Lakeland Outpouring Reaches 50-Day Milestone
http://www.charismamag.com/cms/news/archives/0522081.php
After 50 consecutive days of revival meetings, what is known as the Lakeland Outpouring shows no signs of slowing. It has already outgrown three venues.
Lakeland Outpouring Reaches 50-Day Milestone
[05.22.08] On Wednesday night thousands hoping to experience God’s presence waited for doors to open at the Lakeland Center, an 8,000-seat sports arena in Lakeland, Fla.
After 50 consecutive days of revival meetings, what is known as the Lakeland Outpouring shows no signs of slowing, having outgrown three venues since a 32-year-old Canadian evangelist named Todd Bentley visited Ignited Church on April 2 and the next day encountered in his hotel room what he said was an angel.
“The last 50 days have been like heaven on earth,” Bentley told Charisma. “I have never been so hungry for God.”
Placing his global itinerary on hold, Bentley said he plans to remain in Lakeland, a city of about 90,000 between Orlando and Tampa, for as long as God wants him to. “I have never been in such intense glory,” said the tattooed evangelist, “nor witnessed so many miracles and healings in America.”
“I would say in the last week we have touched a new realm of miracles,” he said. “There were more testimonies of people coming out of wheelchairs [on Monday night] than in any other meeting.”
Euphoric worship and claims of miracles have added to the excitement in Lakeland and have prompted some to fly in from across the country and even from abroad.
Fire marshals closed the doors to capacity crowds last month at the 700-seat Ignited Church, locking out hundreds of people who waited in the church parking lot until after midnight to receive prayer from Bentley.
Meetings relocated to a larger facility on April 24. Venues have since included an arena, a field and a stadium. More than 10,000 have reportedly filled venues during weekend meetings. Starting next week, services will be held at an “air-dome” near a regional airport.
“I could never have dreamed that each day the anointing could grow any stronger and continue [this way],” Stephen Strader, senior pastor at Ignited Church, told Charisma.
John Arnott, senior pastor of Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship, where a spiritual outpouring began in 1994, was at Tuesday night’s service with his wife, Carol. Bentley honored the couple for sharing “the father heart of God” with the world. Arnott later blessed the Lakeland meetings.
“Todd, it’s just amazing what God is doing here ... it’s being talked about around the world,” Arnott said. “Carol and I are here tonight to absolutely bless this, with everything in us.”
Worship lasted three hours that evening. “I feel like I’m under a shower right now. Is it raining in here?” Bentley asked his associates on stage at one point.
One woman sobbed facedown on the cement floor. A man with outstretched arms slowly turned in circles where he stood. A loud chorus in the air above them—“Less of me and more of you, less of me and more of you. I am thirsty, hungry, desperate for your presence”—reverberated inside the giant-sized auditorium.
“You’re in heaven’s atmosphere tonight,” Bentley said. “I feel the same fire I felt when I first got saved ... there’s only one thing I want—the presence of Jesus. I just want Jesus. I’ll lay anything down.”
The meetings have been broadcast live on GOD TV, opening the meetings to millions of potential viewers worldwide. Strader said 1.2 million separate computers have logged on to watch services online.
One YouTube video of the Lakeland meetings was ranked as the eighth most viewed video in the world, according to Bentley.
Hundreds are claiming healing from various ailments, including deafness, cancer, tumors and paralysis. There are also unconfirmed reports of the dead coming back to life.
One of the cases involves a 3-year-old girl, dead for two days, who allegedly woke up and coughed as she was being wheeled into a room to have her organs harvested, Strader said. The hospital denied the report.
Another case involves a woman in West Virginia who had three heart attacks last Saturday, but was revived after family members had made the decision to pull her breathing tube. The woman’s niece, Darla Pence, told Charisma she received prayers of “healing, revival and restoration for your family” one week prior to her aunt’s heart attacks from someone who had been to Lakeland.
Pence said that since her aunt’s miraculous recovery, nine family members have come to the Lord.
As word has spread of the Lakeland Outpouring, various circles within the Spirit-filled community have been hesitant to fully acknowledge what is happening in Lakeland as a genuine move of God.
Jack Hayford, president of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, said it’s important to “guard our souls from being either gullible, doubt-prone or resistant to whatever God may seek to do.”
“With time,” he said, “whatever is taking place in Lakeland and through activities issuing from its happenings, will either verify or discredit the source of its manifestations.”
Bentley said on Tuesday that TheCall founder Lou Engle phoned him from Kansas City, Mo., to let him know they were praying for him.
John Kilpatrick, who pastored Brownsville Assembly during the Pensacola Revival of the 1990s, visited Lakeland recently to lend Bentley his support.
Kilpatrick told Charisma last month that he planned to visit Lakeland as soon as possible in order to encourage Bentley. “It saddened me that many weren’t willing to at least come and check things out,” he said of his early meetings in the 1990s with revivalist Steve Hill. “I made a vow before God that if revival ever broke out again, no matter where it was, that I’d at least go.”
Bentley said he’s grateful and even surprised by the attention. “I am absolutely blown away by how many thousands of pastors and leaders have come to receive impartation,” he said.
“Sometimes I think people think that I think that I know what I’m doing,” he said Tuesday. “But what God does is sovereign. I wish I could duplicate things, or just turn on the miracles, but I can’t.”
Bentley places a strong emphasis on taking “the anointing” from the worship services and out into the streets. People have reported many salvations and healings taking place in local parking lots, restaurants and malls throughout Lakeland.
GOD TV made a financial appeal to its viewers today to “keep this revival going” for another 40 days. “It is in complete obedience to the will of the Father that we are extending coverage of this mighty move of God … all at great expense,” stated Rory and Wendy Alec, co-founders of GOD TV. “Now we feel challenged of the Father to commit to broadcast a further 40 days. But we can only do this with your help.”
Bentley said meetings would continue for however long God’s “glory” continues to manifest.
What Exactly is the Religion of Bush Who has Proclaimed Hindu Holiday Dwali, Ramadan, Kwanzaa, Year of the Goat, Year of the Rat; Referred to 'An Almighty' and Said Christians/Muslims Worship Same God
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07218.shtml
MEDIA ADVISORY, (christiansunite.com) -- Recovering Republican John Lofton, Editor of TheAmericanView.com web site and co-host of "The American View" radio show has issued the following statement:
"What, exactly, is the religion of President George W. Bush? He says he is a Christian. And numerous so-called conservative Christian leaders and organizations have said Mr. Bush is a Christian. But, is he a Christian? Is there a way to tell if a person is a Christian? Of course. None other than our Lord Himself says that we are known by our fruits, our actions (Matthew 7:15ff). Some of Mr. Bush's "fruits" as President include these:
Mr. Bush has contradicted God's Word by saying, repeatedly, and approvingly, that people of different faiths "are free to worship as they choose" or not worship. God, however, says, in the First Commandment that He - the God of the Bible -- is the only true God there is and He must be worshipped the way He says He is to be worshipped: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me."
Mr. Bush has also said, repeatedly, that the strength of our Nation is in its diversity of religions. But, God says in His Word that it is only the nation that has Him as its God, and only Him, that is blessed (Psalm 33:12).
Mr. Bush, in this year's "National Day Of Prayer," referred, strangely, to "an Almighty" when he expressed his hope that someday there might be an "International Day Of Prayer."
Mr. Bush has honored by various proclamations: The Hindu holiday of Dwali which features prominently the "Goddess Lakshimi" and "Lord Ganesha;" Ramadan; Kwanzaa; The Year Of The Goat; and The Year Of The Rat (coincidentally an election year, this year.)
For an in-depth, respectful and well-researched discussion of this important topic (rulers can bless curse a nation), please visit TheAmericanView.com web site and listen to "The American View" radio show number 155: www.theamericanview.com/index.php? id=1054
Editor Lofton also discusses this topic with radio talk show Jan Mickelson of WHO radio in Des Moines, Iowa: mickelson.libsyn.com/index.php? post_id=337250.
Junk Science: Global Warming's New 'Consensus'
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,357201,00.html
There’s a new global warming consensus in town.
It’s too bad the once-level-headed but now chicken-hearted Bush administration already has skedaddled, perhaps leaving our standard of living at the mercy of Barack Obama and his high regard for the international hate-America crowd.
The Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine this week announced that 31,072 U.S. scientists signed a petition stating that "… There is no convincing scientific evidence that human release of carbon dioxide, methane or other greenhouse gases is causing, or will cause in the future, catastrophic heating of the Earth’s atmosphere and disruption of the Earth’s climate..."
Eminent theoretical physicist Freeman Dyson is among the many distinguished signatories.
The OISM petition represents a direct challenge to the Al Gore-touted notion that a consensus of scientists has determined that catastrophic manmade global warming is real and that any debate over the science is pointless.
You might think that the Bush administration — which has been viciously attacked by Al Gore and the greens for pulling the U.S. out of the Kyoto Protocol and being generally skeptical of the science underlying global warming alarmism — would have embraced the new petition as support for its resistance to mandatory greenhouse gas emission caps.
But you’d be wrong. When given the chance to embrace vindication at a White House press briefing this week, deputy press secretary Dana Perino couldn’t run away fast enough.
A White House reporter asked Perino: "WorldNetDaily reports that more than 31,000 U.S. scientists, including 9,000 PhDs, now signed a petition rejecting global warming, the assumption that human production of greenhouse gases is damaging the Earth’s climate. My question: What is the White House reaction to these 31,000 scientists?"
While Perino could have responded with something akin to either "Yes, we know about the petition and we’re looking into it" or "No, we didn’t know about the petition but we will certainly look into it," she instead dismissed the question with an abrupt, "I would say that everyone is entitled to their opinion. What’s your next question?"
When the reporter tried to follow up with "That’s all?" Perino seemed to insist on remaining oblivious to the petition and its import by stating, "That’s all I’m going to say."
Well, at least Perino didn’t pull an "Al Gore" and label Dyson and the other 31,071 scientist-signatories as members of the Flat Earth Society.
In Perino’s defense, one might say that it is reasonable to disregard such petitions since science is about what is known or what can be proved about the natural world through systematic investigation rather than the number of scientists who are willing to publicly commit to a particular opinion.
On the other hand, global warming alarmism has been marketed to the public on the basis of the latter rather than the former.
We’ve been told that there’s a "consensus" of scientists — most often exemplified by the group of scientists working under the auspices of the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change — that agrees manmade greenhouse gas emissions are or will wreak havoc on the climate.
Although dispute exists over whether there is, in fact, an actual consensus within the IPCC, head counts of scientists seem to be the name of the global warming game.
Since that is the case, the 31,000 scientist signatories assembled by the Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine would seem to trump the 600 or so in the alleged IPCC consensus. Sadly, the White House has taken such a beating over the years on climate that facts no longer matter.
