Biblical News

Thursday, June 21, 2007

Bush signs order for 'questionable' stem cells

Bush Signs Executive Order Encouraging Ethically Questionable "Pluripotent Stem-cell Research"

By John Jalsevac

WASHINGTON, D.C., June 20, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - While President Bush pleased pro-life advocates today by proving willing once again to defend human life by vetoing a bill that would have allowed federal funding for embryonic stem-cell research, he has also left them scratching their heads after he simultaneously issued an executive order in support of so-called "pluripotent" stem-cell research, which some argue is nothing more than embryonic stem cell research under a different name.

The scientifically complex--and consequently, seemingly morally muddy--source of stem-cells known as pluripotent stem-cells involves "reprogramming" adult cells to act like embryonic stem-cells through a process called "altered nuclear transfer" (ANT).

However, while many pro-life advocates have welcomed this type of research as a way to avoid the creation and destruction of embryos while still being able to reap the possible benefits that embryo-type cells could yield, other pro-life ethicists and scientists have argued that, as it is currently being practiced, pluripotent stem-cell research just amounts to the same thing as embryonic stem-cell research, except with a few more steps thrown in and a different name.

Arabs squat on Jewish property by Temple Mount

Arabs squat on Jewish property by Temple Mount
Strategic complex accesses entrance leading to Jerusalem's Western Wall
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 21, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – Arab squatters are living illegally in a strategic Jewish-owned apartment complex accessing an entrance leading to Jerusalem's Western Wall and Temple Mount, WND has learned.

The apartment in question was purchased by a Jewish organization that collects hundreds of millions of dollars in Jewish donor funds for the stated purpose of Jewish settlement.

The Jewish National Fund, or JNF, seemingly has done little to boot the Arab squatters from its property and has turned down offers from other Jewish groups to purchase the strategic apartment for Jews to live in.

The apartment in question is located just inside Herod's Gate, one of eight gates that access Jerusalem's Old City and the walkways to the Western Wall and Temple Mount. The property is about 3,300 square feet and is considered strategic since it comprises the archway accessing the path in the area to the Temple Mount.

The terrorists even terrorists won't talk to

Abbas rejects talks with Hamas 'terrorists'

June 21, 2007

PALESTINIAN president Mahmoud Abbas today delivered a withering attack on Hamas in his first public speech since the Islamists' takeover of Gaza, and ruled out any dialogue with them.
Mr Abbas accused Hamas of carrying out killings against his security forces "unprecedented" in Palestinian history and plotting its takeover at the behest of foreign powers.

He said the Islamists had given Israel an "excuse to punish an entire people" and even accused the group with which he uneasily shared power for 15 months of having plotted to kill him.

"It was a premeditated plan agreed between Hamas leaders in Gaza and abroad, with foreign elements from the region," he said of the Islamists' seizure of control in the territory last Friday after a week of ferocious fighting.

"No dialogue with putschists, murderers and terrorists," he thundered in an address to a meeting of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, of which he is chairman but of which Hamas is not a member.

Mr Abbas strongly defended his decision to dismiss the Hamas-led national unity government last Thursday and swear in an emergency cabinet at the weekend that Hamas has dismissed as an illegitimate lackey of Israel and the US.

Revived illegals bill 'security nightmare'

Revived illegals bill 'security nightmare'
AG's ex-chief immigration adviser says it makes life in U.S. easier for terrorists
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

The recasting of the Senate's immigration reform bill as national security legislation is a farce, contends a former chief adviser to the U.S. attorney general, arguing the plan offers alien terrorists easier ways to obtain legal status and carry out attacks on Americans.

"The top priority in this bill is extending amnesty as quickly and easily as possible to as many illegal aliens as possible," writes Kris W. Kobach, professor of law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and a visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation. "The cost of doing so is to jeopardize national security."

Kobach, former chief adviser on immigration law to Attorney General John Ashcroft, contends it's a "certainty that many more illegal alien terrorists are quietly at work in the United States."

Sunday, June 17, 2007

Want to see Porn? Free Pornography...is it a problem?

Do you think Porn is a problem? Are you tempted to look at porn?

Some people say Porn destroys family's & divides homes. Some people say it is perfectly okay to look, as long as you are not doing the act with a real person.

To fairly judge, we have to look at the source, the only true source...
(Warning...suitable for most ages!)

Then decide if you will pursue this sin, or walk away and cling to the Cross!

Islamic pressure in Paris forces evangelical congregation to vacate building

Islamic pressure in Paris forces evangelical congregation to vacate building

Chad Groening
OneNewsNow.com

After a long struggle against Islamic intimidation, an evangelical church in the outskirts of Paris has been forced to vacate the 1,000-square-foot facility where it had been meeting.

The Temple de Paris Church has been located in the Paris suburb of Bagnolet. Christine Thabot, the wife of the pastor, says Muslims have been trying to get rid of them since 2005, but local authorities had permitted the church to remain in the facility, paying 8,000 euros a month (~ $9,400 U.S.) in rent.

According to Thabot, the Muslims changed their strategy. "They attacked our owner this time," she explains. "They took up the case and [told him he was] not allowed to have this church open -- and on Friday we [were told] that we had to get out of our premises."

Thabot says Temple de Paris Church has been unable to secure another worship center. "For an evangelical or Protestant church, it is almost next to impossible to buy or to rent any premises," she says. "As soon as they find out you are a church, there is nothing open to us."

Thabot says many churches in the area have been closed and have had similar difficulties in securing new facilities. But she claims Muslims can secure property for building a mosque simply by paying one euro to the authorities.

Gays aim to expand Massachusetts 'marriages'

Gays aim to expand Massachusetts 'marriages'
By Cheryl Wetzstein
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
June 17, 2007

The defeat of a Massachusetts marriage amendment last week may re-energize efforts to repeal a law blocking same-sex couples from out of state from "marrying" there, warns the leader of a group that seeks to protect marriage in the U.S. Constitution.
The larger goal of homosexual-rights activists has always been to redefine marriage at the national level, said Matt Daniels, president and founder of the Alliance for Marriage.

If Massachusetts lawmakers repeal the legal barrier to marriage in their state, same-sex couples from across the nation will travel there, get "married" and sue in federal court to strike down any laws or state amendments in their home states that protect traditional marriage, Mr. Daniels said. The goal, he added, is to make Massachusetts' same-sex "marriage" policy "the new social norm for America."

