Coronavirus- de wereld wil bedrogen worden - maar dit komt niet van God - blijf positief - RM

Je hoort dezer dagen heel veel negatief nieuws, dat vooral is ontstaam door het fenomeen Coronavirus een virus die de wereld nu meer dan een jaar in haar greep heeft weten te houden

Maar let op. Wees niet te veel bezig met alles wat negatief is en afbreekt. Doe niet mee met mensen die altijd maar mopperen en zuchten, dat doet ons geestelijk niet goed en het is zeker niet de wil van God. Richt uw aandacht liever op Jezus (Hebr.12:2), die alle macht heeft en iedere situatie in ons leven in Zijn hand heeft.

Dat geeft vertrouwen en stabiliteit in het leven. Het is beslist niet van God om altijd en overal, van tevoren,beren en leeuwen op je weg te zien.

Wij mensen moeten ons,ook niet te veel aantrekken van radicale organisaties die ons bang proberen te maken door allerlei komplot theorieën van radicale aard te verspreiden. O.A, de internationale, uit Amerika overgewaaide QAnon.

Mundus vult decipi, ergo decipiatur. Deze Latijnse spreuk die toegeschreven wordt aan Petronius, luidt vertaald: ’De wereld wil bedrogen worden, dus wordt zij bedrogen’.

Als het over positief denken gaat is er voor mij niets positiever dan het voorbeeld dat we krijgen van Jezus aan het Kruis, vastgenageld en in verschrikkelijke pijn, die naar de hemel kijkt en zegt: "Vader vergeef hun, want ze weten niet wat zij doen".

Inderdaad de mensheid weet meestal niet wat ze doen!

Read more at: http://www.almere-digest.blogspot.com

Christianity: Questions you were afraid to ask in Church

Calvary Chapel in Fort Lauderdale had a special surprize in store for their congregation this past Sunday. A one hour question and answer session, on every kind of question one might have on Christianity, but either never did ask, or if they did, was given an unsatisfactory answer. Impressive and to the point Enjoy the clarity and openness of it, and pass it on to anyone you think would benefit from it.

To watch, click here: https://calvaryftl.org/series/97/sermon/788/questions-youre-afraid-to-ask-in-church/

The Mysterious Universe: the link between Christianity and the Universe ia well established and no mystery to believers - by RM

On a clear night, when you look up to the sky and see the billions of twinkling stars, of which many support planets, like the planet we live on, we would be completely ignorant not to question the existence of life on other planets.The concept of the Universe, however, already is a mystery, which can only lead you to a Creator for its origin, because there is no other reliable technical or mathematical way to explain it.

So, ultimately, the discovery of intelligent aliens isn't likely to pose a serious crisis for Christianity, who believe in a Creator .They also believe that the penalty for those that sin is death (Romans 6:23). They believe that to rectify the circumstances they are in, God sent His only Son Jesus to die in their place, to take their punishment for sin (Romans 5:8). After Jesus’ death, He arose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:3-6). Jesus is the only way to God (John 14:6) and He provides the blessing of salvation. Each person has the choice to receive or reject our Creator's gift through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9) and experience new birth (John 3:1-8).

If all this doesn't sound like it comes from the Creator of the Universe, I do not know what will. So don't worry about or deny the existence of aliens.

EU-Digest

EU - Christian Community Wake-up Call - Trump visit - Join and encourage protests against Trump's visit to the EU and show that Christian revolutionary compasion is still alive and well

Bozo is in town, Please give him a "warm" welcome

Many historical scholars will tell us that Jesus Christ can be considered a revolutionary leader, even today. 

In the sense that he refused to be a narrow political leader that would just make Judea (todays Israel) politically powerful.  

His mission was worldwide to benefit all mankind; leveling the importance of power and wealth.

He was equally compassionate and attentive to: women, tax collectors, foreigners inclusing Roman Centurians, Lepers, those crippled, those blind, insane Gentiles, Samaritans, Pharisees (though he brought some of them up short for their hypocrisy), Sinners, Rulers of the Synagogue, and very rich people, including Nobility.

Unfortunately today his doctrine is only given "lip service" in many Christian Churches around the world, in particular  the US and Europe.  

What has happened to the revolutionary Spirit of compassion and involvement Jesus spoke about ? 

Case in point. When in recent weeks the US government’s abusive and widely condemned policy of separating migrant children from their families was publicly criticized, the attorney general Jeff Session of the Trump Administration responded, by quoting the New Testament writer Paul, who in the book of Romans calls on people to obey the laws of the government. Really?.

That this would have ruled out the actions of Jesus himself, was seemingly lost on Sessions, as indeed was the fact that Jesus’s family were forced to escape across borders. 

Or the fact that Psalm 202.28 states: "The children of your servants shall dwell secure; their offspring shall be established before you", and as we read in Mark 9:42: "Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea".

But the Sessions incident highlighted the problem that Christianity has and the problems that are still being created. 

To put it bluntly: in the 2016 presidential election a majority of practicing Christians in the USA voted for the most racist and misogynistic candidate going, and in so doing helping Donald Trump to the position of the most powerful person in the world. 

Against such a background it’s easy to forget that the movement from which Christianity emerged was one that shared possessions in common, renounced war and at least in some ways modelled more progressive understandings of gender than was generally accepted in those days  To use some words that weren’t around at that time in history; human rights, democracy, pacifismt and pro-feminism.. 