As further evidence of its shell-shocked state of fact avoidance, just last week the Bush administration announced that it was listing the polar bear as "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act — even though there are many more polar bears today than 40 years ago and predictions of the bear’s demise are entirely based on politically inspired speculation.
The fact of the 31,000 scientists should matter to the White House, given what likely Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama said this week.
In a campaign stop in Oregon, Obama called for the U.S. to "lead by example" on global warming. "We can’t drive our SUVs and eat as much as we want and keep our homes on 72 degrees at all times … and then just expect that other countries are going to say 'OK.' … That’s not leadership. That’s not going to happen," he said.
A President Obama apparently would decide how to regulate the pantries, thermostats and modes of personal transportation of his fellow Americans based on the emotional temperature of every non-American who happens to harbor an opinion on how we should live.
And although Republican presidential hopeful John McCain hasn’t been as blunt as Obama in respect to rolling back the American lifestyle, as reported in this column last week, he’s been drinking from the same batch of green Kool-Aid.
Sadly, the initial response from the Bush administration to relevant new facts that could prevent the imminent Obama-McCain attack on our standard of living seems to be, "See no consensus, hear no consensus, speak no consensus."
McCain Rejects Pastors' Endorsement
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/380576.aspx
CBNNews.com - STOCKTON, Calif. -- Republican John McCain on Thursday rejected endorsements from two influential but controversial televangelists, saying there is no place for their incendiary criticisms of other faiths.
McCain rejected the months-old endorsement of Texas preacher John Hagee after an audio recording surfaced in which the preacher said God sent Adolf Hitler to help Jews reach the promised land. McCain called the comment "crazy and unacceptable."
He later repudiated the support of Rod Parsley, an Ohio preacher who has sharply criticized Islam and called the religion inherently violent.
McCain issued a statement Thursday afternoon announcing his decision about Hagee.
"Obviously, I find these remarks and others deeply offensive and indefensible, and I repudiate them. I did not know of them before Reverend Hagee's endorsement, and I feel I must reject his endorsement as well," he said.
Later, in Stockton, he told reporters: "I just think that the statement is crazy and unacceptable."
Then in an interview with The Associated Press, McCain said he rejected Parsley's support, too.
"I believe there is no place for that kind of dialogue in America, and I believe that even though he endorsed me, and I didn't endorse him, the fact is that I repudiate such talk, and I reject his endorsement," McCain told the AP.
Hagee had sparked controversy since the San Antonio pastor endorsed McCain on Feb. 27 shortly before the Texas presidential primary. Parsley's views were aired Thursday in an ABC News report.
McCain actively courted Hagee, who leads a megachurch with a congregation in the tens of thousands and has an even wider television audience. Former GOP presidential rivals also sought Hagee's backing.
Hagee has referred to the Roman Catholic Church as "the great whore" and called it a "false cult system." He also has linked Hitler to the Catholic church, suggesting it helped shape his anti-Semitism. And Hagee said Hurricane Katrina was God's retribution for homosexual sin.
McCain has faced a barrage of criticism over Hagee, with some comparing the situation to the controversy Democrat Barack Obama faced over the views of his longtime and now former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
McCain tried Thursday to draw a distinction between the Obama-Wright connection and his own relationships with Parsley and Hagee, saying Hagee was not his pastor.
"My church I attend is North Phoenix Baptist Church; my pastor and spiritual guide is Pastor Dan Yeary," McCain said. "I've never been to Pastor Hagee's church or Pastor Parsley's church. I didn't attend their church for 20 years. I'm not a member of their church."
Parsley did not return a message for comment left after business hours at World Harvest Church in suburban Columbus.
Obama, who was campaigning in Florida, said that in national politics it's easy to find people who have said or done offensive things.
"John McCain has to deal with Hagee, who said something that is mind-boggling. I don't attribute those statements to John McCain. Nobody thinks McCain believes that stuff," Obama said.
Until now, McCain had tried to distance himself from Hagee's views but had not rejected the endorsement.
"I'm glad to have his endorsement," he said on ABC's "This Week" in April. "I condemn remarks that are, in any way, viewed as anti-anything."
The Arizona senator has said he sought Hagee's support because the pastor, like himself, is a strong supporter of Israel.
The formation of Israel was at the heart of the remarks that prompted McCain to reject Hagee's support. The comments came in a sermon Hagee gave in the late 1990s, an audio recording of which was posted last week on the liberal blog Talk to Action and reported by The Huffington Post, another liberal blog.
In the sermon, Hagee said, "Then God sent a hunter. A hunter is someone with a gun, and he forces you. Hitler was a hunter. ... How did it happen? Because God allowed it to happen. Why did it happen? Because God said, 'My top priority for the Jewish people is to get them to come back to the land of Israel.'"
Hagee tried to repair the damage by apologizing to Catholics in a letter released just last week. Saying he had emphasized the darkest chapters in the history of Catholic and Protestant relationships with Jews, Hagee wrote, "I want to express my deep regret for any comments that Catholics have found hurtful."
On Thursday, Hagee issued a new statement saying he was weary of the controversy and was withdrawing his endorsement.
Hagee said critics are "grossly misrepresenting my position on issues most near and dear to my heart."
"I am tired of these baseless attacks and fear that they have become a distraction in what should be a national debate about important issues," Hagee said. "I have therefore decided to withdraw my endorsement of Senator McCain for president effective today, and to remove myself from any active role in the 2008 campaign."
The other pastor, Parsley, has described Islam as an "anti-Christ religion" and the Muslim prophet Muhammad as "the mouthpiece of a conspiracy of spiritual evil," according to ABC News.
Icahn: Obama Would Be a Terrible President
http://moneynews.newsmax.com/streettalk/icahn_obama_terrible_prez/2008/05/22/98217.html
Carl Icahn, the billionaire investor best known for shaking up public companies, says he is very concerned about the Democratic frontrunner, Barack Obama.
“I personally think he would be a terrible president,'' Icahn told investors in New York, according to wire reports.
Icahn thinks a President Obama would increase spending dramatically, something he says “the country can't afford right now.”
An Obama spending spree and the resulting tax hikes to pay for it would kill the dollar and result in higher interest rates, Icahn warned. “I don't think Obama really understands economics,'' Icahn said.
Obama also would take office with a Democratic majority in the Congress, clearing the way for unchecked spending, Icahn said.
“It would be devastating,'' Icahn said. “Then you couldn't stop runaway legislation.''
Obama now has 1,965 delegates, counting both pledged delegates and superdelegates, closing in on the 2,026 he needs to clinch the nomination. Hillary Clinton trails at 1,779 delegates.
The 63-delegate Puerto Rico primary, which will be divided proportionally, is in 10 days. The Democratic National Convention will be held in Denver, Colo., starting on Aug. 25.
Fact Check: Obama's Outreach to Foes Questionable
http://www.newsmax.com/politics/obama_diplomacy_fact_check/2008/05/22/98278.html
WASHINGTON -- Barack Obama's willingness to meet Iranian, Cuban and other hostile leaders who would not get face time from John McCain stands as a distinctive element of his foreign policy.
Distinctive, yes, but clearly defined? Not quite.
Obama's openness early on to meeting Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, without preconditions has given way to equivocation. He said this week he's not sure "Ahmadinejad is the right person to meet with right now" and other figures in Iran have more power.
Nor is it certain lately at what point he, as president, would speak personally with some of the dictators he says should be engaged.
On Thursday, speaking to voters in a Boca Raton, Fla., synagogue, Obama again advocated direct diplomacy with Iran, but without specifying at what level.
"We will be in a stronger position to achieve tough international sanctions if the United States shows that we are willing to come to the table," he said.
He reiterated that his outreach to enemies does not include terrorists and that he would not negotiate with groups such as Hamas until they renounce terrorism and recognize Israel's right to exist.
Obama has asserted for months that his willingness to sit down with foes sets him apart from Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton and now McCain, the likely Republican presidential nominee, who challenges Obama on that point.
But U.S. diplomacy is not that simple and neither is his position.
THE OLD SPIN:
In a Democratic presidential debate last summer, Obama was asked if he'd meet the leaders of Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Cuba, and North Korea without precondition and during his first year in office.
"I would," Obama said.
Since then he has frequently reiterated his belief that no preconditions should be set.
"When you say preconditions, what you're really saying is, 'I'm not going to talk to you until you agree to do exactly what I want you to do,'" Obama said. "Well, that's not how negotiations take place."
Challenged by Clinton in multiple debates, Obama allowed that while he would not set preconditions, he would have "preparations" and would not rush to see certain leaders right away.
The precise difference between preconditions and preparations has not been spelled out. What's clear is that low-level talks would precede any summit, as happens now.
Clinton called him naive. She said she would not risk the prestige of the presidency by negotiating directly with countries such as Iran until they had agreed to change their ways.
Obama called that a case of old Washington thinking.
The new thinking, however, appears not to have been thought all the way through.
THE NEW SPIN:
Obama objected on CNN this week to "this obsession with Ahmadinejad" and explained guardedly: "I would be willing to meet with Iranian leaders if we had done sufficient preparations for that meeting.
"Whether Ahmadinejad is the right person to meet with right now, we don't even know how much power he is going to have a year from now," Obama added. "He is not the most powerful person in Iran."
He said he would expect "to meet with those people who can actually make decisions" in Iran on its nuclear program, its aid to terrorists and destabilization in Iraq.
He did not explain how he would get around Iran's president to other people of influence.
Similarly, prominent Obama supporters have jumped into the debate to say he has believed all along that one does not go blindly into negotiations with dictators.
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, for one, is drawing distinctions between Iran and Cuba.
A veteran of semiofficial negotiations with dictators, he said Obama should be open to meeting Cuban President Raul Castro, but "I think you don't talk to Ahmadinejad. You talk to some of the moderate clerics."
On the other hand, McCain supporter James A. Baker III, former Republican secretary of state and chairman of the Iraq commission, has sounded closer to Obama on the subject of negotiating with hostile governments.
"You talk to your enemies, not just your friends," Baker said in 2006, words echoed by Obama.
Baker's commission urged engagement with Iran and Syria, without preconditions, at the level of the president or secretary of state, on the matter of Iraq. As secretary of state, Baker held many meetings with Syrians despite their listing by the U.S. as state sponsors of terrorism.
Obama's campaign is carefully picking its words on Cuba as the Illinois senator campaigns in Florida this week, mindful of the opposition by many exiles to too much liberalization of U.S. policy.
The matter of what constitutes a precondition for negotiations with Castro is one sticky point.
Susan Rice, Obama's foreign policy adviser, outlined what resembled preconditions Wednesday when she talked on the MSNBC cable network about what Cuba must do for an Obama administration to deal fully with that state.
Obama favors relaxing restrictions on family travel and remittances between the island and the U.S.
But Rice identified "concrete progress" toward true elections, the freeing of political prisoners and a free press as a requirement to "initiate a process through engagement."
