Obama speaks on importance of religious freedom during visit to India

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Obama speaks on importance of religious freedom during visit to India

Christian Today report-

US President Barack Obama weighed in on one of India’s most sensitive topics as he wound up a visit on Tuesday, making a plea for freedom of religion to be upheld in a country where relations between Hindus and minorities have come under strain.

Obama made no direct reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), whose rise to power last year has emboldened some Hindu groups to assert themselves in a country with a history of religious strife.

“Your Article 25 (of the constitution) says that all people are ‘equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess, practise and propagate religion’,” Obama told a town hall address to mostly young Indians in New Delhi.

“In both our countries, in all countries, upholding this fundamental freedom is the responsibility of government, but it’s also the responsibility of every person.”

Modi’s rise to power has emboldened right-wing activists to declare India a nation of Hindus, posing a challenge to its multi-faith constitutional commitment. About a fifth of India’s 1.27 billion people identify themselves as belonging to faiths other than Hinduism.

Modi has warned lawmakers from his own party to stop promoting controversial issues such as religious conversions and to focus on economic reforms.

Obama bonded warmly during his three-day trip with Modi, who until a year ago was persona non grata in Washington and was banned for nearly a decade from visiting the United States after deadly Hindu-Muslim violence in a state he ruled in 2002.

The US president’s visit has been widely seen as a bid to forge a relationship that will help balance China’s rise by catapulting democratic India into the league of major world powers.

In his speech on Tuesday, Obama described the relationship between India and the United States as potentially “one of the defining partnerships of the century”.

On Monday, he became the first US president to attend India’s annual Republic Day parade, a show of military might that has been associated with Cold War anti-Americanism.

Obama’s presence at the parade signals Modi’s willingness to end India’s traditional reluctance to get too close to any big power. Instead, he is seeking close ties with them all, even as he pushes back against China and take sides on other global issues.

During the visit, the two sides sealed a clutch of deals to unlock billions of dollars in nuclear trade and deepen defence ties, and Obama pledged $4 billion in investments and loans to release what he called the “untapped potential” of a partnership between the world’s largest democracies.

Most significant was an agreement on issues that, despite a groundbreaking 2006 pact, had stopped US companies from setting up nuclear reactors in India and had become one of the major irritants in bilateral relations.

ENDORSING INDIAN REFORM

Obama said the United States would stand first in line for the trade and investment opportunities that will spring from the economic reform drive under Modi.

“America wants to be your partner in igniting the next wave of Indian growth. As India pursues reforms to encourage more trade and investment, we’ll be the first in line,” he told the townhall.

The United States views India as a vast market and potential counterweight to China’s assertiveness. It has long been frustrated with the pace of New Delhi’s economic reforms, but Modi has injected a new vitality into the economy.

Modi told a meeting with business leaders on Monday that US investment in India had accelerated in recent months and vowed to do more to slash the country’s notorious red tape and make it one of the world’s easiest places for business.

Obama’s second visit to India is the latest upturn in a roller-coaster relationship with Washington that a year ago was scarred by protectionism and a fiery diplomatic spat.

Praising the non-violence tenets of Mahatma Gandhi, Obama touched during his speech on the treatment of women, an issue that has troubled India since the horrific gang rape and murder of a student on a bus in New Delhi two years ago.

“Every daughter deserves the same chance as our sons,” he said. “And every woman should be able to go about her day — to walk the street, or ride the bus — and be safe and be treated with the respect and dignity. She deserves that.”

Source: Christian Today

Southern Baptist Leaders calls for racial integration in Churches

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Southern Baptist Leaders calls for racial integration in Churches

Christian Today report- Southern Baptist leaders are calling for more racial integration in their churches as a means of addressing increased racial tensions in the country.

The denomination was formed in 1845 in support of slave owners, but contemporary leaders say that Christians of all races should worship together.

“In the church, a black Christian and a white Christian are brothers and sisters,” Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission leader Rev. Russell Moore wrote.

“We care what happens to the other, because when one part of the Body hurts, the whole Body hurts. …When we know one another as brothers and sisters, we will start to stand up and speak up for one another.”

Moore also organised “The Gospel and Racial Reconciliation” summit to be held this spring. Other Southern Baptist leaders said more needs to be done to increase diversity within their churches and in leadership positions.

“The church lacks the moral authority to address the world about race before we set our own house in order,” Rev. Dwight McKissic, a black Southern Baptist pastor in Arlington, Texas, told the AP.

