RELIGION TODAY

[nChrist]

Humanitarian International Services Group (HISG) Responds to Ike

September 15, 2008

ENGLEWOOD, COLORADO (ANS) -- An international humanitarian group is coordinating a response to Hurricane Ike across fifteen different Service Sectors from its Global Operations Center in Englewood, Colorado, based on its international global response model.

Humanitarian International Services Group (HISG) says it has identified 15 different service sectors encompassing a wide range of services that the private sector may provide during a disaster. The different sectors can be viewed on HISG's website: www.HISG.org .

HISG says the services range from food and water, shelter and reconstruction, and transportation and communications, to professional responder networks like law enforcement, firefighter and emergency medical teams.

The Global Operations Center's coordination of the entire range of services allows different organizations with similar points of emphasis to work together for a more effective, efficient and comprehensive response to the hurricane within a specific sector, as well as a holistic response across all of the sectors.

The Global Operations Center (GOC) acts as a hub for sharing this critical information with different public and private emergency operations centers and private sector implementing partners.

This center has been hosting conference calls for partner aid organizations, and processing wide ranges of data into Spot Reports and Situation Reports that provide updated information about where the greatest needs are located and who is capable of response.

During Hurricane Gustav, public and private entities commended these reports as "the bench-mark for information on private sector response."

HISG's GOC is currently at full activation responding to Hurricane Ike at Alert Level 4. It is working with partnering aid organizations to prepare a response to Hurricane Ike.

Ike made landfall in the vicinity of Galveston, Texas early Saturday morning and caused significant damage and widespread power outages.

HISG also sent a Rapid Assessment Team into the Houston area to collect and deliver accurate and updated information from the affected areas. The HISG Rapid Assessment Team in Houston provided this update:

* The worst of the storm passed the Houston area at about 0800 CDT. Rain and 20 mph winds with gusts to 45 are still reported in northern counties along I45 corridor, Montgomery and Walker counties specifically.

* The Galveston, Houston and outlying communities were hit hard during the night.

* Surge and flooding was a significant issue. The surge came in at average 12-foot levels along coast. The surge blocked most of the bayou system that normally allows floodwaters from rain to flow out to sea. The hurricane made landfall and dropped 8 inches of rain in some places (including downtown Houston area). Flooding occurred because the surge water blocked the rainwater from flowing out to sea.

* Heavy winds of 100 mph to 110 mph knocked down a significant amount of the above ground power poles in the Houston area. The result is approximately 3 million electrical customers without power. Restoration for most will occur in the next 24-48 hours. Galveston will take much longer because most of their infrastructure was above ground because they are close to sea level.

* Downtown Houston hit hard with winds that broke a significant amount of the windows in skyscrapers. The wind even blew desks and computers out of the windows from upper floors.

* Rescue efforts are starting across Galveston and Houston area now. Road clearing and power line removal is beginning also.

HISG specializes in connecting private sector resources and capabilities to large-scale disaster relief efforts.

Following Hurricane Katrina in 2005, HISG set up an emergency operations center in Houston to help coordinate the aid efforts of hundreds of private sector companies, thousands of faith-based groups and over 55 warehouses.

In its International Disaster Response Model, HISG has identified fifteen Primary Service Areas that the private sector can engage in.

As the situation changes and different needs emerge, HISG will continue to communicate urgent needs to a network of private sector organizations that are prepared to respond.

HISG was formed in 2001 and specializes in connecting private sector resources and capabilities to large-scale disaster relief efforts. Active in more than 80 countries worldwide, HISG has begun training disaster response teams around the world in nations such as Thailand, Brazil, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines.

HISG partners who are interested in the possibility of engaging resources to respond to this event are encouraged to contact the Global Information Center so that appropriate capabilities can be registered to maximize opportunities to coordinate and cross-support initiatives.
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[nChrist]

Hurricanes Leave Opportunity for the Gospel
Rebekah Montgomery

September 17, 2008

In the wake of back-to-back weather calamities, Christian relief organization workers may be tired, but they're not whining about it. Rather they are enthusiastic about the unprecedented opening the Church has to clean up -- literally.

Mary Marr of Christian Emergency Network (CEN) says recent hurricanes present a window of opportunity for Christians to shine through grassroots self-organizing responses through local churches.

 "We've seen an overwhelming response (to this concept) both from churches and victims. The litany of 'the government will save us' has been proved false. Moreover, it has robbed Christians of our ability to be the church and stand in the gap during a disaster. Local churches and people not working together becomes a disaster within a disaster.

"In a disaster, victims and volunteers alike ask 'Who do we trust?' The answer needs to be 'The local church.'"

Rick Draeger of Salvation Army's (SA) Heartland Division understands the need for cooperation and coordination between national Christian agencies, local, national, and regional authorities (police, fire, FEMA, Homeland Security, etc.), and the local church. Under the SA command structure, advance agreements have been forged with Christian agencies and local churches to contribute much-needed response elements.

Said Draeger: "Our staff and volunteers provide not only food, water, and clothing, but a spiritual component. This adds more to our plates."

For this reason, Draeger requests prayer for volunteers and staff as well as disaster victims.

"Because we have partnerships with churches and local SA chapters who remain attached to affected areas after the emergency is passed, we are engaged with the full spectrum of care."

Sues Hyde, IBS-STL (International Bible Society-Send The Light) Outreach Director, said hurricane weary coastal residents are turning to God's Word in record numbers and in short order. She underlined the need for churches and pastors to step in to provide long term spiritual, emotional, and community support.

"Typically," said Hyde, "it has taken a while -- maybe a month -- for people to turn to the Bible for help. But after Gustav, chaplains said in two days people were asking for resources."

IBS-STL Global, one of the largest Christian literature ministries worldwide, has developed "scripture tools" for disaster victims, depending upon the loss (property, loved ones, etc.) and age.

"We have a range of scripture tools ranging from 30-day daily readings for individuals to studies entire churches can go through as they rebuild their lives. We have scripture tools for children, too.

"Our distribution of scripture tools isn't limited to the United States, but also in areas around the world where Christianity isn't the primary faith. As we train new pastors in war-torn areas, we provide disaster recovery counselor training as well."

IBS-STL Global has formed a partnership with PRC Compassion to distribute 21,400 scripture pieces to church-based shelters.

Marr believes local churches need to train for disaster mobilization prior to calamities because it is only a matter of time until every community will have a disaster of some sort.

"Is your local church preparing for the next disaster? If not, they may miss an opportunity to be the church," said Marr.

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[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 15, 2008

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.
 
