Is There Such A Thing As Reformed Islam?

I ask this question with all seriousness and with history entrenched firmly in my mind. Think back, if you will, to the so-called dark ages in Europe.
 
There was a time, I'm sure, when Roman Catholicism was thought of in the same light as Islam is today, not that all Catholics were evil and wanted Protestants and Jews dead. Instead, people knew that most individual Catholics did not approve of Inquisitions, torture, and burnings on the stake. These individuals were afraid, however: afraid to speak up, afraid to succor and protect the oppressed, afraid to get involved.
 
This is how I look at some Muslims today.
 
People died in the millions while Christianity grew into Babylon throughout history. Many more will die before all is said and done. The more enlightened will argue that atheistic societies and rulers like Stalin have murdered many, many more and there is truth in that, but I am speaking right now to the murderous behaviour of people who claim to have the light of God in themselves!
 
Islam, however, seems to go beyond the basic sinful nature we all have, and have to ask forgiveness for. Islam seems to be the actual tool of Lucifer himself!

Headline from Jihad Watch:  Hamas-linked CAIR protests exclusion from U.S. of Muslim cleric who preached jihad against Christians: "Throats must be slit and skulls must be shattered"

Hamas-linked CAIR, ever-lauded by the mainstream media as a "civil rights organization," once again reveals its true colors. "CAIR Protests Saudi Radical's Exclusion From U.S.," from IPT News, December 27:

The head of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) vows to complain to U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials after they blocked a radical Saudi cleric from entering the country this week to attend a national Islamist conference in Chicago.
Sheikh Ayed al-Qarni was scheduled to speak twice during the Muslim American-Society (MAS)/Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) national convention Dec. 22-25. But a statement released during the convention expressed "the unpleasant and saddening news" that al-Qarni had been removed from his flight from Saudi Arabia despite having a visa from the U.S. embassy, and that he appears to be on the U.S. "no-fly list." Al-Qarni is described as "one of our great speakers" and as someone known "for his logical discourse and balanced views, he promotes understanding and collaboration between all people, regardless of their faith, background, or language."

Al-Qarni has advocated jihad in the past and his preaching on the subject has been described as influential among al-Qaida followers.

CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad told an Arabic news outlet that he would protest al-Qarni's exclusion with DHS and State Department officials. "We defend all Muslims who are subject to arbitrary measure, and by this logic, we will act but not formally plead, unless we obtain authorization from him."

It's an ironic protest to make in light of a public relations campaign orchestrated by CAIR's Chicago chapter. "MyJihad" aims to show non-Muslims that the term jihad is more about peaceful, personal attempts at overcoming challenges than about calls for violence and terror.

Through Awad, also a listed speaker at the convention, CAIR is fighting to bring a Saudi cleric into the United States who has argued the exact opposite message. During a 2005 sermon flagged by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), al-Qarni called the jihad against American forces in Fallujah "a source of pride … downing their planes, destroying equipment, slaughtering them, taking them hostage, and proclaiming 'Allah Akhbar' from the mosques, and the worshippers and the preacher cursing them in their prayers, and then come others begging for forgiveness, and requesting a dialogue and a ceasefire and negotiations. Who can say even one word against this true Jihad against these colonialist occupiers?" [Emphasis added]
 
He belittled Muslims who failed to take action, including "harming the Jews." He invoked Israel's targeted killings of Hamas leaders Ahmed Yassin and Abdel-Aziz Rantisi, saying he prayed that Allah "will destroy the Jews and their helpers from among the Christians and the Communists, and that He will turn them into the Muslims' spoils. I praise the Jihad, the sacrifice, and the resistance against the occupiers in Iraq. We curse them all of them every night and pray that Allah will annihilate them, tear them apart, and grant us victory over them..."

"Throats must be slit and skulls must be shattered," al-Qarni said. "This is the path to victory, to shahada, and to sacrifice."

 ... or regard the following:

Headline from Jihad Watch: Indian Muslim leader says, "Remove police for 15 minutes, we will finish off one billion Hindus"

A crore equals ten million, so 100 crore Hindus would be a billion. He is boasting that the Muslims could essentially wipe the Hindus from the face of the earth in fifteen minutes, if the police look the other way.
 
This joins the Iranian leadership's many genocidal statements against Israel in being ignored by a world "human rights" community that is consumed with working out a remedy to "Islamophobia."
"Akbaruddin in trouble for hate speech," from TNN, December 29 (thanks to Lookmann):

HYDERABAD: Akbaruddin Owaisi, the firebrand leader of the Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM), was on Friday taken to court over his disparaging remarks against Hindus in a hate speech, the main content of which was that Muslims would need just 15 minutes without the police to show 100 crore Hindus who is more powerful. 

