Iranian Woman Stabbed To Death In Australia After Converting To Christianity

By Ruth Gledhill
Christian Today

A young woman from Iran who converted to Christianity has been stabbed to death.

Nasrin Abek, aged 35, was found in her apartment in Sydney, Australia with multiple stab wounds. Her husband Amir Darbanou, aged 42, has been charged with murder. The couple lived in the wealthy Potts Point suburb Sydney.

Darbanou was charged yesterday after police force an entry into the home, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

The dead woman's father had allegedly called police having himself received a phone from Darbanou on Wednesday night.

The victim's father told the Sydney Morning Herald that his distress had been made even greater because he had to contact police several times before they investigated.

Darbanou appeared before the Central Local Court in Sydney this morning and entered no plea. He did not apply for bail but it was refused in any case.

Police knew of no history of domestic violence involving the couple but neighbours reported screaming coming from the apartment on Wednesday night, according to local reports.

Abek, a hairdresser, moved from Iran to Australia four years ago and had recently become a Christian.

Story continues here 

Why The Church Has Got To Start Caring About Persecuted Christians

The ruins of the Living Faith Church which was destroyed
 in an attack claimed by Boko Haram. Militants have
systematically targeted Christians and churches
since the uprising began in 2009

By Carey Lodge

Christian Today

Statistically, the worst place in the world to be a Christian is in North Korea. It has topped persecution charity Open Doors' annual World Watch List of countries where Christians face the harshest treatment for the past 14 years. Under dictator Kim Jong-Un, the government maintains absolute control through the systematic repression of its citizens.

More than 100,000 Christians are thought to be in hard labour camps, while tens of thousands of citizens have defected to countries such as neighbouring South Korea, China, Mongolia and Russia. A report released this week warned that documented incidents against Christians include "being hung on a cross over a fire, crushed under a steamroller, herded off bridges and trampled underfoot".

However, surprisingly, Eddie Lyle – president of Open Doors UK and Ireland – says North Korea is not actually the most difficult country for Christians to live out their faith. He gives that title to Nigeria, where he says the Church "is facing its Gethsemane".

"For the most part it stands alone and misunderstood. It has endured years of destruction, great human loss, and its people scattered. It's time for the Church around the world to hear not only their cries, but their screams for help, and for the support of the family of God around the world," he tells Christian Today.

Lyle was in Northern Nigeria in May this year, visiting Church leaders and pastors who have experienced extreme violence at the hands of Boko Haram – an Islamist group that has waged terror in Nigeria's northern states since 2009.

In April 2014, more than 200 Christian girls were abducted from their school in Chibok, Borno state, by Boko Haram militants. A few have managed to escape but 218 are still missing, believed to remain in captivity. A video released by the terrorist group in August showed dozens of the schoolgirls, one of whom begged the Nigerian government to free detained Boko Haram members in a prisoner swap.

The girls' capture was part of a wider Boko Haram campaign against education in Nigeria – its name means "Western (or non-Islamic) education is forbidden". More than 910 schools have been targeted, at least 611 teachers deliberately killed and another 1,900 forced to flee.

The fighting has sparked a largely unreported refugee crisis with an estimated 2.2 million people, including 1.4 million children, displaced. Only around 10 per cent are in government-recognized refugee camps where there is some schooling. The other 90 per cent are living with friends and family members with little or no access to education.

Christians are among the groups to have fared the worst. Last month, Boko Haram's new leader Abu Musab al-Barnawi vowed to eradicate Christianity in Nigeria. Militants will blow up "every church that we are able to reach... killing all of those who we find from the citizens of the cross", he said.

Story continues: christiantoday.com

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Government Threatens Artists With Jail Time Over Biblical Beliefs

The ordinance forces the studio's two female owners to use their artistic talents 

to promote same-sex ceremonies and also forbids the studio, Brush & Nib, and

its proprietors from publicly expressing the Christian beliefs that prevent them

from doing so and that require them to create art celebrating only marriages 

between one man and one woman. (Courtesy/ADF)

Alliance Defending Freedom
Charisma News

Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys filed an appeal Tuesday that asks an Arizona appeals court to temporarily stop Phoenix from applying an ordinance to an art studio specializing in hand-painting, hand-lettering and calligraphy for weddings and other events because the ordinance conflicts with free speech. 