That did not sound like an invitation to sit down and talk any time soon.
McCain, Obama Spar on GI Bill
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/mccain_gi_bill/2008/05/22/98293.html
Republican John McCain said Thursday that Democrat Barack Obama had no right to criticize McCain's position on military scholarships because the Illinois senator did not serve in uniform.
"And I will not accept from Senator Obama, who did not feel it was his responsibility to serve our country in uniform, any lectures on my regard for those who did," the Arizona senator said in a harshly worded statement issued Thursday.
McCain lashed out at Obama's personal history despite Obama's repeated praise of McCain's military service. As Obama said Tuesday night in Des Moines, Iowa: "We face an opponent, John McCain, who arrived in Washington nearly three decades ago as a Vietnam War hero, and earned an admirable reputation for straight talk and occasional independence from his party."
McCain was a Navy fighter pilot who was shot down and spent nearly six years as a Vietnam prisoner of war. At age 46, Obama is too young to have been drafted or fought in Vietnam. Direct U.S. military involvement in the Vietnam War officially ended in 1973, the same year the military draft was ended and replaced by an all-volunteer military.
The candidates' criticism of each other has grown increasingly acrimonious in recent weeks, a sign of things to come in the general election campaign.
At issue is an expansion of the GI bill that would guarantee full college scholarships for those who serve in the military for three years. The Democratic-led Senate passed the measure, sponsored by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., and supported by Obama, on Thursday by a 75-22 vote as 25 Republicans abandoned President Bush, who opposed it.
Obama and his rival, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, returned to Washington for the vote. McCain stayed in California to campaign and raise money.
McCain opposes the measure, as does the Pentagon, out of concern that providing such a benefit after only three years of service would encourage people to leave the military after completing only one enlistment even as the U.S. fights two wars and is trying to increase the size of the Army and Marine Corps.
Instead, McCain and Republican colleagues proposed a bill to increase benefits in conjunction with a veteran's length of service. Senate Democrats blocked the measure last week.
"Most worrying to me is that by hurting retention, we will reduce the numbers of men and women who we train to become the backbone of all the services, the noncommissioned officer," McCain said in his statement.
While McCain was joined on the campaign trail in California by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, former Gov. Pete Wilson and former eBay CEO Meg Whitman, Obama reiterated his respect for McCain's service in a speech on the Senate floor.
"He is one of those heroes of which I speak," Obama said. "But I can't understand why he would line up behind the president in his opposition to this GI bill. I can't believe why he believes it is too generous to our veterans. I could not disagree with him and the president more on this issue. There are many issues that lend themselves to partisan posturing, but giving our veterans the chance to go to college should not be one of them."
McCain's campaign said Obama was getting personal by suggesting McCain considered the bill too generous to veterans and by raising the issue of partisan posturing.
In his statement, McCain accused Obama of being motivated by politics.
"Perhaps if Senator Obama would take the time and trouble to understand this issue, he would learn to debate an honest disagreement respectfully," McCain said. "But, as he always does, he prefers impugning the motives of his opponent, and exploiting a thoughtful difference of opinion to advance his own ambitions."
Florida Jews Worried About Obama
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/florida_jews_obama/2008/05/22/98181.html
American Jews can usually be counted on to line up squarely behind the Democratic presidential candidate, but Jewish voters this year are expressing misgivings about likely nominee Barack Obama.
And the Jewish vote could prove crucial in November in swing states like Ohio and especially Florida, where Democrat Al Gore lost the presidency by a few hundred votes in 2000.
A longtime Democratic constituency with a high turnout rate, Jews are important to Obama’s “general election hopes, particularly in New York, which he expects to win; in California and New Jersey, which he must keep out of Republican hands; and most crucially, in Florida, where Jews make up around 5 percent of voters,” the New York Times observed.
But Shirley Weitz, one of many South Florida Jews interviewed by the Times’ Jodi Kantor, said: “The people here, liberal people, will not vote for Obama because of his attitude towards Israel.
“They’re going to vote for McCain.”
Many of the Florida Jews who spoke with Kantor questioned Obama’s commitment to Israel. Some suspect him of being too cozy with the Palestinians, and others accuse him of having ties to Muslims because his father was born Muslim and as a boy he lived for a time in Indonesia, a Muslim country.
Several people told the Times that they were worried about Obama’s stated willingness to speak without conditions with Iran’s leadership, given that nation’s nuclear ambitions and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s threat to “wipe Israel off the map.”
Other voters were critical of Obama’s endorsement by Rev. Jesse Jackson, because Jackson once called New York “Hymietown” and has made other comments offensive to Jews, the Times reported.
Obama could lose Jewish votes to McCain due to Sen. Joe Lieberman’s strong backing of the presumptive GOP candidate.
Lieberman “is expected to spend plenty of time in front of Jewish audiences, in Florida and elsewhere,” Kantor noted.
“A Democrat turned independent, an Orthodox Jew and one of Mr. McCain’s closest friends, Mr. Lieberman will promote Mr. McCain’s strong national security resume and centrist stances.”
Another longtime Jewish Democrat, former New York City Mayor Ed Koch, said he might also support McCain over Obama.
He told Newsmax in an exclusive interview that McCain “has no equal” when it comes to opposing Islamic terrorism, and said he is bothered by Obama’s relationships with Rev. Jeremiah Wright and terrorist bomber William Ayers.
Aides said Obama plans to spend a considerable amount of time in the next few months campaigning in Florida, which could once again decide a close race in November.
Boca Raton, Fla., Rabbi Ruvi New, referring to a nearby heavily Jewish retirement community, told the Times: “The fate of the world for the next four years — it’s all going to boil down to a few old Jews in Century Village.”
Chapmans Receive Outpour of Love, Support
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/380601.aspx
CBNNews.com - Funeral arrangements have been made for the 5-year-old daughter of Christian singer Steven Curtis Chapman.
The Chapmans' daughter Maria died after being hit by a car in the families driveway. She had been playing there Wednesday evening as her brother, who was driving a Toyota Land Cruiser, pulled up. He did not see his little sister.
"He understandably is just devastated," Chapman's pastor Scotty Smith told CBN News about the son involved in the accident. "Their beautiful home has a couple of bends in the road. It just was totally an accident. and this young man's heart is crushed."
Smith has been a friend of the Chapman family for more than 20 years. He is urging others not to forget to include Maria's brother in their prayers.
"I encourage all to just redouble their prayers. because we all can predict how the enemy will try and whisper in his heart," he said.
Maria was the youngest of three girls from China that Chapman and his wife Mary Beth adopted. They also have three biological children.
The entire family was home when the accident happened. Two other kids witnessed the tragedy. Maria was rushed to Vanderbilt Children's Hospital where she later died from her injuries.
Visitation for the Chapman's little girl will begin Friday, May 22, at the Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tenn. A memorial service will take place Saturday, May 24, at 11 a.m.
An Outpouring of Grief, Condolences
Across the nation, thousands of fans expressed their deepest condolences to the family.
Smith, who pastors at Christ Community Church in Franklin, Tenn., told CBN News that it had been "overwhelming to see the sea of support."
On a special blog set up for the little girl, thousands of well-wishers offered words of support and encouragement.
"Our hearts ache for you and your family. Deeply truly ache. If there were words we knew would comfort you we would send them but we find no words. We are stunned and silent and holding you in our prayers.," wrote the Holloways, from Charlotte, N.C.
"I will be upholding your son in prayer, may he feel Jesus precious love during this time and may Jesus hold you in the palm of his hand. We are ever so sorry," wrote another on CBN News' message board.
In Michigan, Christian music radio station WJGK-FM opened up their phone lines for people to express their support.
"People called in and wanted to pray right over the air," Troy West, morning show co-host said.
Loving the Adopted
Early Thursday, a video of Maria was posted on the Shaohanna's Hope web site, showing a couple of her most "kid-like" moments. In it, Maria helps her dad clean the kitchen after eating pancakes. The video is slated Dishwashin' Daddy.
Chapman stands close behind his daughter, playing his guitar and singing a song as his "chief bottle washer" rinses cups in the sink.
The Chapmans have always had a heart for adopting and founded Shoahanna's Hope ministry after bringing their first adopted daughter home from China.
In his latest music tour, Chapman began the campaign Change for Orphans, asking audience members to donate to the adoption cause.
The singer/songwriter was recently inducted into the Music City Walk of Fame and has sold more than 10 million albums, winning him more than 50 Dove Awards.
Poll: Calif. Rejects Gay Marriage
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/poll_gay_marriage/2008/05/23/98424.html
A Los Angeles Times/KTLA Poll has found that, by a bare majority, Californians reject the state Supreme Court's decision to allow same-sex marriages.
The survey also suggested that a majority of those polled would back a proposed constitutional amendment aimed at the November ballot that would outlaw such unions.
More than half of Californians said gay relationships were not morally wrong, that they would not degrade heterosexual marriages and that all that mattered was that a relationship be loving and committed, regardless of gender.
Those under 45 were less likely to favor a constitutional amendment than their elders and were more supportive of the court's decision to overturn the state's current ban on gay marriage. They also disagreed more strongly than their elders with the notion that gay relationships threatened traditional marriage.
The poll suggests the outcome of the proposed amendment is far from certain. Overall, it was leading 54% to 35% among registered voters.
The issue leaped into the forefront last week after the court made its judgment in a case that stemmed from San Francisco's unsuccessful effort in 2004 to allow gay marriage in the city. The court's decision, on a 4-3 vote, came eight years after Californians overwhelmingly banned gay marriage through a ballot measure, Proposition 22.
The court's verdict threw the issue forward until November, when Californians are expected to be asked to amend the state Constitution to prohibit gay marriage. An affirmative vote on the amendment would reinstate the ban and lead to more litigation over the issue.
Before the court took action, opponents of same-sex marriage already had submitted more than 1 million signatures to the secretary of state's office to put the matter on the November ballot. Secretary of State Debra Bowen has said she will determine its fate by mid-June, but the backers are believed to have collected enough signatures to qualify.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has vetoed two bills sanctioning gay marriage, has said that he respects the court's decision and that he will not support a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. Californians were split on his stance, with 45% agreeing and 46% disagreeing.
Catholics for the Common Good Disappointed by California Court Marriage Ruling
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07215.shtml
SAN FRANCISCO, (christiansunite.com) -- "The California Supreme Court turned its back on both the will of the people and the common interest of every child in California in having a married mother and father," said Bill May, chairman of Catholics for the Common Good and spokesperson for Stand with Children.
"The only way Californians can reverse this outrageous decision and restore common sense is by passing the ProtectMarriage.com initiative on the November ballot. That would put the definition of marriage in the state constitution - putting it out of reach of judges and politicians," May said.
