Nigeria: Number of Christians Killed in 2016 Already Equal to Number Killed in 2015

by Veronica NeffingerEditor
ChristianHeadlines.com


The increasing massacre of Christians in Nigeria has led one leader to warn that as many Christians have been killed in the country in the first half of 2016 as were killed in all of 2015.

Much of Nigeria has become a war-torn place due to terrorist organization Boko Haram, as well as other perpetrators of violence such as Fulani herdsman who have been targeting Christians.

The Christian Association of Nigerian-Americans (CANAN) has called on the Nigerian government to do something about the continual massacre of Nigerian Christians.

“Whatever the federal government is doing, if any, is either too slow or insignificant compared with the reoccurrence of the killings; the federal government needs to step up and take bold actions to give members of the Christian community in the country a sense of security and belonging,” said Pastor Ade Oyesile, executive director of CANAN.


Continue reading here

Why Aren’t More Muslims Converting to Christianity?

Muslim refugees prepare for an evangelical baptism in Germany / Der Stern

by Michael Cook

MercatorNet


The atrocities in Orlando, Nice and in Normandy keep a burning question alive: will Muslims ever integrate successfully into Western societies? If you listen to Donald Trump or Marie Le Pen, the answer is no. Their sympathisers seem to believe that Muslims will always be a dangerous cyst within the secularised West.

There is another possibility, though. Why don’t Christians aspire to convert Muslims to their own faith? The novelist Michel Houellebecq created a stir with his most recent novel Submission(Soumission in French) which imagines France governed by an Islamic party in 2022. The central character, a professor of literature, decides to convert to Islam because he can get a secure job and multiple wives.

But why is this scenario more plausible than the gradual conversion of Muslims?

This is not as absurd as it sounds. There have been a number of reports from Europe of conversions to Christianity among Muslim refugees:

continue reading here

Michael Cook is editor of MercatorNet.

Persecution Unveiled has been called by God to prick the consciences of this nation and all free people to speak up and act on behalf of those who have no voice. Follow us on Pinterest and Facebook.  Email us at persecutionunveiled@gmail.com

Christians Pay Price as Turkey Turns to Islam After Attempted Coup

By Marco Giannegeli
Sunday Express

The attempted coup in Turkey sent shockwaves around the world. Here was a Nato ally, thrown into chaos overnight. MARCO GIANNANGELI in Istanbul uncovers how the power struggle has paved the way for a more extreme form of Islam to take hold.

Mid the cacophony of police sirens, low-flying helicopters and rifle fire, there was another sound during the attempt to overthrow president Recep Tayyip Erdogan: The wailing of Turkey’s imams.

From the nations’s 85,000 mosques, their amplified voices were heard calling upon the faithful to take to the streets and defy the plotters. The people listened. Some bravely stood in front of tanks as they defended the democratically elected president. Around 240 from both sides died and 1,400 were injured.

For others the night presented different opportunities as hardline Muslim Sunnis, whipped up to a frenzy, targeted Turkey’s Christian community.

In Matalya, a sprawling city in Anatolia, once the heartland of Christianity in the East, they targeted a Protestant church. The word church is a grand term for the small, modern shopfront nestled in the city’s minority Alevi district.

For, despite a tolerant constitution, Protestants are not allowed to build churches in Turkey. Even the name church must be coupled to the non-threatening “association”.

Gangs chanting “Allahu akbar” rounded on it to smash its glass frontage. “The attack on the church was light. But it’s significant that it was the only shopfront attack in those three days,” said its minister, Pastor Tim Stone, last night. “We were the only targets.”

Nor was Matalya alone. In the Black Sea city of Trabzon others attacked the Santa Maria church, smashing windows and using hammers to break down its door.

Article on Christian persecution continues here

HUMAN-RIGHTS ACTIVIST: FACEBOOK ENFORCING 'BLASPHEMY LAWS'

Anti-Shariah Author, Nonie Darwish, Suspended

  by Social Media Giant for Offending Islam

By Bob Unruh
World Net Daily

Facebook occasionally has enforced Islam’s anti-blasphemy and apostasy laws in America by banning statements criticizing the religion on which terrorists base their violence, charges an Egypt-born, human-rights activist and critic of Islam.

Nonie Darwish, author of “The Devil We Don’t Know: The Dark Side of Revolutions in the Middle East” and “Now They Call Me Infidel,” said in an interview on the Internet TV show “The Glasov Gang” she was suspended from Facebook for a short time for posting criticism of Islam.

“I don’t know what’s the deal with Facebook and enforcers of the blasphemy and apostasy laws of Islam,” she told Jamie Glazov, the editor of Frontpage Magazine, who holds a Ph.D. in history and who has authored “High Noon for America” and “United in Hate.”.

Such criticism is banned under Shariah, the Islamic religious law. But not only is Shariah not the law in the U.S., America has its First Amendment free-speech protection.

Darwish said her Facebook account was suspended after she made statements in the aftermath of the jihadist attack in San Bernardino, California, in December.

“Islam is the only religion on earth who kills people who leave it,” she said. Her suspension, she said, was “for writing a post critical of the culture of death.”