The ordinance forces the studio's two female owners to use their artistic talents to promote same-sex ceremonies and also forbids the studio, Brush & Nib, and its proprietors from publicly expressing the Christian beliefs that prevent them from doing so and that require them to create art celebrating only marriages between one man and one woman.

The appeal comes after a trial court judge declined to issue an order that would prevent the city from enforcing the ordinance against the studio or its owners while their lawsuit moves forward in court.

"Artists shouldn't be threatened with jail time just because they don't hold the same views the government does," said ADF Legal Counsel Jonathan Scruggs.

 "We are asking the appeals court to reverse the trial court and suspend this ordinance while our case goes forward because the city must allow artists the freedom to make personal decisions about what art they will and will not create. In addition, the ordinance's further requirement that artists stay quiet about their views is clearly unjust and unlawful."

At the trial court, ADF attorneys argued that the ordinance runs afoul of Arizona's Free Speech Clause and Free Exercise of Religion Act. Specifically, the suit, Brush & Nib Studio v. City of Phoenix, challenges Phoenix City Code Section 18.4(B), a non-discrimination ordinance which the city has construed to force artists like the owners of Brush & Nib to create objectionable art, even though they decide what art to create based on the art's message, not the requester's personal characteristics.

Read more about ADF's court battle for free speech and religious freedom

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Obama Facing Federal Lawsuit Over Failure to Address ISIS' Horrific Christian Genocide

Persecuted Church
American Center for Law & Justice

The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), which is active in defending persecuted Christians around the globe, today filed a federal lawsuit against the Obama Administration’s State Department for failing to provide information about actions the Obama Administration is taking to stop the genocide of Christians by ISIS – the Islamic State.

In July, the ACLJ sent the State Department a series of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests all aimed at uncovering government records that would show any action by the State Department to respond to or stop the genocide. The State Department has ignored those requests and today the ACLJ filed a federal lawsuit in Washington, D.C. to force the State Department to show what it has done to confront the ISIS genocide and protect the Christian victims and other religious minorities, or confirm that it hasn’t really done anything at all.

“This Administration continues to refuse to acknowledge the enemy and won’t engage and eliminate ISIS – which continues its unabated genocide of Christians,” said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ. “We participated in a concerted effort to pressure the Obama Administration to finally recognize this slaughter and publicly recognize this eradication as ‘genocide.’ But what is the Obama Administration doing to stop the genocide? 

The United States should be a leader in defending and protecting Christians. The world is watching as Christians are put to death simply because of their religious beliefs. That’s why it is so important to hold the Obama Administration accountable and to find out exactly what is being done to bring an end to this horrific practice. And that is why we have gone to court to unearth the truth.”

In the complaint filed today, the ACLJ notes: “Defendant has a reputation for flaunting and disregarding its public accountability and FOIA obligations.”

The lawsuit argues that the State Department failed to comply with the FOIA within 20 business days of receiving the requests as required by the statute.

“Defendant has failed to produce any records responsive to the request, indicate when any responsive records will be produced, or demonstrate that responsive records are exempt from production,” the complaint contends.

 “Through its continued delay in responding to Plaintiff’s lawful request for records, and its improper withholding of such requested records, Defendant has failed to comply with FOIA’s prescribed deadlines for responding to a request for records and has violated Plaintiff’s statutory rights.”

The ACLJ has been advocating for the protection of Christians and other religious minorities and the end of genocide for years. We have sent key legal letters to U.N. Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon and other U.N. bodies, U.S. Permanent Representative to the U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power, the 47 Member States of the U.N. Human Rights Council, and two letters to Secretary of State John Kerry. 

