Free Republic

Conservative Christian leaders unveiled a declaration Friday calling on Christians not to comply with rules and laws forcing them to accept abortion, same-sex marriage and other ideals that go against their religious doctrines. The declaration urges Christians to practice civil disobedience to defend their convictions, even though some signers of the document backed away from the strong language. The Catholic Archbishop of Washington, Donald W. Wuerl, was among the first signers of the Manhattan Declaration. He appeared at a news conference in the District on Friday to announce it, even as the Church was considering a city-proposed compromise on its...

www.catholicnewsagency.com Unprecedented coalition of religious leaders call Americans to stand for sanctity of life, marriage, and religious freedom Washington D.C., Nov 20, 2009 / 06:21 am (CNA).- An unprecedented coalition of prominent Christian clergy, ministry leaders, and scholars has crafted a 4,700-word declaration addressing the sanctity of life, traditional marriage, and religious liberty. The declaration issues “a clarion call” to Christians to adhere to their convictions and informs civil authorities that the signers will not “under any circumstance” abandon their Christian consciences. The statement,  called “the Manhattan Declaration,” has been signed by more than 125 Catholic, Evangelical Christian, and Orthodox...

An Illinois woman is charged with a hate crime for berating a Muslim woman about the Fort Hood shooting and then pulling at her headscarf. The charge could lead to three years in prison: justice or prosecutorial overkill? In the days after the Ft. Hood shooting, mosques around the country bolstered their security in anticipation of a backlash from Americans angry about a Muslim man alleged to have killed American soldiers on their own turf. Since then, only one alleged hate crime against Muslims has been directly tied to the Fort Hood rampage. Two days after the rampage by an...

More than 150 leaders across a spectrum of conservative Christianity on Friday released a 4,700-word document vowing civil disobedience if they are forced to take part in "anti-life acts" or bless gay marriages. Called the "Manhattan Declaration," the six-page, single-spaced document was drafted by Prison Fellowship founder Charles Colson, an evangelical, and Princeton University professor Robert P. George, a Roman Catholic, and included a bevy of Catholic, Anglican and Orthodox bishops, archbishops and cardinals as signatories along with dozens of clergy and laity. Archbishop of Washington Donald W. Wuerl is one of the signatories. "Throughout the centuries, Christianity has taught...

The New York Times: “I don’t exclude that the murder is connected to the fact that he preached among and baptized those who belong to Muslim culture.”

Evangelist Offends Islam bythelastcrusade.org Pat Robertson, Chairman of the Christian Broadcasting Network and former GOP presidential candidate, has raised the ire of Islamists and the wrath of CAIR (Council for American Islamic Relations).In a broadcast of the 700 Club Monday night, the Virginia Beach pastor said that the massacre at Fort Hood was caused by a politically-correct refusal to recognize the violent nature of the Muslim religion."Islam is a violent--I was going to say religion--but it's not a religion. It's a political system. It's a violent political system bent on the overthrow of governments of the world and world...

Citing the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s call to civil disobedience, 145 evangelical, Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christian leaders have signed a declaration saying they will not cooperate with laws that they say could be used to compel their institutions to participate in abortions, or to bless or in any way recognize same-sex couples. “We pledge to each other, and to our fellow believers, that no power on earth, be it cultural or political, will intimidate us into silence or acquiescence,” it says. The manifesto, to be released on Friday at the National Press Club in Washington, is an...

Iran (MNN) ― It is with great joy that Open Doors confirms the release of Maryam Rostampour, 27, and Marzieh Amirizadeh, 30, today. For around nine months, the two Iranian Christian women have been held in the notorious Evin prison in Tehran. Maryam Rostampour and Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad, two Christian converts from Islam, were released from Evin Prison in Tehran on Wednesday. Iran (MNN) ― It is with great joy that Open Doors confirms the release of Maryam Rostampour, 27, and Marzieh Amirizadeh, 30, today. For around nine months, the two Iranian Christian women have been held in the notorious...

