'Pray for Obama' sign stirs controversy over Biblical verse | kens5.com San Antonio

'Pray for Obama' sign stirs controversy over Biblical verse | kens5.com San Antonio

'Pray for Obama' sign stirs controversy over Biblical verse

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by James Muñoz / KENS 5

Bio | Email | Follow: @americasjim

Posted on August 30, 2012 at 5:30 PM

Updated Thursday, Aug 30 at 6:21 PM

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VICTORIA, Tx. -- The Secret Service is looking into a sign posted in Victoria, Texas.

The sign says "Pray for Obama", but it's the scripture quoted below those words that is raising eyebrows: Psalms 109:8.

Psalms 109:8 reads, "Let his days be few, and let another take his office."

Milton Neitsch  Jr., who has lived in Victoria since 1961,  says he didn't intend for people to pick up on the hateful wishes of death and pain surrounding the tiny verse.

But some people say it is hateful and inappropriate. They say it misuses the holy scripture and it must come down.

Neitsch  recently received an email from a friend and decided to post it on his advertising billboard along North Navarro Street. He had no idea the firestorm of controversy it would create.

"Pray for the president. He needs it," said Neitsch.

When asked what the sign means, Neitsch responded, "Exactly what it says. Hope he's gone soon and somebody different takes his place."

Reverend Amy Danchik started a petition demanding Neitsch take down the sign. They've since met and Neitsch and agreed to replace the billboard.

"He shared with me a little about some of the threats that have come at his family, which is incredibly inappropriate, and in no way helpful and in no way how we're called to react  when we disagree with somebody," said Danchik. "So I hope that those stop. I hope that people will react with the graciousness that he has reacted with and leave his family alone."

Neitsch says he is also getting plenty of support. He said he might replace the sign with something like, "Vote for the American", a sign that would no doubt stir emotion, while leaving the word of God to the experts.

Code enforcement  in the City of Victoria says they don't review the content of signs. They said they would only get involved if the sign affected traffic.

Following Judah's Lion: You Must be Born Again

Following Judah's Lion: You Must be Born Again

Saturday, September 01, 2012

You Must be Born Again

YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN

Jn.3: There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.
3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?
10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?
11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?
13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Several decades ago the phrase “born again” fell out of favor in evangelical parlance. When I became Christian I was intrigued by the term, and Chuck Colson had written a book entitled “Born Again”. I began to read that book and I listened to his interview about the book and his life. I saw some bumper stickers that said born again, and I heard Billy Graham use that term. Born again. I had never heard the term in the mainline Lutheran church in which I had been raised. Again, I was intrigued.

When I heard those words I thought they had been cleverly put together by someone who wanted to describe the salvation experience. I had no idea it was in the Bible. And in 1975 I had never heard someone say “I am saved”. That term has also fallen off the evangelical cliff. We seem to have become way too sophisticated for archaic terms like that. I mean who wants to be viewed as a radical? Who wants to be ostracized and treated like a nut? Like my atheistic aunt, who I loved, used to tell me, “It’s all right to be religious, just don’t become a fanatic!”

But Nicodemus asked the natural question. “How can these things be?” You see, the natural mind does not mind being religious, it just resists being spiritual. And everyone understands a birth in the flesh. Many have seen a natural birth on television and some have even filmed their children’s birth. That kind of birth is universally understood. But when you delve into the spiritual, and when you connect the Spirit of God with the word “birth”, well now you have left the religious crowd behind. Yes, intriguing isn’t it?

But we hear all kinds of terms that are used today. Church member, Christian, Baptist, Catholic, and even believer are used most often to describe someone who professes Christ or some form of the Christian faith. These terms are way less offensive and radical than being called “born again“. But curiously that term was not invented by some theologian or by some radical sect of Christianity. No, it came from the lips of Jesus Himself, and it caused Nicodemus some confusion. Let’s face it, Nicodemus was a seeker and instead of Jesus rearranging His verbiage so as not to scare Nicodemus off, Jesus addressed him straight forward with penetrating words of truth.

Being born again is the non-negotiable essence of what it means to be a true disciple of Jesus. In fact, without being born again no man will see the kingdom of God. Would that qualify to be most important within church teaching? But even if someone does use the term born again in a sermon, it is usually emasculated and presented as an insipid religious term but without the profound nature of its eternal truth. The born again experience is what transforms a sinner and translates him from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of God’s dear Son. Without that divine experience you are just a religious person who stands in need of being born again.