Massachusetts has allowed same-sex "marriage" since a 2003 court ruling; however, a 1913 law blocks couples from marrying in Massachusetts if they cannot marry in their home states. Because no other state allows same-sex "marriage," this law has effectively restricted same-sex "marriage" to couples who live in Massachusetts.

On Thursday, the state legislature voted 151-45 to kill a citizen-supported amendment aimed at ending same-sex "marriage." Lawmakers are expected to move quickly to strike the 1913 law, Mr. Daniels said, adding that the Democrat-led Congress is unlikely to do anything to discourage the de facto opening of same-sex "marriage" to the nation.

Southwest Airlines stands by sponsorship of DC 'homosexual pride' event

Southwest Airlines stands by sponsorship of DC 'homosexual pride' event

Jim Brown
OneNewsNow.com

Southwest Airlines is defending its recent sponsorship of a homosexual pride celebration in Washington, DC, last weekend. The airline says it has no regrets about its decision.

Southwest Airlines and SunTrust Banks were among the corporate sponsors for the Capital Pride Festival, an event in which homosexuals took to the streets to demand what they call "full legal and social equality" -- namely the legalization of same-sex "marriage." The Family Research Council criticized the sponsors, arguing it was an "irrational business decision" to "put their name and their money behind radical homosexual activities."

State lawmakers coerced into derailing marriage amendment, says Mass. activist

State lawmakers coerced into derailing marriage amendment, says Mass. activist

A Massachusetts pro-family leader says homosexual activists "brought in the big guns" to lobby enough state representatives to prevent citizens from voting on a marriage amendment.

Massachusetts lawmakers have blocked a proposed constitutional amendment that would have let voters decide whether to ban same-sex marriage in the only state that allows it. The proposal, which sought to change the state's constitution to ban same-sex marriage, needed 50 votes to advance to the 2008 statewide ballot. It received only 45, with 151 lawmakers opposed.

BBC network admits it: We're biased toward left

BBC network admits it: We're biased toward left
Acknowledges failure to offer debate due to inherent liberal culture of staff
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 17, 2007
10:50 p.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

The BBC, the British Broadcasting Corporation, has acknowledged the network is biased toward the left, following a report commissioned by the company.

A yearlong probe revealed the corporation especially partial in its treatment of single-issue politics such as climate change, poverty, race and religion, according to the London Times.

"It concludes that the bias has extended across drama, comedy and entertainment, with the corporation pandering to politically motivated celebrities and trendy causes," the paper said.

The report cites the danger of BBC programs being undermined by the liberal culture of its staff, who need to challenge their own assumptions more.

"There is a tendency to 'group think' with too many staff inhabiting a shared space and comfort zone," says the report.

It notes staff tend to mimic each other's common left-leaning values.

Tancredo pulls plug on 'sanctuary cities'

Tancredo pulls plug on 'sanctuary cities'
Even Democrats throw support behind amendment to nix funds to local governments shielding illegals
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

The eighth time was a charm for Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., when the House passed his amendment to the Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill yesterday to withhold federal emergency-services funding from "sanctuary cities" that protect illegal aliens.

The 234-to-189 tally included 50 Democrats voting in favor.

"The issue has come to fruition," Tancredo told the Rocky Mountain News. "The people of the country really have spoken. It's a really good indicator of just how much closer to the people the House is than the Senate is."

Tancredo has offered the similar amendments at least seven times since 2004 and all have failed, some by wide margins.

The amendment passed yesterday does not include a definition of "sanctuary city." The Homeland Security appropriations bill now goes to the Senate.

Police Searching for Missing Pregnant Woman in Ohio

Police Searching for Missing Pregnant Woman in Ohio
Sunday, June 17, 2007

By Sara Bonisteel

Ohio police are searching for a missing pregnant woman Sunday after her mother found the woman's 2-year-old son alone last week in her Lake Township, Ohio, home.

Jessie Marie Davis, 26, of North Canton, Ohio, was last heard from Wednesday, when she spoke to her mother, Patty Porter, by cell phone, Stark County Sheriff Tim Swanson said. Davis is nine-months pregnant.

Authorities planned to canvas the neighborhood Sunday afternoon.

"At this point it's just very frightening because they don't have any actual suspects," said Jane Davis, the missing woman's sister. "They're just looking for any possible clues at this point."

Porter discovered her daughter missing Friday morning, when she found her 2-year-old grandson home alone.

"I said ... 'Where's Mommy?'" Porter said. "And he just said 'Mommy broke the table, and Mommy's in the rug.'"

Davis' house showed no sign of forced entry, but her cell phone, comforter and sheets were missing from the residence, Swanson said. Her purse and vehicle were found at the home.

"The mattress was partially off the bed and the nightstand was knocked over and the lamp was knocked over and somebody had poured bleach all over the floor," Porter said.

Jane Davis told FOX News that it appeared her sister had been missing for a day to a day and a half before her mother discovered the 2-year-old.

"She would never have left her son," Jane Davis told FOX News. "She is the greatest, greatest mother, and he is her whole life, and she would never ever have left him there by himself, even for a minute."

The father of Jessie Marie Davis' toddler and unborn child is a Canton, Ohio, police officer, her sister said. He is also married to another woman.

Both he and his wife, from whom he separated in February, have been questioned and are not suspects, they said.

"At this point he's doing everything he needs to do to cooperate with police to help us find her," Davis told FOX News.

Christian teen debaters think, speak on their feet

Christian teen debaters think, speak on their feet
500 homeschoolers from 34 states compete in national championship
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

BELTON, Texas – In stifling central Texas heat, and amid raging thunderstorms and tornado warnings, hundreds of well-dressed, well-coifed, homeschooled teenagers from 34 states competed in the national championships in debate and speech with top winners coming from as far as California and Virginia.

It was the culmination of a year of local and regional tournaments around the country for the National Christian Forensics and Communications Association – a growing organization producing articulate young citizens and highly sought-after recruits for some of the nation's top colleges.

The NCFCA debate league was founded in 1995 by Christy Shipe and her father, Michael P. Farris, head of the Home School Legal Defense Association, or HSLDA, and chancellor of Patrick Henry College. Shipe saw a need for a forum in which homeschoolers could participate in competitive forensics and collaborated with her father for a solution.

The solution took the form of a league specifically designed for homeschooled students, and was originally called the "HSLDA Debate League." The league was fathered by Farris' organization at its inception, but when it began to take on its own identity due to exponential growth, Shipe and Farris knew it was time for the organization to mature. It was separated from HSLDA and renamed the "National Christian Forensics and Communications Association" in 2001.