In a complaint filed against the MIM legislator, an advocate said he had stumbled upon YouTube uploaded hate speech made at a public meeting at Adilabad on December 24, about 300 km from the city.

The VII additional chief metropolitan magistrate after admitting the petition said the matter will be heard on December 31.

Akbaruddin, who is the younger brother of MIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi, said Hindus have so many gods and goddesses, and every eight days, there are new gods coming up. "We knew about Lakshmi, but who is Bhagyalakshmi, we are not aware," Akbar said referring to the Bhagyalakshmi temple abutting the historic Charminar....

"Inflammatory speech by MLA Akbaruddin - Remove police for 15 mins, We will finish off 100 crore Hindus," tweeted television commentator and interviewer Karan Thapar, which was re-tweeted by journalist and columnist Swapan Dasgupta.
 

So, is there such a thing as reformed Islam? No, I don't believe there is. At this point in history Islam has the same reputation as the Roman church had in the dark ages, a reputation of Luciferian origin! This makes me very sad and prayerful for the sincere, loving Muslims out there.

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer 

Perseverance In China

UPDATE: China's Shouwang Church Remains Steadfast

The Shouwang Church in Beijing recently held its 45th outdoor worship service in the rain and snow while praising God's faithfulness. Church leaders report that 20 believers were detained, but all were released later that day.

The church held its first outdoor service three years ago, on Nov. 1. The Chinese government has blocked the church's efforts to rent or purchase a building during those three years.

 

"God reminded us of His grace through the rain and snow on this third anniversary of that day," wrote church representatives. "On that Sunday, God protected His church, and has been watching and guarding His church. ... Although we are always blind to God's presence in this fierce battle because of our weakness, yet the Lord keeps reminding us through various ways that He is near and is with us."

Source: ChinaAid

Please pray that the hearts of unbelievers will be touched by the Shouwang congregation's faithfulness and steadfastness in the face of adversity. Pray for God's continued protection over the Shouwang Church, and pray that their efforts to obtain a suitable place of worship will be successful.

"So that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer." 2 Thess. 1:4-5

VOM assists Christians in China by providing Bibles, Christian literature, scholarships for training and emergency aid to families of prisoners.

 

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Jewish Woman in Iran Cut in Half for Refusing to Turn Over Her Home to a Mosque

Reported by Frontpagemag and Israel Radio:

Islam is the religion of peace. Mosques are places where peaceful worshipers gather. And no one should ever be concerned about a mosque going up near their home. Never.

A Jewish woman in Isfahan, Iran, was murdered and cut in half by Muslim extremists who wanted to take over her home, Israel Radio reported on Thursday.

Relatives of the woman said she had lived next to a newly built mosque, and worshippers had demanded that she and her family leave their home so the mosque could be expanded.

 

The woman submitted a complaint to authorities about the efforts to take over her home. On Monday, a group of thugs came to her house, murdered her, and, according to reports, cut her body in half. 

 

The event left the Jewish community in Iran, estimated to be around 25,000 people, worried and fearing escalating violence against it.

 

 

But remember, Jews and Christians in the Muslim are “protected”. They pay protection money in the form of Jizya. And they’re not persecuted too much, unless they don’t make way for a mosque or unless Islamists take over.

 

This is your life. This is your life under Islam.

 

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

Why Of Course! There Are Jewish Martyrs!

** WARNING **

The following link will take you to TheBlaze.  It contains bloody pictures from the latest rocket attack on Israel. Click at your own descretion!

A Voice of the Martys Volunteer

Tools of the Trade - Evangelism in the Real World

At a time when some people in the United States are casting their belief in God into the dustbin and Christianity appears to be dissolving, around the world it is growing in leaps and bounds! When listening to the mainstream media one would assume the fastest growing religion is Islam, however, the number of Christian converts world-wide far exceed this false claim.

And what are the tools being used to accomplish this Christian evangelism? They are Camels, Horses, and Bicycles!

Brother “Alim” lives in an Arab nation where Bible distribution and evangelism remain extremely difficult and dangerous. Entering some areas is nearly impossible due to the harsh landscape. However, with God, all things are possible.

He had a strange request: “Can you help me buy a camel?”

But The Voice of the Martyrs understood immediately after Alim explained his plan. “If I can travel across the open desert I can share Christ with people who have never heard. It would be difficult to survive such a trip by foot or in a motorized vehicle. But with a camel, I can make the journey!”

