For Richard Dawkins, ‘Muslim Bashing’ Is Different Than ‘Christian Bashing’

By Michael Brown, CP Op-Ed Contributor – August 12, 2013

Professor Richard Dawkins, known as the world’s most famous atheist, has risen to rock star status for his attacks on God and religion, in particular, his attacks on the God of the Bible. But when he recently criticized Muslims, he was in for a surprise.

Before looking at Dawkins’ rather mild criticism of Muslims, let’s remember the depth of his vitriol against Christians and the Bible, most of which has only enhanced Dawkins’ reputation.

In an April interview aired on the Qatar-based TV network Al Jazeera, Dawkins railed on the Catholic Church, saying that, as “Horrible as sexual abuse no doubt was [suffered by some children at the hands of deviant priests], the damage was arguably less than the long-term psychological damage inflicted by bringing the child up Catholic in the first place.”

Was Dawkins really serious? The interviewer, Mehdi Hasan asked: “You believe that being bought up as a Catholic is worse than being abused by a priest?”

Dawkins replied: “There are shades of being abused by a priest, and I quoted an example of a woman in America who wrote to me saying that when she was seven years old she was sexually abused by a priest in his car.

“At the same time a friend of hers, also seven, who was of a Protestant family, died, and she was told that because her friend was Protestant she had gone to Hell and will be roasting in Hell forever.

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CTFM new church project- unexpected answer to prayer

Dear family & friends in Christ,

We wish to thank you all for covering us in prayer regarding the new Catch The Fire Ministries base which was about to be built in Doveton, Victoria.

We’re sure you all know that the land right next to us was purchased by the Afghani Muslim community to build a mosque which we at CTFM opposed, but the local council granted the permit.

This matter was taken to VCAT and the hearing was adjourned to November.

In Luke 14:25-35 the Word of God speaks of the importance of counting the cost before moving to build a tower or going to war. Well, in the past few weeks we have been doing just that, spending hours prayerfully seeking the Lord’s direction as to what we should do.

Pr Daniel particularly asked the Lord for a clear sign to show him whether or not he should continue to fight this battle in the courts, as the whole purpose of opposing the construction of the mosque was based on the fact it was going to be built right next door to our future CTFM base.

We were ready to go all the way to the Supreme Court, even though it would have taken us around 2 years and tens of thousands of dollars.

Well, all glory to God that our prayers were answered in the most unexpected way.

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Indonesia to host Miss World despite Muslim council objection

The Sundaily – Posted on 27 August 2013

JAKARTA – The Miss World beauty pageant will go ahead in Indonesia next month despite objections from the country’s leading Islamic federation, an organizer said Tuesday.

“We have obtained support from the government so there are no obstacles,” said Syafril Nasution, corporate affairs director for RCTI, the organizer and official broadcaster of the event.

“Since the beginning, we have made it clear that the event will not feature bikinis, or make use of anything that is against religious and cultural values,” he said.

“So we don’t really understand why there are still objections.”

Amidhan Sabrah, chairman of the Indonesian Council of Ulema, said it was opposed to the event because it objectified women.

“This kind of events turn women into a commodity and that is against Islam,” he said.

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My life of hell in an Afghan harem

By Phyllis Chesler – New York Post – September 21, 2013

Naive and in love, I married a man from Kabul — only to discover the horrible life of a fundamentalist Muslim wife.

Phyllis Chesler, 72, is a feminist scholar and a professor emerita of psychology and women’s studies at City University of New York. In her 14th book, “An American Bride in Kabul” (Palgrave Macmillan) out early next month, she shares for the first time the story of the five months she spent, as a young bride, held prisoner in a Afghan household. 

I once lived in a harem in Afghanistan.

I did not enter the kingdom as a diplomat, soldier, teacher, journalist or foreign aid worker. I came as a young Jewish bride of the son of one of the country’s wealthiest men. I was held in a type of captivity — but it’s not as if I had been kidnapped.

I walked into it of my own free will.

It is 1959. I am only 18 when my prince — a dark, older, handsome, westernized foreigner who had traveled abroad from his native home in Afghanistan — bedazzles me.

