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Satanic Agent Target School Kids With Demonic Coloring Books

Church and Ministry

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Satanic Agent Target School Kids With Demonic Coloring Books

By bending to the threat of lawsuits and allowing atheists, along with Christians, to distribute materials in Orlando, Florida-area public schools, the door may have been opened to allow a Satanist group to do the same thing.

The Satanic Temple of New York is planning to hand out “educational religious” materials to public school children, according to several published reports on Tuesday.

The materials, which include a coloring and activity booklet for children titled, “The Satanic Children’s Big Book of Activities,” will be distributed in the coming months. But the Satanist group insists it is not actually aimed at recruiting kids to Satanism through the schools, according to a report on issuehawk.com.

The district in central Florida’s Orange County has not received a formal request from the temple, but school officials say they reserve the right to review all materials, theOrlando Sentinel reported.

The Orange County School Board ruled that Christian groups may distribute Bibles and other religious materials in their public schools. In response, an atheist group called the Central Florida Free Thought Community decided to leave its own fliers for the kids. The brochures, with titles such as “Jesus is Dead” and “Why I am Not a Muslim,” were quickly banned.

But after the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation and its local affiliate group, the Free Thought Community, filed a lawsuit claiming discrimination, the School Board backed down and said it would allow materials from all groups, including atheists, at its high schools.

The Satanic Temple, a relatively new group that supports social justice causes and believes Satan is the “eternal rebel against the ultimate tyrant,” according to theOrlando Sentinel, wants to give out materials that include information for students on protecting themselves from corporal punishment at school.

Like the Free Thought Community, the Satanist group is making a statement that public schools should not be a forum for religious recruitment at all, the report on issuehawk.com said.

“We don’t argue the merits of any one voice in a school environment,” Satanic Temple co-founder and spokesman Lucien Greaves told Broward/Palm Beach New Times for an online report. “We think it’s in the best interests for everyone, especially the kids, that the district not to have religious materials of any kind distributed in schools.”

But, like anything involving the Satanic Temple, blowback is expected.

“If people are offended,” Greaves told New Times, “I hope they realize they need to not take it up with us, but with the School Board, who allowed this to happen in the first place.”

Source : Chrisma News

Princess Diana Pregnant At Time Of Her Death, New Evidence Suggests

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Princess Diana Pregnant At Time Of Her Death, New Evidence Suggests

Inquisitr reports that Princess Diana was reportedly pregnant at the time of her fatal car crash, a fact that sources say was covered up for years after here death.

There have been past rumors of a pregnancy for Princess Di, and in this week’s issue of Globe magazine, a source claimed that she was indeed pregnant with boyfriend Dody Fayed’s baby when she died in 1997.

The report follows up past rumors that Princess Diana was carrying her third child at the time of her death. Last year, a doctor in Paris who treated Princess Di after her accident said he saw a six- to 10-week-old fetus. In a book called The Princess Diana Conspiracy, radiologist Dr. Elizabeth Dion and a nurse both claimed to have seen the unborn baby.

The book’s author, Alan Power, claims that Diana’s body was then hastily and illegally embalmed to cover up the pregnancy.

Princess Diana was killed along with Fayed in a car crash in Paris in August of that year, an accident that remains the subject of much controversy. Many, including Fayed’s own father, believe that the crash was orchestrated by British intelligence forces to prevent her from marrying a Muslim man.

Earlier this year, the British government released a heavily redacted official report on her death, one that created even more conspiracy theories.

Al Fayed, Egyptian billionaire and Dodi’s father, said he believes his son’s religious background was the reason he was killed.

“This is not an accident,” he reportedly said shortly after learning of the crash. “It is a plot, an assassination.”

Alan Power also believes the crash that killed Diana was no accident.

“It established a motive for murder and explained Diana’s illegal and speedy embalming,” he said. If it’s true that Princess Diana was pregnant at the time of her death, that would likely add even more fuel to the conspiracy theories about her fatal crash.

Source : Inquisitr

Chicago’s LaSalle St Church recently gave its members $500, with instructions to go out and do something good with it

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Chicago’s LaSalle St Church recently gave its members $500, with instructions to go out and do something good with it

LaSalle Street Church divided $160000 among its 300 congregants – meaning everyone got a $500 check

CharismaNews – Churchgoers often grumble that they always get hit with pleas for money. But congregants at a Chicago church this month got a surprise: They each received a check for $500, with instructions to go out and do something good with it.