It is easy and quite hypocritical in a way, to externalize modern day problems as happening a long way away, or to personalize them in the name of political leaders; but when injustice is being justified in the name of one of the worlds largest faiths, professed by most of the EU population, it is important for us to voice our protest.

Trump’s ‘America First’ ideology has many similarities with those of  other dangerous nationalist- populists around the world..

Trump has also not attempedt to conceal his admiration for other populist movements around the world. He openly supported the Brexit movement, and populist Marianne Le Pen's campaign in the French Presidential election against President Emmanual Macron. He also hails authoritarian 'strongmen' like Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, and Vladimir Putin.  He obviously, secretly, envies their freedom of action, and probably wonders why the restraints of this "bourgeois democracy" continuously tie his hands behind his back. 

In the relatively short time period the current Trump administration has been in power,Trump pulled the US out from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the Paris agreement on climate change and the Iran deal. He also withdrewn the US from the United Nations' top human rights body and plans to end NAFTA -- while his recently announced tariffs affecting the EU, China, Mexico and Canada, are on the verge of starting a global trade war.

These International actions, however, are only the top of the Iceberg, in comparison to the changes his administration has already made on the home front, negatively affecting peoples health, immigration policies, taxes,  and personal freedom.

And now.... Donald Trump has arrived in Europe, arrogant and cocky as ever.

Check out your local press and social media for additional details of the Donald Trump visit to the EU, and where demonstrations will be held in your area---and please attend.

Trump's program which starts this afternoon July 10 in Brussels, where Trump will meet with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, before participating in high-level sessions with the 28 allies on Wednesday July 11. and Thursday July 12th at the NATO headquarters.

On the 13th of July he will be in Britain where he will meet Prime Minister Theresa May, Queen Elizabeth II and business leaders, before heading to the Trump resort in Scotland on Friday evening, where he’s expected to play some golf over the weekend.  

The US president is due to spend his first and only night in London at the US ambassador’s official residence, Winfield House, in Regent’s Park. Over the weekend he will be going to Scotland for some golf and probably stay at his luxury hotel he owns in Ayrshire, the Trump Turnberry  

On Sunday evening July 15, Trump will fly further north to Helsinki, Finland for a one-on-one meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Given the backdrop of international trade tensions following Trump’s tariff increases; the litany of retaliatory measures announced by U.S. allies including the European Union (EU); Trump’s criticism of NATO; and close scrutiny of his administration’s links to Russia — some of these encounters are bound to be less congenial than others.

The role that we as individuals can each play is to join in demonstrations, wherever they may be held in in Europe. 

You might feel this does not add up to much, but together it can add up in disrupting the US president’s hoped-for, and loved media PR opportunity, by showing an alternative to what he stands for. 

But that is only a first step. The bigger job is, after acknowledging the problem, to dismantle the scaffolding of structural racism, and economic inequality,  that allowed Trump to get where he is today, and which allow comparable policies to happen in Europe and around the world. 

If you live or have family or friends in the areas where Trump is visiting please pass this article along and encourage them to demonstrate. 

Make Trump understand his Administrations policies are not acceptable in the EU.

EU-Digest

Middle East Christian Communities: Why Did Christian Leaders in the Middle East Shun Vice President Pence's Visit?

The Middle East At Easter: "the US 
want Jesus to be a political Jesus"

According to Israeli news outlet Haaretz, Christian leaders in the Middle East shunned Vice President Mike Pence in his recent trip to their countries.

Christian leaders in Egypt and Jerusalem reportedly decided to boycott his visit, in an attempt to protest President Trump’s December 7th recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Pence was unable to visit Bethlehem, the city where Jesus was born, because it is located in the occupied region of the West Bank controlled by the Palestinian Authority who declared that Pence was ” unwelcome in Palestine.”

Pence declared that recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital is the “only true foundation for a just and lasting peace.” Arab Christians apparently disagree, wanting East Jerusalem to be the capital of a non-Israeli Arab state. Protestors held signs that read, “Pence you are desecrating our land. Pence go home.”

Pence reportedly completed his visit to the Middle East without meeting with any prominent Christian leaders from Egypt, Jordan and Israel. In his meeting with the Egyptian president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, Pence raised the issue of protecting Egypt’s Christians from persecution.

After meeting with King Abdullah of Jordan, Pence’s remarks made clear their disagreement over a two state solution: “Friends occasionally have disagreements, and we agreed to disagree on recognizing Jerusalem. We agreed all parties need to come to the table. I hope I impressed on him our earnest desire to restart the peace process.”

In his speech to the Knesset today Pence used religious symbolism, quoted from the bible, and explained his support for Israel as a moral and religious obligation, not solely a political one. His speech was interrupted by numerous standing ovations by Israeli  Knesset members.

According to The Associated Press, Palestinian Christians reject Pence’s “brand” of Christianity:

They argue that such streams of evangelical Christianity have used religion to whitewash Israel’s harsh policies during its half-century-old rule over millions of Palestinians.

“For me, it’s a sick ideology,” said Munib Younan, the recently retired bishop of the small Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land and former president of the Lutheran World Federation, an umbrella for churches with millions of believers.

“When I say Jesus is love, they want my Jesus to be a political Jesus,” Younan, 67, a Jerusalem-born Palestinian, said in a recent interview at his West Bank church.

The AP adds that while Christian Arabs are a minority living in the West Bank, they lived peacefully next to their Muslim Arab neighbors, describing their neighborhoods as places “where the pealing of church bells often blends with the Muslim call to prayer.”