In the last five years, according to NCFCA President Michael Larimer, the number of participating families has tripled. The organization now retains over 2,000 affiliate families. As each family often contains multiple participants, the real number of competitors is closer to 5,000, with clubs and debaters located in 45 states across 10 regions.

Wrist slap for 'Have sex, take drugs' school seminar

Wrist slap for 'Have sex, take drugs' school seminar
But officials rebuff request from legislature for dismissals
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Some Boulder, Colo., High School officials have been given a "reprimand" for setting up and taking students as young as 14 to a seminar in which the children were told to "have sex, do drugs," but a request from the state legislature for further action has been turned down.

Helayne Jones, the president of the Boulder Valley District School Board, read a letter at a public meeting on the issue stating that "actions" were taken on the complaints the seminar generated, and several Boulder High staff members were given "verbal reprimands." In addition, a letter was sent to parents about the situation.

But the letter said no dismissals are contemplated over the seminar called "STDs: Sex, Teens and Drugs."

Requests for that level of punishment came from a number of parents outraged their children were subjected to the seminar, as well as members of the Colorado Legislature.

All of the Republican state senators on the Senate Education Committee had written to the school. "The minors who sat through this dubious discussion were subjected to the most dangerous kind of input any youth could get from a presumed authority figure: a green light to engage in destructive behavior," the letter said.

The senators said the production, a part of the Conference on World Affairs of the University of Colorado, was "a disgrace."

Sen. Steve Johnson, R-Fort Collins, signed the letter.

"This is ludicrous. Here we have a school that actually required students to attend an assembly where they were urged to try sex and drugs," he said. "Is that really the biggest challenge we face with today's youth – getting them to try sex and drugs? It's like the people in charge over there are operating in some alternative universe."

It was comments from forum panelist Joel Becker, a psychologist from UCLA, that sparked the most outrage.

"I am going to encourage you to have sex and encourage you to use drugs appropriately," Becker said. "Why I am going to take that position is because you are going to do it anyway," he continued. "I think as a psychologist and health educator, it is more important to educate you in a direction that you might actually stick to. So, I am going to stay mostly on with the sex side because that is the area I know more about. I want to encourage you to all have healthy, sexual behavior."

Lawmakers noted that majority Democrats in the state legislature have decided to impose a mandatory comprehensive sex education plan on students, but refused to adopt a Republican bill setting statewide standards for math and science knowledge.

British law threatening U.S. freedom of speech

British law threatening U.S. freedom of speech
Experts: Lawsuit by Saudi billionaire puts American journalists under foreign courts
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

The author of a U.S.-published book that accused a former Saudi banking executive of funding terrorism is battling a precedent that experts say could give any foreign libel law priority over U.S. free press and speech guarantees.

The case involving Rachel Ehrenfeld is one of the "most important First Amendment cases of the past 25 years," and its potential for damaging the U.S. free press is "not yet readily recognized," 30-year American Civil Liberties Union board member Harvey Silverglate told her.

Ehrenfeld, who has posted information about her case on the website of the American Center for Democracy, which she directs in its research of Middle East-based terrorism, told WND the situation is very simple, and very scary.

In 2003, she documented and wrote, "Funding Evil: How Terrorism is Financed and How to Stop It," that alleged Saudi Arabian billionaire Khalid Salim A. Bin Mahfouz helped in that pipeline of financing.

Rockets Fired From Lebanon Fall on Northern Israel

Rockets Fired From Lebanon Fall on Northern Israel
Sunday, June 17, 2007

JERUSALEM — Two Katyusha rockets fired from Lebanon fell on northern Israel Sunday afternoon, police and the military said. No one was hurt, but there was some damage, they said.

They were the first rockets fired from Lebanon since last summer's war between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas, when almost 4,000 rockets were fired at Israel.

Sunday's attack raised the possibility of an Israeli reprisal raid and a new flareup between the two countries. It came as Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was arriving in the United States for talks. In New York, an official with Olmert said the prime minister was briefed about the incident. "Israel will not succumb to this provocation but will monitor the situation carefully," the official said, requesting anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, indicating that Israel would not hit back.

The rocket attack came as a new defense minister, former premier and army chief Ehud Barak, was about to take over from Amir Peretz, defeated in a party primary election.

Peretz was convening military and security commanders for a meeting that was planned before the rocket attack. Security officials said they would discuss how Israel should respond.

One of the rockets hit a factory and the other hit a car. Channel 2 TV's Arab affairs analyst, Ehud Yaari, said a splinter Palestinian group in Lebanon was probably behind the attack, .

Southern Baptist split over politics

By ERIC GORSKI
AP Religion Writer

SAN ANTONIO --Folded into the Rev. Frank Page's wallet is a yellow scrap of paper with the date and time he is to speak with yet another Republican candidate for the White House.

He already has visited one GOP front-runner over breakfast at a country club and met another at the headquarters of a car dealership in his home state.

The South Carolina pastor seems taken aback by the attention, but he shouldn't be: He leads a large congregation in a state with an early primary and is president of the 16.3 million-strong Southern Baptist Convention, perhaps the largest single bloc of evangelical voters and a must-have Republican constituency.

Page, in an interview at his denomination's annual meeting here last week, said he offers his thoughts about salvation to candidates but never an endorsement. And he talks to Democrats, too. He sees the political courtship as a duty: The nation's leaders need to hear a Christian viewpoint, he believes.

But some Southern Baptists would rather stay out of politics altogether. A small but vocal number of pastors believe the denomination is too cozy with Republicans and too political in general. By flirting with the line separating good citizenship and a grab for power, they say, a denomination already experiencing flat membership risks alienating more people.

Others contend such talk might inspire Southern Baptists to retreat from the public square and cede ground on urgent social issues such as abortion.

If anything, the debate is likely to become even more magnified in coming months because no one Republican candidate has captured the conservative evangelical imagination - and all of them are trying.

Fleeing generals left men to their fate

Fleeing generals left men to their fate
By Charles Levinson, Sunday Telegraph

In the last enclave of Fatah-controlled territory in the Gaza Strip, special forces officer Abu Hassan steeled himself for death.

The 30-year-old Fatah soldier's ordeal during the 18-month power struggle with Hamas, and especially during last week's bloody civil war, opens a window on his Fatah movement's collective fate in the Gaza Strip. It also provides a glimpse into why the Iranian-backed Hamas won, and why the pro-West Fatah floundered.

His fears for the future, expressed hours before Fatah was ousted, reflected the apprehensions of many Palestinians in Gaza, concerned about what Hamas rule will mean. Having spent a decade in the Palestinian security services, the married father of two, preparing for a battle to the death, said he would have no place under Hamas rule.

