RELIGION TODAY

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Convert Languishing in Jail in Ethiopia for Handing Out Bibles
Simba Tian


September 16, 2009

ADDIS ABABA (CDN) -- A convert from Islam who has led a push for Muslim-Christian understanding in Ethiopia has been in jail for nearly four months since his arrest for "malicious" distribution of Bibles.

Christian sources in Ethiopia said that, contrary to Ethiopian law, 39-year-old Bashir Musa Ahmed has not been formally charged since his arrest on May 23 in Jijiga, capital of Somali Region Zone Five, a predominantly Muslim area in eastern Ethiopia. Zonal police arrested him after he was accused of providing Muslims with Somali-language Bibles bearing covers that resemble the Quran, the sources said.

An Ethiopian national, Ahmed is known as a bold preacher of Christianity and is credited with opening discussion of the two faiths between Christian and Muslim leaders. He is well-known in the area as a scholar of Islam, but his case has gone largely unreported in Ethiopia.

A source who requested anonymity said authorities likely are secretly planning to transfer Ahmed from his Jijiga cell to Ghagahbur jail some 200 kilometers away near the Somali border, in part to prevent other Christians from visiting him and in part because he has not been charged.

The source told Compass that Ahmed's own relatives and tribe instigated the arrest with the intent of stopping him from spreading Christianity in the region, whose 5 million predominantly Muslim inhabitants are mainly of Somali origin.

"The Ethiopian constitution allows for religious tolerance," said the source, "but to date Ahmed has not been taken to court. He is still in the cell now, going on the fourth month, which is quite unusual for an Ethiopian nationality and the constitutional requirements."

For providing Bibles with cover pages resembling the Quran, Ahmed is accused of "maliciously" distributing Bibles and trying to convert Muslims to Christianity, although conversion and manifesting one's faith are not illegal in Ethiopia. At issue is whether the Bibles with covers resembling the Quran violate copyright issues and disrespect Islam.

Christian converts in the area said the kind of Bible that Ahmed distributed is widely available on the market in Ethiopia and is commonly used by Somali Christians inside and outside of the country.

Following a recent visit to Ahmed, the source said he looked strong in faith but seemed to have lost weight and was in need of clothes.

"I am doing fine here in prison, but it is a bit unfortunate that some of my close friends who claimed to advocate and serve the persecuted Christians have not come to see me," Ahmed told the source. "I am thankful for those who have taken their time to come and see me as well as advocate for my release."

Sources said hostility toward those spreading faith different from Islam is a common occurrence in Muslim dominated areas of Ethiopia and neighboring countries. Christians are subject to harassment and intimidation, they said, to stem a rising number of Muslim converts.

"In God's own time I know I will be set free," Ahmed told the source. "Continue praying for me. I know it is God's will for me to be here at this time and moment in life."

Ethiopia's constitution, laws and policies promote freedom of religion, but occasionally local authorities infringe on this right, according to the U.S. Department of State's 2008 International Religious Freedom Report. An estimated 40 to 45 percent of Ethiopia's population belongs to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, evangelical and Pentecostal groups make up an estimated 10 percent of the population and about 45 percent of the population is Sunni Muslim, according to the report.

In Ethiopia's federal state system, each state is autonomous in its administration, and most of those holding government positions in Somali Region Zone Five are Muslims.

[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 16, 2009
Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.

In today's edition:

    * Report: No Evidence Rifqa Bary Would Be in Danger
    * Judge: Homeless Shelter Exempt from Discrimination Laws
    * Christian Official's Death in India Called Divine Punishment
    * Slain Pro-Lifer Remembered as a 'Devoted'


Report: No Evidence Rifqa Bary Would Be in Danger

Florida authorities say they found no evidence that a Christian teen convert would be in danger if she was returned to her Muslim parents in Ohio, the Columbus Dispatch reports. Rifqa Bary, 17, alleged that her Muslim father threatened to kill her when he found out she had become a Christian, prompting her to run away to a Florida pastor's family. Investigators with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement say they found no evidence of abuse after interviewing Rifqa's family and teachers. Still, that doesn't necessarily mean she will have to return home. The teen and her parents are pursuing mediation before another hearing on Sept. 29, and she may live with a foster family if she returns to Ohio. Rifqa Bary's lawyer, John Stemberger, says the report is incomplete at best.

Judge: Homeless Shelter Exempt from Discrimination Laws

Religion News Service reports that anti-discrimination statutes do not apply to an Idaho homeless shelter run by Christians because it is not a "dwelling." U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge also affirmed the Boise Rescue Mission Ministries' right to hold Christian services and encourage participants in its drug and alcohol recovery program to accept Christianity. The 51-year-old non-profit says it runs three shelters that serve more than 28,000 meals and offers 8,000 beds to homeless persons each month. Barring the Boise ministry from "teaching, preaching and proselytizing to individuals on its property, whether they be shelter guests, Discipleship program residents, or other individuals ... would substantially burden the Rescue Mission's ability to freely exercise its religion," Lodge wrote.

Christian Official's Death in India Called Divine Punishment

Compass Direct News reports that Hindu nationalists are calling the helicopter-crash death of a Christian official divine punishment for his "conversion agenda." The same allegation of a "conversion agenda" fueled persecution in the state for more than five years. Yeduguri Sandinti Rajasekhara Reddy, a second-generation Christian in the Church of South India, and four officials were confirmed dead when their helicopter was found on Sept. 3 in the state's dense forest area of Nallamalla. Since Reddy, 60, became chief minister of the southern state in 2004, Hindu nationalist groups had been accusing him of helping Western missionaries to convert economically poor Hindus. "This is divine justice by Lord Srinivasa [One of the names of Hindu god Venkateshwara, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu]," commented a writer identified only as Jayakumar on the Express Buzz news website.

Slain Pro-Lifer Remembered as a 'Devoted'

Baptist Press reports that a pro-life activist gunned down while holding a pro-life placard outside a high school has been hailed as a martyr by some. James Pouillon, a retired autoworker in Michigan, was gunned down Sept. 11 in Owosso, Mich., near Flint. Pouillon, 63, held a sign that pictured a chubby-cheeked baby with the word "Life" on one side and an image of an aborted fetus with the word "Abortion" on the other. Pouillon made a habit of standing in public places with similar signs for the last two decades. President Obama, in a two-sentence statement Sept. 13, called the shooting "deplorable." "Whichever side of a public debate you're on, violence is never the right answer," Obama said. Harlan Drake, 33, an Owosso truck driver, is in custody for shooting Pouillon and a local gravel company owner the same day.

[nChrist]

Converts from Islam Jailed, Pursued in Somalia?s Breakaway Region
Simba Tian


September 17, 2009

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (CDN) -- A convert from Islam in Somalia's self-declared state of Somaliland has been jailed for distributing Christian materials, and another is on the run from both family members and police upset over his new faith.

Christian sources said Somaliland native Osman Nour Hassan was arrested on Aug. 3 for providing Christian literature in Pepsi village, on the outskirts of the breakaway region's capital city, Hargeisa.

