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END-TIME
CHURCH / PLURALISM
- GREETINGS
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- QUICK VIEW OF UPDATED INDEXES
http://cephas-updates.cephasministry.com
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- IT IS BEST TO REPENT
- AND BE CONVERTED
SO THAT YOUR SINS BE BLOTTED OUT
"I the LORD have spoken
it: it shall come to pass, and I will do it; I will not
go back, neither will I spare, neither will I repent; according
to thy ways, and according to thy doings, shall they judge
thee, saith the Lord GOD." (Ezekiel 24:14 KJV)
"The God of Abraham, and
of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified
his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence
of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go. But ye denied
the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted
unto you; And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath
raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses. And his name
through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye
see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him
this perfect soundness in the presence of you all. And now,
brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it,
as did also your rulers. But those things, which God before had
shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer,
he hath so fulfilled.
Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your
sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall
come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus
Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must
receive until the times of restitution of all things,
which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since
the world began.
For Moses truly said unto the
fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto
you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all
things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to
pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet,
shall be destroyed from among the people." (Acts 3:13-23
KJV) |
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- We believe every word in the KJV Bible and believe it is
the Word of God and that Jesus is the Christ, God Himself, who
spilled His blood on the cross for our sins and rose again to
prepare a place for those who repent and accept 'His' righteousness
as their righteousness and repent. They are those who accept
Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, Jews first and then Gentiles.
"Behold, I stand at the door,
and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will
come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."
We invite you to take this opportunity to say 'yes' to Jesus
and commit your life to Him only by clicking on this link: Salvation
- Luke 12:20,21 "But
God said unto him, "Thou fool,
this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall
those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth
up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."
We pray the Lord will bless you with a thirst for truth and a
desire to serve Him exclusively, in Christ Jesus, Cephas Ministry
/ Cephas Library.
- For the updated (red sparkles) main index go to http://www.cephasministry.com/index2.html
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- Cephas Ministry cordially invites you to subscribe
to our free newsletters for controversial Cephas News
Updates regarding the Church / Global Issues / Israel, edited
by Rita Williams and Rapture Watch by the late Jamma Mokhriby at http://www.cephasministry.com/mail/
- Cephas Ministry advocates KJV Bible study only for truth
necessary to become part of the Bride of Christ. The Bible states
that it is the only truth available to us. .
- If you have questions about our present situation, you might
check out excellent related websites:
- Paul Proctor, Biblically Speaking Archive: http://www.newswithviews.com/PaulProctor/proctorA.htm
- Jamma of Rapture Watch, Biblical perspective: http://rapturewatch.cephasministry.com
- James Sundquist of Rock to Salt addresses heresies of
Christian Psychology, Purpose Driven & Church Growth Movement:
http://rock-to-salt.cephasministry.com
- Avenue of Light exposing the Vatican http://www.xanga.com/AvenueOfLight
- Cephas Ministry / Library Exposes heresies, cults, sects,
rock music, witchcraft, New World Disorder: its effect on our
lives and Israel: http:/www.cephasministry.com/index2.html
- Cephas Updated News Index: http://www.cephasministry.com/index_news.html
- MORE GREETINGS to all and the newcomers to this list. We'd
like to introduce ourselves. George and Rita Williams founded
this ministry. We were Mormons (Temple Mormons) for 20 years.
We prayed to God in 1992 to allow us to do a ministry speaking
out against Scientology. Six months later God led us to the truth:
out of the cult of Mormonism. We did not know at the time we
were in a cult. No-one had witnessed to us in 20 years.
- The Holy Spirit brought us to information about all the cults
and the present development of the New World Order. We began
bringing our research to you. Because all the research was already
done, we decided to build a library within Cephas Ministry. Our
newsletters are not designed to provoke
anger which is strictly prohibited in Scripture. It is to shed
light on activities by those who would deceive those who are
recorded in the Book of Life by devious methods and systematic
plans.
- We are Bible students and have left all worldly organizations.
We attend church if the message is from the authorized KJV Bible.
The focus of these newsletters is to prove why we had to leave
the world system. We are called 'Watchmen on the Wall' which
God always had during the Old / New Testament Times.
- To understand what is happening, one has to know the Bible
to compare notes.
- The first section is about the church.
The news about churches is unedited unless indicated by Ednotes.
The church as we knew it, is undergoing disintegration. This
began on a fast track in the early nineteen sixties when the
Catholic Church produced liberal Vatican II to replace Vatican
I.
- The trend since then has been ecumenical which is truly what
the word 'Catholicism' means: a universal religion all
inclusive and multicultural. The Bible calls for a final church
and today's church doesn't resemble what Jesus taught. The Word
of God has undergone many changes to fit the progressive modes.
Many new Bible tranlations have brought confusion. The Bible
calls for a falling away from the truth before
Jesus comes back for His Bride. The true believers are called
'Ekklesia.' Our newsletters prove this fact and prove that the
Bible is true from beginning to end.
- The second section is about globalism
where we bring your attention to the social, political and global
trend, the so called democratizing what is left of the world.
This is a deception since the underlying new world global government
is developed by implementing sustainable development. The
Bible prophesies that there will be ten kings (ten horns), each
king (horn) will receive a region of the world as a reward for
work well done for the Antichrist. This is the reason for the
present development of NAU (The North American Union) as well
as the war in the Middle East. It again proves that we are moving
to closure of the times of the Gentiles prophesied in the Bible.
The end result will not be Democracy but a form of Fascist Communism
(Public/Private Corporations enslaving mankind).
- The third section compliments End Time
teachings because Israel is the time piece of the Biblical Prophecy.
1948 was the beginning of the figtree representing Israel, coming
back to life. Israel was allowed to return to its land. Israel
is the rock upon which the world stumbles and crumbles. We watch
and visit Israel for signs which point to the Tribulation to
confirm that we are moving into that space of time.
- Watchmen on the wall do not solicit memberships. We have
an email group that gets information when we upload new information
and newsletters whenever it is possible time wise. We love the
Lord with all our hearts and minds and we love all people God
has created but especially those who love our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ. Our Mission and Statement of Faith are at http://www.cephasministry.com/statement_of_faith.html
- To email go to: http://www.email-cephas.com
- To subscribe or unsubscribe go to: http://www.cephasministry.com/mail/
-
 SCRIPTURE STUDY - Blaspheming the Holy Ghost
"... The Biblical questions about this spiritual suicide
must he answered. The Lord Jesus Christ gave the best description
of this final sin. He said, "Wherefore
I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven
unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not
be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word against the
Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh
against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither
in this world, neither in the world to come"
(Matthew 12:31-32 kjv).
Please remember that blasphemy against Him - Jesus Christ - can
he forgiven, but not blasphemy against the Holy Ghost. Why? Because
the entire matter of conviction and conversion is the ministry
of the Spirit. He is the compassionate, personal representative
of Christ’s redemption from sin. Jesus Christ is elevating
the actions and duties of the Spirit and is making sure no one
treats Him despairingly. Nothing the Lord ever said about the
Holy Ghost raises Him to a grander position within the Godhead.
- The Holy Ghost is omnipresent and was sent down from Heaven
to abide in Christ’s body, the church. Jesus Christ
is at the Father’s right hand, but the Spirit reveals
Him and the Father in us and to us. if we offend Him. to
the point of blaspheming Him, we have no access to the Father
or the Son. The moment He withdraws His Spirit from anyone, they
are hopelessly lost. Jesus Christ will never act against the
authority of His infallible words to save that person. Continued:
http://www.cephas-library.com/bible_blaspheming_the_holy_spirit.html
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 JESUITS TO VOTE FOR 'BLACK POPE'
- By Malcolm Moore in Rome, 07/01/2008 - A conclave to elect
the new "Black Pope" begins in Rome on Monday, with
Jesuits from around the world gathering to choose a leader.
The Pope granted Father Peter-Hans Kolvenbach's [on the left]
request to retire as leader of the Jesuits The nickname refers
to the simple black vestments worn by the Jesuits and to the
power the leader holds. The Society of Jesus, which was founded
in the 16th century by St Ignatius Loyola to be the "Pope's
cavalry", is still the largest clerical order in the Catholic
Church, with almost 20,000 priests. With a vast network of schools
and universities, the Jesuits are considered the educational
and intellectual engine of the Church. The outgoing leader, Father
Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, 79, has served since 1983. He is the first
head to ask to retire, a request granted by Pope Benedict. His
successor could be from the developing world as of the 218 voters,
only 64 are from Europe. Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the
Archbishop of Buenos Aires, is one possibility, having come second
behind Benedict in the papal conclave. Father Lisbert D'Souza
of India is another. The leader should be named this month http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/01/07/wjesuits107.xml
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- ALL ROADS LEAD TO ROME
 Temporal
Hugo Chavez meets his Roman Catholic MASTER Pope Benedisct XVI
* Jesuit Fidel Castro meets the SMOM Grandmaster Andrew Willoughby
Ninian Bertie
- When you rule and enslave people and you know that a certain
percentage of your herd will rebel and awaken. You do not let
an individual come along who may guide these people to the truth
and possibly then become a threat to yourself. You get in there
first and plant agitators and people who give the illusion of
opposition (Temporal Coadjutors). This is exactly how the Society
of Jesus works and this is why they've been veiled so well for
so long whilst disinformation was spread to divert the herds
attention.
- Above & below
are some nice examples of how Roman Catholic 4th Vow Jesuit &
33rd Degree Freemason Fidel Castro and his buddy Roman Catholic
Hugo Chavez are simply controlled opposition. Castro is a high
end Jesuit himself where as Hugo chavez is a Temporal Coadjutor.
Both work to create the illusion of opposition to American imperialism.Continued:...
The United States is nothing more than the `New Holy Roman Empire'
thanks to the 14th Amendment. Once the Jesuit Order have used
their bully boy army of the U.S they will then discard this corporation
as used rubbish just like they did with Nazi Germany and Americans
will suffer dearly. Notice how the United Nations will rule the
U.S via 10 sections and no more 50 States. Now go and notice
how the Jesuit Order have always ruled the U.S via 10 Provinces
and each one having a Provincial who then report to a Jesuit
assistant who then reports to the Superior `Black Pope' General
at the pinacle of World control. Like they say "All Roads
Lead To ROME" Continued: http://z13.invisionfree.com/THE_UNHIVED_MIND/index.php?showtopic=13500
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- EUROPE CHANGED THEIR CALENDAR FOR YEAR 2008
- Daniel 7:25 "And he shall speak great words
against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most
High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given
into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time."