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‘Gay’ lawmaker to Christians: ‘We’ll take your children

by Matt Barber Aug. 27, 2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) 

Few people doubt that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie hopes to become president in 2016. Unfortunately for him, he may have just signed away any chance of that.

On Monday, Christie signed A3371, a draconian piece of legislation that bars licensed therapists from helping children overcome unwanted same-sex attractions, behavior or identity. This law bans help for minors even when – as is so often the case – those same-sex attractions arise from childhood sexual abuse by the likes of a Jerry Sandusky.

This law will prohibit minors and their parents from receiving counseling they desire and will force counselors to violate ethical codes because they will not be able to help clients reach their own counseling goals. This law would enslave children – whether abused or not – to a subjectively determined sexual identity that they reject.

The connection between homosexual abuse and “gay identity” is undeniable. Consider this: Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have found that homosexual men are “at least three times more likely to report CSA (childhood sexual abuse)” than heterosexual men.

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Nairobi attack: Kenyan forces battle to clear Islamist terrorists from mall

  theguardian.com,

With 62 confirmed dead after al-Shabaab militants stormed the complex, it is unclear whether any hostages are still being held.

Kenyan security forces remain locked in a slow and bloody operation to clear Islamist militant hostage-takers from an upmarket shopping mall in Nairobi, as plumes of black smoke pour from the complex and sporadic gunfire and occasional blasts can reportedly be heard.

More than 48 hours after a heavily armed group from the Somalia-based al-Shabaab organisation killed at least 62 people in the Westgate centre, which was packed with shoppers and families, little is known about the situation inside.

The confirmed dead now include four Britons, along with nationals from another dozen countries, as well as Kenya.

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Suicide bombers kill dozens at church in Peshawar in Pakistan

Christians mourn next to the coffins of their relatives killed in a suicide attack on a church in Peshawar.24th September 2013 – Reuters/AFP
A pair of suicide bombers blew themselves up outside a 130-year-old Anglican church in Pakistan after the Sunday service, killing at least 78 people in the deadliest attack in recent history on Christians in the predominantly Muslim country.

Explosions struck the historic white-stone All Saints Church in the city of Peshawar, near the frontier tribal areas where Islamist militants have their strongholds, as hundreds of parishioners, many of them women and children, streamed out of the building.

“I heard two explosions. People started to run. Human remains were strewn all over the church,” said one parishioner, who gave only her first name, Margrette.

Her voice breaking with emotion, she said she had not seen her sister since the explosions ripped through the area around the gate of the church enclosure.

Interior minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said the death toll included 34 women and seven children. More than 100 people were wounded.

“Who are these terrorists, killing women and children?” Mr Nisar said.

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A Friendlier Australian Government

From Isi Leibler,  September 8, 2013

Australia’s election results are good news for the Israel-Australia relationship. Labor party incumbent Kevin Rudd, who held office for less than three months following a coup against former PM Julia Gillard, lost in a landslide, bringing an end to six years of Labor Government. Rudd is a political chameleon who abandoned Australia’s long-standing pro-Israel position when he previously served as Prime Minister from 2007 to 2010.

The victorious Tony Abbott of the center-right Liberal party is an outspoken friend of the Jewish State. He has pledged to improve relations with Israel, toughen the government’s approach toward terrorist organizations and end financial support for organizations connected to the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Campaign against Israel.

These results therefore represent a sea change in Israel-Australia relations. Before assuming office in 2007, Prime Minister Rudd portrayed himself as a Christian Zionist. But in office, he launched a campaign to downgrade Australia’s relationship toward Israel. He reduced Australian support for Israel at the UN and adopted policies akin to those of hostile European countries.

Julia Gillard, who displaced him in 2010, made efforts to revive the friendly relations with Israel. But after Bob Carr was appointed as Foreign Minister in March 2012, the relationship again began to decline.

Carr, a former State Premier, was a founding member of the parliamentary Labor Friends of Israel and had previously been considered a friend of the Jewish community. However, in 2003, he awarded the Sydney Peace Prize to Palestinian propagandist Hannah Ashrawi, and since then has become increasingly critical, insisting that he understood better than Israelis what was in their best interest.