Promotion of any religion other than Islam in Somaliland is prohibited, contrary to international standards for religious freedom such as Article 18 of the U.N. Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Article 5(1-2) of the Somaliland constitution states that Islam is the state religion and prohibits the promotion of any other faith, according to the U.S. Department of State's 2008 International Religious Freedom Report, and Article 313 outlines penalties for Muslims who change their religion.

Hassan was accused of providing Christian literature to a village Muslim boy, who later showed it to his family and friends. The boy's Muslim family reported the incident to the police, the sources said, leading to the arrest of the 29-year-old Hassan. He was taken to Hargeisa central police station.

The arrest has upset underground Christians who see it as a muzzle on religious expression. They said other Muslim villagers had received Christian materials from Hassan and took no offense, and that Christian Ethiopian refugees in the area have distributed the same literature without problem.

On Aug. 6, the Muslim family who accused Hassan met with his family and agreed that Islamic teachers, or sheikhs, should go to see him in jail to advise him on Islamic doctrine. Two sheikhs met him in the police station cell and implored him to stop spreading Christianity.

"You are from an Islamic family, and therefore you should not disgrace or paint a bad image of the family," argued one of the sheikhs, according to a source who spoke with Hassan. In response, according to the source, Hassan told them that he had received the Christian materials as educational material for himself and for others who cared to read them, and that Jesus was his Savior.

Convinced that Hassan had truly left Islam, and angered by his defiance, the sheikhs urged authorities to take him to the harsher conditions of a jail in Mandera, 60 kilometers (37 miles) away, but at press time Hassan was still incarcerated in Hargeisa.

"His stand is that he is waiting for the coming of Issa [Jesus], just as the whole world is also waiting," said one neighbor.

Somaliland, which is vying for international recognition as a nation, is bordered by the Gulf of Aden to the north, by Ethiopia to the southwest and by Djibouti to the northwest.

Fleeing Somaliland

Another Somaliland convert to Christianity, Mohamed G. Ali, is on the run from both authorities and family members. Ali has fled to neighboring Ethiopia, but the 27-year-old father of three said this will not be enough to deter relatives who seek to punish him for leaving Islam.

He said relatives previously abducted his wife, who is expected to give birth to their fourth child within the next two weeks, and that they are again looking for ways to kidnap her as well as the children.

The native of Hargeisa said he has already survived several attempts on his life by Muslim fanatics since becoming a Christian in 1998. Family members, close relatives within his tribe, the larger community and local officials have all done him harm, he said.

He first came to Ethiopia in April 2002, subsequently marrying Fatumo Mohamed at the Church of the Nazarene. News of his Christian marriage circulated, preceding him upon his return to Hargeisa; soon after his arrival, he said, Muslim fanatics kidnapped his wife and demolished his house.

Fatumo Mohamed remained captive for several months, later managing to escape and rejoin her husband. For more than three years, as they were displaced from the community and went into hiding, he faced open and official threats. When life became unbearably dangerous, they decided to flee to Ethiopia in August 2005.

Speaking only in general terms to protect loved ones he left behind, Ali said Somaliland authorities were seeking him for reasons related to his Christian faith; other sources confirmed this.

Even after he arrived in Ethiopia, Ali was sought by the Somaliland government, which published a notice on April 11, 2007 displaying his photo in two local Somaliland newspapers, Jamhuuriya and Maandeeq. The notice ordered him to appear before a district court within 30 days, saying failure to do so would result in stiff action being taken against him.

That was just one more episode in a journey of faith that began when he broke his leg in 1996. Receiving treatment in Djibouti, he stayed with a close relative who told Ali the New Testament account of Jesus forgiving an adulterous woman brought for judgment. Amazed at Jesus forgiving the woman, Ali began researching Christianity; three years earlier, he had witnessed the stoning of five young women accused of committing adultery in Hargeisa.

"At that point I failed to see the meaning of compassion in Islam," he said. "Many questions started coming to my mind - that not even a single person in the midst tried to call for compassion for the young ladies. I felt that it could have been even better to kill them with a gun than subjecting them to such inhumane killing."

Ali, who is seeking asylum and has conveyed his security concerns to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, is struggling to meet the basic needs of the family - food, shelter, education and clothing - and he is facing an urgent health concern. For three years he has been living with a bone infection, he said, and the danger of paralysis is rising. Looking worried and frightened, and that without asylum he could lose his family as well as his life.

"I will continue trusting in God's protection, for blessed are those who are persecuted for His sake," he said.

[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 17, 2009
Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.

In today's edition:

    * Coral Ridge Successor to Face Congregational Vote
    * Survey: Number of Female Senior Pastors Doubles in 10 Years
    * Archbishop Sees Little Repentance for Financial Crisis
    * Fight Nights and Reggae Pack Brazilian Churches


Coral Ridge Successor to Face Congregational Vote

Christian Post reports that a vocal minority at the Coral Ridge Presbyterian megachurch have succeeded in putting their new pastor on trial. Dissenters gathered the required 100 signatures from the congregation of more than 2,500 to mandate a congregational meeting for this Sunday, when they hope to oust new senior pastor Tullian Tchividjian. "We have seen a complete lack of respect towards the congregation and for long standing traditions that have been part of Coral Ridge's rich heritage for decades," stated the letter signed by Kennedy's daughter, Jennifer Cassidy, and five others. However, in their forced announcement of the meeting, church elders "strongly" recommended that all members in good standing come to the meeting and support Tchividjian as senior pastor. "It goes way beyond what each individual may like or dislike. It requires the discernment of God's will to identify His anointed and is not to be done without much prayerful consideration," they wrote.

Survey: Number of Female Senior Pastors Doubles in 10 Years

Religion News Service reports that one in 10 U.S. churches employs a woman as senior pastor, double the percentage from a decade ago, according to a new survey by the Barna Group. Most of the women -- 58 percent -- work in mainline Protestant churches, such as the United Methodist Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and Episcopal Church; only 23 percent of male senior pastors are affiliated with mainline churches, the survey said. The UMC and its forerunner has ordained women for five decades; the ELCA and its predecessor has for almost 40 years, and the Episcopal Church has ordained women since 1976. Barna's survey found that female pastors tend to be more highly educated than their male counterparts, with 77 percent earning a seminary degree, compared to less than two-thirds of male pastors (63 percent).

Archbishop Sees Little Repentance for Financial Crisis

Christian Today reports that the Archbishop of Canterbury has publicly chastised bankers for their lack of "repentance" after the financial meltdown. "There hasn't been a feeling of closure about what happened last year. There hasn't been what I would, as a Christian, call repentance," Dr. Rowan Williams told BBC's Newsnight program on Tuesday. "We haven't heard people saying, 'Well actually, no, we got it wrong. And the whole fundamental principle on which we worked was unreal, was empty.'" Williams agreed with the newscasters that the church should have been more vocal over "financial excesses." "I suppose like most people we felt intimidated by expertise and that's a very dangerous place for the Church to be," he admitted.