Let us make an observation. It would make sense that anyone who experienced such a thing would know it, right? I mean if you were walking in darkness and suddenly someone turned on a light, you would know it. I realize children are taught to say the sinner’s prayer at a very young age, and many adults testify that they were saved at that young age. Some surely were. But many children feel coerced into following what their parents tell them or what the other children are doing. And sadly we have many children who were systematically led in the sinner’s prayer, baptized, and continued to attend church and Sunday School.

But many of these children show no spiritual fruit as they grow older, and many drop away from church or anything remotely Christian. What happened? They had been told over and over again that they were saved. In fact, the church has become very proficient at convincing people that they are saved even when no one really knows who is actually saved or not. But is it that easy that a sinner can believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved in the space of a few moments? Yes, it is that easy. But be aware, it is also very easy to go through the motions and not be born again.

It is altogether possible that millions of people inhabit evangelical pews and have church member credentials without ever being born again. That is an incredible tragedy and it exposes the modern church as shallow and interested in growth and money rather than souls. While the church gatherings should not be designed for evangelism, the gospel itself should always be a mainstay. But instead of laboring to minister to people in a deep and scriptural way, the evangelical church operates in an assembly fashion where sinners are rushed to make a decision before they can even pause to think about it. The church is now constructed like a business. "Close the deal" is a borrowed mantra. But if you have been truly born again, you cannot help but realize that is what all sinners need.

But no one can see eternal life without being born again. And if that is at the very heart of redemption, why is there so little emphasis on it? It is a pathetic reality that as the mega churches expand, and as Christian television gains more and more stations, that the true gospel is being systematically diluted until for all practical purposes it has been eliminated. Morality and politics and nationalism have replaced the everlasting gospel. Instead of having the born again experience, now people must be pro-life and anti-gay marriage and anti-gay agenda. But how many evangelical “conservatives” live without being born again of the Spirit of God?

I said,

"How many evangelical “conservatives” live without being born again of the Spirit of God?"

The church has been lured away from the life of Christ and been led into a life defined by the culture with a sprinkling of religious terms but an embarrassing little amount of the everlasting gospel. When the national culture invites you to have a seat at the table of secular maneuverings, well you can be assured that the gospel has been quenched. I can remember when Jimmy Carter of all people said he was born again. But regardless of how his life and views substantiate that claim, when do men running for office boldly say that anymore?

But when you are born again you cannot help but be eternally grateful to the Lord Jesus. And if you were at least a teenager you can remember walking in utter darkness and you can well remember your eyes being spiritually opened. But if you just “phased in” to being a Christian I would be very suspicious. I realize that in today’s church we accept the most tepid and timid profession of faith as authentic. And if that person gets baptized and joins the church he is considered rock solid. But I have seen many people who meet those requirements but who have no observable interest in spiritual things. Let us be frank with each other. How many evangelical church members go through the religious motions, and there are even different levels of those motions?

But to be born again does not mean you become perfect. It does not even guarantee earthly success. It does not even mean you will never have some bouts of depression. But what it does mean is that regardless of what happens, you can never deny or forget what Christ did for you. And upon your death bed, just before you breathe in your last breath, you can go to be with Christ with a knowledge of your own gracious redemption. And just before you go, turn to the nurses and doctors and say with a weak but confident voice, “You must be born again.”

EU declaration on One World Religion of good works « News that matters

EU declaration on One World Religion of good works « News that matters

EU declaration on One World Religion of good works

Following is the full text of the Declaration on Interfaith and Intercultural Dialogue signed by the European leaders in the presence of His Majesty King Abdullah.

King Abdullah of Jordan and EU Presient Barosso forms a New One World Religion.

