“JUSTICE” DEPARTMENT SETS ASIDE
THE FIRST AMENDMENT
The Justice Department asked the Supreme Court on Friday not to exempt Catholic groups from offering birth control coverage under Obamacare.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor issued a surprise order Tuesday that temporarily stopped the government from enforcing the contraception mandate on a group of nuns.
The nuns say the coverage requirement violates their religious belief. Several different groups, including colleges and businesses, have made the same arugument against the mandate since it was introduced.
“To my knowledge, this is the largest number of lawsuits filed against the federal government on a religious liberty issue in the history of our country,” Wheaton College President Philip Ryken said.
CALIFORNIA WANTS POT LUCK
Colorado started the new year by allowing legalized recreational marijuana. Now some in California are pushing to do the same.A recent poll by the American Civil Liberties Union shows 65 percent of Californians support legalizing pot. And California Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom is trying to launch a ballot initiative to allow marijuana.
Scott Chipman, head of a California anti-marijuana organization, says, “There is no doubt that marijuana is a gateway drug. Virtually all the people who die from other drugs began with marijuana.”
He continues, “This is a serious concern for our future. A productive society requires sober citizens and legalizing increases the number of drugged people. We have enough problems with people that are drunk behind the wheel. With marijuana, how are we going to regulate that?”
COULD THERE POSSIBLY BE A DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN THE SEXES?
More than 50 percent of female Marines in boot camp can’t meet the new minimum standard of three pull-ups, so the Marine Corps is now delaying the requirement.The military has been trying to equalize physical standards to integrate women into combat roles. All service branches are working on devising standards, training, and other policies needed to open thousands of combat roles to women in 2016.
Elaine Donnelly, president of the Center for Military Readiness, said the decision to suspend the scheduled pull-up requirement is a “clear indication” that plans to move women into direct ground combat fighting teams will not work.
Officials have been devising updated physical standards, training, education, and other programs for thousands of jobs they must open Jan. 1, 2016.
FARK ATTACKING CHRISTIANS IN COLUMBIA
Members of one indigenous group in Colombia are coming to Christ in record numbers, butMarco Tulio from the Nasa tribe in southern Columbia says, “When you see the joy of worshipping it’s hard to imagine all that my fellow tribesmen have endured for their faith in Jesus Christ. They are being persecuted because they are evangelical Christians.”
Tulio lived with other Christian refugees in an Andes Mountain village. He is among those who opposed tribal practices like stealing, land raids, drunkenness, chewing coca leaves, or participate in spiritism. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, also known as FARC is the major force against the Christians.
As a result, around 50 families traveled more than 100 kilometers and set up a temporary village on a farmer’s land, living in little huts made of plastic with a dirt floor. It’s been a struggle to survive.
“Our God is far bigger than their gods. We never thought we would have to go into the marketplace and beg for money to support our families,” Tulio said. “But that’s what we’ve been doing. Slowly we have been getting the trust of the farmers in the region and, one by one, they started to hire people from our tribe. Now our people have work,” he continued.
Paez Christian Leonor said the persecution began when “The wives followed their husbands and worshipped the Lord freely. So the tribe descended on them and put the husbands in jail for 72 hours. They put them in stocks and torture machines that rip their limb.”
Leonor told CBN News how one young girl begged the tribal leaders to beat her instead of her father because she feared he would be killed. They granted her request, whipping her from the waist down. “Finally they destroyed everything and kicked us out,” she added.
Leonor’s husband, Wilson, said, “They put the wood really tight around my legs and then they hang me upside down for 15 minutes. After that, my legs got numb and I couldn’t walk, I fell to the floor,” he recalled. “Next they put me in a chair and whipped me 15 times,” Wilson explained. “They did the same thing with my friends.
“I prayed the Lord would help me endure. I didn’t feel any pain while they were whipping me. The other brothers and sisters prayed the same thing, and the Lord gave us all the strength. Some of them fainted,” he said.
According to The Voice of the Martyrs partner Russell Stendal of Colombia Para Cristo, there are more than 400,000 indigenous believers in four states in southern Colombia among the 3.5 million indigenous people.