Read more at aclj.org



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President Barack Obama's administration is facing a federal lawsuit from the American Center for Law and Justice, a conservative law group, over its failure to properly address the ongoing genocide of the Islamic State terror group against Christians and other religious minorities.
Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/obama-facing-federal-lawsuit-over-failure-to-address-isis-horrific-christian-genocide-168923/#ShShAxTXPMO1WvAB.99

Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/obama-facing-federal-lawsuit-over-failure-to-address-isis-horrific-christian-genocide-168923/#cRht7IK8124OcoLb.99Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/obama-facing-federal-lawsuit-over-failure-to-address-isis-horrific-christian-genocide-168923/#RsOVRzCby8PwopPM.99

Cuba: Christians Facing Threats, Churches Being Burned

By Veronica Neffinger
Christian Headlines

Christians in Cuba are facing increasing persecution, according to a pastor and religious freedom activist.

ChristianToday.com reports that Christians in Cuba are experiencing escalated threats due to their faith.

Rev. Mario Felix Lleonart Barroso stated that "the threat of physical violence... comes with the territory of being a Christian” in Cuba.

Although Cuba’s constitution guarantees religious freedom, this hasn’t deterred the government from targeting Christians.

From January 2016 to July 2016 there were 1,606 recorded violations of religious freedom in the country. These violations included destruction of churches, church property, and arbitrary arrests of Christians.

Barroso said Christians face "the problem of destroying or even burning things inside the building; not to mention, the threat of physical violence that comes with the territory of being a Christian in Cuba.”

Despite the threats, however, Barroso remains hopeful for Christians in Cuba.

"The reason the government sometimes tries to silence the Church or to close down church buildings is because it is worried about how many people are turning away from the state and looking to God (and the Church) for answers and for hope," he said.

website: www.christianheadlines.com

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Pakistan: Muslims Rape & Murder Christian Boy, Police Register Death as Natural & not Suspicious

by Robert Spencer
Jihad Watch

“The brutal nature of the crimes inflicted on Christians in Pakistan is the product of their vulnerability and the warped minds that breed in the nation. The levels of rape, sodomy and murder in Pakistan are reaching unprecedented levels. Christians and other minorities are a natural target as they are disenfranchised by the country’s laws and statutes, which confer second-class citizenship upon them.”

Indeed. And why are Christians second-class in Pakistan? Because it’s commanded in the Qur’an (9:29). 

A 14-year-old Christian boy was murdered and his dead body was left hanging in a tree in a place called Gosh Nagar, Faisalabad.

Zeeshan Masih had been visiting his uncle’s cattle farm at Shreejan Wala Dhera and gone out to buy a soft drink on the 23rd of August 2016, but never returned home. He was later found hanging dead from the branch of tree only a short distance from where his uncle’s buffaloes would go out to graze.

Despite medical evidence that Zeeshan had been sexually molested and some witnesses implicating two unknown Muslim men, local Police initially registered Zeeshan’s death as natural and not suspicious.

continue reading at https://www.jihadwatch.org

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Does Obama Administration Favor Muslim over Christian Refugees?

by Veronica Neffinger
ChristianHeadlines.com

Hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes in Syria and other areas of the Middle East due to persecution and ongoing conflict.

The U.S. recently met its quota of accepting 10,000 Syrian refugees, and plans to receive even more. However, reports are emerging that allege that the Obama administration favors Muslim refugees over Christians.

Johnnie Moore, the Christian author of the book Defying ISIS and president of the KAIROS Company, recently spoke about the threat Christian refugees are facing.

Moore denounced what he called the “Christophobic” way many leaders treat Christians and then accuse those who support the persecuted Christians of being Islamophobic.

"The United States of America has a moral obligation to speak up, and we’re not doing it, and it starts at the top,” said Moore.
continue reading at http://www.christianheadlines.com



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China: Christian Summer Camp Organizers Detained by Police for 'Indoctrinating Minors'

One of the church cross demolitions that were
frequented in Zhejiang, China until recently.

By Ruth Gledhill
Christian Today

Two Christian summer camp organizers were detained in China last month on the charge of "indoctrinating minors with superstitious beliefs".
Zhou Yanhua and Gao Ming, members of Yining County Church in Xinjiang region, had been getting ready to drive a group of children to a Christian summer camp.

Just as they were about to leave, police turned up, took the two women into custody and also took the children to the police station to register their identities.