“I was just in disbelief,” said Valency Hastings, 42, when she got her check from the non-denominational LaSalle Street Church on the city’s near north side. “The enormity of the responsibility of it has begun to sink in.”

The money was the result of a real-estate windfall—back in the 1970s, LaSalle Street and three other local churches had helped support a multiethnic, multi-income housing development.

The development was sold in June in what is now a pricey neighborhood, and LaSalle Street got $1.6 million. Senior Pastor Laura Truax and church elders decided to take a tenth of that money and give it to 320 members and regular attendees. The church as a whole will decide what to do with the rest of the money.

Along with the so-called loaves and fishes checks, named for the biblical miracle in which thousands were fed with a small amount of food, recipients were asked to pray about how they could best spend the money.

“We asked people what they feel they’ve been called to do,” Truax said. She said LaSalle is a strong social justice church, and “we had this amazing opportunity to invest in the kingdom in a big way.”

People who received checks have started sharing their thoughts about using them on an “idea wall” in the church basement. A group of doctors suggested sending the money to an Ebola clinic in Sierra Leone. Others plan to support CeaseFire, an anti-violence group.

Truax said congregants vary from the wealthy to the homeless, so if someone wants to use the money for rent, that is OK, too.

Hastings, a freelance graphic designer who is planning her wedding, said she is “in debt up to my eyeballs” but hopes to overcome the temptation to use the money for bills. She is thinking about using it to aid homeless gay and lesbian youth.

Truax said the money is an example of the God-given gifts people have that they need to use well.

“That’s what Jesus is offering us every day,” Truax said. “You have this incredible gift in front of you.”

Pastor Laura Truax is the Senior Pastor of LaSalle Street Church , See more of Pastor Laura Truax on her blog at lasallestreetchurch.wordpress.com

How to avoid Credit Card surcharges when booking a Flight

Travel

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How to avoid Credit Card surcharges when booking a Flight

Sophie Christie of the Telegraph UK wrote this –

Your friend has stumbled on a little known trick that could save travellers a substantial amount of money when buying a flight or booking a holiday through a travel agent.

Travel Republic, the agent which your friend used to book his holiday, does not charge customers a credit card surcharge fee, if they pay with their credit card via PayPal, the online money transfer site. This is because, if a credit card is linked as the payment option for PayPal – make sure to remove all other bank details so that the payment is taken from the credit card – it is still recognised as a direct debit payment by the travel company, and therefore does not incur extra charges. If a customer paid directly with a credit card, their payment would incur a surcharge. Travel Republic is the only travel agent we are aware of that allows its customers to use this loophole, while as far as we know, Monarch Airlines is the only airline to allow it. Other budget carriers like easyJet and Ryanair do not allow customers to avoid this credit card fee by using PayPal. Ian Chambers, head of retail at Monarch, said: “We don’t charge a surcharge for those booking via PayPal with their credit card because it’s just another way that we can offer our customers a superior level of customer service and experience. “The ability to use the safe, quick and easy PayPal mobile checkout without paying extra currently offers our customers another reason to reward us with their loyalty.” Setting up a PayPal account is very straightforward. All you will need to do is create an account with an email address, then add the credit card details as the payment option.

David Black, a banking specialist at Consumer Intelligence, said that consumers could also “alleviate some of the pain” of surcharges by using a credit card that gives cashback, remembering to pay off the balance each month.

Despite a recent clampdown by the Government banning companies from charging credit or debit card fees amounting to more than the cost of processing the payment, firms have continued to flout the rules, particularly in the travel sector.

Which?, the consumer body behind a “super complaint” sent to the Office of Fair Trading in 2011 to highlight the exorbitant fees, said companies should charge no more than 2pc of transactions for credit cards and a few pence for debit cards. The regulator agreed that the fees were detrimental to consumers and that firms should be more open about the charges.

Often the fee is hidden until the end of the online booking process, making it harder for travellers to compare charges.

Credit card charges when buying flights abroad

Source: Skyscanner.net. *Based on a £100 one-way flight for one person due to airlines charging a percentage of the total costs or a minimum charge where applicable.