President Opts To Ignore Persecution Christians Face Death thelastcrusade.org 15-year-old Egyptian girl Dina el-Gowhary, who converted from Islam to Christianity, has sent a plea to President Obama, complaining of mistreatment by the Egyptian Government and asking for his mediation. “Mr. President Obama,” she writes, “we are a minority in Egypt. We are treated very badly. You said that the Muslim minority in America are treated very well, so why are we not treated here likewise? We are imprisoned in our own home because Muslim clerics called for the murder of my father, and now the Government has set for...

Monday, November 16, 2009 Islamic Extremists Kill Somali Church Leader Thirteenth Christian Assassinated This Year By Jeremy Reynalds Correspondent for ASSIST News Service WASHINGTON, D.C. (ANS) -- A human rights group has learned that members of al-Shabab (a Somali Islamic extremist group) have killed yet another leader of an underground church in the Somalia capital of Mogadishu. Washington-based International Christian Concern (ICC), reported that on Oct. 10, Pastor Ali Hussein Weheliye was returning home from a worship service when two masked members of al-Shabab ambushed and shot him. He was later taken to Darful Shifa Hospital where he died of...

Inevitably, some extraordinary security measures were taken in Kosovo's capital in connection with William Jefferson Clinton's recent visit. The former president of the United States undertook a long journey to the middle of the Balkans in order to take a look at his own figure standing twelve feet above the rest of humanity. There could be little doubt that those extraordinary measures added additional tension in the life of the current and former residents of the area. Let's clear up a possible confusion: many of the current Albanian residents of Pristina live in the houses of the former Serbian owners...

On October 15, the State Security Court of Jordan imposed jail sentences of 15 to 20 years on 12 alleged Jordanian members of al-Qaeda accused of attacks against a church in the Kingdom last year (Al-Ghad [Amman], October 16; Al-Rai [Amman], October 16). In a reaction similar to those seen in trials of Salafi-Jihadis, plot leader Shaker al-Khatib and the rest of the convicted group prostrated themselves, thanking Allah as a sign of defiance against the court (al-Jazeera, October 15). Al-Khatib and four others in the group, aged between 19 and 28, received the death penalty, but the court commuted...

Thursday November 12, 2009 Interview: Former Gay Youth Leader Re-Emerges to Tell His Dramatic Conversion Story By Patrick B. CraineNovember 11, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Two years ago Michael Glatze sent shockwaves through the homosexualist establishment when he declared publicly that he had left his life as a prominent homosexual activist, become Christian, and embraced "normal human sexuality."However, after being subjected to intense criticism and ridicule following his conversion, Glatze decided to "go inside," "be silent," and "process" for a time, but now says he feels compelled to share his story anew. In an interview with LifeSiteNews.com (LSN), Glatze said that, far...

Police arrested 22-year-old Abdul Walid Hamid of Hayward on the evening of Wednesday, Nov. 4, after he reportedly tore a crucifix from a person's neck and scared others at Stoneridge Shopping Center. Hamid, an employee at a mall kiosk near Starbucks, has been charged with battery, terrorist threats and grand theft. According to reports, Hamid was yelling "Allah is power" and "Islam is great" while holding a pen in a fist over his head. Witnesses said he shouted anti-Christian comments, said police. Lt. Mike Elerick of the Pleasanton Police Department said the man was not provoked and didn't threaten violence,...

US Judge Bans Christian Car Number Plate [Pic in URL] A US judge has ordered South Carolina not to issue car number plates that feature a Christian cross in front of a stained glass window along with the slogan "I Believe". 10 Nov 2009 Cameron Currie, the district judge, said the plate, similar to the one pictured, was unconstitutional because it violated the First Amendment. Photo: AP The southern state's legislature had already approved the licence plate, but Cameron Currie, the district judge, said the plate was unconstitutional because it violated the First Amendment, which requires the separation of church...

Italians reacted with outrage on Tuesday after a European court ruled that displaying crucifixes in the country's schools violated the principle of secular education. Italy's education minister condemned the judgment by the European Court of Human Rights, saying that the Christian cross was a symbol of the country's Roman Catholic religion and cultural identity. Mariastella Gelmini, a member of the conservative government of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, argued that "no one, and certainly not an ideological European court, will succeed in erasing our identity," Other ministers said they were appalled by the ruling, calling it "absurd," "shameful" and "offensive." Generations...