In today's edition:

    * Pope Visits France Though Churches Are Depopulated
    * Water Missions Aids Storm Victims in Haiti
    * Calif. Episcopal Bishops Oppose Gay Marriage Ban
    * Christians Attacked in Karnataka, India


 

Pope Visits France Though Churches Are Depopulated

AFP reports that Pope Benedict XVI arrived in France on Friday to be greeted by President Nicolas Sarkozy, the head of a once-Catholic nation. The country, estimated to be 80 percent Catholic in the early 1990s, is increasing full of Muslims and seculars, as people no longer identify with its teachings. Now, though 51 percent still describe themselves as Catholic, only 10 percent attend mass regularly, according to a survey in Le Monde des Religions magazine. "Statistically, the church is in the red," commented Michel Kubler, the editor in chief for religious issues for the Catholic newspaper La Croix. "All the indicators are down, from church attendance to baptisms to the number of priests." Church weddings are down, as are the number of priests within the country. However, Kubler says those who remain in the church are different than those who used to populate the pews. "French Catholics are a lot less passive. There are signs of a significant renewal," he said.

Water Missions Aids Storm Victims in Haiti

ASSIST News Service Reports that Water Missions International (WMI) is responding with water purification systems in Haiti after four major storms ripped through the impoverished country in less than four weeks. A media release explains that four of the Living Water(TM) Treatment Systems are currently stationed in Haiti and will provide the vital resource of safe, clean water to disaster victims immediately upon clearance from customs. "WMI staff and volunteers are readying five more water systems for deployment to Haiti. Together, these nine systems are... enough to provide more than 45,000 people with a sufficient daily supply of drinking water." Pierre Prinvil, WMI's Haitian Country Director, is on the ground in the disaster zone. "I've never seen destruction and devastation quite like this. In my hometown alone [Cabaret, Haiti], more than 60 people have died," says Prinvil. "The people of Haiti are suffering and need help. Safe water is the most urgent need. We must act quickly."

Calif. Episcopal Bishops Oppose Gay Marriage Ban

Religion News Service reports that Episcopal bishops from all six California dioceses are urging voters to defeat a state referendum that would outlaw gay marriage this November. "We do not believe that marriage of heterosexuals is threatened by same-sex marriage," nine bishops said in a joint statement Wednesday (Sept. 10). "Rather, the Christian values of monogamy, commitment, love, mutual respect ... are enhanced for all by providing this right to gay and straight alike." Californians will vote Nov. 4 on Proposition 8, which would amend the state constitution to reserve marriage for heterosexual couples. In May, the state supreme court overturned a voter-approved ban on gay marriage. Other religious groups, including Catholics, evangelicals, Hindus and Muslims, are advocating for the referendum.

Christians Attacked in Karnataka, India

Compass Direct News reports that as tensions continued in the eastern state of Orissa, Hindu nationalist groups intensified attacks on churches and Christian institutions in the southern state of Karnataka. Hindu extremists leveled false charges of "forcible" conversions against Christian workers as the Karnataka government, ruled by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, prepared to close down churches. Sajan K. George of the Global Council of Indian Christians told Compass that more than 200 people attacked the Mission Action Prayer Fellowship church in Bada village, Davangere district on September 7, accusing the Christians of "forcible" conversions. George said the commissioner of Davangere City had issued notices to demolish three churches -- Eternal Life Church, Divine Healing Ministry church and Jesus Prayer Hall -- in the city, claiming that their buildings were illegal.

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[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 16, 2008

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.
 
In today's edition:

    * Ike Strikes Texas, Relief Units Already Positioned
    * Britain Allows Sharia Courts Power in Civil Cases
    * Iran: Christians Charged with 'Apostasy'
    * CCM Star Ray Boltz Announces Homosexuality

 

Ike Strikes Texas, Relief Units Already Positioned

The Christian Post reports that many relief groups prepared for Hurricane Ike in advance, and have already begun relief efforts. The giant storm, almost as the size of Texas, was the first storm to hit a major city since Katrina. Salvation Army, World Vision, and Operation Blessing International are just three of the many organizations already at work. "The early indications are that this storm is the worst of the five we have already responded to in the 2008 hurricane season," said Major Marshall Gesner, Greater Houston Area Commander for The Salvation Army. "With more than 4 million people without power, wide-spread flooding and high temperatures forecast for the area, our response will be about twice the size of our effort for Hurricane Gustav." Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff said 40,000 Texans are in 250 shelters, according to CNN.

Britain Allows Sharia Courts Power in Civil Cases

Fox News reports that the British government has quietly given authority to Shari'a courts to rule in Muslim civil cases, marking the official adoption of Islamic law in Britain. A network of five shari'a courts already ruled on cases ranging from divorce to financial disputes to domestic violence, but previously relied on voluntary compliance among Muslims. Dominic, Grieve, the shadow home secretary, responded to criticisms that this authority would lead to a parallel legal system, saying, "If it is true that these tribunals are passing binding decisions in the areas of family and criminal law, I would like to know which courts are enforcing them because I would consider such action unlawful. British law is absolute and must remain so."

Iran: Christians Charged with 'Apostasy'

Compass Direct News reports that two Iranian Christians have officially been charged with "apostasy," or leaving Islam, as a draft law making the death penalty mandatory for those convicted of the charge is set to be debated in Iran's Parliament. Mahmood Matin Azad, 52, and Arash Basirat (previously reported Bandari), 44, have been in prison since May 15, when they were arrested in Shiraz. Sources who spoke to the two Christians' defense lawyer explained that a written order of the formal charge of apostasy was unusual and an indication of the severity and complexity of the case. With the apostasy bill debated in Parliament, some Iranian Christians fear that authorities are seeking to make an example of the two prisoners or give the prospective law a "test run."

CCM Star Ray Boltz Announces Homosexuality

Once famous for Christian hits such as "Thank You," singer Ray Boltz slowed his career in the Christian music industry in 2004. Now, he's back in the spotlight after acknowledging his homosexuality in the Washington Blade, saying that he is now living a gay lifestyle after coming out to his family in late 2004 and divorcing his wife in 2005. "If this is the way God made me, then this is the way I'm going to live...I really feel closer to God because I no longer hate myself," he said in the Blade interview. When asked about Boltz's homosexuality, The Gospel Music Association -- the group which gives out the Dove Awards -- told the Blade, "We do not comment on the lifestyle choices of people in our community."

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[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 17, 2008

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.
 
