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Today’s Headlines:

DRUNK MOTORIST SHOOTS, KILLS FORMER ADVENTIST PASTOR IN GERMANY PRO-HINDU PARTY IN INDIA RETURNS TO FUNDAMENTALIST ROOTS COURT CASE SPARKS RELIGIOUS FREEDOM DEBATE IN MALAYSIA PROTESTANT CHAPLAINS PROMISE NOT TO PROSELYTIZE AT OLYMPIC VILLAGE CHURCHES CONTINUE TO MULTIPLY AMONG TRIBAL GROUP IN SENEGAL CHRISTIAN RELIEF AGENCIES MOBILIZE AID EFFORTS IN FLORIDA

Today’s News Stories:

DRUNK MOTORIST SHOOTS, KILLS FORMER ADVENTIST PASTOR IN GERMANY A former Seventh-day Adventist pastor was shot and killed by a drunk driver in northern Germany on Friday, Aug. 13. Arno Kuhn, 53, an engineer who had pastored a Seventh-day Adventist church in Hamburg, was traveling in his car with his wife, a daughter and a Swedish friend near Luebeck when a vehicle in front of them forced two cyclists off the road and sped off. After his daughter got out to attend to the injured cyclists — a pair of 13-year-old boys — Kuhn chased the driver. When he managed to stop him, the 41-year-old Polish farm worker pulled out a gun and shot Kuhn. He later died in a local hospital. The Polish worker was arrested by police and charged with murder. Police said he was under the influence of alcohol. He had stolen the car and two handguns from the farm where he worked. He claims to have had a “mental blackout.” Kuhn leaves his wife and three children ages 27, 14 and 13. Members of Kuhn’s church, established in the early 1970s, described him as a person who had a heart for the poor and underprivileged. They said it’s tragic that he lost his life as a result of “showing civil courage.” (Assist News Service)

PRO-HINDU PARTY IN INDIA RETURNS TO FUNDAMENTALIST ROOTS Following the defeat of the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in India’s national elections last April, Hindu fundamentalists have pressured the party to return to its nationalist roots. Activists from the radical Vishwa Hindu Parishad are convinced that the BJP lost the elections because it had softened its policies and abandoned the Hindu cause. Party leaders recently announced that the BJP would return to its “Hindutva” radical right-wing political roots. However, the party is now using the term “nationalism” rather than “Hindutva” to avoid alienating its secular allies in politics. Meanwhile, a report issued by the U.N. Development Program in July noted a rising number of violent incidents against religious minorities in recent months, saying this posed a grave risk to an otherwise “cohesive” nation. (Compass)

COURT CASE SPARKS RELIGIOUS FREEDOM DEBATE IN MALAYSIA Religious freedom has become a hot topic in Malaysia in recent weeks, sparked by a decision made in the Kelantan Sharia Court. Four Malay Muslims had originally applied to change their religion in 1992. Since all ethnic Malays are considered Muslims from birth under the constitution, all four were arrested and imprisoned for 20 months. The four eventually renounced Islam under a commissioner of oaths in 1998, hoping to sidestep the sharia (Islamic law) court system. However, they were then sentenced to contempt of court. Malaysians are now debating whether ethnic Malays have the right to choose their own religion under the terms of the constitution, the Koran and sharia. (Religion Today/Compass)

PROTESTANT CHAPLAINS PROMISE NOT TO PROSELYTIZE AT OLYMPIC VILLAGE The 45 Protestant chaplains ministering at the Olympic village in Athens, Greece, have signed an agreement saying they will not proselytize. These chaplains, all volunteers, make up nearly half of all the people working at the Religious Services Center at the Olympic village that accommodates members of all the major faiths. Malcolm Bradshaw, senior Anglican chaplain in Athens, described how, prior to the games, he found himself in discussion with the Athens Olympic Committee (ATHOC) regarding the role of the chaplaincy. “The authorities were only prepared to deal with established Christian churches within the country with which they had good relations. The idea of sports ministries from abroad coming in and doing their own thing was out of the question,” Bradshaw said. If chaplains begin propagating their faith, ATHOC officials said they would move the Religious Services Center outside the Olympic village, “severely limiting the chaplains’ work,” Bradshaw said. “We have to act responsibly, and anyone who doesn’t will lose their accreditation immediately.” (Church Times)