Fight Nights and Reggae Pack Brazilian Churches

The New York Times reports that Protestant evangelicalism is winning the hearts of young Brazilians with everything from fight nights to on-site tattoo parlors. "Here they enter the church, sometimes to see a fight competition, they receive the word of Jesus Christ, and they begin a transformation," said Pastor Mazola Maffei of Reborn in Christ Church in Sao Paulo. "They will get off drugs, start to respect their parents and start to cure the illnesses of the soul, like anxiety, depression, drugs and alcohol, prostitution," he said. His church recently held its own fight night  Fifty years ago, Brazil's population was almost exclusively Roman Catholic, but that figure fell to 74 percent by 2000, when 15 percent of the population described themselves as evangelicals. Pentecostal churches are especially appealing for the "flexibility of the religious expression," says Silvia Fernandes, a professor at the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro, who wrote a book about Brazil's evangelical movement.

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Campus Atheist Groups Double in Size in Two Years
Angela Abbamonte


September 18, 2009

(RNS) -- The number of atheist or agnostic student groups on U.S. campuses has more than doubled in the past two years -- from 80 to 162 -- according to the Secular Student Alliance (SSA), the national organization for the secular student movement.

PZ Myers, an outspoken atheist and associate professor of biology at the University of Minnesota, Morris, suggested the growth could be related to authors saying that it is okay to be "godless."

Myers, who last year angered Catholics when he publicly tried to desecrate consecrated Communion wafers, writes a blog and often speaks at SSA affiliate group meetings, where he urges students to go public about their unbelief and foster a positive image.

Although SSA has four high school affiliates, most of the groups are on college campuses. Lyz Liddell, the alliance's senior campus organizer, noted that college is a time when many people question their beliefs and break away from their religious background.

Facebook groups are used by SSA affiliates to organize events, host discussions and provide an "anonymous way to test the waters" for students who may be starting to change their beliefs, Liddell said.

"Community is the biggest thing that is provided for these students," said Liddell.

Most of the affiliate groups meet regularly to have discussions, get involved with politics and do service projects. One group, Students for Freethought at Ohio State University, teamed up with the Coalition for Christian Outreach (CCO), to do service work in New Orleans in March 2009.

"We have similar worldviews" about service opportunities, said Jonathan Weyer, a CCO staff member who has been working with Students for Freethought on service projects. The two groups are planning a return trip for March 2010 with 15 students from each group.

[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 18, 2009
Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.

In today's edition:

    * China: 400 Officials Attack Sleeping Church Members
    * Biggest U.S. Churches Evangelical, Multi-Site
    * Religious Liberty Violations Rise Sharply in Cuba
    * Nigerians Elect New Anglican Primate

China: 400 Officials Attack Sleeping Church Members

Mission News Network reports that Christians sleeping at a new church site were surprised and brutally attacked by 400 Chinese officials on Sunday. Several believers were left unconscious with severe bleeding and injuries. Fellow Christians who took them to the local hospital discovered that hospital staff had been ordered not to treat them. The building stands on property owned by a Christian factory, preventing officials from refusing authorization as they would normally. "They called it a worship center. It's a part of the factory owned by the Christians, and the government regarded it as a church, so that's why they started attacking," explains ChinaAid Association President Bob Fu. The building was destroyed in the attack. About 80,000 believers of an underground network hoped to use the worship building at different times.

Biggest U.S. Churches Evangelical, Multi-Site

USA Today reports that the fastest-growing churches in America are embracing a new model of multiple sites, paired with contemporary, evangelical-style worship. According to Outreach magazine, Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church is still the largest church in the country, with 43,500 people attending each week. However, "Multiple sites are the new normal for fast-growing and large churches. Lakewood is the exception. The next 10 all have multiple sites," says Ed Stetzer, director of LifeWay, which gathered the statistics for Outreach's report. "They're contemporary, aggressively evangelistic and evangelical and they're moving beyond the 'big box' megachurch model." But attendance in most congregations is growing imperceptibly, if at all. Less than half (48%) of U.S. congregations could report at least 2% growth in worship attendance, down from 58% in 2005.

Religious Liberty Violations Rise Sharply in Cuba

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) reports that pressure on religious leaders in Cuba has increased significantly over the past year according to a new CSW report. Comprehensive evidence within the document details a sharp rise in religious liberty violations there. Independent church leaders from the fast growing Apostolic Movement have been particularly targeted for harassment, detentions and court summons by the government. Last week Pastor Mario Alvarez, the Havana based leader of a church affiliated with Apostolic Movement, was informed by government officials that he is to be evicted from his home. Two other leaders from the Apostolic Movement are currently in prison. Alexi Perez, a leader in Pastor Alvarez's church, has now been in prison for almost two months, while Pastor Omar Gude Perez was sentenced to six years in prison in July. This follows the detention of at least sixty pastors and leaders linked to the Apostolic Movement in May and June alone.

Nigerians Elect New Anglican Primate

Religion News Service reports that a retired Army lieutenant colonel-turned-priest has been elected the new primate of the Anglican Church of Nigeria, one of the largest provinces in the Anglican Communion. The Rev. Nicholas Orogbodo Okoh, 57, will lead Nigeria's 20 million Anglicans following next year's retirement of Archbishop Peter Akinola, who has been one of the most outspoken critics of the Episcopal Church's acceptance of homosexuality. Okoh was elected on Tuesday (Sept. 15) by the country's Anglican bishops, and is expected to follow Akinola's strong opposition to the ordination of women and homosexuals. "I am grateful to God and to the Church of Nigeria, particularly our laymen, clergy and House of Bishops, for thinking that I can do it,"Okoh said in his acceptance speech. "It is a lot of confidence reposed in me, and I pray to God not to allow me to fail."

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Police in Pakistan Shoot Mourners at Funeral of Christian
Brian Sharma

September 21, 2009

LAHORE, Pakistan (CDN) -- At a funeral for a Christian man allegedly tortured to death while in custody on a spurious charge of blaspheming the Quran, police in Sialkot, Pakistan Wednesday fired on mourners trying to move the coffin to another site.

Area Christians suspect police killed 22-year-old Robert Danish, nicknamed "Fanish" or "Falish" by friends, by torturing him to death on Tuesday (Sept. 15) after the mother of his Muslim girlfriend contrived a charge against him of desecrating Islam's scripture. The allegation led to calls from mosque loudspeakers to punish Christians, prompting an Islamic mob to attack a church building in Jathikai village on Sept. 11 and beat several of the 30 families forced to flee their homes.

Jathikai was Danish's native village, and some family members and other Christians wished to transfer his coffin to his hometown. Eyewitnesses at the funeral in Christian Town, Sialkot, said police fired shots directly at the Christians, injuring three, when mourners began to move the coffin toward nearby Jathikai. Mourners fled.

Sialkot is 125 kilometers (78 miles) northwest of Lahore in Punjab Province.

Controversy swirled around the cause of Danish's death, with Christians refusing to accept police claims that he committed suicide. Results of forensic tests are expected within a week.

The dark moment for Danish's family grew gloomier yesterday when police seemed to be seeking the first excuse for heavy-handed tactics at the funeral attended by hundreds of people, Christian sources said. When the family and other Christians tried to take the coffin to his hometown of Jathikai, police fired on them, charged them with batons and snatched the body from them, Christian sources said.

