Bahrain: Begins freeing political prisoners
King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa released 25 political ‘prisoners of conscience’ then left the country for Saudi Arabia for consultations after a week of anti-regime protests. Those released included a human rights activist who runs bahrainonline.org; a member of the Committee for the Victims of Torture; and a worker with the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights. Several prominent Shia clerics, including a spokesman of the Haq Movement for Civil Liberties and Democracy, were also released. Bahrain is a predominantly Shia nation run by a Sunni elite. There have been roughly 100 political detainees released but approximately 400 people are still detained on politically-inspired charges. Bahrain is experiencing deaths and increased tension. Anti-government protesters are pressing for a host of demands including political reforms and better human rights in the kingdom. They are refusing to disperse, despite a rare apology from the king. We can increase informed prayers for this land from information found at: Pray: that people will work through differences in a peaceful manner and as they search in their hearts for peace they will hear the God of Peace speak. (Ps.72:9)
Libya: Half an hour of tweets
8:32am - 3,000 Turkish citizens boarded two ferries at Benghazi early on Wednesday, The Orhan Gazi ferry left at 3:30 am with fifteen hundred and the Osman Gazi left an hour and a half later with another fifteen hundred. 20,000 Turks remain in Libya. 8:38am Libyan internet is blocked but a UAE-based columnist and prolific Twitter user has tweeted images grabbed from Al Jazeera Arabic showing images of street battles between security forces - he calls them ‘mercenaries’ - and civilians to be spread by Libyan cell phone. 8:41am Video emerged of regime backers rampaging through a Libyan city on YouTube by Muttardi, who describes them as, ‘mercenaries’ attacking. The screams of terrified onlookers are chilling. 9:09am Australia's ABC Radio phoned a man named Abdul in Tripoli this morning describing, ‘Black Africans’ in army clothes driving around in jeeps; jets and helicopters circling the city. Regime backers were distributing guns to anyone who said they supported Gaddafi. Pray: in this fast unravelling of events that God’s Kingdom will break through in power to those who call out. (Ps.116:4 & 8) More: http://blogs.aljazeera.net/africa/2011/02/22/live-blog-libya-feb-23
New Zealand: Hopes fade for quake missing
Hopes are fading of finding survivors beneath collapsed buildings in the aftermath of Tuesday's earthquake in the New Zealand city of Christchurch Ninety-eight bodies have now been recovered and taken to a temporary mortuary. Prime Minister John Key said that number could rise substantially. Police have said 226 people are missing - up to 120 of them at one site alone. Superintendent Dave Cliff said 16 to 22 people were presumed to have died in the cathedral, which was devastated in the quake. The earthquake struck at a shallow depth of 5km (3.1 miles) early in the afternoon on Tuesday, when the South Island city was at its busiest. It was Christchurch's second major tremor in five months, and New Zealand's deadliest natural disaster for 80 years Pray:for God's voice to speak through His people at this time giving hope and comfort and demonstrating Christ’s compassion in thoughts, words and deeds. (Ps.116:8)
From the 14th to the 18th of May 2012, Jakarta, Indonesia will play host to the World Prayer Assembly, (WPA). The Assembly is expected to be the largest gathering of prayer, church and market place leaders since the first International Prayer Assembly that was held in Seoul, Korea in 1984. That first prayer assembly unleashed a great prayer momentum across the globe from 1984, which led to the growth of global missions, the opening up of various nations which hitherto had been shut to the gospel, and a great awareness on the subject of spiritual warfare.
Jakarta, Indonesia, was chosen as venue for this global gathering because of strategic reasons. First, the International Prayer Connect (IPC) felt led by the Holy Spirit to Indonesia. Secondly, Indonesia has a vibrant prayer movement and a Church that is open and willing to host intercessors from across the world. Thirdly, Indonesia is the largest Islamic nation in the world. The Assembly will be co-hosted by the Korean Church, which has a reputation for prayer. This means that two Asian countries will be hosting the World Prayer Assembly. Asia is an emerging continent in all spheres of life. Economically the Asian countries are dominating the world. In terms of technology, the Asian countries are well ahead of many other countries of the world. It is believed that six out of every ten people in the world come from Asia. This means it is a continent we cannot afford to ignore. These reasons put together, informed the choice of the Indonesia as a host country for the WPA.
The theme of the WPA is NEW WAVE. The question that may come to mind is why a new wave? The theme, New Wave, is appropriately chosen because it symbolizes what we sense God is about to unleash on the global prayer movement, and of course, the Church. Waves are caused by the wind. The season and the wind determine the intensity of waves. Waves are usually the delight of surfers who take advantage of the waves to display their surfing skills. In our next issue we shall be considering in detail the implication of the theme of the WPA and what preparations we have to make in the prayer movement to ride on the crest of the new wave that is about to come upon the Church.
For now, it need be said that the expected gathering is not going to be one of those Christian gatherings we are used to. This time the gathering will be different and unique. Participants should come expecting to experience a unique, fresh, exhilarating encounter with the Holy Spirit that would radically transform their lives. We must be prepared to listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to us as individuals, and to the Church as a body. The gathering will be tri-generational; that is to say, it will involve the children, the youth, and the elders. “Why children?” one may ask? The WPA is going to be a paradigm shift from the past. For sometime, the Spirit has been saying that the children and the youth have long been neglected. It is now time to carry them along and to do a conscious mentoring of the new generation. If the prayer movement is not to experience a disconnect with the next generation, then it must mentor and carry the youth and children along. Mentoring the next generation has to be done conscientiously and creatively.