- January 23, 2008 - You may think that nothing's really happening
when it comes to the Mark of the Beast in this world, but I've
something for you that shall give you a wide-awake look after
you've seen it! Here is the Webpage: http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/index.html?year=2008&country=14
- Now when you look at the calendars for 2008, you must see
that initially you are looking at those for the United States
-- but, just set the Country to any one of the European Union's
Countries, and then click upon the button which says <show>,
and you shall see something that has occurred within all of
the European Union ALREADY: They have changed the first
day of the week to Monday, and the seventh day of the week
to Sunday, completely in sync with the Vatican, and her
ways!
- I tell you the truth: There is only one way this shall occur
in North America, most especially the Protestant people in the
U S and Canada: that change shall not occur, without an application
of Federal Government FORCE upon the people; that's why the Posse
Comitatus Act" [see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posse_comitatus_(common_law)
]
- Posse comitatus (common law) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"In common law, posse comitatus (Latin, "county
force", meaning a sort of local militia) referred to the
authority wielded by the county sheriff to conscript any able-bodied
male over the age of fifteen to assist him in keeping the peace
or to pursue and arrest a felon; compare hue and cry. It is the
law enforcement equivalent of summoning the militia for military
purposes."
- was overturned back about two years ago in the U S: so that
the Fed can turn American troops upon American citizens! You
said it, dear brothers & sisters: We are surely closer to
the end of things than we know, and why not! for does not Jesus
tell us many shall be caught without wearing their white robe
of righteousness, which is Christ's righteousness? Agape, Jim
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- BOB JONES III ENDORSES ROMNEY FOR PRESIDENT
"This is all about beating Hillary," university chancellor
says - Greenville News - October 16, 2007 - By Ron Barnett -
Dr. Bob Jones III, chancellor of the fundamentalist Christian
university that bears his name, is looking past his religious
differences with Gov. Mitt Romney and endorsing the Mormon for
the Republican nomination for president, he told The Greenville
News today. "This is all about beating Hillary," Jones
said. "And I just believe that this man has the credentials
both personally and ideologically in terms of his view about
what American government should be to best represent the rank
and file of conservative Americans. "If it turns out to
be Guiliani and Hillary, we?ve got two pro- choice candidates,
and that would be a disaster."
- Asked whether Romney?s religion was a stumbling block for
him, Jones replied, "What is the alternative, Hillary?s
lack of religion or an erroneous religion? "As a Christian
I am completely opposed to the doctrines of Mormonism,"
he said. "But I?m not voting for a preacher. I?m voting
for a president. It boils down to who can best represent conservative
American beliefs, not religious beliefs." State Sen. Robert
Ford, a key Clinton supporter in the South Carolina campaign,
took issue with Jones? remark about Clinton?s purported "lack
of religion." Continued:
- http://www.cephas-library.com/apostasy_bob_jones_iii_endorses_romney_for_president.html
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- MENNONITES DIALOGUE WITH ROME
- Friday Church News Notes, November 23, 2007. Mennonites from
10 countries spent nearly a week dialoguing with Catholic leaders
in Rome October 18-23, 2007. The event was hosted by the Pontifical
Council for Promoting Christian Unity. Nancy Heisey, president
of the Mennonite World Conference, said, "We were so warmly
welcomed that it was almost overwhelming" ("Mennonite
Delegation Visits Catholic Leaders in Rome," The Mennonite,
Nov. 5, 2007). The Mennonites had a private audience with Pope
Benedict XVI, who twisted Christ's words in John 17 out of context
with his claim that "it is Christ Himself who calls us to
seek Christian unity." Heisey told the pope that they shared
a "great common heritage of faith" as well as "the
challenges of being God's people in this time." She called
the meeting with the pope "overwhelming" and "a
very intense kind of experience" ("EMU Professor Meets
Pope," Daily News-Record, Harrisburg, Virginia, Nov. 20,
2007). The give and take ecumenical aspect of theological dialogue
was emphasized in comments made by Mennonite delegate Mulugeta
Zewdie of Ethiopia: "As Mennonites, we have something to
share and to learn at the same time. The dialogue and this visit
can help [us] fellowship with Catholics at the local level."
The Mennonites were introduced to worshippers at the Santa Maria
Maggiore [St. Mary Major] basilica. This blasphemous church features
a large crucifix depicting Mary hanging on the cross with Jesus,
a painting of Mary's alleged bodily assumption into heaven, a
statue of Mary as the Queen of Peace, and a painting of Jesus
crowning Mary Queen of Heaven. The Mennonites trace their origin
to the European Anabaptist movement of the 16th century, but
few Mennonites today preach the new birth in a scriptural fashion.
Mennonite Christianity has largely deteriorated into a form of
godliness without the power thereof (2 Tim. 3:5). Once upon a
time Mennonites boldly and unequivocally rejected Rome's false
gospel, but today they seek unity with Rome. It is not the Roman
Catholic Church that has changed. [For a picture of Mary hanging
on the cross outside of Santa Maria Maggiore see part four of
the report "In the Footsteps of Bible Translators"
at the Way of Life web site http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/in-thefootsteps-bibletrans/index.html
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- LAUSANNE III TO FORM "NEW WORLD EVANGELISM STRATEGY"
- Friday Church News Notes, November 23, 2007 - The third international
Lausanne gathering is scheduled to be held in Cape Town in October
2010. The objective is to form new strategies for world missions
and to "serve to unite and energize the Church" ("Lausanne
III," Christian Post, May 7, 2007). The first gathering
was held in Lausanne in 1974 under the direction of Billy Graham.
The second was held in Manila in 1989 and brought together 3,600
participants from 190 countries. We don't need a new strategy
for missionary work; we have a divinely given one in the New
Testament and it works just fine! The Lord Jesus Christ gave
the churches their marching orders in Matthew 28; Mark 16; Luke
24; John 20; and Acts 1, and the book of Acts and the New Testament
Epistles show us how to carry out these orders. A large percentage
of those who participate in these conferences are "professional
missionary strategists" who are armchair theologians rather
than actual church planting missionaries. They are busybodies
in other men's affairs, with their man-made ecumenical "unity"
and their criticism of biblical separatists and their gross worldliness.
Lausanne is an unscriptural hodge-podge of Methodists, Lutherans,
Baptists, Presbyterians, Anglicans, Pentecostals, Charismatics,
and you name it.-
http://www.wayoflife.org
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- EVANGELICAL LEADERS PLEDGE COMMON CAUSE WITH ISLAM
by Stephen Adams, associate editor 1-3-2008 - They apologize
for the 'sins of Christians,' leave the deity of Christ  open for discussion. An attempt by leaders
of the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) to win friends
and influence Muslims is alienating another group — evangelical
Christians.
- Reactions have been negative and strong. Islam expert Dr.
Patrick Sookhdeo has called it a “betrayal” and a “sellout.”
Dr. Albert Mohler, president of Southern Seminary (Southern Baptist),
termed it “naiveté that borders on dishonesty.”
- Others are just beginning to hear of it. In November, NAE
President Leith Anderson and NAE Vice President Richard Cizik
signed onto a Christian response to an invitation to dialogue
from 138 Muslim leaders around the world. Their response —
initiated by Yale Divinity School and endorsed by other liberal
Christian leaders — apologized for the sins of Christians
during the Crusades and for “excesses” of the global
war on terror, without mentioning Muslim atrocities. It appeared
to leave the fundamentals of Christianity — especially the
deity of Christ — open for discussion.
- It even seemed to acknowledge Allah as the God of the Bible.
“Before we ‘shake your hand’ in responding to
your letter,” it stated, “we ask forgiveness of the
All-Merciful One and of the Muslim community around the world.”
The very name of the Muslim communiqué — A Common
Word between Us and You — is from a verse in the Quran that
condemns “people of the Scripture” (Christians) for
alleged polytheism (the doctrine of the Trinity). Mohler said
the agreement “sends the wrong signal” and contains
basic theological problems, especially in “marginalizing”
Jesus Christ. He also condemned the apology for the Crusades.
- “I just have to wonder how intellectually honest this
is,” he said. “Are these people suggesting that they
wish the military conflict with Islam had ended differently —
that Islam had conquered Europe?”
- Neither Anderson nor Cizik could be reached for comment.
On the NAE Web site, Anderson asserts he signed the letter as
a private individual, although he is identified as NAE president.
He also seems to acknowledge problems with the statement. “Sometimes
we all sign onto things that are not all that we would like them
to be,” Anderson wrote. “Even after we write and say
our own words, we discover that we wish we had done better.”
Gary Bauer, president of the Campaign for Working Families, told
CitizenLink the NAE leaders “have left the (card) table
without their pants — that is, they’ve been taken and
may not even realize they’ve been taken.”
- Bauer said he already was dismayed by the NAE’s recent
controversial excursions into questionable areas such as global
warming. “Many of us have been concerned about the NAE getting
into all sorts of areas where it has had no previous expertise,”
Bauer said. “And now, I’m afraid, I see signs that
they’re going down the same road that the National Council
of Churches is going.” The National Council of Churches
has embraced liberal causes and is affiliated with ultra-liberal
groups, such as MoveOn.org and People For the American Way. Sookhdeo
called for Christian leaders who signed the letter to withdraw
their names, saying the confession of guilt puts Christian communities
in Muslim areas of the world at risk. “I find it difficult
to understand how senior evangelical leaders in the West can
join hands with other Christians who actually are betraying the
Christian faith (and) their Christian brothers and sisters in
the Muslim world,” he said. http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000006202.cfm?eafref1
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- RICHARD LEIGH, AUTHOR WHO SUED OVER DA VINCI CODE, DIES
- Telegraph, UK - November 30, 2007 - Richard Leigh, who has
died aged 64, was a co-author of The Holy Blood and the Holy
Grail, one of the most controversial books of the 1980s; in 2006,
with Michael Baigent, he lost his plagiarism case against the
American Dan Brown, author of The Da Vinci Code, the spectacularly
successful thriller which they claimed was based on their book.
Written by Leigh, Baigent and Henry Lincoln, The Holy Blood and
the Holy Grail claimed to have uncovered a massive conspiracy
to conceal a bloodline descended from Jesus of Nazareth that
has influenced the course of European history. The protracted
court case boosted sales of The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail,
which had stalled at 3,500 copies a year in Britain, to 7,000
copies a week, a 100-fold rise. (Similarly, The Da Vinci Code
returned to the bestseller lists with sales of 20,000 copies
a week.) But against their royalties windfall, Leigh and Baigent
- Lincoln took no part in the case - were left with a legal bill
for their failed action of about £2 million. Originally
published in January 1982, The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail
achieved enormous commercial success; by last year it had reportedly
sold two million copies. Continued: http://www.religionnewsblog.com/20016/richard-leigh
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- EVANGELICALS AND MORMONS CONTINUE TO DIALOGUE
- Friday Church News Notes, November 23, 2007 - A "National
Student Dialogue Conference" was held October 19-20 in Salt
Lake City to facilitate communication between evangelicals and
Mormons. Students and teachers from Biola, Wheaton College, Denver
Seminary, Fuller Seminary, and other deeply compromised "evangelical"
institutions participated. Jerry Root, a professor at Wheaton
College, said, "... truth is not reality, but truth is what
I think about reality ... I must not be afraid of honest doubt
that accompanies debate and discussion" ("Students
Aim to Bridge Theological Gap," Deseret Morning News, Oct.