Alim is now actively traveling to share the gospel with the help of a camel purchased by The Voice of the Martyrs. Persecuted Christians have always found unique ways of spreading the gospel and The Voice of the Martyrs has always appreciated their God-given creativity as they work in restricted and hostile nations. Some use animals to skirt border guards to deliver Bibles into closed nations.

Our co-workers in Colombia use high altitude horses to reach the guerilla camps and remote villages on mountaintops.

Pastors throughout Asia and India use bicycles often outfitted with sound systems, musical instruments and literature to share the gospel throughout their nation.

Our founder, Richard Wurmbrand once wrote:

“The Underground Church... is so willing to give its martyrs! It is so willing to risk years in... prisons! But all of its willingness is of no value if it does not have the tools with which to work.”

Do you feel led to help sponsor a camel, a high-altitude horse, a bicycle or other unique tools for evangelism in today’s restricted nations? If you do, go to VOM and make a donation. The link is to the right.

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

Toronto: Muslim mother’s Throat Slit for letting Children adopt Canadian Culture

From Jihad Watch:

Muslims commit 91 percent of honor killings worldwide. A manual of Islamic law certified as a reliable guide to Sunni orthodoxy by Al-Azhar University, the most respected authority in Sunni Islam, says that "retaliation is obligatory against anyone who kills a human being purely intentionally and without right." However, "not subject to retaliation" is "a father or mother (or their fathers or mothers) for killing their offspring, or offspring's offspring." ('Umdat al-Salik o1.1-2). In other words, someone who kills his child incurs no legal penalty under Islamic law.

The Palestinian Authority gives pardons or suspended sentences for honor murders. Iraqi women have asked for tougher sentences for Islamic honor murderers, who get off lightly now. Syria in 2009 scrapped a law limiting the length of sentences for honor killings, but "the new law says a man can still benefit from extenuating circumstances in crimes of passion or honour 'provided he serves a prison term of no less than two years in the case of killing.'" And in 2003 the Jordanian Parliament voted down on Islamic grounds a provision designed to stiffen penalties for honor killings. Al-Jazeera reported that "Islamists and conservatives said the laws violated religious traditions and would destroy families and values."

In light of all this, until authorities get the courage to tell the truth about honor killing, there will be many more such murders.

"Toronto mother’s throat slit for letting children adopt Canadian culture, court hears in alleged honour killing trial," by Joe O'Connor in the National Post, October 10 (thanks to all who sent this in):

Randjida Khairi was stabbed five times in her chest and back. She had her throat cut, a wound so ugly and deep that it sliced through her neck muscles, voicebox and windpipe — stopping only at her spine.

 

She was stabbed with two different knives. She drowned in her own blood; a process a pathologist would later determine took between five and 10 minutes. Police discovered Ms. Khairi’s body lying on a bloody cot in her family home, a 16th floor apartment in the northwest corner of Toronto, otherwise all tidy and neat, with a kitchen full of pots. The victim was the mother of six.

 

The victim was married to her killer for 30 years.

 

On Wednesday, Peer Khairi, a silver-haired man and an Afghan immigrant, sat in the defendant’s box of a downtown Toronto courtroom following the proceedings through a Dari interpreter, fingering a parade of gruesome crime scene photographs of his dead wife, taken by police on March 18, 2008, and presented to the court as evidence.

 

The 65-year-old jabbed at some photos with his index finger, and turned others this way and that, uttering a few words to his lawyer, rubbing his chin with his hand. Mostly he sat with his legs crossed, tracing his left thumb across his fingertips.

 

On the opposite side of the courtroom sat a 12-person jury consisting of four women and eight men. They represented a tapestry of ethnicities — of Canadians. Old and young, brown and white and black and all hues in between, contemplating the same images as the defendant while sitting in judgment of a case that marks the latest chapter in Canada’s ever-expanding book of alleged honour killing trials.

 

Mr. Khairi doesn’t dispute that he killed his wife. On that the Crown and the defence agree. At issue is how, precisely, her death occurred and what was going through her husband’s mind when he killed her. The accused has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder.

 

The Crown has told the court that, as a new arrival to this country, Mr. Khairi struggled with Canadian ways, often fighting with his wife over how she allowed their children to dress, to become more Western — to drift from the “culture and the rules of their birth place.”

 

That place is Afghanistan, a patriarchal society where women, be they wives or teenagers or young girls, disobey their husbands, any man, really, at their own peril. This is not an over-simplification. This is a tragic fact....

 

Ms. Khairi, the court was told, had been thinking of leaving her husband. She spoke to other people, complete strangers in some cases, about her plans. Mr. Khairi told police upon his arrest that he felt disrespected, wronged by his children and betrayed by a wife who had turned against him. Now she is dead.