He was talking to The Sunday Telegraph on Thursday, inside the Gaza City compound of Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president.

Two hours earlier, Gaza's once-mighty Preventative Security Services headquarters fell. Mr Hassan and his men arrived too late to assist their besieged comrades. He said he saw Hamas gunmen slit the throats of two surrendering officers.

"Once Hamas takes over we will have no place to live in Gaza. Even if we surrender they will kill us," he said, with bandaged soldiers from the week's battles standing behind him. "Our only option is to fight to the death."

Hamas wakes up to grim reality

Hamas wakes up to grim reality
ANNETTE YOUNG IN JERUSALEM

"GAZA is becoming the Mogadishu of the Mediterranean," said one Palestinian official who refused to be named. "People thrown off the rooftops of 10-storey buildings, Palestinians shooting other Palestinians at point blank, others shot in front of their families. So Hamas is in control but do they really think people won't forget what has happened given our culture of pay-back and revenge?"

Yesterday, as locals awoke to the reality of a Hamas-controlled Gaza, people were beginning to count the cost of last week's fighting. Some shops began opening, university students returned to classes and people nervously left their homes for the first time in five days.

With Israel having closed the Erez and Karni border crossings, and Egypt having done the same with the Rafah crossing, Gaza is effectively sealed off from the rest of the world, with its 1.5 million residents having no choice in the past week but to stay in their homes as gun battles raged on the streets outside.

"I still haven't yet been outside my building in the last week. None of my family has," said Professor Naji Shurab, a lecturer in political science at Al Azhar University. "All we did is sit in front of the television trying to work out what was going on as we heard gunfire outside.

"While Hamas has the ability to keep the gangs in control, that is not the problem. It's whether they will be able to ensure the hospitals have enough supplies, people have food and that salaries are being paid.

"And are they going to talk to the Israelis about reopening the border crossings to get aid in and also ensure that water and electricity is still supplied to Gaza?"

Yesterday, Hamas officials called on Palestinians to bring an end to the looting of Fatah military bases and homes belonging to Fatah officials.

In a scene which one bystander likened to looting in Baghdad after the fall of Saddam Hussein, hundreds of people swarmed through the unoccupied villa of former Fatah security chief, Mohammed Dahlan (now based in the West Bank), after his neighbourhood fell to Hamas, stripping everything, including windows, doors and flower pots.

"The battle is over. Hamas is in control of the streets but the main issue for Palestinians is to push both sides to understand that the only way to achieve victory is through dialogue and not with violence," said Ahmad Shawa, the Gaza co-ordinator for the Palestinian NGO Network. "But with the border crossings closed - which are our lifeline - we are facing a shortage of food and medicine and the situation is becoming more critical by the day."

Fatah gunmen storm West Bank parliament building

Hundreds of Fatah gunmen have stormed Hamas-controlled institutions in the West Bank, including parliament and government ministries, and told staffers that those with ties to Hamas will not be allowed to return.

At the parliament, the Fatah supporters chanted, "Hamas Out," climbed on the roof of the building and fired in the air. They planted Fatah and Palestinian flags on the building.

They also tried to seize the deputy speaker, but were stopped by employees. The gunmen planted Fatah flags and Palestinian banners on the buildings they had taken over.

Many government employees tied to Hamas had not showed up for work on Saturday, the start of the work week in the West Bank, after Hamas took control of Gaza in a military campaign. Apparently, the staffers feared reprisals.

A member of the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a violent offshoot of Fatah, said his group planned to take control of all Hamas institutions, in response to Hamas' takeover of Gaza.

At the parliament building, Fatah gunmen entered the office of Deputy Speaker Hassan Kreisheh and tried to grab him, but Fatah employees stopped them. Other Fatah activists took over the Education Ministry and the Prime Minister's Office.

In the West Bank city of Nablus, Fatah gunmen took over the Hamas-controlled city council and planted the Fatah flag on the top of the building. Fatah supporters also kidnapped seven Hamas supporters, and deposed a senior member of the Religious Affairs Ministry.

In the West Bank city of Hebron, Fatah gunmen took over offices of the Education Ministry and the Interior Ministry, warning Hamas-allied employees not to return to work, Al Aqsa members said.

On the first day of Hamas rule in Gaza, a sense of uncertain calm has descended the region following a week of civil fighting.

Graham: Wife Has Great Reception In Heaven

Graham: Wife Has Great Reception In Heaven
Ruth Graham Died Thursday

MONTREAT, N.C. -- Ruth Graham retained her beauty even in death and surely "had a great reception in heaven," an ailing Billy Graham told mourners who gathered Saturday to remember his beloved wife.

"I wish you could look in that casket because she's so beautiful," said Graham, clinging to his walker. "She was a wonderful woman."

Ruth Graham died Thursday at age 87 following a lengthy illness. Her husband's closest confidant, she was remembered as a spiritual stalwart and modest mentor who provided a solid foundation - both biblically and geographically - for her globe-trotting husband.

"The mama that we saw at home was the mama that the world saw," said their son, Franklin, who is now the head of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. He recalled his mother's headstrong and quirky nature, telling the crowd about the time she overcame a locked bedroom door by crawling on the roof, throwing a cup of cold water through his window to wake him.

"I thank you mama for your example, for your love, for your wit, for your humor, for your craziness," he said. "I love you for all of it and I'm going to miss you terribly."

After preaching to more than 210 million people around the world during a six-decade career, Billy Graham, 88, is largely confined to the couple's home in Montreat by several ailments, including prostate cancer and Parkinson's disease. He wasn't expected to speak Saturday but surprised the crowd with his words, perhaps spurred by the sight of his 19 grandchildren.

"God bless all these grandchildren. Some of them I haven't seen in a long time. Some of them I've never seen," he said, drawing laughter from the audience. "Lots of love to everyone, and thank you."

He wiped a tear away a before leaving the auditorium. Family spokesman Larry Ross said later that "the sense of loss is beginning to settle in on him." Family members will hold a private burial ceremony Sunday at the new Billy Graham Library in Charlotte.

Invitations target Raleigh with message of hope

Invitations target Raleigh with message of hope
400,000-plus issued as Greg Laurie crusade plans finalized
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Hundreds of thousands of people are being invited to hear from Harvest Christian Fellowship senior pastor and WND columnist Greg Laurie on their lives' purpose, God, and what happens after death, as final preparations are being made for Triangle Harvest 07.

