DAWN Fridayfax 2002 #17

World

Evangelical Alliance speaks at the UN about persecution

The World Evangelical Alliance (WEA, previously the World Evangelical Fellowship) was assigned official observer status by the United Nations in 1997, which gives the group the right to present an annual report before the Human Rights Commission in Geneva. The WEA claims to represent 150 million Protestants in 114 nations, and is linked to a network of some 2,000 Parliamentary representatives in 60 nations. Rev. Johan Candelin, Director of the Commission for Religious Freedom, recently presented the report at the United Nations: 200 million Christians around the world suffer persecution and the deprivation of fundamental human rights simply because they are Christians, according to a WEA report on 9. April 2002. "This is the largest single group in the world which is being denied human rights on the basis of their faith," he said, and quoted Thomas Friedman, threefold winner of the Pulitzer Prize: "The Second World War and the Cold War defended secular totalitarianism against Nazism and Communism. The Third World War is a war against religious totalitarianism, the belief that my religion must rule - a sort of Bin Ladenism."

Why are Christians persecuted?

"It seems illogical to persecute people for sobriety, honesty, truth, honour, friendliness, hard work and solidarity with the weak," he said. Some of the reasons why Christians are persecuted anyway: - a growing number of Christians threatens the feeling of national identity and the majority religion in various nations;

• Christians often speak out very clearly for democracy and human rights;
• Christians, it is claimed, represent Western influence, particularly from the USA;
• Christians cannot be controlled by the State - "they worship a different King";
• Christians are networked globally with other Christians;
• other religions feel threatened by a growing Christian movement;
• lack of understanding for true Christianity, along with a suspicion of new developments.

No political freedom without religious freedom

Religious persecution often goes through three phases, according to Candelin: disinformation (destroying Christians' good reputation, spreading rumours), then discrimination, turning them into second-class citizens, followed by practical persecution, either subtly or openly. Candelin quoted Kjell Magne Bondevik, Norway's Prime Minister: "Religious freedom is one of the most basic human rights. Even more: without the freedom to worship God, there is neither political freedom nor freedom of thought or conscience. These are all inter-dependent."
Source: WEA, Commission for Religious Freedom, Katariinkantori 1, 67100 Kokkola, Finnland, Fax (+358)-6-8316495; web site: www.worldevangelical.org/rlc.html

USA

Jesus in the old people's home

"Cathy (name changed) lives in an old people's home in eastern Texas," writes Dr. Thomas Maples. "She can't walk for more than 20 minutes before her legs become weak or she falls. Not long ago, Cathy was found, unresponsive, in a wheelchair. Her skin felt cold, she was not breathing, and she had no pulse. The ambulance was called, and they tried to resuscitate her - successfully; after a short time, she started to breathe again. The day before Easter 2002, Cathy walked up and down, saying that she wished she had learned to love when she was younger. Ellen, an occupational therapist working in the home, and another member of staff asked her if she knew who Jesus is. 'Yes,' said Cathy, she knew who he is, but that he wasn't with her, in her heart. They told Cathy what Jesus had done for her, and how she could invite him into her life. Soon afterwards, Cathy prayed that Jesus save her and come into her heart, then went to her room. Five minutes later, she came back, saying 'There's a man in my room!'. Ellen and the other woman laughed, and assured her that nobody was there, but Cathy insisted, saying 'He's wearing sandals, clothed in white and shining brightly!' Cathy then danced for hours, hands in the air praising God, then lay down, saying 'Jesus told me he would come back to collect me'. In the meantime, she has told everyone that she is ready to go."
Source: Dr. Tom Maples, maplesdc@swbell.net

USA

Research shows that God is important for teenagers

A recently published study questions the idea that teenagers are not interested in religion. The American study "Youth and Religion", commissioned by the University of Pennsylvania, asked 11- to 18-year-olds about their thoughts about God. Most of them answered "God is important in my life", and almost half visited Christian services at least 3 times each month. "There is no sign that youths are avoiding church," says George Gallup Jr., Chairman of the Gallup Institute in Princeton, New Jersey. Richard Gelles, co-author of the study, adds that "the image of the hedonistic and thoughtless teen is not accurate. The public and media think that the young generation is increasingly distancing itself from religion. That is untrue." One surprising fact revealed by the study is that the wealthier and better educated the parents, the more likely it is that a youth in the USA is religiously active.
Source: Gallup, Times-Union, Charisma News

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