She read what she said was posted then removed:

“Islam regards life on earth as naturally bad. That is why life in the Muslim world is cheap, and the best [is] to kill yourself for allah. Muslims know they are miserable, and want to spread the misery. Why is the Muslim world the way it is, the only miserable place on earth?”

She said her contention that Muslims want to “spread the misery” is what Facebook “did not like.”

Read more about the Facebook ban and view related video

‘Horror’: Nun Speaks Out After Attackers Viciously Slit Throat of 86-Year-Old Priest in Normandy

By Tre Goins-Phillips
The Blaze

In the hours after two attackers took hostages inside a French church during morning mass on Tuesday near the city of Rouen, slitting the throat of one elderly priest before being killed by police, one nun is speaking out about the grisly assault.

The nun, identified only as Sister Danielle, was in the church at the time of the attack for which the Islamic State claimed responsibility. Describing what happened as the attackers viciously murdered 86-year-old Rev. Jacques Hamel, she called the onslaught as “a horror.”

“They forced [Hamel] to his knees, she told French media, according to the BBC. “He wanted to defend himself, and that’s when the tragedy happened.”

“They recorded themselves,” she continued. “They did a sort of sermon around the altar, in Arabic. It’s a horror.”

The nun said as soon as she saw the attackers, she thought it was all over. She said the radicals told her, “You Christians — you kill us.” She described the slain priest as a “faithful” leader “who loved everybody.”

In the wake of Hamel’s death, residents of all religious stripes have spoken out in shock. Local Imam Mohammed Karabila said he was “stunned by the death of my friend. He was someone who gave his life to others.”

A regional Muslim leader said one of the two attackers was known by police. This was the first attack inside a French church in recent history. Another church was targeted last year, but the attack was never carried out.

Story continues here

More Christians Discovering Biblical Beliefs Could Cost Them Their Jobs

By Kade Hawkins
September 30, 2015
Prophecy News Watch

It should come as no surprise that Christians will encounter opposition to their Biblical beliefs in the workplace. What might surprise them is that expressing those beliefs both at work and at home (such as social media) could cost them their job.

The latest victim of workplace firing to lose his case is Urologist Dr. Paul Church who was relieved from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston earlier this year and was just recently denied a chance to appeal his case. 

Church's offense was warning of the health risks of homosexual behavior and questioning the judgment of a hospital promoting such unhealthy behavior.
Church was told by hospital superiors that his views about homosexuality were "discrimination" and "harassment" and that the Bible verses he used to define homosexuality were equally "offensive".

In a similar manner, Chris Routson, who spent the last 13 years with Precision Strip metal processing in Middletown, Ohio was terminated without severance due to his lesbian co-workers complaining they were uncomfortable with how he indiscriminately shared his faith - both at work and at home via Facebook. 

Routson points out that he was already friends with the co-worker on Facebook and not trying to force anything on her (you can block and unfriend people on Facebook, including reporting them if you feel people are harassing you).

Ironically the Facebook link he shared was to the faith-based film "Audacity" which was released this year by Ray Comfort to help show that can Christians love homosexual individuals despite not agreeing with their life choices.

Routson has these words of advice for Christians in similar situations:

"If you are put in a situation where you are going to be fired or you are going to be persecuted for your faith, never give in to the fear of man; always fear the Lord. No matter what happens, trust the outcome to God rather than trying to think about how we can stop it from happening."

Neither of these stories is an isolated incident, but rather symptomatic of the way homosexual activists are aggressively targeting anyone who even remotely disagrees with their agenda, which previously was about recognition - now it is about promoting and celebrating their way of life or else. 

Read more about what Christians are facing

Muslim Doctor Forced to Flee Pakistan for Saving Christian's Life

The Doctor is Now Unable to Practice Medicine in the US

By Harry Farley

Christian Today

A Muslim doctor says was forced to flee Pakistan after he received death threats for saving a Christian's life.

Although he paid out of his own pocket for the medicine to be replaced, he claims a representative from a conservative Islamic NGO was furious: "They attributed my lack of knowledge about the alms laws to the fact that I belong to a minority Muslim sect," he said. 

The doctor, who is unnamed for security reasons, says he used emergency medicine donated through Islamic alms-giving to treat a Christian in urgent need of attention. Although the patient survived, the doctor was subject to abuse and threats because he did not know the alms-donated medicine was only to be used on Muslims.

Writing anonymously in the Guardian, he said: "The workplace discrimination gave way to threatening phone calls and vandalism of my car and bike.

"They found out my family lived in America and that I was alone. This made me an easy target. I was threatened with death at a medical conference."
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He fled and claimed asylum in the US, where his family were based. As part of the newspaper's 'How I got here' series on individual immigration stories, the doctor explained he is unable to practise medicine in America and described the "hard" life of an asylum seeker. Working part-time and studying the rest of the time to try he said he is trying to obtain a licence to practise medicine.

Story continues here

Christians United For Israel Three Million Members Becomes Powerful Voice For Israel

By Sean Savage
Prophecy News Watch

While much of the media focused on the recent terror attack in Nice, the failed coup in Turkey, and the Republican National Convention, thousands of evangelical Christians gathered in the nation's capital this week to show their support for Israel as part of the 11th annual Christians United for Israel (CUFI) Washington Summit.