Noting that approximately 55 per cent of the world’s population is either Christian or Muslim; and that perhaps 80 per cent of the world’s population is either Christian, Muslim, Jew, Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist or Confucian.
Concerned about the ever-renewed tensions between adherents of different religions and in particular between Christians, Muslims and Jews.
Realising the impossibility of true peace and harmony in the world without harmonious relations and understanding between adherents of the world’s religions.
Mindful of the possibility of misusing, “cherry-picking” and citing out of context selected quotations from any Scripture to increase religious tension, hatred and violence.
Appreciating the efforts of His Majesty King Abdullah II Ben Al Hussein of Jordan in launching the historic Amman Message in November 2004 and in particular the unanimous international Islamic Consensus on its “Three Points” which proved and reestablished the fallacy of illegitimate and unqualified fatwas calling for hostility and aggression in Islam and, in the words of the late Grand Imam and Sheikh Al Azhar Professor Dr Muhammad Sayyid Tantawi, constitute:
“The best resource for all those who wish to travel along the straight path in their words and in their actions, and in their spiritual and religious life.”
Acknowledging that despite the many irresolvable and unbridgeable theological and religious differences and disagreements between Judaism, Christianity and Islam, there is nevertheless a central and essential common ground of faith, hope and love between these three monotheistic and Abrahamic religions.
As proposed by the historic A Common Word Open Letter of October 13th 2007 – in the greatest Two Commandments of Love of God and Love of the Neighbour (Matthew 22:34-40 and Mark 12:29-31), however differently they be understood.

The Italian Pope and the British Pope deny the cross.

Echoing the words of His Holiness Pope Benedict at the King Al Hussein Ben Talal Mosque in Amman, Jordan, on Saturday, 9 May 2009, when His Holiness said:
“Of great merit too are the numerous initiatives of inter-religious dialogue supported by the Royal family [of Jordan]… and the more recent Common Word letter which echoed a theme consonant with my first encyclical:
The unbreakable bond between love of God and love of neighbour, and the fundamental contradiction of resorting to violence or exclusion in the name of God (cf. Deus Caritas Est, 16).”
And likewise the words of His Grace Dr. Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury in 2010:
“The appearance of the A Common Word [Open Letter] of 2007 was a landmark in Muslim-Christian relations and it has a unique role in stimulating a discussion at the deepest level across the world.”
Believing, moreover, that all the peoples of the world are bound together not only by their common humanity and their common planet Earth, but also by either Love of God and Love of the Neighbour or Love of the Good and Love of the Neighbour.
Supporting United Nations General Assembly Resolution A/65/PV.34 of October 20th 2010 establishing a voluntary World Interfaith Harmony Week as proposed by His Majesty King Abdullah II Ben Al Hussein of Jordan on September 23rd 2010 at the United Nations General Assembly, and calling for:
“The world’s people, in their own places of worship, could express the teachings of their own faiths about tolerance, respect for the other, and peace.”
Hoping that observance of the World Interfaith Harmony Week will prove to be, in the words of His Grace Bishop Munib Yunan, president of World Federation of Evangelical Lutheran Churches and the Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem and the Holy Land, His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilus III:
“An integrated international renaissance of spirit and intellect to save the world from the scourge of sectarian tensions, consequent communal violence and hatred.”
Call upon all governments, peoples and religions of the world to – in the words of the A Common Word Open Letter:
“Let our differences not cause hatred and strife between us. Let us vie with each other only in righteousness and good works. Let us respect each other, be fair, just and kind to one another and live in sincere peace, harmony and mutual goodwill.”
16 December 2010
European People’s Party Summit
Castle of Bouchout
Meise
Belgium
On behalf of the European People’s Party Presidency
EPP President Wilfried Martens,
In the presence of His Majesty. King Abdullah II Ben Al Hussein of Jordan
In the presence of the following EPP leaders:
Wilfried MARTENS, EPP President

A Roman Catholic EU-top deny the cross.

Jose Manuel BARROSO, President, European Commission
Jerzy BUZEK, President, European Parliament
Herman VAN ROMPUY, President, European Council
Traian BASESCU, President (Romania)

The PM of Italy do not belive only Jesus can save.

Silvio BERLUSCONI, Prime Minister (Italy)
Boyko BORISSOV,Prime Minister (Bulgaria)
Valdis DOMBROVSKIS, Prime Minister (Latvia)
Lawrence GONZI, Prime Minister (Malta)
Jean-Claude JUNCKER,Prime Minister (Luxembourg)

The German leader believe there is salvation in good works.

Angela MERKEL,Federal Chancellor (Germany)
Viktor ORBAN,Prime Minister (Hungary)

The PM of Sweden believe in peace without the Prince of Peace.

