Syrian Christian asks, “Why aren’t the moderate Muslims doing more to stop the extremists in their midst?”

Robert Spencer Aug 19, 2014 – Jihad Watch

“Why aren’t the moderate Muslims doing more to stop the extremists in their midst? Do they agree with their ideology and extremism? We saw hundreds of thousands of protesters on the streets against the abuses of the regime, so why are we not now seeing those thousands of protesters against what IS is doing?”

Fair questions. But no answers will be forthcoming from Muslim leaders in Syria or anywhere else. In the U.S., Hamas-linked CAIR can point to its condemnation of the Islamic State as if that settled the matter — yet neither CAIR nor any other Muslim group is doing anything to teach Muslims to reject the Islamic State’s understanding of Islam.

“Aleppo’s forgotten Christians,” by Edward Dark, Al-Monitor, August 11, 2014 (thanks to Paul):

ALEPPO, Syria — Walking through the largely Christian neighborhoods of Aleppo city — Azizieh, Siryan, Sulaimaniyah and Midan — you can still see the posters of the two bishops kidnapped by Islamist militants last year hanging on shop windows, walls and even cars. The people here haven’t forgotten them; the event is still as painful and fresh as if it had happened just yesterday. The bishops’ kidnapping was a symbolic event, indicative of the larger collapse of interfaith communal relations in a country under the strain of a sectarian civil war, and marked the end of a long era of relative peace and safety for the Christians of Syria.

(more…)

Continue ReadingSyrian Christian asks, “Why aren’t the moderate Muslims doing more to stop the extremists in their midst?”

Tent Churches Emerge in Iraqi Refugee Camps

9/25/2014- Charisma News

Fatima, an Iraqi woman who had fled atrocities committed by the Islamic State (ISIS), was drawn to the sound of singing in a tent in a refugee camp in Dohuk, a city in the Kurdish region of Iraq. She approached cautiously.

Though embarrassed when the Christians worshipping inside saw her, she came closer and asked if she could enter and listen to what they were saying. By the time the meeting finished at 4 a.m., she was on her way to embracing Christ as her Savior and asked if she could bring friends and family to the next meeting.

Fatima, her husband and three daughters put their trust in Jesus for their salvation, and within a few weeks her involvement led to another 60 families making the same commitment, according to an area ministry leader supported by Christian Aid Mission.

“Tent churches are going on everywhere,” said the ministry leader. “Last week we had 68 families openly surrender their lives to the Lord. With all their large needs and difficult situations that they are going through, they thank God for the indwelling of Christ in their hearts. Twelve of those families were Muslim.”

In addition, 200 children who received Bibles and coloring materials prayed to accept Jesus into their hearts.

Broken Hearts

Near Amerli, which Islamic State fighters besieged for more than two months before Kurdish and Iraqi forces aided by U.S. warplanes drove them out on Sept. 1, the ministry leader’s team encountered people in need of water, food and medicine. In a visit with a group of families able to escape before the ISIS siege, the team found opportunities to meet both spiritual and physical needs.

(more…)

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Black Christians and the Myth of Prosperity Preaching

SOURCE: American Thinker – Patricia L. Dickson – July 20, 2014

With the in-your-face display of greed and arrogance of the so-called pastors on the reality show Preachers of L.A., I began to wonder: when will black Christians wake up and say enough is enough?  Although there are some white pastors of mega-churches who have a net worth of almost triple their congregants as well, I want to focus on the plight of the black saints who sit under the ministry of black pastors (and some white pastors) Sunday after Sunday and continue to live paycheck to paycheck.

After some years of attending mega-churches pastored by both black and white men and their wives, I began to notice a trend.  These pastors would always tell their congregation – mostly non-college-educated and barely surviving members – that the way to prosperity is through tithing.  Tithing was the only means to prosperity taught by these pastors.  In fact, the reason for all that ailed the saints (hard times, sickness, and lack) was non-tithing (i.e., theft of God’s money).  Not having a college education during the majority of those years, I felt guilty if I found myself in a situation where I could not tithe on certain Sundays.  I would hear the pastors say, use your rent or utility bill money and pay your tithe; God will make sure your bills are paid.  I would blame God when my bills went unpaid instead of blaming the pastors (or myself for listening to the them).

After I completed a couple of degrees and began associating with a group of financially intelligent individuals, I started to learn and apply sound financial principles.  I then realized that my financial situation had improved for two reasons: more education (resulted in a better job with higher pay and/or promotion on current job) and knowledge of how to manage and invest my income.  I also realized that my pastors never mentioned education or investments (other than investing in the kingdom of God) as a means to acquire wealth.

