the Christian Gospel in the Third World, especially Africa and Asia. Christian missionaries from the Third World are already coming to the decadent West to re-ignite the fires of the dying Church in the West that is rotting from within from the toxins of post-modernism, liberalism and other secular isms. ******* The following accounts reveal the staying power, the excitement and the vibrancy of the Third World Church and the lessons it imparts to the lukewarm Christian in the West. ******* <><> ******* Sister Chang, leader of a house church in China's Henan Province, heard God tell her to preach the Gospel on the steps of the local Police Station. "Even in the West doing something like that can get you arrested," reports mission agency Asia Harvest, "but in Communist China it's a sure way to be severely punished." However, the impression remained clear after prayer, so Sister Chang boldly preached the Gospel to astonished passers-by from the top step in front of the Police Station. ******* Only a few minutes later, she was arrested and thrown into the women's jail without due process, together with thousands of lost people. There, she could proclaim the Gospel with boldness and love; in 3 months, 800 women decided to follow Jesus. The whole atmosphere in the jail was transformed. The Director wanted to know what had caused the change, and found out that it was Sister Chang's sermons. He called her into his office, telling her "You have made my job easy! The fights between the inmates have stopped, the women have become gentle and obedient. We need more people like you. >From today, you are not only free, but also have a job here (paid an astonishing 3,000 Yuan - US$375 - per month), a car with chauffeur and a spacious apartment." ******* Chang turned the offer down. "Jesus has been wonderful to me since I've known him. I don't think the offer of a salary, car and chauffeur match his plans for my life. I belong to Jesus alone, and I want to preach the good news." Despite her refusal, Chang was released and can serve her Lord unhindered. ******* Source: Asia Harvest ******************************************************************************************************************** ******* item 3 CHINA'S "GARDEN" OF PERSECUTION ******* from www.canadianchristianity.com/cgi-bin/na.cgi?bc/bccn/1002/chinas ******* October 2002 ******* One of the more dramatic stories of Christian faith triumphing over persecution focuses on a remarkable man known as Pastor Chen. After being imprisoned in China for almost two decades -- much of the time spent in profoundly degrading and demoralizing conditions -- Chen emerged to spend the next two dozen years evangelizing. He will be in the Greater Vancouver area later this month. This account of his life was provided by Asian Outreach, and edited by Stephen Kennedy. ******* PASTOR CHEN was born and raised in a Buddhist family, in the great business centre of Shanghai in southwestern China. In 1947, his mother became a Christian. Her 1948 death in a plane crash caused an emotional crisis -- which resulted in Chen accepting Christ a year later. ******* Because of his unwavering determination to preach the gospel, he was arrested three times. After his third arrest, in 1960, he was imprisoned for 18 years in a Chinese labour camp, where he endured severe hardship. However, he now looks back on that time as one of the spiritual high points of his life. ******* "During the days of the Cultural Revolution," he says, "from 1966 to '76, many of the educated people, the capitalists and business heads, together with property owners, were punished by the Red Guards. Many were beaten till they were crippled, or dead. Many pastors were beaten to death. ******* "But I was spared from this physical punishment. I was preserved in the labour camp. According to the class struggle, the religious leaders were the worst among the bad persons; only the workers and farmers belonged to the good class. So if I had been out in society, no doubt I would have been severely punished. If I was not beaten to death, I would have been disabled for life." ******* Chen marvels that God preserved him in this way from death or lasting harm. But he was punished in a different way: He was given the worst job in the camp because he was well-educated. And worst of all, he was a pastor, a religious leader. So he was made to work in the 'nightsoil' pits, which were filled with human waste. ******* Each day, Chen had to go around to the camp latrines and scoop up the human waste and bring it in pails to the nightsoil pit, which was two metres long, two metres wide and two metres deep. After it had matured, or ripened, Chen had to go down into the pit and shovel it into pails to be put on the fields. Chen