Eyewitness Sajawal Masih told Compass that as soon as mourners lifted the coffin, police began firing tear gas.

"We were running when police opened fire and one bullet went through my foot, and two others also were injured," he said.

There were reports of Christian youths pelting officers with stones, and police reportedly said that they needed to rush the crowd and make arrests to prevent "further disturbances."

On Tuesday night (Sept. 15), Danish's survivors and other Christians had decided that the body would be buried in Christian Town because of the dangers of potential attack in Jathikai, according to Christian Town Councilor Tanveer Saqib. Saqib said that the funeral was to be held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday (Sept. 16) at the Christian Technical Institute (CTI) Ground in Christian Town, Sialkot city.

Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) Member of National Assembly (MNA) Akram Gill said that when he and several youths took the body from the CTI Ground and began heading toward Jathikai village, police began firing. Gill told Compass that police opened fire on them as well as the crowd, injuring three Christians.

Gill, a Christian, added that police also shot tear gas, and that officers arrested about 100 Christians. The national assembly member said police arrested him and took Danish's body to the Christian Town Graveyard in Sialkot. In spite of the tear gas, Gill said, he and others went to the graveyard but encountered armed police who also fired tear gas, turning them back.

For three hours, Gill said, Criminal Investigation Department police detained him, and although he was released, police arrested PML-Q Member of Provincial Assembly (MPA) Shehzad Elahi and his whereabouts were still unknown. He said that whenever Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) members come into power in the province, problems for Christians multiply.

Cause of Death

How Danish died remained unclear. Allama Iqbal Hospital Deputy Medical Superintendent Sajid Hussein told Compass that on Danish's body there was a large welt on the back of the neck and "marks on the legs and back." He said it was too soon to determine cause of death but that police had pronounced it a suicide.

Tissues taken from the body have been sent to Lahore for chemical and histopathology tests. He said these tests would indicate how the wounds were made, including whether they were inflicted after death.

"The report of these tests would come within a week, and I would inform the media of its findings," he said. "I cannot comment on whether he committed suicide or not, as the matter is before the court."

There were unconfirmed reports that state officials were pressuring doctors at Allama Iqbal Hospital to declare Danish's death a suicide; Hussein denied these statements, telling Compass that they were "mere rumors."

Hussein said that two Christian doctors, one from Bethania Hospital and the medical superintendent of Jalalpur Jattan Mission Hospital, were allowed to observe the autopsy. Christian Town Councilor Tanveer Saqib said that after the autopsy, the two Christian doctors came out and told media in front of thousands of Christians that Danish had been tortured to death.

Saqib said Danish's father received the body and, accompanied by thousands of Christians, took it to Baithania Mission Hospital. The procession was so big that it took nearly four hours, though the route was not far.

Over the weekend Danish's father had been unduly arrested, and upon his release a station house officer told Danish's uncle, Saleem Masih, that even though Danish's father was being released, Danish never would be. Saleem Masih told Compass that Danish's father went back to his jailed son and told him, "My son, we have been trying our best to save you, but it doesn't seem we will succeed. I think it is the last time I'm seeing you, so I commit you in the Lord's hands."

Councilor Saqib said that a Christian constable posted at the Sialkot District Jail told him that he saw Danish in the jail at around 7 a.m. and that he appeared unharmed. At about 10 a.m., however, jail administrators called important figures in the Christian community and told them that Danish had committed suicide, Saqib said.

Danish's body was taken to a trauma center for a CT scan, he said, then to Riffat Idrees Hospital for an MRI.

"Along with the body were two Christian doctors - Dr. Tariq Malik and Dr. Qammar Sohail - and we were confident that they would tell the facts," he said, adding that Malik had all medical reports of these tests.

The Punjab provincial government has ordered an investigation into the death, and three prison officials have reportedly been suspended.

Tragic Love

A paternal cousin of Danish identified only as Parveen confirmed reports that the conflict grew out of a romantic relationship between Danish and Hina Asghar, a young Muslim woman. She said Danish and Asghar were neighbors and had been seeing each other for three or four years.

On the night of Sept. 10, Parveen told Compass, Danish and Asghar met on the roof, angering the young Muslim's mother. Early the next morning, Asghar's mother spoke of the affair with the wife of local Muslim cleric identified only as Amanullah; the cleric's wife in turn warned Asghar that both she and Danish could lose their lives if the relationship continued, Parveen said.

When Danish met Asghar on the road the next morning, Parveen said, the young Muslim woman refused to talk to him but tried to hand him a letter explaining the warning she had received. Upset, Danish batted her hand away as she was trying to give him the letter.

Continued..............

[nChrist]

Police in Pakistan Shoot Mourners at Funeral of Christian
Brian Sharma

"Because he pushed her hand with a jerk, supara 21 [a section of the Quran larger than a sura, or chapter] fell from her hand and dropped onto a nearby sewage stream and got smeared with garbage," Parveen said.

Saleem Masih, Danish's uncle, questions that what fell from Asghar's hand was a part of the Quran. He told Compass that Asghar was trying to give Danish a green-colored diary that only looked like the similarly green-covered section of the Quran. After the rumor began circulating that Danish had blasphemed the Quran, Saleem Masih said, Danish told his mother that it was not the Quran but a green diary that Asghar was trying to give him which fell.

According to Parveen, Asghar returned home and began cleaning the recovered scripture part, and her mother asked how it became sullied, Parveen said. Asghar's mother subsequently rushed to cleric Amanullah's wife, who then told her husband about the incident.

Saleem Masih told Compass that he and his wife, along with Danish's parents, went to Hina Asghar's father, Asghar Ali, bowed before him and pleaded for him to stop the false rumors of desecration of the Quran. He responded that Muslim cleric Amanullah would decide on it after the Friday prayers, and that the matter was not in their hands anymore.

On that day, Sept. 11, at about 11 a.m., the Muslim cleric announced during the Friday prayer that a Christian had blasphemed by desecrating the Quran, Parveen said.

Islamic mobs brandishing sticks were already arriving in the village, shouting against Danish and demanding that he be hung to death. They also occupied a house that he owned. Surrounding families fled their homes, leaving domestic animals without food and water.

Relatives Thrashed

Nadeem Masih, a paternal cousin of Danish, said that when he arrived at the village by motorbike that day, a large number of emotionally charged Muslims were setting Calvary Church on fire.

He said several Muslims had surrounded Danish's father, Riasat Masih, and that he managed to get his uncle onto his motorbike to try to escape. They sped through several mob attempts to stop them and were eventually pursued by two Muslims on motorcycles. As Nadeem and Riasat Masih entered the main road, their motorbike slid and fell as they barely avoided an approaching truck. Nadeem Masih escaped but his uncle, Danish's father, was captured.

Saleem Masih said that the Muslim mob took hold of Danish's father, tied him up and were about to set him on fire when elderly men intervened, saying punishment for that crime would be too great, and suggested they instead only beat him. After beating Danish's father, the Muslim mob untied him and took him into the church, where they burned Bibles, hymn books and other items and continued beating him.

Christian sources said police arrived and arrested Riasat Masih - not his attackers - and took him to the police station. Riasat Masih filed a crime report against the jailor and police officials at the Civil Lines Police Station, according to Christian Town Councilor Saqib.