Although world events may have overshadowed its latest gathering, CUFI's base of support is louder than ever. CUFI has become not only the self-described largest pro-Israel organization in America, but also likely the largest evangelical Christian organization of its kind. As such, the group will likely play a significant role in shaping the future of American support for Israel.

"Christians United for Israel in 11 short years has gone from 400 people in San Antonio, to 3,500 in our first gathering in Washington, DC, five months later...to 10,000, to 100,000, to 500,000, to 1 million in 2012, to 2 million in 2015. Tonight we celebrate an active Zionist membership of 3.1 million people," Pastor John Hagee, CUFI's founder and national chairman, declared in his remarks at the Washington conference as part of its "Night to Honor Israel" celebration.

CUFI defines "members" as email-list subscribers whose addresses do not produce bounce-backs when messaged.

"I am often asked by members of the press, how did this [growth to 3.1 million CUFI members] happen? I say that it is the Lord that has done this. The king of the universe, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, let his name be glorified, he has done this," said Hagee.

CUFI's Christian-Zionist following has steadily grown despite the past decade's erosion of support for Israel in other spheres of influence. The movement has also tapped into a desire by many Christians to seek out a connection to their roots amid various global threats and uncertainties.

"It is not possible to say that I am a Christian and not love the Jewish people," Hagee said.

Article on CUFI's support of Israel continues here

Jihadists Encouraged On Social Media To Kill Israeli Athletes At Rio Olympics

By Shiryn Ghermezian  
Prophecy News Watch

Israeli athletes set to compete in the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil are among the competitors targeted by groups linked with al-Qaeda, the UK's Daily Star reported on Thursday.

Groups associated with the terrorist organization posted a list on social media advising attacks on British, American, French and Israeli targets at the upcoming event in Rio de Janeiro.

The post said, "Your chance to take part in the global Jihad is here! Your chance to be a martyr is here!"

The post also encouraged jihadists to employ a range of techniques, such as kidnapping, explosives, poison and drones. "One small knife attack in these places will have bigger media effect than any other attacks," the post said, according to the Daily Star.

The al-Qaeda-linked groups claimed getting into Brazil should be easy, and once inside, will not be difficult to cause death and destruction, after having access to guns and explosives in Rio's "crime-ridden slums."

Story continues at: prophecynewswatch.com

ISIS 'BEHEADS' CATHOLIC PRIEST IN FRANCE

Fr. Jacques Hamel, the 86-year-old Catholic Priest Slain in an
ISIS Attack in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, France

By Bob Unruh
World Net Daily

Shouting “Allahu Akbar,” two Muslim attackers with knives on Tuesday assaulted and executed a Catholic priest in the French city of Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray near Rouen.

A nun who was in the church during the attack told local media the priest was “forced to his knees” before his throat was slit and that the terrorists recorded the attack on video.

“He wanted to defend himself. And that’s when the tragedy happened,” said the nun, who identified herself as Sister Danielle. “They did a sort of sermon around the altar, in Arabic. It’s a horror.”

The assailants were shot and killed by police as they emerged from the church, according to authorities.

French President Francois Hollande said in a statement that ISIS “has declared war on us.”

“We must fight this war by all means, while respecting the rule of law – what makes us a democracy,” he said.

Hollande said the attack was a “cowardly assassination” carried out by “by two terrorists in the name of Daesh” – another name for ISIS. The victim of the horrific slashing attack was identified as Father Jacques Hamel.

He died at the scene, and several others were injured, according to Interior Ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet.

ISIS immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was carried out by two ISIS “soldiers,” Fox News reported.

Story continues here

How An Entire Church Ended Up On An ISIS Kill List

By Michael Snyder
Prophecy News Watch

On Wednesday, I was contacted by someone on an ISIS kill list. Of course there are probably lots of people out there that believe that "ISIS is after them", but this particular individual and his wife were actually told that they are on an ISIS kill list by the FBI.
Not only are they on the list, but so is their pastor. It turns out that ISIS has apparently been pulling names off of church directories on the Internet, and so now an entire church has ended up on an ISIS kill list.

In the past perhaps many of us would have been less alarmed by this, but the attacks in Orlando, Dallas, Nice, and Baton Rouge are all still fresh in our minds. Innocent people are being targeted and killed just to make a statement, and nobody knows who will be next.

I would like to share with you a short excerpt from the email that was sent to me. Names and locations have been removed to protect the identity of the individual and his church.

"My wife and I live in *****, ********** just north of ******* We were contacted by the FBI this week. We are on a ISIS terrorist kill list and they wanted to inform us. So is my pastor. It appears a Muslim group is trolling the internet and getting church directories and posting names for anyone to kill. Quite frightening. I have talked to the ***** *** FBI Office numerous times now and they say they do not have suspects but this appears to be a new tactic. Be diligent but go about you normal life. They advised that the threat could be low - but tell that to the widows of all the slain police officers nationwide."

This was news to me, so I didn't really have any additional information for this individual. Obviously the federal government is trying to keep this quiet, and so we will have to rely on each other for information.