100 Christians, Including Children, Arrested During Major House Church Raid in China

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100 Christians, Including Children, Arrested During Major House Church Raid in China

Christian Post reports – Over 100 Christians, including children, were arrested during a major house church raid on Sunday in Foshan city in China’s Guangdong Province. Close to 200 police officers stormed in during the service, eyewitnesses said, believed to be part of a large-scale crackdown on Christians in the country.

“We don’t know exactly why they raided our church,” a local believer told watchdog group International Christian Concern, which has been keeping track of the rising tide of persecution in China. “The government does not want us to get together and worship as a church.”

Worshipers said that the church was raided without any warning, and that police only left behind a notice stating that people were detained for an “illegal gathering.” More than 30 parishioners reportedly still remain in custody.

“It is unbelievable that local authorities arrested over 100 church members, including children, in Foshan city. Even though most people have been released, the experience has been traumatizing,” said ICC’s Regional Manager for Southeast Asia, Sooyoung Kim.

“ICC urges local authorities in Guangdong Province to respect its citizens’ rights to religious freedom, that the government of China says are upheld, and free these innocent Christians as soon as possible.”

The Mount Olivet Church has over 20 years of history and has close to 170 members, ICC added.

Only government-approved churches are legal in China, with all house churches considered “illegal gatherings.” But even a number of officially sanctioned churches have been targeted by the government in recent months, with officials explaining that they have been “removing or modifying illegal constructions.”

A Christian congregation in the southeast city of Wenzhou has made headlines for fighting back against riot police in an effort to save their church cross from destruction. Members of the Salvation Church have defended the cross for over two months, hosting all night prayer vigils, with video footage capturing the clashes on a number of occasions.

“What the government here is doing is so barbaric,” local church leader Chen Zhi’ai told CNN.

In July, a prominent Chinese leader was sentenced to 12 years in prison, supposedly for gathering crowds “to disturb public order.” Other watchdog groups have called pastor Zhang Shaojie’s imprisonment further evidence of China’s attempt to hold back the growth of Christianity.

“This case shows the Chinese government continues to cover up religious persecution with fabricated criminal charges against an innocent church leader,” China Aid head Bob Fu said at the time.

Source & Content by : Christian Post

Naghmeh Abedini to Pray Outside White House for Husband’s Release, Urges Obama to Do More

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Naghmeh Abedini to Pray Outside White House for Husband’s Release, Urges Obama to Do More

Christian Post reports –

Naghmeh Abedini, the wife of American pastor Saeed Abedini, is set to pray outside the White House on Thursday to mark the two-year anniversary of her husband’s imprisonment in Iran for his faith, and to urge President Barack Obama to do more to help.

Abedini will also bring attention to the plight of persecuted Christians around the world, while prayer vigils in 493 cities in over 33 countries will mark the two-year anniversary of her husband’s imprisonment.

A press release stated that the pastor’s plight “remains urgent as he faces physical torture, malnourishment, death threats and psychological abuse at the hands of the Iranian regime and fellow inmates, including those affiliated with the Islamic State.”

Abedini was imprisoned in September 2012 after traveling to Iran to work on a children’s orphanage. He was then sentenced to eight years in prison for threatening national security, according to Iranian authorities.

Several international campaigns have rallied behind Naghmeh and the couple’s two young children in their fight to see Abedini released.

Obama has also spoken over the phone with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to ask for Abedini’s release; and several American politicians have written letters and urged the same, but campaigners believe more can be done to press the issue.

Jordan Sekulow, executive director of the American Center for Law and Justice, which represents Naghmeh, said last week that “pastor Saeed has become the face of the persecuted Christian church worldwide, [and is] one of many Christians around the world who face imprisonment, beatings and even death for their faith.”

Sekulow added, “As the world’s eye turns to violence against Christians in the Middle East, we raise a united voice in urging Iran to free pastor Saeed and grant him clemency. It’s time for Saeed to come home.”

The ACLJ has also released threats made against Abedini’s life while in Rajai Shahr prison, most notably plans from ISIS members who have said they’re planning to kill the pastor.

Naghmeh, who has shared her testimony several times while campaigning for her husband’s release, told persecution watchdog group International Christian Concern in April that she believes God “counted our family worthy enough to send Saeed to a dark place that he would be able to share with people who are in complete despair.”

She said that while in prison the pastor has seen “so many give their hearts to Christ.”