Egypt (AINA) -- On October 24, 2009 Egyptian State Security arrested a Christian Copt in the village of Deir Samalout, Samalout, Minia province, for praying "without a license." He was held in prison for two days before being released on "compassionate grounds." Maurice Salama Sharkawy, 37 years old, had invited Pastor Elia Shafik, to conduct the sacrament of the 'Anointing of the Sick' for his sick father, who had suffered a stroke. State Security broke into his house while the prayers were ongoing, handcuffed Maurice, put him into a police car and took him to a police station for interrogation....

Christians gathering in snow after forced out On Sunday, Novermber 1, Beijing Christians gathered in heavy snow after they were banned from an indoor place.

Egypt (AINA) -- Egyptian security forces have intensified their presence in the Upper Egyptian town of Dairout, in anticipation of a recurrence of Muslim violence against Christians. Copts expressed their fear over leaflets entitled "These have to Die!" which are being distributed to all Muslims in Dairout and neighborhoods, enticing them to "burn, vandalize and clean the country of these evil immoral infidels." Reports from Dairout, 313 km south of Cairo, confirm that Christian Copts are afraid to leave their homes and have stayed indoors since violence against them erupted on October 24, 2009. This collective punishment of Copts was...

In spite of the cover up, this is perhaps the first time in the history of Islam that Muslims finally have access to the truth about their own religion, thanks to the Internet and satellite dishes (invented by infidels). There are daily news reports of heart-broken Muslims who say they cannot believe what is written in Muslim scriptures and say that Muslims have been living under the greatest lie in human history. Others simply deny and say that it can't be so. While Saudi Arabia is spending billions to Islamize the West, many Muslim prisoners of Islamic submission are dying...

As a Christian I don’t “hate,” many things, but each year I can’t wait until Halloween is over. This day typically causes discord in our household as cultural pressure to participate finds it s way into our home. My stepchildren’s father sees nothing wrong with the day, while my wife and I have great difficulty with its basic foundation. Halloween is hard to avoid as its influences are everywhere. The other day I was teaching at an area community college and was disturbed most of my teaching time by staff dressed in horrific costumes. I really do hate Halloween. The...

According to the actions of Franklin County Juvenile Magistrate Mary Goodrich, and the Franklin County Children's Services, there isn't. At least not in their treatment of Rifqa Bary.After Rifqa Bary was returned to Ohio per a Florida Judge's order, Mary Goodrich acted on a request from the Franklin County Children's Services to restrict and supervise Rifqa's use of her cell phone and internet.This amounts to trampling on her Freedom of Religion, Freedom of Speech, and Expression. Constitutional rights that even "illegal aliens" are acknowledged to have.Their reasons for doing so are based on a false narrative that Jim Zorn, a spokesman for the Franklin...

SNIPPET: ""Moreover, freedom in America is indivisible from the freedom to practice one's religion. That is why there is a mosque in every state in our union, and over 1,200 mosques within our borders. That's why the United States government has gone to court to protect the right of women and girls to wear the hijab and to punish those who would deny it." -- Barack Obama, Cairo, June 4, 2009 But what about the rights of women like this one -- the right not to wear the hijab? Who is standing up for them? "BREAKING NEWS: Somalia Militants Kill...

The "hate crimes" bill approved recently by Congress could be a problem for broadcasters -- most importantly, Christian broadcasters -- now that it has been signed into law. President Barack Obama has signed into law a measure that adds to the list of federal hate crimes attacks on people based on their sexual orientation. Congress approved the legislation last week as part of the $680-billion FY 2010 Defense Authorization bill. Appended to the hate crimes amendment was a statement ensuring that a religious leader or any other person cannot be prosecuted on the bases if his or her speech, beliefs,...