27, 2007). In fact, the truth is the Bible and it does not change
and to entertain doubts about its reality and finality is sin.
Without faith "it is impossible to please [God]," and,
"faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God"
(Rom. 10:17). We are not called to dialogue with those of other
faiths; we are called to go into all the world and preach the
gospel to every person (Mark 16:15), because all have sinned
and come short of the glory of God and there is only one true
gospel of salvation (Rom. 1:16; Gal. 1:6-7). This is exactly
what the early churches did as recorded in the book of Acts,
and there is to be a sense of constant urgency to this work.
"Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think
not the Son of man cometh" (Mat. 24:44). http://www.wayoflife.org
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- RICHARD LEIGH, AUTHOR WHO SUED OVER DA VINCI CODE, DIES
- Telegraph, UK - November 30, 2007 - Richard Leigh, who has
died aged 64, was a co-author of The Holy Blood and the Holy
Grail, one of the most controversial books of the 1980s; in 2006,
with Michael Baigent, he lost his plagiarism case against the
American Dan Brown, author of The Da Vinci Code, the spectacularly
successful thriller which they claimed was based on their book.
Written by Leigh, Baigent and Henry Lincoln, The Holy Blood and
the Holy Grail claimed to have uncovered a massive conspiracy
to conceal a bloodline descended from Jesus of Nazareth that
has influenced the course of European history. The protracted
court case boosted sales of The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail,
which had stalled at 3,500 copies a year in Britain, to 7,000
copies a week, a 100-fold rise. (Similarly, The Da Vinci Code
returned to the bestseller lists with sales of 20,000 copies
a week.) But against their royalties windfall, Leigh and Baigent
- Lincoln took no part in the case - were left with a legal bill
for their failed action of about £2 million. Originally
published in January 1982, The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail
achieved enormous commercial success; by last year it had reportedly
sold two million copies. Continued: http://www.religionnewsblog.com/20016/richard-leigh
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- BAPTISTS CONTINUE DIALOGUE WITH ROME
- Friday Church News Notes, by David Cloud - December 7, 2007
- The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) continued its dialogue with
the Roman Catholic Church with a second round of talks at the
Vatican this month. The plan is to "examine" issues
such as Scripture and tradition, baptism and the sacraments,
the role of Mary, and the primacy of the pope. Pope Benedict
XVI told the Baptist representatives that "the lack of unity
between Christians openly contradicts the will of Christ, provides
a stumbling block to the world, and harms the most holy cause
of proclaiming the good news to every creature" ("Pope
calls Catholics and Baptists to Common Witness," Dec. 7,
2007, Catholic News Agency). To the contrary, Christ did not
pray for any sort of unity between truth and error. His prayer
in John 17 was a prayer for God's blessing on those who keep
God's Word, so it applies neither to the BWA nor to the apostate
Roman Catholic Church. "I have manifested thy name unto
the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were,
and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. ... For
I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they
have received them, and have known surely that I came out from
thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. ... Sanctify
them through thy truth: thy word is truth" (John 17:6, 8,
17). Christ exhorted His people to "beware of false prophets,
which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are
ravening wolves" (Matthew 7:15). The believer is obligated
to preach God's Word, not dialogue with error. http://www.wayoflife.org
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- POPE OFFERS INDULGENCES TO SHORTEN PURGATORY
- Friday Church News Notes by David Cloud -, December 7, 2007
- Pope Benedict XVI is offering plenary indulgences to those
who make a pilgrimage to the Mary shrine in Lourdes, France,
sometime during the next year ("Trips to Lourdes to cut
time spent in purgatory," London Telegraph, Dec. 7, 2007).
The indulgence allegedly cuts down on the time that a Roman Catholic
has to spend in purgatory being purged of his sins and the deal
is available until December 8, 2008. The heresies involved in
this one act are manifold. There is the heresy that the pope
has the authority to grant forgiveness of sins, the heresy of
praying to Mary, and the heresy of purgatory, to mention three.
The true place of purgation was the cross of Christ. There He
made atonement and propitiation for man's sins, and those who
believe on him are justified freely and His righteousness applied
to their accounts. Those who believe in a Catholic purgatory
do not believe in the perfect sufficiency of Christ's atonement
and believe, rather, in a false grace-works gospel. "For
he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might
be made the righteousness of God in him" (2 Corinthians
5:21). http://www.wayoflife.org
-----
- JOYCE MEYER MINISTRIES IS A TARGET OF GOP SENATOR'S PROBE
- $10 million corporate jet, her $2 million home, her
family's fleet of fancy cars — were blessings
straight from God according to Joyce. Joyce Meyer, with
her trademark purple bible in hand.- Robert Cohen/ P-D -
 WASHINGTON — The top Republican
on the Senate Finance Committee has launched a wide-ranging investigation
into the financial dealings of six TV evangelists, including
Joyce Meyer, the popular preacher who has built a $124-million-a-year
empire headquartered in Fenton. On Monday, Sen. Charles Grassley,
R-Iowa, asked Meyer to provide his staff with documents detailing
the finances of the Joyce Meyer Ministries, including the religious
group's compensation to Meyer, her husband and other family members,
as well as an accounting of their housing allowances, gifts and
credit card statements for the last several years. Many of the
requests track information about the ministry revealed by the
Post-Dispatch in a 2003 series.
- In his five-page letter, Grassley also asked Meyer for:
- — A "detailed accounting" of all her and her
husband's expense-account items, including clothing and cosmetic
surgery. Continued: http://www.cephas-library.com/wordfaith_joyce_meyer_targeted_by_gop.html
- -----
- CHURCH FEATURES MICHAEL JACKSON THRILLER DANCE
- Friday Church News Notes by David Cloud - December 7, 2007
- The following is from Slice of Laodicea, Nov, 16, 2007: "In
an apparent wave of nostalgia for sin from the 80's, the Free
Chapel in Gainseville, Georgia staged a Michael Jackson Thriller
dance for worshipers on a Sunday morning a few weeks ago. Yes,
evangelicals have come a long way from singing 'The God of Abraham
Praise' in worship on Sunday morning. If the, um, pastor is looking
for musical suggestions, perhaps Highway to Hell by AC/DC or
even Hells Bells might make a good offertory. For the anthem,
maybe Woman in Black, and as a closing hymn, Losing My Religion
would round things off rather well. The entire scene reminds
me of a haunted house--the house of God turned into a haunted
house. This is the logical end of man-centered churches and anthropology
posing as theology." http://www.wayoflife.org
- -----
- BOOK RECOMMENDED BY RICK WARREN CALLS PURPOSE DRIVEN OPPONENTS
"LEADERS FROM HELL"
- Friday Church News Notes by David Cloud - December 14, 2007
- Transitioning: Leading Your Church Through Change, a book by
Dan Southerland and highly recommended by Rick Warren, calls
those who oppose the Purpose Driven philosophy "leaders
from hell." Southerland is "the leading expert on implementing
the Purpose Driven paradigm in existing churches" (Church
Transitions web site), and Warren sells Southerland's book at
his web site. Southerland says they have experienced two major
sources of criticism as they have transitioned churches to the
Purpose Driven model: Christians from traditional backgrounds
and traditional pastors. He hastens to add that not all of the
traditionals oppose them, "just the meaner ones" (p.
116). On page 115 he likens Purpose Driven opponents to Sanballat
who resisted the building of the walls of Jerusalem in the time
of Nehemiah. Southerland says, "Sanballat is a leader from
hell. We all have some Sanballats in our churches. This is the
guy who opposes whatever you propose. ... You cannot call this
guy a leader from hell to his face--but you could call him Sanballat"
(p. 115). In reality, Sanballat was an unsaved opponent of God's
Word, God's work, and God's people. To liken Bible-believing
Christians who love the Lord Jesus Christ and who are trying
to stand for His Word in this apostate age to Sanballat is a
vicious slander, and Rick Warren is guilty of recommending this
slander. Isn't it interesting that about the only time that the
Warren crowd talks about hell is when they mis-apply it to fundamentalists
and evangelicals of a stricter stripe! It is a sad fact that
Southerland has trained 100,000 people in the transitioning principles
in the last seven years, but it is a sign of the times. "For
the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine;
but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers,
having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from
the truth, and shall be turned unto fables" (2 Timothy 4:3-4).
http://www.wayoflife.org
- -----
- SSPX CATHOLIC BISHOP 9-11 WAS INSIDE JOB
- Matt C. Abbott - November 24, 2007 - Bishop Richard Williamson,
seemingly the most outspoken and controversial bishop of the
Society of St. Pius X, asserted in a recent talk that the September
11, 2001 terrorist attacks were committed "to get the American
public to accept the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq,"
according to a news item by Jack Kenny in the Nov. 15, 2007 issue
of The Wanderer. Bishop Williamson, whose talk was held Nov.
4, 2007 in Bedford, Mass., is quoted as saying: "Without
9-11, it would have been impossible to attack in Afghanistan
or Iraq. The forces inside the United States government and driving
the United States government absolutely wanted to attack and
destroy Iraq. The destruction wrought upon Iraq is unspeakable.
And now the same forces want to do the same thing to Iran . .
. They may well be plotting another 9-11." The news item
continues: "Heat from the burning fuel of the planes that
flew into the twin towers of the World Trade Center could not
have melted the 47 steel columns in each tower, causing them
to collapse, he claimed. And a commercial airliner could not
have penetrated six of the ten walls that were breached by 'whatever
hit the Pentagon,' he said." Continued: http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/abbott/071124
- -----
- PREACHER REBUFFS SENATE SPENDING INQUIRY
Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, speaks at the Iowa State Republican
Party Convention in Des Moines in this June 17, 2006, file photo.
MATTHEW PUTNEYBy ERIC GORSKI and RACHEL ZOLL (AP Religion Writers)
From Associated Press - December 06, 2007 - One of six Christian
ministries under investigation by a Senate committee is rebuffing
inquiries into its spending, challenging the panel's watchdog
role over religious groups, The Associated Press has learned.
A lawyer for preacher Creflo Dollar of World Changers Church
International in suburban Atlanta has asked Sen. Charles Grassley
to either refer the matter to the IRS or get a subpoena, according
to a letter from Dollar's attorney obtained Wednesday by the
AP. Grassley, the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee,
sent pointed questionnaires in early November to a half-dozen
ministries, asking about salaries, perks, travel and oversight.
The Iowa Republican set Thursday as the deadline for a response.