An estimated 3,000 volunteers from more than 200 churches of all denominations are finalizing details for the first large-scale evangelistic outreach in the Raleigh, N.C., region in 13 years, when Triangle Harvest 07 will occupy Raleigh's RBC Center for three days starting next Friday.

"Triangle Harvest 07 has been more than a year in the making, joining local congregations together in a common goal to bring a message of hope to the Triangle community," organizers said. "Preparation for the three-night event has been an undertaking of massive proportions, with more than 405,000 event invitations and 35,000 bumper stickers being distributed, and more than 3,000 volunteers lending their time."

Hindu persecution campaign targets pastor

Hindu persecution campaign targets pastor
Beating leaves Christian in hospital, threats could keep him from home
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Another Christian has been victimized by a growing campaign by Hindus to persecute Christians, with a beating that left Pastor Pabitra Kata hospitalized and a series of threats that may, in fact, keep him out of his home, according to a new report from Voice of the Martyrs.

The Christian organization was founded in 1967 by the late Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, who starting their ministry smuggling Bibles into Russia in 1947, and publishes a newsletter that provides regular updates about attacks, and the steadfast faith of persecuted Christians in the modern world.

Various organizations have documented that there are about 200 million Christians in the world who this year will face persecution ranging from discrimination to death for their faith in Jesus Christ.

In a new report, VOM has documented the harassment and assaults on Pastor Pabitra.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

BREAKING NEWS: Billy Graham's wife Ruth dead at age 87

BREAKING NEWS: Billy Graham's wife Ruth dead at age 87

Mike Baker
OneNewsNow.com
June 14, 2007

MONTREAT, N.C. - Ruth Graham, who surrendered dreams of missionary work in Tibet to marry a suitor who became the world's most renowned evangelist, died Thursday. She was 87.

Graham died at 5:05 p.m. at her home at Little Piney Cove, surrounded by her husband and all five of their children, said a statement released by Larry Ross, Billy Graham's spokesman.

As OneNewsNow.com previously reported, Billy Graham said in a news release Wednesday that his wife, Ruth Graham, 87, who had been bedridden for months with degenerative osteoarthritis of the back and neck was, "close to going home to heaven."

"Ruth is my soul mate and best friend, and I cannot imagine living a single day without her by my side," said Billy Graham, who is 88 and ailing himself with fluid on the brain, prostate cancer, Parkinson's disease and age-related macular degeneration. "I am more in love with her today than when we first met over 65 years ago as students at Wheaton College."

Ruth Graham rallied briefly after she underwent treatment for pneumonia two weeks ago, but her health worsened because of her weakened condition. She celebrated her birthday Sunday and was alert, but slipped into the coma Wednesday morning.

News that Ruth Graham had fallen into a coma Wednesday came as Billy Graham announced that he and his wife would be buried in Charlotte, at the new Billy Graham Library, instead of at The Cove, a Bible training center near the Grahams' home outside of Asheville.

Terrorists claim CIA files seized

Terrorists claim CIA files seized
Documents said to provide details of U.S. intel networks in Mideast
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 14, 2007
11:50 a.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – Terrorist groups, including Hamas and the Popular Resistance Committees, have seized large quantities of CIA security files stored at major compounds of militias associated with the U.S.-backed Fatah organization of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, terror leaders told WND today.

The terror leaders claimed the files contain, among other information, details of CIA networks in the Middle East.

"The CIA files we seized, which include documents, CDs, taped conversations and videos, are more important than all the American weapons we obtained the last two days as we took over the traitor Fatah's positions," said Muhammad Abdel-El, spokesman for the Hamas-allied Popular Resistance Committees terror group.

The Committees has been accused of carrying out anti-U.S. attacks, including a 2003 bombing of an American convoy in Gaza that killed three U.S. contractors.

Hamas has the past few days taken near-complete control of the Gaza Strip, advancing on the vast majority of Fatah security buildings and positions in the northern, southern and central sections of the territory.

Abbas to Dissolve Palestinian Authority Government in Wake of Hamas-Fatah War

Abbas to Dissolve Palestinian Authority Government in Wake of Hamas-Fatah War
Thursday, June 14, 2007

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — President Mahmoud Abbas will dissolve the Palestinian Authority's government Thursday after fighting between rival parties Hamas and Fatah consumed the Gaza Strip and was expected to call for a state of emergency, sources close to Abbas confirmed to FOX News.

Abbas also fired Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, dismantled the Hamas-Fatah coalition and said he would form a new government.

Abbas is also considering early elections at some stage, said his aide, Tayeb Abdel Rahim, in a news conference. Abdel Rahim said Abbas may "return to the people" when circumstances allow.

Other aides had said Abbas was also planning to call for the deployment of a multi-national force. However, Abdel Rahim made no mention of that in the news conference.

Abbas considers the Hamas fighters who have seized control of most of the Fatah-allied security headquarters in Gaza to be an "outlaw militia," Abdel Rahim said.

Hamas fighters took control from three of the rival Fatah movement's most important security command centers in the Gaza Strip, and witnesses said the victors dragged vanquished gunmen into the street and shot them to death execution-style.

'The Gaza Strip has fallen'

'The Gaza Strip has fallen'
2 years after Israeli retreat, Hamas creating 'Islamic caliphate' in territory
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

TEL AVIV – Two years after Israel's unilateral retreat from the Gaza Strip, the territory today fell into the near complete control of the Hamas terror group, which now administers Gaza and its borders with Israel and Egypt.

A senior Palestinian Authority official from the Fatah party told WND today "Gaza has fallen. It's now Hamas land. We (Fatah) have lost."

The official said Hamas seeks to create an "Islamic caliphate" in Gaza and that it is expected to put former Hamas Foreign Minister Mahmoud Al-Zahar in control of the terror group's reign in Gaza.

Israeli security officials said they were "gravely concerned" about Iran's influence over the territory Hamas now controls.

According to Israeli and Palestinian security officials and Hamas sources, Hamas today took complete control of northern and southern Gaza and most of central Gaza with the exception of the main Fatah security compound in Gaza City known as the Ansar Compound.

Mother of Eight Planned Suicide Terror Attack in Israel

Mother of Eight Planned Suicide Terror Attack in Israel
The Religion of Peace?

by Hillel Fendel

(IsraelNN.com) Two women from Gaza - a pregnant mother of eight, and her niece, a mother of four - planned a joint two-pronged suicide attack in Tel Aviv and Netanya. They have been arrested.

The General Security Service (GSS) has released for publication that the two women were arrested 24 days ago as they left Gaza for the double attack. Precise intelligence information led to the thwarting of the planned mass murders.

