Iraq: what you need to know about Mosul
28 Oct 2016
It was from Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, that IS took to the world stage in 2014. It is now the last major IS stronghold, so the battle for Mosul is a critical and decisive one. Thousands of lives hang in the balance: innocent civilians, Iraqi soldiers, Islamic State fighters - Jesus died for each one. What happens in Mosul directly impacts the lives and eternities of many. Up to 1.5 million civilians are still in Mosul. Up to 5,000 IS fighters also remain. Thousands of Iraqi soldiers, Kurdish fighters, and Shia militiamen are involved. It is feared that IS will use human shields and chemical weapons. Those who escape Mosul face ill-equipped refugee camps unable to provide for their basic needs. Beyond the desperate humanitarian realities, these masses are largely unprepared for eternity. Awaiting a military deliverance, most remain unaware that their only true Deliverer is Jesus.
Four Arab guests who came to visit Efrat Local Council head, Oded Revivi, at his ‘Sukkah of Peace’ last week during the Jewish festival of Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles) were imprisoned for their neighbourly act by the Palestinian Authority They were released on the start of the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah, after intervention by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who appealed to world leaders on behalf of the Palestinian Authority citizens who had done nothing more than act as good neighbours and who were punished by their government in response. The four were accused of ‘meeting baby killers’ the day after visiting the sukkah, where they sat with Jewish neighbours and talked about peace. ‘Where is the intervention of human rights organisations?’ Netanyahu asked world leaders. ‘These groups prove again and again that they have no real interest in human rights, but are interested only in shaming Israel.’
Turkey: entry ban for Christian student
28 Oct 2016
Ryan Keating, a Christian PhD student in the department of Philosophy of Religion at Ankara University has requested prayer for his situation as his residency has been cancelled and he has been issued with an entry ban into Turkey. On 17 October Ryan returned to Turkey after a week-long trip abroad. At the airport, police took him into custody and told him that he had been issued with a life-long entry ban into Turkey. No explanation was given as to the reason for the ban despite Ryan asking for information. Ryan had Turkish residency because of his enrolment at Ankara University. Ryan’s wife Ness and their children remain in Ankara, and it is not known if their residency has also been cancelled. Ryan was involved with the Ankara Refugee Ministry and is a member of Kurtulus Church. It is believed the entry ban is related to these activities, which are completely legal.
Ukraine: bitter winter brings great suffering
28 Oct 2016
The Ukraine war is entering its third year of daily bombardment. Homes, churches and businesses are ruined. The conflict is in the ‘Grey Zone’ between western Ukraine, held by the army, and the eastern Donetsk and Lugansk regions held by separatist forces. Those who could flee the Grey Zone have left. Those remaining are the most vulnerable - families with children, widows, the elderly, the sick, people with disabilities, and those displaced by conflict. Most factories have closed, miners have not been paid for seven months, and people can’t support themselves. Life is hard. There are no government pensions or social security, and some towns lack water. In November temperatures plummet to -20°C (-4°F). People cannot afford coal or gas for heating. The winter temperatures will kill. Western Ukraine churches have provided basic crops in season - potatoes, tomatoes, cabbages and carrots. Russian churches are providing food in eastern Ukraine, prioritising elderly church members, but they do not have the resources to help all who are in need.
Yemen: the toll of war
28 Oct 2016
The Yemen war combines tragedy, hypocrisy and farce with 10,000 casualties, almost 4,000 of them civilians. The Saudis have included in their bombing targets cows, farms and sorghum – which is used for bread or animal fodder – as well as numerous agricultural facilities; funerals and markets are ‘military’ targets. Britain and America help the Saudi onslaughts. Theresa May has failed to say whether civilians in Yemen were killed by British bombs. This war costs Saudi Arabia over £200m a month, but Saudis cannot pay debts to construction companies. There is substantial evidence emerging that the Saudis and their coalition allies are deliberately targeting Yemen’s tiny agricultural sector in a campaign which, if successful, would lead a post-war Yemen not just into starvation but total reliance on food imports for survival. Much of this would undoubtedly come from the very Gulf states which are currently bombing the poor country to bits.
Pakistan prayer letter
28 Oct 2016
A believer writes, ‘Pakistan and India have fought three major wars over Kashmir or over water rights of five rivers flowing into Pakistan. There is a UN resolution that allows India to use the water from two of the rivers. India has built dams on two more of the rivers and is now planning to build a dam on the fifth, the Indus. Pakistan has the largest canal system in the world and totally depends on the water from these rivers for their crops. There have been droughts and starvation leading to war when the water from the rivers was cut off. The line between these two countries is the "zero line". Both countries have nuclear weapons. War is being talked about in both countries’ papers and news media. War happens here when the leadership is about to fall, to divert people’s attention and rally people behind them. In each country there have been calls for their prime minister to be removed.’
USA: election and God’s judgment?
28 Oct 2016
Talk of God’s judgment has been prevalent recently due to the divisive US election which is now less than two weeks away. Christian supporters of both candidates make the case that the other candidate will push the nation past the point of no return. Whether focusing on Supreme Court nominees, abortion, racism, foreign policy, or suspect emails, each argument seems to end with the statement that the other candidate’s election will bring God’s judgment on America. HOWEVER, sin is already so widespread in the world - including the USA - that talk of God’s judgment coming if a certain candidate is elected is odd. It’s as though God is saying, as he did in the book of Amos, ‘I sent you two unfit candidates, and still you would not return to me. I sent vileness from one party and corruption from the other, and still you would not return to Me.’ (example, Amos 4:6–11).
45,000 people baptised at Saddleback Church
21 Oct 2016
Rick Warren called the moment ‘historic’ when Alberto Flores became the 45,000th person to be baptised by the church. Flores was baptised along with his 13-year-old son, Andre. ‘This weekend is a historic weekend for our church,’ Warren told his congregation last Sunday, ‘Somebody in this group is going to be the 45,000th baptism of Saddleback Church, and I'm going to take that person out to lunch.’ Almost 800 people were baptised across Saddleback's 16 campuses last weekend alone, taking the total to 45,743. The news follows research that suggests the US church is in decline: Saddleback said it saw its own increasing number of baptisms as a source of encouragement in contrast to these pessimistic reports.