Although the denomination elected their first black president in 2012, Rev. McKissic pointed out that all other top executives and seminary presidents are white.

“It’s obvious the rhetoric and reality is not matching,” he said.

During the civil rights movement, Southern Baptist leaders were largely silent, or supported segregation. In recent years, the church repented for condoning racism, apologised to African-Americans, and announced efforts to attract minorities to their flock.

In 2012, 20 per cent of the church’s 51,000 congregations were nonwhite, but less than one per cent were multi-ethnic. Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary President Danny Akin lamented that the church is just working to correct over a century of institutionalised racism.

“My grief is we’re late to this party,” he said. “We should have been leading the way. The Christian church should be the first to speak to issues of discrimination and injustice … not sitting back.”

Source: Christian Today

Pope Francis speaks on marriage annulments

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Pope Francis speaks on marriage annulments

Christian Today report- Pope Francis said the Catholic Church’s rules regarding marriage and divorce should not “lock the salvation of persons within the straits of legalism” in a message to top marital judges at the Vatican on Friday.

Francis said he wants Catholic marriage annulments and other marital proceedings to be free in his address to the Roman Rota.

“This is a point I want to emphasise: the sacraments are free,” he told the Church’s final court of appeals for annulments.

“The sacraments give us grace,” he continued. “And a marriage proceeding touches on the sacrament of marriage.

“How I wish all marriage proceedings were free of charge!”

The pontiff is moving to streamline the annulment process, make it more affordable, and increase accessibility. Some US dioceses have already waived annulment fees, which average around $400.

Pope Francis has in the past criticied the treatment of divorced Catholics, specifically prohibitions against them becoming godparents, or reading during Mass.

“It seems they are excommunicated de facto,” he said last month, suggesting that the Church should “open the doors a little bit more.” Francis did not address the issue of remarried Catholics receiving communion, but asked “Why can’t they be godparents?”

Pope Francis has been deemed one of the most liberal popes, and has caused friction among the more conservative and tradition-minded church leaders. In October, US Cardinal Raymond said that the Catholic Church under Pope Francis is “a ship without a rudder”.

The Pope welcomed the criticism.

“Resistance is now evident,” he said. “And that is a good sign for me,” that there isn’t “hidden mumbling when there is disagreement… It’s healthy to get things out into the open.”

Source: Christian Today

Religious personalities angered by the anti-abortion bill withdrawal

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Religious personalities angered by the anti-abortion bill withdrawal

Christian Today report- A popular anti-abortion bill that religious conservatives expected Congress to pass was abruptly withdrawn by the law-making body, angering proponents all around the United States.

On Thursday, the House of Representatives voted to drop the popular “Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act.” The bill was immensely supported by religious personalities, including Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, and was considered a done deal.

The Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act sought to ban abortions of babies that are at least five months of age, on the grounds that the baby was capable of feeling pain at that age.

However, according to Religion News, the House voted not to pass the Act allegedly because of “restrictive language on rape exceptions and a potential backlash from women and younger voters.” Leading the opposition was roughly two dozen Republican representatives, majority of which was composed by Congresswomen.

Religious personalities took to the media and the Internet to air their disappointment over the decision.

Southern Baptist Convention spokesperson Russell Moore told the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of his disgust at the bill’s rejection, which he viewed as “moral cowardice.” He also wondered what the House could achieve if they could not move to ban the abortion of a five-month old baby that is already capable of feeling pain.

Various personalities also used social media platform Twitter to air their grievances. Eric Metaxas, a popular author and speaker, asked if it takes too much for the House to “take a stand against infanticide” while Christian radio host Steve Deace used his Twitter account to criticise the Republican Party.

“Honestly, what is the point of even having a Republican Party? I mean, seriously, what do we gain from it?” Deace’s Tweet asked.

Bobby Jindal, governor of Louisiana, described the U-turn as “outrageous.”

“The leadership should seriously reconsider,” he said according to the Washington Times.

Source: Christian Today

Professor George and six others volunteer to take lashes on saudi blogger’s behalf

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Professor George and six others volunteer to take lashes on saudi blogger’s behalf

Christian Today report-

The vice chairman of the United States’ Commission on International Religious Freedom has offered to take 100 lashes on behalf of Saudi blogger Raif Badawi.

