JOS, Nigeria, May 29, 2020 (Morning Star News) – Muslim Fulani herdsmen in Kaduna state, Nigeria attacked seven villages from May 19 to Monday (May 25), killing five Christians and destroying four church buildings, sources said.

In the same state, kidnappers said they will not release a pastor abducted earlier this month until he converts to Islam or a ransom is paid, church officials said.

A survivor of the Fulani attacks in southern Kaduna state, Ayuba Bako, said the five Christians killed were members of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA). Bako identified three of them as Atuna Garba, Thomas Asoja and Manager Garba.

Three of the destroyed church buildings – in Etissi, Bakin Kogi and Magunguna villages – belonged to the ECWA, and the other belonged to Roman Catholic parish in Idazau, he said. The attacks took place in Idazau, Etissi, Bakin Kogi, Dutsen Gora, Ungwan Gora, Pushu Kallah and Magunguna villages.

The Muslim Fulani assailants shot and injured 78 Christians, kidnapped 51 and destroyed 607 houses, Bako told Morning Star News.

Sen. Danjuma La’ah, who represents an area of southern Kaduna in the National Assembly, said the attacks were unprovoked.

“It is even getting worse during this period of COVID-19 lockdown, because the bandits are still moving about, killing innocent souls in my area, who obey government directive to stay indoors,” La’ah…

Illinois churches are claiming victory in a much-watched legal battle after the state on Thursday withdrew all restrictions on houses of worship.

The state issued new guidelines for churches in a nine-page document that recommends – but does not require – that churches “consider limiting attendance to 25% of building capacity or a maximum of 100 attendees, whichever is lower” amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Previously, a state order limited in-person gatherings to 10 persons.

“Recognizing the centrality of worship in many people’s lives and the spiritual and emotional value of prayer, community, and faith, this guidance provides recommendations for places of worship that choose to resume or expand in-person activities, and for those that do not,” the document reads.

The guidelines were issued the same night Pritzker’s administration faced a U.S. Supreme Court deadline to respond to a lawsuit brought by a Chicago church, Elim Romanian Pentecostal, that has continued meeting despite the order. The city of Chicago threatened the congregation with closure.

Liberty Counsel, which represented the congregation in the suit, called the state’s action Thursday a “complete victory in the near term.” Liberty Counsel also represented another church, Logos Baptist Ministries.

“The unilateral actions of Gov. J.B. Pritzker is the classic example of tyranny,” said Liberty Counsel chairman Mat Staver….

The legal battle over government-mandated closure of churches is now before the U.S. Supreme Court. 

Liberty Counsel filed an appeal Wednesday to the high court on behalf of Elim Romanian Pentecostal Church, a Chicago church that is being threatened with closure for defying a state order that bans church gatherings larger than 10 people. Liberty Counsel also is representing Logos Baptist Ministries.

Meanwhile, Thomas More Society filed an appeal to the Supreme Court over the weekend on behalf of South Bay Pentecostal Church, a Chula Vista, Calif., congregation that’s also under state restrictions.

Either case could resolve the nationwide legal debate over the state-mandated closure of churches during the coronavirus pandemic.

Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh has given the state of Illinois until Thursday night to respond to Liberty Counsel’s appeal. Kavanaugh handles emergency applications from the U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, which includes Illinois. 

Supreme Court Justice Elana Kagan, who handles emergency applications from the Ninth Circuit, also gave California until Thursday night to respond.

The churches argue they can meet safely while practicing social distancing and following health guidelines. The briefs argue the closures violate the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment. 

Appeals courts have split on the issue of church closures, with the Seventh…

A committee report authorized by Boise’s new mayor has sparked concern among conservatives for its promotion of multiple controversial policies, including free abortions and pre-kindergarten sex education.

The 13-page report, titled “A More Equitable City for Everyone,” was written by an 18-member transition team put together by Boise Mayor Lauren McLean, who took office in January. It was posted on the city’s website and makes clear it is “A Final Transition Team Report for Mayor Lauren McLean.”