All six organizations preach a form of the "prosperity gospel,"
the belief that God wants his faithful followers to reap material
rewards.Besides Dollar, several other televangelists have signaled
concerns about invasions of privacy and violations of religious
freedom. Only Joyce Meyer Ministries of Fenton, Mo., has provided
the detailed financial and board oversight information sought
by Grassley. Continued: http://www.cephas-library.com/word_faith_preacher_rebuffs_senate_spending_inquiry.html
- -----
- HATE BILL DEFEATED
- By Rev. Ted Pike - Sen. Kennedy's hate crime amendment, approved
by the U.S. House and Senate, was stripped from the National
Defense Appropriations Act, H.R. 1585, midday Thursday. Congressional
Quarterly reports that support for the arms/hate bill bureau
had so eroded in the House that Democrats were forty votes short
of passage. This great victory confirms that massive last-minute
opposition from the evangelical and far right may well have powerfully
helped defeat it. Sens. Kennedy and Smith may attempt to revive
it as stand-alone legislation after the first of the year. But
its rejection by Conference greatly increases the likelihood
that we can defeat it again - if lovers of freedom continue to
protest loudly. Continued: http://blog.commonwealth-equality.org/2007/07/matthew-shepard-local-law-enforcement.html
- -----
- FREEDOM OF SPEECH IN JEOPARDY AGAIN IN H.R. 1955
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wJsovPRTEM
- ----
- EWS, MUSLIMS, CHRISTIANS CELEBRATE SIMILAR ROOTS
- Gazette.net by Katherine Mullen - The sight of Christians,
Jews and Muslims seated together around dinner tables
 gave
the Rev. Gerry Hanberry, pastor at Glade United Church of Christ,
an idea of what the kingdom of God might look like. "This
is it," he said of the scene in front of him on Sunday.
Nearly 250 people gathered that night at the Lynfield Event Complex
in Frederick for "Hanukkah, Christmas & Hajj Festival,"
an interfaith dinner.... Hendi also has bigger plans for the
interfaith dinner in 2008. He said he hoped to expand the event
next year to 500 people and to include all faiths in Frederick
County. The audience responded with much applause.
- "This is the dream that will come true because God wants
this to happen," Hendi said. "We believe that tonight
we stand, and divided we fall." Click here to read the rest
of this out-of-house article.
http://www.gazette.net/stories/122007/frednew45614_32355.shtml
----
- BUSH SAYS CHRISTIANS AND MUSLIMS PRAY TO THE SAME GOD AND
ISLAM A RELIGION OF PEACE
- Friday Church News Notes by David Cloud - October 26, 2007
- For at least the second time in his presidency, President George
Bush has said that Christians and Muslims pray to the same God.
In fact, this time he said that all religions pray to the same
God. In an interview with Al Arabiya reporter Elie Nakouzi on
October 5 Bush said: "I believe in an Almighty God, and
I believe that all the world, whether they be Muslim, Christian,
or any other religion, prays to the same God. That's what I believe.
I believe that Islam is a great religion that preaches peace"
("Bush: All Religions Pray to Same God," WorldNetDaily,
Oct. 7, 2007). In November 2003 Bush, when asked by a reporter
in England whether "Muslims worship the same Almighty,"
replied: "I believe we worship the same God" ("Christians,
Muslims Worship Same God, Bush Tells Reporters," Baptist
Press, Nov. 20, 2003). http://www.wayoflife.org
- -----
- WOMEN GET 'VIRGINITY FIX" NHS OPERATIONS IN MUSLIM-DRIVEN
TREND
- Daily Mail, UK - November. 15, 2007 - James Chapman - www.dailymail.co.uk
- Women are being given controversial “virginity repair”
operations on the NHS, it emerged last night. Taxpayers funded
24 hymen replacement operations between 2005 and 2006, official
figures revealed. And increasing numbers of women are paying
up to £4,000 in private clinics for the procedure apparently
under pressure from future spouses or in-laws who believe they
should be virgins on their wedding night. Doctors said most patients
are immigrants or British of ethnic origin. The trend has been
condemned by critics as a sign of social regression driven by
Islamic fundamentalists. Some countries have made hymen reconstruction
operations illegal. Dr Magdy Hend, consultant gynaecologist at
the Regency Clinic, Harley Street, London, who started hymen
reconstruction more than 18 years ago in the Middle East and
the Gulf, said: “In some cultures they like to see that
the women will bleed on the wedding night. If the wife or bride
is not a virgin, it is a big shame on the family.” Dr Hend
said he was surprised by the “very good response” to
the service and said there is “big competition on the market”.
Continued: http://www.cephas-library.com/islam_women_get_virginity_fix_NHS_operations_in_muslim-driven
trend.html
- -----
- SCOUTS IGNORE PHILLY RENT DEADLINE DATE: DECEMBER 4, 2007
- Grassfire.org Alliance - 12/4/2007 - According to WorldNetDaily.com,
the Cradle of Liberty Boy Scouts in Philadelphia have ignored
a city deadline to pay a $199,999 rent hike or move out of their
historic headquarters. In late October, Grassfire reported that
the city was penalizing the Scouts for their anti-gay policies
by raising their rent. City solicitor, Romulo Diaz, who is openly
gay, said of the Scout's failure to notify the city, "we
will begin looking for alternative tenants that can take over
the property June 1, 2008." Interestingly, the building
in question was actually constructed by the Scouts--with their
own money, back in 1928, and then given to the city. In return,
the city would charge $1 rent to the Scouts in perpetuity. The
city has apparently reneged on its decades old promise. After
reporting the story and asking Grassfire team members to email
and phone Philadelphia city officials, they received about 150,000
Scout-related emails and calls. "We were deluged,"
said Terry Phillis, chief information officer for the Mayor.
WND reported that city officials pulled the messages off to protect
system integrity!
- The City has reneged on a long-held $1 per year lease promise
to the Scouts, and ignored the U.S. Supreme Court's decision
affirming the Scouts right to bar homosexuals. Grassfire is outraged
over the city of Philadelphia's attempt to punish and ultimately
destroy the Scouts because of their beliefs, and are asking members
of our team to continue to express outrage to city leaders.For
nearly 100 years, American boys have learned key values such
as honesty, integrity, and character through the Boy Scouts of
America. . http://www.grassfire.org/2/petition.asp?PID=615032
- Go to FireSociety.com and post your comments so that the
Grassfire staff along with thousands of citizens can benefit
from your thoughts and opinions: http://www.firesociety.com/comments/19919/Discussion/?src=111
- -----
- RICK WARREN 'I NEVER WANTED FAME'
But pastor with global vision says he 'loves making an influence'
- December 12, 2007 - EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the second of a
three-part series based on an interview with Rick Warren at his
Saddleback Church in Southern California, which he and his wife
of 30 years, Kay, founded in 1980 with one family. In part one,
Warren responded to critics among his fellows evangelical travelers.
In part two the senior pastor – called by Newsweek one of
"15 People Who Make America Great" – discusses
how he handles fame, his unconventional approach to ministry
and his visit last year with Syrian leader Bashar Assad. In part
three, he responds to concerns about the pitfalls of partnering
with government and his massive AIDS initiative. WorldNetDaily.com
By Art Moore -  Rick Warren leads
'Global Summit on AIDS and the Church' at his Saddleback Church
in Orange County, Calif. (WND photo)
LAKE FOREST, Calif. – Rick Warren says he never wanted fame
or celebrity, but when murder, bewilderment and grief engulfed
a missionary base and church in Colorado this week, national
media looked to the Southern California megachurch pastor to
help make sense of it. Whether or not there is such a thing as
"America's pastor" or an "evangelical spokesman,"
the man called by Newsweek one of "15 People Who Make America
Great" fits the bill for many mainstream journalists. "I
hate fame, but I love making an influence," Warren told
WND. "So you put up with some stuff."
- Some of that "stuff" is the criticism he receives
from fellow evangelicals who accuse him, among many things, of
preaching a watered-down gospel and appeasing dictators, Muslims,
academic elites and left-leaning politicians. In part one of
an interview with WND at his Saddleback Church in Orange County,
California, Warren said many of his critics "don't understand
that I am fundamentally, foremost an evangelist." "It's
what I care about. I don't care about politics, I don't care
about political correctness, I don't care about what established
groups want me to do," he said. "I care about getting
people into heaven." Continued: http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59161
- -----
- BENNY HINN AND CREFLO DOLLAR LOSE CLOUT ON ORU BOARD
Tulsa World, USA - December 11, 2007 - Ziva Branstetter - The
evangelist Creflo Dollar has resigned from the Oral Roberts University
board of regents, and another evangelist, Benny Hinn, has lost
his status as a voting member of the board. ORU’s spokesman
Jeremy Burton confirmed Wednesday that Dollar had resigned and
that Hinn had been named a “regent emeritus” without
a vote on the board. Both refused last week to respond to a Senate
inquiry into lavish spending by evangelists. A Canadian businessman,
Richard Pearson, has been named to ORU’s board of business
regents. Pearson, who operates a bus company, was formerly on
the nonvoting portion of the board. Burton had no comment on
the reasons for the changes.
- Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, asked last month for financial
information from six media-based ministries, including those
run by Hinn and Dollar. Grassley said he was investigating complaints
about “generous salaries and housing allowances and amenities
such as private jets and Rolls-Royces” allegedly owned by
the ministries.
- Hinn and Dollar did not provide the information to Grassley
by a Thursday deadline. Hinn operates World Healing Center Church
Inc. and Benny Hinn Ministries of Grapevine, Texas. Dollar operates
World Changers Church International in suburban Atlanta. ORU’s
board has 23 business regents and 18 others who are spiritual
regents, associate regents and regents emeritus. Those 18 other
regents do not have a vote in business and financial matters,
according to ORU’s bylaws. The bylaws give Richard and Oral
Roberts wide authority on all spiritual matters, including the
right to veto decisions by business regents on such matters.
Continued:
- http://www.religionnewsblog.com/20107/oral-roberts-university-19
- ----
CHINESE FACTORY SET TO BECOME WORLD'S LARGEST BIBLE PRODUCER
- Email: del.icio.us - The Times of London - December 07, 2007
- The only authorized Christian publisher in China is celebrating
a milestone on Saturday as the 50 millionth Bible rolls off the
presses, according to a report in the Times of London. Demand
for the Bible is soaring in officially-atheist China, at a time
when meteoric economic growth is testing the country’s allegiance
to Communist doctrine, the Times of London reports. Now, the
demand in China for Bibles is such that Amity Printing, a joint
venture between Chinese Christian charity and the United Bible
Societies, a Protestant organization, can barely keep pace.