Saleem Masih told Compass that he also was beaten. He said he was with Calvary Church Senior Pastor Dilshad Masih when they arrived in the village to find the mob setting church articles on fire and striking it with whatever they could find on hand. Realizing he could do nothing, Saleem Masih said he ran to his farmhouse, also owned by a Muslim named Bao Munir.

Munir took hold of him, he said.

"He brought out my cot and other belongings and set them on fire, and then he also tried to burn me in this fire," Saleem Masih said.

Munir told him he could either be burned or go with him back to the village, and he forced all of the Christian's clothes off of him except a cloth covering his loins and burned them, Saleem Masih said. After some struggle, he said, he managed to escape.

Danish, meantime, was hiding in a house in Jathikai village but was arrested the next morning (Sept. 12) when he went out for drinking water.

Tensions escalated, a source told Compass, when cleric Sabir Ali announced from his mosque in nearby Bhopalwala village that a Christian boy had blasphemed Islam by throwing the Quran in a drain.

Church Fire

After Calvary Church was set on fire, about 30 nearby families fled from the brutal beatings. Eyewitnesses told Compass that the assailants first went to Danish's house. Not finding anyone there, they attacked the locked church which was only three houses from his.

The eyewitnesses, who were still in hiding and fearing further attacks, said that the assailants burned Bibles and hymnbooks. The assailants brought the church cross out, they said, and beat it with their shoes. The sources said the attackers were mainly from Shabab-e-Milli, a wing of the Muslim extremist Jamaat-e-Islami.

Christian Town Councilor Saqib said that the mob got hold of Calvary Church Senior Pastor Masih and severely beat him while police stood by. Police kept Saqib and his team from going to the blazing Calvary Church building, signaling them from afar not to come near, he said. He added that they had to turn back as the rampaging Muslims turned on them to attack, which police made no effort to stop.

Pastor Masih told Compass that when he and Saleem Masih arrived at the church building, Muslims shouted at them, "Catch these Christians!" He remained standing as others fled, he said, and the mob beat him and took his mobile phone.

"They wanted to kill me, but miraculously I managed to run from there," he said.

Saqib said MPA Kamran Michael of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PLM-N), the ruling party in Punjab province, reached the village on Friday, but police did not allow him to go to the burning church, citing security threats. About 500 Christians later gathered in Sialkot to protest the church fire, with Michael addressing the crowd.

Michael said that one of the protestors reminded him that after Islamic mobs burned homes in Gojra last month, he had vowed to resign if further attacks took place. The crowd then began demanding that he resign, and police opened fire and charged the crowd with batons. He added that throughout the incident there were several media vans, but none of the major television stations covered the protest.

Several Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and Christian media also faced difficulties in getting in the village, though in all previous incidents media and NGOs were allowed access. In this case, however, police told them that they were not allowed due to security reasons. Also unable to gain access to Jathikai was Pakistan People's Party provincial Assembly Member Amna Buttar and minority rights groups.

George and Butta Masih, along with four family members, were in Jathikai tending to their five cows on Sunday (Sept. 13). George Masih told a Compass reporter who had somehow got into the village that they stayed home all day and went out only at night to bring some fodder for the animals. They said that Muslims would beat any Christians seen during the day.

On Sunday about 500 to 700 Muslim women staged a protest in Sialkot to refute the notion that a Muslim woman could fall in love with a Christian man.

Several Christian and secular organizations in Lahore have scheduled a candle-light vigil today (Sept. 17) as a memorial for Danish and other members of Pakistan's minority communities who have been killed or attacked in Islamist attacks.

A field officer for advocacy group Community Development Initiative, Napoleon Qayyum, said such attacks were weakening the Christian community.

"After the Gojra incident, several Christians said that their Muslim employers had told them not to come to work anymore," Qayyum said. "This economic dependence further plays part in seeking justice."

He added that in the June 30 Islamist attack on Bahmaniwala, in Kasur district, Christians did not want to pursue justice as they worked on Muslims' land and could not afford confrontation.

"Their fear is that they would be left without jobs," he said. "Due to economic dependence and poor status, Christians neither pursue their cases, nor do they defend themselves in such instances."

[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 21, 2009
Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.

In today's edition:

    * Florida School Officials Cleared in Prayer Injunction Case
    * Iran: Imprisoned Christian Women Seriously Ill
    * 'Equality Directive' Will 'Silence' Christians, Says Legal Group
    * Coalition Seeks Repeal on Federal Grant Rules

Florida School Officials Cleared in Prayer Injunction Case

Christian Newswire reports that two high school officials accused of violating an order against prayer at school functions were cleared of charges on Friday. The ACLU accused Pace High School Principal Frank Lay and Athletic Director Robert Freeman of criminal contempt after they offered a simple blessing of a meal at a school booster luncheon. On Friday, the federal courtroom in Pensacola, Florida, was packed with people supporting Lay and Freeman. The Pace High School students made T-shirts with the image of a potato chip that read: "Lay's Supportive Patriots." Busloads of people jammed the steps of the courthouse to cheer and show their support. Mathew D. Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel, "It is ridiculous that these men even had to think twice about blessing a meal."

Iran: Imprisoned Christian Women Seriously Ill

Voice of the Martyrs reports that two female converts held in Evin Prison continue to suffer declining health. Maryam Rustampoor, 27, and Marzieh Amirizadeh, 30, have been imprisoned for more than six months and suffer from sore throats, irregular painful stomach aches and intense headaches. "Both have lost much weight during their ordeal, because of their sicknesses and lack of nutrition," officials from Elam Ministries said. "Marzieh's tooth infection is only being treated by painkillers." Officials added that if the tooth infection spreads Marzieh's health status could become critical. Maryam and Marzieh are being held in Evin prison, a notoriously harsh institution. The prison is overcrowded, has limited medical facilities, and many prisoners are reportedly sick, causing a high risk for spreading viruses. The women have refused to recant their faith in court.

'Equality Directive' Will 'Silence' Christians, Says Legal Group

Christian Today reports that European Christians may be effectively silenced if the European Union's Equal Treatment Directive passes. "Its provisions are likely to restrict Christian freedoms to the extent that, in certain cases, we would be silenced and prevented from providing goods or services to the public without violating our consciences, particularly if required to promote other religions or the practice of homosexuality," said Andrea Minichiello Williams, director of the legal group Christian Concern for our Nation (CCFON). The directive would forbid discrimination of goods and services based on religion, belief and sexual orientation. "This will cast a chilling shadow over free speech and freedom of expression for Christians, as it will for those with any views that challenge the prevailing 'politically correct' ideology," said Ms Williams.

Coalition Seeks Repeal on Federal Grant Rules

Religion News Service reports that dozens of legal and religious groups have asked Attorney General Eric Holder to rescind a Bush-era memorandum they believe wrongly permitted a religious charity to receive federal grant money. The relief organization in question, World Vision, maintains a policy of hiring only Christians. Organizations such as Americans United for the Separation of Church and State and the Anti-Defamation League told Holder in a Thursday (Sept. 17) letter that the 2007 memo from the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) misinterpreted the 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). At issue is whether religious groups that receive federal grants are exempt from federal nondiscrimination employment law, or whether groups that make hiring decisions on faith should be eligible to receive federal funding at all.