Note EU-Digest - Jesus Christ represents love not hatred or violence, and if politics and fanaticism was not injected as a result of  foreign interventions in the Middle East,  historical peaceful coexistence would still prevail there  today.   

Read more: Why Did Christian Leaders in the Middle East Shun Vice President Pence's Visit?

'Christianity as default is gone': the rise of a non-Christian Europe - by Harriet Sherwood

Europe’s march towards a post-Christian society has been starkly illustrated by research showing a majority of young people in a dozen countries do not follow a religion.

The survey of 16- to 29-year-olds found the Czech Republic is the least religious country in Europe, with 91% of that age group saying they have no religious affiliation.

Between 70% and 80% of young adults in Estonia, Sweden and the Netherlands also categorise themselves as non-religious.

The two most religious countries, Poland and Lithuania, and the two least religious, the Czech Republic and Estonia, are post-communist states.

The trend of religious affiliation was repeated when young people were asked about religious practice. Only in Poland, Portugal and Ireland did more than 10% of young people say they attend services at least once a week

Note Almere-Digest.  Pew Research Center in 2015 said Europe’s Christian population is expected to shrink by around 100 million people in the coming decades. Maybe, as someone suggested, it is not that there is something wrong with the message, but rather that today the problem lies with those who bring the message. 

It seems they have forgotten that Jesus, in most, if not all his spiritual teachings, professed an egalitarian society, whereby the division between rich and poor has been erased. It is little wonder that the Romans crucified him, and that his followers were persecuted. And, of course, it is the polar opposite of what today's "conservatives" stand for. 

Early Christians practiced a form of "socialism". Acts of the Apostles tells us, "The believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he or she had need." Isn't it time for Christians to become revolutionary again when it comes to bringing the message of redemption, and willing to fight for it?

Read more: 'Christianity as default is gone': the rise of a non-Christian Europe | World news | The Guardian

Christianity under threat: ‘Worst Year Yet’: The Top 50 Countries Where It’s Hardest to Be a Christian: by Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra

For decades, North Korea has clearly been the world’s worst persecutor of Christians. But now, another nation nearly matches it.

Open Doors recently released its 2018 World Watch List (WWL), an annual ranking of the 50 countries where it is most dangerous to follow Jesus. Approximately 215 million Christians now experience high, very high, or extreme levels of persecution; that means 1 in 12 Christians live where Christianity is “illegal, forbidden, or punished,” according to Open Doors researchers.

Kim Jung-un’s country hasn’t moved from the No. 1 spot on the list for 16 years in a row. “With more than 50,000 in prison or labor camps, such a ranking is little surprise for the totalitarian regime that controls every aspect of life in the country and forces worship of the Kim family,” Open Doors reported.

But rivaling it this year is Afghanistan, which ranked No. 2 by less than a point. North Korea’s total score was 94 (on a 100-point scale), pushed above Afghanistan’s 93 by a 0.6 difference in their 

Open Doors recently released its latest World Watch List (WWL). The annual list ranks the top 50 countries "where Christians face the most persecution," aiming to create "effective anger" on believers' behalf.

“This year, the threshold was higher for a country to make the list, indicating that worldwide levels of persecution have increased,” stated Open Doors in announcing its analysis of the "significant trends" in 2014 that drove persecution higher worldwide, "even in places where it has not been reported in the past."

So while countries such as Sri Lanka and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) fell significantly in rank on this year's watch list (Sri Lanka dropped 15 spots to No. 44, and the UAE dropped 14 spots to No. 49), their level of persecution dropped only slightly from last year's list (by four points and two points, respectively, on a 100-point scale). 

Bahrain, Morocco, and Niger—were removed from the list this year, the level of persecution in each remained virtually the same from 2013 to 2014.

Overall in 2014, pressure on Christians increased in 29 countries, decreased in 11, and remained stable in 7. Three countries—Mexico, Turkey, and Azerbaijan—were added to the watch list this year. 

To get the complete report click go to: https://www.opendoorsusa.org/2018-world-watch-list-report/

Read more: ‘Worst Year Yet’: The Top 50 Countries Where It’s Hardest to Be a Christian | News & Reporting | Christianity Today

Our planet - Just Evil Terrorists? or do we live on a planet populated by Evil People?

Once again, the world has been shocked by another evil terrorist attack, committed by a radical, religiously and politically brainwashed human being, killing many innocent people. .

This act deserves nothing but condemnation - but when you really start thinking about evil, isn't there evil all around us, and unfortunately also in all of us.

Isn't it evil, when governments invest more in their military, than in universal healthcare, or in taking care of the environment? 

Isn't it evil, to carpet bomb and kill hundreds of thousands of civilians in proxy wars, and calling  the casualties "collateral damage ? "

Isn't it evil, when corporations consider profits more important than the health of human beings? re:industrial pollution; the genetic manipulation of foods;  the production and sale of pesticides, all of these having caused a number of health effects, which today are linked to a range of serious illnesses and diseases in humans, from respiratory problems to cancer ?

Of course many people reading this will say: "that is all good and well, but I am certainly not an evil person".

Really?  what about : jealousy, lies. cheating, gluttony,intimidation, lust, fornication, pride, - all evil acts .Can anyone honestly say they never had anything to do with any of those evils listed ?

Evil is evil, lesser, greater, middling - makes no difference. The degree is arbitrary, the definition blurred. If one would have to choose between one evil and another, It is better not to choose at all.