In Isaiah 25:6,7 the Lord promised to make a feast for all nations; “a feast of fat things full of marrow, of well refined wines on the lees.” This is what the World Prayer Assembly is going to be like. The call is to all who are eager to know what the Spirit is saying to His church to gather together in Jakarta, Indonesia, from the 14th to the 18th of 2012. In anticipation, I say, “Welcome to WPA 2012. I look forward to seeing you there!”
(www.worldprayerassembly.com)
Pentecostals and Charismatics get serious about politics
Twelve Pentecostal and New Church networks are combining their efforts in order to give their opinions political clout. Representatives from the churches have met senior Christian politicians and other Christian pressure groups to discuss how they can gain better influence in politics. The church groupings include the Elim Pentecostal Church, Assemblies of God, NewFrontiers, Pioneer and Vineyard. They believe that so far only the traditional denominations get a hearing in Parliament and that a large number of Christians in the country go unrecognised. They want to help MPs appreciate the views of these believers. Each network has its own concerns and will appoint people to represent them to MPs, but the churches plan to cooperate on issues like social justice, the environment, diversity and equality, and the family. Pray: that God’s people will continue working together to influence the political arena. (Php.4:1)
Anglicans and Methodists tackle dividing issues
The Anglican Communion and the Methodist Church say they must address the areas that continue to divide. Representatives of the two churches were in Cape Town, South Africa, this week for the Third Annual Meeting of the Anglican-Methodist International Commission for Unity in Mission. The Commission was set up in 2007 to advance the full visible communion of Anglicans and Methodists at every level. A communiqué issued at the end of the meeting said there was a ‘much clearer awareness of the need for the Commission to identify and begin to tackle some of the issues that are at the heart of our present denominational divisions’. The Commission went on to acknowledge the bilateral conversations taking place between the two communions particularly in the UK, Ireland, US and New Zealand. Pray: for the unity of God’s church in all its diversity. (Jn.17:23)
Jesus-themed Easter eggs
Launched by the Church of England, The Real Easter Egg, a milk chocolate egg to celebrate the real meaning of Easter, is said to be the first and only Fairtrade egg to mention Jesus on the box. Telling consumers that Easter is not all about cute bunnies, fluffy chicks, and eating too much chocolate. The packaging reveals the true message that Jesus died on the cross on Good Friday, then rose again three days later on Easter Sunday. Many believe that chocolate eggs represent the boulder that sealed Jesus’ tomb and with eggs being widely thought of as a symbol of hope and new life, the custom grew where people exchanged gifts of chocolate eggs at Easter. Each sale made will benefit two charities, Baby Lifeline and Traidcraft Exchange, with proceeds going to purchase everything from medical equipment for new mothers in the UK to chickens for small-scale farmers in Africa. Pray: that this initiative will prove popular and will be a successful outreach opportunity. (Ac.5:20) More: http://www.christianpost.com/news/jesus-themed-easter-eggs-fill-supermarket-shelves-in-uk-49062/
Coalition must not lose 'moral imperative'
The Coalition Government must not lose sight of its ‘moral imperative’ for caring for society’s most vulnerable and those in need of assistance, the Archbishop of Westminster will urge in his annual Mass for the Sick address. The Most Reverend Vincent Nichols will say that Christian generosity towards care of the elderly and the vulnerable ‘stands in contrast to some apparent prevailing attitudes in our society’. Archbishop Nichols, will urge the Government to provide extra support for those who care for elderly relatives amid claims they are being unfairly targeted by public sector cuts. He will say that the general public are ‘deeply anxious’ about forthcoming cuts in public expenditure that are ‘seeming to fall, too easily and too quickly, on services due to the vulnerable and elderly’. In his homily to be delivered at Westminster Cathedral later on Saturday, Archbishop Nichols will instead urge that ‘special attention’ should be ‘given to the sick and vulnerable’. Pray: for the Government to ensure that such vulnerable members of the community are properly cared for. (Ps.72:13) More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/8334397/Archbishop-of-Westminster-Coalition-must-not-to-lose-moral-imperative-over-elder-care.html
Don’t mangle definition of marriage
A senior Conservative MP has slammed the coalition Government’s proposal ‘to do away with traditional marriage’. On Thursday the Equalities Office revealed that it will ‘formally look’ at redefining marriage so that homosexual couples can get the same certificate as married people. The Government will also consult on plans to allow civil partnerships to be registered in churches for the first time. But Edward Leigh MP has questioned why the Government is trying to ‘mangle’ marriage, warning that it could have devastating consequences for those who adhere to the traditional definition. Mr Leigh, a former chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, described the move as ‘mangling the language of marriage so that, for the sake of the tiny number of gay people who prefer marriage to civil partnership, everyone else in society must have the definition of their own marriage altered forever. Pray: that the Government will not abandon widely held views of marriage to favour a small minority. (Ro.7:22) More: http://www.christian.org.uk/news/dont-mangle-definition-of-marriage-warns-senior
Bishop sings Coalition's praises over faith schools
Malcolm McMahon, chair of the Catholic Education Service and the bishop of Nottingham, said the current Government seemed to have more ‘heartfelt sympathy’ for the aims of religious educators than previously. ‘There aren't the secularists trying to close things down,’ he said, making a reference to a law, introduced in 2007 under the Labour Government, that made it illegal for Catholic adoption agencies to prevent gay couples from adopting. ‘Ministers in the Coalition appear to understand more the role that faith plays in society,’ Bishop McMahon said. He said that 'while Labour ministers had been ‘straightforward’ and ‘fair’, the Coalition had ‘more of a general understanding of what faith means to people’ and a ‘heartfelt sympathy’ for faith schools. One of the Coalition's flagship education reforms - free schools - allows parents, teachers and charities to apply to set up their own faith, or non-faith, school. Pray: that our politicians would see the benefits of religious education for our children. (Dt.4:9) More: http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2011/feb/23/faithschools-schools