[nChrist]

Is Contemporary Music Key to Church Growth?
Adelle M. Banks and Angela Abbamonte


September 22, 2009

(RNS) -- When a congregation moves from a traditional to a contemporary style of worship, the change can often lead to painful conflict in the pews but also, according to a new study, higher attendance.

Almost two-thirds -- 64 percent -- of congregations that switched to contemporary worship in the last five years saw an increase in worship attendance of 2 percent or more, the latest Faith Communities Today survey shows.

David A. Roozen, author of "Faith Communities Today 2008: A First Look," said the findings on contemporary worship held true regardless of the congregation's denominational affiliation (or lack of one).

"What it seems to suggest is that if you make the change, you're going to get an immediate impact, positive impact," said Roozen, director of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research and professor of religion and society at Hartford Seminary in Connecticut, in an interview.

"And if you ...just had been doing the contemporary for a while, you're still going to be more likely to be growing than more traditional (congregations)."

Roozen's findings, known as "FACT 2008," may be reflected in the results of a new list of the nation's fastest-growing churches. Outreach magazine, in conjunction with Southern Baptist-affiliated LifeWay Research, announced Tuesday (Sept. 15) that the fastest-growing congregation is New Life Church in Conway, Ark.

The church, which features a contemporary worship team and has grown 61 percent to 10,000 members in just one year, is where 2009 American Idol winner Kris Allen served as an assistant worship leader.

Abe Smith, New Life's associate worship pastor, believes the contemporary music at the church "affects how people see the church as relevant," and may make them feel more comfortable.

"If they feel like clapping, they can clap," said Smith. "If they feel like raising their arms, they can raise their arms."

(Rounding out the top five fastest-growing churches in LifeWay's survey were Calvary Temple Worship Center in Modesto, Calif.; Cornerstone Church in National City, Calif.; Elevation Church in Charlotte, N.C.; and Faith Church of St. Louis in Fenton, Mo.)

Smith said the contemporary music is sometimes supplemented by modernized hymns as a way to reach people who may have been to church in the past and are now starting to return. The church also uses video screens and lighting to supplement its worship, and recruits church members as singers and instrumentalists for its worship team.

The FACT 2008 study found that more than half -- 53 percent -- of houses of worship that had already featured contemporary worship more than five years ago and have kept it saw at least 2 percent growth in worship attendance.

That's compared with just 44 percent of congregations that maintained their traditional worship over five years that were able to report a comparable growth in attendance figures.

Congregations that changed their traditional worship style without adopting contemporary music were the least likely -- 41 percent -- to see a 2 percent or more growth in worship attendance.

The Faith Communities Today survey is based on an analysis of 2,527 questionnaires from a random sample of congregations that were answered by clergy contacted by mail, phone or e-mail.

The Outreach Magazine/LifeWay Research Special Report is based on contacts with more than 8,000 churches that self-reported their information. Researchers confirmed the statistics by reaching the churches through phone, e-mail, fax and certified letter.

[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 22, 2009
Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.

In today's edition:

    * Christian Attorney: Why I Support Rifqa's Mother
    * Fla. Megachurch Votes to Retain Senior Pastor
    * Copts Grapple with Cause of Fire at Church in Egypt
    * Anglican Head Urges Protection for Iranian Refugees

Christian Attorney: Why I Support Rifqa's Mother

The Christian attorney for Rifqa Bary's mother has urged Christians to rethink the case of the teen convert. In Sunday's St. Petersburg Times, Craig McCarthy, who worked as Rifqa Bary's mother's attorney until recently, said that many Christians have adopted "a narrative and thus reach[ed] conclusions about the Rifqa Bary case prematurely, just as we accuse the mainstream media of sticking to their preferred narratives instead of squaring their passions with reality." McCarthy, who is a self-proclaimed evangelical, says some facts are wrong in the story given by the pastor Rifqa stayed with. For instance, Rifqa's parents did not wait 10 days to report her missing. "Please recognize that the Lord is not so powerless as to need people to hide information, to embellish facts, or to give false witness in order to advance Christ's kingdom," McCarthy concluded.

Fla. Megachurch Votes to Retain Senior Pastor

The Miami Herald reports that Coral Ridge Presbyterian members overwhelmingly voted to keep their senior pastor, Tullian Tchividjian. A vocal minority managed to call a vote Sunday at the megachurch, charging Tchividjian with departing from the church's traditions and not specifically addressing political issues. Ultimately, 400 members from the 2,000 active members had signed a petition calling for the new pastor's removal. Ninety-one percent of the congregation approved his installation in March. Sunday's vote, moderated by a governing member of the Presbyterian denomination, ended with 69 percent of the church voting to retain their new pastor. In a statement, Tchividjian thanked the church for its support. "Change is difficult for any institution, but it is especially difficult for a church which has known only one pastor in its 50-year history and I understand that," he said.

Copts Grapple with Cause of Fire at Church in Egypt

Compass Direct News reports that the congregation of a Coptic church that was destroyed by fire last week is divided over whether it was a case of arson. At 3 p.m. on Sept. 8, a fire broke out at the Church of Saint Paul and Saint Peter in Shebin al-Kom, 37 miles (60 kilometers) northwest of Cairo, destroying it along with its icons, relics and most of its furniture. According to local media reports, investigators said the cause of the fire was electrical. A sizable portion of the congregation, however, disputes this. One church member whose name has been withheld for her protection said that the electrical system in the church was largely unscathed by the fire. She said the damage did not radiate from the church's fuse box. Gamal Gerges, a local reporter who works for the newspaper Al-Youm al-Sabeh, said police have no proof that the fire was accidental. "The police did not have evidence, but said what they did to avoid strife between the Christians and the Muslims," Gerges said.

Anglican Head Urges Protection for Iranian Refugees

Agence France-Presse reports that the Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, has called on the U.S. and Iraq to do more to protect Iranian refugees. The head of the Church of England said Sunday that Iranian refugees trapped at Camp Ashraf northeast of Baghdad "constitute a humanitarian and human rights issue of real magnitude and urgency". "There is a strong argument in terms of international law that the Ashraf residents are 'protected persons'," he said in a statement. Eleven people were killed when Iraqi forces raided the camp in July. "Both the government of Iraq and the government of the United States -- as the agency responsible for the transfer of the residents to another jurisdiction -- have an obligation to secure the rights of these residents and to defend them from violence or abuse," he said.

[nChrist]

Somalia: Militants Kill Elderly Christian for Carrying Bibles
Simba Tian


September 23, 2009

NAIROBI, Kenya (CDN) -- The faith journey of a long-time underground Christian in Somalia ended in tragedy this week when Islamic militants controlling a security checkpoint killed him after finding Bibles in his possession.

Militants from the Muslim extremist al Shabaab killed 69-year-old Omar Khalafe on Tuesday (Sept. 15) at a checkpoint they controlled 10 kilometers from Merca, a Christian source told Compass. A port city on the Indian Ocean 70 kilometers (45 miles) from Mogadishu, Merca is the main city of the Lower Shabele region.