Christians, in contrast to all other beliefs, know, they are not alone in their sufferings and struggles against evil. They know they are all in this battle together, and that everyone will experience trials. 

"Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time” (Revelation 12:12).

If we consider the whole picture, specially now we get bombarded daily by all kinds of alarming news, there should be no doubt in our minds, that this is Satan’s world and planet, rather than God’s. Paul even refers to these times as “this present evil age” (Galatians 1:4).

However, Satan will not always dominate planet earth. Biblical prophecy reveals that an astounding series of events will shake our world, as never before and usher in a new age—a 1,000-year era under the reign of Jesus Christ in the Kingdom of God (Matthew 6:10; Luke 21:31).

God never promised that believers wouldn’t have suffering, but He did promise to be with us through it.    Jesus said, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)

EU-Digest  

Easter - USA: Half of Americans Will Celebrate Easter in Church

Easter Church Services in America

Easter may not be the top holiday for Americans, but half will still honor the holiday in church. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

The survey of 1,000 American Adults was conducted on April 11-12, 2017 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence

Reasd more: Half of Americans Will Celebrate Easter in Church - Rasmussen Reports™

Christianity: The Goodness of Good Friday - by Chris Armstrong

Good Friday: a day of sadness and mourning but also of Hope 

What a supreme paradox. We now call the day Jesus was crucified, Good.

Many believe this name simply evolved—as language does. They point to the earlier designation, "God's Friday," as its root. (This seems a reasonable conjecture, given that "goodbye" evolved from "God be with you.")

Whatever its origin, the current name of this holy day offers a fitting lesson to those of us who assume (as is easy to do) that "good" must mean "happy." We find it hard to imagine a day marked by sadness as a good day.

Of course, the church has always understood that the day commemorated on Good Friday was anything but happy. Sadness, mourning, fasting, and prayer have been its focus since the early centuries of the church. A fourth-century church manual, the Apostolic Constitutions, called Good Friday a "day of mourning, not a day of festive Joy." Ambrose, the fourth-century archbishop who befriended the notorious sinner Augustine of Hippo before his conversion, called it the "day of bitterness on which we fast."

Many Christians have historically kept their churches unlit or draped in dark cloths. Processions of penitents have walked in black robes or carried black-robed statues of Christ and the Virgin Mary. And worshippers have walked the "Stations of the Cross," praying and singing their way past 14 images representing Jesus' steps along the Via Dolorosa to Golgotha.

Yet, despite—indeed because of—its sadness, Good Friday is truly good. Its sorrow is a godly sorrow. It is like the sadness of the Corinthians who wept over the sharp letter from their dear teacher, Paul, convicted of the sin in their midst. Hearing of their distress, Paul said, "My joy was greater than ever." Why? Because such godly sorrow "brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret" (2 Cor. 7:10).

I like to think the linguistic accident that made "God's Friday" into "Good Friday" was no accident at all. It was God's own doing—a sharp, prophetic jab at a time and a culture obsessed by happiness. In the midst of consumerism's Western playground, Good Friday calls to a jarring halt the sacred "pursuit of happiness." The cross reveals this pursuit for what it is: a secondary thing.

This commemoration of Christ's death reminds us of the human sin that caused this death. And we see again that salvation comes only through godly sorrow—both God's and, in repentance, ours. To pursue happiness, we must first experience sorrow. He who goes forth sowing tears returns in joy.

EU-Digest

Middle East: "A call for Peace, Forgiveness and Hope - Not for War but for Love"

While most of us in the more affluent societies around the world are enjoying, praising, and, often also bragging (to friends, family,on social media, etc.), about the pleasures of life this corrupt consumer society has brought us, let us also not forget to pray for those who are suffering and living under unimaginable conditions of despair and hopelessness.

Often, as a result of war, created by political deceit, greed and hypocrisy. Unfortunately, all this terror of war is also often caused by not only their, but also our very own Governments.

 May your prayers, however, not be one for Revenge, but for Peace, Forgiveness and Hope. Not for War. but for Love.

Check out the video: A call for Peace

Retribution: Not Part Of The Human Moral Code And The Consequences For Those Who Think It Is

Almost all violence emerges with some kind of rationale that justifies its use.  Warfare, capital punishment, or corporal punishment all follow a self-conscious logic.  At the core of this “logic” usually rests a commitment to the necessity of retribution, justifying violence as the appropriate response to wrongdoing.  When wrongdoing violates the human divined moral order, “justice” requires retribution or punishment, repaying wrongdoing with punishment, pain and often also death.

This human interpretation of retribution, which is still being applied is some kind of an "historical short-circuit" that occurred in which certain concepts were taken from their biblical context, interpreted through the lens of Roman law, then used to interpret the biblical texts.

The result has been an obsession with the retributive themes of the Bible and a neglect of the restorative ones— in other words a basic theology of a retributive God who desires violence. 

Consequently the legitimacy of retribution has become an accepted cultural given around the world.

Is this correct, absolutely not.

Genesis 9 verse 6 warns: “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image".

Or as we read in Deuterenomy 32 verse 35:  "it is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them."

Mankind can not take the law of retribution in its own hand, because that right belongs to God. 

If we look at the state of the world today, nobody has to tell you that the situation is extremely grim, maybe even hopeless for some.

Political structures are falling like a deck of cards, natural disasters are happening daily.