Professor Robert P. George, McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence at Princeton University, together with six other people, offered to the Saudi government that they share in the 1,000 lashes that was imposed on Badawi for the crime of insulting the Islamic religion by running a liberal-themed blog.

The Christian Post contacted Professor George about this story and he confirmed that he and six others have reached out to the Saudi government to offer to take 100 lashes each for Badawi.

“Together with six colleagues on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, I sent a letter to the Saudi Ambassador to the U.S. calling on the Saudi government to stop the horrific torture of Raif Badawi — an advocate of religious freedom and freedom of expression in the Saudi Kingdom,” George told the Christian Post.

“If the Saudi government refuses, we each asked to take 100 of Mr. Badawi’s lashes so that we could suffer with him. The seven of us include Republicans and Democrats, liberals and conservatives, Christians, Jews, and a Muslim,” the Princeton University professor added.

Saudi blogger Raif Badawi ran the defunct Free Saudi Liberal Network, through which he produced original content that discussed Islam and liberalism. The blog paved the way for social and political debate, which led to Badawi being charged with apostasy in 2012. The next year, he was also convicted of insulting Islam and breaking Saudi Arabia’s laws on information technology.

Apostasy is punishable by death under Saudi law, but the blogger successfully appealed and was instead sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment and 1,000 lashes. He received his first 100 lashes two weeks ago. He was due for a second round last week, but Amnesty International reported that the government postponed the second round because Badawi’s wounds have not healed and that he “would not be able to withstand another round of lashes.”

Source: Christian Today

Christian faith increases despite various attacks in Niger

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Christian faith increases despite various attacks in Niger

Christian Today report- The faith of the Christians in Niger continue to grow despite a series of violent attacks from January 16 to 18 that left more than 70 churches in ruins.

The attacks were perpetrated by Muslims who were angry at the latest Charlie Hebdo cartoon that depicted Mohammad carrying a sign expressing solidarity with the victims of the attack on their editorial offices earlier this month.

Now, Christians are holding meetings and services in their own homes under the protection of the Niger police.

“Last night the church members met for prayer as the pastor, who lost everything, encouraged them by flashlight to not only stand strong, but to move forward and to know that this attack will grow the church,” Christian Headlines quoted a letter from a missionary couple in the Niger. “The room was dark on the outside but illuminated by the fire in the hearts of His people, even as stones were being thrown on the roof.”

The violence began in the city of Zinder on January 16. By January 18, the destruction and attacks have spread to the capital city of Niamey. The perpetrators specifically targeted Christian buildings and properties, leading Mahamadou Issoufou to condemn the attacks on live TV.

The magnitude of the attacks was unprecedented and have not occurred before, the missionary couple wrote.

“Nearly every church in the capital city of Niamey was burned or looted, along with some schools and orphanages and several other churches and Christian homes throughout the nation,” the couple said.

Despite the destruction, the Christians praise God and have gathered together at church meetings in Niamey to share their testimonies of how God remained faithful to them throughout the attacks.

So many people turned up that they were asked to “wait until Sunday,” the couple told Christian Headlines.  They also expressed optimism that everything will be restored: “The overall damage was extensive, and there is much loss. Now begins the process of rebuilding and restoring what was lost.”

Source: Christian Today

Following attacks on doves, Pope Francis adopts new ‘symbol of peace’

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Following attacks on doves, Pope Francis adopts new ‘symbol of peace’

Christian Today report- The last Sunday in January is traditionally when the Pope, along with two children, release doves out of the papal studio window in a symbol of peace.

After the doves were attacked in 2014, however, a new peace symbol was adopted. Yesterday, the children released balloons into St. Peter’s Square.

The annual tradition was begun by the late Pope John Paul II, and was carried on for years without a hitch. Disaster befell the doves last year, however.

Immediately after a young boy and girl tossed the birds out of the window, one of them was chased and snapped upon by a seagull. Photographers captured the larger bird pinning the dove against a windowsill with its tail feathers clutched in its beak.

The second dove was pursued by a crow, and was similarly pinned on a windowsill. The crow pecked the bird mercilessly as thousands of spectators watched below.

The attacks brought criticism from animal rights groups, who condemned the practice of releasing doves. One advocacy organisation likened tossing doves into the square to a death sentence, as flocks of seagulls nest on the colonnade.

St Peter’s Square is near the Tiber River and is often crowded – attracting hundreds of scavenging birds.

The Vatican did not mention last year’s incident in their statement regarding Sundays messages of peace. A hot air balloon containing peace messages was flown over the square, and one of the children read a speech about peace before symbolic balloons were released.