Larry David would think heaven itself had fallen on him if he had used a picture of the prophet Muhammad instead of Jesus to urinate on.. Larry David is either a coward or afraid his head would be separated from his neck if he had done so.

ChristiaNet.com, the world's largest Christian portal with nine million monthly page loads, recently asked, "Is President Obama helping the economy?" "A majority of Christians seem to doubt the President's economic policies," said Bill Cooper, president of ChristiaNet. With nearly 1,500 Christians participating, 69% said that they do not believe that President Obama is helping the economy. Most in this group felt the President is actually destroying the economy by spending too much money, raising taxes and increasing the size of government. "He is killing the economy. You cannot spend your way out of debt!" said one respondent. "Raising taxes and...

‘Moderate’ Islamist group had long suspected woman in Puntland was Christian. Three masked members of a militant Islamist group in Somalia last week shot and killed a Somali Christian who declined to wear a veil as prescribed by Muslim custom... Members of the comparatively “moderate” Suna Waljameca group killed Amina Muse Ali... in her home . Ali had told Christian leaders that she had received several threats from members of Suna Waljameca for not wearing a veil, symbolic of adherence to Islam. She had said members of the group had long monitored her movements because they suspected she was a...

A hate crimes bill sent to President Obama for his signature raises a red flag for Christians. On Thursday, the U.S. Senate passed a hate crimes bill that Christian leaders have warned for years could greatly infringe on the rights of those who speak to loudly about their religious views. Matt Barber of Liberty Counsel agrees with most observers that President Obama will sign the measure -- adding that the president desires to "throw a bone to homosexual activists because they have been breathing down his neck...and this is a way to hold them off."

MSNBC host Chris Matthews may now have the honor of having said the dumbest thing in the history of television. This past Thursday Matthews unfortunately allowed an imbecilic thought to pass from his brain to his mouth on his nationally televised cable news show. Here's the moment of insanity on video: Matthews: "The group in this country that most resembles the Taliban, ironically, is the Religious Right." It is a pet peeve of mine when a cable news host drops a bomb (no Taliban pun intended) of a statement right at the end of a segment and moves on to...

A Florida judge ordered today that Fathima Rifqa Bary be returned to Ohio. The 17-year-old religious runaway will be transferred into the care of Franklin County Children Services. To ensure her safety, the details of her transfer will not be released, the Florida Department of Children and Families said in an e-mailed statement. Judge Daniel P. Dawson of the 9 t h Judicial Circuit Court of Florida agreed last week that Bary's case should be heard in Ohio, but he said he first wanted to receive documents detailing her immigration status. The girl is a native of Sri Lanka.

SNIPPET: "A hate crimes bill sent to President Obama for his signature raises a red flag for Christians." SNIPPET: "Barber explains that Liberty Counsel intends to challenge the constitutionality of the hate crimes legislation."

High school student Chad Farnan, 17, speaks at a campaign fundraiser for Shawn Black, a GOP candidate for the 70th Assembly District, earlier this month. The legal group that represents Farnan, Advocates for Faith & Freedom, has been ordered to pay $19,688 in legal fees. SANTA ANA – In a legal twist that challenges the notion of what a prevailing party is, a federal court clerk on Friday awarded $19,688 in court-related fees to the attorneys who represented high school teacher James Corbett, sued two years ago for making anti-Christian comments in class. Milli Borgarding, the deputy in charge of...

A "hate crimes" plan that opponents have warned will be used to crack down on Christian speech, even the reading of the Bible, is poised to be signed by President Obama, a longtime proponent of the plan to give homosexuals and those with other alternative lifestyles special protections not provided other classes of citizens. The Senate approved the "hate crimes" plan 68-29 today after Democrats strategically attached it to a "must-pass" $680 billion defense appropriations plan. Most Republicans, although normally strong supporters of the U.S. military, opposed the plan. "The inclusion of the controversial language of the hate crimes legislation,...