The report tackles a wide range of issues. It recommends, among other things, “free contraception as defined by the CDC, abortion and reproductive health care” and collaboration with the Boise School District “to establish sex education at pre-k level-12th.”

The report also promotes “policies that would effectively make Boise a sanctuary city, including ending coordination with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement,” according to a summary in the Idaho Statesman.

Dustin Hurst of the Idaho Freedom Foundation said the report would “fundamentally transform Boise into a socialist enclave” by making the city look “something like Portland, Seattle, or San Francisco.”

The report further recommends the city:

• Commit “to an ongoing and robust efforts to interrupt white-dominant/white supremacist culture with a multi-layered strategy and designate a full-time City of…

A new video containing the sworn depositions of Planned Parenthood executives shows the abortion giant’s employees breaking down a contract between them and a stem cell research lab for the sale of fetal tissue.

The revealing video was released on Tuesday by the Center for Medical Progress (CMP) and shows Planned Parenthood officials – as part of their own lawsuit concerning publicly released, undercover footage that showed Planned Parenthood workers discussing the sale of fetal tissue  – making admissions regarding fetal sales while under oath.

While under investigation in 2015, the abortion giant told Congress that they “rebuffed” a proposition to sell fetal livers for $750 per liver and liver/thymus pairs for $1600. 

In the videoed testimonies, however, when asked about an email chain between her and Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast’s Regional Director Dyann Santos regarding a contract for fetal tissue sales, PPGC’s Senior Director of Abortion Access Tram Nguyen admitted that she was willing “to move forward with” the contract.

Chief Medical Officer at Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, Dr. Dorothy Furgerson, also confirmed in the video that the abortion facility would only be “reimbursed” for viable fetal tissue and organ samples.

Following the video’s release, CMP President David Daleiden asserted in a press release that the abortion giant had lied…

A Florida Pastor has a new lease on life following a near-death experience.

In mid-March, Pastor Mark Berney of River of Life Assembly of God Church in Merritt Island, Florida fell back in his chair and started seizing during the course of a sermon he was preaching.

Shortly afterward, Berney awoke, encircled by church members after they called 911 and dashed towards the stage to pray for him.

The pastor was then taken instantly by an ambulance to AdventHealth Orlando (Formerly Florida Hospital).

The doctors there told Berney, 61, that because of past heart issues he would need a heart transplant.

“My mortality was real — it’s that way for everybody,” Berney said in a press release obtained by Faithwire.

While the preacher admits that he had “no guarantees” over the future of his physical body, he recognized the power of faith.

“So I grabbed a hold of my faith and I drove down where God was concerned and recognized that He’s my prize, ultimately. When I signed up for Him, He’s my ultimate destiny,” Berney asserted.

“That began giving me peace of mind — knowing I was gonna be OK,” he continued. “No matter what, I couldn’t lose. I’d always win.”

Even in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the pastor underwent a successful heart transplant on April 22.

“Words cannot express how I feel,” Berney said of the donor and his surviving family. “How…

A Mississippi pastor says he and his congregants will pray for the person who set their church on fire last week.

“We recognize that not everyone shares our belief in the Word of God as revealed in the Bible,” Jerry Waldrop, senior pastor of First Pentecostal Church of Holly Springs, wrote in a commentary for USA Today. “We are not offended that others don’t share our firmly held belief that gathering together to worship and to study the Bible is an essential duty and necessary to the growth of the church and its members.

“And we will pray for the soul and peace of mind of someone who would harbor such hatred that he would take from us our cherished spiritual home,” he added.

The arson attack seems to stem from the church refusing to shut down for in-person gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic, Waldrop said. The church was badly damaged.

“Bet you stay home now, you hypokrists [sic],” a graffiti message written in the parking lot of the church says.

Waldrop had filed a lawsuit against local officials claiming that law enforcement had overruled state restrictions put in place because of the pandemic. Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves had said that churches were “essential” and could stay open.

Waldrop says in his lawsuit that police interrupted a Bible study at the church and later the Easter service.

After the Easter service was disrupted, congregants went to a…