The GSS says that the two women "took advantage of Israel's humanitarian policies, receiving a fraudulent medical permit to enter Israel."

One of the women, Fatma Hassan Zeck, 39, is the mother of eight children and is pregnant with her ninth. She worked in the Islamic Jihad employment office for women in Gaza, and was in regular contact with terrorist elements. She served as a coordinator between the Islamic Jihad terror outfit and women who wished to commit suicide attacks against Israel.

Three months ago, her niece Roda Ibrahim Habib, a mother of four, turned to her, and the two of them decided to commit a joint suicide attack. Zeck made contact with Islamic Jihad handlers, and the preparations began.

The two mothers took along some of their young children to the meetings with their terrorist handlers, at which was discussed precisely how the women would blow themselves up. The 19-year-old son of the older woman, an Islamic Jihad terrorist himself, was present at the traditional picture-taking ceremony, at which the women were photographed holding a Koran and a rifle.

The plan was for them to blow themselves up simultaneously in an area crowded with soldiers or civilians in Tel Aviv and Netanya. They were trained in activating explosives-laden vests, and Zeck was also trained in using a Kalachnikov rifle.

Mass. Lawmakers Block Gay Marriage Vote

Jun 14 01:34 PM US/Eastern
By STEVE LeBLANC
Associated Press Writer

BOSTON (AP) - Massachusetts lawmakers voted Thursday to block a proposed constitutional amendment that would have let voters decide whether to ban gay marriage in the only state that currently allows it.

The narrow vote was a victory for gay marriage advocates and a devastating blow to efforts to reverse the historic 2003 state court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage.

The proposal needed 50 votes to advance to the 2008 ballot. It got 45, with 151 lawmakers opposed.

Opponents of gay marriage vowed to press on, but Thursday's defeat after more than three years of sometimes wrenching debate could prove insurmountable. Any effort to mount a new ballot question would take years at a time political support in Massachusetts is swinging firmly behind gay marriage.

More than 8,500 same sex couples have married in Massachusetts since it became legal in May 2004.

'Tiller the killer' abortion charges coming to head

'Tiller the killer' abortion charges coming to head
Under pressure from pro-life groups, state moves toward ruling on charges
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 14, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

The results of yet another investigation into allegations a notorious Kansas doctor performs illegal late-term abortions will be released within a few weeks, officials have announced.

Just six months ago the first investigation was finished, and it resulted in then-Attorney General Phill Kline filing 30 criminal charges against George Tiller.

The state, which is under pressure from pro-life activists to move on the charges, will complete its second investigation into the charges against Tiller "by the end of June," according to a statement from Ashley Anstadt, a spokeswoman for current Attorney General Paul Morrison.

However, she told WND she could not release the details of the "ongoing investigation."

The pressure on the state has been mounting, because Kline, who was replaced in January by Morrison, had completed his investigation of Tiller. After having two judges approve the case, Kline had filed the 30 criminal counts against Tiller for performing illegal late-term procedures as well as failing to document the reasons for those abortions.

A series of moves by officials, including a prosecutor and a judge, resulted in those charges being dismissed almost immediately.

But producers for Fox News host Bill O'Reilly, who has aired several updates on the situation, were in Wichita recently to confront Tiller on a trip to a gas station about the allegations.

The segment aired Tuesday, showing Tiller commenting about the weather when asked about the late-term abortions he performs.

The segment on O'Reilly also discussed a videotaped statement from Paul McHugh, a nationally noted psychiatrist who was hired by Kline to examine redacted medical records obtained by the state from Tiller and deliver an expert opinion about the validity of the psychiatric diagnoses used by Tiller to justify post-viability abortions.

As WND columnist Jack Cashill has documented, those evaluations produced no credible evidence that there was a reasonable basis for the abortions.

The issue at hand is the late-term abortions Tiller performs. State law bans abortions after 21 weeks unless the mother's life is in danger or the pregnancy will produce "substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function," which has been interpreted to include mental health factors.

In the interview, arranged by Women Influencing the Nation, McHugh said the reasons cited by Tiller were "social," not "psychiatric."

"Some of them [the reasons] would be construed as trivial," he said. "A trivial one would be not being able to go to a rock concert."

None of the anonymous case files included a full psychiatric profile, he said. "There's a life at stake here. Much more serious issues need to be brought up, especially if you want to obey the Kansas law."

He said other reasons offered for terminating the life of the unborn child were that the mother was worried the offspring would not thrive, that the woman would have her future redirected, that she wouldn't get a good education after she had a child, that they would always feel guilty…

"These are not psychiatric ideas, they're social," he said. "There was nothing to back these things up."

Infanticide, Abortion Responsible for 60 Million Girls Missing in Asia

Infanticide, Abortion Responsible for 60 Million Girls Missing in Asia

By Sherry Karabin

There is a little-known battle for survival going in some parts of the world. Those at risk are baby girls, and the casualties are in the millions each year. The weapons being used against them are prenatal sex selection, abortion and female infanticide — the systematic killing of girls soon after they are born.

According to a recent United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) State of the World Population Report, these practices, combined with neglect, have resulted in at least 60 million "missing" girls in Asia, creating gender imbalances and other serious problems that experts say will have far reaching consequences for years to come.

"Twenty-five million men in China currently can’t find brides because there is a shortage of women," said Steven Mosher, president of the Population Research Institute in Washington, D.C. "The young men emigrate overseas to find brides."

The imbalances are also giving rise to a commercial sex trade; the 2005 report states that up to 800,000 people being trafficked across borders each year, and as many as 80 percent are women and girls, most of whom are exploited.

"Women are trafficked from North Korea, Burma and Vietnam and sold into sexual slavery or to the highest bidder," Mosher said.

State-Sanctioned Infanticide?

Mosher, the first American social scientist allowed into China, puts much of the blame on Beijing's one-child policy, which took effect in 1979.

The policy encourages late marrying and late childbearing, and it limits the majority of urban couples to having one child and most of those living in rural areas to two. Female infanticide was the result, he said.

"Historically infanticide was something that was practiced in poor places in China," Mosher said. "But when the one-child policy came into effect we began to see in the wealthy areas of China, what had never been done before in history — the killing of little girls."

In recent years, female infanticide has taken a back seat to sex-selective abortion or female feticide, due to the advent of amniocentesis and ultrasound technology as well as other prenatal sex selection techniques, many of which are now readily available in clinics and doctors’ offices.