 

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

Pakistan: Armed Muslims attack Christians, collect Jizya from Christian Merchants

From Jihad Watch:

"Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued." -- Qur'an 9:29

Muslim spokesmen in the West routinely claim that this verse has no applicability in the modern world. They're lying.

"Jizya", btw, is an EXTORTION tax paid to Moslems by believers from other religions. (See Qur'an quote above)

"ASIA/PAKISTAN - Attack in the Christian area: one victim and two injured in Karachi," from Agenzia Fides, August 31 (thanks to Benedict): Karachi (Agenzia Fides) - The young Christian Faisal Masih was killed two days ago in shots fired in the attack of an Islamic extremist group in the Christian suburb of Essa Nagri, on the outskirts of Karachi. This is confirmed by Fr. Mario Rodrigues, a priest in Karachi and Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Pakistan. As he explains to Fides, in the area, densely populated, there are about 50,000 Christians, in conditions of extreme poverty and lack of basic services. In the suburb of Essa Nagri there are about 15 churches of various denominations and various NGOs working with projects of education, social and economic support to the community. Among these, the NGO "Mission and Action for Social Services" (MASS), reported to Fides the latest attack against the community, already in past months subject to terrible violence and abuse (see Fides 27/3 and 14/1/2012). After the attack, which occurred on the night of August 29, a crowd of Christians staged a peaceful protest, but the police intervened to disperse the protesters, firing tear gas and seriously injuring Pastor Cornelius and another young Christian man, Shahzad Riaz, both in hospital.

As stated by MASS, "the police, instead of arresting the perpetrators of the attack, arrested dozens of Christian demonstrators." In Essa Nagri Christians are harassed by criminal gangs and Islamic terrorist groups of ethnic Pashtuns: armed to the teeth, the militants enter the area to collect the "Jizya" (the tax imposed, according to the sharia, on the non-Muslim minorities), and extort money from the Christian merchants. MASS activists have been denouncing for a long time continuous robberies, violence and abuses committed under the cover of some Police officials. Militants raid houses, steal and abuse women and children for fun. The local population is terrorized and residents, exasperated, have decided to form their militia of security to defend themselves. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 31/08/2012)

 

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

Attacks On Christians Have Been Heavy Lately

...read about it here

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

Nigeria: Muslims Attack Two Churches, Murdering Three and Wounding Dozens

From Jihad Watch:

The Islamic supremacist group Boko Haram has claimed responsibility. Will the Islamophobia never end? (tongue in cheek!)

"Two churches in Nigeria attacked by gunmen and suicide bomber," by Ahmed Saka for the Associated Press, June 10 (thanks to Pamela Geller):

A suicide car bomber detonated his explosives Sunday outside a church in central Nigeria as gunmen attacked another church in the nation's northeast, killing at least three people and wounding dozens of others in the latest religious violence in a country under increasing assault by a radical Islamist sect, witnesses said.

In Jos, a city on the uneasy dividing line between Nigeria's largely Muslim north and Christian south, the suicide car bomber drove into the compound of the Evangelical Church Winning All chapel in the city, said Mark Lipdo, who runs a Christian advocacy group called the Stefanos Foundation. The explosion killed two worshippers and the suicide bomber, while wounding more than 40 others, a senior police officer at the scene told The Associated Press. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity as the information was not to be immediately released to journalists.

The officer warned others likely could die as they suffered grave injuries.

Meanwhile in Biu, a city in northeast Nigeria's Borno state, gunmen opened fire during a service at an EYN church, an acronym that means "Church of the Brethen in Nigeria" in the local Hausa language of Nigeria's north, witnesses said. An usher at the church was killed while others were injured, said the Rev. Samson Bukar, a local Christian leader.

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

Sign The Online Petition To Free Asia Bibi

ISRAEL: Christian Church Evicted

Pastor Steven Khoury of Holy Land Missions in Jerusalem recently received a 30-day notice of eviction from the owner of the building where his church currently worships.

"The pressure from the Muslim community is so strong that the landlord is given no other choice but to do this," Khoury wrote in a letter to The Voice of the Martyrs. "With just 30 days left to move a church community, another Band-Aid solution of renting a place is not a viable solution. Our church community needs permanent roots."

In response to the eviction notice, the Holy Land Missions community immediately entered a time of fasting and prayer, and Khoury has increased his efforts to find a permanent church home.

The church has been vandalized over the years, and church members have been physically attacked on several occasions. Despite this, the church has grown. Attendance has increased so much that worshippers now stand in the hallways to hear the gospel.