One thing that I did find is that apparently Jewish leaders and Jewish synagogues in the United States are being targeted as well...

The Islamic State's release on July 3rd of a new "kill list" prompted U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials to brief American Jewish leaders on the possible threat of terrorism to prominent Jewish figures and synagogues. The latest ISIS statement is not the first "ISIS kill list" to target American citizens. 

News of one broke in early June on the site Vocativ, which reported on a list published online which targeted over 8,000 Americans - including Hollywood celebrities and Silicon Valley executives.

Overall, approximately 15,000 Americans are now on various "kill lists" that ISIS has put out, but unfortunately most of the people on the kill lists aren't even aware that this has happened...

Over the past few years the Islamic State has posted the names of some 15,000 American citizens from places such as New York, Texas, Florida and California on kill lists.

Prophecy News Watch story continues here

Clinton VP Pick Tim Kaine's Islamist Ties

Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine.

By Ryan Mauro
Clarion Project

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s newly-announced running mate, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine, has a history of embracing Islamists. He appointed a Hamas supporter to a state immigration commission; spoke at a dinner honoring a Muslim Brotherhood terror suspect and received donations from well-known Islamist groups.

Appointing a Muslim Brotherhood Front Leader Who Supports Hamas

In 2007, Kaine was the Governor of Virginia and, of all people chose Muslim American Society (MAS) President Esam Omeish to the state’s Immigration Commission. A Muslim organization against Islamism criticized the appointment and reckless lack of vetting.

Federal prosecutors said in a 2008 court filing that MAS was “founded as the overt arm of the Muslim Brotherhood in America.” AChicago Tribune investigation in 2004 confirmed this, as well as MAS’ crafty use of deceptive semantics to appear moderate. Convicted terrorist and admitted U.S. Muslim Brotherhood member Abdurrahman Alamoudi testified in 2012, “Everyone knows that MAS is the Muslim Brotherhood.”

Read fully-documented profile of MAS here.

According to Omeish’s website, he was also president of the National Muslim Students Association (click there to read our profile about its Muslim Brotherhood origins) and served for two years on the national board of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), which the Justice Department also labeled as a U.S. Muslim Brotherhood entity and unindicted co-conspirator in a Hamas-financing trial.

His website says he was the vice president of Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center, a radical mosque known for its history of terror ties, including having future Al-Qaeda operative Anwar Al-Awlaki as its imam and being frequented by two of the 9/11 hijackers and Nidal Hasan, the perpetrator of the Fort Hood shooting. Omeish’s website says he remains a board member.

Omeish’s website also says he was a member of the board of Islamic American University, which had Hamas financier and Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader Yousef Al-Qaradawi chairman of its board until at least 2006.

Omeish was also chairman of the board for the Islamic Center of Passaic County, a New Jersey mosque with heavy terrorist ties and an imam that the Department of Homeland Security wants to deport for having links to Hamas.

Omeish directly expressed extremism before Kaine appointed him. He claimed the Brotherhood is “moderate” and admitted that he and MAS are influenced by the Islamist movement.

In 2004, Omeish praised the Hamas spiritual leader as “our beloved Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.” Videotape from 2000 also surfaced where Omeish pledged to help Palestinians who understand “the jihad way is the way to liberate your land” (he denied this was an endorsement of violence).

When a state delegate wrote a letter to then-Governor Kaine warning him that the MAS has “questionable origins,” a Kaine spokespersonsaid the charge was bigotry.

Kaine obviously failed to do any kind of basic background checking in Omeish.

Omeish resigned under heavy pressure, and Kaine acknowledged that his statements “concerned” him. But, apparently, they didn’t concern him enough to actually learn about the Muslim Brotherhood network in his state and to take greater precautions in the future.

Clarion Project article continues here

Outrage at Russia's 'Unconstitutional' Crackdown on Religion, Evangelism

Russian President Vladimir Putin, pictured at a religious service at the 
Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Saviour at Valaam Monastery, 

is a strong supporter of the Russian Orthodox Church.

By Mark Woods

Christian Today

Russia's President Vladmir Putin has signed a package of new anti-terrorism measures into law amid protests that they will be used to crack down on religious freedom.

Among Christians in Russia, Protestant leaders are particularly fearful as the legislation – dubbed the Yarovaya law after one of its two sponsors, United Russia deputy Irina Yarovaya – targets unregistered congregations and house groups.

According to Forum 18, which monitors religious freedom in Russia and former Soviet republics, the amendments to the Religion Law restrict those who can share beliefs to people with permission from members of state-registered religious groups and organisations.

This excludes people from "underground" churches which have chosen to operate without state permission. They also prohibit even the informal sharing of beliefs, for example responding to questions or comments.

The amendments also restrict the beliefs that can be shared and specify a restricted list of places where beliefs may be shared. They ban any beliefs from being shared in residential buildings, and bar the conversion of residential property to religious use. There are heavy financial penalties for breaching the law.

The new laws, which come into effect on July 20, represent the culmination of attempts by anti-religion campaigners to limit religious expression. Previous attempts by politicians to introduce bills on missionary activity were not supported by the government, according to Forum 18, but the restrictions were added at the last minute to the anti-terrorism legislation. 

