International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that a Muslim judge upheld the court-ordered eviction of two Christian families from their church-owned homes in Omdurman, Sudan. Pastors Yahiya Abdelrahim Nalu and Siddiqe Abdallah of the Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church (SPEC) filed an appeal against the eviction that was conducted on August 15, claiming that the property belonged to Hisham Al-Neel. This appeal was denied on December 3, 2017.

“The house that was marked for eviction was not ours. Our house number is 772 and the house that should have been vacated is 574. The judge went on with his ruling even after confirming from the housing authorities and the engineering surveyor that this was a mistaken raid. This is an outright breach of the law and it is done on purpose. The church is under siege and we are very disappointed,” decried Pastor Yahiya.

Pastor Yahiya, his wife Manal, and their child Matthew, have been sleeping out in the open ever since. They are expecting their second child soon and winter is fast approaching. “We have been living outside in the streets with our wives and children after the forceful eviction four months ago. With the court ruling that didn’t favor us, life will just become harder. This is an evil government that mistreats her people in the name of religion. We long for a nation that will give the minority groups protection and space,” added Pastor Yahiya.

ICC…

The Bible has been translated into thousands of languages across the globe, but one people group that is often unable to read the Bible in a language they can understand is the deaf community.

CBN News reports that Wycliffe Bible translators has been working tirelessly to ensure that the Bible is translated into every language. Recently Wycliffe translators began work on reaching the deaf community with a sign language Bible translation.

Chantel Pagan, the director of advocacy for Deaf Bible Society, explained that, although deaf people can read the Bible, having it translated into sign language communicates to them on a deeper level.

“It’s how they communicate best,” said Pagan. “It’s how they understand best, and I think that the Lord wants to communicate with us best. He wants us to understand him, and he wants that for the deaf community as well.”

“So why not give them Scripture in their heart language?” she continued. “Why not translate the Scriptures in a format that they can understand and offer video to content that they can have on technological devices?”

Although many churches have an individual signing the Scripture reading and message, there is often words and concepts lost in these imperfect translations. Wycliffe hopes to create a standardardized, all-encompassing sign language translation to serve deaf people.

“Even with the Bible, we’re still…

The Church of England is making news with its appointment of Sarah Mullally as the first female Bishop of London.

USA Today reports that Mullally is a former nurse. She is married and has two children. She decided to give up her career in the medical field and pursue a calling to the priesthood in 2006.

The Bishop of London holds the third most powerful position within the Church of England. Upon accepting the nomination, Mullally said she was “delighted and slightly terrified” at such an honor and responsibility.

She added that diversity plays an important role in the Church:

“If our churches are to be more relevant to our community, this means that we need churches that are led by priests who are women, who come from black, Asian and ethnic minority groups,” Mullally said. “To have churches that are confident, we need local ministers and priests who are enabled to be the best that they are. London could be that gift to the rest of the Church of England to demonstrate how unity can work.”

Mullally also added that she knows her appointment is not supported by those who adhere to more traditional beliefs of church leadership, but she is committed to being respectful of those who hold this view.

“My belief is that church diversity throughout London should flourish and grow; everybody should be able to find a spiritual home; and that those who minister should be able to…