An elder from Yining County Church, Xie Xianhua, said officials also called the families and school teachers of the children involved, threatening to deduct the teachers' wages or keep the students from being admitted to higher grade levels, according to the human rights organisation China Aid.

Gao, 27, who is a student at Yanjing Theological Seminary, was held behind bars for 15 days.  Zhou, the head of the church sponsoring the summer camp, was held for 10 days.

Chinese law forbids religious instruction being given to anyone under 18. It is held to be brainwashing. Christian parents and church leaders can get into trouble with police if they involve their children in any Christian activities, according to China Aid.

"Gao's status as a student at an official, government-sanctioned seminary reveals that not only house churches are at risk for government suppression. Members of China's official Protestant church, the Three-Self Patriotic Movement, are also targeted," the charity reported.

A conversation took place on the Chinese messaging app WeChat between other students at the seminary.

China Aid translated some sections, where students prayed to "strengthen the faith of the co-workers, strengthen the church and also protect the children could continuously follow the Lord".

One student seminarian said: 

"Also, pray for the parents and the kids. It is common to be detained because of things like this."

Website: christiantoday.com 

PARENTS SUE SCHOOL FOR FORCING DAUGHTER TO ‘CONVERT’ TO ISLAM

By Adan Salazar
Info Wars

Parents in Maryland are suing public school administrators over concerns that a classroom lesson attempted to indoctrinate their daughter into the Islamic faith.

In an incredible lawsuit filed in US district court last week, Melissa Wood and her husband John Wood, an eight-year US Marine Corps veteran, claim the La Plata Public School violated the First Amendment by promoting “Islam over other faiths, such as Christianity or Judaism.”

The Woods claim their daughter, identified as C.W. in court documents obtained by Infowars, was assigned lessons and homework in her 11th grade World History class which “required the students… to profess statements on the teachings and beliefs of Islam in written worksheets as graded homework assignments,” violating the family’s Christian faith.

According to the lawsuit, “C.W. and her classmates in 11th grade World History were instructed that ‘Most Muslim’s faith is stronger than the average Christian.’”
Additionally, “C.W. also had to profess the Shahada, by claiming, ‘There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah,’” the lawsuit reads.

“This statement is in direct contradiction to C.W.’s deep-seeded Christian beliefs and heritage that it is sinful to express that there is any other god but the monotheistic Christian God.”

The Woods also took issue with C.W. being instructed that “’jihad’ is a ‘holy war waged on behalf of Islam as a religious duty.”

The lawsuit claims the history class instructed students to read from the text of the Qur’an and directed them “to learn and recite the Five Pillars of Islam.”

Article continues

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Police charge man with murder of Christian father who tried to retrieve daughter from forced marriage

Mehwish Masih was kidnapped and forced into an Islamic marriage. BPCA

By Ruth Gledhill
Christian Today

A man in Pakistan has been charged with the murder of the father of a 14-year-old Christian girl who was kidnapped, raped and forced into Islamic marriage.

Mehwish Masih, who is herself still missing, had to leave school early because her parents could no longer afford the fees. She went into domestic service and did not return home from her new employer's house.

A few days later the family received a letter stating that she had willingly converted to Islam and was now married. The family was denied access to Mehwish.

Her father Tanveer Masih sold his home and hired a lawyer to try to get his daughter back.

On 31 May he was shot dead after agreeing to meet someone who had told him he could retrieve his daughter if he dropped the legal action.

One man has been charged with murder and is expected to appear soon at Faisalabad High Court. A futher man is still being sought by police.

The family is being helped by the British Pakistani Christian Association (BPCA), which has moved them to a safe home and is helping with legal costs, food and education.

"Taking them away from the threats of the relatives of the accused has helped galvanise the family for the necessary court hearings they will have to attend. We will also protect them as much as possible from abuse and threats during those hearings and will be with them at all hearing dates. BPCA have been providing biblically based counselling and general advice," a spokesman said.