"The majority found that there is no compelling state interest in restricting marriage to people who engage in reproductive acts [men and women]. Tell that to the 40% percent of children born out of wedlock each year or the 34% of children living without their fathers. It is clearly in the public interest to encourage men and women to marry because of the staggering and tragic social consequences for children born to single women or cohabitating couples. By disconnecting marriage from the public interest and overturning the will of the people, the Court has undermined the very foundation of society."
The 4-3 ruling of the California Supreme Court declared the California Defense of Marriage Act (Proposition 22) unconstitutional. That law, which defined marriage as between a man and a woman, was adopted by 61.4% of California voters in the year 2000.
Stand with Children, an educational coalition, promotes the interest that every child has in the marriage of his or her parents. It is a project of the Catholics for the Common Good Institute, an educational organization dedicated to bringing reason to the public square based on insights from Catholic social teachings related to the dignity of the human person, fundamental human rights, marriage and the family as the foundation of social justice, and commitment to the poor and vulnerable.
California Gay Marriage Opponents Seek 5-Month Delay
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,357401,00.html
SAN FRANCISCO — A conservative legal group asked the California Supreme Court on Thursday to put off finalization of its decision legalizing same-sex marriage until voters got a chance to weigh in.
The Arizona-based Alliance Defense Fund wants the ruling stayed until November, when voters will probably encounter a ballot measure that would amend the state constitution to ban gay marriage. That amendment would overturn the justices' ruling.
In court papers submitted late Thursday, the group warned that the state would suffer "great public harm and mischief" if it began allowing same-sex marriages on June 16, when the court's decision would ordinarily become final.
Defense Fund attorneys also said implementing the ruling in the meantime would be an unnecessary expense for the state and cause unneeded confusion for couples.
"Permitting this decision to take effect immediately — in light of the realistic possibility that the people of California might amend their constitution to reaffirm marriage as the union of one man and one woman — risks legal havoc and uncertainty of immeasurable magnitude," the attorneys wrote in the petition.
Many couples started planning weddings and making appointments to secure marriage licenses immediately after the justices overturned the state's gay marriage ban on May 15.
A cloud of uncertainty lingers over the pending unions, however. A coalition of religious and social conservative groups is in the process of putting a measure on the November ballot that would write a gay marriage ban into the state constitution.
County clerks have until June 18 to verify the signatures needed to qualify the amendment for the election, according to the Defense Fund. A preliminary count by 37 counties indicates that the initiative has a high chance of being put to voters, the group said in its petition.
Defense Fund attorneys asked the Supreme Court to hold a hearing on when its decision should take effect or to amend it to prevent it from being implemented for now.
"The people of California have a constitutional right to vote on marriage, and we trust the high court will respect the democratic process," said Defense Fund senior counsel Glen Lavy, who argued before the court for maintaining the state's one-man, one-woman marriage laws.
Among the logistical nightmares the attorneys predicted are counties scheduling different start dates based on their ability to create new, gender-neutral marriage licenses and the question of whether marriages sanctioned during the five-month window would be annulled if the amendment passes.
The court majority did not give a deadline for county clerks to start issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. But it directed state officials "to take all actions necessary to effectuate our ruling, including requiring county marriage clerks to carry out their duties "in a manner consistent with the decision of this court."
The Defense Fund is representing the Proposition 22 Legal Defense and Education Fund, a California group that is part of the coalition spearheading the proposed amendment. Approving a temporary stay, the Defense Fund argued, is justified until voters have the chance to decide in November the fate of marriage in California.
Justices have until June 16 to consider the Defense Fund's petition, according to Jennifer Pizer, an attorney with the gay rights legal group Lambda Legal. They also could grant themselves an additional 60 days to assess it, Pizer said.
Pizer, who is planning an October wedding, said that even if the stay request results in delays, gay and lesbian couples should be heartened by the Supreme Court victory.
"What's critical in all of this is, society generally and those of us who are affected most urgently have to recognize that we have momentous, joyous moments of breakthrough, but the process of social and legal change proceeds step by step," she said.
Family is most important small group in the church, say pastors
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/family.is.most.important.small.group.in.the.church,%20say%20pastors/18966.htm
LAKE FOREST, California – A panel of pastors speaking at a conference for church leaders in the Purpose Driven network on Wednesday agreed that the process to deepen discipleship should involve some form of small groups but shared unique positions on how to structure disciple-making.
Steve Stroop, pastor of Lake Point Church in Texas, said it is the family that is the most important small group in the church.
"The family should be the primary vehicle for discipleship," the Dallas-based pastor told the international crowd of pastors and Christian leaders convening at Saddleback Church. "God created the family before he created the church ... Parents are responsible for winning their kids to Christ and discipling them."
Stroop was among the 35 influential pastors selected by Rick Warren to speak at the 2008 Purpose Driven Network Summit, which kicked off Tuesday. Panel discussions during the three-day conference put a new spin on the annual Purpose Driven gatherings.
During the "Best Practices for Deepening Discipleship" panel on Wednesday, Stroop said he grew concerned that church members had "outsourced" the discipleship of their children to Sunday School teachers like they would their laundry.
His church has made an attempt to create a culture of family discipleship. The church began to resource the parents by installing a permanent kiosk designed to answer parenting and marriage questions and screening the camp services to parents to make it easier for them to discuss the messages presented.
Mars Hill Church pastor Mark Driscoll, who preaches to a robust crowd of singles in their 20s, uses a more digital approach to moving his Seattle congregants through the discipleship process. His church created its own social networking system dubbed "The City" to better connect people.
"You have small group, prayer requests, and that continues digitally," Driscoll explained.
The multi-site church also has a members-only Web site area where people get answers after posting a question.
According to Driscoll, the Web site helps guide people to the church's "front door" or "living room" and eventually to classes and conferences.
Tammy Gill, a small group minister attending the conference, told The Christian Post that she felt the Web site was important but the technological know-how was an issue.
"I wanted to use it as part of our small group ministry as a way to encourage our leaders and as a way for them to interact with their group members," said Gill, who represents The Kirk of the Hills in Tulsa, Okla. "But at this point, I don't have someone that can help me with the technology."
Daniel S Kim of Sa-rang Community Church in Anaheim, California, pointed out that churches should distinguish between small groups for the sake of fellowship and for the sake of disciple-making.
Discipleship-training is a "totally different kind of small group", offered Kim.
Out of the panel, Kim presented the most systematic approach to discipleship-making.
Although members of his church, who include a significant number of “1.5 generation” Koreans, participate in small group fellowships, they also are asked to go through a discipleship-training program that lasts a little over one and a half years. During the first four months, members do Bible study one-on-one or one-on-two. Church pastors then guide members in groups of 12 through an eight-month session. Finally, Kim takes over to lead them in an eight-month leadership training.
Leaders who pass the discipleship training can then go on to lead small groups and be an "inspiration" to their members to be more like Jesus Christ, explained Kim.
We feed them "until they are able to raise their own lamb", he highlighted.
The panel discussion at one point became so heavily centered around small groups that Radiant Church pastor Lee MacFarland said, "I think I'm on the wrong panel."
The Arizona-based pastor admitted that he did not truly understand the meaning of discipleship until a fitness trainer came alongside him to help him maneuver the gym, from weight loss to bench-pressing 100-lb dumbbells. MacFarland said he learned that his trainer was spending more time teaching him to lift weights than the Radiant pastor was spending on the spiritual growth of his members.
From the entire discussion, it was MacFarland's story illustration that resonated the most with Pastor Jim Fleming of Collierville Bible Church in Tennessee.
"The process was far more robust and rigorous than the typical small group meeting," Fleming commented. "I have been thinking the same thing – that discipleship, pouring yourself into another individual, goes way beyond the traditional 'small group ministry.'"
"Is this kind of discipleship on our radar? Most of the discussion made me wonder."
This year’s Purpose Driven Network Summit is expected to be watershed moment for Warren's P.E.A.C.E. plan, in which peace ambassadors are sent to countries around the world to carry out the five actions that Jesus modelled, including promoting reconciliation/planting churches, equipping leaders, assisting the poor, caring for the sick, and educating the next generation.
Bestselling author of The Purpose Driven Life, Warren was scheduled to go public Thursday with the P.E.A.C.E. coalition – a network of churches, business, and NGOs.
Ethics Complaint Filed Against Johnny Sutton
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07217.shtml
WASHINGTON, (christiansunite.com) -- Don Swarthout, President of Christians Reviving America's Values (CRAVE) has filed an ethics complaint with the Texas Bar Association against Prosecutor Johnny Sutton. In this complaint Swarthout charges Sutton's office willfully misled the jury in order to convict Border Patrol Agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean for simply doing their jobs.
Swarthout has asked the Texas Bar Association to investigate Johnny Sutton for actions strikingly similar to Prosecutor Mike Nifong's mishandling of the Duke lacrosse rape case. The evidence suggests Johnny Sutton is just as guilty as Mike Nifong of unethical prosecutorial behavior.
Swarthout said, "This whole case stinks to the highest parts of heaven. How is it possible in America to convict two Border Agents for simply doing their jobs and send them to prison for 11 and 12 years? How is it possible for Johnny Sutton's office to ruin the lives of two of our Border Agents based on the word of a known Mexican drug smuggler? Why did Johnny Sutton's office twist the facts of this case and hide evidence simply to get a conviction?"
More than 90 U.S. Senators and Congressmen have reviewed this case and have asked President Bush to pardon Border Agents Ramos and Compean. These 90 elected officials represent both Democrats and Republicans. All of them agree Johnny Sutton's prosecution leaves a lot of unanswered questions.
Known drug smuggler Aldrete Davila was portrayed by Sutton as almost an "innocent bystander." In fact, he was involved in a second drug delivery to the United States during Sutton's prosecution of Ramos and Compean. This fact was covered up by Sutton's office.
It may be possible for reasonable people to disagree about whether Sutton's statements constitute "outright lies." However, the facts now in the public domain make it abundantly clear Sutton's statements were willfully misleading to the jury and that is the basis of this ethics complaint.
Pregnancy Resource Group Asks High Court to Encourage Doctors to be Honest with Patients Considering Abortion
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07219.shtml
COLUMBUS, Ohio, (christiansunite.com) -- Heartbeat International joins a "friend of the court" brief in support of Rosa Acuna's petition. On Friday, Acuna's attorney Harold Cassidy filed a petition asking the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse the egregious New Jersey Supreme Court decision in the case of Rosa Acuna v. Sheldon C. Turkish, MD.
"As an association dedicated to helping women, we call on the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse the New Jersey Court's precedent and to require abortionists to provide medically accurate details about the gestational development of a human baby," said Heartbeat International President Peggy Hartshorn, Ph.D. "The facts are a baby's heart begins beating at 21 days and brain waves can be measured at six weeks. Women deserve the truth."
With Acuna v. Turkish, the New Jersey High Court set the legal precedent that a doctor can legally deceive a woman considering abortion. The ruling held that a doctor who performs an abortion has no responsibility to present precise biological information to a woman about her unborn child or the abortion procedure risks.