(more…)

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Live webcast with Pr Daniel this Sunday morning 5th Oct / Rise Up Australia Prayer in Melbourne this Friday 3rd Oct /’The Gift’ playing at CTFM Hallam this Sunday evening 5th Oct

Dear friends & family in Christ, 1) Pr Daniel will be speaking at CTFM in Hallam at the 9:30am service this Sunday 5th October. Please note that this service will…

Continue ReadingLive webcast with Pr Daniel this Sunday morning 5th Oct / Rise Up Australia Prayer in Melbourne this Friday 3rd Oct /’The Gift’ playing at CTFM Hallam this Sunday evening 5th Oct

Poll: Americans Rate Jews, Catholics, Evangelicals Warmly; Muslims, Atheists More Coldly

U.S. Public Has Warmest Feelings for Jews, Catholics and Evangelicals.By Jessica Martinez , CP Reporter – July 19, 2014

Americans feel warm toward Jews, Catholics and Evangelicals but they are colder toward Muslims and atheists, according to a new Pew Research Survey.

Respondents were asked to rate each faith group according to a “feeling thermometer” ranging from 0 to 100, 0 reflecting the coldest and most negative rating and 100 being the warmest, most positive. The outcome concluded that U.S. adults are more fond of individuals who share their same or similar faith.

“In a society like the United States, where religion is such an important part of life, of how people view the world, how people approach politics — it’s one of the things that drives some of the very serious cultural disagreements we see in American society. It’s important to know how religious groups see one another, relate to one another,” said Greg Smith, associate director of research at the Pew Research Center, reports Washington Post.

Jews, Catholics and Evangelical groups received a rating of 63, 62 and 61, respectively. Buddhists, Hindus and Mormons received neutral ratings ranging from 48 to 53 while atheists and Muslims were rated 41 and 40 on the thermometer.

While there were varying factors for the results, the fact that Catholics and Evangelical Christians are part of the most favorably viewed groups is because the survey comprised of 20 percent Catholics and 32 percent Evangelicals. (more…)

Continue ReadingPoll: Americans Rate Jews, Catholics, Evangelicals Warmly; Muslims, Atheists More Coldly

Muslims Turn away from Islamism

by Daniel Pipes – Jul 15, 2014

The Pew Research Center, a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts, has the means to sample opinion with unique frequency and on a major scale. It has used its funds to track Muslim attitudes toward Islamism in general, toward specific terrorist groups in particular, and also suicide bombing over the past decade . The most recent study, “Concerns about Islamic Extremism on the Rise in Middle East,” released on July 1, conducted among 14,244 respondents in 14 countries between April 10 to May 25, 2014, holds much interest. Pew summarized the overall results:

As well-publicized bouts of violence, from civil war to suicide bombings, plague the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, concern about Islamic extremism is high among countries with substantial Muslim populations. … And in the Middle East, concern is growing. Lebanese, Tunisians, Egyptians, Jordanians and Turks are all more worried about the extremist threat than they were a year ago. Meanwhile, publics hold very negative opinions of well-known extremist groups, such as al Qaeda, Hamas and Hezbollah.

In my reading, the survey makes two major points and also offers some lesser tidbits of interest: :

(1) The better Muslims know Islamism, the more they reject it. This theme pervades the poll numbers when compared over time. As Islamism has surged over the past decade, Muslim support for it has decreased nearly across the board, with the last year showing a particularly dramatic reduction.

Comment: Whether the issue be Islamism in general, views on Hezbollah, Hamas, or on suicide bombings, Muslim support is substantially reduced, confirming my thesis, first offered a year ago, that Islamism has peaked and is in decline.

(2) The three Palestinian populations of the West Bank, Gaza, and Israeli Arabs differ in many ways:

Of all Muslim groups polled, West Bankers and Gazans have the most favorable view of Al-Qaeda, at 26 percent; extrapolating from the incomplete data Pew offers, it appears that only about 6 percent of Israeli Arabs favor Al-Qaeda, a substantial difference.

Similarly,Palestinians support suicide bombing more than any other group in the Middle East, with Gazans oddly much higher (62 percent) than West Bankers (36 percent). Israeli Arabs again favor this tactic in much lower numbers (16 percent). (more…)

Continue ReadingMuslims Turn away from Islamism

4 Ingredients in the Recipe for Revival

11th July 2014 Daniel K. Norris

Not being able to use the oven as an 8-year-old, I became quite skilled at cooking meals for myself in the microwave oven. Nearly every morning I would make a full breakfast complete with scrambled eggs, bacon and grits buttered to southern perfection. My mom was amused by her little chef and let me enjoy my little space of independence—even if it meant a little extra work for her cleaning up my messes.

One day I found a recipe for microwaved chocolate cake. For this preteen kid I might as well have discovered gold. I was incredibly anxious to try this one afternoon after school. I could already taste the sweet warm soft cake in my mouth with a tall glass of milk. When I arrived home that day I dropped my bags and headed straight for the kitchen and began rummaging through the cupboards looking for the ingredients. 

