WAS THE RECENT UK AGRICULTURAL CRISIS A JUDGMENT?

The Bishop of Liverpool, the Rt. Rev. James Jones, - speaking at Spring Harvest in Skegness - said he believed the present agricultural crisis to be a "judgement".. He added: Not that God is punishing individual farmers, but God is saying if you ignore the natural laws, then you are bound to reap what you sow. The tragedy is that it is the innocent who will suffer."

This principle of reaping and sowing can be seen, he said, in the current global environment and economic problems. "I believe the world is under economic judgement - 20% of the world indulges in 80% of the world's resources, while 80% of the world subsists on 20% of the world's resources.

The world is also under environmental judgement: we are polluting the air, the sea, and the land. In our generation we can see the landscape change because of the way we use and exploit the earth.

FAITH IN RADIO

INDIA: Himachal Pradesh state only has a handful of believers, and is known as the least evangelised state in the country. But as Tularam turned the dial on his radio and came across Gospel for Asia's Hindi broadcasts, he wanted to know more. "Ever since I heard the Word of God programme, my life has completely changed, and I have fully committed myself into Jesus' hands," Tularam wrote to HJCB World Radio. (Religion Today)

 BRITAIN NEEDS THE CHURCH

The Church is vital for the well being of Britain. So said the Bishop of Blackburn - the Rt. Rev. Alan Chesters - at a service in Lancaster Priory on Easter Sunday.

He questioned how much longer the nation would be able to meet its social obligations to the disadvantaged, while so many people ignored Christian belief. "For all its shortcomings, the Church of the Risen Lord has taken education, medical services, care for the poor - be they old or young - across the world, and is still doing so," he said. "The desire to transform life springs directly from resurrection faith."

The bishop asked how much longer without the motivation of the Christian faith, the country could "provide for young and old, for Aids victims and those addicted to drugs," and would have "the will to seek after justice and quality of life for all, let alone for those in the Third World. Though some may not admit it, the Church of the risen Christ is vital for the well-being of this nation."

3 EASTER DAYS THAT CHANGED THE WORLD

DAY 1 Palm Sunday

HOSANNA! As Jesus came near to Jerusalem, the crowd covered his path with their coats, and branches from the palm trees. "Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!"

DAY 2 Good Friday

CRUCIFY! The soldiers led Jesus away to the hill called Golgotha (the place of the Skull) where they crucified him. "Father into your hands I commit my spirit" He said this and died.

DAY 3 Easter Day

ALIVE! The angels said to the sorrowing women, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; He has risen!" Peter bent down and, looking into the grave, saw only empty grave clothes.
In Jesus is life, and that life is the light of men. The true light, which gives light to every man, has come into the world.

UNITED STATES-GUN CONTROL

Oklahoma shopkeeper Barbara Rhodes said that God foiled an attempted robbery. As she stared down the barrel of a gun, the robber demanded her bag several times, and at one point she heard the gun make a "click". Rhodes held up her hand and three times said: "I rebuke you in the name of Jesus." She then placed the magazine she was holding on the counter and started toward the door. As she got to the edge of the counter, the man fled, leaving her bag. She said: "It was the Lord that made him run away." 

FEARED FOOTBALL THUG IS NOW A PREACHER

One of Britain's most notorious football thugs has been born again as a church pastor. David Jeal, 34, fought rival fans across Europe during a decade of violence. He said yesterday: "Now instead of beating people up I help them. When I speak to young men about their problems I can really say to them there is hope. I'm living proof of that"

David was a member of the Bristol Rovers gang called the Young Executives. He was banned from home games for five years for sickening attacks on rival fans. "It didn't take a lot to set me off," he said, "whenever there was a fight I was first to the front. Violence played a big role in my life. That was my buzz - a good punch-up. But then I found God, and everything changed. The only thing that hasn't changed is my love of Rovers."

David now counsels vulnerable youngsters and drug addicts. He has written a book called "Heart of a Hooligan about his violent past. "Now my life has turned full circle," he says, "with the help of God anyone can change their ways."

WHO IS JESUS?

An average of 40 to 50 people a day become Christians after clicking on the words "Who is Jesus?" The words appear on a number of Internet sites, including the front page of http://www.crosswalk.com, as a link to the Campus Crusade for Christ site, which presents information on Jesus' life, claims about himself, miracles, and impact on the world. It's available in 130 languages. URL: http://www.ccci.org/whoisjesus/interactive-journey/ 

FAMILIES FLOCK TO THE CHRISTIAN FAMILY NETWORK

More than 1000 families across the UK have already signed up for a free weekly e-mail newsletter from fledgling resource Christian Family Network, within just three weeks of its birth...Read on

ON THE INCREASE

Evangelical Christianity is the world's fastest growing religious movement, researchers said. There are 645 million evangelicals in the world, about 11% of the world's population, the Unites States Centre for World Mission and researchers Patrick Johnstone and David Barrett said.

The movement is growing 3.5 times faster than the world population, and Pentecostal and Charismatic churches are growing 4.5 times faster. "That makes evangelical Christianity
the fastest growing major religious group and the only movement growing significantly through conversion." Johnstone said.
(www.ReligionToday.com)

"FATHER ABRAHAM HAS MANY SONS"

The Bible tells us of Abraham's two sons Ishmael & Isaac from whom the Jewish and Arab nations both arose. The following interesting article appeared in a recent "Christian Herald"
JEWS AND ARABS: GENETIC LINK......

"Researchers say they have found a genetic link between Jews and Arabs, adding modern evidence to the biblical account in Genesis that says the groups have the same father, Abraham.