I believe that Christianity is the single best influence on mankind. It is responsible for Western civilization's flourishing, it is responsible for the heights of freedom and liberty that untold billions of humans have enjoyed and will enjoy in the future. Certainly the bedrock of that success is the Christian Bible. So, don't go calling me a religion hater or a Christian basher. There. That is said. Now, the story is that a "pastor" in North Carolina is having a book burning event for his fool followers and one of the books he is burning is any copy of the...

Ever since Obama's Islamic loving speech in Cairo, it appears that the attacks on Egyptian Christians are on the rise. Has Obama emboldened the enemy? Of course he has. Hat tip to the The Religion of Peace. CHRISTIAN KILLED IN SOUTH EGYPT OVER SON'S AFFAIR Monday, October 19, 2009

Several parents - named as victims in the indictment against three Baptist Union leaders now on trial in Tashkent - have told the court that statements that their children were taught the Baptist faith against their wishes were fabricated or dictated by Investigator Anatoli Tadjibayev, Forum 18 News Service has learnt. The head of Uzbekistan’s Baptist Union Pavel Peichev and two colleagues went on trial on 24 September accused of teaching religion illegally to children at church-run summer camps and evading tax on profits from the camp. They deny all the charges - which carry punishment of up to three...

Washington -- SNIPPET: "Rev. Zaheer Khan, pastor of Maghoo Memorial Church, Rev. Aamir Azeem, pastor of United Christians Church and Rev. Zafar Akhter, pastor of United Presbyterian Church each received a copy of threatening letter. The Islamists sent the letters to the following Christian institutions: St Peter's Middle School, Sargodha Institute of Technology, Sargodha Catholic High School, St John's Primary School and Fatima Hospital. Besides the Christian institutions, the letter was also sent to the main Immam-Bar-Gha (Shiite Muslim's gathering hall). Shiites are a minority Muslim group in Pakistan where the majority of the population is Sunni Muslim. ICC's Jonathan...

DHAREMA, PAKISTAN (BosNewsLife)-- A Christian schoolgirl in Pakistan's Punjab province was recovering Sunday, October 11, after she was allegedly "ruthlessly beaten" with a bamboo stick by a Muslim headteacher for saying she is "a Pakistani" citizen. The bedridden Nadia Iftikhar, 11, told BosNewsLife she was seriously injured when the teacher of the local evening coaching school 'Bright Future Academy' in the town of Dharema got angry because she challenged her views on Islam. “Our teacher was teaching us about the culture of Pakistan and Pakistani people and quoted a sentence from the text book saying 'We are Pakistani and all...

Note: Photos included. Note: The following text is a quote: Friday, October 16, 2009 Nationalists target Calvary Chapel Kaharlyk in Ukraine with firebomb attack By Peter Wooding Special to ASSIST News Service KAHARLYK, UKRAINE (ANS) -- The pastor of Calvary Chapel Kaharlyk, just south of Kiev in Ukraine, is thanking God for His protection, after their church building, where his family lives, was hit by a firebomb attack by suspected nationalists. In the early hours of Wednesday October 14th the attackers sprayed painted on the church wall: “Out with Sects” “ОУ�” an abbreviated name for a Ukrainian Nationalist movement. Pastor...

As I read online, I notice that there are plenty of people who believe that Egypt is some kind of "moderate" Islamic country where non-Muslims are treated fairly. The reality is that Muslims of Egypt, preach hatred towards Jews, and have been persecuting the Coptic Christians there for centuries. Yet the US government has poured billions of dollars into Egypt. Unfortunately we ask for little in return.

Jerusalem – Ma’an – Christians of several denominations gathered in Jerusalem Friday for a silent vigil in solidarity with besieged Islamic holy sites at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City. “We are here to support Al-Aqsa and those who are confined inside it, we are here in support of Muslims whose dignity is humiliated and religious feelings are harmed by attacks on their holiest sites,” Archbishop Atallah Hana told those gathered. This sit-in was a response to the call of Muslim scholars and clergymen to consider Friday a day of solidarity with Jerusalemites, and Muslim holy...