"When a woman comes into a Heartbeat center seeking abortion information, she wants to know what is happening with and in her body. We tell her about abortion procedures and show her fetal models or pictures of fetal development," said Hartshorn. "A doctor should have the responsibility of explaining human development to his patient. She has a right to be fully informed before she submits to an abortion procedure. The woman's health risks increase without this information."
Turkish told Rosa Acuna that she should not "be stupid" because the only thing being removed was "just blood." Turkish testified that he routinely tells women it is "just some tissue." By any standard these statements are false and misleading.
Heartbeat International and its affiliates advocate for the safe reproductive health and well-being of women. Abortion is not a medical "treatment" that can improve a woman's health. Women seen in Heartbeat's pregnancy centers testify daily to the painful physical and emotional effects of abortion.
Heartbeat International, founded in 1971, is an interdenominational Christian association of nearly 1,100 pregnancy resource centers, maternity homes, non-profit adoption agencies, and medical clinics in 48 states and 42 countries. Heartbeat provides www.OptionLine.org (800-395-HELP), a joint venture with Care Net, to connect callers with a local pregnancy center for the help they need. Each month our national call center responds to approximately 20,000 contacts.
Catholic Religious Ignore Abortion at Corporate Meetings
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07214.shtml
DAYTON, Ohio, (christiansunite.com) -- Once again, Catholic religious orders have chosen to address almost every liberal social issue imaginable while ignoring the subject of abortion at the annual meetings of major corporations.
It has become increasingly common to see nuns and priests at annual meetings, through the strategic use of a shareholder resolution, exhorting corporate executives to address issues like global warming, the environment, tobacco, executive pay and health insurance. Since Roe vs. Wade in 1972, these religious corporate gadflies have seldom, if ever, seen fit to use the same tool to address the subject of abortion.
Religious orders like the Sisters of Saint Francis of Philadelphia and the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word in Houston, Texas, will do a dozen or more resolutions every year. All counted, Catholic religious orders will file or co-file over 100 resolutions this year and have done thousands on a wide variety of issues since abortion was legalized. Yet you will not hear one word from their mouths concerning abortion. Sister Pat Daley of the Dominican Sisters in Caldwell, New Jersey, and one of the most visible Catholics at annual meetings, once explained she didn't think it was "ecumenical" to address the issue of abortion.
Surprisingly, the Catholic bishops once described abortion as "the human rights issue of our time" and said in 1991 they "will consider supporting shareholder resolutions on abortion related issues when deemed appropriate."
Work on the abortion issue at the corporate level by way of a shareholder resolution has been the almost exclusive province of Thomas Strobhar of Pro Vita Advisors. Pro Vita Advisors is a non-profit organization dedicated to exposing and confronting the business aspects of abortion.
Strobhar has authored approximately sixty shareholder resolutions addressing the abortion issue alone. Unfortunately, this is the first year in almost 20 that not one of his shareholder resolutions will appear on a corporate ballot. Strobhar explained, "JP Morgan Chase had us excluded on a technicality and we voluntarily withdrew at American Express and Ford after sufficient progress had been made in addressing our concerns."
Earlier this year, a resolution authored by Strobhar was filed challenging Pfizer's use of human embryonic stem cells for research purposes. It asked them to abide by the Nuremburg Code, developed after the Nazi atrocities, which requires consent of the person being experimented on. Pfizer fought to keep the issue off the ballot. Unfortunately, the Securities & Exchange Commission agreed with Pfizer that slicing and dicing the smallest of humans was "ordinary business" and hence unsuitable for shareholder action.
Although not every resolution will make the ballot, Strobhar believes every attempt to draw attention to the sanctity of life is valuable. Throughout the years, resolutions he drafted have appeared at AT&T, Berkshire Hathaway, Bank of America, General Mills, Microsoft and many other major American corporations.
"The bigger issue," Strobhar said, "is where are my Catholic brothers and sisters, especially of the religious variety? They have the time, talent and energy, but they don't have the heart to speak out when it comes to abortion. It is most unfortunate."
To learn more about Pro Vita Advisors, please visit www.provitaadvisors.com
Soles4Souls Inc. Set to Celebrate 'Barefoot Sunday' on June 1
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07212.shtml
NASHVILLE, (christiansunite.com) -- Bellevue Community Church announced this week that it has joined hundreds of other churches in supporting Barefoot Sunday, a grassroots campaign launched by international shoe charity Soles4Souls(TM) Inc. Soles4Souls, based in Nashville, collects and distributes new and gently worn shoes to underprivileged people in the United States and around the world.
June 1 is Barefoot Sunday, the first of seven celebrated days of National Barefoot Week. Barefoot Week was created to encourage more people to participate in the shoe charity's series of "barefoot" events, such as walkathons, marathons, concerts, and retail trade-in events, held each year during the first week of June.
Barefoot Sunday aims to help the over 300 million children around the world who don't own a single pair of shoes. It is a unique opportunity to encourage congregations to take off their shoes and walk out of worship services barefoot. Hundreds of organizations across the United States have invited members to leave their shoes on the altar in order to demonstrate God's love to hurting people across the world with the gift of footwear. The process is simple; the message from the service will have lasting effects.
Bellevue Community Church's senior pastor, David Perez, notes that Barefoot Sunday is the type of grassroots campaign that his congregation will support in a major way. "The people at this church have huge hearts for missions and making a tangible difference in someone's life," Perez said. "Shoes are a simple commodity that we all take for granted, and by donating the shoes right off our feet, we hope to inspire our community to get involved in helping less fortunate people in our community, as well as around the world."
"Hundreds of thousands of compassionate church members-like the ones at Bellevue Community Church-are helping transform our charity's goals into reality," said Wayne Elsey, Founder and CEO of Soles4Souls. "Raising awareness is a good thing, but for people to truly 'own' our charity, we need to give them chances to personally participate in our mission, and Barefoot Week is designed to do that," Elsey said.
This touching event will not only leave a mark on the heart of the entire congregation, but it also helps Soles4Souls continue their mission of "Changing the World One Pair at a Time.(TM)"
During this year's Barefoot Week, the charity will donate more than 325,000 pairs of new shoes to needy people in five cities: New Orleans, Atlanta, Miami, Chicago and Taylor, Arizona (Indian Reservation).
To learn more about Barefoot Sunday and the events planned for Barefoot Week 2008, visit www.soles4souls.org
More About Soles4Souls, Inc.
Nashville-based Soles4Souls facilitates the donations of footwear, which are used to aid the hurting worldwide. Soles4Souls has donated more than 3 million pairs of shoes since its inception (one pair of shoes every 28 seconds). The charity was recently featured on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams. Shoe companies, retailers, and individuals can donate both new and gently worn footwear. Soles4Souls is a 501(c)(3) recognized by the IRS; donating parties are eligible for tax advantages. For more information about Soles4Souls, please call (866) 521-SHOE, or visit www.giveshoes.org.
Anti-Semitism on the Rise in Europe
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/333648.aspx
CBNNews.com - If you don't think anti-Semitism is rising in Europe, look at the political cartoons.
A Greek cartoon suggests Israelis kill Christians on Easter. An Italian cartoon shows the baby Jesus worried that the Israelis are going to kill him again.
And then there are the cartoons that compare the Jews to the Nazis. It reminds Jews of another period: the 1930s, the time before the Holocaust.
History Repeating?
In Europe today, most Jews are at least anxious. Some are scared, and many have already left for Israel or the United States. Because even though many European governments have condemned the new rise in anti-Semitism, there is a clear perception among many Jews that Europe's terrible history is somehow coming back to life.
"Jewish communities around the world are under more pressure now than at any time since 1945," says Robert Wistrich of Hebrew University in Israel. Wistrich is the son of Polish Jews who fled the Holocaust. "Here we are 60 years after that and what lessons have been learned? Not enough."
A survey last year by the Anti-Defamation League of five European countries found that half of those questioned believe Jews are more loyal to Israel than the countries in which they live. That was what the Nazis believed.
And almost half of Europeans surveyed also said Jews "probably" have too much control of international finance. That was another Nazi view.
Almost half also believe that Jews control U.S. Middle East policy. The Nazis would have agreed.
The editor of Der Sturmer, Julius Streicher wrote in 1944: "The Jews have made America what it is today: a nation…forced into helping the Jews achieve world domination!"
Manfred Gerstenfeld, a leading Holocaust expert, says the constant demonization of Israel by the European media and the European left has helped create what he calls a "new anti-Semitism" against the "collective Jew"; that is, Israel and Zionism.
"All studies show that Anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism almost entirely overlap," he said. "Now, of course, it is very bad to say you are against the Jews after the Holocaust, so you have a found an escape clause to be against the Jews without saying you are against the Jews. And you say I am against Israel, applying standards to Israel that you do not apply to any other nation."
University of Michigan Professor Andrei Markovits, author of Uncouth Nation adds: "Criticizing Israel, Israeli policy, certainly is not Anti-Semitic. Criticizing Israel the State is not Anti-Semitic. But when you bring in old anti-Semitic tropes to criticize Israel or to depict Israel as the murderer of God, as the blood libel, showing them as Nazis; that is anti-Semitic."
And Markovits, a self-described progressive or leftist, says hatred of Israel is now a core principle for many on the Left. At anti-Israel protests, you'll see radical Muslims and Leftists both expressing, not only anti-Israel messages, but anti-Semitic messages, too.
This political cartoon from the London Independent newspaper, showing what Jews claimed was an imitation of the ancient blood libel, won best political cartoon award in Britain. The same cartoon later showed up in a rally by radical Muslims in the Middle East.
"The terrorists have allies in European society," Gerstenfeld said. "In the media. In the NGO's, on academia, among leftwing politicians."
The leftist mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, said he's against anti-Semitism. But he has also said that anyone who goes to kill Israeli soldiers is not a terrorist. And a onetime member of the British parliament, Jenny Tonge, said if she were a Palestinian, she would consider being a suicide bomber.
Distorted Media Coverage
Throughout Europe, distorted and one-sided news coverage has created an Israel that is aggressive and evil.
"It's a demonization based on a radical detextualization, de-legitimization that's been going on," Melanie Phillips, a British conservative, says. "And if you're the averagely ignorant Brit, watching your TV, listening to your radio, you believe it. That's your world view."
In France, a court is deciding whether a government TV channel, France2, showed faked footage of the supposed death of a Palestinian boy, Mohammed al-Durah, during the second intifada in 2000, to make it look like he was killed by Israeli solders. When the judge ordered France2 to turn over all of its footage of the incident, it also showed the boy moving his arms and peering through his fingers after he was supposed to be dead.
But Muslim rage at the original France2 news story led to countless reprisals against Jews around the world. It was even mentioned by terrorists as a reason for the beheading Daniel Pearl.