The month of January is traditionally dedicated to calls for world peace by the Vatican.

Source: Christian Today

CAR: Government minister kidnapped by gunmen

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CAR: Government minister kidnapped by gunmen

Central African Republic’s minister for youth and sport was kidnapped by gunmen on his way home from church on Sunday.

Armel Ningatoloum Sayo was driving his wife and brother back from church in the capital, Bangui, when four unidentified gunmen got out of a taxi and stopped their vehicle.

Sayo’s spokeswoman, Tatiana Yangeko, said: “They got out of the taxi, shot in the air and forced the minister out of his car. They fled with him towards Boy Rabe,” – a neighbourhood that is a stronghold of the ‘anti-Balaka’ militia.

Yangeko added that the Prime Minister had been told.

In a separate incident on Sunday, Education Minister Eloi Anguimate narrowly escaped captured capture in Kaga Bandoro, a town 186 miles north of Bangui, a government source told Reuters.

Although the minister escaped, his driver, assistant and the town’s mayor were all seized, the source said.

These incidents follow the temporary kidnapping of a UN staff member and a French woman working for Catholic relief agency Caritas last week.

Central African Republic has been gripped by violence since the northern, mainly Muslim Seleka alliance rebelled and seized power in March 2013. The group was forced to stand aside last year having failed to contain clashes with the ‘anti-Balaka’ militia and the waves of tit-for-tat violence that went with the fighting.

The kidnapping of the Caritas worker has been linked to the arrest earlier this month by UN peace keepers of a senior member of the ‘anti-Balaka’ militia. The leader, known as General Andjilo, was wanted for crimes including murder, rebellion, rape and looting.

Sayo was a senior officer in the presidential guard before being arrested by former president Francois Bozize.

He led a northern rebel group called “Revolution and Justice” but was became a minister in the 2014 peace deal, which has seen little but conflict and political instability since independence from France in 1960.

Seleka rebels still occupy much of the north and the interim government is struggling to stamp its authority on the country. But France has started withdrawing some troops as the UN force, due to reach 10,000 by the end of April, deploys ahead of elections due later this year.

Source: Christian Today

Global call for release of head of Eritrean Orthodox church who has been under house arrest for years

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Global call for release of head of Eritrean Orthodox church who has been under house arrest for years

Christian Today report- As the eighth anniversary of the removal of the Eritrean Orthodox Patriarch passes, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has issued a global call for his release.

Patriarch Abune Antonios, head of the Eritrean Orthodox Church, is the rightful leader of the east African country’s largest religious community.

The Eritrean authorities removed him from his position in January 2006 for failing to comply with a government order to excommunicate 3,000 parishioners who had opposed the government. Antonios had also called for the release of political prisoners.

In May 2007 he was taken from his home and put under house arrest. The government replaced Antonios with Bishop Dioscoros of Mendefera.

“We call on the Eritrean government immediately to release Patriarch Antonios and the more than 2,000 people imprisoned for their religious beliefs. Religious freedom is a fundamental, universal human right,” said Lantos Swett, chair of USCIRF in a statement.

“Unfortunately, this anniversary reminds us that these rights, as well as other human rights, have been denied to the people of Eritrea for more than two decades,” he added.

The Commission said the Patriarch suffers from severe diabetes and has been denied access to medical assistance.

Eritrea is listed ninth on Open Doors’ World Watch List of the 50 countries where it is most difficult to live as a Christian.

Since 2002 only four religious communities have been recognised by the regime, which has been governed by President Isaias Afweki since 1993.

The four recognised religions are the Coptic Orthodox Church of Eritrea, Sunni Islam, the Roman Catholic Church and the Evangelical Church of Eritrea. But the government has a tight control on all religious activities – even those that are registered.

But without this recognition, religious groups cannot gather in public. The situation is particularly difficult for evangelical and Pentecostal Christians and Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Those who are imprisoned on religious grounds, often not on any formal charges, can be subject to mistreatment and torture. Some Protestants and Evangelicals who have been released report being pressurised to give up their faith.

Source: Christian Today

First woman bishop Libby Lane pleads for prayer and support in the ministry

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First woman bishop Libby Lane pleads for prayer and support in the ministry

Christian Today York was teeming with robes today, as clergy from all over the world gathered to celebrate the consecration of the Church of England’s first female bishop.