Colombia Para Cristo has several dozen radio stations all over the country broadcasting the Gospel in some of the most dangerous places on earth.
“As we look back and see what the Lord has done, we have been strengthened,” he said.
BOKO HARAM ATTACKING CHRISTIANS IN NIGERIA
Twelve people died in Nigeria after attacks on two Christian villages this past weekend.The radical Islamic Boko Haram is waging a war to establish Shariah law in northern Nigeria.
The leader of the group Abubakar Shekau threatened more attacks in a video.
“As for killing, we will kill because Allah says we should decapitate, we should amputate limbs, we should mutilate,” he said.
Shekau made it clear Boko Haram is fighting in the name of Islam. “They try to brainwash the people that we are fighting an ethnic war,” Shekau said in the video. “No, we are fighting a religious war, we are fighting Jonathan, we are fighting Christians,” he said.
Shekau goes on to mock the U.S. and Nigerian governments for placing bounties on his head – a reward of $7 million by the United States and $312,500 by the Nigerian government.
“We do not worship money,” he said. “You can’t in any way harm me.” He has denounced democracy and said that only the law of Islam can purify Nigeria.”
IRAN ORDERING THE CLOSE OF CHRISTIAN CHURCHES
According to Mohabat News, St. Peter Church in Tehran was forced to announce that Farsi-speaking Christians are no longer allowed to attend, under pressure from the Revolutionary Guard Intelligence. Some members had been attending St. Peter Church for more than two decades. Sunday school teachers, elders, and ministers were told they could not enter the building for any reason.
The pastor also announced that all services will now be held in another language.
Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence requested the church turn over their personal information, an act intended to intimidate members from attending. Since the majority of church members are Farsi-speaking, once they are banned, it is likely the church will close down completely.
CHRISTIANITY UNDER ATTACK WORLDWIDE
Christianity is the world’s largest religion with about 2.18 billion believers of varying denominations. Yet Christians are discriminated against in 130 countries.
Christian churches are the target of attacks by Muslims in Indonesia
According to the “Ecumenical Report on the Religious Freedom of Christians Worldwide,”Violations of the right to religious freedom has steadily increased since 2007. The report especially focused on“Christians who fall victim to hatred, distress and persecution.” As a result, about 70 percent of the world population is subject to great or extreme restrictions.as
The study deliberately abstained from numbering casualties. The Open Doors aid organization claims there are 100 million persecuted Christians across the globe.
Secret meetings: The “Open Doors” aid organization supports Christians in North Korea
BABY, IT’S COLD OUTSIDE!
The Middle East was still recovering Monday from a monster storm that blanketed much of the region in snow.
The worst blizzard to hit Israel and the region in more than 50 years dumped nearly 20 inches of snow in Jerusalem over three days starting last Thursday.
“It’s unbelievable. It’s nice,” one Jerusalemite told CBN News. “We have drought. We need water. So it’s very important to have snow and water.”
Army and other emergency services rescued thousands of travelers stranded in their vehicles along the two main routes to Jerusalem. Piles of snow and downed trees were everywhere.
When it snows in Jerusalem, the snow usually lasts for a day or two. But there were many cars stuck in snow, abandoned and stranded on the city’s side streets for nearly five days.
In Gaza, thousands of residents were evacuated from their homes because of flooding. Israel allowed 450,000 liters of diesel fuel, paid for by Qatar, into the Gaza Strip on Sunday, allowing Gaza’s only power station to resume operations.
The hardest hit by the storm were some of the more than 2 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Jordan, and elsewhere in the region. Many of them are living in tent cities.
Despite the dangers, many enjoyed the wonder of seeing the city of Jerusalem shrouded in what the Bible calls “the treasuries of snow” (Job 38:22).
A FROZEN FOOTBALL?
In Wisconsin, a record low temperature of minus 18 was set Friday morning in Green Bay. Forecasters say Sunday’s NFL playoff game between the Packers and 49ers could be the coldest on record. A temperature of minus 8 is forecast. Other Northeast and Midwest states are having extreme record lows too.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Coming to Christ keeps you coming to Christ.
Saturday, January 4, 2014