In today's edition:

    * Anti-Christian Violence in Orissa Threatens to Spread
    * Ike Hits Churches in Louisiana, Texas
    * Pakistan: Partial Victory Seen in Case of Kidnapped Girls
    * World Leaders Cautious of Zimbabwe Power-Sharing Deal

 


Anti-Christian Violence in Orissa Threatens to Spread

Thousands of Christians in India's Orissa state have been targeted over the last month, and attacks on Christians elsewhere in the country appear to be strengthening, according to the Christian Post. Barnabus Fund, a persecution watchdog, reports that Hindu extremists may be spreading their anti-Christian sentiments. In the northern state of Uttarakhand, Hindu activists reportedly attacked a group of Indian missionaries in early August, and in September, activists abducted four young children who were being taken to a Christian orphanage and mugged two staff members. A church in central India was burned to the groun on Sept. 7. "India is in a scary situation," said Gospel for Asia president K.P. Yohannan, in a statement Monday. "While violence continues in Orissa, on India's east coast, anti-Christian extremists have unleashed another wave of attacks on Christians in Karnataka, a state on India's west coast... At the same time, churches are under attack in Jharkhand and other states, and Muslim extremists have set off bombs in Delhi."

Ike Hits Churches in Louisiana, Texas

Baptist Press reports that churches in southern Louisiana that weathered Hurricanes Katrina and/or Rita and three years later Gustav may have been done in by Ike's onslaught Sept. 13. Joe Arnold, director of missions in Bayou Baptist Association southwest of New Orleans, said 5,000 more homes in the region were flooded by Ike than Rita in 2005. This means 15,000 homes rather than 10,000 homes. "Longtime pastors tell me they've never seen the water this high," Arnold said. "I've got 11 churches that were strongly impacted. 'No church; no offering; no salary.' That's an abbreviated version of my report." First Baptist Church in Houma was in the final stages of volunteer construction on its new day school. It was an eight-building compound with a central courtyard.

Pakistan: Partial Victory Seen in Case of Kidnapped Girls

Compass Direct News reports that Christian human rights lawyers in Pakistan saw a partial legal victory in a judge's ruling last week that one of two kidnapped girls be returned to her Christian parents. The judge further ruled that her sister be free to choose whether to go with the Muslim man who allegedly forced her to convert and marry him. Justice Malik Saeed Ejaz ruled on Tuesday (Sept. 9) that 10-year-old Aneela Masih be returned to her parents -- an unprecedented legal victory for Christian parents of a girl who supposedly converted to Islam, according to one lawyer -- while leaving her sister, 13-year-old Saba Masih, free to choose whether to go with Amjad Ali, a Muslim man who married her after the June 26 kidnapping. Saba Masih, whose birth certificate indicates that she is now 13 but who testified that she is 17, said she did not want to return to her parents and tried to keep her little sister from returning to them. Their Muslim captors have repeatedly threatened the two girls that their parents would harm them if they returned.

World Leaders Cautious of Zimbabwe Power-Sharing Deal

The Christian Post reports that arch rivals President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, along with Arthur Mutambara of a faction that broke away from Tsvangirai's party agreed on Monday to share government power, theoretically resolving the aftermath of an earlier presidential election this summer. World leaders viewed that election as a sham, and are only cautiously optimistic now. The United States said it was waiting to see the details of the deal, while the European Union said it wants to see democratic improvements before lifting sanctions, according to Agence France-Presse. Under Mugabe's rule famine, inflation and violence jumped, with an addition spike pre- and post-election. Multiple church leaders spoke out against the humanitarian crisis during the election, saying that the violence could turn to wide-scale genocide.

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[nChrist]

Violence Spreads to Five More States in India - Part 1
Vishal Arora and Shireen Bhatia

September 18, 2008

NEW DELHI, (Compass Direct News) -- A policeman was killed Tuesday, the body of another victim of Hindu extremist violence was discovered and more houses and churches burned in Orissa state's Kandhamal district even as anti-Christian violence spread to at least five more states across India over the weekend.

Christians and churches were targeted in Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand as fallout from violence in Orissa that began following the assassination of a Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council or VHP) leader, Laxmanananda Saraswati, and four of his disciples in Kandhamal district on August 23.

A mob of around 500 rioters today killed a policeman and burned down a police station in Orissa's Kandhamal district, where Hindu extremists launched a spate of attacks three weeks ago blaming local Christians of killing Saraswati and his disciples. Maoists have claimed responsibility for the murders of the Hindu leaders.

"A large number of attackers armed with country-made guns and crude weapons gunned down a constable and set ablaze the police station at Gochapada early this morning," Director General of Police Gopal Nanda told The Indian Express. Gochapada is 36 kilometers (22 miles) from Phulbani, the district headquarters of Kandhamal.

Police sources told the daily that the mob was demanding release of a man held by security personnel, but local residents felt the attack came in retaliation for police firing into a crowd in Kurtamgarh in Tumudibandh area, killing at least one person, on Saturday (Sept. 13).

Murder in Orissa

While the body of another person was found and at least 14 houses were burned on Sunday night (Sept. 14), a church and several houses were set ablaze on the previous day.

The Statesman newspaper reported that at least nine houses of Makabali village and five in Sanakbali village were torched in the Gunjibadi area. Authorities found the body of Purander Naik, who had fled to a relief camp where mainly Christians had taken refuge, in his village of Nilungia.

"The decomposed body of Naik was found by police near the Ratingia dam yesterday," the newspaper reported yesterday. "Naik was at the G. Udayagiri relief camp for over 10 days but had left for his village to see the condition of his house and poultry. His family was at the relief camp. Apparently he was killed during his visit to the village."

The Press Trust of India reported that while nine houses were torched in Toposi village, another house was burned in Dibadi village under the Raikia police station in Kandhamal.

The Rev. Ashis Parida of the Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI) reported that more than 2,000 Hindu extremists set fire to a church belonging to the Church of North India (CNI) denomination and several houses of Christians in Kurtamgarh village on Saturday afternoon (Sept. 13). Kurtamgarh is about seven kilometers (four miles) from the ashram (religious center) of Hindu leader Saraswati.

Compass received reports that a Hindu extremist mob on Friday (Sept. 12) burned one church and a mission hostel in Mangapanga, Tumulibandh; three churches in Mundabali, Badipankha; and one church in Baringia in Phulbani. An estimated 40 houses were also destroyed on the same day by the intolerant Hindus.

The next afternoon a large Hindu extremist mob descended on Kurtamgarh, burning several houses and the CNI Church. Sources said the extremists were targeting the village headman of the area, a Christian whose house they destroyed.
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[nChrist]

Violence Spreads to Five More States in India - Part 2
Vishal Arora and Shireen Bhatia

A local source said that "while the mob was attacking the Christian homes and churches, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) forces took notice of it and fired in the air to disperse the crowd. To their surprise the mob retaliated with gunfire aimed at the CRPF, which wounded two soldiers of the CRPF, one of whom was reported to be quite serious and had to be taken to Behrampur for his medical treatment."

The CRPF forces retaliated with gunfire of their own, killing one person and injuring about 12. Early reports suggested that two people had died in the CRPF firing, but only one body was said to be recovered by the CRPF after the incident.