- Early next year it will move into a new, much larger factory
on the edge of the eastern city of Nanjing to become the world’s
single-biggest producer of Bibles. “This platform has been
built as a blessing to the nation. It will print Bibles for China
for as long as it takes to do it,” said New Zealander Peter
Dean, of the United Bible Societies. In careful adherence to
China’s laws that prohibit evangelizing, the Bible is not
on sale in mainstream Chinese bookshops but through a distribution
system managed by the official church, such as stalls set up
for people attending morning service, according to the Times
of London report. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/global/
- -----
- HUCKABEE: U.S. GAVE UP ON RELIGION - SCHOOL SHOOTINGS WERE
WAKE-UP CALL
Arkansas Online News - by Linda Caillouet (Contact) - June 8,
1998 - ".... Huckabee, an ordained Southern Baptist minister,
addressed his contemporaries at the two-day Pastors' Conference,
which continues today. The three-day Southern Baptist Convention
begins Tuesday here in the heartland of the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints and the city in which the Mormons have their
world headquarters. Huckabee told the pastors gathered in the
Salt Palace Convention Center that while the March 1, 1997, tornadoes
which struck Arkansas were tragic, at least the devastation could
be clearly seen from a helicopter. In contrast, he said, the
catalysts for the nation's recent school shootings -- including
the one March 24 near Jonesboro that left four students and a
teacher dead and 10 others wounded -- were harder to see but
were driven by "the winds of spiritual change in a nation
that has forgotten its God." ...Continued: http://www2.arkansasonline.com/news/1998/jun/08/huckabee-us-gave-religion/
- -----
HUCKABEE IS PURPOSE DRIVEN
Baptist preacher 2008 presidential candidate Huckabee is Purpose
Driven (PD). Ref. Link is to Huckabee's official web page above...his
blog...Huckabee uses PD's founder, Rick Warren's quote...hoping
for an official endorsement from him. Purpose Driven is a cult
that has taken over the mainstream church.
SERIOUS PROBLEM: There are 38.8 million baptist in the USA. This
is what has spiked Huckabee ahead in the polls suddenly. This
could spell disaster for the US if these millions of baptists
vote. Approx. 50% of voters vote, then say, the last election
went something like 62 million for Bush vs. 59 million for Kerry-Dems.
---you see, now in 2008, we have 38 million baptist....then,
add on to that, millions of foolish nonbaptist christians who
will get on the bandwagon--especially, if Dobson and other 'leaders'
endorse Huckabee? Huckabee has the baptist's vote...then, think
if PD Warren does official endorse him. Huckabee is the worst
choice on the republican ticket--and the 'chrisians' are fixed
to give us another Bush. I've friends personally who were PD
'resisters' and were thrown out of Lamar Baptist Church in TX.
Huckabee (and you know the baptist demonination has fully accepted
PD false teachings) does not recognize the error of PD---what
kind of christian is he--another deluded one, like universalist
GW? Gerl Boston http://www.mikehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=Blogs.View&Blog_id=658
- -----
RICK WARREN COUNSELS JEWS ON RECRUITING CONGREGANTS
Christian Today - by Jennifer Riley, Christian Today US Correspondent
- Megachurch pastor Rick Warren attended a large Reform Jewish
gathering last week to share tips on how to build a community.
- Warren - who saw his church expand from just seven people
meeting in his house to 22,000 people worshipping in an expansive
treasure island-like campus - said the key to holding onto visitors
was involving them in a small group. "We believe congregations
have to grow large and small at the same time," Warren said
Thursday, according to the San Diego Union--Tribune newspaper.
"We don't really feel like people are in the congregation
until they're in small groups." The "Purpose-Driven"
pastor spoke to thousands of Jewish leaders Thursday night at
the Union for Reform Judaism's biennial convention in San Diego.
Continued: .
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/rick.warren.counsels.jews.on.recruiting.congregants/15651.htm
- -----
- A WARNING ABOUT MICHAEL PEARL'S NO GREATER JOY MINISTRY
- November 21, 2007 (first published September 5, 2005) by
David Cloud - Over the past few years a number of people have
asked me about Greater Joy Ministries operated by Michael and
Debi Pearl, and as I have traveled on preaching trips I have
found that many families in good fundamental Baptist churches
are using their materials.The following is a report on my investigation
into this ministry. I have read two of Michael's books as well
as issues of No Great Joy magazine, and I have looked carefully
through the material available at their web site. Continued:
http://www.cephas-library.com/evangelical_michael_pearl.html
- -----
- CHURCH FINED FOR BIBLE STUDY
SALISBURY - December 14, 2007 - A home beside Bethany Lutheran
Church once welcoming camaraderie, the sharing of religious faith
and discussion of scriptures is now silent. The city of Salisbury
issued a $1,000 zoning fine to Bethany Lutheran Church last week
for using their $135,000 house for Bible study and other organized
gatherings. The Rev. Kevin Wackett received a letter from the
city on Dec. 3 with two citations issued Nov. 17 and 24 for unauthorized
use of a facility. After purchasing the home in 2002, Wackett
said the church applied for a special exemption to use the home
for religious purposes and was granted approval by the city,
Wicomico County and the state of Maryland. ... Continued:
- http://www.delmarvanow.com
- -----
- CRTICISM OF THE GOLDEN COMPASS BY CHRISTIANS
- Phillip Pullman’s religion: a militant and slightly
mystical atheism As far back as June, 2002, Christianity Today
wrote: …Phillip Pullman’s trilogy His Dark Materials
has won a lot of awards in the past few years (including the
coveted Whitbread Prize). And its readership is growing. Booksellers
have caught on a little late, and are promoting it vigorously
now. It tells the story of a little girl who lives in an alternate-reality
Oxford. Lyra is a compulsive liar, and her lies entangle her
in the wicked doings of the grownups at the college. The grownups
are persecuting children, stripping them of their imaginations,
which they then use to power engines of war in an attack against
God. But as the trilogy continues, our sympathies are changed,
and we end up rooting for the God-killers.
- While some Christians have gone ballistic with protests because
they suspect a hidden occultic message in Harry Potter, there
has been almost zero conversation about these books, which have
an agenda that is anything but hidden. Pullman regularly admits,
even boasts, that his series is a blatant, calculated attack
on Christianity. He also declares that he wrote it to counteract
the influence of C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia. (He
claims Lewis’s fantasy series promotes racism and is degrading
to women.) And, yes, Pullman’s alternative fantasy is written
for children. http://www.cephas-library.com/compass_criticism_of_the_golden_compass_by_christians.html
- -----
- CHRISTIANITY TODAY CALLS AUTHOR OF "AQUARIAN GOSPEL"
AN EVANGELICAL Friday Church News Notes by David Cloud November
2, 2007 - The Christianity Today movie review of "The Aquarian
Gospel," Oct. 1, 2007, stated: "Drew Heriot, director
of the self-help documentary The Secret, has been tapped to direct
The Aquarian Gospel, a movie that follows the life of Christ
through his 'missing years'--including ages 13 through 30. ...
Meanwhile, Jesus: The Lost Years, a documentary based on the
Paul Perry book Jesus in Egypt, comes to DVD on November 13.
Variety reports that the script for the former film is based
on a pair of books: The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus Christ, by evangelical
writer Levi Dowling, and The Unknown Life of Jesus Christ, by
Russian anthropologist Nicholas Notovich." Dowling (1844-1911)
was a very strange "evangelical"! He worshipped a false
christ and wrote books under demonic dictation. He allegedly
wrote The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ by tapping into
the Akashic Records, a supposed field of knowledge surrounding
the earth. The book claims that the child Jesus journeyed to
India, Tibet, and Egypt to gain wisdom from religious masters
and by means of education and meditation achieved the "Christ
consciousness." The book denies that Jesus is the virgin-born
eternal Son of God, that He died and shed His blood on the cross
to atone for man's sins, and that He rose again the third day
and ascended up to Heaven to sit on the right hand of God. While
I was hitchhiking from California to Florida in late 1972 I came
across the Aquarian Gospel and was influenced by it to join the
Self-Realization Fellowship Society. I thank God that He had
mercy upon me and opened my blinded eyes some months later and
showed me the true Christ and the true Gospel of salvation. http://www.wayoflife.org
- -----
- CHRISTIAN COUPLE FORCED OUT OF FOSTER CARE FOR REFUSING TO
PROMOTE HOMOSEXUALITY
- Friday Church News Notes by David Cloud - November 2, 2007
- The following is excerpted from the Daily Mail of London, England,
Oct. 24, 2007: "They are devoted foster parents with an
unblemished record of caring for almost 30 vulnerable children.
But Vincent and Pauline Matherick will this week have their latest
foster son taken away because they have refused to sign new sexual
equality regulations. ... To do so, they claim, would force them
to promote homosexuality and go against their Christian faith.
The 11-year-old boy, who has been in their care for two years,
will be placed in a council hostel this week and the Mathericks
will no longer be given children to look after. The devastated
couple, who have three grown up children of their own, became
foster parents in 2001 and have since cared for 28 children at
their home in Chard, Somerset. Earlier this year, Somerset County
Council's social services department asked them to sign a contract
to implement Labour's new Sexual Orientation Regulations, part
of the Equality Act 2006, which make discrimination on the grounds
of sexuality illegal. Officials told the couple that under the
regulations they would be required to discuss same-sex relationships
with children as young as 11 and tell them that gay partnerships
were just as acceptable as heterosexual marriages. They could
also be required to take teenagers to gay association meetings.
... Mr. Matherick, a 65-year-old retired travel agent and a primary
school governor, said: 'I simply could not agree to do it because
it is against my central beliefs. We have never discriminated
against anybody but I cannot preach the benefits of homosexuality
when I believe it is against the word of God.' ... Religious
campaigners say the couple are the latest victims of an equality
drive which puts gay rights above religious beliefs." http://www.wayoflife.org
- -----
- FOCUS ON THE FAMILY PARTICIPATING IN SCHULLER CONFERENCE
- Friday Church News Notes - October 26, 2007 - H.B. London
of Focus on the Family is scheduled to join hands with heretic
Robert Schuller in a "Rethink" conference at the Crystal
Cathedral in January 2008. The conference will bring together
"30 influential thinkers" to "deliver cutting
edge ideas about the ever-changing world." The 2,500 conference
attendees are expected to be joined by tens of thousands of simulcast
viewers. Speakers include Robert Schuller; who has redefined
the gospel according to his heretical self-esteem theology; Chuck
Colson one of the founders of Evangelicals and Catholics Together;
Dan Kimball and Erwin McManus of the deeply unscriptural Emerging
Church movement; H.B. London, Jr. of Focus on the Family; Kay
Warren, wife the Purpose Driven Life guru; Rupert Murdoch, chairman
of News Corporation and purveyor of pornography; Larry King,
an agnostic; Lee Strobel, George Barna, John Townsend, Gary Smalley,
Jay Sekulow, and Henry Cloud. Rethink conference speaker McManus
says, "We need to know where things are going so we can
get there first" (www.rethinkconference.com). In fact, the
Bible believer knows exactly where things are going and how things
will turn out, and he is not dependent upon the "insights"
of the unregenerate and of false teachers. Beware, friends, these
are the blind leading the blind. "To the law and to the
testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because
there is no light in them" (Isaiah 8:20). "Be ye not
unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship
hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath
light with darkness" (2 Corinthians 6:14).
http://www.wayoflife.org
-----
- PASTOR OF AMERICA'S LARGEST CHURCH DOESN'T MENTION SIN OR
REPENTANCE IN TELEVISION INTERVIEW [EDNOTE: APPROVES OF MORMON
ROMNEY FOR PRES.]
