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Today’s Headlines:

IRAQI CHRISTIANS FEARFUL AS VIOLENT ATTACKS CONTINUE TERRORISTS IN PHILIPPINES ARRESTED FOR KIDNAPPING, KILLING CHRISTIANS INTRUSIVE STATE CHECK-UPS CONCERN RUSSIAN CHURCH LEADERS MISSION OUTREACH CONTINUES AMID MONSOON-RELATED FLOODING IN ASIA BIBLE LEAGUE CELEBRATES 50 YEARS OF CHURCH PLANTING IN MEXICO GREG LAURIE CRUSADE COMBINES PREACHING WITH EXTREME SPORTS, MUSIC

Today’s News Stories:

IRAQI CHRISTIANS FEARFUL AS VIOLENT ATTACKS CONTINUE Continuing violence in Iraq despite the recent hand-over of power to Iraqis is taking its toll on congregations in this embattled nation. While reports indicate there are more than 70 evangelical churches working together to share the gospel with the Iraqi people, some churches are struggling. Lee DeYoung from Words of Hope says the ministry is working with five local churches through an indigenous organization. “The churches have seen some erosion in attendance and participation,” he says. “A number of people were seeking some kind of safety, and not all of them have come back. It seems as if there is interest at least on the part of some Iraqi Christians of leaving the country.” Violence isn’t the only thing that’s affecting believers. They’re also afraid that the new government will force Islamic law on the people, ending religious freedom. “It’s not absolutely certain that will be the case,” says DeYoung. “But that’s an understandable concern and fear that some Christians have.” Despite the difficulties, Iraqi churches are not dying. “They’re just going through period of turbulent change. Initially that has caused some people to withdraw. Whether that’s an ongoing trend, we can’t be sure.” Meanwhile, Words of Hope continues to broadcast the gospel to Iraq via radio. “Pray that the broadcasts would continue to be heard and that the messages would be relevant and powerful,” he says. (Mission Network News)

TERRORISTS IN PHILIPPINES ARRESTED FOR KIDNAPPING, KILLING CHRISTIANS Soldiers have arrested two senior commanders of the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf terrorist gang in separate incidents, including one in the Manila, officials said last week. Ibno Alih Ordo ±ez, wanted for murder and several kidnappings, was arrested Thursday, July 8, in the financial center of Makati where he ran a bus service for an exclusive school, Defense Secretary Eduardo Ermita said. Ordo ±ez was involved in numerous kidnappings, including the abductions of more than 50 Christian students and teachers in the southern island of Basilan in 2001. Several hostages were killed in that incident, including a Catholic priest who was tortured and shot in the head. Ordo ±ez was listed as the seventh-most wanted Abu Sayyaf leader with a bounty of 1 million pesos (US$18,000). In another development, troops nabbed an aide of Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani outside an Islamic library in the southern island of Jolo Sunday, July 4. Joselito Nasara, also known as Commander Abu Sophian, who is wanted for murder and kidnapping, surrendered without a fight, Brig. Gen. Gabriel Habacon said. He has been taken to the southern city of Zamboanga and is being questioned over possible links to the Jemaah Islamiyah regional extremist group. (International Christian Concern/AFP)

INTRUSIVE STATE CHECK-UPS CONCERN RUSSIAN CHURCH LEADERS In a throwback to the Soviet era, a local justice department in southeastern Russia’s Samara region is asking religious organizations to divulge personal information on all of their members, a local independent television station reported recently. “Everyone knows that the aim of the request was to get the names of parishioners in order to put pressure on them later,” said Vasili Lyashevsky, a regional Pentecostal leader who was interviewed on the broadcast. He contends that the request is part of the government’s plan to increase control of independent media and social organizations in Russia. “Many people just go along with it,” he said, citing similar requests by justice departments in the regions of Irkutsk, Perm, Tambov, Udmurtia and Yekaterinburg. The Catholic priest in Samara said he refused to give the names, ages and other details of his parishioners. Although a justice department official appeared in a Samara television program to defend the move, the justice department official in charge of registration denied the practice. (Forum 18 News Service)

* HCJB World Radio reaches across Russia with a variety of radio ministries. The mission has been sending gospel broadcasts across the country via shortwave since 1941, first from Quito, Ecuador, and in recent years from the U.K. In the early 1990s the ministry began “planting” local radio ministries in Russia and now works with partners in more than a dozen cities. In 2000 HCJB World Radio helped launch the first Christian Russian radio satellite network (operated by Christian Radio for Russia), reaching across Euro-Asia. Downlinks have been installed with more than 26 partners in Russia alone.

MISSION OUTREACH CONTINUES AMID MONSOON-RELATED FLOODING IN ASIA Ongoing monsoon-related flooding has pushed more than 2 million people out of their homes in northeastern India and Bangladesh, officials say. In India, the Brahmaputra River flooded its banks in what the chief minister of Assam state described as the “most severe flooding in recent years.” In Bihar state, roads and railway tracks were inundated. Nepal has not escaped damage either as landslides have blocked major roads leading to the capital. At least 36 people have died there due to flooding last week, and much of the rice crop in the impoverished nation has been affected. The low-lying country of Bangladesh has suffered most from the flooding with a third of the country affected and parts of one city submerged. Weather forecasters predict even more rain. Gospel for Asia is asking Christians to pray for people in these countries. GFA has thousands of missionaries, evangelists and church planters working in these regions. As missionaries reach out to the displaced people, GFA is trusting for opportunities to lead many to Christ. (Mission Network News/Gospel for Asia)

BIBLE LEAGUE CELEBRATES 50 YEARS OF CHURCH PLANTING IN MEXICO More than 500 Bible League-trained church planters from across Mexico gathered in Mexico City the last week of June to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the ministry in Mexico. The church planters have established nearly 2,300 churches in Mexico in the last 50 years. The church planters represented about 20 Mexican ethnic groups, many coming from the Oaxaca area. The three-day assembly brought together church planters who have been trained by the Bible League in the past nine years. The purpose of the event was to celebrate what God has done through the ministry and to encourage workers to continue the vision of evangelizing, discipling, and establishing new churches throughout Mexico. Daytime sessions offered continued training and encouragement to the church planters. Evening sessions were broadcast live on the Internet and on television via satellite to more than 25 countries around the world. Public worship services brought 600 to 700 people each night, filling the worship center at a large church in Mexico City. (Bible League)

GREG LAURIE CRUSADE COMBINES PREACHING WITH EXTREME SPORTS, MUSIC Harvest Crusades with Greg Laurie marked the 15-year anniversary of its outreach in California with a lively crusade that included extreme athletes and crowds dancing to contemporary Christian music. The daylong event Saturday, July 10, dubbed Southern California Harvest, was held at Anaheim’s Angel Stadium with exhibitions by motocross racers, BMX riders and skateboarders, and concerts by Christian music artists. However, the underlying theme was the simple message of God’s love and salvation presented throughout the day by Laurie. The evening program, called “A Night of Worship,” featured a message from Laurie, known for communicating the gospel in a fresh, culturally relevant way. An estimated 51,000 people attended the event. Of these, more than 3,200 dedicated their lives to Christ. The crusade was also broadcast live on the Internet with about 8,000 people logging on to watch the events. (Assist News Service) * * * * * * * * * * * * * 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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