Krishan Kumar, district collector of Kandhamal, told media that on that day, "At least 400-500 people, some of them carrying firearms, attacked a man's home and set it on fire at Kurtamgarh village."

While the state government says 24 people, mainly Christian, have died in the Orissa violence, the All India Christian Council (AICC) maintained that 45 Christians were confirmed dead and five more were still missing.

According to the AICC, 14 districts of Orissa witnessed violence with Kandhamal as the epicenter. It reported at least 50,000 people from 300 villages have been affected by the violence, with hundreds still hiding in forests, and 4,000 houses and 115 churches burned or destroyed.

Death in Relief Camps

At least 20,000 people are in the 14 relief camps set up by the state government in Kandhamal. Two elderly persons and two children are known to have died in three of the relief camps.

The Statesman reported that while two ailing men, 75-year-old Sua Naik from Budrungia village and 66-year-old Kasipatra Naik from Tatamaha village, died at the Raikia relief camp, two children, one from the Phulbani camp and the other from G. Udayagiri camp, died during the week.

One of the children was reportedly a 10-year-old girl who had been hiding in the forest since the violence began who died from disease attained by being constantly on the run. The name of the girl was not known, but she was said to be from Kotgarh.

The Statesman also reported that the chief secretary of Orissa state, Ajit Tripathy, held a review meeting yesterday to discuss health and sanitation measures at the relief camps.

Orissa is ruled by a coalition of a regional party, Biju Janata Dal, and the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Attacks in Karnataka

Attacks were reported also from the southern state of Karnataka, where Hindu extremists ratcheted up hostilities after the state education ministry served show-cause notices to over 2,000 Christian schools in the state for staying shut on Aug. 29 to protest the violence against Christians in Orissa.

On Sunday (Sept. 14), Hindu extremists attacked several churches in Karnataka's district of Dakshina Kannada, in Udupi and Chikmagalur, on the pretext that Christians were engaging in "forcible" conversions of Hindus to Christianity.

In Dakshina Kannada district, suspected extremists from the Bajrang Dal, VHP's youth wing, attacked the Adoration Monastery near the Milagres Church on Falnir Road in Mangalore region.

"The 10-member group barged into the prayer hall and damaged the tabernacle, where the holy Eucharist is kept," reported the Times of India. "They damaged windowpanes, furniture as well as the crucifix. Police said the same group attempted to vandalize another prayer hall in Kankanady, but were driven back."

The daily added that Christians later gathered in large numbers in front of the Milagres Hall to protest the attacks, which resulted in a day-long stand off between the protestors, who reportedly hurled stones at the police, with officers using batons in return. Several vehicles were damaged in the tussle.

In Udupi district, three churches of the New Life Fellowship were attacked by suspected Bajrang Dal extremists while Sunday prayers were in progress, reported the daily. At least 15 Hindu extremists entered its prayer hall, attacking worshippers and ransacking the hall during the worship service. A music system and projector were damaged.
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[nChrist]

Violence Spreads to Five More States in India - Part 3
Vishal Arora and Shireen Bhatia

In Shiroor area, Hindu extremists attacked another prayer hall of the New Life Fellowship, burning a vehicle and striking some members of the congregation, including the pastor.

The daily reported another attack on a church in Mudur, near Kollur, resulted in damaged materials. It added that police prevented yet another such attack in prayer halls of the New Life Fellowship in Kaup and Karkala areas.

In Chikmagalur district, extremists attacked three churches and the house of a new convert. "In one incident, 15 activists came in a vehicle and barged into Harvest India church in Makkikoppa near Jayapura in Koppa Taluka [Block] in the morning and assaulted a parishioner and the Protestant pastor," the daily reported. "They broke the window panes and the plastic chairs."

On Sunday night (Sept. 14), a mob attacked a prayer hall in the Padavu Pre-University College on the Mangalore-Udupi Road.

Yesterday morning, Hindu extremists attacked a shop in Kalladka village and the St. Ann's Friary Grotto near Canara College, about 25 kilometers (almost 16 miles) from Mangalore, in two separate incidents. A Christian prayer hall in Chickballapur district, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) from Bangalore, also was attacked.

Some Christians reportedly retaliated by targeting policemen in different parts of Dakshina Kannada district. At least four policemen were injured, with one reportedly stabbed yesterday.

According to Indo-Asian News Service (IANS), police arrested about 100 people, almost all Christians, for staging allegedly violent protests.

Hindu extremists also attacked churches in Belthangady, Moodabidri, Koloor, Kodaikal, Hemanagatta, Kadur and Puttur, Kundapur and Balehanoor. All together 18 churches and prayer halls in and around Mangalore and in Udipi and Chikmaglur districts were attacked on Sunday (Sept. 14).

Police reportedly had arrested seven Bajrang Dal members by Sunday night. Schools and shops remained shut in Mangalore yesterday in protest, and vehicles were kept off the roads. Christians continued to protest, and in some places police had to fire tear gas shells to maintain order. A curfew was imposed in Mangalore as well.

But that did not stop Hindu extremists from throwing stones at a church in Mangalore yesterday morning, in spite of an order the previous day banning assembly of more than five people for three days. Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa stoked fires by stating, "There is no room for forcible conversion in democracy. No one should indulge in it."

Asked what action he was going to take against the Bajrang Dal during a press conference yesterday evening, the chief minister said only, "Whoever was involved in this act will be arrested very soon."

But he was quick to blame church groups, saying "No one has the right to insult any other religion. As we know some community called 'New Life' is converting people, we have asked the bishop to support us in this regard. But as per the bishop, New Life is not under his control and the bishop is not the in charge of this community."

There was little to suggest the involvement of New Life Fellowship churches in forced conversion. NDTV 24X7, a national television news channel reported that "so far there seems to be little evidence that New Life is carrying out forcible conversions."

A team from the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) will reportedly make an on-the-spot assessment of attacks on churches and prayer halls in different parts of Karnataka and submit its report to the federal government. Members will visit churches damaged in attacks in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Chikmagalur districts, as well as Mangalore.

Bajrang Dal representatives unabashedly admitted to the violence that was carried out on Sunday (Sept. 14), telling NDTV 24X7 that they are targeting evangelical groups in and around Mangalore.

Violence in Other States

In the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, Bajrang Dal extremists on Sunday (Sept. 14) attacked two pastors in Kanpur district, accusing them of beating their supporters, reported IANS.

Govindnagar police station inspector N.K. Singh told IANS that the pastor of the New India Church of God, Jitendra Singh, approached officers late Sunday night and submitted a written complaint against Ram Babu Bajpai, a local leader of the Bajrang Dal.