Pastor Khoury asks for our prayers as they seek a new location for their church. Pray for God's provision and protection.

Pray that the church will continue to be a light in the darkness, drawing many more to faith in Christ.

"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you." 1 Peter 5:8-10

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

SOMALIA: Christian Killed by Unidentified Gunmen

On May 6, unidentified gunmen killed 27-year-old "Aaban" near his home in the city of Jawhar, Middle Shabelle, according to VOM contacts.

Although the motive for Aaban's murder is unknown, local believers strongly suspect he was killed because of his faith in Christ. Aaban converted to Christianity from Islam three years ago. VOM contacts report that Aaban's family was unaware of his conversion and that he was given a Muslim burial.

The militant Muslim group al-Shabab controls the city of Jawhar. A 25-year-old woman was abducted by al-Shabab extremists there in June 2010 and never heard from again.

In January 2012, al-Shabab extremists beheaded believer Zakaria Hussein Omar near Mogadishu. Before his killing, a friend had said, "We have been communicating with Omar, and he was sharing with me his life as a Christian. Last year he [told] me that his life was in danger."

Sources: VOM contacts and Compass Direct News

Please pray for the safety and protection of believers in Somalia and that God will provide new ways of spreading the gospel. Pray for Aaban's family in their time of loss, and pray that they and other Muslims will come to faith in Christ.

"This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. Through the LORD's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:21.23

The Voice of the Martyrs assists pastors in areas of intense persecution in the Horn of Africa.

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

NIGERIA: Christians Attacked in Kano's Bayero University

Unknown gunmen killed about 17 Christian worshipers on Sunday morning, Apr. 29, at Bayero University in Kano, according to VOM contacts.

Eyewitnesses said the gunmen arrived on motorbikes and in a car, then began hurling small homemade explosives into a lecture theater and sports complex where worshipers were gathered. The gunmen reportedly opened fire as worshipers fled the explosives. In addition to the 17 Christians killed, two professors were killed and about 22 people were injured.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Islamist militant group Boko Haram is suspected. On Jan. 20, 2012, Boko Haram carried out a coordinated series of attacks in Kano that killed about 186 people. The chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Kano, Bishop Ransome Bello, described the attack as "barbaric and condemnable," but he added that Christians will not retaliate.

"We don't encourage Christians to rise up in attack. Our best weapon of defense is prayers."

Please pray for the families of those killed and for those injured in the attacks. Pray that the Nigerian government will take measures to protect Christians and bring the terrorists to justice.

"Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you, and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men; for not all have faith." 2 Thessalonians 3:1.2

VOM supports hundreds of Nigerian pastors who continue to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ despite persecution. In addition, VOM provides food, clothing and medical aid to Nigerian Christians who are attacked by Muslim extremists.

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VIETNAM: New Believers Expelled from Villages

According to VOM contacts, several Hmong families have been forced to leave their villages in northern Vietnam after coming to faith in Jesus. There are no Christians living in these villages because converts to Christianity are immediately expelled. In one northern province, 13 individuals from three families converted to Christianity after experiencing miracles through the prayers of a Hmong Christian. Family members who had suffered from physical and mental illnesses were healed of their infirmities after the Christian prayed for them. But after converting to Christianity, the families were no longer welcome in their village. In another northern province, a village leader forced a Christian family of eight to leave their home. The family now has no land to farm, and they are struggling to make a living. This family of new believers also came to Christ through the witness of a Hmong Christian.

Please pray for these families who have lost everything to follow Christ. Ask the Lord to supply all their needs according to his riches in glory and to sustain their faith in the midst of adversity. Pray that God will open the hearts and minds of thevillage leaders to the gospel.

"We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed." 2 Corinthians 4:8-9

Some ways that VOM provides assistance to Vietnamese believers is by providing Bibles, shortwave radios, Christian literature and support for families of prisoners.

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

Saudi cleric issues fatwa to demolish Christian Churches in Arabia

Reported by the Washington Times: Bill Gertz, April 6, 2012

Saudi Arabia’s top Muslim leader recently issued a religious decree calling for all Christian churches on the Arabian peninsula to be demolished, a move that elicited protests from the U.S. government and undermines recent efforts in the kingdom to promote interfaith tolerance.

Saudi Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz Al al-Shaikh issued the fatwa, or Muslim religious decree, on March 11, although government-controlled media in the country so far have not reported it.

A U.S. official said the mufti’s fatwa is causing embarrassment for King Abdullah because al-Shaikh is said to be closely aligned to the king and ruling royal family.

Some observers note that the fatwa could put the mufti at odds with the monarch.

