IRAN: The Power of an Image (Neda's Legacy)

16/07 Charles W. Colson, for the Christian Post | The unstable political situation in Iran since the presidential election grows worse by the day, as the government has brutalized and arrested thousands of protesters. Could we be witnessing “a new birth of freedom” in Iran-or will the government crackdown ultimately drive the dissenters under cover, as the Chinese government did with the Tiananmen Square protesters? I pray it signals change, but it’s really too early to tell

I can tell you one thing, however, that makes me think that the turmoil of these last weeks will have a lasting impact on Iran. The whole world now knows the name of one young woman who has become a martyr for the cause of freedom in Iran. Thanks to news photographers and to videos posted on YouTube, millions of people watched in horror as Neda Agha-Soltan took a sniper’s bullet to the chest, and slumped to the ground.

The name Neda, by the way, means “voice” in Farsi.

USA: Palin says latest allegation shows need for new ethics law

12/07 OneNewsNow.com | Sarah Palin says she hopes the latest ethics complaint filed against her is a "wake-up call" that a new ethics policy is needed in the state...."I hope this will be a wake-up call - to legislators, to commentators and to citizens generally - that we need a much more civil and respectful dialogue that focuses on the best interests of the state, rather than the petty resentments of a few," Palin said. The ethics complaint, filed Friday with the state personnel board, alleges that Palin has been paid for media interviews. Palin's chief of staff, Mike Nizich, called the allegation absurd.

... Palin says her family has racked up more than $500,000 in legal fees and the state has poured about $2 million of taxpayer money into investigating the complaints. A spokeswoman later clarified that most of that expense was for staff time by state lawyers and others who have helped Palin defend herself. Palin's lawyer, Thomas Van Flein, said the complaint was filed by an Anchorage resident, who faxed it to a local television station.

KOREA: End near for cancer-stricken Kim, TV network reports

14/07 SMH.com.au | North Korean leader Kim Jong Il has life-threatening pancreatic cancer, a news report said on Monday, days after new images of him looking gaunt spurred speculation that his health might be worsening following a reported stroke last year.

The 67-year-old Kim was diagnosed with the cancer about the time he was felled by the stroke last summer, Seoul's YTN television reported, citing unidentified intelligence officials in South Korea and China.

The report cited the officials saying the disease was "threatening" Kim's life.

USA: Obama, Pope Discuss Abortion, Stem Cells

11/07 The Christian Post | The two leaders met at the Vatican's apostolic palace where the pontiff offered Obama a copy of a document titled "An Instruction on Certain Bioethical Questions," according to CNN.

While Obama supports abortion rights and funding embryonic stem cell research, the Vatican is staunchly opposed to both. In a paper that was released in December, the Vatican hardened its opposition to using embryos for stem cell research and affirmed the dignity of every human life – beginning at conception.

During Friday's private discussion that lasted about 40 minutes, Obama reaffirmed his personal commitment to try to reduce the number of abortions in the United States, according to Vatican spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi.

UK: British scientists say created sperm from stem cells

08/07 SMH.com.au | A team of British scientists claimed Wednesday to have created human sperm using embryonic stem cells, in a medical first that they say will lead to a better understanding of fertility. Researchers led by Professor Karim Nayernia at Newcastle University and the NorthEast England Stem Cell Institute (NESCI) developed a new technique that allows the creation of human sperm in the laboratory.

They stressed that the sperm, developed from stem cells with XY chromosomes (male), would not be used for fertility treatment, as this is prohibited by British law and in any case is not their main interest.

USA: New Guidelines on Stem Cell Research Released

07/07 Lawrence D. Jones, The Christian Post | The U.S. government’s medical research agency has published the final guidelines for human stem cell research in response to President Obama’s executive order earlier this year.

Having been directed by the president to issue the guidelines before July 7, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) released the guidelines on Monday after scanning through the approximately 49,000 comments it received from around the nation as well as comments from members of Congress.

“The guidelines apply to the expenditure of NIH funds for research using human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and certain uses of induced pluripotent stem cells,” explained Dr. Raynard S Kington, acting director for the government agency.

AFGHANISTAN: The new feminism: life and death

06/07 Paul Sheehan, SMH.com.au | For many women, the difference between life and death is a piece of string, a clean razor blade, a fresh bandage and a bar of soap. That's why a pitiful amount of money can save a woman, or a newborn baby, or both. And that's why, while the Australian government is expending hundreds of millions of dollars fighting a war in Afghanistan, civilian volunteers in Australia are sending thousands of simple birthing kits (bandage, blade, string, soap, plastic sheet) to Afghanistan, because it is one of the most oppressive places in the world to be a woman.