- Friday Church News Notes By Dave Cloud - October 26, 2007
- In an interview on Larry King Live on October 16 Joel Osteen,
pastor of America's largest church, did not mention sin or repentance
or the blood of Christ or the fire of hell. Everything was "positive"
and light, even though Larry King is an agnostic and his audience
is composed largely of unsaved people. Osteen had a wonderful
opportunity to preach the gospel, but he failed, because he refuses
to deal with any of the "hard" things in Scripture.
Though Osteen mentioned the gospel and the cross of Christ, he
did not preach the gospel. The gospel is that "Christ died
for our SINS according to the Scripture..." (1 Cor. 15:3),
but Osteen did not even mention sin. No one can be saved by simply
"believing in Christ." To be saved I must acknowledge
that I am a sinner, that I have broken God's laws, and that I
deserve eternal punishment but that Christ paid the full price
in my place. Jesus warned, "... except ye repent, ye shall
all likewise perish" (Luke 13:3), but Osteen did not mentioned
repentance. The Bible says that "without shedding of blood
is no remission" (Heb. 9:22), but Osteen didn't mention
the blood. The Bible says that hell is a place where "the
fire is not quenched" (Mark 9:44, 46, 48), but when Larry
King asked Osteen if he believes in hell he replied merely that
hell is "separation from God." Joel Osteen is the pastor
of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, where the Sunday crowds
total about 48,000. He preaches a positive-only, self-esteem
gospel, and exemplifies the apostasy of America's churches today.
http://www.wayoflife.org
- -----
- RICK WARREN'S GLOBAL VISION, PURPLE HAZE, AND NEW AGE ASSOCIATION
- Republished October 24, 2007 - first published April 26,
2005 by David Cloud - Speaking April 17 before 30,000 members
and attendees of Saddleback Church at the congregation's 25th
anniversary celebration, Rick Warren announced his plan for a
global vision called P.E.A.C.E. The plan is described as nothing
less than "a new reformation in Christianity and vision
for a worldwide spiritual awakening in the 21st century."
Warren wants to enlist "one billion foot soldiers"
to overcome the five "global giants" of "Spiritual
Emptiness, Self-serving Leadership, Poverty, Disease and ignorance
(or illiteracy)." The acronym PEACE gives the means of overcoming
these giants -- Planting Churches, Equipping Leaders, Assisting
the Poor, Caring for the Sick, and Educating the Next Generation.
Warren's program both expands and narrows the Great Commission
given by the Lord Jesus Christ (Matt. 28:18-20; Mk. 16:15; Lk.
24:44-48; Acts 1:8). It expands it with a global social agenda
that we see nowhere in the New Testament. It narrows it by abridging
and simplifying N.T. doctrine and practice. Whereas Christ commanded
that believers be taught "to observe all things whatsoever
I have taught you" (Mat. 28:20), Warren suggests they observe
a few things that have been summarized and reinterpreted by a
contemporary church growth guru.
- PURPLE HAZE
- Before Warren stated his new vision, he did something he
said he had wanted to do for a long time. He sang Jimi Hendrix's
drug-drenched song "Purple Haze" to his congregation,
accompanied by his "praise and worship" band! There
has never been anything innocent or pure about rock and roll
(not to speak of holy). From its inception it has had two grand
themes: licentiousness (sex, drugs, etc.) and rebellion, and
this is nowhere more evident than in the music of Jimi Hendrix.
I want to say publicly, "Shame on Rick Warren, and shame
on his fellow Southern Baptist Convention leaders for not publicly
rebuking him for such worldly shenanigans."
- WARREN TEAMS UP WITH NEW AGE GURU
- The following is from Lighthouse Trails Research Project,
April 19, 2007 - "While Rick Warren is gearing up to train
a billion people, unbeknownst to many he has also been teamed
up with New Age and contemplative promoter, Ken Blanchard, for
some time now. According to a new biography on Rick Warren, A
Life with Purpose written by George Mair, Rick Warren has solicited
the services of Ken Blanchard to aid him in training leaders:
'Rick taps the best and most famous to help train church leaders
to be like Jesus. He has hired Ken Blanchard ... to come to Saddleback
to help train people how to be effective leaders' (p. 193). There
is countless evidence to show that Blanchard sits on the New
Age/mystical/contemplative bandwagon. Blanchard believes in the
benefits and use of mantra meditation, yoga and has no trouble
borrowing from Buddhism. Blanchard wrote the foreword to Jim
Ballard's books Mind Like Water and What Would Buddha Do At Work?
He is on the front cover of Corporate Mystic and the back cover
of Deepak Chopra's Seven Spiritual Laws of Success and wrote
the Foreword to Ellen Ladd;s (clairvoyant) book, Death and Letting
Go. Blanchard makes no apology when he says much can be gained
from Buddhism. He and his wife both encourage the practice of
yoga (p. 11) and mantra meditation. Ken Blanchard, Rick Warren,
and Bill Hybels (Willow Creek) have become team players at the
Lead Like Jesus conferences, which take place across North America.
The three also have an audio set they co-authored together."
See the "Church Growth" section of the Apostasy Database
at the Way of Life web site for more information -- http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/fbns-index/churchgrowthfbns.htm.
- -----
- MUSLIMS IN FRANCE FORCE CHURCH TO CLOSE
- Friday Church News Notes By David Cloud - January 25, 2008,
The following is excerpted from "Islamic Pressure in Paris
Forces Evangelical Congregation to Vacate Building," OneNewsNow,
June 15, 2007: "After a long struggle against Islamic intimidation,
an evangelical church in the outskirts of Paris has been forced
to vacate the 1,000-square-foot facility where it had been meeting.
The Temple de Paris Church has been located in the Paris suburb
of Bagnolet. Christine Thabot, the wife of the pastor, says Muslims
have been trying to get rid of them since 2005, but local authorities
had permitted the church to remain in the facility, paying 8,000
euros a month in rent. According to Thabot, the Muslims changed
their strategy. 'They attacked our owner this time,' she explains.
'They took up the case and [told him he was] not allowed to have
this church open--and on Friday we [were told] that we had to
get out of our premises.' Thabot says Temple de Paris Church
has been unable to secure another worship center. 'For an evangelical
or Protestant church, it is almost next to impossible to buy
or to rent any premises. As soon as they find out you are a church,
there is nothing open to us.' Thabot says many churches in the
area have been closed and have had similar difficulties in securing
new facilities. But she claims Muslims can secure property for
building a mosque simply by paying one euro to the authorities."
http://www.wayoflife.org
GLOBAL / LOCAL
POLITICS
- -----
- CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR SIGNS HOMOSEXUAL INDOCTRINATION LAW
- Friday Church News Notes by David Cloud - October 19, 2007
- California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed a new
bill (SB777) into law that turns that state's schools into homosexual
indoctrination centers and forbids anything that could be interpreted
as being negative toward homosexuality, bisexuality, transexuality
and other moral perversions ("Schwarzenegger Signs Law Banning
Anything Perceived as Negative to 'Gays,'" WorldNetDaily,
Oct. 13, 2007). The law will doubtless affect public schools
across America, because California is the largest purchaser of
textbooks and it is unlikely that publishers will go to the expense
of printing separate editions for other states. It is now officially
illegal for students or teachers in California to say that homosexuality
is a sin or that marriage is only for a man and a woman or that
people are born male or female (and not in between) or to criticize
cross-dressing, sex changes, or any other "alternative lifestyle."
The new law requires that students be allowed to use the restroom
and locker room of their choice. A boy can use the girls' restroom
as long as he "identifies" with the female sex. Another
bill signed by Schwarzenegger, AB14, prohibits state funding
of any program that does not support homosexual practices. This
includes day care and preschool centers, senior services, anti-gang
programs, and even hospitals. Schwarzenegger, a Hollywood movie
star who has played in some of the most trashy and violent movies,
is a Republican, which reminds us that politics is not the answer
to America's moral crisis. The root of the problem is the apostasy
and compromise and worldliness in the nation's churches, and
until that is addressed and there is repentance and revival among
professing Christians and the fear of God is boldly proclaimed
from the pulpits, all of the political activity in the world
will not slow the moral slide to destruction. "Even as Sodom
and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving
themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh,
are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal
fire" (Jude 7). http://www.wayoflife.org
- -----
 NEW HAMPSHIRE TO RECOUNT BALLOTS
IN LIGHT OF CONTROVERSY
- By Kim Zetter January 11, 2008 - Both Republican and Democratic
candidates have asked the state of New Hampshire to conduct a
hand recount of all primary ballots statewide, citing internet
rumors about vote discrepancies and voting machine fraud in the
primary results.
- Democratic presidential nominee candidate Kucinich was the
first to make headlines in calling for a statewide recount of
the Democratic primary results in response to the internet fury
around a post made by a woman named Lori Price that someone made
online that compares votes counted by optical scan machines made
by Diebold Election Systems (now re-named Premier Election Solutions)
to votes counted by hand. [Thanks to the reader below who wrote
in to say that Price didn't create the site where the results
appear.]
- Today the New Hampshire secretary of state's office announced
that Republican presidential nominee candidate Albert Howard
also asked for a statewide recount of the Republican primary
results. The last time New Hampshire conducted a statewide recount
of a presidential primary was in 1980. Ellen Dube, elections
assistant at the New Hampshire Secretary of State's office, told
me that the Republican recount will begin next Wednesday (January
16). She said her office had not yet received a formal request
from Kucinich. She said the recounts would likely take at least
two weeks to complete and would cost several thousand dollars
each, since the state will have to pay all workers involved in
the recount, including state troopers who will transport the
ballots.
- I should emphasize here that, contrary to some reports in
the blogosphere, the controversy is not about electronic voting
machines (i.e., paperless touch-screen voting machines), since
New Hampshire doesn't use such machines. New Hampshire passed
a law back in 1994 requiring all voting machines to produce a
paper trail, a decade before the controversy over paperless touch-screen
machines even became an issue. Instead of touch-screen machines,
New Hampshire uses only old-style paper ballots and optical-scan
ballots. In the case of the latter, voters mark a paper ballot
with a pen before officials scan it through an electronic reader
and tabulate the results via computer.