America and Britain, which led a "coalition of the willing" under false pretenses into a war with Iraq, which has now spread into Syria and other Middle Eastern countries, resulting in millions of casualties of innocent civilians, large numbers of refugees, will not escape divine retribution.

As a matter of fact, the results of these divine retributions are already visible. Britain's economy and its Pound Stirling are crumbling, after they voted in favor of Brexit.

The US is not only plagued today by a meltdown of its political system, but is also experiencing one natural disaster after the other.

The EU is going through an inner revolt between member states wanting closer unity and nationalistic populists, who want to turn the clock back to independent statehood.

Last but not least, on the subject of divine retribution, if you wonder why Haiti has been so hard hit recently by hurricane Matthew, and just a few years earlier by a devastating earthquake, followed by an epidemic of cholera, think again.

Roman Catholicism is the official religion of Haiti, but voodoo may be considered the country's national religion. The majority of Haitians believe in and practice at least some aspects of voodoo. Most voodooists believe that their religion can coexist with Catholicism, which is a myth. Former Haiti President François Duvalier recruited voodoo specialists to serve as tonton makouts to help him control all aspects of Haitian life. Duvalier also often indicated that he retained power through sorcery.

There are many more of these examples of retribution showing up daily around the world,  as the day of judgement draws closer.

Yes indeed, the power of retribution is not really a part of our "human objectives" during our temporary sojourn on this planet. It belongs to God.
©
EU-Digest

Pakistan-Christianity: Gun and bomb carrying thugs attack Christian enclave

http://nbcnews.to/2ciffAf

Religion - Christianity: European churches say growing flock of Muslim refugees are converting

"Chris,t who died for us on the Cross so we could live"

A growing number of Muslim refugees in Europe are converting to Christianity, according to several Church reports in Europe, which have conducted mass baptisms in some places.

Reliable data on conversions is not available but anecdotal evidence suggests a pattern of rising church attendance by Muslims who have fled conflict, repression and economic hardship in countries across the Middle East and central Asia.

Complex factors behind the trend include heartfelt faith in a new religion, gratitude to Christian groups offering support during perilous and frightening journeys, and an expectation that conversion may aid asylum applications.

At Trinity church in the Berlin suburb of Steglitz, the congregation has grown from 150 two years ago to almost 700, swollen by Muslim converts, according to Pastor Gottfried Martens. Earlier this year, churches in Berlin and Hamburg reportedly held mass conversions for asylum seekers at municipal swimming pools.

The Austrian Catholic church logged 300 applications for adult baptism in the first three months of 2016, with the Austrian pastoral institute estimating 70% of those converting are refugees.

At Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral in the UK, a weekly Persian service attracts between 100 and 140 people. Nearly all are migrants from Iran, Afghanistan and elsewhere in central Asia.

One in four confirmations conducted by the bishop of Bradford, Toby Howarth, over the past year were of converts from Islam. Most were Iranian and most of those were asylum seekers.

Mohammad Eghtedarian, a curate at Liverpool Cathedral and a refugee from Iran who converted to Christianity and was later ordained, said the church was helping people to develop their faith and to apply for refugee status. “These two are intertwined. Most people apply for asylum on the basis of their religion,” he said.

His own journey, from the Iranian city of Shiraz to the UK, took him through half a dozen European countries, by truck, train and on foot. Destitute and terrified, he was offered practical and emotional support from Christians along the way.

Before being granted asylum, Eghtedarian spent four months in Tinsley House detention centre, near Gatwick airport. “Every day was challenging and beautiful. Challenging because I didn’t know if they would deport me; beautiful because I was in the Lord’s hands. I promised the Lord: if you release me, I will serve you.”

Now he devotes himself to helping other refugees. “People are desperate. They spend a lot of money and waste a lot of money. They are vulnerable, abused and sometimes [they have been] raped.” The experience of being a refugee was degrading and dehumanising, he said.

Johannes, another Iranian, left Tehran for Vienna. Born into a Muslim family, the 32-year-old – who was previously called Sadegh – began questioning the roots of Islam at university. “I found that the history of Islam was completely different from what we were taught at school. Maybe, I thought, it was a religion that began with violence?

“A religion that began with violence cannot lead people to freedom and love. Jesus Christ said ‘those who use the sword will die by the sword’. This really changed my mind.”

Johannes began the process of converting to Christianity in Iran. He was ambushed with a group of others leaving a bible class but managed to escape and went into hiding. When the Austrian visa he had already applied for came through, he left the country.

Now waiting for the outcome of his asylum application, he has not told his parents of his conversion: only his sister knows his “secret”.

Authorities say there are about 90,000 Christians in Iran, though some human rights organisations put their number as high as 500,000. While Iranian law does not order the death penalty for converting from Islam to another faith, courts have handed down death sentences based on interpretation of Sharia law and legal opinions issued by religious leaders.

Last year, the Austrian bishops’ conference published new guidelines for priests, warning that some refugees may seek baptism in the hope of improving their chances of obtaining asylum.

“Admitting persons for baptism who are during the official procedure classified as ‘not credible’ leads to a loss in the church’s credibility across the whole of Austria,” the new guidelines say.

Since 2014, applicants interested in converting to Christianity with the Austrian church have to go through a one-year “preparation period” during which they are informally assessed. “There has to be a noticeable interest in the faith that extends beyond merely the wish to obtain a piece of paper,” said Friederike Dostal, who coordinates preparation courses in Vienna’s archdiocese.

