Romania’s senate backs new marriage law on religious grounds

Senators voted 107-13 with seven abstentions on Tuesday to change the constitution, which currently states that marriage is a union between “spouses”.

The vote comes after Parliament’s Chamber of Deputies last year overwhelmingly approved the same measure.

 

A senator for the ruling Social Democratic Party, Serban Nicolae, said the vote was on religious grounds, adding: “We’ve been a Christian nation for 2,000 years.”

Social Democrat chairman Liviu Dragnea has indicated Romania will hold a referendum on the issue in October.

Romania, along with Poland, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Lithuania and Latvia, do not recognise same-sex marriage or offer legal protection to same-sex couples.

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Report Reveals 3,677 Sex Abuse Cases in Catholic Church in Germany

Report Reveals 3,677 Sex Abuse Cases in Catholic Church in Germany



Two leading German publications are saying a report on sexual abuse in Germany inside the Catholic Church has come to light detailing 3,677 abuse cases by Catholic clergy between 1946 and 2014.


Spiegel Online and Die Zeit are saying the report was commissioned by the German Bishops Conference and researched by three universities and concludes that more than half of the victims were 13 years old or younger. The majority of the victims were boys. 


According to Fox News, every sixth case involved rape and no less than 1,670 clergymen were involved in the abuses.


According to the news outlets, the report says that the number of victims is likely much higher than what was reported.


Die Zeit reported that researchers were not actually allowed to look at the original files but were asked to submit questionnaires to the dioceses.


Die Zeit’s researchers noted that there was evidence that some files were manipulated or destroyed, several cases were not brought to justice and some abuse suspects were moved to other dioceses without the congregations being informed of the accusations against them.


At this time the German Bishops Conference had no comment on the report but are currently preparing a response. 


In the last several months the Catholic Church has been under scrutiny for sexual abuse by clergy.


In August, an investigation in the United States found that…

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What’s the One Unpardonable Sin in the Bible? Have You Committed It?

(Screenshot: YouTube/Tim Challies)Tim Challies of Grace Fellowship Church in Canada in a YouTube video on February 15, 2018.

Pastor and author Tim Challies of Grace Fellowship Church in Toronto has assured Christians worried they have committed the one unpardonable sin of the Bible.

Challies reflected in a video posted on Facebook on Tuesday that at one point, nearly all believers wonder “Have I committed the unpardonable sin? Have I broken God’s law in that way?”

He said that some people are “really concerned, racked with guilt, racked with worry” over this, but he assured them it is unlikely they have gone that far.

Defining the unpardonable sin in question, the pastor took to Matthew 12:31 in the Bible, where Jesus says: “Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.”

Similarly, Mark 3:29 reads: “But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of eternal sin.”

Challies said that such passages “sound terrifying,” adding that he has done a lot of research and study into the topic.

He said that the theological consensus defines blasphemy against the Holy Spirit as an act that involves “ascribing the work of the Holy Spirit accomplished through Jesus…

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MP says Justin Welby should resign after commenting on government issues

Most Rev Justin Welby told the TUC’s Congress Guide ahead of his speech at the group’s conference on Wednesday that the Church will form new partnerships with various unions and ensure that “oppressed” people are protected from “cruel employers”.

 

“Holding businesses to account and making sure the needs of people are put at the centre is vital,” he said. 

“Christian faith starts with knowing that each of us is loved by God and are of infinite value to God.

“Therefore, the value of every human being is the same. Jesus was very practical about applying these values.

“The TUC grew out of the need to come together to defend vulnerable and oppressed workers against overmighty and cruel employers. It is one expression amongst many of what it means to value human beings and care for human dignity.”

Archbishop Justin’s comments were met with some resistance. 

According to The Express, MP Phillip Davies said the archbishop should quit his role and join the Labour Party if he wants to comment on government affairs. 

Mr Davies said: “Justin Welby ought to consider removing his dog collar and replacing it with a Labour Party rosette.

“No wonder church attendances are so poor – another member of the metropolitan Elite establishment out of touch with the silent majority.”

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81 Percent of TV Family Comedies Include Explicit Sex Talk around Children, Study Finds

81 Percent of TV Family Comedies Include Explicit Sex Talk around Children, Study Finds



Four out of five primetime “family comedies” on television include explicit sexual dialogue used in front of children, according to a new Parents Television Council study that calls it a disturbing new trend.


A total of 81.5 percent of the so-called family comedies included situations where adults – or even children – make “explicit references to sex in front of teenage and even child characters.” Just as concerning, many of the comedies were rated TV-PG, and some did not contain the “D” descriptor designating sexual dialogue, according to the study.


“Furthermore, the networks are marketing this alarming content trend as being appropriate for children to watch,” said PTC President Tim Winter. “Our study reveals a fundamental problem with the way TV shows are rated. Each TV network assigns its own ratings, and oversight of the system is then handed to a group of the very same network executives who routinely rate programs inaccurately.”


Networks don’t want their programs to be rated TV-MA, Winter said, because “mainstream corporations won’t sponsor programming” with that rating. 


NBC’s A.P. Bio was the worst offender, followed by The Mick (Fox), American Housewife (ABC), Life in Pieces(CBS) and Family Guy(Fox).


A.P. Biospotlights a disgruntled high school teacher named “Jack.” According to the study,…

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Episcopal Church Gives $45K to Fund Translation of Book of Common Prayer in Lakota Language

(Photo: Facebook/The Episcopal Diocese of South Dakota)Prayer books used by the Episcopal Diocese of South Dakota, which has considerable Native American representation in their membership.