Last Wednesday, 500 people gathered at the Four Seasons Hotel in Sydney for a glimpse of this reality. The event was sold out. The speaker was a young, attractive former member of the Afghan parliament, Malalai Joya, 31, the author of a new memoir, Raising My Voice. She gave the audience a taste of the new front line of feminism, the women fighting and dying for their freedom

... "My life is an example that the government Australia is supporting is telling lies," Malalai told her audience. ... She is talking about the Afghan Government Australia is endorsing, not the medieval Taliban. She believes the US-led occupation is merely legitimising an Islamic theocracy underpinned by the rule of fear.

"History has shown that we won't accept occupation," she told the audience. History is depressingly on her side. In the past 200 years, Afghanistan has experienced a sequence of 21 wars, civil wars, assassinations and national emergencies. No foreign force has prospered....

USA: Gay Marriages Now Recognized in D.C.

08/07 Nathan Black, The Christian Post | Same-sex marriages performed in other states and countries are now recognized in the nation's capital. A law recognizing gay and lesbian couples who legally married outside the district took effect on Tuesday.

While issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples remains illegal, D.C. Council member David Catania said he plans to introduce legislation in the fall that would allow same-sex marriage ceremonies in Washington. The bill, approved by the D.C. Council in May, became law after a failed attempt by conservatives, including ministers, to receive approval for a referendum.

In a lawsuit, filed by the Alliance Defense Fund, they asked to delay enactment of the law recognizing same-sex marriages performed elsewhere as they sought a referendum, which would allow voters to decide on the matter.

Hooray! The Tories are backing marriage - but they're wrong to pretend all relationships are equal

06/07 Melanie Phillips, Mail Online | The Tories are shortly to unveil a far-reaching policy to put marriage at the heart of family life. A high-powered team of lawyers commissioned by Iain Duncan Smith's Centre for Social Justice is to issue a report later this month which is expected to shape Conservative policy on the family. It is said to recommend a sweeping overhaul of the law to strengthen marriage, including moves to make divorce more difficult and promote marriage preparation classes and 'family relationship centres', as well as tax breaks for married couples. 

Condemning the modern mantra that marriage is merely a 'lifestyle choice', the report is expected to say that there is overwhelming evidence that marriage brings many benefits to couples, children, the wider family and the nation as a whole. If the Tory Party accepts these recommendations, it will be an enormous and hugely overdue step in the right direction.

The family is the building block of society. If the institution of the family is broken, society breaks with it. That is what has happened in Britain over the past four decades as part of a deliberate attempt by the 'progressive' intelligentsia to reshape society around. As a result, nearly half of all babies are now born outside marriage; Britain has the highest rate of teenage pregnancy in Europe; and women and children are at far greater risk of sexual and physical abuse

As the High Court judge Sir Paul Coleridge recently observed, the family courts are overwhelmed with cases involving damaged, miserable or disturbed children.

Yet for years the evidence of this catastrophe has been swept under the carpet or denied outright by those pushing this agenda.

Anyone who drew attention to it was pilloried as a bigot who wanted to turn back

Sharia law UK: Mail on Sunday gets exclusive access to a British Muslim court

06/07 Mail Online | In a shabby converted sweetshop in Leyton, East London, a group of burka-clad Muslim women sit in a waiting room. They have an appointment with Dr Suhaib Hasan at his twice-weekly surgery.

The women look worried. There is no talking in the airless reception area - the only sound is a fan purring quietly in the corner as temperatures outside exceed 80F. Inside, the atmosphere is just as stifling. There are no magazines, television or other diversions. The beige walls are bare except for a flow-chart depicting the process of securing a Muslim divorce, and a picture of Mecca

This is no GP's surgery or Citizens Advice Bureau. Within these non-descript walls lies the nerve centre of sharia law in Britain, the headquarters of the Islamic Sharia Council, which oversees the growing number of Muslim courts operating in Britain.

For the first time, the Islamic Sharia Council has granted access to a newspaper to observe the entire sharia legal process in Britain. Over several weeks, I was allowed to witness the filing of complaints, individual testimony hearings and the monthly meeting of imams, or judges, where rulings are handed down.

Sharia has been operating here, in parallel to the British legal system, since 1982. Work includes issuing fatwas - religious rulings on matters ranging from why Islam considers homosexuality a sin to why two women are equivalent to one male witness in an Islamic court.