Pastor Singh said Bajpai, along with a large number of his supporters, attacked him in the church compound in the presence of his wife, Helena Singh, and fellow pastor Anil Gilbert.
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[nChrist]

Violence Spreads to Five More States in India - Part 4
Vishal Arora and Shireen Bhatia

Both sides filed complaints.

According to the complaint by the Hindu extremists, "The Bajrang Dal has alleged that the church was involved in converting Hindus to Christianity by offering them money, and the pastors attacked them when its activists opposed the practice," IANS added.

In the north-central state of Madhya Pradesh, at 1:30 p.m. today five unidentified people carrying air guns shot a guard of the Caramel Convent in Banduha village (under the Ghatia police station) in Ujjain district, Madhya Pradesh state. Father Anand Muttungal of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Madhya Pradesh state reported that Amar Singh's injuries were not fatal.

Fr. Muttungal said that the culprits asked Singh to call the nuns, and when he told them they were away the assailants beat and shot him.

Hindu extremists in Madhya Pradesh also burned the 80-year-old Masihi Mandir church of the CNI denomination in Chhawni (Cantonment) area of Indore city at 10:30 p.m. on Saturday (Sept. 13), reported EFI.

"The fire was spotted by a few onlookers, who managed to extinguish it quickly," EFI reported. "The doors, windows and other wooden material were burned."

In the southern state of Kerala, on Sunday night (Sept. 14) Hindu extremists attacked the Jaya Mata Convent School, a Christian kindergarten that doubled as a church in Kottakkani area in Kasargode district under the Catholic diocese of Teleicherry, reported the Times of India.

The Hindu extremists launched the attack to protest conversions.

"On Monday morning, we saw the glass panes of a box containing the figure of Mother Mary, as well as window panes of the school, smashed," Vicar Antony Punnoor told the daily. "It seemed someone had hurled stones."

The Kerala state interior minister, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, told the daily that the incident would be investigated.

"Cops would also examine if the attack had any link with such incidents in Karnataka," he reportedly said. "No one will be allowed to create communal riots in the state."

In the western state of Jharkhand, Hindu villagers attacked Christians of a Believers' Church and pressured them to "reconvert" to Hinduism in Talatad village (under Patratu police station) in Hazaribagh district on Sunday (Sept. 14), reported the Christian Legal Association.

Pastor Cyril Tamgaria and 18 others were worshiping in the house of Badhi Oraon when Hindu extremists surrounded the house. They beat them, took them forcibly to a temple in a nearby jungle and asked them to "return" to their old faith. Local Christians reported the incident to police, however, and officers freed the Christians.

The Rev. Dr. Babu Joseph, spokesperson of the Catholic Church in India, said in a statement that the Christian community in India has been conducting itself in a peaceful manner throughout the ordeals, and "even under extreme provocation it has exercised restraint."

"It is not to be construed as weakness," he said, "but a preferred option based on sound principles of civilized living."

Joseph added that the community continued to render its services to all sectors of society without discrimination.

"Nevertheless, baseless allegations of fraudulent conversion have long been hurled at it by certain vested interests whose chief agenda seems to be social polarization on the lines of religious beliefs," he said. "We, as responsible citizens of India, will not succumb to their divisive tactics, but continue to work, in the spirit of Christ our master, for the unity, integrity and progress of the nation."
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[nChrist]

Megachurches Growing, But in Different Ways
Adelle M. Banks


September 19, 2008

(RNS) - Megachurches -- known for their big buildings, big schools and big crowds -- continue to grow, but a new study detects shifts in the way they are expanding.

"The general growth pattern is that about 90 percent of megachurches report that they are growing, and many of them at very fast rates," said Warren Bird, a researcher at the Leadership Network, a Dallas-based church think tank and co-author of the study released Friday (Sept. 12).

The average megachurch saw a growth of about 50 percent in attendance in the last five years; about 10 percent reported a decline or stagnation.

The expansion of many of the nation's estimated 1,250 megachurches is occurring through satellite campuses, and they are shifting their training emphasis by running fewer schools and more pastors' conferences.

"You have a tremendous amount of growth but not ... larger and larger buildings," said study co-author Scott Thumma, a sociologist of religion at Hartford Seminary.

The churches, with worship attendance of 2,000 or more each weekend, are increasingly using satellite locations, with 37 percent using them in 2008, compared to 27 percent in 2005 and 22 percent in 2000. The researchers found that on average, megachurches surveyed this year had offered four services at each of two satellite locations each weekend.

Five percent of megachurches had six or more locations, where between one dozen and two dozen services occur each weekend.

Almost a third of the megachurches surveyed -- 30 percent -- said they had started using satellite campuses in the last five years.

Outreach magazine, a church leadership publication based in Vista, Calif., reports in its upcoming issue that for the first time, all 100 churches on its list of 100 largest churches in the U.S. are attended by more than 7,000 people. It notes that experts predict that half of all megachurches will have multiple locations by 2010.

Yet as they continue to grow, fewer megachurches are involved in TV and radio ministry; the percentage of megachurches with a radio ministry dropped from 44 percent in 2000 to 24 percent in 2008. Likewise, the percentage with television ministries dropped from 38 percent to 23 percent.

Fewer also are operating Christian schools. In 2000, 42 percent of megachurches surveyed said a Christian elementary or secondary school was part of their ministry. This year, that figured dropped to 25 percent. The percentage with an affiliated Bible school or institute dropped from 30 percent in 2000 to 20 percent in 2008.

At the same time, more churches are offering conferences for pastors or other ministry leaders, increasing from 47 percent in 2000 to 54 percent in 2008.

Even though the majority of megachurches are affiliated with denominations, researchers said offering conferences, resources and mission opportunities suggest the rise of "mini-denominations."

"They are creating alternative ways for churches and for religious people to get resources, to do ministry, to do missions, to connect with other churches," said Thumma, author of "Beyond Megachurch Myths."

"All the things that were typically done ... from the national denominational structure are being done at a local church level."

The latest survey is based on about 400 responses to questionnaires that were sent to 1,250 congregations.
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[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 18, 2008
Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.
 
In today's edition:

    * Haiti: Some Still Unreached after Ike
    * Turkey: Testimony Shows Malatya Murders Premeditated
    * Gospel Rescue Missions Measure Faith-Based Initiatives
    * Student Told Rosary a Gang Symbol

 

Haiti: Some Still Unreached after Ike

OneNewsNow reports that many Haitians have been fending for themselves since Ike struck more than a week ago, struggling without airborne assistantce. Many low-lying areas were already flooded from previous tropical storms, and Ike exacerbated conditions to life-threatening levels. Mission Aviation Fellowship reports that some landing trips are under water. Will White, a pilot with MAF, said, "What little infrastructure in the roads that were here [such as] bridges are now washed out....they were bad roads to start with and now they're just destroyed," he shares. "The government is very limited in what they can do. Right now the relief effort is from the international community."