Article on 'crackdown' on religion, evangelism continues

This Pastor’s Church is Refusing to Obey California’s Mandate That It Pay for Abortions

By Josh Shepherd
Life News

On July 13, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill known as the Conscience Protection Act—intended to protect the rights of health care providers, churches and other groups that object to participating in abortion. Seated in the House Gallery, one man watched the vote with all the intensity of a general going into war.

Jim Garlow, father of eight children and pastor of Skyline Wesleyan Church in San Diego, California, sat with his wife and a dozen congregants who prayed and discussed events unfolding on the House floor. While others visit the nation’s capital city for summer vacation, this team came with purpose.

Nearly two years ago, Garlow was thrust into a battle with the State of California—when his church objected to a new state mandate involving abortion. Since then, he has found that the pro-choice bias in state and federal government is no casual affair. “They are ruthless,” Garlow says.

Yet his church refuses to bow to the state. Represented by Alliance Defending Freedom, their lawsuit against California is ongoing. In an interview following the House vote, Jim Garlow shares what he testified to Congress, his personal connection with the pro-life cause… and the covert strategy he sees at work in politics today.

Bound4LIFE: What recent events in California led your church to file a lawsuit against the state to defend your pro-life convictions?

Pastor Jim Garlow: On August 22, 2014, some nameless, faceless bureaucrat at the Department of Managed Health Care in Sacramento made a decision by fiat: that every insurance provider in the state of California had to include elective abortion in our plans.

I found out about that decision 60 days later. An attorney who assists us at Skyline Church said, “You’re now covering abortions in your insurance.” I said, “There’s no way.” “No, you are.” “Surely not—we would’ve been notified or something! We would’ve seen this in the media?” I asked our team to follow-up about it and that attorney was right. We were being forced to pay for abortions, and in fact everyone in California is.

We began to ask what we could do—what is our legal recourse? There were many conference calls. We appealed directly to Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) at the time. She stalled our inquiry forever and did nothing. HHS would not enforce the law as written, which protects our rights.

A number of churches, hospitals, as well as Christian universities, both evangelical and Catholic, filed a complaint against the federal government. On June 22, a federal agency dismissed that coalition complaint. Our church filed a separate lawsuit against the state of California in a federal court, which is currently ongoing.

Story continues here

Tens Of Thousands Of Christians In Poland Take Over The Streets To Fight Islam And Liberalsim

They Cry Out “God, Honour, Homeland” And “Stop Islamisation”

By Theodore Shoebat
Shoebat.com

Tens of thousands of Christians in Poland took to the streets to fight Islam and leftism, crying out “Stop Islamisation” and the most beautiful words of “God, honour, homeland”, which reminds me so much of St. Peter’s words, “Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.” (1 Peter 2:17). 

According to one report:

"Tens of thousands of protesters poured into Warsaw’s streets on Wednesday for a demonstration organised by the far-right, marching under the slogan “Poland for the Polish” and burning an EU flag. 

Police said 25,000 people joined the march, which marked the anniversary of Poland’s return to independence after World War I, while organisers put the numbers at 50,000. 

“God, honour, homeland,” chanted the protesters as they marched under a sea of red-and-white Polish flags. 

Demonstrators trampled and burned a European Union flag at one point, while a banner added to the anti-EU theme with the slogan “EU macht frei” (“Work makes you free” in German), a reference to the slogan over the gates at Auschwitz. 

“Yesterday it was Moscow, today it’s Brussels which takes away our freedom,” chanted one group of protesters. 

Other banners read “Great Catholic Poland” and “Stop Islamisation”.
Several thousand riot police officers were deployed for the protest, which was punctuated by numerous firecrackers and smoke bombs but otherwise went off peacefully. 

The annual march, organised by Poland’s nationalist right, has seen clashes in previous years. 

“I came here because I love Poland and want to show it,” said 27-year-old Piotr, who came with his fiancee. “I came here for my grandfather, who fought in the Warsaw Uprising (against the Nazi occupation of the Polish capital), and for his father, who fought for independence.”

Use this link to view pictures and continue reading this report.

Thousands of Muslims Converting to Christianity in Bangladesh Despite Rising Persecution

Christian people pray during a sunrise prayer by Dhaka Pastors Fellowship
 on Easter Sunday in Dhaka, Bangladesh, April 12, 2009.

Christian people pray during a sunrise prayer by Dhaka Pastors Fellowship on Easter Sunday in Dhaka, Bangladesh, April 12, 2009.
Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/thousands-of-muslims-converting-christianity-bangladesh-despite-rising-persecution-166768/#3fi1jRuXIBZYWz1f.99

Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/thousands-of-muslims-converting-christianity-bangladesh-despite-rising-persecution-166768/#cgAOKe1PXc93W7wa.99

Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/thousands-of-muslims-converting-christianity-bangladesh-despite-rising-persecution-166768/#0zYh8Atxxlr

by Samuel Smith
CP World

Even though persecution against Christians in Bangladesh is on the rise, so is the number of Muslims converting to Christianity in the south Asian nation.

Just as in other countries where the population is dominated by a Muslim majority government, Christians in Bangladesh are at risk of being killed or persecuted because of their faith in Jesus Christ.