explains: "In China they think human waste is the best 'fertilizer'; that is, the best thing to put on the fields to make vegetables and other crops grow better, because they say it makes the ground richer, yet keeps it soft. Other fertilizers make it hard." ******* Many nightsoil pit workers died of disease. "But God gave me wisdom to protect myself," Chen says. Every so often, the pits had to be emptied. Chen thought of a way to cut steps into the side of the pit and shovel out from the ledge. That way he could go down gradually into the pit and not have to walk around all the time in human waste, just some of the time. He wore long socks to protect his legs, and every night when he came up out of the pit he jumped into a trench filled with water and tried to wash his clothes. ******* "It was impossible to wash the bad smell away," he says. "The smell was like a dead man's corpse and was very, very awful. The other prisoners were afraid to be there. Once you became sick, it was very hard to be healed because human waste is so full of poisons. ******* "The guards thought this was the best place to punish me, the best place to re-educate me," Chen remembers. "They mocked me. They enjoyed seeing an educated person with a shovel in his hand; 'Look at that teacher with a shovel in his hand; hah, hah!' They laughed at me. But I didn't say anything; I just worked," Chen says. ******* Why? Because Chen truly thought it was the best place in the whole camp to be. He was never in a hurry to leave at the end of the day. "It was the only place in the camp where I could be alone," he explains. "So I could sing hymns and pray as loudly as I pleased. In the fields and sleeping huts, the guards and other prisoners were always close by. But when I worked in the nightsoil pit, everyone stayed far, far away because the smell was so awful. And they were afraid of getting disease. ******* "But I actually enjoyed it in the nightsoil pit because I could praise our Lord as loudly as I pleased. I could recite scriptures, all the psalms I had memorized as loudly as I pleased. And I could loudly sing all those hymns I remembered. ******* "Before my arrest, my favourite hymn was 'In the Garden.' Yet, before working in the nightsoil pit, I did not understand the full meaning. Working in the nightsoil pit, I prayed for the Lord's presence with me and I had a wonderful experience of fellowship with my Lord. I loved to sing: 'I come to the garden alone while the dew is still on the roses / And the voice I hear, falling on my ears / The son of God discloses. / And he walks with me, and he talks with me / And he tells me I am his own / And the joy we share as we tarry there / None other has ever known.' ******* "None other has every known such joy as I felt working in that nightsoil pit. Again and again I sang this hymn, and met my Lord there. None other has ever known such joy, such sweetness. While I worked in the nightsoil pit shoveling human waste, I heard my Lord tell me I was his own. I was in a labour camp; I was in a nightsoil pit -- but at that moment I was in my private 'garden' with my Lord. At that moment I realized the meaning of garden, and where my garden is. It's easy to praise our Lord when all around is pleasant and favourable. But when we are surrounded by hardship and struggles, many Christians are not able to praise the Lord. ******* "God gave me the experience [enabling me] to praise our Lord in the midst of much earthly misery. Not because I was strong, but because he was with me -- even as I walked through the valley of the shadow of death. That's why I survived 18 years in the prison camp," Chen explains. ******* Many times the prison authorities asked Chen to give up his faith in Christ. "We'll release you right away if you do," they promised. But he refused to deny his saviour. He chose instead to stand knee-deep in human waste and shovel it -- and to sing praises in his 'garden,' walking and talking with his Lord. He expected to be there till he died. But after six years -- which was longer than any other prisoner had worked in the pits -- he was put to work in the medical clinic. ******* Another spiritual highlight for Chen came after he was released from prison in 1978. When he was imprisoned 18 years earlier, his church had consisted of 300 members meeting in three locales. Now, he learned, there were 5,000 people, in almost 20 meeting places. ******* "How can this be?" he asked some of them. "Tell me, who has been leading you? I thought all the pastors were in jail. How is it that the church has grown so mightily?" ******* They were surprised at his question. "Why, the Lord has been in control," they replied. "Jesus Christ is alive, and all the time he is ministering. All the time the