Leaving Mogadishu by bus at 7:30 a.m., Khalafe was carrying 25 Somali Bibles he hoped to deliver to an underground fellowship in Somalia. By 10:30 a.m. he had arrived at the checkpoint controlled by al Shabaab, a rebel group linked with al Qaeda that has taken over large parts of the war-torn country.

A source in Somalia who spoke on condition of anonymity told Compass that the passengers were ordered to disembark from the bus for inspection. The Islamic militants found 25 Somali Bibles in one of the passengers' bags; when they asked to whom the Bibles belonged, the passengers responded with a chilled silence.

As the search continued, the militants found several photos in the bag. The source told Compass that the militants began trying to match the photos with the faces of the passengers, who were all seized by fear as they knew the inevitable fate of the owner.

The Islamic extremists saw that the elderly Khalafe resembled a face in one of the photos, the source said. They asked Khalafe if he was the owner of the Bibles; he kept quiet. They shot him to death.

Khalafe had been a Christian for 45 years, sources said.

The body was taken to Merca, according to the source, and there the al Shabaab militants placed the 25 Somali Bibles on top of Khalafe's body as a warning to others.

Christian sources said that at 4 p.m. an al shabaab militant was heard saying on Radio Shabele, "Today we caught Omar, a Somali Christian, with 25 Bibles at Merca checkpoint. He has been converting Somalis to Christianity, and today he has been shot dead at 12:30 p.m."

Khalafe's family in Mogadishu learned of his death through the radio report, the source said. The family members then contacted a leader of an underground church in Somalia and informed him of the murder.

"The news of the death of Omar shocked me," the underground church leader in Somalia told Compass by telephone. "We have long served Christians in Somalia. It is unfortunate that the Bibles did not reach the intended audience. I am sure if they had not got the picture, our brother would be still alive."

Khalafe was a Somali Bantu who had served with various Christian agencies. Underground church members said he was instrumental in the spread of Christianity and had baptized many converts from Islam in Somalia.

He left behind a widow and seven children. His family was unable to participate in his burial due to the risk of being killed, according to the source, who said one of Khalafe's sons said, "It is unfortunate that we were not there to give our dad a decent burial. God knows how He will reward him."

Already enforcing sharia (Islamic law) in large parts of southern Somalia that they control, al Shabaab rebels have mounted an armed effort to topple President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed's Transitional Federal Government.

Last month al Shabaab extremists seeking evidence that a Somali man had converted from Islam to Christianity shot him dead near the Somali border with Kenya, according to underground Christians in the war-torn nation. The rebels killed 41-year-old Ahmed Matan in Bulahawa, Somalia on Aug. 18, said Abdikadir Abdi Ismael, a former leader of a secret Christian fellowship in Somalia to which Matan belonged. Matan had been a member of the underground church since 2001.

In Mahadday Weyne, 100 kilometers (62 miles) north of the Somali capital of Mogadishu, al Shabaab Islamists on July 20 shot to death another convert from Islam, Mohammed Sheikh Abdiraman, at 7 a.m., eyewitnesses told Compass. They said the Islamic extremists appeared to have been hunting the convert from Islam.

The sources told Compass that Abdiraman was the leader of an underground "cell group" of Christians in Somalia. He is survived by two children, ages 15 and 10; his wife died three years ago due to illness.

Intent on "cleansing" Somalia of all Christians, al Shabaab militia are monitoring converts from Islam especially where Christian workers had provided medical aid, such as Johar, Jamame, Kismayo and Beledweyne, sources said. Mahadday Weyne, 22 kilometers (14 miles) north of Johar, is the site of a former Christian-run hospital.

The militants reportedly beheaded seven Christians on July 10. Reuters reported that they were killed in Baidoa for being Christians and "spies."

On Feb. 21 al shabaab militants beheaded two young boys in Somalia because their Christian father refused to divulge information about a church leader, according to Musa Mohammed Yusuf, the 55-year-old father who was living in a Kenya refugee camp when he spoke with Compass. He had been the leader of an underground church in Yonday village, 30 kilometers (19 miles) from Kismayo in Somalia.

Militants from al Shabaab entered Yonday village on Feb. 20, went to Yusuf's house and interrogated him on his relationship with Salat Mberwa, leader of a fellowship of 66 Somali Christians who meet at his home at an undisclosed city. Yusuf told them he knew nothing of Mberwa and had no connection with him. The Islamic extremists left but said they would return the next day.

Yusuf fled for Kismayo, and at noon the next day, as his wife was making lunch for their children in Yonday, the al Shabaab militants showed up. Batula Ali Arbow, Yusuf's wife, said the Islamic extremists took hold of three of her sons - 11-year-old Abdi Rahaman Musa Yusuf, 12-year-old Hussein Musa Yusuf and Abdulahi Musa Yusuf, 7.

They killed the two older boys as the youngest one returned crying to his mother.

[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 23, 2009
Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.

In today's edition:

    * Muslim Man Beheads Christian in Egypt
    * American 'Nones': More Skeptical than Anti-Religious
    * British Nurse Ordered to Remove Cross Necklace
    * Karnataka Top in Attacks on Christians in India

Muslim Man Beheads Christian in Egypt

ASSIST News Service reports that three Copts are injured and a third dead after a Muslim man sped through three different towns on a motorcycle and stabbed them. Coptic Christian Abdo George Younan, 63, died of stab wounds inflicted on Sept. 16. Osama Araban allegedly also stabbed Adib Boulos, who remains in critical condition. Araban was arrested the next day. Thousands of Copts joined the funeral procession for Abdo Younan, with hundreds holdings banners protesting the injustice done to Copts. According to Coptic lawyers and activists, Araban not only stabbed Abdo nine times but also by severed his head from his body in an Islamic ritual beheading. He then washed his bayonet with the water hose the victim was using, before setting off on his motorcycle to the next two villages, looking for more Coptic victims, reports claim.

American 'Nones': More Skeptical than Anti-Religious

The Christian Post reports that American skeptics - those most likely to identify themselves as "none" in religious affiliation - are growing. According to a follow-up of the American Religious Identification Survey released Tuesday, "Nones" now makes up 15 percent of American adults, with more than one-fifth (22 percent) of young adults falling into this category. "Will a day come when the Nones are on top? We can't predict for sure," lead researcher Barry Kosmin told USA Today. "American Nones embrace philosophical and theological beliefs that reflect skepticism rather than overt antagonism toward religion." Twenty-seven percent of the group believe in a personal God, while 35 percent are agnostic. Only 7 percent are atheists. According to the Post, Nones are "more accepting of human evolution than the general U.S. population."

British Nurse Ordered to Remove Cross Necklace

ASSIST News Service reports that a Christian nurse in England may face disciplinary action after refusing to remove a cross necklace bearing a cross. She has worn the cross since her confirmation 38 years ago, and has worked at the same hospital for 31 years. "I can't explain how important the cross is to me. Being told to take it off has completely and utterly shaken me," Shirley Chaplin told the UK Sun. "I don't want to have to decide between my faith and my job." The 54-year-old nurse has worn the cross during her entire employment, and her supervisors have only now said they believe it is a safety issue and a "health risk." "Necklaces are worn by other members of staff and the Trust... said that other staff wearing chains including those wearing medialert chains and scarves had complied with their health and safety policy," Chaplin said.