“This has been very hard, but spiritually it is the best time in my life. I wouldn’t trade it for anything,” Naghmeh further reflected about the ordeal.

“My new reality forced me out of my self-consumed life. I realized I had a right to speak out for those who are being silenced, to speak for the Christians, for the Jews, for the Baha’i, and other fellow human beings who are being imprisoned simply because of their beliefs.”

The Beheard project website lists the cities who will be holding prayer vigils for Abedini on Thursday.

Source & Original Content by – Christian Post

New book by cardinals set to clash with Pope

Church and Ministry

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New book by cardinals set to clash with Pope

Five conservative cardinals are preparing to publish a book in which they reject moves to allow divorcees to take communion or remarry.

Remaining in the Truth of Christ: Marriage and Communion in the Catholic Church is set to be released next month.

In its introduction, Father Robert Dodaro says: “The authors were united in maintaining firmly that the New Testament shows us Christ who unambiguously prohibits divorce and subsequent remarriage on the basis of God’s original plan for matrimony.”

Pope Francis recently indicated that he would welcome changes in this area.

Last weekend, he married 20 couples at the Vatican, including one bride who was single mother and several who had previously been married.

The issue of marriage is due to be discussed next month when bishops meet at the Vatican.

Church law currently prohibits any remarried divorcees taking Communion during mass.

Source & Original Content by : Premier Christianity

ISIS Announces New Grand Theft Auto-Like Video Game Designed to Inspire Kids to Wage War Against West

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ISIS Announces New Grand Theft Auto-Like Video Game Designed to Inspire Kids to Wage War Against West

Christian Post report – The media wing of the Islamic State terrorist organization has announced the creation of a new Grand Theft Auto-like video game where players can participate in Jihad against U.S. and Iraqi forces.

Using the game as a propaganda tool, the ISIS media wing says the game is designed to “raise the morale of the mujahedin and to train children and youth how to battle the West and to strike terror into the hearts of those who oppose the Islamic State.”

Not only is the game supposed to inspire young jihadists to join the Islamic State, but it also includes “all of the organization’s military tactics against its opponents,” The Islamic State’s media wing stated.

However, only a trailer of the video game has been released. It is still uncertain as to whether the actual video game exists.

The trailer shows scenes from multiple ISIS encounters with opposition forces. The trailer includes multiple scenes where an ISIS sniper guns down police officers or opposing troops. Throughout the video, whenever a sniper kills his target, he cries out “Allahu Akbar”, meaning “God is Greater”. In one of the last scenes of the trailer, an ISIS sniper shoots an enemy troop right in the head as he kneels down to tend to an injured comrade.

Another scene shows a drive-by assault where an Islamic State car pulls alongside of a police car. Then, the ISIS passenger rapid fires his uzi killing the driver. Although the scene was separated in the trailer, the second part of the altercation shows the militant dragging the police officer in the passenger seat out of the car onto the ground. The militant then backs up two steps and empties his entire magazine of bullets into the belly of the officer at close range to ensure his death.

The trailer also includes multiple scenes where ISIS militants take out their opposition’s entire convoy of cargo trucks and police vehicles using explosives.

A large shootout scene occurs when the terrorists blow up their opposition’s lead combat jeep. Afterwards, the rest of the opposing troops in the jeeps that followed get out and start firing at the militants. Despite being outnumbered and the opposition forces receiving reinforcements, the militants killed the backup respondents one-by-one as they pulled up. Of course, ISIS seemingly wins the battle.

Although the Islamic State’s media wing’s announcement claims that the opposing forces in the game are U.S. and Iraqi troops, the trailer does not make it clear who ISIS is fighting.

Although the video game might seem like a barbaric way to get kids to join a militant movement, Jay Caspian Kang of The New Yorker writes that for the past decade the U.S. Army has used the online multiplayer video game series entitled “America’s Army” as a recruiting technique. Kang writes the game has been credited with a spike in enlistment.

But unlike the Islamic State video game trailer, “America’s Army” does not allow for random acts of violence and is designed to be an instructive game that uses military and team tactics.

The Islamic State video game is only the latest in the line of ISIS’ entertainment recruitment techniques. On Tuesday, the Islamic State released a high-quality movie trailer called “Flames of War”. The trailer is believed to be a response to President Barack Obama’s vow to take down ISIS.