Also, King Abdullah recently sought to develop interfaith dialogue centers in Europe. The anti-Christian edict is undermining those efforts.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton raised the issue of the fatwa during a meeting with the king March 30.
A State Dept. official declined to comment when asked if the fatwa was raised during the meetings, but said “issues of religious freedom and tolerance were raised in the secretary’s bilateral meetings in Riyadh.”

According to State Department officials who briefed reporters on the March 30 meeting between Clinton and the king, Clinton discussed the plight of women in Saudi Arabia during her 1 hour and 40 minute talk.

The meetings included discussion of sanctions on Iran over its nuclear defiance, Syria’s revolution, Yemen, oil, and “reform in the Kingdom, including the role of women,” a senior State Department official said after the meeting.

According to Arabic press reports, the mufti made the comments to members of Kuwait’s parliament, stating that building any new churches in the Arabian Peninsula is forbidden under Islamic law. He then went on to state that all existing churches in the region should be demolished, according to Kuwait’s Arabic newspaper Al-Anba.

The comments followed a Kuwaiti government official’s call for ban on construction of new churches.

The Muslim cleric’s edict is likely to cause a further rupture with the West, which widely views Saudi Arabia as a breeding ground for Muslim terrorists. Fifteen of the 19 suicide aircraft hijackers who carried out the September 11 attacks were Saudi nationals.

According to reports from the region, Christian leaders in Europe have condemned the fatwa and called on Riyadh to explain the religious ruling.

Reuters reported that Christian bishops in Germany, Austria, and Russia criticized the cleric’s edict as a denial of human rights and religious freedom to millions of foreign workers in the Persian Gulf.
Archbishop Mark of Yegoryevsk, head of the Russian Orthodox department for churches abroad, described the fatwa as “alarming” in a statement March 20. The criticism by mainstream Christian leaders of their Islamic counterparts is rare.

Austrian bishops also asked the Saudi government to explain the fatwa because of King Abdullah’s plans to open a center for interfaith dialogue in Austria.

The grand mufti is the most senior religious law official in the Sunni Muslim kingdom. He also heads the Supreme Council of Ulema, or Islamic scholars, and the Standing Committee for Scientific Research and Issuing of Fatwas.

The mufti’s remarks followed an announcement on Twitter by Kuwaiti parliamentarian Osama Al-Munawer that he planned to submit a draft law that would ban all churches in the country.
Al-Munawer later clarified the comment by saying existing churches should be permitted to remain but that a ban should be imposed on the building of new, non-Islamic houses of worship.

The banning of Christian churches and destruction of the existing ones would represent a more extreme form of Islam than existed in the past when Christians and Jews were free to practice their faith openly in the region.

There are large numbers of Christians in Egypt and Lebanon.

Hardline Islamists are demanding that only Islam be allowed in the region.

The State Department’s annual report on religious liberty said there were no comprehensive numbers of Christians in Saudi Arabia, but that at least 1 million Roman Catholics reside in the country, mainly among the estimated 12 million foreign workers.

“Freedom of religious assembly is severely limited [in Saudi Arabia], because the government does not allow individuals to publicly assemble based on religious affiliation,” the most recent State Department religious freedom report says. “This freedom is also limited in other ways, including the government’s hindering of the establishment and maintenance of non-Sunni places of worship.”

Additionally, the report said, “Sunni clerics, who received government stipends, occasionally used anti-Semitic, anti-Christian, and anti-Shiite language in their sermons.”

The report also noted that the government’s official policy of allowing private religious worship for all, including non-Muslims, is not followed in practice.

Photo: Associated Press

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

TESTIMONY OF FAWZI AND NADIRA

Dear Friends:

Thank you for joining us in praying for and supporting
persecuted Christians around the world.

Our contacts in Pakistan recently learned of an evangelist and his wife who were forced to flee their village. "Fawzi" and his wife, "Nadira," have been through tremendous struggles, yet their faith and commitment to Christ remain strong. We want to share their story with you.

Before they gave their lives to Jesus in 2006, Fawzi and Nadira were both Muslims living in a majority Muslim village. After they became Christians, Fawzi, a farmer, continued to work for a Muslim landlord. For years he and Nadira actively ministered to others, offering their home for prayer meetings and sharing the gospel. In the daytime Fawzi worked in the field, and in the evening he visited and prayed with local Christian families.

Fawzi often rode his bicycle to neighboring Muslim villages to share the gospel and pray with the few Christian families living there. Many people whom Fawzi prayed for were healed of illnesses.