- The controversy began when Lori Price someone posted results
showing that Barack Obama received more votes than Clinton in
precincts where the ballots were counted by hand than in precincts
where they were counted by optical-scan machines.
- Some activists have seized the information as "proof"
of voter fraud, though Price the person who posted the information
cautioned against drawing such conclusions, writing that "They
simply show that some things stand out as being odd and worthy
of further investigation." At least one blogger has found
an alternative explanation for the differences in the vote results.
The difference between the machine-counted precincts and the
hand-counted precincts, writes blogger Ed Morrissey, "is
that the former tend to be in the bigger cities such as Nashua
and Manchester where Hillary had significant polling leads before
the primary. The hand-counted precincts were in areas known to
be Obama territory."
- Deputy Secretary of State David Scanlan told the Associated
Press that the state will be happy to conduct a recount but Kucinich,
who won only two percent of his party's vote and has the least
to gain from the recount, will have to pay the full cost for
it since he did not lose in a close race. Howard will also have
to pay the entire cost of the Republican recount. (New Hampshire
law allows candidates who lose a race by a margin of less than
3 percent to demand a recount at a cost of only $2,000. Candidates
who lose by more than this have to pay the full cost of a recount.)
''Perhaps the best thing that could happen for us is to have
a recount," Scanlan said, "to show the people that
... the votes that were cast on election day were accurately
reflected in the results. And I have every confidence that will
be the case.'' http://binside.typepad.com/binside_tv/2008/01/kucinich-calls.html
- -----
 HILLARY STUNS OBAMA IN NEW HAMPSHIRE
- AP - January 09, 2008 - Hillary Rodham Clinton won New Hampshire's
Democratic primary Tuesday night in a startling upset, defeating
Barack Obama and resurrecting her bid for the White House. John
McCain won the Republican race, completing a remarkable comeback
and climbing back into contention for the US presidential nomination.
Clinton's victory capped a comeback of her own from last week's
third-place finish in the Iowa caucuses and raised the possibility
of a long battle for the party nomination between Obama, the
most viable black candidate in US history, and Clinton, seeking
to become the first woman to win the US presidency.
- Now together, let's give America the kind of comeback that
New Hampshire has just given me. Hillary Rodham Clinton After
Iowa, Clinton and her aides seemed resigned to a second consecutive
setback. Polling place interviews showed, however, that female
voters, who deserted Clinton last week, were solidly in her New
Hampshire column. Word of Clinton's triumph set off a raucous
celebration among supporters at a hotel in Nashua, gathered there
to celebrate a victory every bit as surprising as Bill Clinton's
strong second-place finish in New Hampshire 16 years ago that
allowed him to proclaim himself “the comeback kid.”
“I felt like we all spoke from our hearts, and I am so gratified
that you responded,” Clinton said in victory remarks before
cheering supporters. “Now together, let's give America the
kind of comeback that New Hampshire has just given me.”
- Clinton had 39 percent of the vote in the Democratic primary
to 37 per cent for Obama, the first-term senator who won the
Iowa caucuses. John Edwards, the 2004 vice presidential candidate,
trailed with 17 per cent. McCain's victory scrambled the Republican
race as well. He rode a wave of support from independent voters
to defeat Mitt Romney, former governor of the neighboring state
of Massachusetts. The victory reprised McCain's victory in the
2000 New Hampshire primary over George W. Bush. “We showed
this country what a real comeback looks like,” the US senator
from Arizona told The Associated Press in an interview as he
savored his triumph. Continued: http://www.xpress4me.com/news/international/usa/20005077.html
- -----
- AMERICA NEEDS A LEADER LIKE THIS!
- Prime Minister John Howard - Australia .
- Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law were told
on Wednesday to get out ofAustralia , as the government targeted
radicals in a bid to head off potential terror attacks.
- Separately, Howard angered some Australian Muslims on Wednesday
by saying he supported spy agencies monitoring the nation's mosques.
Quote: 'IMMIGRANTS, NOT AUSTRALIANS, MUST ADAPT. Take It Or Leave
It. I am tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending
some individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks
on Bali , we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority
of Australians.'
- 'This culture has been developed over two centuries of struggles,
trials and victories by millions of men and women who have sought
freedom' 'We speak mainly ENGLISH, not Spanish, Lebanese, Arabic,
Chinese, Japanese, Russian, or any other language. Therefore,
if you wish to become part of our society . Learn the language!'
- 'Most Australians believe in God. This is not some Christian,
right wing, political push, but a fact, because Christian men
and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation, and
this is clearly documented. It is certainly appropriate to display
it on the walls of our schools. If God offends you, then I suggest
you consider another part of the world as your new home, because
God is part of our culture.'
- 'We will accept your beliefs, and will not question why.
All we ask is that you accept ours, and live in harmony and peaceful
enjoyment with us.'
- 'This is OUR COUNTRY, OUR LAND, and OUR LIFESTYLE, and we
will allow you every opportunity to enjoy all this. But once
you are done complaining, whining, and griping about Our Flag,
Our Pledge, Our Christian beliefs, or Our Way of Life, I highly
encourage you take advantage of one other great Australian freedom,
- 'THE RIGHT TO LEAVE'.'
- 'If you aren't happy here then LEAVE. We didn't force you
to come here. You asked to be here. So accept the country YOU
accepted.' Maybe if we circulate this amongst ourselves, American
citizens will find the backbone to start speaking and voicing
the same truths. Emailed mompeck@juno.com
-----
- NEW REAL I.D. RULES TO SHUT DOWN NATION'S AIRPORTS IN MAY?
- By Ryan Singel - January 11, 2008 - Come May 11 this year,
Georgia and Maine residents without passports may not be allowed
into federal buildings and the lines at Hartsfield-Atlanta airport
could stretch to Alabama, according to federal rules designed
to morph state driver's licenses in a national identification
card that were released Friday. The Department of Homeland Security
announced the final regulations Friday that implementing the
Real ID act, legislation that requires states to standardize
their driver's licenses, forces current license holders to re-apply
with certified copies of birth certificates and marriage licenses,
and penalizes states that don't comply by making their licenses
unacceptable for federal purposes, such as entering Federal buildings.
Without any hearings, the measure was slipped into a must-pass
military spending bill in 2005 by Congressman James Sensenbrenner
(R-WI).
- Eight states have already passed legislation opting out of
the program, saying the costly program infringes on privacy and
states rights. DHS originally estimated the cost of the program
at $20 billion, but used creative math to slash that estimate
by 73% today. Today's estimate said the change would cost states
$3.8 billion, and individuals $5.8 billion. The federal government
has only authorized $80 million in earmarked funds for the states,
but says states can raid their state grant funds to get at another
$280 million dollars.
- Homeland Security head Michael Chertoff said the regulations
would make the country safer.
- "For about $8 per license, Real ID will give law enforcement
and security officials a powerful advantage against falsified
documents, and it will bring some peace of mind to citizens wanting
to protect their identity from theft by a criminal or illegal
alien," Chertoff said. The regulations suggest the money
is well spent since the licenses will prevent teen smoking and
welfare cheating: It will be more difficult to fraudulently obtain
a legitimate license and more costly to create a false license,
which could reduce identity theft, unqualified driving, and fraudulent
activities facilitated by less secure drivers' licenses such
as fraudulent access to government subsidies and welfare programs,
illegal immigration, unlawful employment, unlawful access to
firearms, voter fraud and possibly underage drinking and smoking.
What Chertoff didn't say is that Real ID will make every current
license holder have to re-acquire certified breeder documents
and go to the DMV in person -- possibly multiple times -- to
get their Real ID. Today's regulations also say the federal requirements
go into effect on May, 11 2008, but that states can apply for
a waiver letting them putting off production until 2010.
- But what about states that ask for a waiver with no intention
of actually implementing the requirements?
- According to a DHS spokeswoman, no application for an extension
will be accepted unless the state promises it is trying to comply.
The Transportation Security Administration's rules requires that
an airline traveler show a valid government identification document
or go through a pat-down and intense bag-screening process. If
by May, Georgia hasn't changed it mind and the feds don't blink,
the nation's busiest airport -- Hartsfield-Atlanta airport --
will have security lines that last for hours. If a federal court
house did not let a state resident get to his court date or prohibited
someone from getting into a Social Security office, lawsuits
and a storm of unflattering news stories will surely follow.
- The ACLU's Barry Steinhardt says that's not going to happen.
"There is not going to be any real penalty. This is a bluff,"
Steinhardt said. "Are they really prepared to shut those
airports down? We don't believe that is going to happen."
Instead the real takeaway from today's regulations is that DHS
is pushing the implementation of all of this onto the next administration,
according to Steinhardt, who noted the rules were supposed to
be in effect in 2007 and now have been pushed to 2010, 2014 and
2017.
- Tim Sparapani, the ACLU's legislative counsel, warned cash-strapped
states to steer clear. "DHS is trying to spin states in
deep budget crises to participate in this," Sparapani said.
"Our message to these states is don't spend a dime on implementing
these regulations." The regulations set standards for information
sharing between states, detail what documents can and can't be
used to get an identification card, require states to keep giant
databases that include copies of breeder documents such as birth
certificates and social security numbers. The regulations are
much more lax when it comes to rules about third parties such
as bars or retailers from swiping and recording the mandated
bar code. In fact, there are no rules. States must create privacy
and security rules, but there's no standard that must be met.
Melissa Ngo, senior counsel at the Electronic Privacy Information
Center, wonders if the plan isn't to require Real ID licenses
to get employment, since Chertoff mentioned today that employers
should be able to trust REAL IDs more than current licenses.
That also made her wonder about the rules for third parties to
swipe licenses and store the information. "The fact that
DHS is touting that employers can use it means they are fine
with third-person sharing," Ngo said. http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/01/new-hampshire-t.html
- DMV Gets Educated on Real ID by Homeland Security
Industrial Complex
Homeland
Security Improves Privacy, DHS Chief Blogs
Senate
Looks into REAL ID
Montana
Rejects Real ID Mandate, Joins Rebel Forces
Another
State Pulls Out of REAL ID, Alaska DMV Sued
Maine
Says Will Opt-Out of De Facto National ID Law
- ------
- MONTANA GOVERNOR FOMENTS REAL ID REBELLION
- By Ryan Singel January 18, 2008 - Montana governor Brian
Schweitzer (D) declared independence Friday from federal identification
rules and called on governors of 17 other states to join him
in forcing a showdown with the federal government which says
it will not accept the driver's licenses of rebel states' citizens
starting May 11.
- If that showdown comes to pass, a resident of a non-complying
state could not use a driver's license to enter a federal courthouse
or a Social Security Administration building nor could he board
a plane without undergoing a pat-down search, possibly creating
massive backlogs at the nation's airports and almost certainly
leading to a flurry of federal lawsuits.
