FORMER KGB OPERATIVES SUSPECTED OF ATTACKING CHRISTIAN PUBLISHER

ARREST OF HINDU LEADER LEADS TO CHARGE OF ‘CHRISTIAN CONSPIRACY’

GROWING ANGER TOWARD FOREIGNERS IN HOLLAND COULD AFFECT MISSIONS

1,000 CUBAN YOUTHS GATHER TO CELEBRATE OPENING OF LARGE CHURCH

DOZENS OF CUSTOMERS FIND SALVATION VIA U.S. BANK’S ADVISORY SERVICE

* 160 DUMP DWELLERS COME TO CHRIST AT CHRISTMAS PARTY IN QUITO

Today’s News Stories:

FORMER KGB OPERATIVES SUSPECTED OF ATTACKING CHRISTIAN PUBLISHER A brutal attack on a Christian book publisher in Ukraine has underscored the high stakes struggle over human rights and religious liberty. On Thursday, Dec. 2, two unidentified men assaulted Stanislav Kasprov, director of the Smirna publishing house, outside company offices in Cherkassy. They beat Kasprov with a bat, leaving him bloodied and barely conscious. Although the attackers remain at large and their motives are unknown, evidence suggests that former operatives of the now-defunct KGB may have perpetrated the assault to dissuade Kasprov from supporting democratic reform. “Stanislav is not a timid person,” a friend said. “Whenever he is invited to speak, he clearly tells the Christian people that it’s up to them what kind of regime they will get.” (Compass)

ARREST OF HINDU LEADER LEADS TO CHARGE OF ‘CHRISTIAN CONSPIRACY’ The arrest of one of India’s most revered Hindu leaders has led to accusations of a “Christian conspiracy.” Jayendra Saraswati was arrested in mid-November and accused of conspiring to murder a temple priest. Hindu nationalist groups immediately launched protests and hunger strikes, saying the arrest was a conspiracy organized by “Christians and Sonia Gandhi” to defame Hinduism — a charge vehemently denied by Christian groups. Prosecutors say Saraswati admitted to arranging the murder in a “moment of weakness,” but devotees believe their leader is innocent. Lal Krishna Advani, chief of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, said he believed Saraswati’s arrest would lead to renewed support for the party. (Compass)

GROWING ANGER TOWARD FOREIGNERS IN HOLLAND COULD AFFECT MISSIONS The recent murder of filmmaker Theo Van Gogh, whose film “Submission” sharply criticized Islam, has angered the Dutch people. That anger has led to questions about the future of open borders in the Netherlands, a country that has gone from a nation of tolerance to one of division, says missionary David Boyd of Baptist Mid-missions. “More and more people are now saying, ‘Holland is just full, and we already have enough people who are not integrating. Let’s close the borders. Let’s force those who are here to integrate into our society and we can’t have them trying to take over.’ Holland has traditionally been a very tolerant nation, and it’s now taking a different direction.” Boyd says if the borders are closed, it won’t affect religious freedom, but it could affect foreign missionaries. “I have my questions about what it’s going to do for missions in the Netherlands, for instance, from the U.S. If a decision is made in parliament that the borders are closed, that will include all foreigners — Muslim foreigners and Christian foreigners.” (Mission Network News)

1,000 CUBAN YOUTHS GATHER TO CELEBRATE OPENING OF LARGE CHURCH More than 1,000 young people from eastern Cuba met in the newly renovated First Baptist Church of Moa on Sunday, Dec. 5, for a major celebration. They came from seven provinces that make up the Baptist Convention of Eastern Cuba. Elmer Lavastida, pastor of the Second Baptist Church “El Salvador” in Santiago de Cuba, said, “This gathering was a great witness to the community and a perfect opening ceremony for the church with the new sanctuary that seats more than 1,300.” The building was finished after a conflict with the government which finally approved the construction. Lavastida said the congregation of more than 800 held 24-hour prayer vigils for several weeks until the legal problems were solved so this was a “festival of joy and thanksgiving.” (Baptist World Alliance)

* HCJB World Radio continues to air Spanish programs to Cuba via shortwave from South America. Hundreds of listeners have enrolled in the ministry’s Bible Institute of the Air, a Spanish correspondence program incorporating radio broadcasts. In addition, numerous pastors’ workshops sponsored by Apoyo, a joint training ministry with Leadership Resources International, have been held in Cuba since the mid-1990s.

DOZENS OF CUSTOMERS FIND SALVATION VIA U.S. BANK’S ADVISORY SERVICE An unusual bank in the U.S. that emphasizes biblical principles and praying with clients has successfully concluded its first year in business. Riverview Community Bank, about 30 miles northwest of Minneapolis, takes care of more than just its customers’ money. Duane Kropuenske, the bank’s cofounder, says 69 people have become Christians through the bank’s advisory service. “I am a Christian, but in the 30 years in my profession, I had never prayed with customers,” he said. Since the bank opened, praying with customers has become something of a hallmark, added cofounder Chuck Ripka. Kropuenske. “People call us to ask if we are the bank which prays with its customers,” he said. The two partners founded the bank with the intent of following Christian principles. The idea of praying with customers came when a doctor whose loan came up for renewal asked the bank to pray for the hospital and its staff. (FridayFax/http://www.die-gemeinde.org)

* 160 DUMP DWELLERS COME TO CHRIST AT CHRISTMAS PARTY IN QUITO An estimated 2,500 people living in and around the city dump in Quito, Ecuador, attended an annual Christmas party Saturday, Dec. 4, organized by Extreme Response, an international relief agency and an HCJB World Radio partner. Of these, 160 people gave their lives to Christ and asked for a personal visit in their homes. This was the eighth annual Christmas party for Quito’s forgotten dump dwellers.

Attendees played games, made crafts and had their photos taken. A concert was also held featuring local Ecuadorian groups, violinist Trevor Dick and the 5th String Blvd. band from Canada. HCJB World Radio Missionary Alex Weir headed up a group of volunteers who shared one-on-one with people in the crowd. This group was sponsored by the Buen Pastor Church in Pifo, home of HCJB World Radio’s international transmitter site.

Extreme Response was also involved in three other events in the Quito area. The team served a Christmas meal to residents of the Zambiza dump near Quito on Thursday, Dec. 2. A smaller party took place on Friday, Dec. 3, at another dump called La Bota. More than 100 people there played carnival games, ate a snack and received gift bags. On Sunday, Dec. 5, the group held an outreach in the poor neighborhood of Argelia Alta where more than 2,500 attendees played games, made ornaments, had their pictures taken and received gifts.

Coordinating the events were HCJB World Radio missionaries Jerry and Dawn Carnill who helped found Extreme Response nine years ago. Also helping were more than 400 volunteers, some from as far away as Australia and Alaska, along with HCJB World Radio missionaries and students from the Alliance Academy, Cotopaxi Academy and Covenant Bible College in Quito.

“This has become an annual event where people from the U.S. get to really make a difference in the lives of the poorest of the poor,” Jerry said. “They share a Christmas celebration, but in reality they share something much more important — they share hope. These people are considered throwaways in their own society. There’s an incredible impact when we bring them music, games, food and a gift. But what I believe means more in this culture, is having people who have so much more than the dump people do, shaking their hands and throwing them a party.”

Together with Extreme Response, HCJB World Radio missionaries have an ongoing ministry of sharing the love of Christ to the poor of Ecuador. (HCJB World Radio)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * 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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