Holy Spirit is moving and working." ******* Chen discovered that the young people -- even the 12 year olds -- were leading in worship and prayer. One would begin leading; then, after one or two hymns, a second young person would push the first aside. Then after another couple of hymns, a third youth would push him aside, saying, "Now it's my turn." Then they would all pray together. The older Christians would teach the scriptures and songs they had memorized to the younger ones. "After all, what is the meaning of 'the body of Christ'?" they asked Chen. "It means everyone is a member, that we are all responsible to build the church." ******* Chen was amazed to discover that what had happened in his group of churches had happened all over China. In 1949, when the Western missionaries were forced to leave China, there were one million Christians, after 150 years of missions. Thirty years later, when Chen and other pastors were released from prisons, they estimated that the church had multiplied to 30 million. ******* Without pastors. Without church buildings. Without Bibles or Christian literature. But with persecution, the church had grown 30 times. ******* Pastor Chen spoke in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia Canada October 20 -- 30, 2002. Contact: 604-618-3556. ****************************************************************************************************************** ******* item 4 CHRISTIANITY RISES AGAIN IN 2004 by John Gleeson, Winnipeg Sun ******* From: "Robert Jason" ******* Date: Sat, 1 Jan 2005 09:25:47 -0500 ******* About three months before the release of Mel Gibson's hugely popular and controversial film, The Passion of the Christ, a new Beatles album hit the street. ******* Let It Be Naked was, of course, a reissue; but unlike so much of the Fab Four material released during the previous decade, it was an important album. Let It Be might not have been the best of the mature Beatles, but the unadulterated version -- stripped of Phil Spector's baroque production and free of the shameless clunkers (mostly from McCartney) that spoil more recognized classics like The White Album and Abbey Road -- stands up, track for track, as a remarkably solid listening experience. ******* Yet the album came and went with barely a buzz. The dream, alas, was most definitely over. ******* By contrast, Gibson's movie about the last hours of Jesus sent shockwaves around the world. Even measured in pop culture terms, there was no question that Jesus was far, far more popular than the Beatles -- or any passing pop fancy, for that matter (A website two years ago declared Jesus "now more popular" than the Beatles based on their respective number of Google hits). ******* But 2004 also showed how wrong John Lennon was about Christianity itself when he made that infamous claim in a March 1966 interview with the London Evening Standard. ******* "Christianity will go," Lennon said. "It will vanish and shrink. I needn't argue with that; I'm right and I will be proved right. We're more popular than Jesus now ..." ******* How wrong could one man be? ******* Christianity will go? Less than 40 years later, just look at the prominent, perhaps pivotal role the candidates' espoused Christian faith and adherence to Christian values played in the U.S. presidential election campaign. And look who won. ******* "President Bush has been called the most openly religious president in modern history," said Raney Aronson, producer of a PBS Frontline report called The Jesus Factor, which chronicled George W. Bush's "personal journey" as a born-again Christian and examined the immense political influence of the more than 70 million evangelical Christians in the United States. ******* Even in Canada, where secular liberalism has ruled for decades, 2004 has seen an unprecedented outpouring of scriptural argument as part of the national debate over same-sex marriage. Never in recent history have so many Canadians publicly stated their unswerving commitment to Christian principles. ******* And, less significantly but as part of the same trend, for the past weeks in both countries pundits have been trying to one-up each other in condemning politically correct attempts to substitute "holiday" for good old-fashioned Christmas. (My favourite had to be Ezra Levant's column which began, "Allow me to be the first Jew to say to you 'Merry Christmas'.") ******* Part of this new, vocal Christianity is undoubtedly a reaction to the rhetorical zealotry -- and actual threats -- of Islamic extremists. And part of it has to be a reaction to the increasingly shallow popular culture that surrounds us. ******* In trying to live down his notorious remark, Lennon later conceded, "I should have said television was more popular