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Religion Today Summaries a glimpse at news articles from around the world http://www.crosswalk.com/news/

Thursday, November 14, 2002

In Today’s Edition:

Muslim Mob Forces Closure of Indonesian Church Over 350 Vietnamese Churches Closed, Dozens of Church Leaders Arrested or Missing New Partnership Advances Bible Translation by a Century Student Christian Group Ousts Homosexual Leader

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Muslim Mob Forces Closure of Indonesian Church

(Barnabas Fund) A mob of over 100 Muslims stormed into a church in Bandung, Java on November 6 terrorizing Christians inside, forcing them to leave the premises and ordering them to close the church permanently. The mob, led by the chairman of the Mosque Security Council (FSDKM), pelted the building with stones before entering and desecrating the church. Police who were present did nothing to prevent the mob from entering the church. Church leader Rev Oloan Nainggolan has complained to the local authorities about their failure to take action against those responsible for such mob action. He also denied claims by the Mosque Security Council that the church had no building permit, stating that the church was built in 1990 with the relevant permits and the agreement of representatives from local groups. The Mosque Security Council are reported to have objected to six other churches in Bandung, so there is a real danger of other churches becoming the target for such mob action.

http://link.crosswalk.com/UM/T.asp?A1.15.8886.1.57307

354 Vietnamese Churches Closed, Dozens of Church Leaders Arrested or Missing

(Compass Direct) Information has been pouring out of Vietnam about a recent wave of government repression against Montagnard evangelicals in Vietnam’s Central Highlands. Documents acquired by religious and human rights workers confirm that 354 of 412 churches have been forcibly disbanded in Dak Lak province alone. About 50 Christian pastors and elders in this province had been arrested or have “disappeared.” It is expected that the remaining 58 churches in the province will soon be closed. In addition, church leaders were specifically prohibited from any further religious activity outside their own homes with their own families. All communal activities of the churches — worship, teaching, prayer for the sick, observing holy days, administering sacraments, performing baptisms, weddings, and funerals — were forbidden. Leaders were forced to sign statements of compliance. The United States Commission on International Religion Freedom in September recommended that the U.S. State Department name Vietnam as a “country of particular concern” — the worst category for abusers of religious freedom. Yet even seasoned observers of the religious liberty abuses in communist Vietnam are surprised at the ferocity in the latest persecution of Christians. http://link.crosswalk.com/UM/T.asp?A1.15.8886.2.57307

New Partnership Advances Bible Translation by a Century

(AgapePress) A new partnership agreement by two Christian ministries could speed the translation of the Bible by as much as a century. Earlier this month, the Southern Baptist Convention’s International Mission Board and Wycliffe International announced an agreement that could take the written Word of the Lord to un-reached people 100 years sooner than anticipated. Under the plan, the IMB will appoint missionaries to fill current and future needs for Bible translators, share more information about church planting and translation projects, and coordinate strategies for taking the gospel to un-reached language groups. Currently, about 3,000 language groups worldwide have no access to the Holy Bible. At the current pace, translations for all of them could not be completed until 2150. As many as 400 million people speak languages for which no one is trying to translate the scriptures. Wycliffe has 5,000 missionaries who have helped translate the New Testament into more than 500 languages, with another 1,400 projects under way. http://link.crosswalk.com/UM/T.asp?A1.15.8886.3.57307

Student Christian Group Ousts Homosexual Leader

A Christian group at an Iowa university has removed its leader because he recently announced that he is gay. Brad Clark, student body president at Central College in Pella, was asked to step down from his role of organizing worship services for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, the Associated Press (AP) reported. “He was basically asked to step down because he didn’t agree with our statement of beliefs,” said Betsy Loomans, a campus staff worker with InterVarsity, a nondenominational student ministry with chapters on more than 560 college and university campuses nationwide. InterVarsity’s Wednesday night worship service attracts up to 500 Central students each week. According to its constitution, the organization does not discriminate on the basis of members’ sexual preference but does consider the sexual orientation of its leaders, the AP reported. The decision provoked a review of InterVarsity’s constitution by the student government. After a lengthy debate, Central’s student senate voted 22-12 last week to continue to recognize InterVarsity.

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