Fredrik REINFELDT Prime Minister (Sweden)
Iveta RADICOVA,Prime Minister (Slovakia)
Jyrki KATAINEN,Deputy Prime Minister (Finland)
Maxime VERHAGEN,Deputy Prime Minister (Netherlands)
Nicos  ANASTASIADES, Opposition leader (Cyprus)
Janez JANSA,Opposition leader (Slovenia)
Enda KENNY,Opposition leader (Ireland)
Mariano RAJOY,Opposition leader (Spain)
Antonis SAMARAS,Opposition leader (Greece)
Michel BARNIER,EPP Vice President, UMP (France)
Mario DAVID,EPP Vice President, PSD (Portugal)
Peter HINTZE,EPP Vice President, CDU (Germany)
Rumiana JELEVAEPP Vice President, GERB (Bulgaria)
Jacek SARYUSZ-WOLSKI,EPP Vice President, PO (Poland)
Antonio TAJANI,EPP Vice President, PDL (Italy)
Corien WORTMANN-KOOL,EPP Vice President, CDA (Netherlands)
Ingo FRIEDRICHEPP Treasurer, CSU (Germany)
Antonio LOPEZ-ISTURIZ,EPP Secretary General, PP (Spain)
Karel SCHWARZENBERG,Deputy Prime Minister (Czech)
Mikheil SAAKASHVILIPresident (Georgia)
Sali BERISHA,Prime Minister (Albania)
Nikola GRUEVSKI,Prime Minister (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia)
Jadranka KOSOR,Prime Minister (Croatia)
Bakir IZETBEGOVIC, Bosnia Member of the Presidency of BiH (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Alaksandar MILINKIEVIC,Opposition Leader (Belarus)
Vlad FILAT,Prime Minister (Maldova)
First published: 18.12.2010
Source: Jordan Times.

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This entry was posted on Saturday, September 1st, 2012 at 7:31 am and is filed under endtimes, One World Religion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackbackfrom your own site.

Russian polar-cap grab raises concerns

Russian polar-cap grab raises concerns

wnd.com

WASHINGTON – Watch for the Russians to go after some of the world’s largest oil reserves near the Arctic Circle as the sea ice thaws and the Russians use a former nuclear submarine base at Severodvinsk on the White Sea to build oil drilling platforms, according to a report in Joseph Farah’s G2 Bulletin.

The Russians are expected to begin drilling operations in a few months despite mounting environmental concerns that have been raised by Greenpeace Russia in a report. To some observers, Russia’s quest for oil reserves with little regard for environmental concerns is a new form of “Russian Roulette.”
The warning suggests that an oil accident could contaminate the entire 3,500-kilometer, or 2,175-mile coastline with a serious oil slick, with removal complicated by the particular conditions of the Arctic.
The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that almost a quarter of the world’s oil reserves are located in the Arctic.
Meantime, other countries in the area are racing to go after the previously inaccessible oil resources as sea ice continues to disappear.
Shell, a Dutch-British oil corporation, plans to start test drilling in the next few months north of Alaska. The drilling operation has the backing of the Obama administration.
In addition, the American oil corporation, ConocoPhilips, similarly plans drilling with a Japanese oil company to extract methane hydrate from natural gas which is trapped inside ice crystals.
“We are witnessing a unique historical situation,” according to Rudiger Gerdes of the German Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research. “As new ocean territory opens, it awakens new greed.”
Russia, however, has had its eye on the region for some time, but it has a history of mishaps with its equipment which analysts fear can cause serious contamination.
“Environmental protection has never been a high priority for Kremlin strategists, who see the energy sector as the instrument Moscow can use to cement its position as a world power,” according to Benjamin Bidder in a recent Der Spiegel article.
He points out that Russian oil companies’ lack of experience with offshore drilling has led to accidents “time and again.”
Even state-run regulatory officials point out that Russian pipelines burst in more than 25,000 locations each year, leaking some five million tons of oil, said to be seven times the amount of oil that leaked from the 2010 BP accident into the Gulf of Mexico.
In northwestern Russia near the Arctic Circle, snowmelt and rain washes an estimated 500,000 metric tons of oil into the region’s major rivers and then into the Arctic Ocean.
Residents in the area have complained to the Russian government about the potential for environmental damage but have received no answer.
“The government can’t leave (monitoring of pipelines and pollutants) to the oil corporations,” one resident said. “Everywhere else, oil is seen as black gold. For us, it’s the black plague.”
Keep in touch with the most important breaking news stories about critical developments around the globe with Joseph Farah’s G2 Bulletin, the premium, online intelligence news source edited and published by the founder of WND.