But while nearly 90 percent of Bangladesh's population of 165 million people is Muslim, Christianity is gaining traction.

According to the human rights organization Christian Freedom International, it is estimated that as many as 91,000 Muslims across Bangladesh have converted to Christianity in the last six years, even though apostasy in many Muslim cultures is punishable by death.

Pastor Faruk al-Ahmed, a Christian convert from Islam who has been preaching since the mid-1990s, personally attested to the rise of Christianity in his own community in Northern Bangladesh during an interview with the British news site Express.

continue reading here 

Persecution Unveiled is an e-publication established to educate people about the persecution of Christians and religious minorities in the US & worldwide. Mission Raising awareness to the growing tide of bigotry and hatred toward Christians around the world has become a burden on those trying to wake up those who cherish religious freedom as a God given right. Persecution Unveiled has been called by God to prick the consciences of this nation and all free people to speak up and act on behalf of those who have no voice.

  Follow us on on Facebook and Pinterest.    Help spread the word by sharing our articles on your favorite social networks.

Macy's Fires Catholic For His Beliefs

Bill Donohue
Catholic League


Bill Donohue comments on a clear case of religious discrimination:
Macy's has fired an employee because he is a practicing Catholic. The case is now before the New York State Division of Human Rights.

In May, Javier Chavez, Senior Store Detective at the Macy's store in Flushing, New York, received a phone call stating that a male had entered the ladies room with a female companion. A female customer, and her daughter, were afraid to enter because of the male's presence. A security employee who reports to Chavez advised the man to leave and use the men's room. He left claiming to be a female. He then complained to store officials that he was asked to leave.

Chavez was subsequently told by an Assistant Store Manager that certain males can use the ladies restroom. This was news to him. A few days later, an Assistant Security Manager told him that transgender persons can use the bathroom of their choice. He said he had just become aware of this policy, stating that it was contrary to his religion and the Bible. But he hastened to say that he would nonetheless enforce Macy's policy.

Macy's would not leave this alone, and this is where it crossed the line. Chavez was then summoned to meet with the Human Resources Manager, who suspended him. He was later terminated.

"After my employer learned that I was a practicing Catholic, with religious concerns about this policy," Chavez says in his formal complaint, "I was terminated because of my religion, in violation of the New York State Human Rights Law."

The most basic religious right is the right to believe; if conscience rights can be vitiated, the First Amendment means nothing. Macy's has no legal, or moral, grounds to stand on. For merely holding beliefs that are contrary to the store's policy, Chavez was fired. This is what totalitarian regimes do, not American commercial establishments.

Persecution Unveiled is an e-publication established to educate people about the persecution of Christians and religious minorities in the US & worldwide. Mission Raising awareness to the growing tide of bigotry and hatred toward Christians around the world has become a burden on those trying to wake up those who cherish religious freedom as a God given right. Persecution Unveiled has been called by God to prick the consciences of this nation and all free people to speak up and act on behalf of those who have no voice.

  Follow us on on Facebook and Pinterest.    Help spread the word by sharing our articles on your favorite social networks.

Christian Students in China Reportedly Barred From College Unless They Stop Going to Church

Members of a choir wait to sing at an underground church service
on Christmas Eve at an apartment in Beijing on December 24, 2014.
(Image source: Greg Baker/AFP/Getty Images)

By Carly Hoilman

The Blaze

The Three-Self Patriotic Movement — the government-run Protestant church — prohibits its members from “brainwashing” teenagers with religious teaching and bringing children to religious events.

According to China Aid, the local government in Guizhou announced the ultimatum late last month. After being notified of the new demand, members of Huaqiu Church said they were coerced to sign a document promising they would no longer take minors to church.

Any children who violate the order will be deemed ineligible to take a college entrance exam, the organization said, and denied admittance into military academies. And any parents who bring their children to church will be sued, according to China Aid, and under the legislation, children under the age of 18 may not receive any religious education.

Mou told China Aid, “Yesterday morning, I questioned a government official in our township, saying, ‘We do not accept the way you handled our church’s public meetings … What regulations does the central government have prohibiting [church] meetings? Let us see them.’ He said, ‘The higher level leadership ordered us to do this; we are just doing [as they say].’ Huaqiu is in a dark place.”

Other Christians also asked whether or not the central government had any role in creating this legislation, China Aid said, but local officials refused to answer.

Citing a previous China Aid report, the Christian Post noted that churches in China’s Pingyang County, Wenzhou, have been ordered to hand over all their tithes and offerings to the government. A local Christian man, who wasn’t named in the report, said it’s common for government officials to get involved in church affairs and manage donations churches receive.

“We have to obtain their (the government’s) permission if we would like to buy equipment or decorate the church,” the man told the Christian Post. “We will have to ask for permission for any expenses more than a few thousand yuan ($300).”

website: theblaze.com

Here it is: Complete Catalogue of 'Same-sex Marriage' Violations of Faith

Dozens of Cases in Which Christians in America Have
Been Bludgeoned by Activists and Judges

World Net Daily

THE BIG LIST OF CHRISTIAN COERCION

Here’s a list of cases in which Christians have been accused of violating non-discrimination laws for following the dictates of their faith, “gay” advocates have refused to do business with Christians, homosexuals have retaliated for a business owner’s Christian stance, or an official’s First Amendment religious rights have been brushed aside:

Missouri States Dismisses Counselor

Missouri State has dismissed a student, Andrew Cash, from a counseling program over his expression of concern over counseling same-sex duos, according to a new lawsuit.