than Jesus, then I might have got away with it ..." ******* Lennon was hardly being an iconoclast when he pronounced Christianity moribund -- in England the comments went unnoticed; it wasn't until they were reprinted out of context in the U.S. that all hell broke loose. Lennon knew that the steady drift of Western art and thought during the first half of the 20th century was toward rationalism, and that spirituality was being rediscovered in Buddhism and other world views "untainted" by Christian concepts. ******* By the 1960s even popular entertainment was confidently reflecting Nietzsche's "God is dead" stance. It seemed absolutely conceivable that Christianity would "vanish and shrink." ******* It just wasn't God's plan, that's all. ******* In the same interview, Lennon also said, "Jesus was all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It's them twisting it that ruins it for me." ******* Considering the views held by so many self-described Christians -- whether on the war in Iraq or same-sex marriage (Thank goodness, many sincere & faithful & true Christians hold fast to what our Lord & Saviour told us clearly: �Have you not read,� Christ said, �that He who made them at the beginning �made them male and female,� and said, �For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. (Matthew 19:4-5)�� We faithful Christians are the real reason why there is a revival of authentic Christianity now, not because we follow the temporary fads & fashions of the day such as same-sex "marriage" as liberal churches like the United Church etc in Canada do - and consequently they are losing members in droves - but because we faithfully follow our Lord of Lords & Kings of Kings and the historical authentic Christianity - RJ), -- one might argue that Lennon's analysis was philosophically quite valid, even if he was way off the beam historically. ******* But that, as they say, is another column entirely. -------------- John Gleeson is the editor of the Winnipeg Sun. He can be reached by e-mail at: [email protected] Letters to the editor should be sent to: [email protected] ********************************************************************************************************************** Our love for God is measured by the sacrifices we are willing to make. Many have made the ultimate sacrifice by being martyred. There is much persecution in the world today. ******* As of thid date, 04-11-14, there is 1 item in this folder. ******* item 1 SHOCKING STATISTICS ON WORDLDIDE PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS *********************************************************************************************************************** ******* item 5 SHOCKING STATISTICS ON WORLD-WIDE PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS ******* From: "Roy Hamel" ******* Date: Tue, 9 Nov 2004 ******* Dear Friends, ******* Did you know that every 24 hours some 274 Christians die for their faith around the world? Nov. 14, 2004 has been designated a special day to remember our brothers and sisters around the world. More information can be found at: http://www.persecutedchurch.org/index.cfm ******* I commend the website and the following excellent article by Gail Reid. ******* Warmly, for the sake of the Name, ******* Royal Hamel ******* PERSECUTING CHRISTIANS ******* By Gail Reid ******* Gail Reid is managing editor of Faith Today and director of communications for the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada. ******* Saving persecuted Christians demands both prayer and action. ******* Since I woke up this morning, ate breakfast, traveled to work, sorted through e-mail, 40 Christians were killed for their faith. By the time I have lunch, 80 Christians will have been martyred worldwide. When I turn out the light tonight, 171 disciples of Jesus will no longer exist, their lives snuffed out by ignorance, hatred, fear--evil. As I sleep they will continue to die. ******* Persecution begins with misinformation. If unchallenged it progresses to discrimination. If unchecked it enables persecution. Though we can't be completely sure -- the figure would no doubt be larger if we could -- statistics indicate that 100,000 Christians are martyred each year. ******* In this age of communication overload, misinformation has a smooth ride. There is little time to assess the truth of a story. Communication is marketed to fit the audience and statistics can be manipulated to support rather than challenge propaganda. You just have to compare the same news story in several papers to realize that it's hard to sort out what is truth. ******* Today our actions have worldwide consequences. Christians are persecuted in other countries because our own churches in North America have waffled on