The 52-second trailer, which was produced by the Al Hayat Media Center, shows American troops marching, followed by series of explosions and a glimpse of the White House. While the trailer shows a clip of a rocket blowing up an American tank, it dubs the voice of Obama vowing to “degrade and ultimately destroy” ISIS.

ISIS has also released a magazine which which pledges attacks against Israel and the U.S.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhbX0Kt9s_I[/youtube]

Source & Original Content by : Christian Post

Christian Country Music Star Dies Aged 77

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Christian Country Music Star Dies Aged 77

Singer George Hamilton IV has died after suffering a heart attack.

Following brief beginnings in pop music, touring with the likes of Buddy Holly and the Everly Brothers, Hamilton found fame through country music and regularly topped the charts.

During the 1960s and ’70s he scored 40 hits.

Born in North Carolina, Hamilton took his music across the world, becoming the first country musician to perform in the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia.

Later in his career he switched his focus to gospel music.

During the ’80s he appeared alongside Billy Graham on his Mission England tour, sharing his faith with tens of thousands.

Produced in 2010, his most recent album, entitled Old Fashioned Hymns and Gospel Songs for Those Who Miss Them, is a collection of gospel songs featuring a number of guest artists.

Premier presenter Rev Cindy Kent tweeted: “So sad to hear of the death of George Hamilton 1V. A lovely, godly man and credit to the country music scene. He will be missed.”

Hamilton leaves behind his wife Tinky, two sons George V and Peyton, and daughter Mary.

8 Things Pastors Do When Their Churches Are in a Slump

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The meaning of “slump” is more evident in sports. When a baseball player, for example, is in a slump, we surmise that he is not hitting as well as he was earlier in the season.

For churches, however, there is no clear definition. Indeed, some leaders wonder if it is even right to say that a church can get in a slump. Still, some pastors say they church is in a slump if they are not connecting as well with members as they once were. Others declare a slump if attendance or offering numbers are down. Still others have a more subjective sense of a slump that defies a clean or clear explanation.

But many pastors will tell you about times when their churches were in a slump. Some will admit that the slump is present tense. So I asked a number of pastors how they react when this reality hits them. What do they do to lead their churches out of this perceived slump?

The pastors shared with me eight consistent responses. I list them in the order of frequency that I have heard them.

1. They sought the advice of a leader outside their specific church. Sometimes that person was the pastor of another church. On other occasions it was a denominational leader or a church consultant.

2. They refocused on the vision of the church. A number of pastors indicated that the church had “lost its way.” So they spent time reminding the congregation of the vision of the church. Of course, this approach presumes the church has a clearly articulated vision (I’ll cover that in my Wednesday blogpost).

3. They led the church to more outwardly focused ministries. Some church slumps were the result of the congregation becoming too inwardly focused. One pastor led his church to “adopt” an elementary school in the area. The members became motivated and enthused as they did whatever the principal and other leaders of the school told them the school needed.

4. They sought a trusted confidant to evaluate their leadership. This reaction is similar to number one. In this case, however, the problem was specifically perceived to be the leadership of the pastor.

5. They spent more time in prayer. I suspect this and the next response were actually more frequent. Many pastors sought the face of God more intensely and more frequently for guidance out of the slump.

6. They became more consistent in their time reading the Bible. Many pastors get into the trap of reading the Bible only to prepare sermons or lessons. I know. I’ve been there as a pastor. But pastors need the consistent nourishment of the Word of God beyond the time they spend studying it for sermons or lessons.

7. They became more intentional about connecting with their members. One pastor made a commitment to hand write one letter a day to a church member, write two emails a day to a member, and make one phone call a day to a member. The purpose of each piece of communication was brief encouragement and gratitude. It took him less than 30 minutes to do all of them, and he was consistent in it four days a week. In one year’s time, he connected with 800 members.

8. They set aside time on the calendar during the week to dream. Pastors are on call 24/7. Life can become hectic and frustrating. One pastor sets aside two hours a month to go to a private room to dream about the future of the church. The time is a fixture on his calendar. Sometimes he prays. Sometimes he reads about God’s work at other churches. And sometimes he writes ideas and thoughts. The process invigorates him, and he can thus lead the church with greater enthusiasm and clarity himself.

These responses to a slump could really apply to any Christian leader. In this case, I listened to pastors.

Dr. Thom Rainer is president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention.

Source : The Christian Post