"We feel it's a serious problem that everybody should be concerned about and aware of," said Wanda Franz, president of the National Right to Life Committee. "This is a form of abortion that, from our point of view is especially egregious. Abortion is claimed to help women; obviously in these cases, females are the direct victims, because women in these cultures are not valued.

Senate Leaders Agree on Immigration Bill With Tough Border Security Measure

Senate Leaders Agree on Immigration Bill With Tough Border Security Measure
Thursday, June 14, 2007

WASHINGTON — Senate leaders have agreed on a way to bring a pulled immigration bill forward, breaking the impasse that had stalled the bill, Fox News confirms.

The compromise legislation could come up as early as the middle of next week, once the Senate completes a large energy package. Legislators will consider 19 amendments (10 from Republicans and nine from Democrats) that are in need os some 'polishing' a senior Republican aide tells Fox News.

President Bush's support for a $4.4 billion infusion of border security cash today apparently helped to ease concerns of many conservatives, as well as some liberals.

Many members had feared the funds would, in the end, not be put foward to build 370 miles in new border fencing, hire border patrol officers, construct some 200 miles of vehicle barriers, and other beefed up provisions.

The funding will be allocated in a large amendment authored by Republican Sens Jon Kyl of Arizona, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, and Mel Martinez of Florida.

The measure designed as a "confidence builder" for many conservatives, and it went along way toward breaking the stalemate that resulted in Dem leader Reid pulling the bill from the floor last week.

Teen facing felony for taping cop

Teen facing felony for taping cop
State's wiretapping ban prohibits recording officer's voice
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 14, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

An 18-year-old from Pennsylvania is facing a felony charge after he was caught videotaping a police officer handing out a traffic ticket on a public street.

"I didn't think I could get in trouble for that," Brian D. Kelly told The Patriot-News.

Apparently, neither did a long list of members of the public, who have erupted on the newspaper's comment page.

"This is the most asinine thing I have EVER heard. Citizens have the right, and indeed, often the DUTY to film police officers performing their job," wrote ZippoPA. "I will donate right now to a fund to defend this person."

"Don't police videotape you from their car without consent? I think they should be required to obtain consent for dashboard cameras," added TheSabre.

"In the era of Rodney King and such we should have the right to video them, after all they video us … with the dashcam," suggested cd3.

Hindu Mob in India Beats, Strips, Parades Pastor

Hindu Mob in India Beats, Strips, Parades Pastor
During assault, they douse him with kerosene and toss burning Bible at him.

by Vishal Arora

Laxmi Narayan Gowda, an independent pastor and representative of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), was recovering in a hospital at press time with swelling and numerous bruises.

The incident took place at about 7 p.m. in Hessarghatta, about 30 kilometers from Bangalore, when a group of about 50 people barged into the pastor’s house and threatened him with violence unless he moved out of the area, said Sam Joseph, a Karnataka-based leader of the All India Christian Council (AICC).

The group returned with 100 more people shortly after, cornered Pastor Gowda in a room in his house, and began assaulting him in front of his wife and two small children.

Extremists of the Bajrang Dal, youth wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP or World Hindu Council), allegedly led the mob.

One of the assailants threw kerosene on the pastor, and others started burning Bibles. Someone tossed a burning Bible onto Pastor Gowda, but miraculously he did not catch fire, Joseph told Compass.

The extremists then stripped the pastor naked and hung a board around his neck that said, “I am the one who was converting people,” before parading him through the area.

“By this time, the mob had swollen to about 1,000, as more people joined in to harass and torture the pastor,” Joseph added.

Local police arrived about an hour later, after one of the pastor’s relatives called them by telephone.

The assailants burned at least 250 Bibles and also vandalized furniture and equipment.

Police had not registered a case against the attackers at press time. When Compass spoke to Inspector R. Malesh of the Soladevanhalli police station, he said the victim did not want to file a complaint.

“We have requested the Christians to give us a complaint in writing, but they do not want to press charges against the attackers,” he said.

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

PC mandate gone wild: Christian books yanked from prisoners

PC mandate gone wild: Christian books yanked
Rule to keep radical Islamic texts from prisoners, but feds decide to limit literature of all religions
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 11, 2007
5:45 p.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Hundreds of Christian books are disappearing off the shelves of U.S. prisons under a federal directive intended to prevent violent inmates from receiving radical Islamic texts, prompting a lawsuit.

Instead of focusing on Muslim books, the directive restricts literature from all religions, the Associated Press reported. The post-9/11 order, which only now is being implemented, allows the prison libraries to stock only 100 to 150 books for each religion.

Three inmates at the federal prison camp in Otisville, N.Y., have filed suit, claiming violation of their constitutional rights.

Inmate John Okon told U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain the set of books removed from the prison were used to minister to new converts.

"I have really seen religion turn around the life of some of these men, especially in the Christian community," he said, according to the AP.

Court Rules in Favor of Enemy Combatant

Court Rules in Favor of Enemy Combatant
Jun 11 01:02 PM US/Eastern

By ZINIE CHEN SAMPSON
Associated Press Writer

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - The Bush administration cannot legally detain a U.S. resident it believes is an al-Qaida sleeper agent without charging him, a divided federal appeals court ruled Monday. The court said sanctioning the indefinite detention of civilians would have "disastrous consequences for the constitution—and the country."

In the 2-1 decision, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel found that the federal Military Commissions Act doesn't strip Ali al-Marri, a legal U.S. resident, of his constitutional rights to challenge his accusers in court.

It ruled the government must allow al-Marri to be released from military detention.

Al-Marri has been held in solitary confinement in the Navy brig in Charleston, S.C., since June 2003. The Qatar native has been detained since his December 2001 arrest at his home in Peoria, Ill., where he moved with his wife and five children a day before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to study for a master's degree.

"To sanction such presidential authority to order the military to seize and indefinitely detain civilians, even if the President calls them 'enemy combatants,' would have disastrous consequences for the constitution—and the country," the court panel said.

Rabbis: Peres 'existential danger' to Jewish state

Rabbis: Peres 'existential danger' to Jewish state
Religious leaders urge against electing veteran politician as Israeli president
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 11, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – A group of hundreds of prominent Israeli rabbis today urged Knesset members here against electing former prime minister Shimon Peres for president, calling Peres an "existential threat" to the Jewish state.

"Electing Peres will be upholding the policies he has been promoting, like withdrawals from Judea and Samaria (West Bank), Jerusalem and the Temple Mount. Peres is a major existential danger to the state of Israel," read a statement by the Rabbinical Congress for Peace, a coalition of more than 350 Israeli rabbinic leaders and pulpit rabbis.