issues such as pornography and homosexuality. In Muslim countries, Christians are seen to be immoral because of this and therefore persecuted. ******* When I hear this it makes me feel helpless and hopeless. I want to act. I feel frustrated with our confusion in the Church of Canada. I feel ashamed of my own security, my own lack of evangelism, my own weak faith. ******* What do persecuted Christians ask us to do? Write letters? Demand that our government intervene? Ask for sanctions on guilty countries? Send in armed forces? Pressure the United Nations to stop this insanity against Christ's Church? ******* They ask for the most powerful weapon they know to deal with this slaughter. Uniformly they ask us to pray. Pray that they will continue to witness; pray that they will be bold; pray that they will not surrender to the weakness of the flesh and recant their faith under torture. ******* These men, women and children have learned something that we have yet to experience. They live in countries where the name of Jesus brings wrath and division and where sharing one's faith has great cost. In the midst of this threat, they draw closer to God and to one another. Prayer sustains them and informs their actions. Prayer opens the way for the Holy Spirit to draw people to faith. ******* Yes, it's time to cry out to our heavenly Father. Our brothers and sisters are hurting. They are being tortured and killed as you read. Yet they are a witness to us of faith and confidence in the power of prayer. ******* Lord God, save your people. Keep our hearts and actions in line with you alone. Give us boldness to speak your truth. May we not be ashamed. . . . ********************************************************************************************************************** ******* item 6 SOME GOOD NEWS - CHRISTIANS INCREASING IN NUMBERS ******* From: "Ron Gray" ******* Date: Fri, 25 Apr 2003 ******* Today Christians around the world celebrate the resurrection of Christ. In the Western world, it's fashionable among certain groups to say that religious celebrations are on the wane. The belief is that as the human race grows richer and more educated there is a corresponding decline in religious affiliation... we get more secular. ******* Well, guess again... religion, in fact, is booming. Especially Christianity. ******* One of the least reported trends in the world today is the explosive growth of Christianity in South America, Asia and Africa... virtually all of the Southern Hemisphere. There are about 2 BILLION Christians in the world, and that population is rising fast. ******* Phillip Jenkins is a professor of History and Religious Studies at Penn State University. He joined us from State College in Pennsylvania. ******* Religion Factboard ******* Religion in Canada has always been a largely Christian affair. Even as the number of people identifying themselves as Christian continues to decline, they are still the majority. ******* According to Stats Canada, the number of Christians made up about 80 percent of Canada's population in the 1991 census. Scholars expect the upcoming 2001 statistics to show that number falling to about 73 percent. ******* But the next highest percentage were people who said they had no religious affiliation at all. They came in at around 13 percent and are expected to remain the next highest group after Christians. Canada's religious minorities remain under 5 percent. ******* Hear this program at http://media.cbc.ca:8080/ramgen/cbc.ca/thecurrent/media/200304/ 20030421thecurrent_sec3.rm ******************************************************************************************************** ******* item 7 RECORD NUMBER OF EX-MUSLIMS CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS THIS YEAR A spiritual revolution underway in Mideast http://joelrosenberg.blogspot.com/ ******* From: Robert A. Jason ******* Sent: Saturday, December 23, 2006 ******* More Muslims converted to faith in Jesus Christ over the past decade than at any other time in human history. A spiritual revolution is underway throughout North Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. As a result, a record number of ex-Muslims are celebrating Christmas this year, despite intense persecution, assassinations, and widespread church bombings. ******* During the writing of Epicenter, my wife and kids and I lived in the Mideast for three months. During that time, I had the privilege of interviewing more than three dozen Arab and Iranian pastors and evangelical leaders throughout the region. The picture they paint is one of Christianity being dramatically resurrected in the region of its birth. A snapshot: ******* Iraq: more than 5,000 new Muslim converts to Christianity have been identified since the