The lawsuit, from the Thomas More Society, a legal team based in Chicago, alleges the discrimination came at the hands of Missouri State governors Peter Hofherr, Joe Carmichael, Stephen Hoven, Carrie Tergin, Beverly Miller, Gregory Spears, Kendall Seal, Tyree Lewis, Gabrial Gore and Virginia Fry, as well as President Clifton Smart III, Internship Coordinator Kristi Perryman, Tamara Arthaud, the head of the counseling department, and Angela Anderson, a faculty member.

“Plaintiff was targeted and punished for expressing his Christian worldview regarding a hypothetical situation concerning whether he would provide counseling services to a gay/homosexual couple. Since he did not give the ‘correct’ answer required by his counseling instructors, he was considered unsuitable for counseling and terminated from the program,” the lawsuit alleges.

A university spokeswoman told WND, “We do not comment on pending litigation.”

Then she commented, “We do not discriminate based on religion or any other protected classes.”

The law firm explained Cash was dismissed from his M.S. in Counseling program after “expressing concern over counseling same-sex couples due to his religious views. His suit claims that he is unable to be a counselor and suffers daily emotional grief and pain. He is also seeking MSU to reinstate him in his [program] with safeguards so that he can earn his degree.”

Cash was a student “in excellent standing and nearing the completing of his degree” when he was removed, the complaint explains.

The County Clerk

A federal judge in Kentucky brushed off the First Amendment religious rights of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis and ordered her to issue same-sex “marriage” licenses in violation of her constitutionally protected rights.

The case immediately was taken to the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The ruling from David Bunning said Davis can believe what she chooses privately. But he ruled she cannot exercise her “freedom of religion” publicly.

“The state is not asking her to condone same-sex unions on moral or religious grounds, nor is it restricting her from engaging in a variety of religious activities. Davis remains free to practice her Apostolic Christian beliefs. She may continue to attend church twice a week, participate in Bible study and ministry to female inmates at the Rowan County Jail. She is even free to believe that marriage is a union between one man and one woman, as many Americans do.

“However, her religious convictions cannot excuse her from performing the duties that she took an oath to perform as Rowan County Clerk,” he said, citing the same-sex “marriage” right that was created only weeks ago by the Supreme Court.

WND has reported on the use of “Freedom of Worship” by the federal government before.

Early in President Obama’s tenure in the White House, Catholic Online and other media outlets reported what appeared to be a deliberate attack on the Constitution’s “freedom of religion” protections.

The report noted a crucial change in Obama’s language between his June 2009 speech in Cairo, Egypt, where he spoke of a Muslim America and its “freedom of religion,” and the November 2009 memorial for the Fort Hood soldiers gunned down by a radical Muslim, where he termed it “freedom of worship.”

From that point on, “freedom of worship” has become the term of choice, the report said.

The Bistro

The Daily Signal reported that Gortz Haus Gallery and bistro owners Betty and Richard Odgaard decided to close down their business after reaching a $5,000 settlement with a homosexual duo.

Their business, a former church, had offered wedding services, but they declined, because of their Mennonite faith, to host the alternative sexual lifestyle event when asked. They knew they would be targeted by regulations in their state of Iowa if they continued, so they shut off wedding services, and their business dried up.

“We can’t pretend it’s going to get better,” Betty Odgaard said. “There wasn’t enough business.”

They’re hoping the Gortz Haus eventually will be a church again

“That would be the most wonderful option,” Betty said

List of Court Cases of Christian Coercion Continues Here

Persecution Unveiled is an e-publication established to educate people about the persecution of Christians and religious minorities in the US & worldwide.  The growing tide of bigotry and hatred toward Christians has become a heavy burden on those of us who earnestly desire to wake up people who cherish religious freedom as a God given right.  Persecution Unveiled has also been called by God to prick the consciences of all free people to speak up and act on behalf of those who have no voice. 

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Egypt: 15 Arrested Over Arson Attack on Christian Homes

By James Macintyre
Christian Today

Police have arrested 15 people after an arson attack on homes belonging to Coptic Christians in an Upper Egyptian village, in the latest of a series of attacks on Christians in the country.

The arson attack on five houses in Abou Yaboub in the Minya governate came on Saturday after rumours spread about a church being built in the area. The arrests reportedly came hours later.

The incident is the latest in a string of attacks against Christians, especially in the Minya region, home to a relatively high proportion of Coptic Christians. Last week, the Coptic Orthodox Archbishop of Minya, Anba Makarios called on police to enforce the law protecting citizens from sectarian violence, saying that attacks are taking place at an average of one every 10 days.

Elsewhere, on 5 July an Orthodox Christian nun from Mar Girgis Monastery in Old Cairo was killed after reportedly being hit by a stray bullet on the Cairo-Alexandria Highway.