The recipe called for cocoa powder (sweetened). We only had unsweetened but I figured cocoa is cocoa so what difference does it make? Next I needed baking powder. To this day I’m not sure I can tell the difference between a box of baking soda and baking powder. They look the same, so I put a little baking soda in. I couldn’t reach the sugar, but salt looks a lot like sugar and it was conveniently sitting on the table. 

I mixed everything up, with the rest of the ingredients and popped it into the microwave, punched in 10 minutes and went to pour my milk as I waited for my fresh cake to come straight out of the (microwave) oven.

You can imagine my expectation quickly became disappointment as I put in my spoon and took a big bite.  It was awful!  It tasted like a mouthful of dirt.  That afternoon I learned a valuable lesson—change the recipe, change the outcome!

Thirty years later I hunger for something different. Not for a natural meal that can be prepared in an earthly kitchen, but for a supernatural move than only comes from the fires of a heavenly altar in answer to fervent prayers. Our nation is in desperate need of such a move. No doubt, the days have grown dark and continue to grow darker. The only hope we have is found in revival! 

Thankfully God has provided us a recipe for revival within his word. Like a family recipe passed down from generation to generation it is a favorite passage of scripture that is often quoted in times prayer. But I wonder… is it possible we are guilty of changing that recipe and thus changing the outcome? Are we trying to rush what requires time and patience? Are we substituting our ideas for his proven ingredients?

The late revivalist, Leonard Ravenhill said often, “We will live without revival, as long as we are content to remain without it.”

I see a divine discontent coming back to the body of Christ and hear fresh calls for revival. If we want to see God’s results then we must return to God’s ways. To truly experience revival, we must look to the pattern the Lord gave us in 2 Chronicles 7:14 and throw the following on to the fires of his altar. (more…)

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From being tortured in an Egyptian Prison to launching ‘The Way TV’ in California

June 14, 2014 – By Dan Wooding – Founder of ASSIST Ministries

BEVERLY HILLS, CA (ANS) — When Joseph Nasrallah was locked up in prison cell in Egypt, he could never have dreamed that one day, he would move to America, and launch “The Way TV,” an Arabic Christian satellite network that is reaching the Middle East, and his homeland of Egypt, with the Good News of Jesus Christ.

I met up with Nasrallah at the Beverly Hills Hilton on June 1, 2014, where he was attending Pat Boone’s 80th Birthday “Celebrity Roast,” and he was certainly a most unlikely guest with many Hollywood stars attending like Larry King, Jon Voight, Billy Davis Jr., and his wife, Marilyn McCoo, Susan Stafford, Wink Martindale, and many others.

The sparkling gathering was to benefit Ryan’s Reach, a charity set up in honor of Pat and Shirley Boone’s grandson, Ryan Corbin, who was making an amazing recovery and even attended the event. His mother, Lindy Boone Michaelis, helped to set up the group to help others with similar Traumatic Brain Injuries to Ryan. For more information, please go to www.ryansreach.com.

As the camera light bulbs popped on the nearby Red Carpet, I found a quiet spot and asked Joseph about the time he was imprisoned in a stark Egyptian cell, and also about his early life.

“I started as a singer and composer in Egypt,” he began. “I have cut ten albums up to now, and then the ‘media dream’ came to me when I was in jail in Egypt.” (more…)

Continue ReadingFrom being tortured in an Egyptian Prison to launching ‘The Way TV’ in California

2CC Radio Canberra Link with RUAP National President Daniel Nalliah / Weekend special – Daniel leads dance with RUAP Team

Dear friends, You may click the following link to listen to RUAP National President Daniel Nalliah’s recent interview on 2CC Canberra. http://www.2cc.net.au/podcasts/1863-is-the-islamic-council-of-victoria-a-terrorist-organisation.html You may also watch this weekend’s special surprise…

Continue Reading2CC Radio Canberra Link with RUAP National President Daniel Nalliah / Weekend special – Daniel leads dance with RUAP Team

Why Is Obama Really Downplaying Muslim Attacks on Christians?

7/15/2014 Raymond Ibrahim – Charisma News

Why is the U.S. downplaying or denying attacks against Christians?

“What about the churches which were desecrated? Is this not blasphemy? Where is justice?” asked Fr. James Channan OP, director of The Peace Center, Lahore, Pakistan.

Members of the Islamic group al-Shabaab publicly beheaded the mother of two girls, ages 8 and 15, and her cousin after discovering they were Christians. The girls “were witnesses to the slaughter.” — Somalia.

“Christian teaching is extremely harmful to the mental health of the people.” —Kazakhstan.

Five years’ imprisonment and up to $20,000 in fines for educators if they…speak to a Muslim child of religions other than Islam. — Brunei

Along with an especially jarring list of atrocities committed against Christian minorities throughout the Islamic world, March also saw some callous indifference or worse from the U.S. government.