Testimony Shows Turkey Murders Premeditated

Compass Direct News reports that testimony on Sept. 12 in the murder case of three Christians in Malatya, Turkey, indicates the attack was premeditated for at least two suspects, despite the defense team's insistence that the killers acted spontaneously. Two Turkish Christians who converted from Islam, Necati Aydin and Ugur Yuksel, and a German, Tilmann Geske, were brutally tortured and killed on April 18, 2007. Mahmut Kudas, one of three witnesses called to testify, said murder suspect Cuma Ozdemir met with him the week before the murder and said that he was going to tell him something important. "There are 49 house churches and priests in Malatya," Ozdemir told Kudas. When Kudas asked him what he was thinking of doing, he replied, "Those who know this will die. I will become a martyr." Another witness, Mehmet Uludag, a former classmate of some of the suspects, said he also spoke with Ozdemir before the murders. Uludag said Ozdemir told him that he and two others were about to do something big.

Gospel Rescue Missions Measure Faith-Based Initiatives

ASSIST News Service reports that Gospel rescue missions, which provide food, clothing and shelter to millions of needy Americans, have embarked on a landmark study to identify how faith works in faith-based social services. According to a news release obtained by ANS, a self-selected group of seventeen rescue missions from across the United States, with a desire to improve program effectiveness, looked at factors such as the significance of faith in substance abuse recovery and how faith may help a person recover from addiction. The news release commented that the research may help guide the debate over federal faith-based initiatives, now in their seventh year of expansion under the Bush Administration. It found that faith elements can be measured, and people who seek help from faith-based programs show clear evidence of change. The news release stated that the research conducted by the Pilot Project will be expanded to a National Demonstration Project based at Grand Valley State University's Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership and represents new work and uncharted territory.

Student Told Rosary a Gang Symbol

Fox 4 News in Dallas reorts that area high school student Tabitha Ruiz was told to remove her rosary before entering the school building - because the rosary is a gang symbol. Security guards twice told her to remove the rosary, a gift from Tabitha's childhood. "I went to school, walked through the metal detectors and they told me to take it off," said the teenager. "I asked them why and they said because it's gang-related." Her mother is ready to take the case to district court if the school does not change its stance."If we back down to everything the gangs are doing, the gangs win," said Taire Ferguson. "Why should we take away her choice to express her religious beliefs because gangs are doing it? It's not right." Rosaries are not specifically banned by name in the district's dress code, a DISD spokesman did say, "It's up to the principal's discretion. We chose to err on the side of caution."

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[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 19, 2008
Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.
 
In today's edition:

    * Iran: Death Penalty for Apostasy Likely
    * Laos: Christians Pressured to Renounce Faith
    * Bill Maher Works to Debunk Religion in Next Film
    * Church Abuse Case Goes to Maine Supreme Court


Iran: Death Penalty for Apostasy Likely

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom is warning that Iran is set to finalize a law that would make it the first nation to impose the death penalty for people convicted of so-called apostasy, Baptist Press reports. "Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has disparaged foreign criticism of the penal code as 'global arrogance,' but no objective observer can present the recent developments in Iranian law as anything but regression," Felice D. Gaer, USCIRF's chairperson, said in a Sept. 17 news release. The draft bill seeks to add several crimes to the list of offenses that would lead to execution, including "establishing weblogs and sites promoting corruption, prostitution and apostasy," according to the U.K.-based Christian Solidarity Worldwide. The approved bill has been sent back to the Legislative Commission to debate proposed amendments before it is brought before parliament for a further vote. Under current Iranian law, leaving Islam is considered a capital offense, but punishment is left up to the judge.

Laos: Christians Pressured to Renounce Faith

Compass Direct News reports that after being confronted with evidence of rights abuses yesterday, an official in Champasak province, Laos, said district officials had "misunderstood" religious freedom regulations when they arrested and detained two men for converting to Christianity, according to Human Rights Watch for Lao Religious Freedom (HRWLRF). District police officers in cooperation with the chief of Jick village in Phonthong district arrested Khambarn Kuakham and Phoun Koonlamit on Sept. 8, accusing them of "believing in Christianity, a foreign religion," HRWLRF reported. Both men were placed in criminal detention for five days and ordered to renounce their faith, the Lao Movement for Human Rights confirmed. Three other Christians were arrested on Aug. 3 and have been kept in handcuffs and leg stocks since that date, causing pain as well as infection due to lack of circulation.

Bill Maher Works to Debunk Religion in Next Film

Christian Post reports that Bill Maher's "Religulous" is set to offend starting Oct. 3, when the mock documentary hits theatres. Maher, who hosts "Real Time with Bill Maher" and is openly antagonistic towards all faiths, set up interviews with fringe believers of several religions, pretending to be sincere. Those interviewed, however, ultimately "are made to look as stupid as possible -- some just didn't need as much help with that as others, said Kris Rasmussen of Beliefnet.com. Among those interviewed by Maher was a man playing Jesus at a Holy Land theme park in Orlando, Muslims at a gay bar in Amsterdam, and Jose Luis de Jesus Miranda, a Puerto Rican heretic who calls himself both "the Second Coming of Jesus" and "the Antichrist."

Church Abuse Case Goes to Maine Supreme Court

Associated Press reports that a Main Supreme Court case may take away the shield of charitable immunity from clergy, a shield which currently protects a Roman Catholic bishop said to have known one of his priests had "pedophilic tendencies." Rev. Raymond Melville is accused of abusing William Picher while he worked at a parish in August in 1986. As it stands now, the diocese's lawyer, Gerald Petruccelli, says the charitable immunity doctrine was established 98 years ago and reaffirmed as recently as six years ago. According to the Portland Press Herald, Supreme Court Associate Justice Donald Alexander asked about the consequences of abolishing the doctrine of charitable immunity, and holding organizations liable for damages for something such as a slip that occurs in a Grange hall. "If charitable immunity goes, entities like the Grange could be out of business pretty quickly," Alexander said.
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[nChrist]

Study Finds Heaven's Doors Are Open Wider
Adelle M. Banks


September 22, 2008

WASHINGTON (RNS) -- Heaven is no longer viewed as an exclusive place by many Americans, according to a new survey from Baylor University.

When researchers polled U.S. adults about who (and how many) will get into heaven, 54 percent of respondents said at least half of average Americans will make it through the Pearly Gates.

More than a quarter of those surveyed -- 29 percent -- said they had no opinion about the fate of the average American, a figure that mirrored those who thought "half or more" of nonreligious people would make it into heaven.