Scott Jacobs at DemocracyBroadcastingNews.com says the France2 story "globally defames the Jewish nation, Israel, with a fabricated icon of hypocritical brutality and immorality; and criminalizes Jews and their State to justify pariah-punishment."
The EU says Muslims are responsible for half of all attacks on Jews in Europe. In France, Muslims outnumber Jews 10 to 1. Nidra Poller, an American writer and commentator in Paris, says the government and media are afraid of the Muslims.
"The French are using the Muslims, allowing the Muslims, to express this vicious and violent, murderous Jews hatred, and they get a free ride on their old fashioned anti-Semitism," Poller said. "The whole Lebanon war was shown from the Hezbollah point of view. Israel was the villain. And Hezbollah were the innocents who were suffering. So all the Muslims in France got another dose of Jew hatred."
And when Israel invaded Lebanon in 2006, anti-Semitic violence in Europe surged.
Surpising, But Not Unique
Anti-Semitism is by no means just a European phenomenon. But it is in Europe, the place of the Holocaust, where the return of anti-semitism is so surprising.
As a boy in the Netherlands, Manfred Gerstenfeld hid from the Nazis in an upstairs apartment. He may have never believed it could happen again. But he now believes Europe is re-living the 1930s.
"A senior Dutch politician told me a few months ago, 'Look, the Jews have to understand that in the Netherlands, they have no future,' he said.
In large part because Israel lost the media war in Europe long ago, and the Jews are still paying for it.
Israeli Police Question PM Olmert Again
http://www.newsmax.com/international/israel_olmert/2008/05/23/98387.html
JERUSALEM -- Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Friday was interrogated by police for a second time about corruption allegations that threaten his political survival and Israeli efforts for peace with Syria and the Palestinians.
The investigation is still in progress and no charges have been filed against Olmert. But detectives and state prosecutors are exploring the possibility he may have taken bribes, violated campaign funding laws and laundered money, police say.
National Fraud Squad investigators questioned the prime minister for an hour in his Jerusalem residence, said police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld. He would not disclose any details of the interrogation.
Meanwhile, a Jerusalem court delayed until Tuesday the deposition of the chief witness in the case. Police suspect Olmert illicitly took up to $500,000 in cash from the witness, American Jewish businessman Morris Talansky.
Olmert has acknowledged taking money from Talansky for political campaigns but said his campaign finances were the responsibility of a longtime confidant, Uri Messer, who was questioned again on Thursday. The Israeli leader has denied wrongdoing and vowed to resign if indicted.
The allegations span a 12-year period beginning in the 1990s when Olmert was mayor of Jerusalem and extending through his tenure as minister of industry and trade, which ended in 2006, police have said. Police have raided city hall and the ministry, carting away documents as part of their investigation.
Talansky insists he received nothing from Olmert in exchange for the money. But on Friday, police said investigators were examining allegations that when Olmert was trade minister, he asked an Israeli diplomat in a South American country to request assistance in promoting a technological project in which Talansky was a partner.
The Yediot Ahronot newspaper also has reported Talansky sought favors from Olmert on behalf of associates.
Police have said privately that Messer has given police documents and oral testimony that strengthen their suspicions that the money Olmert received was earmarked for his personal use _ and donated in expectation of future assistance.
Talansky had little to say on the new accusations, referring question to his lawyer, Jacques Chen.
But he dismissed as "nonsense" and "ridiculous" a Jerusalem Post newspaper report Friday citing a group of right-wing rabbis who said they pushed him to testify in the case to bring down Olmert. The rabbis are afraid Olmert will cede sovereignty over holy sites in east Jerusalem, the sector of the city the Palestinians want as a capital of a future state, the newspaper said.
Chen wasn't immediately available for comment Friday. Talansky has been questioned by police and was scheduled to testify under oath on Sunday but the court moved the date to Tuesday. Olmert's defense team had asked to put off the testimony for two weeks, saying it needed more time to prepare to cross-examine Talansky, Israeli media reported.
Talansky would not say whether he would put off his scheduled return to the U.S. to testify.
Police last questioned the Olmert two weeks ago for an hour at his residence. The probe is the fifth into Olmert's conduct since he became prime minister two years ago. No charges have been filed, and one of the cases has been closed.
The investigations have led to demands that the already unpopular Olmert resign and called into question his ability to conclude a peace deal with the Palestinians or pursue recently confirmed peace talks with Syria.
Rabbis: We pushed Talansky to talk
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1211434084960&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
New York financier Morris Talansky, the witness at the center of the corruption scandal engulfing Ehud Olmert, was encouraged to come to Israel this spring and give evidence against the prime minister by a group of leading rightist Israeli rabbis who want to bring Olmert down for fear he will cede Jewish sovereignty over the Temple Mount and other parts of Jerusalem, a spokesman for the rabbis said Thursday.
Talansky acknowledged receiving a blessing from an important rabbi just before he was interrogated by the police, but firmly denies being encouraged to testify before coming to Israel.
Yehoshua Meiri, speaking to The Jerusalem Post on Thursday, said the Council of Torah and Kabbalah Sages, which he represents, gave Talansky "halachic approval" to disclose his financial contributions to Olmert in an Internet video conference held between the rabbis and an associate of Talansky six months ago.
"Talansky's appearance in Israel and police testimony was aimed at harming Olmert," Meiri said. "The only question was one of timing. When you have one shell left in your cannon, you have to decide when it's best to fire it."
The rabbis gave a second round of rabbinical encouragement directly to Talansky after he arrived here for Pessah last month, Meiri said.
"I received one blessing from Rabbi Haim Kanievsky," Talansky confirmed, but "there was no halachic decision - absolutely not."
Kanievsky is a leading haredi Lithuanian rabbi and heads the Council of Torah and Kabbalah Sages, which includes Rabbi Baruch Avraham Rakovsky of Jerusalem and Rabbi Shlomo Hamshalem of Beersheba, as well as rabbis from Judea and Samaria. The council was formed shortly after the death of the eminent Kabbalist Yitzhak Kaduri in January 2006.
"Talansky is a high-profile member of an Orthodox circle which supports the liberation of Jerusalem, meaning the buying up of real estate in the capital," said Meiri, a freelance journalist and one-time founder of the secularist Shinui Party who has since become religious.
"This circle had formed business links with Olmert - not for the purposes of corruption, but because they supported him ideologically," Meiri said. "But when Olmert announced during the Annapolis conference last November that he was prepared to relinquish parts of east Jerusalem and Jewish sovereignty over the Temple Mount, Olmert's Orthodox backers felt he had betrayed them. Suddenly, they had a fifth column in their midst."
Meiri added that once Talansky had landed in Israel, he again sought rabbinic blessing before speaking to police, since "he was about to harm another Jew. And he received that blessing."
Meiri described a paradigm shift in ultra-Orthodox thought in recent years on the issue of land. "There has been a big change toward the right-wing," he said.
Meanwhile, a team of National Fraud Unit detectives will fly to the US to discover the identity of other donors to Olmert, a number of sources said on Thursday.
A senior law enforcement official confirmed that police officers would head for the US shortly "as part of the investigation."
"They are not just on the trail of Talansky's money. They're looking for the other donors who gave to Olmert," a senior former police source said. "Talansky collected the cash of these additional donors [in addition to his own money] and transferred it to Olmert. Special bank accounts were created for this purpose, and credit card accounts were also used."
Olmert was due to be interrogated for around an hour on Friday morning, police said. It was to be the second round of questioning he has faced in connection with the investigation.
An hour is not enough time to glean much information, a former senior police officer said. "By the time they say good morning and caution him, 20 minutes will have passed," he said.
Uri Messer, Olmert's associate and former legal partner, was questioned again by the National Fraud Unit on Thursday, and his testimony will likely be read to Olmert on Friday by police, the source said.
"They will aim to confront Olmert with Messer's account of things to see how he will respond," he added.
A number of new details from the police investigation were released on Thursday after the media gag order on aspects of the case was lifted.
Copies of e-mails taken from the computer of Shula Zaken, Olmert's former bureau chief and long-time secretary, show how Zaken documented regular cash transfers from Talansky, whom she referred to as the "the laundry man."
"I received NIS 15,000 from the laundry man," Zaken wrote in one e-mail. "I transferred part of it to Ehud and the rest to Messer."
In total, $150,000 of Talansky's money was accounted for in seven of Zaken's e-mails recovered by the police.
Also on Thursday, reports said Talansky has paid for a number of Olmert's flights abroad as part of Olmert's "personal use" of Talansky's cash.
Tony Blair's Jet Comes Within Minutes of Being Shot Down by Israeli Fighter Planes
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,357623,00.html
Tony Blair came within moments of being killed when two Israeli fighter aircraft threatened to shoot down a private jet taking him to a Middle East conference in the belief that it might have been staging a terrorist attack.
The warplanes were scrambled to intercept after the jet pilot failed to contact air traffic control. Blair, the international community’s envoy to the Middle East, was flying from the World Economic Forum (WEF) summit in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh to attend a major conference on private investment in the Palestinian city of Bethlehem.
The Israeli aircraft used to intercept Blair’s plane would have been versions of the F16 or F15, armed with Shafrir and Python air-to-air missiles. Both missiles have proved to be devastatingly effective and versatile. The Shafrir 2 missile shot down nearly 100 aircraft in the 1973 Arab-Israeli war.
Air traffic controllers spotted a suspicious aircraft heading into Israeli airspace from the Sinai peninsula on Monday and made several attempts to establish contact. When the pilot failed to respond to their urgent requests, the Israelis scrambled two fighters to intercept what they feared could have been a terrorist attacker.
The fighters flew above Blair’s civilian aircraft to indicate to the pilot that he was considered a suspect target, at which point he finally made contact. The pilot told them that he was carrying Blair.
During the entire incident, Blair — flying with other delegates from the WEF, who were also attending the Bethlehem conference — was not informed of the situation by the pilot.
“They were unaware of it while they were on the plane,” Ruti Winterstein, spokeswoman for Blair’s office in Israel, said. “They didn’t hear about it until afterwards, from the media.”
Initial investigations into the events indicated a technical malfunction was to blame for the breakdown in communication, the Israeli newspaper Maariv said.
Hamas Declares 'Truce' Failed
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/379936.aspx
CBNNews.com - CAIRO, Egypt - A senior delegation of Hamas officials declared Wednesday that the Egyptian-brokered tadhiyah [temporary calm] failed because of "obstacles" Israel placed in the road.
On Tuesday, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak offered Hamas a two-tiered deal. In exchange for a cessation of Kasam rocket and mortar shell attacks, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) would halt its counter-terror operations in the Gaza Strip.
Following that, the release of captured IDF Corporal Gilad Shalit would precipitate opening the border crossings and lifting an economic embargo.