President Barack Obama was criticized by human rights activists for not addressing the plight of Christians and other minorities during his talks with leaders in Saudi Arabia, where Christianity is actively banned.

According to the Washington-based International Christian Concern advocacy group, Obama did not “publicly broach the subject of religious freedom” when he spoke on March 28 with Saudi King Abdullah, despite a letter from 70 members of Congress urging him to “address specific human rights reforms” both in public and in direct meetings with the king and other officials. (more…)

Continue ReadingWhy Is Obama Really Downplaying Muslim Attacks on Christians?

RUAP Media Release: Is the Islamic Council of Victoria a terrorist organization or are they true Muslims??

Media Release - For Immediate Release - 25th September 2014 According to Islam they are true Muslims. Is Numan Haider, the 18 year old Muslim a terrorist or a true…

Continue ReadingRUAP Media Release: Is the Islamic Council of Victoria a terrorist organization or are they true Muslims??

Dead Islamic fundamentalist worshipped in a Hallam Mosque 10 minutes from CTFM & RUAP / Police officers ask Pr Daniel about the difference between Islam and Christianity

Dear family and friends in Christ,

I am sure you would have heard by now that the Australian Police shot dead an Islamic fundamentalist (18 years old) in Endeavour Hills in the Melbourne South Eastern Suburbs a few days ago, as he was planning to kill behead two police officers and then post a photo on social media with the ISIL flag draped over their bodies.

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/melbourne-terror-shooting-numan-haider-planned-to-behead-victoria-police-officers-drape-bodies-in-is-flag-20140924-10lb4i.html

Fortunately one of the police officers, even though he had been stabbed repeatedly, opened fire and killed this man. Both officers never expected this young Islamist to attack them.

What is most interesting is that this 18 year old Islamist worshipped in a Mosque in Hallam, the same suburb where CTFM & RUAP headquarters are located, just five minutes down the road ten minutes from where he lived.

Yesterday, RUAP carried out a campaign to visit six shopping centers to campaign for the upcoming Victorian State Election on 29th November. Teams of 5-7 people wearing RUAP t-shirts walked through the shopping centres in Dandenong, Cranbourne, Fountain Gate, Frankston and Endeavour Hills and talked to people.

Pr Daniel and six others were at the Endeavour Hills shopping center, which is right next to the police station where the incident happened.

There was a very heavy police presence in the area as we believe that the body of the dead man was still lying there from the night before.

As Pr Daniel sat down at a cafe to have lunch with the team, many media outlets came to get a comment from him as they recognized him.

But what was most interesting was that three heavily armed police officers walked up to the table and started talking to him about whether Islam and Christianity are the same and whether Jesus was after Mohammed or before.

(more…)

Continue ReadingDead Islamic fundamentalist worshipped in a Hallam Mosque 10 minutes from CTFM & RUAP / Police officers ask Pr Daniel about the difference between Islam and Christianity

The Master Slave traders no one really talks about: The Role of Islam in African Slavery

By iqbal.latif – June 10, 2014

Hugh Thomas’s “The Slave Trade” and Robin Blackburn’s “The Making Of New World Slavery” sheds new light on centuries of slave trading. Piero Scaruffi in “The Origins of the African Slave Trade” writes that the civil rights movement of the 1960’s have left many people with the belief that the slave trade was exclusively a European/USA phenomenon and only evil white people were to blame for it. This is a simplistic scenario that hardly reflects the facts.

Thousands of records of transactions are available on a CD-ROM prepared by Harvard University and several comprehensive books have been published recently on the origins of modern slavery. What these records show is that the modern slave trade flourished in the early middle ages, as early as 869, especially between Muslim traders and western African kingdoms.

Sad and most cruel in fact is the Muslim Slave Trade, i.e., enslavement of Africans which is a big tragedy.  It is not just Europeans who were connected with slavery, Africans were caged by Muslim slave traders for over 900 years, Africans from West, East, and North Africa were marched thousands of miles to Slave Markets as Men, Women, and Children were bound together by the waist and neck in a manner that if one died the rest could drag him hence the walks became the “Death Marches.” 20 million Africans died on these walks; it was erroneously said that it is God’s wish to see Africans caged as they were ‘uncivilized animals.’

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RUAP Media Release: Former PM John Howard says he’s not a fan of Multiculturalism. Neither am I says RUAP National President Daniel Nalliah

Media Release - For Immediate Release - 23rd Sept 2014 Last week on Channel 7, John Howard, a true statesman, and one of Australia’s best ever PM’s, stated that he…

Continue ReadingRUAP Media Release: Former PM John Howard says he’s not a fan of Multiculturalism. Neither am I says RUAP National President Daniel Nalliah