Research published by the National Academy of Sciences, in the United States, reveals that Jews and Palestinians share a common ancestry dating back 4000 years - said The Associated Press.

Researcher Michael Hammer of the University of Arizona discovered that the Y chromosome found in Jewish men may go back to a common pool of Middle Eastern ancestors, including Syrians. Next closest in genetic affinity were Saudi Arabians, Lebanese, and Druse, a Middle Eastern Sect."

It Makes You Think...

Best selling novelist Fay Weldon has been baptised. Speaking of her conversion to Christianity she told the Sunday Telegraph: "To think of the Church as old-fashioned is a falsehood. There was a time when we felt we had to throw off the shackles and the belief systems of the past which were holding societies back and causing all the evil. But in this society now, religion is not causing evil. On the contrary."
And commenting on criticisms that she had turned her back on her feminist past, she added:
"Life goes on for a long time for everybody. You can be a feminist at one time of your life and religious at another, and there are no rules."
Former cabinet minister Jonathan Aitken, in his book - Pride and Perjury - on how he discovered the meaning of true repentance in the works of CS Lewis.
"Watching the sun rise over the Californian redwood forests, I thought I could sense the mystery of the divine presence somewhere close at hand."
He also had a "supernatural experience" at Sandwich Bay in Kent: "Suddenly, yet quietly, I became aware of someone else's presence on the beach. For a moment I thought I heard the crunch of footsteps behind me, but when I turned round no-one was there. But someone was - I sensed them, strongly at first, and then overwhelmingly."

GET OFF THE BUS

UNITED STATES: A driver in Snohomish County forced passengers off a public bus and into the rain for having a private conversation about God and religion. Passenger Kelly Smith is now suing the transport authority for discrimination. Kelly was talking to five-months-pregnant Michelle Shocks when the driver told them to stop discussing their religious beliefs. When they refused they were ordered off the bus at the next stop.

DEPORTATION DATE

SAUDI ARABIA: Sources in Saudi Arabia and India report that George Joseph will be deported to India in the near future. George was arrested in Riyadh on 25th June while he was carrying a video of a Christian meeting. He managed to postpone his deportation while waiting for the severance pay from his workplace, the Saudi Railway Company, where he had been employed since 1977. George will be deported after receiving his payment. He is currently being held at the Shameshi detention centre in Riyadh (Ramon Williams)

FAMILY LIFE STABILISES SOCIETY

Deputy Home Secretary and Minister for Young People, Paul Boateng, spoke last week of his desire to partner with the voluntary sector and faith organisations to work for the strengthening of family life.
"As a Christian, I believe in the sacrament of marriage." he told the Family in Crisis conference in London, but stressed that the conclusive documented evidence that marriage and the family unit provide the most stable foundation for society should be the basis for progress rather than moral issues.

Figures continued to show the damage done to children by marriage breakdown and the increase in domestic violence. "For some young people, the first stable male figure they encounter is a prison officer," he said. 

He emphasised that the Government was committed to promoting "a family-centered atmosphere" for learning. Parents would be consulted and involved in school sex education programmes, and pupils would be "protected from inappropriate material".

The conference, which featured speakers from the legal system, social services, marriage support organisations, the police, Christian community groups and others, heard the presentation of The Cost of Family Breakdown report, by the Family Matters organisation. It claims that family breakdown could be costing the UK as much as £30 billion per year, and makes a range of recommendations for supporting marriage and strengthening family life.

Discussion was chaired by Gerald Howarth MP from the Lords and Commons Family and Child Protection Group, and Baroness Young, who spearheaded the Lords revolt over Section 28.

Moves are afoot to form an alliance of groups concerned for the family to put concerted pressure on the Government.

SAVED AFTER THEFT

KOREA: God's Word caught a burglar. A middle-aged man in Korea made a living by robbing homes at night, according to Gideon's International. He sometimes would stay in an hotel and always stole the red Gideon Bible he found on the bedside table, he said. The burglar stayed in one night because it was raining and picked up one of the red books that were stacked in a corner of his home. Reading Matthew's Gospel he found the verse: "I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." He read the New Testament all night, asked God to forgive him for stealing, and professed faith in Christ, the ministry said.

FAITH FORUM

UK: William Hague and Ann Widdecombe will be the two most senior members of an extensive line-up of Conservative MPs that will host a policy forum with representatives of Britain's faith communities. The forum - on 1st November at Conservative Central Office - will be called "Values in the Twenty First Century". It aims to examine the issues of family life, religious schools, religious broadcasting, international development, and faith-based social action.

Fresh evidence that some unborn children may feel pain during abortion means that all unborn children should be given greater legal protection, believes the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC).
"Suggestions that some babies should be anaesthetised before abortion, or for abortions to take place earlier, completely miss the point," said national director John Smeaton. "The concern expressed by doctors and the public regarding foetal pain is related to our sense of guilt at killing a fellow human being. The scientific evidence is mounting to show that legalised abortion is simply barbarism."
SPUC also says that the anatomical structures necessary to feel pain are present in an unborn child before 10 weeks of foetal development.

MIRACLE PICNIC

LONDON: "A picnic would have turned into a tragedy, had God not intervened," reports London Jesus Fellowship . A youth fell some 4 metres out of a tree, landing flat on his back. Members of the Jesus Fellowship, based in the capital, prayed for him as he lay unconscious, and the way he fell made it almost certain that his spine had been damaged. It later turned out that he had miraculously suffered no broken bones, not even a scratch. He said that he felt his spirit leave his body immediately after he fell, but as the Christians prayed, Jesus appeared to him and sent him back to his body, at which point he regained consciousness.