Rodney Stark, co-director of Baylor's Institute for Studies of Religion in Waco, Texas, said the findings represent a marked difference from earlier studies.

"I think that it's really just a ... broadening because of the cultural experiences of diversity," said Stark, author of the new book "What Americans Really Believe," which details the study's findings on topics ranging from belief in guardian angels to the practices of "irreligious" people.

"I know that when we did studies like this back in the '60s, the notion that only Christians could go to heaven, for example, was much more extensive than it is now."

The finding that many aren't sure about other people's eternal destination is particularly meaningful, the scholars said.

"It's kind of a good, American middle ground," said Stark. "Two generations ago, it would have been `definitely not.'"

Researchers found that while 72 percent of respondents said at least half of Christians will make it into heaven, the figures were lower for other faiths: Jews (46 percent), Buddhists (37 percent) and Muslims (34 percent).

"I think what you're seeing is a real level of religious tolerance," said Stark. "It's probably going to be higher 10 years from now."

The study, based on data collected last fall, also revealed that while 11 percent of the national sample said they had "no religion,"they may not correctly be termed "irreligious."

Researchers found that 20 percent of those reporting "no religion" said they have attended church, 56 percent said they had prayed, and 32 percent said they prayed "several times a week or more."

The survey's findings, like some from a recent (and larger) Religious Landscape Survey by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, indicate a variegated religious picture of the United States that may challenge popular stereotypes and demonstrate openness to people of other faiths.

"It's kind of a complicated landscape," said Byron Johnson, co-director of Baylor's Institute for Studies of Religion. "It's much more complicated than I think people understand."

Another example of the expanding image of U.S. religiosity is in findings about mystical and religious experiences. Researcher Christopher Bader, for example, was surprised to learn that 55 percent of respondents said they had been "protected from harm by a guardian angel."

Though scholars don't know if people were referring to the actual sighting of an angel or a lucky near-miss car accident, they were struck by the range of people who acknowledged some experience of this kind.

"We found it among mainliners, evangelicals, black Protestants," said Bader, director of the Baylor Surveys of Religion. "We found it among people who said they had no religion but called themselves spiritual. It's one of those crossover experiences."

The newest findings are based on a national sample of 1,648 adults in the fall of 2007. The study's margin of error is plus or minus 4 percentage points. The data was collected by the Gallup Organization and the research was funded by the John Templeton Foundation.

Among other findings, the survey showed that:

-- Widows and widowers are some of the biggest tithers, with 17.6 percent giving 10 percent or more of their income to the church, compared to 8.6 percent of nonwidowed people.

-- People attending large churches (with more than 1,000 in the congregation) are more likely to tithe, attend worship services weekly and believe that heaven and hell "absolutely" exist.

-- Those who attend stricter churches -- those tending to differ from secular society on issues such as abortion and homosexual behavior -- are more likely to tithe, attend worship services weekly and share their faith with others than attenders of less strict churches.
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(My Note:  men don't have the right answer, but GOD does, and anyone can read GOD'S Answer in the Holy Bible 24/7. I highly recommend getting the ONLY answer directly from the CREATOR HIMSELF and forget about what men think.)

[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 22, 2008
Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.
 
In today's edition:

    * Episcopal Church Ousts Pittsburgh Bishop
    * Indonesian Pastor Assaulted, Threatened
    * China Releases Underground Church Bishop
    * Pastors Defend Orthodoxy against PC(USA) Actions

 

Episcopal Church Ousts Pittsburgh Bishop

The Associate Press reports that the national Episcopal Church formally defrocked Pittsburgh Bishop Robert Duncan on Thursday, accusing Duncan of "abandonment of the communion of this church." Duncan has been leader in efforts to bring back the Episcopal Church to more traditional forms of biblical authority and accepted sexuality, and helped set in motion the vote for the Pittsburgh diocese to secede. The diocese said in a statement that that vote will still take place on Oct. 4 despite Duncan's fate. If the diocese chooses to break away, it will join other conservative breakaways by joining the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone in South America. The Southern Cone has already accepted Duncan as a bishop there. The Episcopal Church is the U.S. branch of the worldwide Anglican Communion, a 77-million-member fellowship of churches that trace their roots to the Church of England. The Church has been marked by controversey especially since an openly homosexual priest, Gene Robinson, was ordained in 2003.

Indonesian Pastor Assaulted, Threatened

Compass Direct News reports that a Public Order official's colleagues kicked Charles Hutahaean, chairman of the Indonesian Christian Students' Movement (GMKI) in Jakarta, in the stomach last week and threatened to kill other GMKI staff members. The Public Order official, Crisman Siregar, threatened to stab Hutahaean with a bayonet in the confrontation between him and his colleagues and the GMKI leader on Sept. 9. Previously Siregar had warned Hutahaean to "be careful with your life." Volunteer Public Order officials have also sided with a private company in a land dispute with GMKI. Land granted to the church was sold to a business venture, the Kencana Indotama Persada (KIP) Co., without the consent of GMKI, and construction workers have already partly demolished an old GMKI office building. GMKI now shares a newer office building with its parent ministry, the Alliance of Indonesian Churches. Two violence attacks have sprung from the situation.

China Releases Underground Church Bishop

Chinese officials have released a Roman Catholic bishop arrested on the last day of the Beijing Olympics, the Associated Press reports. Bishop Jia Zhiguo, the bishop of an unregistered church, remained under 24-hour police surveillance at his home at the Christ the King Cathedral in Wuqiu village of Hebei province, the Cardinal Kung Foundation said in a statement. Jia, in his 70s, has been arrested multiple times by public security officials who demand that all Christians worship on in government-sponsored and registered churches. Officials did not provide a reason for Jia's most recent arrest. The AP said that Jia's Zhengding diocese, 150 miles southwest of Beijing, is a traditional stronghold of Catholic sentiment in northern China.

Pastors Defend Orthodoxy against PC(USA) Actions

The Christian Post reports that two pastors have drafted an "open theological declaration" to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) that condemns the denomination for "deviation from orthodox Christian faith." The denomination's governing body, the General Assembly, reportedly made "multiple errors" during its June meeting, according to The Rev. Albert Rhodes Stuart of Highland Presbyterian Church in Slippery Rock, Pa., and Patrick McElroy of Park United Presbyterian Church in Zelienople, Pa. The errors are varied, including the approval of a $2 million legal defense fund for property cases in civil courts, and the failure to allow debate authoritative interpretation concerning the denomination's ordination standards, the declaration states.
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[nChrist]

Two States in India Warned against Allowing Persecution
Vishal Arora


September 23, 2008

More attacks launched in Orissa and Karnataka; Orissa archbishop threatened with death.