end of major combat operations, with 14 new churches opened in Baghdad, and dozens of new churches opened in Kurdistan, some of which have 500 to 800 members. Also, more than 1 million Bibles shipped into the country since 2003, and pastors report Iraqis are snatching them up so fast they constantly need more Bibles. ******* Egypt: some reports say 1 million Egyptians have trusted Christ over the past decade or so. The Egyptian Bible Society told me they used to sell about 3,000 copies of the JESUS film a year in the early 1990s. But last year they sold 600,000 copies, plus 750,000 copies of the Bible on tape (in Arabic) and about a half million copies of the Arabic New Testament. "Egyptians are increasingly hungry for God's Word," an Egyptian Christian leader told me. Last Christmas, I had the privilege of visiting the largest Christian congregation in the Middle East, which meets in an enormous cave on the outskirts of Cairo. Some 10,000 believers worship there every weekend. A prayer conference the church held in May 2005 drew some 20,000 believers. ******* Afghanistan: only 17 Muslim converts to Christianity before 9/11/01, but now more than 10,000. Dozens of baptisms every week. ******* Kazakstan: only 3 known Christians in 1990, but now more than 15,000. ******* Uzbekistan: no known Christians in 1990, but now more than 30,000. ******* Sudan: more than 1 million Sudanese have converted to Christianity just since 2000, and some 5 million have become Christians since the early 1990s, despite a radical Islamic regime and an on-going genocide that has killed more than 200,000. Seminaries are being held in caves to train pastors to shepherd the huge numbers of people coming to Christ. Why such a dramatic spiritual awakening? "People have seen real Islam, and they want Jesus instead," one Sudanese evangelical leader told me. ******* Iran: in 1979, there were only 500 known Muslim converts to Christianity, but today Iranian pastors and evangelical leaders tell me there are more than 1 million Iranian believers in Jesus Christ, most of whom meet in underground house churches. ******* In December 2001, Sheikh Ahmad al Qataani, a leading Saudi cleric, appeared on a live interview on Aljazeera satellite television to confirm that, sure enough, Muslims were turning to Jesus in alarming numbers. "In every hour, 667 Muslims convert to Christianity," Al Qataani warned. "Every day, 16,000 Muslims convert to Christianity. Every year, 6 million Muslims convert to Christianity." ******* Stunned, the interviewer interrupted the cleric. "Hold on! Let me clarify. Do we have six million converting from Islam to Christianity?" Al Qataani repeated his assertion. "Every year," the cleric confirmed, adding, "a tragedy has happened." ******* One of the most dramatic developments is that many Muslims -- including Shiites in Iran and Iraq -- are seeing dreams and visions of Jesus and thus coming into churches explaining that they have already converted and now need a Bible and guidance on how to follow Jesus. I describe a number of these stories in the book. Having just returned from three weeks in the Mideast, I have heard many more, and will be sharing some of them in the new year. This is in fulfillment of Biblical prophecy. The Hebrew Prophet Joel told us that "in the last days, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days....And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved." (Joel 2:28-32) ******* Bottom line: It's not being reported by the mainstream media, but the God of the Bible is moving powerfully and dramatically throughout the Muslim world. The number of Arab and Iranian Christians is surging despite wars, rumors of wars, and terrible persecution. These fellow brothers and sisters now need our fervent prayers and our practical help as they seek to reach epicenter with the love and forgiveness of Jesus in 2007. ******* Lynn and I launched The Joshua Fund both to bless the Jews of Israel as well as to communicate the gospel to Muslims throughout the Middle East. If you'd like to learn more -- or to help -- please visit our website at www.joshuafund.net. All donations are tax-deductible. ********************************************************************************************************

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The following warning is a prophetic message given to me, Frank Wagner, in November of 1974. ******* LISTEN TO THE CRY OF THE ABORTED CHILDREN. THEIR CRY IS NO. THEIR CRY IS A CRY OF TERROR. HEED THEIR CRY. ******* This prophecy is now being fulfilled. ******* For details about the source, meaning and fulfillment of this prophetic message go to ******* http://ca.geocities.com/fwagner4/index.html ******* email me at *** [email protected] ***