The Episcopal Church has approved a project to translate the Book of Common Prayer into the Native American language of Lakota.

The Episcopal Diocese of South Dakota recently received a United Thank Offering grant of $45,000 to translate the BCP into contemporary Lakota.

Archdeacon Paul Sneve of the South Dakota Diocese told The Christian Post in an interview on Tuesday that they were in the beginning stages of the translation project.

“Episcopal Congregants from our nine reservations are submitting names of fluent speakers [and] writers who are also familiar with the English BCP. We have decisions to make especially in regard to how best to accommodate the three dialects spoken here, as well as what to include in book,” explained Sneve.

“It has become evident early on that the finished book will be different than the English BCP in that we have liturgies that we use that aren’t included in the 1979 book.”

The $45,000 grant will be used to fund the work of the Translation and Editorial Committees, Formatting, as well as the printer preparation work and the eventual printing.

Before…

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Pope summons bishops to talks on tackling sex abuse by priests

The summit involving the presidents of every bishops conference was announced a day before Francis meets US church leaders hit by fresh accusations over the cover-up of sex abuse in the Catholic Church.

The February 21-24 meeting at the Vatican is believed to be the first of its kind, and signals a realisation at the highest levels of the church that clergy sex abuse is a global problem.

 

Earlier this year, Francis faced what was then the worst crisis of his papacy when he repeatedly discredited victims of a notorious Chilean predator priest.

He eventually admitted to “grave errors in judgment” and has taken steps to make amends, sanction guilty bishops and reform the Chilean episcopacy.

More recently, Francis’s papacy has been jolted by accusations from a retired Vatican ambassador that he rehabilitated a top American cardinal from sanctions imposed by Pope Benedict XVI for having molested and harassed adult seminarians.

The Vatican has not responded to the accusations by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano but has promised “clarifications” that presumably will come some time after Francis’s meeting on Thursday with the US delegation.

The Vatican said the meeting would be headed by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, head of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, and also include Francis’s top sex abuse adviser, Cardinal Sean O’Malley.

Mr Di Nardo has said he wants Francis to…

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Chinese Officials Close Church, Members Take the Gospel to the Streets

Chinese Officials Close Church, Members Take the Gospel to the Streets



After the Chinese government shut down a church in Chengdu, members of the house church took the gospel message to the streets.

In a video shared earlier this week, Christopher Gregory, of the China Missions organization, showed members of the church gathering in a public park to sing, pray and share the gospel. Gregory was later arrested and then released.

Gregory told Christian News Network that the church hosted both morning and evening services earlier this week.

“The local authorities shut down a house church in Chengdu last week, so they thought that was the end of it— it wasn’t,” Gregory said on his social media account, adding that police “looked on in bewilderment not knowing what to do.”

“For the first time, people throughout China are saying, “NO!” to what the Communist party wants— control,” he said. “Control over what they can do, what they can believe, where they can go, what they can say.”

“It’s yet another sign something is beginning to take shape here in China, the call for democracy! The call for freedom!”

The video has more than 43,000 views.

According to the organization China Aid, churches must register with the Three-Self Patriotic Movement. The Movement is the only authorized Protestant Church in China. Any churches who do not register are considered illegal, and authorities can arrest or jail church members.

Officials can also…

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‘You Shall Go No Further’

(Screenshot: YouTube/The Official 700 Club)Pat Robertson commanded the incoming Hurricane Florence to stay away from Virginia on September 10, 2018.

Pat Robertson has directly commanded the incoming Hurricane Florence to stay away from the east coast region.

Robertson, who founded Regent University in Virginia who and is also the chairman of the Christian Broadcasting Network and host of “The 700 Club,” spoke on Monday at CBN’s special Week of Prayer service, where he reminded the audience that Jesus commanded the sea and the waves at the sea of Galilee to be still.

Speaking of Florence, the category 4 hurricane that is expected to make landfall and cause devastating damage in the Carolinas and Virginia starting Thursday, the evangelist asked the faithful to believe in God.

“I don’t want that thing to come in,” the preacher said of the storm.

“I don’t want it to hurt Regent, I don’t wait it to hurt CBN, I don’t want it to tear up the beautiful campus, I don’t want it to tear these trees down, I don’t want to see any damage, I don’t want a bunch of glass flowing,” or damage to the area, he added.

He asked people at the service to raise their hands toward the Atlantic.

“We declare in the name of the Lord that you shall go no farther, you shall do no damage in this area,”…

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Universal Credit leaves people worse off, says Archbishop of Canterbury

Most Rev Justin Welby received a standing ovation at the TUC Congress in Manchester when he attacked the benefits system, said the living wage should be higher and criticised firms like Amazon for paying “almost nothing” in taxes.

He also hit out at the so-called gig economy and zero-hours contracts, saying they were “nothing new”, and adding: “It is the reincarnation of an ancient evil.”

 

In a question and answer session after his speech, the archbishop was asked for his view on the Government’s flagship welfare reform of Universal Credit.

“It was supposed to make it simpler and more efficient. It has not done that. It has left too many people worse off, putting them at risk of hunger, debt, rent arrears and food banks.

“When Universal Credit comes into a local area the number of people going to food banks goes up.

“What is clear is if they cannot get it right they need to stop rolling it out.”

The archbishop won applause from delegates for a section of his speech devoted to tax.

He said: “Not paying taxes speaks of the absence of commitment to our shared humanity, to solidarity and justice. If you earn money from a community, you should pay your share of tax to that community.

“I was in business, and I know that, within limits, it’s right and proper for people to arrange their tax affairs, and for companies to do so.

“But when vast companies like Amazon, and other…

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