On Wednesday, the Hamas delegation, led by Mousa Abu Marzouk and Mahmoud al-Zahar, rejected Israel's offer.
"Israel wants a free truce," a Hamas official in Gaza said. "They don't want to offer anything in return. They want an end to rocket attacks in return for an end to their aggression," he said.
While Hamas demanded the immediate opening of the border crossings, Israel said the border crossings wouldn't reopen until a truce was in place and all the Palestinian the factions were observing it.
The release of Corporal Shalit is also a precondition of reopening the crossings.
"Israel's conditions are completely unacceptable," a senior Hamas official said. "These conditions are clearly aimed at foiling Egypt's [mediation] efforts."
Earlier, Hamas also rejected Israel's insistence that the reopening the Rafah border crossing with Egypt would be under a 2005 agreement, which gives security control to Palestinian Authority forces.
Israeli soldier wounded, 5 Palestinian gunmen killed assaulting Gaza border
http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=5291
An Israeli soldier was injured by Palestinian anti-tank fire on armored military vehicles operating in southern Gaza Friday, May 23. The Israel force has ended the operation and pulled back. Hamas gunmen also attacked an Israeli patrol at Kissufim. At least two gunmen were killed in the return fire. Two more were killed laying bomb charges in the same sector.
Israeli soldiers drove off a fourth armed band approaching the Sufa crossing with anti-tank rockets.
Thursday, Israeli soldiers used riot control measures to break up a rioting Gaza mob sent by Hamas to smash through the border fence at the Karni crossing. One Palestinian was killed and 17 wounded in the clash.
The incident followed a failed Palestinian attempt to send a suicide-driven truck loaded with 4.5 tons of explosives through the Erez crossing into Israel. It exploded on the Gaza side of the border causing extensive damage but no casualties. The destroyed crossing serves Palestinians entering Israel for hospital care.
Palestinian suicide truck packed with 4.5 tons explosives – most powerful ever – blows up outside Gaza-Israel crossing
http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=5290
DEBKAfile’s counter-terror sources report that the truck bomb containing 4.5 tons of explosives was the most powerful ever used against Israel - even in the darkest days of the Palestinian terrorist campaign. The explosion occurred early Thursday, May 22, on the Gaza side of the border, 50 meters short of the Erez crossing. It caused no Israeli casualties, but wrecked the border terminal, blasted a big hole in the border wall and shattered windows in Israel buildings. The bang was heard kilometers away. The truck bomb was followed by a group of Palestinian gunmen in a jeep.
DEBKAfile’s military sources report Israeli forces quickly roped off a large sector outside northern Gaza as a closed military zone, including Netiv Ha’asara and up to Kibbutz Yad Mordecai, to search for possible infiltrators. A second bomb vehicle heading out of northern Gaza was struck by the Israeli air force.
Mortar fire was directed simultaneously at the Sufa crossing to the south. The Palestinians kept up a hail of gunfire, which was returned by Israeli soldiers.
Jihad Islami and a Fatah faction claimed the attacks. Israel briefly closed the Sufa crossing through which the Gaza population has been supplied daily with basic commodities.
Overnight, Hamas announced that the truce talks taking place in Egypt for an informal ceasefire with Israel in the Gaza Strip had ended without results. The Hamas negotiators have returned to Damascus.
During the week, armed Palestinian buffeted the border fence in an effort to force Israel to climb down on its conditions for a ceasefire and demand the abducted soldier Gilead Shalit’s release be incorporated in the deal.
Hamas demanded the release of 350 jailed terrorists “with blood on their hands”, whereas Israel offered 72. Hamas sought the immediate end of the Gaza blockade, while Israel agreed to open the crossings after the truce took hold.
Qatari firm to invest in new W. Bank Palestinian town of 5,000 homes
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/985829.html
A Qatari company on Wednesday signed a $350 million deal with a Palestinian partner for building a new town in the West Bank, the first investment announced at a three-day investment conference.
The government-owned Qatar Diar Real Estate Investment Co. will put up two-thirds of the cost, and the Palestinian partner, Masar Company, will provide the rest.
The town, to be called Rawabi, will be the first planned community in the West Bank. It will be built near the city of Ramallah, north of Jerusalem.
The CEO of the Qatari company, Ghanim Bin Saad Saad Al Saad, told The Associated Press that his company will open an office in the West Bank and will get involved in additional projects.
Al Saad acknowledged the political risk of investing in the Palestinian economy but said that we have instructions from our government to start investing in the Palestinian territories and to support our brothers in Palestine.
The announcement was made at a joint news conference with Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.
"This is the first signed agreement of the conference," Fayyad said. "This is what the conference is all about, introducing opportunities, making deals."
Abbas: 'East Jerusalem must be returned'
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1211288137512
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday opened the Palestine Investment Conference in Bethlehem by declaring that east Jerusalem belonged to the Palestinian people and must be returned to them.
"East Jerusalem is ours and it's an occupied territory," Abbas said in his speech. "It must be returned."
The conference, the first of it kind in the PA, is aimed at boosting the Palestinian economy by encouraging local, Arab and international businessmen to invest in various projects.
More than 1,000 businessmen and politicians are attending the three-day conference, including some from Israel, the US and the EU.
The PA invested nearly half a million dollars in decorating the streets of the city and its surroundings ahead of the conference.
The deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Muhammad Bin Hamdan al-Nihayan, is heading his country's delegation to the conference. The delegation arrived aboard a Jordanian helicopter that landed near the Dheisheh refugee camp.
An Iraqi businessman who asked not to be identified is also among the participants.
About PA 2,000 policemen have been assigned to enforce law and order and guard the guests. Four hundred journalists are in Bethlehem to cover the conference, which has been described by PA officials as an "historic event."
Abbas told the conference that he would pursue his efforts to bridge the gap in the peace negotiations with Israel.
"We are holding serious and thorough talks with the Israelis with the hope of reaching an agreement before the end of this year," he said. "Our hands are extended to anyone who wants security and stability for this precious land."
There were "encouraging reports" from Cairo regarding Egypt's efforts to achieve a truce between the Palestinians and Israel, Abbas said. He also welcomed reports about the launching of negotiations between Israel and Syria and the agreement reached Wednesday between the Lebanese government and Hizbullah.
Abbas urged Hamas to end its control of the Gaza Strip, saying he was prepared to hold early presidential and parliamentary elections soon after that happened.
Hassan Abu Libdeh, executive director of the conference, sounded optimistic as he talked to reporters. He said that a Saudi company has agreed to invest in a $250 million construction project in the West Bank.
He said the project would include office and apartment buildings, as well as malls and a hotel in Bireh, adjoining Ramallah.
Altogether, the Palestinians are hoping to attract during the conference some $2 billion in investment. Several Palestinian businessmen attending the conference expressed hope that Israel would ease travel restrictions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip so as to encourage investors.
Misers No More? Saudi Arabia Pledges $500 Million to World Food Program
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,357642,00.html
Two weeks after a FOX News investigation showed oil-rich Saudia Arabia had donated nothing this year to help the United Nations World Food Program feed the world's hungry, the globe's number one oil exporter is finally opening its checkbook.
The United Nations this morning told FOX that the Saudis have pledged WFP a whopping $500 million in response to the urgent WFP appeal in early April for $775 million to help it cope with a crisis caused by lower international grain stocks and rising energy costs. According to WFP that threatened to put at least 100 million more people around the world on the edge of starvation.
The Saudi pledge came two weeks after FOX revealed, based on WFP donor records, that Saudi Arabia had given nothing at all to the food agency this year, despite spiraling oil prices that had brought on the food crisis.
All of OPEC — the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries — had collectively given just $1.5 million, or about 1 minute and 10 seconds worth of OPEC's 2007 oil revenues, FOX disclosed.
Those revenues will be vastly greater this year due to even sharper oil-price hikes.
'Solana in advanced talks with Iran'
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=56796§ionid=351020104
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband says the EU Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana is in "advanced discussions" with Iranian officials.
Speaking at a news conference with the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Wednesday, Miliband added that Iran and the EU are discussing when and where the new package of incentives could be presented to Iran, Reuters reported.
The permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany (P5+1) have declared that they have worked out a new package of incentives which aims at persuading Iran to suspend its enrichment program.
"The offer will make clear that there are substantial benefits for the Iranian people from an Iran which fulfills its responsibilities to the international community," Miliband said.
"Iran has always asked that its rights be properly respected and our position jointly has always been that as long as Iran exercises responsibilities, it will be able to forge a more productive and positive relationship with the international community," he said.
Iran is a member of the IAEA and a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) which entitles it the right to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes.
Tehran has repeatedly stated that its nuclear program is peaceful and for generating electricity. The Islamic Republic says it will not review any proposal that calls for suspension of its enrichment program.
Hindu nationalists attack nuns in India
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/hindu.nationalists.attack.nuns.in.india/18988.htm
Around 40 Hindu nationalists attacked the Novitiate of the Presentation Sisters convent in India earlier this month, assaulting two of its nuns.
The group forced its way into the convent, in Gondarmug village in Madhya Pradesh, on May 15 with hockey sticks, cricket bats and stones before vandalising the building.
According to the Rev Dr Richard Howell, General Secretary of the Evangelical Fellowship of India, the group shouted at the sisters saying, “We are Hindus and we do not want you here.”
They then assaulted two sisters, trying to lock one of them into a room. The sisters managed to escape from them and lodged a complaint with police against the unidentified attackers at Gandhi Nagar Police Station, Bhopal.
The National Minority Commission has taken up the complaint and promised to take appropriate action.
The convent has been working for underprivileged people in the local community for the last six years.
Investigation Officer Inspector Jha told the Evangelical Fellowship of India that 13 people have been arrested and sent to the Bhopal Central Jail. Nine of them have been released on bail.
Dr Howell appealed for prayers. “Kindly pray for Gods protection on Novitiate of the Presentation Sisters and also for the justice to be granted to the sisters,” he said.
China, Russia Condemn U.S. Missile Defense
http://www.newsmax.com/international/china_russia/2008/05/23/98414.html
BEIJING -- The presidents of China and Russia have condemned a U.S. plan for a global missile defense system.
Chinese President Hu Jintao and new Russian President Dmitry Medvedev say in a joint statement that the plan "does not help to maintain strategic balance and stability or strengthen international efforts to control nonproliferation."
Medvedev arrived Friday in Beijing on his first overseas trip since his inauguration this month. Moscow and Beijing have formed closer ties in recent years as part of their efforts to counterbalance Washington's global dominance.
Earlier, Hu Jintao thanked Russia's new president for offering speedy aid after last week's powerful earthquake, as the two began meetings Friday to bolster their partnership with expanded nuclear cooperation.
The trip is Dmitry Medvedev's first since his inauguration earlier this month as the hand-picked successor to Vladimir Putin, underscoring the importance the two countries place on a relationship that both see as a counterbalance to U.S. dominance. But continued friction between the neighboring giants remains -- especially over oil and gas in Central Asia.