- States have until May 11 to request extensions to the Real
ID rules that were released last Friday. They require states
to make all current identification holders under the age of 50
to apply again with certified birth and marriage certificates.
The rules also standardize license formats, require states to
interlink their DMV databases and require DMV employee to undergo
background checks.
- Extensions push back the 2008 deadline for compliance as
far as out 2014 if states apply and promise to start work on
making the necessary changes, which will cost cash-strapped states
billions with only a pittance in federal funding to offset the
costs. Last year Montana passed a law saying it would not comply,
citing privacy, states' rights and fiscal issues. In his letter
(.pdf) to other governors, Schweitzer makes clear he's not going
to ask for an extension.
- "Today, I am asking you to join with me in resisting
the DHS coercion to comply with the provisions of REAL ID, "
Schweitzer wrote. "If we stand together either DHS will
blink or Congress will have to act to avoid havoc at our nation's
airports and federal courthouses."
- But Homeland Security spokeswoman Laura Keehner says DHS
has no intention of blinking. "That will mean real consequences
for their citizens starting in may if their leadership chooses
not to comply," Keehner said. "That includes getting
on an airplane or entering a federal building, so they will need
to get passports." Keehner says DHS's policy won't change
even if Georgia -- one of the 17 states that has signaled strong
opposition to the rules -- declines to apply for an extension.
If that scenario came to pass, every Georgian who flies out through
the nation's busiest airport -- Atlanta-Hartsfield International
-- would have to be patted down by Homeland Security agents and
have his carry-on bag hand-screened, likely resulting in massive
delays. Keehner also suggests that patted-down citizens will
turn their wrath not on the feds but on their state government.
For his part, Schweitzer wants Congress to step up and pass alternative
legislation that would stop Real ID and re-instate a commission
that was working on driver's license rules before the REAL ID
Act was slipped into must-pass defense legislation in 2005. That
legislation assigned DHS the task of setting the rules single-handedly.
Continued:
- http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/01/montana-governo.html
- -----
- H.R.1955: VIOLENT RADICALIZATION, HOMEGROWN TERRORISM PREVENTION
ACT OF 2007
- To prevent homegrown terrorism, and for other purposes. This
bill has been passed in the House. The bill now goes on to be
voted on in the Senate. Keep in mind that debate may be taking
place on a companion bill in the Senate, rather than on this
particular bill. [Last Updated: Dec 9, 2007]
Last Action: Oct 24, 2007: Received in the Senate and Read twice
and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs.
Oct 23, 2007: This bill passed in the House of Representatives
by roll call vote. The vote was held under a suspension of the
rules to cut debate short and pass the bill, needing a two-thirds
majority. The totals were 404 Ayes, 6 Nays, 22 Present/Not
Voting.
- http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h110-1955
http://thomas.loc.gov/home/gpoxmlc110/h1955_rfs.xml
- WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO US DISCUSSION IS SHOCKING
- YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wJsovPRTEM
- -----
- ID ACT SHOWDOWN BETWEEN FEDS AND STATE
Reporting Jay Levine CHICAGO (CBS): The state rejects an ID plan
the government believes can help fight terrorism. The security
showdown is over a new kind of driver's license the Feds hope
will keep terrorists off planes. Critics call it a costly mistake,
as CBS 2's Chief Correpsondent Jay Levine reports.
- The feds call it a Real ID. People locally are calling it
a real mess, an invasion of privacy, and one stop shopping for
identity thieves. Right now, all it takes is a social security
card, something to prove you're old enough, and you are who you
say you are. The process is simple: take a test, take a picture,
get your license.
- But now, the Department of Homeland Security wants more.
And Illinois is one of 17 states who've passed laws or resolutions
refusing to start checking immigration status, performing other
ID checks, and issuing more secure licenses – all of which
prompted the threat. "If a particular state were to say,
"We opt out, we're not going to participate at all,"
then the law is very clear," Homeland Security Secretary
Michael Chertoff said. "After May of this year, that state's
driver's licenses will no longer be acceptable as a form of federal
identification for getting on an airplane or getting into a federal
building." Chertoff, who was unveiling final details of
the REAL ID Act's rules on Friday, said that if states want their
licenses to remain valid for air travel after May 2008, those
states must seek a waiver indicating they want more time to comply
with the legislation. The deadline is an effort to get states
to begin phasing in the REAL ID program. Citizens born after
Dec. 1, 1964, would have six years to get a new license; older
Americans would have until 2017. Chertoff said that for any state
which doesn't seek such a waiver by May, residents of that state
will have to use a passport or certain types of federal border-crossing
cards if they want to avoid a vigorous secondary screening at
airport security. http://cbs2chicago.com/local/Real.ID.act.2.628190.html
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 DIRECTORY TOSHIBA'S
MICRO NUCLEAR REACTOR
PESWiki - A Top 100 Energy Technology -
Non-approved Toshiba logo and 4S system image with unfamiliar
name "micro nuclear", unfamiliar mark and unfamiliar
information that has circulated with a non-official and partially
inaccurate story published around the web.4S (Super-safe, Small,
and Simple) Nuclear Reactor Toshiba and the Central Research
Institute of Electric Power Industry (CRIEPI (http://criepi.denken.or.jp/en/))
are jointly developing a new class of micro size Nuclear Reactors
that are designed to power large apartment buildings or small
city sections. The new reactor, which is only 20 feet by 6 feet,
could change everything for small remote communities, businesses
or even a group of neighbors who are fed up with the power companies
and want more control over their energy needs.
- The 10 MW Toshiba-designed reactor is engineered to be fail-safe
and totally automatic and will not overheat. Unlike traditional
nuclear reactors the new micro reactor uses no control rods to
initiate the reaction. The whole whole process is self sustaining
and can last for up to 30 years without refueling, producing
electricity for only 5 cents per kilowatt hour, about half the
cost of grid energy.
- Toshiba expects to commercialize the reactor after the mid
2010's.
- http://peswiki.com/index.php/Directory:Toshiba's_Home_Nuclear_Fusion_Reactor
- -----
- CLUSTER BOMB BAN TALKS OPEN IN VIENNA
Agence France Presse - December 5, 2007 - Representatives from
over 130 countries met here Wednesday in an effort to ban cluster
bombs, which continue to maim and kill civilians worldwide through
scattered bomblets that can explode years after they were dropped.
"The presence today of over two thirds of countries in the
world is in itself a strong and encouraging sign. It's a significant
push towards awareness" of the problem, Austrian Foreign
Minister Ursula Plassnik said at the start of the three-day meeting
in Vienna.
The conference, organised by the Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC),
is part of a Norwegian initiative launched in February when states
agreed to conclude a new international ban treaty to be signed
by 2008. Some 83 nations have voiced their support for the move,
but key countries such as China, Russia and the United States
-- the main makers of such munitions -- remain opposed to an
outright ban. Plassnik, who received a petition with some 1.5
million signatures calling for the complete ban of cluster bombs,
described the document as "a clear and unmistakable message:
ban cluster munitions!" Cluster bombs are especially deadly
as they contain smaller bomblets which they scatter over a wide
area and which sometimes explode only decades after a conflict
has ended.
No figures are available on how many people have been maimed
or killed by cluster munitions, but the non-governmental organisation
Handicap International estimates about 98 percent of victims
are civilians, usually children. These weapons were used last
year during the war in Lebanon and are still being used in Iraq
today. They have also made many victims in Laos, where US troops
dropped some 208 million cluster bombs between 1969 and 1973,
Afghanistan and in the Balkans. "All kinds of cluster munitions,
no matter how sophisticated, are deadly. Everyone can become
a victim," said for Sladan Vuckovic, a Serb who lost both
his arms and part of one leg while trying to remove the remaining
bombs from his land.
He was one of several cluster bomb victims who made it to the
conference Wednesday in a wheelchair or with the help of synthetic
limbs to testify about the damage done by these weapons. Austria
is due Thursday to become the second country after Belgium to
ban cluster munitions, with the adoption by parliament of a law,
while Defence Minister Norbert Darabos has promised to destroy
some 12,000 bombs stocked on Austrian territory within three
years. Human rights activist and former wife of the Rolling Stones'
lead singer Bianca Jagger praised Austria's move and said she
hoped "that other countries will follow this example."
CMC, which consists of about 200 civil society organisations,
estimates that at least 34 countries continue to produce cluster
munitions, while 75 states have a significant stock in their
possession. Among the topics on the agenda at the Vienna conference
are a definition of cluster munitions, the need to destroy stockpiles
and aid to victims. But France and Germany want to include exemptions
in a draft treaty that was drawn up in Lima in May and is to
be finalised in Vienna. Another conference is planned in Wellington,
in New Zealand in February, followed by a final one in Dublin
in May, ahead of the planned signature of the treaty at the end
of the year. http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Landmines_html/ClusterBomb_TalksVienna.html
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IRAN DROPS DOLLAR FROM OIL DEALS
Agence France-Presse - December 8, 2007 - Major crude producer
Iran has completely stopped carrying out its oil transactions
in dollars, Oil Minister Gholam Hossein Nozari said on Saturday,
labelling the greenback an "unreliable" currency. "At
the moment selling oil in dollars has been completely halted,
in line with the policy of selling crude in non-dollar currencies,"
Nozari was quoted as saying by the ISNA news agency. "The
dollar is an unreliable currency, considering its devaluation
and the oil exporters' losses," he added. The world's fourth
largest oil exporter, Iran has massively reduced its dependence
on the dollar over the past year in the face of US pressures
on its financial system.
- The United States has successfully encouraged major European
and Asian banks to cut their dealings with Iran in a bid to make
the Islamic republic give way on its controversial nuclear programme.
- Washington has also blacklisted major Iranian banks for alleged
support of terrorism and seeking nuclear weapons, charges denied
by Tehran. Iran has reduced its assets in dollars held in foreign
banks and urged OPEC to take collective action to price oil in
other currencies such as the euro, instead of the US currency
which is used across the world at present. The fall of the dollar,
which has weakened considerably against the euro and other currencies
in the past 12 months, has affected the revenues of OPEC members
because most of them price and sell their oil exports in the
US currency. http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Oil_watch/Iran_Drops_Dollar.html
- -----
- INTERNATIONAL COALITION FOR DRUG AWARENESS
- Mark Taylor's testimony before the FDA 9/13/2004 - I am Mark
Allen Taylor and I am a victim of the SSRI antidepressant era.
I took six to thirteen bullets in the heart area in the Columbine
High School shooting when Eric Harris on Luvox opened fire that
now infamous day. They almost had to amputate my leg and my arm.
My heart missed by only one millimeter. I had three surgeries.
Five years later I am still recuperating. I went through all
this to realize that SSRI antidepressants are dangerous for those
who take them and for all those who associate with those who
take them. I hope that my testimony today shows you that you
need to take action immediately before more innocent people like
me, and you, do not get hurt or die horrible deaths as a
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