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Erdogan’s Hate-Jew Fest

August 21, 2013 By Michael van der Galien

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been set loose by his fellow members of the Justice and Development Party (AK Parti). Instead of talking about the protests in Gezi Park (Istanbul) and the accompanying police violence, he has declared a war of words on two other enemies: the Egyptian military and Israel.

When Egyptian general Abdul Fattah Al-Sisi removed Morsi from power, Erdogan immediately defended the deposed president Mohammed Morsi.  The new de facto ruler, Al-Sisi, was, said Erdogan, an anti-democratic, ruthless dictator. A predator, if you will.

Morsi should immediately be restored to power. After all, he had won the elections. In Erdogan’s view of democracy, which boils down to majoritism, nothing else matters.

No, not the 22 million signatures collected by Morsi’s opponents calling on him to resign or the fact that attacks on Christians and their churches were on the rise from the very moment the Muslim Brothers came to power. Increasingly, more Coptic girls were – and still are – kidnapped, raped and forced to convert to Islam. After that horrendous ordeal they were (and again: are) forced to marry a Muslim, who makes sure they will never see their real, Christian family again.

Erdogan did not and does not care about any of that. He cares only – or so he says – about Morsi and his “democratic victory” and legitimacy.

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NOTHING LESS THAN SATANIC

By Alex Murashko, Christian Post Reporter – August 16, 2013

The recent barrage of attacks on Christians in Egypt, including on members and churches of the nation’s Coptic denomination, are of a scale unseen in modern times and being described as satanic, according to sources living in the country. The persecution watchdog group, Open Doors USA, says Egypt is engulfed in a furnace of fire and Christians are taking on the brunt force of the attacks.

“The attack against the Christians of Egypt is nothing less than a furious satanic attack that aims at terrorizing Christians, imprisoning them at their homes helplessly with no guarantee of protection so their love, peace, hope and testimony may be neutralized,” stated an anonymous Christian leader, whose name is being withheld for security reasons, in a commentary obtained by The Christian Post.

“We, Christians of Egypt, are facing a severe time of persecution and suffering that we may have not witnessed since the Roman times!” the source explained.

Thursday evening, the overall picture coming out of Egypt from news reports was dire. Egypt’s health ministry said that at least 580 people were killed and more than 4,000 injured amidst clashes involving security forces and former President Mohammad Morsi supporters.

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In Midst of Syrian Crisis, Netanyahu Holds Bible Study

Teresa Neumann (Sep 19, 2013)

Studying why Moses couldn’t enter the Promised Land, Israeli’s Prime Minister concludes, “Moses could not enter the Promised Land, and we merit that privilege to be here in the land of our forefathers, thanks to him and thanks to the struggle of our people. And we bless every second. It is a great privilege to read this great book [Scripture] and to know that we are fulfilling what God commanded our people … in that way we are fulfilling the legacy.”

(Jerusalem, Israel)—In a recent blog, Joel C. Rosenberg writes, “One of the most interesting but least known aspects in the life of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu [who was not raised in a religious home] is that he has developed a noticeable curiosity in ancient Scriptures.”

Rosenberg goes on to reveal that the Prime Minister started a Bible study with various Jewish leaders and scholars last year that continues to meet in his official residence.

Indeed, multiple sources reveal that as recently as last week, despite the intense saber rattling gripping the Mideast over conditions in Syria, Netanyahu convened another Bible study, the focus of which was why the Lord punished Moses by not allowing him to enter the Promised Land.

The Prime Minister was quoted as saying Moses’ punishment seemed cruel and asked, “What is the logic behind that—it seems unjust?” (more…)

Continue ReadingIn Midst of Syrian Crisis, Netanyahu Holds Bible Study

The Dark Side of Wives Submitting to Husbands

Charisma Magazine – 8/7/2013 J. Lee Grady

Christian teaching on male headship is often used as a weapon against women. This abuse must be confronted.

During a past ministry trip to Hungary, I heard a painfully familiar story. Through a translator, a tearful young woman living near Budapest explained that her Christian husband was angrily demanding her absolute submission. This included, among other things, that she clean their house according to his strict standards and that she engage in sexual acts with him that made her feel uncomfortable and dirty.

This lady was not demanding her rights or trying to be disrespectful. She was a godly, humble woman who obviously wanted to please the Lord. But she had been beaten to a pulp emotionally, and she was receiving little help from her pastor—who was either unwilling or unprepared to confront wife abuse.