In 2009, a Muslim man asked Fawzi to come and pray for his sick mother. When local Muslim leaders learned that Fawzi was visiting and praying for Muslims, they were infuriated. Fawzi expected the Muslims leaders to make his life difficult, but, in faith, he committed himself daily to sharing God's Word. The Muslim leaders and other fanatical Muslims began harassing Fawzi, blocking his way when he tried to attend prayer meetings. He was beaten seven times and once was forced to cut wood all night in the forest.

In September 2009, several Muslims showed up at Fawzi's house. Fawzi gave his Bible to his 7-year-old nephew and said, "Today they will kill me; please hold my Bible and keep it with you." At gunpoint, one of the Muslims told Fawzi, "Today I will shoot you if you don’t accept Prophet Muhammad as the true prophet." Fawzi replied, "I cannot do this. If you want to shoot me, do it. I will accept being killed, happily, but remember if this is not from Heaven, you cannot kill me."

Rather than shooting Fawzi, the Muslims filed a false robbery report against him. The police arrested him and held him for 13 days, and the Muslim leader paid the police to beat Fawzi until he returned to Islam. Every day, the police hit the bottom of his feet with sticks, dragged him across the room by his beard and lashed his back and buttocks with a leather strap. He was told the beatings would stop if he would accept Islam, but Fawzi remained firm in his faith.

When the police realized that their efforts were futile, they registered the false robbery report and sent Fawzi to the district jail in another city in October 2009. Fawzi's wife, Nadira, borrowed money from relatives to hire a lawyer, and Fawzi was released on bail in January 2010.

Nadira was joyful to have her husband home, but her joy was short-lived. That evening the village leader came and forced them out of their home, telling Fawzi, "Today if you don't leave this village I will shoot you and your wife. Get out of here."

The couple fled with only the clothes on their backs and $2 in their pocket, leaving behind their home and all their possessions. They spent the night at a friend's home in a nearby village, but the friend asked them to leave the next day because he feared the village leader.
Fawzi and Nadira knew that God would provide their needs, but they didn't know how or where. They walked several miles to another village, and as they sat to rest on a footpath they saw a man with a donkey cart approaching. The man stopped and asked them, "Who are you? Do you need help?" Tearfully, Fawzi thanked the Lord and shared his testimony. The man, "Saleem Masih," was a Christian. He took them into his home and offered to let them stay in a small, sparsely furnished house nearby until they could get their own place.

Saleem Masih and his family prayed faithfully with Fawzi and Nadira and also provided food for them when they had nothing to eat. The couple regularly attends a local church, and Fawzi still has a strong desire to grow in and share God's Word.

The last two years have been a test of faith for this precious couple. Nadira has emotional scars, and Fawzi has difficulty finding steady work because of illness and chronic pain from the beatings. He struggles to keep food on the table and purchase medication for his physical problems. In addition, he attends court hearings every month on his robbery charge, but the case has not been settled.

Christians often face hostility in Pakistan. Muslim extremists consider Christians "kafirs" (infidels) and "churas" (sweepers), treating them as third-class citizens. Muslim hairdressers will not cut the hair of a Christian, and local eateries keep separate utensils for Christians. In schools, Christian students have to wait until Muslim students finishing drinking water before they can drink. Local Christians are fearful and do not dare plan an activity without permission from the Muslims.

Please remember Fawzi and Nadira in your prayers, and thank God for providing for them through his servant Saleem Masih. VOM is also providing assistance to the couple, including physical therapy and medication for Fawzi. In addition, VOM purchased a rickshaw for the couple so they will have a source of income and Fawzi can continue his ministry. Both are receiving trauma counseling to help restore their spiritual and emotional health and further strengthen their relationship with the Lord.

Thank you for your faithful service to the persecuted church. We are only able so assist believers like Fawzi and Nadira because of faithful partners like you. May God pour out His abundant blessings on all your efforts to glorify Him in your life and work.

VOM Staff

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

NIGERIA: Terror Group "Enjoys" Killing Christians

In January alone, Boko Haram struck 21 times, killing more than 250 people in Nigeria. Almost 1,000 have died in recent months in multiple terror attacks around the country. In the group's deadliest strike to date, Boko Haram killed 185 people in a string of coordinated attacks in Kano on Jan. 20. A Boko Haram spokesman has declared war on Nigeria's government, the security services and the country's Christians, stating in an online video release, "I enjoy killing anyone that God commands me to kill the way I enjoy killing chickens and rams."

VOM contacts reported that suspected Boko Haram members bombed a police station in Gombe on Feb. 24 that left 14 dead. In addition, the Church of Christ in Nigeria (COCIN) in Jos was bombed on Feb. 26. Four people were confirmed killed and more than 50 were hospitalized.