Recent weeks have also seen the assault on homes of Christian families in the village of Karm el Loofy, the burning of a kindergarten run by Christians in Minya, and the murder on 30 June of Rafael Moussa, a Coptic Orthodox priest of the church of St. George. 

The murder was carried out in Al Arish, a coastal city in North Sinai that is only a few miles away from Gaza. So-called Islamic State (IS) took responsibility for the killing, describing Moussa as a "disbelieving combatant."
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Also in Minya in May, a 70-year-old Christian woman – alleged to be the mother of a man who was romantically involved with a Muslim woman – was stripped naked by a mob of 300 Muslims and paraded through the streets of her village.

Tensions between Christians and Muslims have intensified after the Arab Spring of 2011.

The worst single incident came in February 2015, with the beheadings by Islamic State of 21 Egyptian Christian migrant workers.

Egypt has an estimated population of nine million Christians. Mostly Orthodox Copts, they account for about 10 per cent of Egypt's population, which is overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim.

website: christiantoday.com

Persecution Unveiled is an e-publication established to educate people about the persecution of Christians and religious minorities in the US & worldwide.  The growing tide of bigotry and hatred toward Christians has become a heavy burden on those of us who earnestly desire to wake up people who cherish religious freedom as a God given right.  Persecution Unveiled has also been called by God to prick the consciences of all free people to speak up and act on behalf of those who have no voice. 

Follow us on on Facebook and Pinterest.    Help spread the word by sharing our articles on your favorite social networks.

US Congressman Condemns 'Horrendous' Rights Abuses of Christians and Dissidents in North Korea

Under the leadership of Kim Jong Un, North Korea is widely considered
to be the worst country in which to be a Christian. Reuters

By Andy Walton

Christian Today

A senior US politician has joined a church rally in Washington, DC to protest against the abuse of Christians and other dissidents in North Korea.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA) took part in the Korean Church Coalition's annual rally for North Korean freedom.

The Congressman said: "We know that for ordinary North Koreans there is no right to freedom of religion, [to] assemble, to petition their government. But what is so horrendous, is what happens to the 120,000 who have been arrested and put in these work camps, sometimes for three generations. The back-breaking work, the way they are beaten if they so much as smile..."

North Korea has consistently been named as one of the toughest places in the world to be a Christian, topping Open Doors' World Watch List on several occasions.

Royce claims his committee and the State Department is doing what it can to oppose the North Korean dictatorship. "We put sanctions against the regime, but more importantly, we personally put those sanctions against Kim Jong Un and those sanctions against those in his inner circle to ostracize them," he said. 

"Today we are broadcasting into North Korea and using the internet to tell people about the human rights abuses, to give them the truth, the facts about what's happening in North Korea."
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Addressing the gathering of Christians he said: "As we continue our efforts, I would just close by saying all of you have done the most responsible of things by having your voice speak out on behalf of the voiceless. Thank you for what you do to protect religious freedom."

website: christiantoday.com

Persecution Unveiled is an e-publication established to educate people about the persecution of Christians and religious minorities in the US & worldwide.  The growing tide of bigotry and hatred toward Christians has become a heavy burden on those of us who earnestly desire to wake up people who cherish religious freedom as a God given right.  Persecution Unveiled has also been called by God to prick the consciences of all free people to speak up and act on behalf of those who have no voice. 

Follow us on on Facebook and Pinterest.    Help spread the word by sharing our articles on your favorite social networks.

Sermons on Biblical Sexuality Illegal in Iowa?

State civil rights commission says churches must 

censor speech, open restrooms to opposite sex

Attorney sound bite: Christiana Holcomb
Christian Local

DES MOINES, Iowa – Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing an Iowa church filed a federal lawsuit Monday against members of the Iowa Civil Rights Commission, among others, to stop the government from censoring the church’s teaching on biblical sexuality and from forcing the church to open its restrooms and showers to members of the opposite sex.

The commission is interpreting a state law to ban churches from expressing their views on human sexuality if they would “directly or indirectly” make “persons of any particular…gender identity” feel “unwelcome” in conjunction with church services, events, and other religious activities. The speech ban could be used to gag churches from making any public comments—including from the pulpit—that could be viewed as unwelcome to persons who do not identify with their biological sex. This is because the commission says the law applies to churches during any activity that the commission deems to not have a “bona fide religious purpose.” Examples the commission gave are “a child care facility operated at a church or a church service open to the public,” which encompasses most events that churches hold.

ADF attorneys representing Fort Des Moines Church of Christ in Des Moines argue in the lawsuit that all events held at a church on its property have a bona fide religious purpose, and that the commission has no authority to violate the First Amendment’s guarantees of freedom of religion and speech.

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Persecution Unveiled is an e-publication established to educate people about the persecution of Christians and religious minorities in the US & worldwide. Mission Raising awareness to the growing tide of bigotry and hatred toward Christians around the world has become a burden on those trying to wake up those who cherish religious freedom as a God given right. Persecution Unveiled has been called by God to prick the consciences of this nation and all free people to speak up and act on behalf of those who have no voice.  Follow us on on Facebook and Pinterest.    Help spread the word by sharing our articles on your favorite social networks.