Najma Tanveer, widow of Tanveer Masih, said: 

"We were hopeless and destitute but God has delivered us. I have lost my husband Tanveer but thank God that I know he is safe in His presence. The cruel men that destroyed our lives will have to answer before God one day but even before then, I believe they will be punished here on earth too. I want my daughter Mehwish back so desperately, she should be in my arms that I can protect and comfort her. Please ask Christians to pray for her safety and return."

 Read more

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NETANYAHU TELLS ISRAELI STUDENTS: STUDY THE BIBLE

Benjamin Netanyahu recommends people read the Bible
(courtesy CBN video)

World Net Daily 

In America, public school students aren’t likely to hear about the Bible on the first day of classes.

But, in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with 200 students, along with Education Minister Naftali Bennett, and urged them to be serious about Bible study – in the public schools.

Reminiscing about his school days, Netanyahu told the students to learn and “be good children.” In his speech, he emphasized coexistence and, at the same time, the importance of learning Jewish history.

“I want you to listen to me because I want you to learn – learn to write, learn to read, learn Hebrew, Arabic and English,” he said. “I want you to learn mathematics. I want you to learn science. I want you to learn history – history of the Jewish People, the history of your public. I want you to learn the truth, and the truth says that we were destined to live together.”

He continued, “I want you to be doctors, scientists and writers, and be whatever you want to – and are able to – be. I want you to be loyal citizens, integrated into the state of Israel; this is your state.”

The prime minister unconsciously echoed the Book of Proverbs when he instructed the students to listen to their parents and their teachers.

“Learn well. Go back home and do what mother and father tell you,” he told them.

Later, Netanyahu made an address to Israel’s students at large, exhorting them to learn the Bible in order to understand “why we are here” in Israel.

“First of all the study of the Bible,” he said. “We must make a major effort, this is the basis for why we are here, why we have returned here, why we stay here.”

Netanyahu takes his own advice and conducts Bible studies at his version of the “White House” in a “Bible study club” – a tradition begun by the first prime minister of Israel, David Ben Gurion.

He also met with contestants in a Bible knowledge competition in which students from around the world participate. He invited them to come to Israel to visit, to study and to live in the Jewish state.

Website: wnd.com

Elementary School Bible Club Ceases Following Complaint From Atheist Activist Group

By Heather Clark
Christian News Network

BREA, Calif. — A Bible club at an elementary school in California is no more following a complaint from a prominent professing atheist group that seeks to combat what it believes are violations of the “separation of Church and State.”
Earlier this year, the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) sent a letter to the Brea Olinda Unified School District after it was contacted by a parent who expressed concern that their son might feel pressure to join.

According to the correspondence, Club Monarch had been included in the weekly newsletter at Mariposa Elementary School and is listed on the online school calendar. There had been posters on the wall advertising the club as well, and the school’s principal had spoken about the option to parents during a back-to-school night.

“If a school chooses to allow outside groups to host after school programs on its property and an outside group decides to create a religious program, there must be no school involvement in the organization or promotion of that religious program,” FFRFwrote. “That means that the district cannot promote Club Monarch on its website, its school walls, to parents at back-to-school night, and cannot coordinate sign-ups for the club in the school office.”

The organization sent a second letter in March after submitting a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request and discovered that Mariposa Elementary School had sent home registration forms for parents and that teachers had helped to plan and coordinate the meetings. Superintendent Brad Mason also spoke at the club on one occasion.

“It is impossible for this club to continue in a constitutional manner. The club and the school are inextricably entangled,” FFRF wrote. “The Brea Olinda USD can no longer allow teachers and other staff to take advantage of their positions and access to children to proselytize and attempt to convert students to Christianity. Club Monarch must be disbanded.”

On Aug. 26, the atheist organization received notice from attorneys for the district that the club has ceased its activities.  

Story continues here

Blogger's Note:  Below is an excerpt from this article regarding the primer used in schools before the founding of our nation until the early 20th century. 

The first textbook used in the American colonies even before the nation’s founding, “The New England Primer,” was largely focused on the Scriptures, and was stated to be popular in public and private schools alike until approximately the early 1900’s. It used mostly the King James Bible as reference, and spoke much about sin, salvation and proper behavior.

“Save me, O God, from evil all this day long, and let me love and serve Thee forever, for the sake of Jesus Christ, Thy Son,” it read.