I’ve heard so many sickening versions of this scenario. In Kenya, several women told me their AIDS-infected husbands often raped them—and then their pastors told them they must submit to this treatment. In some parts of India, even some pastors believe it is acceptable to beat their wives if they argue with them or show any form of disrespect. And in some conservative churches in the United States, women are told that obedience to God is measured by their wifely submission—even if their husbands are addicted to alcohol or pornography or if they are involved in adulterous affairs.

This distortion of biblical teaching has plunged countless Christian women into depression and emotional trauma. I’m not sure which is worse: the harsh words they hear from their husbands or the perverse way the Bible is wielded as a leather belt to justify domestic abuse. Here are three truths we must uncover in order to solve this problem:

1. Marriage is not a hierarchy. Traditionalists assume that a Christian marriage is defined as a dominant husband who makes all family decisions while the wife graciously obeys without input. Yet Scripture actually portrays marriage as a loving partnership and refers to the wife as a “fellow heir of the grace of life” (1 Peter 3:7, NASB). And the apostle Paul taught that in the realm of sexuality, husbands and wives share equal authority over each other’s bodies (1 Cor. 7:4). In other words, submission in this most intimate part of a marriage covenant is mutual, and this same mutuality is the key to any happy marriage; it fosters respect, communication and an enduring bond.

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Minister says knowledge of jihad must for children

August 31, 2013 | Shawwal 23, 1434

PESHAWAR: Every child should know about the actual purpose and spirit of jihad as it couldn’t be separated from the faith of Muslims, said Provincial Minister for Information Shah Farman.

“Jihad is part of our faith. Jihad shouldn’t be held responsible for the act of someone, who misuses it for other purposes,” he told a press conference here on Wednesday.

Like other basic principles of Islam, he said, children should have knowledge of jihad.

To a question about reinsertion of Quranic verses regarding jihad in the textbook of Islamic studies for grade 9 and 10, the minister said that a review committee was formed to look into the matter. “No one can dictate the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf-led provincial government to change the curricula,” he said, adding that he had not taken dollars from America.

Mr Farman said that after the passage of 18th Amendment making curricula was a responsibility of the province so it would be developed according to the teachings of Islam and Pakhtun culture. He said that curricula would not be changed to please some elements to help them remain in power.

“According to our oath, we will defend Pakistan and Islamic ideology at all forums. No matter if someone is happy or angry,” he added.

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Media Release: Coalition implicitly affirms Rise Up Australia Policy on Multiculturalism

General Immediate Media Release 18th September 2013

Is Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s Coalition Government implicitly affirming Rise Up Australia Party’s flagship policy against MULTICULTURALISM?

Speaking from his office in Melbourne today, Daniel Nalliah, President of Rise Up Australia Party stated, ”It is certain that our Party is already having a notable presence in Australian political life with Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s Coalition Government implicitly affirming our policy against Multiculturalism.

Our campaign has definitely paid off.  We are very pleased to note that Prime Minister Tony Abbott has announced that Multicultural Affairs and Settlement Services will not be managed by the Department of Immigration under a Coalition Government. Neither will there be a Minister for Multicultural Affairs, according to my understanding.

We believe that this is a good step forward by Mr Abbott. Irrespective of it being our main policy at Rise Up Australia Party to Keep Australia Australian, we are nevertheless pleased, as it is not about us nor any political Party, but the future of our nation and the next generation.”

The outgoing Minister for Multicultural Affairs under the Rudd Government, Senator Kate Lundy, says she believes the Coalition is neglecting an important portfolio area.

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Video link to Pr Daniel on Sunrise Program on Channel 7 / Radio interview on CTFM vs Islamic Mosque

Dear family & friends in Christ, 1) Following is the video link to Pr Daniel's interview on Channel Seven 'Sunrise Program' this morning Tuesday 17th Septmeber. http://au.tv.yahoo.com/sunrise/video/watch/18965627/church-battles-to-stop-islamic-centre/ Please be encouraged…

Continue ReadingVideo link to Pr Daniel on Sunrise Program on Channel 7 / Radio interview on CTFM vs Islamic Mosque