“We are not interested in proforma Christians. You have to be able to register some kind of process of change in people.” In 5-10% of cases, she said, applicants broke off their course before they were baptised.

In Liverpool, Eghtedarian acknowledged that the factors leading Muslims to convert were often complex and multilayered. “People are desperate for a better life and sometimes they will lie for it – that’s understandable.”

The church had a difficult road to navigate, he said. “We have a mission to give them the message of Christ – a message of peace, salvation and freedom. The only person who knows what’s in people’s hearts is God. It is not for me to judge.”

At Liverpool Cathedral, there is an established process. People are registered when they first come to church in case evidence of attendance is needed for an asylum application. That may be followed by five sessions of baptism preparation and 12 sessions of confirmation preparation. “This way we get to know them and see how they’re involved in the life of the church,” said Eghtedarian.

If necessary the church will provide a “letter of attendance” for the immigration authorities and support them through the appeals process.

Asked if some people pretended to convert to Christianity in order to help their asylum applications, Eghtedarian said: “Yes, of course. Plenty of people. I do understand there are a lot of mixed motives. There are many people abusing the system – I’m not ashamed of saying that. But is it the person’s fault or the system’s fault? And who are they deceiving? The Home Office, me as a pastor, or God?”

Abuse took many forms, he added. “Don’t people abuse the tax system or the NHS? Look at MPs. And look at people who go to church to get their children into good church schools. Is there any difference, morally? You want to find the best school for your child, we want to find the best life for ourselves.

“We still try our best to serve people. Jesus Christ knew Judas was going to betray him but he still washed his feet. Thank God it is not my job to judge them.”

The Church of England does not collate figures on conversion. “This can be a delicate issue and we want to be sensitive to the backgrounds that people are from,” said Howarth.

“There are many reasons [for conversion] but among them is undoubtedly the mass movement of people and the increasing interconnectedness of the world,” he said. Conversions were happening across different faiths, he added, citing the example of black prisoners converting to Islam. “The world– and people’s identities – are being shaken up.

“When we do confirmations, we work hard to make sure the person is serious. We all have mixed motives. But if someone says ‘I believe this’, who are we to make windows into people’s souls? The only thing I can do is see if people are still there a year later – and often they are.”

Read more: European churches say growing flock of Muslim refugees are converting

Christianity: Where is the faith, love, and compassion today, displayed by Christians during the Constantinople plague? - by RM

Constantinople during  the Justinian Plague (541-542)

The Plague of Justinian (541–542) was a pandemic that afflicted the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, especially its capital Constantinople, the Sassanid Empire, and port cities around the entire Mediterranean Sea.

One of the greatest plagues in history, this devastating pandemic resulted in the deaths of an estimated 25 million (initial outbreak) to 50 million (two centuries of recurrence) people.

The outbreak in Constantinople was thought to have been carried to the city by infected rats on grain ships arriving from Egypt. To feed its citizens, the city and outlying communities imported massive amounts of grain—mostly from Egypt. Grain ships may have been the original source of contagion, as the rat (and flea) population in Egypt thrived on feeding from the large granaries maintained by the government. The Byzantine historian Procopius first reported the epidemic in 541 from the port of Pelusium, near Suez in Egypt.

Two other first-hand reports of the plague's ravages were by the Syriac church historian John of Ephesus and Evagrius Scholasticus, who was a child in Antioch at the time and later became a church historian. Evagrius was afflicted with the buboes associated with the disease but survived. During the disease's four returns in his lifetime, he lost his wife, a daughter and her child, other children, most of his servants, and people from his country estate.[

Remarkable at that time, when Constantinolep was ravaged by the plague, was that instead of fear and despondency, the Christians expended themselves in works of mercy that simply dumbfounded the local pagans and made many convert to Christianity

For the Christians of those days, God loved humanity; and in order to love God back, one was to love others. God did not demand ritual sacrifices; or having "infidels" heads cut off.  Instead he wanted his love expressed on earth in deeds of compassion.

This love took on very practical, concrete forms not only in Constantinople (todays Istanbul), but also in Rome,where  the Christians buried not just their own, but also pagans who had died without funds for a proper burial.

They also supplied food for 1,500 poor on a daily basis. In Antioch in Syria (today in Turkey), the number of destitute persons being fed by the church had reached 3,000. Church funds were even used in special cases to buy the emancipation of Christian slaves.

During the Plague in Alexandria( Egypt) when nearly everyone else fled, the early Christians risked their lives for one another by simple deeds of washing the sick, offering water and food, and consoling the dying. Their care was so extensive that Emporor Julian eventually tried to copy the church’s welfare system. It failed, however, because for the Christians it was love, not duty, that motivated them.

The first Christians not only took care of their own, but also reached out far beyond themselves. Their faith led to a pandemic of love. Consequently, at the risk of their own lives, they saved an immense number of lives. Their elementary nursing greatly reduced mortality. Simple provisions of food and water allowed the sick that were temporarily too weak to cope for themselves to recover instead of perishing miserably.

Pagans could not help but notice that Christians not only found the strength to risk death, but through their care for one another they were much less likely to die. Christian survivors of the plague became immune, and therefore they were able to pass among the afflicted with seeming invulnerability. In fact, those most active in nursing the sick were the very ones who had already contracted the disease very early on but who were also cared for by their brothers and sisters.

In this way, the early Christians became, in the words of one scholar, “a whole force of miracle workers to heal the ‘dying.’” Or as historian Rodney Spark puts it, “It was the soup [the Christians] so patiently spooned to the helpless that healed them.”