Some Christian neighborhoods are taking measures to defend themselves. Others rely solely on God for protection and take comfort in his Word.

Source: CBN & VOM Contacts

Pray for God's divine intervention in Nigeria and for his protection of Christians there. Pray that President Goodluck Jonathan will take action on their behalf and that the terrorists will repent and be saved.

"My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord--that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful." James 5:10-11

VOM supports hundreds of Nigerian pastors who continue to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ despite persecution. In addition, VOM provides food, clothing and medical aid to Nigerian Christians who are attacked by Muslim extremists.

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer

Nigeria: Believers Gunned Down "while their eyes were closed in prayer"

From the Article ...

First-hand report of a native missionary ministry leader supported by Christian Aid.

Thank God for His grace and mercy. Today, we buried Jacob Eloiyi, one of our ministry supporters who was killed by Islamic terrorists. The funeral was highly attended by believers, and we prayed for the peace of our city and Nigeria. Continue to pray with us as we trust the Lord that all will be well. It seems we are more peaceful for now even though three people were shot yesterday in a beer parlor."

I received this message on 16 January from an indigenous missionary ministry leader supported by Christian Aid. He had called me late at night on 6 January to ask for prayer. He and his family were behind locked doors with others from the ministry, keeping vigil so they would not be slaughtered in their sleep.

"We could never have imagined what would happen next when those two buses drove into town filled with Boko Haram Muslim fanatics. Authorities did nothing, and the next day, two of their young men on a motor cycle sped toward the Christ Apostolic church, raised their AK47's, and coldly and brazenly opened fire on believers gathered for prayer. Twelve people were killed, openly gunned down in daylight, while their eyes were closed in prayer. Twelve died, including three Christian brothers who support our missionary work. Anyone could be a target as it is now. We have no weapon but prayer, and we want you to join with us as the Lord and His kingdom are attacked."

Read the rest here ...

A Voice of the Martrys Volunteer

Nigerian Christians Warn of Campaign of "Religious Cleansing" Against Them

Most people, especially in the West, are unaware that religious persecution of Christians occurs on a regular basis.  If I wanted to I could produce at least 3 blog entries daily on legitimate cases of violence directed towards Christians around the world.

This entry comes not from V.O.M. but from Jihad Watch.

That is exactly what is going on. Boko Haram's ultimatum for Christians to leave northern areas has come and gone, and attacks have increased in frequency.

Boko Haram wants as wide a civil war as it can instigate, and thus a freer hand to push its agenda through slaughter. It wants to create a security vacuum to be filled with more Sharia, and a civil war would make the entire country hostage to the fulfillment of its demands. "Nigeria Christians liken attacks to civil war run-up," by Ola Awoniyi for Agence France-Presse, January 8:

The head of Nigeria's Christians has warned that attacks on the faithful that have killed more than 80 people suggest "religious cleansing" and compared it to the run-up to the 1960s civil war.

The intensifying violence as well as warnings from Christian leaders that they will defend themselves come at a crucial moment for Nigeria, with the country also facing nationwide strikes on Monday over soaring fuel prices.

The stark warning from Ayo Oritsejafor, head of the Christian Association of Nigeria, on Saturday came with at least six gun and bomb attacks targeting Christians since Christmas having killed more than 80 people.

Attacks have seen victims gunned down while their eyes were closed in prayer in church, caught up in a gruesome bomb blast while leaving Christmas services and shot while gathering to mourn the death of a friend.

In the latest violence, residents said gunmen shot dead three people believed to be Christians as they were playing poker on Saturday night in the northeastern town of Biu.

Islamist group Boko Haram has claimed most of the violence, which has sparked fears of a wider religious conflict in a country whose 160 million population is roughly divided between a mainly Muslim north and predominantly Christian south.

A purported spokesman for the group a week ago gave Christians living in the north a three-day ultimatum to leave the region. In claiming subsequent attacks, the spokesman said they were in response to the ultimatum.

At mass on Sunday in the capital Abuja, worshippers were frisked and made to pass through metal detectors upon entry -- measures that have been in place for several weeks.

In the economic capital Lagos, which has not been hit by attacks, churchgoers were told to be on alert for any suspicious movements.

Oritsejafor said on Saturday that Christians would defend themselves, though he added that he was not advocating reprisals.

An emergency meeting of church heads concluded "that the pattern of these killings does suggest to us a systematic ethnic and religious cleansing," he said.

The ethnic groups are being targeted because of their religion.

"We are reminded by the occurrences of these killings of the genesis of the civil war that took place here in Nigeria."...

A Voice of the Martyrs Volunteer