Muslim Terrorism on Christians Continues Mainstream News Remains Silent | Terrorism Right Side News

Muslim Terrorism on Christians Continues Mainstream News Remains Silent | Terrorism Right Side News

Muslim Terrorism on Christians Continues Mainstream News Remains Silent

FRIDAY, 31 AUGUST 2012 17:30 RAYMOND IBRAHIM

1916 readings

Muslim Persecution of Christians: July, 2012

Several reports appearing in July indicate that Christian minorities all around the Muslim world—especially women and children—are being abducted, tortured, raped, forced to convert to Islam, and/or enslaved. In Egypt, at least 550 such cases have been documented in the last five years, and have only increased since the revolution. Christians who manage to escape back to their families often find the government siding with the Muslim abductors. One young mother who recently testified before the Helsinki Commission explained how she was snatched in broad daylight, as her abductor shouted to bystanders while dragging her to a waiting taxi, "No one interfere! She is an enemy of Islam."

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Identical reports are emerging from Pakistan, where "persecution, kidnapping and abduction of Christian women and girls," including many married women with children, are on the rise. Last year the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said that 1800 Christian and Hindu girls were forcibly converted to Islam. Most recently, the sister of a pastor was "kidnapped raped and forcibly converted to Islam."

She "was kidnapped around a month ago by some Muslim men while returning home from college. She was held for days, suffered sexual abuse, threats and violence. In such a state of terror and exhaustion, first she was coerced into converting to Islam, and then marriage. Her family reported the incident to the police station in Chunian, but no investigations have been conducted and instead her abductors have presented a report to the court attesting to the girl now being Muslim and legally married. Among other things, the girl is a minor and, according to the law, marriage is not permitted to minors."

The tiny Palestinian Christian community in the Hamas-run Gaza strip is also under siege, and charges that five Christians were abducted and pressured into converting to Islam. Because they made this forced conversion charge known, "members of the Christian community now fear reprisal attacks by Muslim extremists." Some have appealed to the Vatican and Christian groups and churches in the West for help. Yet "we only hear voices telling us to stay where we are and to stop making too much noise," said a Christian man living in Gaza City. "If they continue to turn a blind eye to our tragedy, in a few months there will be no Christians left in Palestine. Today it's happening in the Gaza Strip, tomorrow it will take place in Bethlehem."

Categorized by theme, July's assemblage of Muslim persecution of Christians around the world includes (but is not limited to) the following accounts, listed in alphabetical order by country, not severity.

Muslim Attacks on the Christian Church | July

Indonesia: Muslim protesters forced a church to shut down during a Sunday worship on claims that it was operating without a permit, and hung a banner on the church's gate reading "We the people … hardily reject the use of this building … for religious activities." The church's committee secretary said the church has the necessarily permits to hold services," yet "the majority of the people still reject the church's activity."

Iran: Both the Central Assembly of God Church in Tehran and its summer campsite—once a popular site for Christian gatherings and conferences—were closed by authorities of the Islamic Republic, who also posted a large notice on the gates "warning of severe consequences should anyone try to enter the premises." These latest closures follow the official termination of Friday Persian language services and the compulsory cancellation of all Bible classes and the distribution of Christian literature. Also, as part of the crackdown on house churches, plainclothes agents of the Ministry of Islamic Guidance continued raiding, arresting, and "aggressively interrogating" assembled worshippers.

Lebanon: Ahead of the Maronite Patriarch's visit to Akker, flyers signed by the "Soldiers of the Great Prophet" threatened the Christians and churches in what has traditionally been the safest Mideast country for Christians, calling "on the infidels to stop their blasphemy ... We will start from the infidel's church in Akker and we won't stop ... this is not the end but the beginning," read the flyer.

Kenya: Seven Islamic jihadis launched simultaneous grenade and gunfire attacks on two churches, while the congregations were at prayer. Five militants attacked the Africa Inland Church, killing 17 people and wounding approximately 60, including many women and children. The other two Muslim terrorists attacked the nearby Catholic Church, wounding three.

Kuwait: After approval was issued for the construction of a church, a group of Islamic preachers, echoing the words of the Saudi Grand Mufti, reasserted that churches are not permitted to be built in Muslim countries. One sheikh "expressed displeasure" against those approving the construction of the church, "stressing that it is not permissible as per the Sharia," adding that "excuses" such as saying that the building of a church "is a matter of human rights and international norms is not acceptable, as Islam comes first, and people should respect religion first before serving humanity or anything else."