It had all the markings of a momentous occasion, with the best of the pomp and circumstance the Church has to offer. Hundreds of priests, bishops and well-wishers filled York Minster to overflowing, and many more waited patiently outside to congratulate the newly appointed Bishop Libby Lane.

The service began with a procession of supporting clergy and ministers through the Minster, and a welcome from the Very Rev Vivienne Faull – herself on speculative lists as a possible candidate for first woman bishop before Lane’s selection in December. The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, presided over the ceremony, and urged those gathered to shout “The Lord Reigns!” as he opened proceedings.

Unsatisfied with the volume, however – “Jericho would never have fallen down with that” – he called for it again, three times. It was a perfectly unorthodox way of celebrating what promised to be a historic occasion.

It was a day campaigners have waited for for decades, and tears could be seen streaming down the faces of many during the laying on of hands, as Lane was officially elevated to the order of bishops. However, there was a single voice of dissent during the ceremony. As Sentamu asked the congregation if it was their will that Libby be ordained, a man walked to the front, shouting: “Not in my name”.

It was dealt with quickly by the Archbishop, and the protestor’s voice was drowned out by the rest of the congregation who declared loudly: “It is!”.

Spokesperson for the Church of England, Rev Arun Arora, later confirmed that the protestor, Rev Paul Williamson, is known by the Church, and was expected to voice his dissent. He has done so at the ordination of several women priests in the past, but a decision was taken to allow him entry to the Minster today as part of the right to object.

“The contrast was between the lone voice of the protestor, and a sea of voices affirming,” Arora said, adding on Twitter that it was “Better to show he is a lone voice” than deny him the opportunity to protest.

Despite continued tension within the Church of England over the issue, the atmosphere in York was one of celebration. Spontantous applause and cheers erupted from the Minster as Lane was declared bishop, and again as she processed out of the building.

Rev Kate Bottley, vicar in North Nottinghamshire and star of Gogglebox, told Christian Today that Bishop Libby’s consecration was an important step for unity within the Church. “It means so much that we can stand beside Bishop Libby and so many male bishops too – that’s important to mention, that there are so many men here supporting Libby today – it’s so affirming, so encouraging,” she said.

“There are people who disagree, and we saw that today, but that was one lone voice, and then 2,000 voices were even louder, saying “It is ours as well”. This is the will of God, and I’m thrilled to be a part of it.”

Russ Naylor, a retired priest from Chester, has been campaigning for female ordination and consecration for over 30 years. “The Church is finally all it’s meant to be,” he said following the ceremony.

“This is wonderful, just wonderful. And it felt completely natural,” added Rev Canon Dr Jessica Martin of Ely diocese.

Lane, now Suffragan Bishop of Stockport, was previously vicar of St Peter’s, Hale and St Elizabeth’s, Ashley in the Chester diocese. As she is not a diocesan bishop, she will not be among those women fast tracked into the House of Lords under new legislation.

Following her consecration, Lane said she has been encouraged by the support received so far.

“Archbishop Sentamu has observed, ‘the way that we show our faith and our love for one another is with two simple things, prayer and parties.’ Today is an occasion of prayer and of party – and I am thrilled that so many want to share in both,” she said in a statement.

“I cannot properly express how encouraged I have been in the weeks since the announcement of my nomination, by the thousands of messages I have received with words of congratulation, support and wisdom. I’ve heard from people of all ages, women and men – people I have known for years, and people I have never met; people from down the road, and people from across the world….every one of them has felt this moment marks something important.”

Lane added that the attention has been “a little overwhelming” and she “cannot possibly live up to everyone’s expectation”.

“And so today, at my consecration, I hold on to words of promise from the Bible, a reassurance that all this does not depend on me … ‘the God who calls you is faithful: He will do it’ (1 Thessalonians 5:24),” she said.

“My consecration service is not really about me. With echoes of practice which has been in place for hundreds of years in the church, it is a reminder that what I am about to embark on is shared by the bishops around me, by those who have gone before me and those who will come after. It places the ministry of a bishop in the context of the ministry of all God’s people. And most importantly it retells the good news of Jesus, the faithful one, who calls each of us to follow him.

“Thank you to all who are praying for me and partying with me today. Please continue to hold me in your prayers as, after the example of St Timothy and St Titus who are celebrated by the Church on this day, I share in work of proclaiming the gospel, in word and action, and bearing witness to the name of Jesus.”

Source: Christian Today

 

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