Karnataka Top in Attacks on Christians in India

Compass Direct News reports that Karnataka state in India has seen at least 43 incidents of anti-Christian violence this year, more than any other state. The figure compares with 35 attacks on churches, worship services and Christians during the same period last year in the state, which has become the center of violence against Christians. The states with the next highest incidents of anti-Christian violence from January through August this year were Andhra Pradesh with 14 and Madhya Pradesh with 11, according to figures from the Global Council of Indian Christians and the All India Christian Council. Former Chief Minister of Karnataka H.D. Kumaraswamy on Sept. 11 noted that a Sept. 10 attack on St. Francis De Sales Church at Hebbagudi, on the outskirts of Bangalore, came just days after Gov. H.R. Bhardwaj voiced concern over the security of minorities in the state. Archbishop of Bangalore Bernard Moras told Compass that past experience leaves him little hope for future justice.

[nChrist]

Mourners Protest Islamic Attacks on Copts in Egypt
Will Morris


September 24, 2009

ISTANBUL (CDN) -- A funeral for a Coptic Christian gruesomely killed on a village street north of Cairo by a Muslim assailant last week turned into a protest by hundreds of demonstrators in Egypt.

Galal Nasr el-Dardiri, 35, attacked 63-year-old Abdu Georgy in front of the victim's shop in Behnay village the afternoon of Sept. 16, according to research by a local journalist. Other Copts watched in horror as El-Dardiri stabbed Georgy five times in the back, according to interviews by Gamal Gerges, a reporter for newspaper Al-Youm al-Sabeh.

As Georgy fell to the ground, El-Dardiri took his knife and stabbed him four times in the stomach. He then disemboweled him, slit his throat and began sawing off his head, according to Gerges. The Rev. Stephanos Aazer, a Coptic priest who knew Georgy and saw photographs of his mutilated body, said the victim's head was attached to the body by a small piece of flesh.

After killing Georgy, El-Dardiri got on a motorcycle and rode 30 minutes to another town, where he found Coptic shopkeeper Boils Eid Messiha, 40, and stabbed him twice in the stomach, according to Gerges. El-Dardiri immediately left the scene, went to nearby Mit Afif and allegedly attacked Hany Barsom Soliman. Soliman, a Copt in his mid-20s, managed to fight him off.

Messiha was taken to a hospital where he has been operated on at least five times. He remained in intensive care at press time. Soliman suffered lacerations to his arms but was otherwise unharmed.

On Thursday afternoon (Sept. 17), about 1,000 people gathered at Georgy's funeral to protest the killing and assaults on Coptic Christians. Protestors chanted that Georgy's "blood was not [spilled] in vain" as they carried signs that read, "Where are you, government? The terrorists are going to kill us."

Aazer and several other priests participated in the demonstration. Aazer, of the Behnay area, confirmed that police had been monitoring local Copts and even tracking telephone conversations of clergy.

El-Dardiri was arrested on Thursday (Sept. 17) in Cairo and has been charged with murder. It was unclear when he would appear in court.

Ibrahim Habib, chairman of United Copts Great Britain, said Egypt has encouraged the type of "radicalization" that has led to such attacks.

It is the Egyptian government's responsibility now to stop the persecution and victimization of its Coptic minority by Islamic fundamentalists," he said. "The persecution and victimization of the Christians in Egypt has been persistent for three decades and recently escalated to a worrying tempo."

Habib added that Egypt needs to root out Islamic extremists from government agencies, "including the Egyptian police, which frequently show complacency or collusion with the Islamists against the peaceful Christians."

[nChrist]

Religion Today Summaries - Sept. 24, 2009
Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.

In today's edition:

    * Muslims Demand Arrest of Christians for 'Provoking' Gojra Violence
    * S.C. Supreme Court Rules for Breakaway Episcopal Parish
    * Kidnapped Christian Doctor in Iraq Freed in Critical Condition
    * 'See You at the Pole' Draws 2 Million Students

Muslims Demand Arrest of Christians for 'Provoking' Gojra Violence

ASSIST News Service reports that Muslim residents of Gojra have demanded that Christians who have been accused of provoking violence be arrested by today. The violence ended in seven Christian being burnt alive by a Muslim mob on Aug. 1. The calls for Christian men's arrests became strident on Tuesday after a Muslim man who had allegedly opened fire on Christian residents on Aug. 1 died in Allied Hospital, Sargodha. The man, Amjad, had suffered injuries during the Gojra violence. The Muslims gave police a 48 hour ultimatum, warning that the onus of consequences will be on the administration if the Christian accused of provoking violence were not arrested. So far, heavy contingents of police have been deployed around the local Christian colony, apparently to prevent further violence. Police also stood outside the Bishop House and the Catholic Church.

S.C. Supreme Court Rules for Breakaway Episcopal Parish

Religion News Service reports that a South Carolina parish that split from the Episcopal Church in 2004 can keep its church property, the state's Supreme Court has ruled. The ruling is a rare legal victory to conservative dissidents. A majority of members of All Saints Church at Pawley's Island voted to secede from the Episcopal Church five years ago, after an openly gay man was consecrated bishop of New Hampshire. The Episcopal Church maintains that congregations hold their property in trust for the denomination; if they decide to leave, the property stays with the diocese and the national church, Episcopal leaders argue. Applying "neutral principles," South Carolina's Supreme Court ruled on Friday (Sept. 18 ) that All Saints, which dates to the early 18th century, had secured ownership to the property in 1902, well before the Episcopal Church instituted its trust rules in 1979.

Kidnapped Christian Doctor in Iraq Freed in Critical Condition

Compass Direct News reports that Islamic kidnappers in Kirkuk last week dumped a Christian doctor in critical condition in front of a mosque after 29 days of torture and threats. Thanks to his 23-year-old daughter's negotiations with the terrorists, 55-year-old Sameer Gorgees Youssif was freed but with wounds, hematomas and bruises covering his body. The doctor's daughter, who requested her name be withheld, said that for two weeks the abductors insisted on $500,000, and then dropped the amount to $300,000. The terrorists found phone numbers of friends on the doctor's mobile phone and called them, instructing them to tell his family that if they did not produce the money they would kill the doctor. In the end, the abductors lowered the demand to $100,000. "They were threatening us all the time, and we were living in hell," his daughter said. "God was our only hope."

'See You at the Pole' Draws 2 Million Students

Christian Newswire reports that an estimated two million students gathered for the 20th annual See You at the Pole event yesterday. Students gathered at their school's flagpole to pray for their school, their community and their country. The event began as a student-initiated movement, and has won several court battles challenging its location on school property. See You at the Pole event began near Ft. Worth in the town of Burleson, Texas, in 1990. The event's organizers note that the day of prayer comes just after Liberty Counsel successfully defended two Christian employees in a Florida public school against a charge of criminal contempt after they prayed at a school luncheon.