Turkey: The existence of the oldest functioning Christian monastery in the world, 5^th century Mor Gabriel Monastery near the Turkish-Syrian border is at risk after a ruling by Turkey's highest appeals court. Inhabited today by only a few dozen Christians dedicated to learning the monastery's teachings, the ancient Aramaic language spoken by Jesus and the Orthodox Syriac tradition, neighboring Muslims with the support of an MP member of the Islamic Justice and Development Party (AKP) filed a lawsuit accusing the Christians of practicing "anti-Turkish activities" and of illegally occupying land which belongs to Muslim villages. The highest appeals court in Ankara, which is close to the government, ruled in favor of the Muslim villagers, saying the land that has been part of the monastery for 1,600 years is not its property, and even claimed that the monastery was built over the ruins of a mosque, forgetting that Mohammed was born 170 years after its foundation.

Apostasy and Blasphemy | The Jurisprudence Weapon of Isam to Silence Infidels

Egypt: A Christian teacher was arrested and detained after being accused of posting cartoons insulting to Islam and its prophet on Facebook. The man faces up to five years in jail if convicted of blasphemy. While admitting he manages the site in question, he said the site was hacked. Earlier in April, a Christian teenager was sentenced to three years in prison for posting cartoons perceived to mock Islam's prophet on his Face book page. Likewise, Christian business tycoon Naguib Sawiris posted Disney's Mickey and Minnie Mouse dressed in Islamic attire, which landed him in court, though he was acquitted.

Iran: Pastor Youssef Nadarkhani, who has spent over 1,000 days in prison awaiting execution for refusing to recant Christianity, is only one of many persecuted in Iran for their faith. A six-year prison sentence for pastor Farshid Fathi Malayeri—another Muslim convert to Christianity—was recently upheld following an unsuccessful appeal hearing. Also, another prominent house church pastor, Benham Irani, remains behind bars, even as his family expresses concerns that he may die fromcontinued abuse and beatings, leading to internal bleeding and other ailments; authorities refuse to give him medical treatment. The verdict against him contains text that describes the pastor as an apostate, adding that apostates "can be killed."

Pakistan: A Christian couple have been on the run since they embraced Islam back in 2006, only to reconvert to Christianity. Upon learning that the couple returned to Christianity, neighboring Muslims attacked and persecuted them; one of the husband's best friends abducted and tortured him, while beating the wife. "[One] should have the freedom to choose the religion one wishes to follow," said the Christian husband. "They have subsequently been on the run."

Saudi Arabia: A court is looking into an apostasy case concerning a 28-year-old Muslim woman'sconversion to Christianity. The father alleges that a Saudi and a Lebanese played a role in converting his daughter to Christianity and smuggling her to Lebanon, where she has received sanctuary in an anonymous church.

Jihad Death and Destruction

Nigeria: In what is described as an ongoing genocide of Christians over 65 people, including two politicians, were killed in a triple attacks on Christians. First, Muslims destroyed 43 Christian-owned farms. Nobody was arrested. Then they attacked nine Christian villages around the city of Jos, killing dozens of people. "They came in hundreds," said an official, "Some had police uniforms and some even had bulletproof vests." In one instance, Christians fleeing the violence took refuge in the house ofa local church leader, which was bombed and more than 50 Christians were burned alive, including the pastor's wife and children. Then the Muslims attacked the funeral for the victims of the village raids, killing several more people. Security forces said Muslim Fulani herdsmen were responsible but Islamist militant group Boko Haram issued a statement saying: "We thank Allah for the successful attack." Separately, Islamic motorcycle assassins gunned down four Christians.

South Africa: The Islamic terror group Al Shabaab is accused of murdering 14 Christians, all Ethiopians, in the Western Cape. A Christian bishop, also a former police inspector, fears more of his flock will be targeted: "We want authorities to do something because we know this is the work of al-Shabaab. If nothing is done, the Ethiopian population will be depleted… [those who died are] holy martyrs who have died because they are Christians." Meanwhile, Father Mike Williams of the Anglican Catholic Church also revealed that members of his congregation have been targeted by gunmen "with connections to Muslim extremists," saying that "In July, we have lost seven members of our church."

