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Today’s News Headlines:

POLICE RELEASE TRAUMATIZED WITNESS TO MASSACRE IN PAKISTAN FAMINE THREATENS MORE THAN 6 MILLION PEOPLE IN ETHIOPIA HUNGARIAN CHURCH EXPERIENCES ‘REVERSE GENERATIONAL GROWTH’ IBS, SALVATION ARMY TO BEGIN TRAINING DISASTER RELIEF TEAMS CHURCH PLANTERS SEE POSITIVE SIGNS FOR CHRISTIANITY IN TURKEY PHILIPPINE MINISTRY MAKES PROGRESS ON BIBLE TRANSLATIONS, TRAINING

Today’s News Stories:

POLICE RELEASE TRAUMATIZED WITNESS TO MASSACRE IN PAKISTAN Just two days after Karachi police abducted Robin Peranditta from the grounds of the Sindh High Court, the traumatized survivor of last month’s deadly Christian massacre in the city was released from police custody on Thursday, Oct. 24. Peranditta, 27, gained his freedom after meeting with two individuals in an undisclosed location. They secured his release after being held in unlawful police custody for a month. Although the court ruled on Tuesday that Peranditta’s detention had been illegal and ordered his immediate release, a contingent of police from the Criminal Investigation Agency surrounded him after the hearing and forcibly re-arrested him on the stairs of the court building. The Daily Times reported that the police “beat up and abused his lawyers” when they tried to prevent their client from being taken away. The lawyers immediately filed a legal protest, accusing the police of contempt of court for defying the release order. Court findings made public at Tuesday’s hearing indicated that the Christian detainee had suffered “severe physical and mental torture” during his four weeks in custody. Peranditta was working as a watchman and errand boy for the Institute of Peace and Justice when its downtown Karachi offices were attacked by unidentified terrorists on Sept. 25. Seven of his Christian co-workers were shot and killed in the raid while an eighth is recovering from critical head injuries. (Compass)

FAMINE THREATENS MORE THAN 6 MILLION PEOPLE IN ETHIOPIA Famine is again threatening the African country of Ethiopia, says Beth Allen of Food for the Hungry, adding that the situation is similar to the food shortage in 2000. “There is insufficient rainfall going on in large portions of the country,” she says. “Authorities estimate that approximately 6 million people do not have enough food to eat. And during 2003 they estimate that the number will jump to between 10 and 14 million.” Allen is concerned that many donors are “Ethiopia-weary,” tending to ignore the situation. “What if God had turned His back on the people? We need to keep being merciful because God was merciful. If there was ever a time for Christians to come to the people of Africa, now is the time. The secular system can not take care of the problem.” (Mission Network News)

* Staff members at HCJB World Radio-Australia’s studios record Oromo language programs that are aired to 28 million speakers in Ethiopia and Kenya via shortwave from partner FEBA Radio.

HUNGARIAN CHURCH EXPERIENCES ‘REVERSE GENERATIONAL GROWTH’ An 11-year-old evangelical church in Budapest, Hungary, is reporting the coming to Christ of three generations — only in reverse order. “About 50 young people came to Christ in the last seven years,” said the church’s pastor. “None of them had Christian parents. So the church was composed predominantly of young adults.” Then during the last year, through the life and witness of these young people, their parents began to come to the Lord. First one couple, then several mothers, and then more and more parents until they formed a second generation of believers. “We can now see some signs of a third generation coming to the Lord,” the pastor said. “But these are not the grandchildren, but the grandparents! This is so unusual and unnatural, but still wonderful to see the joy of the older Christian youth with the baby Christian parents and the grandparents becoming ‘prenatal Christians.'” The pastor said this reverse progression toward faith in Christ is one of the consequences of 40 years of communism. Many youth had left the traditional faith, but church planters are seeing increasing numbers of young people coming to Christ and then influencing the older generations. (Christian Aid Mission)

* HCJB World Radio recently signed a partnership agreement with Yes Radio in Budapest to broadcast Christian programs via the Internet. The ministry is also applying for a local FM license. A partner station in Oradea, Romania, also airs three hours of Hungarian programming to Hungary each week. Oradea is home to one of six stations in the Radio Voice of the Gospel, a cooperative effort of HCJB World Radio, Evangelical Alliance of Romania and the Romanian Missionary Society.

IBS, SALVATION ARMY TO BEGIN TRAINING DISASTER RELIEF TEAMS The International Bible Society (IBS) will begin training disaster relief teams next month in a collaborative effort with the Salvation Army called S.O.S. (Scripture Outreach Servants). Team members will provide spiritual and physical aid to people in crisis situations. Through the outreach, IBS aims to expand its ministry vision, develop more expertise in disaster outreach and share the hope of Christ with people in distress. “Together we desire to offer the hope and strength found in God’s Word to disaster survivors in appropriate ways,” says IBS Director of Outreach Sues Hyde. IBS will deploy S.O.S. teams in groups of four or five when disasters strike. (International Bible Society)

CHURCH PLANTERS SEE POSITIVE SIGNS FOR CHRISTIANITY IN TURKEY With less than 1,000 Christian believers among 67 million people, the voice of the gospel remains a “whisper” in Turkey, reports the International Needs Network. Yet there are encouraging signs as three church planters work among young Muslims in the Istanbul area. An innovative “Internet evangelism” project is also being pioneered. “Pray for a Turkish Consultation being held this month by a group of mission agencies there.” (Mission Network News)

PHILIPPINE MINISTRY MAKES PROGRESS ON BIBLE TRANSLATIONS, TRAINING A full-time missionary working with an indigenous Bible translation ministry in the Philippines is pleased at the progress made in recent months. Nida Guil-an Apang serves in the main office of the Translators Association of the Philippines and also ministers to the Cotabato-Dulangan Manobo people of Mindanao. This summer she and her team produced 17 “big books” for the children’s literacy program and created the curriculum for phase 1 of a children’s education program. They also conducted a two-week literacy teacher training program. The new books focused on the biblical account of creation. “We now have seven teachers who are excited to teach,” Nida said. “Pray for the believers and other workers there as many of them need encouragement and revival.” (Christian Aid Mission)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * James A. Ferrier HCJB World Radio U.S. Ministries Communications Director E-mail: Phone: 1-719-590-9800 Fax: 1-719-590-9801 Web: http://www.hcjb.org http://www.beyondthecall.org * * * * * * * * * * * * *

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