 Many of the Founders’ children learned to read from the primer.

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UCLA Campus Leader Departs Over ‘Hostile, Unsafe’ Climate for Pro-Israel Students

Milan Chatterjee 

by JTA
The Times of Israel

The former president of the UCLA Graduate Students Association has left the university’s law school over what he calls a “hostile and unsafe campus climate.”

Milan Chatterjee will complete his third year of law school at New York University School of Law, the Los Angeles-based Jewish Journalreported.

Last November, Chatterjee, who is Hindu, threatened to rescind funding for a student town hall if pro-Palestinian groups used the occasion to promote divestment from Israel. He said his intention was to maintain the Graduate Student Association’s neutrality in political affairs. Chatterjee was later reprimanded by the university, who said he acted outside of his authority.

Late last month, Chatterjee sent a letter to UCLA Chancellor Gene Block informing the university that he was leaving in the wake of bullying and harassment by students and organizations promoting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel.

The attacks against him came after the 2015 UCLA Diversity Caucus event, whose funding Chatterjee conditioned on its sponsors not associating with the BDS movement.

Story continues here

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Barack Obama Urged to Use G20 China Visit to Fight for Persecuted Christians

President Barack Obama boards Air Force One in Nevada to
depart for Hawaii on his way to tour Midway Atoll and
attend summits in Laos and China. Reuters

By Ruth Gledhill
Christian Today

President Barack Obama has been urged to raise the issue of religious freedom in China when he visits next week for the G20 summit.

Obama will be in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang province, on September 4 and 5. The province has been the focus of a months-long campaign to remove hundreds of crosses from church buildings, although this persecution has lessened recently.

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom is calling on Obama to raise the issue of religious freedom with President Xi.

The commission also wants him to press for the release of prisoners of conscience.

Thomas Reese, the Jesuit chair of the commission, said: "As the Chinese government aggressively asserts itself on the global stage, at home it aggressively violates the human rights and religious freedom of its citizens.

"While these violations have intensified in Zhejiang Province, the location of the G20 summit, they also are taking place throughout China as the government seeks to repress the voices of individuals and groups advocating for their rights."

Large numbers of Christians live in Zhejiang.  Churches in Hangzhou have already been closed in advance of the G20 because of alleged security concerns and religious activities in all hospitals have been banned. Underground churches have also been ordered to cease activities.

Story continues here

Another Church Leader Falls Victim to Russia's Anti-Evangelism Law

Under the new law house churches are illegal and religious 

activity or evangelism is prohibited anywhere outside a 

registered church or religious site.  Rueters

By Carey Lodge

Christian Today

A church leader has been arrested in Russia under the country's new anti-evangelism laws, days after a US missionary was convicted and fined for holding Bible studies in his home.

According to The Moscow Times, reaching in St Petersburg and accused of "violating a provision of Russian anti-terrorist legislation that bans illegal missionary activity".

Zhuravlyov was later released on bail and is awaiting a court hearing.

The legislation he was accused of contravening was signed into law by President Vladimir Putin on July 6 and came into force two weeks later. Under the new law, known as the 'Yaroyava' package, house churches are illegal and religious activity or evangelism is prohibited anywhere outside a registered church or religious site, including private homes and online.

Only named members of religious organizations are now allowed to share their faith, and even informal witnessing between individuals is forbidden.  Critics have branded it a draconian attempt to stifle religious freedom under the guise of clamping down on terrorism.

Sergei Ryakhovsky, head of the Protestant Churches of Russia, previously wrote with other evangelical leaders to Putin urging him not to support the law.

They argued the law "violates human rights and fundamental liberties with regard to religious freedom".  Last week, it was reported that the first known victims of the legislation had been convicted and fined.

Baptist preacher Donald Ossewaarde, a US citizen, was fined 40,000 rubles (more than $600) for holding and advertising religious services in his home.

In Moscow, Ghanaian citizen Ebenezer Tuah, who heads the Christ Embassy church, was arrested and fined 50,000 rubles after police raided a sanatorium where he was performing baptisms.

Website: christiantoday.com

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