Palin hints at more national political focus

06/07 One News Now.com | After staying out of the public eye for most of Saturday, a day after abruptly announcing she would soon give up her job as governor, Palin indicated on a social networking site that she would take on a larger, national role, citing a "higher calling" to unite the country along conservative lines. 

"I am now looking ahead and how we can advance this country together with our values of less government intervention, greater energy independence, stronger national security, and much-needed fiscal restraint," the former Republican vice presidential candidate wrote in a posting on her Facebook page.

Iran clerics declare election invalid and condemn crackdown

06/07 The Times Online | Iran’s biggest group of clerics has declared President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s re-election to be illegitimate and condemned the subsequent crackdown. The statement by the Association of Researchers and Teachers of Qom is an act of defiance against the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has made clear he will tolerate no further challenges to Mr Ahmadinejad’s “victory” over Mir Hossein Mousavi.

... The association’s statement also shows how deeply the political establishment is divided, and the extent to which the Supreme Leader now derives his power from military might, not moral authority.

Statue of Liberty reopens after attacks

06/07 The Advertiser | TOURISTS have climbed to the crown of the Statue of Liberty in New York for the first time since the terrorist attacks of September 11 in 2001... The statue was closed to the public after the September 11, 2001, terror attacks. The base, pedestal and outdoor observation deck were reopened in 2004, but the crown remained off-limits.

The National Park Service says the crown remained closed because the narrow, double-helix staircases could not be safely evacuated in an emergency and didn't comply with fire and building codes.

Pakistan's Federal Minister for Minorities extends Support and Solidarity to the distressed Christians of Bhamniwala

06/07 Assist News | Following accusations by a Muslim cleric that Christians had committed "blasphemy" against the Prophet Muhammad, some 500 angry Muslims attacked Christians' houses in Bhamniwala village in the Kasur district of Punjab province in Pakistan. Media reports say that the mob burned some 100 houses in the village on Tuesday, June 30, 2009.

Now Mr. Shahbaz Bhatti, Pakistan's Federal Minister for Minorities, has directed the local police authorities to investigate and register a criminal case against all those involved in instigating, attacking, harassing and delivering provocative speeches in Bhamniwala.
Bhatti make his direction during a visit to Bhamniwala where he met the affected Christian families. He consoled them and extended them full support and solidarity "in this hour of anguish."

Christian legal group battles FDA over 'morning after' pill

06/07 OneNewsNow.com | The Alliance Defense Fund is seeking permission to intervene in a court decision ordering the Food and Drug Administration to sell the "Plan B" pill to minors.

The Plan B pill, otherwise known as the "morning-after pill," is a very strong dose the same hormones used in oral contraceptive pills. Some doctors believe it could cause an abortion to an expectant mother.

China in deadly crackdown after Uighurs go on the rampage

06/07 The Times Online | Police fought to restore order last night after thousands of members of China’s Muslim Uighur minority rampaged through city streets, burning vehicles and blocking traffic.

At least three people were killed in a rare outburst of violence in Urumqi, the capital of China’s restive westernmost region of Xinjiang, where many Uighurs chafe at Beijing’s rule and the limits imposed on their religion and cultural traditions.

Witnesses said that up to 3,000 rioters went on the rampage, smashing buses and overturning police barricades during several hours of violence.

Obamas still church homeless halfway through 2009

05/07 OneNewsNow.com | President Barack Obama is still looking for a church home more than a year after resigning from the Chicago church led by his controversial former pastor Jeremiah Wright

Palin resignation ignites 2012 speculation

04/07 OneNewsNow.com | Sarah Palin's surprise announcement on Friday that she's stepping down from the post at the end of this month has set off a storm of speculation about her next political move.

Supporters and critics alike say the former GOP vice presidential candidate's resignation as governor is an inexplicable move for a high profile Republican widely seen as a contender for a White House run in 2012.

A Comforting Falsehood

06/07 FrontPage Mag | The Stoning of Soraya M. is a riveting, immensely important film that unforgettably and unflinchingly depicts the horror of the Islamic Sharia punishment of stoning for adultery. But in today’s politically correct environment, reviewers are rushing to divert attention away from or downplay the root causes of the crime the film indelibly depicts – and by doing so, are condemning more women to suffer Soraya’s fate.