At the start of their talks, Hu thanked both Medvedev and Putin -- now prime minister -- for assistance offered after the May 12 quake that struck central China. Russia sent rescue crews and a mobile hospital to the disaster area in central Sichuan province.
"Your visit to China is very important and will allow us to not only preserve but to advance all the good undertakings we have had," Hu said. "We are sure that it will give a powerful impulse to the development of strategic partnership and cooperation."
Medvedev offered his condolences to quake victims and relatives of more than 55,000 dead.
"Russia is ready to provide all the necessary assistance and aid to our Chinese friends," he said. "You must have no doubt that we will do everything necessary."
The two leaders' talks were to conclude later Friday with a series of agreements including a $1 billion deal on Russian help building a uranium enrichment facility for electricity generation and regular shipments of low-enriched uranium to China.
"We are ready to conduct general dialogue on all aspects of our strategic partnership," Medvedev said.
Medvedev's came to China from a stop in neighboring Kazakhstan, where he was seeking to preserve his country's clout in energy-rich central Asia and send a message to both Beijing and the West that Moscow continues to see the region as its home turf.
China already has won a cut of the region's riches, reaching an oil pipeline deal with Kazakhstan and negotiating a gas agreement with Turkmenistan.
There is also rich symbolism in Medvedev's choice of China as the main destination of his first foreign trip. When his predecessor Putin went abroad for the first time as president in 2000, he traveled to London _ via Belarus _ with a message Russia wanted closer ties to the West.
In recent years, China and Russia have made highly symbolic political overtures to one another, holding joint military maneuvers and engaging in high-level talks on creating a "multi-polar world."
They have taken a coordinated stance on several global issues, sharing opposition to Kosovo's independence and U.S. missile defense plans, and taking a similar approach to the Iran nuclear issue.
Putin greatly strengthened relations with China, reaching a long-delayed agreement on demarcation of the 2,700 mile border.
However, economic ties have lagged behind. Bilateral trade rose by about one-third last year to $48 billion, but still accounts for only 2 percent of China's global trade. China does more than eight times as much business with the United States.
China, Russia Sign $1B Nuke Deal, Condemn U.S. Missile Defense Plans
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,357523,00.html
BEIJING — China and Russia signed a $1 billion nuclear cooperation deal Friday and stood together in firm opposition to U.S. missile defense plans during new Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's first overseas trip.
Chinese President Hu Jintao also thanked Russia for offering speedy aid after last week's powerful earthquake in central China, part of the growing relations between the countries forged as a counterbalance to American dominance.
The nuclear deal strengthens Russia's role as a supplier to China's fast-growing nuclear power industry, and calls for Russia to build a $500 million nuclear fuel enrichment plant and supply semi-enriched uranium worth at least $500 million.
Russia is looking to China as an important market for civilian nuclear technology as Beijing builds more nuclear power plants in an effort to curb rapid growth in use of fossil fuels.
The two leaders also signed a joint statement saying a U.S. plan to create and deploy a global missile defense system "does not help to maintain strategic balance and stability or strengthen international efforts to control nonproliferation." They also rejected any new arms race in space.
Hu began the talks by expressing gratitude to both Medvedev and his predecessor Vladimir Putin — now prime minister — for assistance offered after the May 12 quake that killed more than 55,000 people.
Russia sent rescue crews and a mobile hospital to the disaster area in central Sichuan province.
"By visiting China on his first trip abroad since taking office, President Medvedev has shown that he attaches a high level of importance to the development of bilateral ties," Hu said. "I am sure this visit will give impetus to our strategic partnership and take it to a new level."
Medvedev offered his condolences to quake victims and said Moscow would provide any assistance needed.
"Russia and China are strategic partners. You have rightly pointed out the meaning of my first foreign trip in my capacity," he said. "It is very important that there are no pauses in our relationship."
Medvedev came to China from a stop in neighboring Kazakhstan, where he was seeking to preserve his country's clout in energy-rich central Asia and send a message to both Beijing and the West that Moscow continues to see the region as its home turf.
China already has won a cut of the region's riches, reaching an oil pipeline deal with Kazakhstan and negotiating a gas agreement with Turkmenistan.
There is also rich symbolism in Medvedev's choice of China as the main destination of his first foreign trip. When his predecessor Putin went abroad for the first time as president in 2000, he traveled to London — via Belarus — with a message Russia wanted closer ties to the West.
In recent years, China and Russia have made highly symbolic political overtures to one another, holding joint military maneuvers and engaging in high-level talks on creating a "multi-polar world."
Putin greatly strengthened relations with China, reaching a long-delayed agreement on demarcation of the 2,700 mile border.
However, economic ties have lagged. Bilateral trade rose by about one-third last year to some $48 billion, but still accounts for only 2 percent of China's global trade. China does more than eight times as much business with the United States.
Burmese Government Continues To Deny Cyclone Relief Aid to Karen Christians
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07211.shtml
SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich., (christiansunite.com) -- As thousands of cyclone survivors cling to life in Burma, disturbing new reports about the military's distribution of relief aid are surfacing from the devastated region.
Residents in the Irawaddy Delta, which bore the brunt of the cyclone that tore through the country on May 3, 2008, are now claiming that the Burmese military is diverting aid from areas heavily populated by ethnic Karen villagers -- a claim consistent with the government's longstanding history of discriminatory practices against the Karen, the largest and mostly Christian minority ethnic group in the country.
In certain rural areas, reports also reveal that the military's setup of strategically placed checkpoints is not only intended to block the passage of journalists and foreign aid workers, but to prevent relief aid from reaching Karen villagers in desperate need of help. It is also believed that the forced relocation of storm- affected victims into consolidated population centers -- a practice typically enforced in Karen State -- is part of the junta's effort to increase civilian control, rather than for the benefit of the country's affected population.
Cyclone Nargis, one of the worst storms to hit Southeast Asia since 1991, has taken the lives of over 38,000 victims in Burma, with the death toll still climbing. Thousands of survivors continue to remain homeless, with little or no access to food, clean drinking water or medical supplies, nearly one week after the storm blew through the region at 120 miles per hour. Despite widespread condemnation for its refusal to accept outside humanitarian assistance, Burma's government continues to tighten access to the disaster zone, even as its citizens face the risk of severe famine and disease outbreaks of unprecedented proportions. The situation has caused U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon to call an emergency meeting with representatives from various countries, in an effort to address the escalating crisis and the rising urgency for worldwide intervention.
As pressure from the international community continues to rise against the junta, a Michigan-based humanitarian organization is already slipping aid past Burma's restricted borders. Christian Freedom International (CFI), an organization that has established numerous humanitarian projects in Burma on behalf of the persecuted Karen, has begun wiring donated funds for relief aid into the country through its network of underground house churches. CFI's team of indigenous backpack medics, who typically assist sick and injured Karen refugees hiding in the mountains or jungles, have also been dispatched into remote areas to help treat ailing cyclone victims.
For more information about CFI's relief effort in Burma, call 1-800-323-2273 or visit www.christianfreedom.org.
GFA Relief Shipment Received in Yangon
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07216.shtml
CARROLLTON, Texas, (christiansunite.com) -- Gospel for Asia's first shipment of cyclone relief supplies has arrived in Myanmar (Burma) and has been received by GFA/Believers Church officials.
"Because of our previous service to the nation in times of such need, our national leader has a good reputation among government leaders, and the local churches are held in high regard," explained GFA President and Founder K.P. Yohannan. "As a result, the government has agreed to allow GFA/Believers Church to not only bring in supplies, but also to make sure they reach the people who are in such desperate need."
Even though there have been several reports in the international media of aid materials being diverted, GFA has been assured that these will get to those in need.
In addition to the medical supplies that were flown into the Yangon (Rangoon) airport, GFA/Believers Church is also shipping food to the disaster-struck nation.
"Please pray that all of these supplies will get into the hands of the people who need them the most," Yohannan pleaded. "I also ask that Christians offer prayer that the government leaders will give greater freedom to help the hurting in remote areas."
In what he described as a near-miracle, the Myanmar government has also given special permission to GFA/Believers Church to open medical clinics in its church compounds.
"This is a very unusual situation," Yohannan said, "and it is good because we have 400 churches in Burma, and many are in the most affected areas. Of course we cannot minister to everyone who is suffering as a result of this disaster, but we will do everything we can to help everyone we can."
Yohannan said the most pressing need at these clinics is for trained medical personnel
"I am asking people to pray that God would lead us to Burmese doctors and nurses who are already in the country, since so far the government has not allowed outsiders to come in and work," Yohannan said.
Yohannan also revealed that the GFA/Believers Church leader in Myanmar has asked to open an orphanage to care for more than 90 children now in his church's temporary care.
"Could you please allow us to pick up the pitiful children who have lost their parents in the cyclone," he pleaded. "They have no families and are completely alone."
Yohannan said permission had been granted and that the children will be cared for.
GFA workers have been actively involved in the relief effort since a few hours after Cyclone Nargis hit Myanmar in the predawn hours of May 3. The work started in the GFA Bible college in Rangoon, where people sought shelter in the badly damaged, but still usable, buildings. A few days later, GFA workers spread their efforts to other parts of the storm-ravaged country.
The Bible college is still being utilized as a shelter. A portable generator there has made it possible to draw clean, fresh water out of the campus well. The water is being bottled and distributed to those who so desperately need it. At night, the missionaries are using portable projectors to show an Indian-made film about Jesus.
Missionaries are focusing their attention on the two major needs of the people.
"The people are asking for water to drink and rice to eat. Starvation is the major problem right now," Yohannan said.
GFA/Believers Church has additional medical and food shipments on the way to the country, and more than 300 students from GFA's Bible colleges, along with missionaries and volunteers, are mobilized to get food and clothing to the storm survivors.
News reports from inside Myanmar put the death toll at 38,491. The United Nations estimates that more than 60,000 people perished because of the storm. The International Red Cross says the dead could number as high as 127,900.
"No matter what the official number is, we must remember that each of these people was a soul precious to God. In the same manner, we must continue to help the millions of survivors. They need to hear that they are beautiful in God's eyes," Yohannan said.
Weather-related troubles may not be over for the people of Myanmar. Heavy rains have been falling on the country for several days and the annual monsoon season is just a few weeks away.
The foul weather may complicate the distribution of some emergency supplies, but it will not be cause for the relief efforts to stop. GFA's 500 native missionaries in Myanmar will continue to serve their fellow countrymen, long after the crisis disappears from the headlines.
"Rebuilding Myanmar could take years. And since our missionaries, churches and Bible college students are indigenous, they are there for the long haul," Yohannan said.
Gospel for Asia is an evangelical mission organization based in Carrollton, Texas involved in sharing the love of Jesus across South Asia.
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