NEW DELHI (Compass Direct News) -- After three weeks of widespread attacks on Christians and their property in Orissa state and other parts of the country, the federal government finally warned two states that their failure to prevent violence could lead to the imposition of "President's Rule."

As more incidents of violence were reported from Orissa and the southern state of Karnataka yesterday, the federal government ruled by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) issued an official warning to the two states under Article 355 of the Indian Constitution, Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) reported. The article requires state governments to function with due respect to constitutional provisions, setting up a potential showdown between the federal UPA, led by the Congress Party (Indian National Congress), and Orissa and Karnataka states ruled by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The BJP is the largest opposition party at the federal level. The UPA also said it was keeping a close watch on the activities of Hindu extremist groups, including the Bajrang Dal, youth wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council or VHP), which is allegedly behind the ongoing violence, reported Press Trust of India.

The governments of the two states under the scanner suspected political motives behind the federal government's move. The BJP today dared the federal government to impose President's Rule in Karnataka.

"We dare the Centre to go a step ahead and implement Article 356 [empowering the federal government to impose emergency rule]," BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad told IANS. "They will have to bear the consequences and the people of the country would give them a fitting reply."

The Christian community, however, saw a ray of hope in the federal government's move. Father Dominic Emmanuel of the Delhi Catholic Archdiocese told Compass that the federal government's warning has brought "at least some consolation" to the country's Christian community, which forms 2.3 percent of the total population.

The violence began following the assassination of a VHP leader and icon of Hindu nationalism, Laxmanananda Saraswati, and four of his disciples in Orissa's Kandhamal district on Aug. 23. Although Maoists claimed responsibility for the murder, the VHP put the blame on local Christians, saying they killed him because he was resisting conversion of Hindus to Christianity.

While the state government says 24 people, mainly Christian, have died in the Orissa violence, the All India Christian Council (AICC) maintained that 45 Christians were confirmed dead and five more were still missing.

According to the AICC, 14 districts of Orissa witnessed violence with Kandhamal as the epicenter. It reported at least 50,000 people from 300 villages have been affected by the violence, with hundreds still hiding in forests, and 4,000 houses and 115 churches burned or destroyed.

New Attacks in Orissa

Incidents of violence continued in Orissa's Kandhamal district. Mobs burned down two prayer houses on Wednesday night (Sept. 17) in Mundigarh and Lankagarh areas under Tumudibandh police station in Kandhamal, reported The Indian Express daily.

"The district administration foiled another attempt by the troublemakers to set afire the Phiringia police station last night," the newspaper reported. "Both roads to the town, Phulbani-Phiringia and Gochhapada-Phiringia, were blocked by felling of trees."

The administration, however, learned of the plan, cleared the blockade and moved security forces to the town.

Archbishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar Raphael Cheenath received a death threat.

"Just last week I received a chilling letter from Hindu groups which said 'blood for blood, life for life.' What can I do?" Cheenath said yesterday while at the Catholic Bishop Conference of India office in Delhi, according to IANS.

The letter stated that the archbishop, who has been staying in Bhubaneswar for three decades and whose house was stoned a few days ago, would be killed if he returned to Orissa. "They [Hindu groups] threatened to kill me," he said. "Is this how civilized society behaves?"

Archbishop Cheenath, Delhi's Archbishop Vincent Concessao and Father Babu Joseph, spokesman for the Catholic Church in India, met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh yesterday to apprise him of unabated violence in Orissa.

"Despite your consoling words and assurances, the violence still continues in some parts of Kandhamal," they said in a memorandum, which carried a list of violent incidents that took place in Kandhamal after Sept. 11, when the Orissa state government told the Supreme Court of India that normalcy was returning in the district.

"Looting, arson and vandalism continue," said the memorandum. "Security forces are mainly in the towns, main roads and are not moving to the interior parts of Kandhamal. Crimes are being freely committed by the culprits with impunity."

Forced conversions from Christianity to Hinduism are continuing in the villages of Orissa, the memo said. "Christians are forced under threat of death, burning of their houses, or death of their relatives. After conversion, they have to burn their Bibles, religious articles and their own house, to prove that they are genuine Hindus. All other Hindu ceremonies are imposed on them."

More Assaults in Karnataka

Attacks continued also in Karnataka. According to New Delhi-based Asian News International news agency, unidentified people launched attacks in three districts of the state on Wednesday (Sept. 17).

While a mob destroyed Bibles and other Christian literature and vandalized furniture the St. George Church in Ujire area of the Dakshina Kannada district, another group of people pelted a statue of the Virgin Mary with stones outside the St. Mary's Church in Kolar district. Yet another group of people damaged furniture at a church in Chikamagalur district.

Hindu extremists in Karnataka began targeting Christians after the state education ministry served show-cause notices to over 2,000 Christian schools in the state for staying shut on Aug. 29 to protest the violence against Christians in Orissa.

Attacks on churches were reported from several parts of the state on consecutive Sundays following Aug. 29. The Bajrang Dal claimed responsibility for most of the attacks, which were mostly aimed at churches of the New Life Fellowship ministry.

The Karnataka state government today announced a probe by a retired judge of the high court into anti-Christian attacks, reported IANS.

Earlier this week, there were incidents of violent attacks on Christians and their institutions also in the southern states of Kerala, the north-central states of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, and Jharkhand state in the east.

Tensions in National Capital

On Wednesday (Sept. 17), a group of unidentified people believed to be Hindu extremists sought to create tensions in the national capital Delhi.

A mob forcibly took possession of a lawn in front of a Catholic church, God's Light Church, in Trilokpuri area in East Delhi, reported the Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI).

"The mob broke open an outside gate to the lawn as well as the inside gate leading from the church and threatened to construct a temple there," EFI reported. "They have also locked the outside gate to the lawn/garden as well as the inside gate leading from the church to the lawn."

The church building has been in the area since 1991.

"It is a well planned move to create a confrontation with the church in Delhi too after the incidents in the states of Orissa, Karnataka and Kerala," EFI reported. "The miscreants have resorted to this step to gauge the reaction of the church before doing anything further."

Supporters of the VHP also tried to harass a Christian institution in the neighboring state of Haryana.

The Rev. Madhu Chandra of the AICC said some VHP extremists filed a complaint with Hisar district authorities against a school run by the North India Christian Mission for closing the school "illegally" on Aug. 29, the day all Christian schools remained closed to protest violence in Orissa. The complaint, filed in Barwala town, also accused school personnel of "converting" students and people of the area, as if conversion were illegal in India.

The AICC will hold a rally in Vijayawada in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh tomorrow (Sept. 20) to urge the governments of affected states to arrest those responsible for the anti-Christian violence.

Dr. John Dayal, AICC secretary general, returned from Orissa yesterday and warned that the situation in the country was getting "out of hand."
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