This phenomenon – which I call Islamophobophobia – was vividly manifested in a review of the film by Kevin Thomas that appeared in the Los Angeles Times on Friday ... It starts out well, and even mentions Sharia. But inevitably there comes the almost obligatory “Christians are -- well, at least were -- just as bad” reference. Thomas points out that stoning remains prevalent “not just in Iran, the film’s setting, but in countries throughout the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa that follow Islamic Sharia law.” Give him points for not claiming that this is a cultural practice that has nothing to do with Islam. Stoning for adultery is indeed part of Sharia, and pretending that it isn’t, as actress Shohreh Aghdashloo has falsely claimed, is not going to do anything to end this practice. Why not? Because if one has decided that stoning is a cultural practice that has nothing to do with Sharia, one will not oppose the imposition of Sharia in any given place -- and with Sharia will come stoning, sooner or later.

USA: Sanford Tragedy a Cautionary Tale for Christians, Says Colson

03/07 Aaron J. Leichman | A prominent evangelical leader is urging Christians to see the tragedy surrounding South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford as a “cautionary tale” and to break away from acts – big or small – that “betray” the Lord.

“Nearly every grave moral failure begins with a small sin,” ministry leader Chuck Colson said shortly after Sanford admitted to engaging in an adulterous affair with a woman in Argentina. “Because there comes a time, after we toy with sin, when one pull of the flesh causes us to cross the line, to disengage from reason, and to follow our appetites wherever they may lead.”

... "I am bewildered," Colson said during this daily radio broadcast. "Sanford had it all-a beautiful wife and family, high public office, and he was a viable candidate, perhaps, for President. Why would he throw it all away?"

In searching for the answer, Colson was reminded of his own life and his own failures - including his involvement in the cover-up of the Watergate burglary during the Nixon administration.

“We humans, you see, have an infinite capacity for self-rationalization,” said Colson, who was the first member of the Nixon administration to be incarcerated for Watergate-related charges. “We reason that we can give in to those seemingly minor temptations – say an emotional attraction to a co-worker, or just one drink at the party – because we think we know the boundaries. We think our reason can keep us safe.”

USA: Obama's attack on our (America's) Christian heritage

04/07 Judge Roy Moore | Every Fourth of July we celebrate that day 233 years ago when 56 men voted for American independence, but many do not know that it was not until Aug. 2 of 1776 that the Declaration of Independence was formally signed by most of the delegates to the Second Continental Congress. In a speech given at Independence Hall on the evening of Aug. 1, 1776, Samuel Adams – often called the Father of the American Revolution – spoke to an assembled crowd about the spiritual and religious significance of what he and others had done on July 4th:

We have explored the temple of royalty, and found that the idol we have bowed down to, has eyes which see not, ears that hear not our prayers, and a heart like the nether millstone. We have this day restored the Sovereign, to whom alone men ought to be obedient. He reigns in Heaven, and with a propitious eye beholds his subjects assuming that freedom of thought, and dignity of self-direction which He bestowed on them. From the rising to the setting sun, may His kingdom come.

Obama hopes to persuade all Americans to accept homosexuality

01/07 OneNewsNow.com | President Barack Obama says that while he's dedicated to expanding homosexual rights, many Americans still cling to what he calls "worn arguments and old attitudes."

At a White House celebration of Gay Pride Month, Obama said he hopes to persuade all Americans to accept homosexuality. ""There are good and decent people in this country who don't yet fully embrace their gay brothers and sisters -- not yet," said the president. "That's why I've spoken about these issues -- not just in front of you -- but in front of unlikely audiences, in front of African-American church members."

Obama acknowledged that many Americans still disapprove of homosexuality. "There are still fellow citizens, perhaps neighbors or even family members and loved ones, who still hold fast to worn arguments and old attitudes," he stated.

Teachers' union to consider abortion issue

01/07 OneNewsNow.com | Conservative teachers within the NEA will call for the union to drop its support of abortion

"The union contributes to candidates who will maintain the current Roe v. Wade decision and make sure that the abortion industry is alive and well," she explains. "And this supposedly is done with the portion of union dues that...is optional. But a lot of times we found sneaky ways that the union supports things that we don't believe in."

AUSTRALIA: Training tomorrow's leaders

There is a great need in this nation to assist those students and recent graduates who demonstrate a high potential to become influential leaders for Christ across strategic areas of our nation including politics, law, media, science, education, arts and philosophy.
The Compass program, an eight-day course in Christian worldview, aims to address this need.

The inaugural program kicks off this Sunday with 40 students at the University of Queensland. For more information and to register interest for 2009, please go to www.compass.org.au .

Lyle Shelton
National Chief of Staff , Australian Christian Lobby