Syria: Syrian "freedom fighters" continue showing their true colors as they destroy churches and kill Christians, which has resulted in the mass migration of tens of thousands of Christians, including practically the entire populations of Homs and Qusayr. Surrounding nations that once might have offered refuge—Iraq, Turkey, even now Lebanon—are also increasingly inhospitable to Christians. One Christian girl who escaped said: "They sermonized on Fridays in the mosques that it was a sacred duty to drive us [Christians] away…. Christians had to pay bribes to the jihadists repeatedly in order to avoid getting killed." After making the sign of the cross, her grandmother added: "Anyone who believes in this cross suffers."

Turkey: An article titled "Who Ordered the Murder of Christians?" asserts that a Muslim undercover agent who had worked for the government "penetrated the Christian community and gathered a lot of information, while he was pretending to be a missionary. He became a church leader, and upon receiving another order, he became 'Muslim' again and launched a campaign against missionaries across the country," which culminated in the massacre of Christians.

Dhimmitude: General Abuse, Debasement, and Suppression of Non-Muslims as "Tolerated" Citizens

Egypt: After a Christian laundry worker burned the shirt of a Muslim man, several quarrels ensued and culminated with the death of a Muslim. Accordingly, thousands of Muslims rampaged the village,causing 120 Christian families to flee. They looted Christian businesses and homes "despite hundreds of security forces being deployed in the village. Eyewitnesses reported that security forces did not protect most Coptic property." Family members of the deceased Muslim insist that the Christians must still pay with their lives. Also, during Ramadan, several Christians were attacked and beaten. Dr. Yassir al-Burhami, a prominent figure in Egypt's Salafi movement issued a fatwaforbidding Muslim taxi-drivers and bus-drivers from transporting Coptic Christian priests to their churches, which he depicted as "more forbidden than taking someone to a liquor bar." And a charitable medical center that performs free heart operations on both Muslim and Christian children isunder threat from some Muslims, who want it closed down because it was founded by a Christian surgeon.

Pakistan: Days after a Muslim mob doused a man with gasoline and literally burned him alive for "blaspheming" the Koran (graphic picture here), a Pakistani Christian woman, now living in the U.S., explained how when she lived in Pakistan, Muslims disfigured her in an acid attack for being Christian: After one man noticed her wearing a crucifix, he "became abusive," telling her "that she was living in the gutter and would go to hell for shunning Islam. He left and returned half an hour later, clutching a bottle of battery acid which he savagely chucked over her head. As she ran screaming for the door a second man grabbed her by the hair and forced more of the liquid down her throat, searing her esophagus. Teeth fell from her mouth as she desperately called for help, stumbling down the street.

A woman heard her cries and took her to her home, pouring water over her head and taking her to hospital. At first the doctors refused to treat her, because she was a Christian.

'They all turned against me… Even the people who took me to the hospital. They told the doctor they were going to set the hospital on fire if they treated me.' … 67 per cent of her esophagus was burned and she was missing an eye and both eyelids. What remained of her teeth could be seen through a gaping hole where her cheek had been. The doctors predicted she would die any day. Despite the odds she pulled through." Separately, Muslim landowners and their police accomplices continue annexing land owned by Christians. "The police pulled away our headscarves from heads and started hitting us with clubs and punches" reported Christian women, "after news spread that police is harassing and torturing Christian women and men … to grab their agricultural land."

About this Series

Because the persecution of Christians in the Islamic world is on its way to reaching epidemic proportions, "Muslim Persecution of Christians" was developed to collate some—by no means all—of the instances of persecution that surface each month. It serves two purposes:

1. To document that which the mainstream media does not: the habitual, if not chronic, Muslim persecution of Christians.
2. To show that such persecution is not "random," but systematic and interrelated—that it is rooted in a worldview inspired by Sharia.

Accordingly, whatever the anecdote of persecution, it typically fits under a specific theme, including hatred for churches and other Christian symbols; sexual abuse of Christian women; forced conversions to Islam; apostasy and blasphemy laws that criminalize and punish with death those who "offend" Islam; theft and plunder in lieu of jizya (financial tribute expected from non-Muslims); overall expectations for Christians to behave like dhimmis, or second-class, "tolerated" citizens; and simple violence and murder. Sometimes it is a combination.

Because these accounts of persecution span different ethnicities, languages, and locales—from Morocco in the West, to India in the East, and throughout the West wherever there are Muslims—it should be clear that one thing alone binds them: Islam—whether the strict application of Islamic Sharia law, or the supremacist culture born of it.

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Raymond Ibrahim is a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center and an Associate Fellow at the Middle East Forum.