CHURCHES CONTINUE TO MULTIPLY AMONG TRIBAL GROUP IN SENEGAL The church is growing in large numbers among a specific tribal group in the West African country of Senegal, say CB International’s Glenn Kendall. Until recently, the Serer people were primarily bound up in an animistic religion, but now many are turning to Christ. “Experienced missionaries set the foundation for ministry with people coming to Christ,” he said. “Then you have key gifted nationals who are using culturally appropriate methods to help the church grow. And then you have external help from American Christians.” Despite the gains, much work remains. “While the church among the Serer people is growing at a rate of 15 to 20 percent per year, it’s starting from such a relatively small base that there are still many thousands of people yet to come to Christ,” Kendall says. In addition to evangelizing their own, Serer believers are looking to share the gospel with Senegal’s under-reached Wolof people. (Mission Network News)

* HCJB World Radio works in partnership with Brethren Assemblies and SIM in Dakar, Senegal, to make weekly Wolof Christian broadcasts available across the country on an FM network. More than 3 million people speak Wolof.

CHRISTIAN RELIEF AGENCIES MOBILIZE AID EFFORTS IN FLORIDA Christian relief agencies are mobilizing aid efforts along Florida’s Gulf Coast after Hurricane Charley, the worst storm to hit the U.S. in 12 years, blasted through the region on Friday, Aug. 13. The Salvation Army is concentrating its operations in the Tampa Bay area. Relief personnel and equipment from Florida’s panhandle, which suffered only minor damage, are also making their way to Tampa to reinforce local efforts.

“This is certainly a test of our resources,” said Kevin Smith, the Salvation Army’s state disaster director. As a national first responder to disaster, the denomination has mobilized all of its equipment, including 43 mobile feeding units to provide initial assessment and emergency relief in the affected areas. The Salvation Army also has set up mass feeding stations, refrigeration units, showers and sleeping trailers that could be used during any long-term clean-up efforts.

In addition to homes and businesses, many churches and other religious structures were damaged in the storm. For example, Warner Southern College, a school owned and operated by the Church of God Lake Wales, Fla., suffered extensive damage. College administrators planned to meet today to assess the damage and set a possible timetable for the opening of the new school year. The beginning of classes, scheduled for Monday, Aug. 23, may be postponed for a “few days.” The school is without electrical power and water as well as telephone services. The United Methodist Committee on Relief is also meeting today to assess the situation.

At Christ the King Lutheran Church in Punta Gorda, Fla., Rev. LeeRoy Martin put out a hand-painted sign advertising outdoor services on Sunday after the church was too damaged to be used for meetings. He set up folding chairs with a Bible on each seat. “You realize the significance of spiritual values when everything else is blown away,” Martin said. Some worshipers seeking a break from the chaos arrived in their Sunday best, others came in muddy sweat-stained shirts and jeans, but all sought to have their spirits lifted through prayer and fellowship. The 600-member First Alliance Church in Port Charlotte, Fla., was one of the churches destroyed in the storm. Despite the destruction, Rev. Scott Borden said, “I believe that God is at work, even in Charley.”

U.S. insurers predict that Hurricane Charley could be the most costly storm to hit the nation since Hurricane Andrew caused about $25 billion in damage to the Miami area in 1992. Florida officials initially estimated economic losses due to Hurricane Charley at $15 billion. With sustained winds topping 145 mph, it also killed 16 people and left thousands homeless. Meanwhile, another potential hurricane, Earl, has developed in the Caribbean and is headed toward Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Haiti and Cuba. It may also threaten Florida later this week. (Christian Emergency Network/Assist News Service/United Methodist Committee on Relief/Reuters/AgapePress) * * * * * * * * * * * * * 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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