In the midst of intermittent persecution and colossal misunderstanding, and in an era when serving others was thought to be demeaning, the “followers of the way,” instead of fleeing disease and death, went about ministering to the sick and helping the poor, the widowed, the crippled, the blind, the orphaned and the aged.

Consequently the  citizens of the Roman Empire started to admire their works and dedication. “Look how they love one another,” was often heard on the streets. In a way it became contagious.

So much seems to have changed from then to now, as to how the Christian Community functions as a part of the society at large, and, unfortunately, this change has not always been for the better. 

All we have to do is look at the refugee crises the EU is facing today and see how self-centered and hypocritical  most "so called"  Christian politicians are responding to this crises.

We can certainly learn from those early Christians. 

EU-Digest

Fear:: There Is A Far Better Way To Combat Fear Than With Yoga Or Pills: Trust - by RM

Don't let fear capture your life

Often in discussions with friends and  family the issue of fear, related to something, either from a personal problem or an outside source, will come up.
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If you come to think about it-there probably hasn't gone a day by in your life that there was not some kind of fear creeping into your mind.

We’re not talking about the "good" and instinctive kind of fears which alerts your whole body and pumps up your adrenaline. The one which indicates impending danger and moves you into action to protect the ones you love.

No, it is the other kind .  Where does this often nagging and irrational fear originate? And how do you keep those fears from taking a  permanent place in your life?

Wouldn’t our life's existence be wonderful without fear? Some even wonder why a God that loves us so much would even allow fear to infiltrate into our minds?

Maybe it is good to remember that God does not cause fear, but that society, the environment around us, causes fear and this fear is further nourished by Evil spirits. Yes, fear exists and can quickly work itself into our lives.

However, we can resist the emotionally disturbing grip of fear by fixing our minds on God.

God has made it clear in so many ways that He didn’t give us the spirit of fear, as illustrated in 2 Timothy 1:7: “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind”

So where does fear come from then? Psalm 112:7 says, “He will not be afraid of evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord” . Fear is the opposite of trust. Therefore, a heart that is resolutely and faithfully trusting in God will not fear “evil tidings.” 1John 4:18 explains, ” There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love”. Torment is associated with Evil Spirits, as we see in 2 Corinthians 12:7: “To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of the Evil one, to torment me”. Since fear involves torment, and the Evil Spirit utilizes torment, what should we, as believers, do with the fear that we experience?

Fear can be useful by the fact that it highlights areas in our lives we have not fully surrendered to God. For example, if we are fearful about our finances, and consequently don’t help or take care of others, with far greater need than ours, as the Word has commanded.

Fear is useful in pointing out that we should trust God to provide and also have to provide to others. By trusting God to provide for us financially, we will also be able to put trust in our faith and begin giving to others in obedience to Him.   He who sacrificed his life for us on the cross to set us free of  all fears.

So  if you are struggling with fear, pray about it and  turn to Scripture to seek what God says about it. Turn your situation of fearfulness into an opportunity to trust God more. Fearful about a relationship? Put that relationship in the hands of God. Fearful about a major career decision? Seek God’s will for your professional life, instead of your own. Fearful about providing for your family? Matthew 6:26 points out, “Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are?”. God says we are not to be fearful. Remember that we are to trust and can commit every aspect of our lives to God who loves us.

Bottom-line: After recognizing fear in our lives, we must take every fearful thought captive, discover the root of the problem causing the fear, and pray to see what God’s Word says about our particular fear.

You can trust that God will use any circumstance for His glory to bring us restoration, and that includes victory over fear.

Almere-Digest

Iceland: 'Refugees Are Our Best Friends': In Iceland, Communities Campaign To House Syrians, Ease Europe's Migrant Crisis - by Erin Banco

“It breaks my heart to see what's happening and I know I can help, and I will in any way possible,” Magnusdottir said in an interview with IBTimes. “We don't have a lot of money but we have food on our table and water, we have clothes on our backs and a roof over our heads, and we have each other. Some of these people are watching their children and parents die or suffer. I've started to save money as much as we can afford so I can maybe help someone.”

The campaign is part of a concerted effort to see refugees as people -- as individuals with skills to offer their host countries. In an open letter to Iceland's minister of welfare, Bjorgvinsdottir wrote, "Refugees are our future spouses, best friends, our next soul mate, the drummer in our children’s band, our next colleague, Miss Iceland 2022."

Note EU-Digest: This act by Iceland is worthy of many kudos - contrary to the lackluster reaction by many EU states,  who can't, or don't want to get their act together to assist in this human tragedy. Most of us in Europe call ourselves Christians but we seem to have forgotten a basic biblical principle found in 1. John 3:17-18 - "But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth."  

Read more: 'Refugees Are Our Best Friends': In Iceland, Communities Campaign To House Syrians, Ease Europe's Migrant Crisis

Islam: Muslims reporting dreams about Jesus

“I was in the desert alone, lost. As far as the horizon, there was nothing in sight but sand. I felt the sand on my bare feet. Then I saw something extraordinary. In the midst of that barrenness, an immense wooden cross emerged from the earth, rising up with sand spilling from it back to earth.”

So begins a dream narrative posted by Bosnian Muslim teenager Emina Emlonic. A dream about Jesus.