"Predictions that the end of the world is at hand have come' and gone for centuries, and they've always had one thing in common. They've always been wrong." Terror attacks fueling end-time theologies 10/6/2001 The Associated Press 1654 Archbishop Ussher of Armagh fixes the date of Creation as 4004 BC (26th October at 9 AM), and the End as 1997 AD (6000 AM of the Great Week) when the Millennium begins. This false teacher also claimed to know when the earth was created (4004 BC) and is still quoted by fundamentalists today. 1733 Sir Isaac Newton thinks the Coming...

A Florida judge has ruled a teenager from Ohio must return after running away to Florida in fear that her parents would harm her for converting from Islam to Christianity.

3:09 pm - Judge Dawson plans to enforce his order for the passport and related papers, even if the case is moved to Ohio. 3:10 pm - "We still don't have a complete copy of (Rifqa's) passport," said Bartholomew. "I am very alarmed that it hasn' been provided," she added. She said she has learned there are more documents being withheld. 3:18 pm - Attorneys are talking about arrangements for a psychological evaluation and counseling. She is to see a local psychologist on Friday morning. 3:21 pm - Elahi said he suspects "a ploy" by Rifqa's legal representatives to delay...

A 17-year old girl who fled from her home, fearing her Muslim parents would kill her for converting to Christianity, must go back to Ohio, a Florida judge ruled Tuesday. Judge Daniel Dawson ruled Ohio has jurisdiction over the case involving the teen, Rifqa Bary. Before the girl gets sent back, the judge says he needs immigration papers proving her status in the U.S. and proof from the state of Florida that she can continue her virtual schooling and receive credit in Ohio. She is expected to be placed in foster care when she returns and will also be provided...

... Golden State has more of these megachurches -- defined as those with at least 2,000 congregants -- than any other state. California is home to 193, slightly more than Texas with 191, ... survey by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research ... some who study the phenomenon call the Southern California Bible Belt... The megachurches are expanding by adapting to changing times and tastes, scholars say. Many have jettisoned formal rituals such as organs and hymns in favor of Christian rock music and overhead projection screens that display lyrics and prayers. They deliver upbeat biblical messages about applying faith...

...as Christians, we have been forced into a tolerance that has handicapped us in such a devastating way that unless we make some serious changes, we may never see the freedom that Christianity once knew in America. What exactly do I mean? We have been urged to be tolerant of other religious faiths such as Muslim, Atheist, Buddhism, and other newer evolving religions, as well as cults. We have been forced, or allowed ourselves to be forced into, being tolerant of behaviors that blatantly defy the Law of God, which is what Christianity is based on. Some may argue that...

California Christians Worship In A Big Way The state has more megachurches than anywhere else in the country, with the majority in the suburbs between Los Angeles and San Diego. Their upbeat approach is luring thousands each weekend. A worshiper gets caught up in the music at Shepherd of the Hills in Porter Ranch, which attracts 8,000 people to its six weekend services. California has 193 megachurches, defined as those with at least 2,000 congregants. By Duke Helfand October 11, 2009 Once again, the Sunday faithful have packed the cavernous sanctuary at Shepherd of the Hills Church in the San...

Al Shabaab extremists shoot 69-year-old after finding Bibles on him at checkpoint. NAIROBI, Kenya, September 18 (CDN) - The faith journey of a long-time underground Christian in Somalia ended in tragedy this week when Islamic militants controlling a security checkpoint killed him after finding Bibles in his possession. Militants from the Muslim extremist al Shabaab killed 69-year-old Omar Khalafe on Tuesday (Sept. 15) at a checkpoint they controlled 10 kilometers from Merca, a Christian source told Compass. A port city on the Indian Ocean 70 kilometers (45 miles) from Mogadishu, Merca is the main city of the Lower Shabele region....

Atheists recruited to be part of a lawsuit that is trying to rid government ceremonies such as the inauguration of a president of any invocation or other prayer have claimed they are made physically ill by prayer. "As I watched the inauguration, my stomach did a somersault with disgust for how much our country was violating the constitution (sic), the most important document in our country," wrote a 15-year-old in testimony being given to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. The lawsuit was filed before President Obama's inauguration and subsequently was dismissed at the district court...