It continues: “I felt then a spectator in my own dream, and the sight of the cross gave me neither fear nor joy. But I was a curious and began moving, almost floating, towards it, the most magnificent … thing I’d ever seen or imagined, and as I came closer to the cross, I suddenly saw a man walking toward me: a broad-shouldered, long-striding man, with a dark complexion, long hair, and wearing a white robe.

“And just as suddenly I ceased to be a witness to my dream. I was in it, walking toward the man walking toward me. I knew him immediately. He was Jesus. Without knowing why, I fell to my knees. He stood over me and touched my face with his right hand.”

Posted at the Catholic Thing website, such accounts of encounters with Jesus through dreams and visions increasingly are being reported, according to Pastor Frank Costenbader, founder of Manifold Hope Ministries, publisher of the Isa Dreams website.

EU-Digest

Middle East: Protection of Christians in the Middle East must become an international priority

The Middle East, the cradle of Christianity and human civilization, has been swept by a wave of extremism, while its interfaith and civilizational contradictions have become sharply aggravated.

Normal life and the very existence of many religious communities have been put under threat.

Since the beginning of the so-called Arab Spring, Russia has urged the world community to prevent religious extremists from hijacking the processes of change. Russia has been advocating settling the crises by political and diplomatic means and promoting the long overdue reforms via national dialogue.

We spoke for a search for peace and accord between all religious groups, including various denominations of Islam and Christianity.

A dramatic situation has taken shape in Syria, which has historically been a multi-ethnic and multi-religious country. Its life was based on a unique model of peaceful and mutually respectful co-existence of various religious communities. Now this model is being destroyed as a result of connivance with extremists and attempts to use them in the struggle against President Assad.

Terrorist groups are engaging in an orgy of violence in Syria and Iraq, which is being accompanied by the destruction of dozens of Christian churches, including ancient shrines, and by a Christian exodus.

Jihadists are perpetrating heinous crimes on the lands of “the caliphate” and are forcibly imposing obscurantist views by killing Christians, including clergymen, burning them alive, selling them into slavery, robbing them of their property, driving them from their lands or taking them hostage. It is hard to find words in reaction to the brutal massacre of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians that has been perpetrated in Libya recently.

The Christian exodus from the Middle East is likely to have the most negative influence on the structure of Arab societies and the preservation of the historical and spiritual legacy that is important for all humankind.

Note EU-Digest: Can only happen if Muslim Nations, including Saudi Arabia, accept democracy with all its "trimmings"; freedom of expression, religion, equal rights for women and men, in fact democratic secularism, as the main pillar of their political thinking. Similar to what Turkey did after Ataturk created the Turkish Republic.

Read more: Protection of Christians in the Middle East must become an international priority — RT Op-Edge

Christianity in Europe: "Rather Green Than Dead" -The De-Christianized Europe

Joseph Puder writes in Frontpage magazine "that in many of the European countries, the shrinking attendance and affiliation has forced churches to close down, or be sold to the ever growing Muslim communities there"..

It also reflects the decline of the Christian faith in Europe -- both Catholic and Protestant.

This phenomenon bodes ill for Europe, whose Christian faith sustained and enriched it for centuries. Christianity today, more than ever before, can be a unifying factor in a continent that has lost faith in the future.

This loss of faith is manifested in the decline of fertility rates, marriages, and children. Conversely, the influx of millions of young Muslims with high fertility rates has transformed the educational system in Europe, where in some grammar and high-schools, Muslim children (mostly of North African parentage) count for over 50% of the pupils. It has also impacted on the culture and politics of Europe.

In today's Europe the subliminal statement emanating from the political and cultural elites is "we would rather be Green (Muslim) than dead." It is a symbol of submission, lack of will, and resignation. Europe has essentially lost its will to fight for its faith and culture. Decades of elevating multi-culturalism by the elites into a "religion" of sorts, has removed European pride in their national heritage. How can one explain European mega-mosques in Rome, Helsinki and the one being constructed in Cologne, Germany? No Christian churches (not to mention synagogues) or bibles are allowed in Saudi Arabia, nor are new churches permitted to be built in Egypt, Syria, Pakistan, or Iran.

A Pew Research Center and Wall Street Journal survey (2010) shows that the number of people in the Western European states that are unaffiliated is staggering. In the Netherlands it is 42.1%, in France 28%, in Germany 24.7%, UK 21.3%, and Italy 12.4%. These figures do not, of course, indicate that in Italy, 87.6% are regular churchgoers. It only means a nominal affiliation with a church. This is occurring in Italy, at the heart of the Catholic Church where the Vatican is located.

The Anglican churches in the UK are not faring any better. Anglican churches in Britain are being sold and transformed into mosques. A similar phenomenon is taking place in Germany and the Netherlands with Lutheran and Dutch Reform churches. Vatican Insider reported (11/9/2012) "About twenty Anglican churches In Great Britain 'shut up shop' each year. This persistent phenomenon has led the Church of England to publish a list of religious buildings it is prepared to sell." Marco Tosatti in the Vatican Insider writes, "The trend of converting churches into mosques is not just limited to the (Middle) East; according to Fr. Lazzara it is a common phenomenon across central and northern Europe."

 In the Netherlands, as many as 250 buildings, where Catholics, Lutherans and Calvinists had prayed for over a century, were sold. Amsterdam's Fatih Camii mosque had once been a Catholic Church. The Church of St. Vincetius was auctioned off along with its liturgical furnishings and used in a 'profane' way."

Read more: The De-Christianized Europe