"We witnessed the destruction and terror brought to our doorsteps from the evacuations Peres previously urged, including Israel's disastrous retreat from Gaza and Lebanon and Peres' brainchild, the Oslo accords, which offered PLO leader Yasser Arafat territory bordering Jewish cities," said the statement.

Peres last month formally announced his decision to run for president of the state of Israel after the former president, Moshe Katsav, lost his position amid a rape scandal. Elections will be held later this week in which Knesset members vote for presidential candidates by secret ballot.

Officials: Iran, Syria orchestrated raid on Jewish state

Officials: Iran, Syria orchestrated raid on Jewish state
Terrorists storm Israeli border, attempt kidnapping
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 11, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – An attempted Palestinian raid of the Israeli border this weekend, purportedly to kidnap an Israeli soldier, was orchestrated by Syria and Iran, according to security officials associated with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party.

The Israel Defense Forces on Saturday thwarted an attempt by the Iranian-backed Islamic Jihad terror group to kidnap a soldier on the Israeli side of a major crossing into the Gaza Strip.

Four terrorists approached the Israeli border in an SUV bearing "TV" signs in an attempt to disguise themselves as journalists. Reporters working in Gaza usually travel in cars with "TV" symbols to identify themselves. Upon reaching the crossing, the terrorists blew a hole in the border fence and attempted to storm an IDF position.

IDF troops rushed to the scene, chasing three of the gunmen back to the Gaza Strip. One of militants, 19-year-old Mohammed Jaabari, became separated from the group and hid inside Israel. Jaabari was shot dead after he opened fire when soldiers approached him, the IDF said.

Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack.

Orthodox sector curses gay pride parade

Orthodox sector curses gay pride parade

Badatz rabbis distribute message that 'all sinners' involved in Jerusalem pride march will 'feel a curse on their souls and evil will pursue them.' Orthodox community plans mass protest against parade next week; organizers expect 100,000 protestors

Neta Sela Published: Israel News

The Orthodox Righteous Court of Law (Badatz) have placed a curse on the organizers and particpicants in the gay pride parade scheduled to take place in Jerusalem next Thursday. The curse also applied to police forces that will secure the event.

Rabbis from the Orthodox Edah Haredit sector (Badatz) published a message in Jerusalem on Sunday which read: "To all those involved, sinners in spirit, and whoever helps and protects them, may they feel a curse on their souls, may it plague them and may evil pursue them; they will not be acquitted of their transgressions from heavenly judgment."

The Edah Haredit is an extreme body which has declared ideological warfare against the "heretic Zionist government." Its members shun Knesset votes, do not carry Israeli ID cards, and refuse allowances from the government budget.

Edah Haredit rabbis warned Sunday that anyone who participates in the gay parade will be hurt "in body, soul and finances."

Court to Focus on Vaccine-Autism Link

Jun 11 07:47 AM US/Eastern

WASHINGTON (AP) - Thousands of families that allege vaccines caused their children's autism are preparing for their day in court, which could bring them vindication and compensation.

Since 1999, more than 4,800 families have filed claims with the government alleging their children contracted autism as a result of routine vaccinations. Most contend that a preservative called thimerosal is to blame for the impaired social interaction typical of the disorder.

If they prevail in the courts, the families are entitled to compensation from a multibillion-dollar trust fund. Previously, large scientific studies have found no association between autism and vaccines containing thimerosal.

The first of what eventually could be nine test cases from those claims is the subject of the hearing opening Monday in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. Three special masters appointed by the court will preside over the hearing, expected to last through June 29.

Monday's case addresses the theory that the cause of autism is the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine in combination with other vaccines containing thimerosal. The preservative, about 50 percent mercury by weight, is no longer found in routine childhood vaccines but is used in some flu shots.

Paris Hilton Calls Barbara Walters From Jail -- 'God Has Released Me'

EXCLUSIVE: Hilton Calls Barbara Walters From Jail -- 'God Has Released Me'
She 'Was Severely Depressed and Felt as If I Was in a Cage,' but now Has 'New Chance'

By BARBARA WALTERS
June 11, 2007

On Sunday at 3 p.m., Paris Hilton phoned me collect from jail. Prisoners must call collect.

The unusual conversation came about because Kathy Hilton, Paris' mother, had phoned me, and while we were talking, Paris called on the other line. When she heard I was talking to her mother, she said she'd like to talk to me herself.

She sounded tired but totally aware of what she was saying.

"How are you?" I asked.

Paris answered, "I'm hanging in there." But she declared, "I feel as if I'm a different person. I've dropped my appeal. I don't want to cause any more problems."

I asked what happened in the jail that led to her being released or reassigned to her home. She said she had not been wailing, sobbing or screaming as had been described.

"But," she said, "I was not eating or sleeping. I was severely depressed and felt as if I was in a cage. I was not myself. It was a horrible experience."

"How are you different?" I asked.

"I'm not the same person I was," she said. "I used to act dumb. It was an act. I am 26 years old, and that act is no longer cute. It is not who I am, nor do I want to be that person for the young girls who looked up to me. I know now that I can make a difference, that I have the power to do that. I have been thinking that I want to do different things when I am out of here. I have become much more spiritual. God has given me this new chance."

I asked what kinds of things she might want to do.

She said she would like to help in the fields of breast cancer — her grandmother had breast cancer — or multiple sclerosis. Her father's mother suffers from that disease.

She thought she might get toy companies to build a kind of Paris Hilton playhouse, where sick children might come, and the toy companies could donate toys.

She has had a person whom she described as a spiritual adviser who said, "My spirit or soul did not like the way I was being seen and that is why I was sent to jail."

"God," she said, "has released me."

She is reading newspapers — The LA Times and the Wall Street Journal — and books like "The Secret," "The Power of Now" and the Bible.

Note from Lighthouse:
Ok, so I have to say... I am glad she is reading the Bible! However, The Secret needs to go. I have not read the power of now. But I must ask, do you think that she is sincerely questioning changing, Sincerely going to change, or just trying to get out of jail and still have a career?

I am not sure, but neither am I the Judge. However, with that said, one thing we can be sure of is that God has allowed her a second chance... just as He has allowed us a second chance! We pray that she truly will seek and trust in Jesus as Lord & Savior.

Death toll rises in China flooding

Death toll rises in China flooding
More than 640,000 people reported homeless

BEIJING - The death toll from flooding and landslides in southern China has risen to at least 71, with more rain forecast for the area, state media reported Tuesday.

More than 640,000 people have been forced from their homes, Xinhua News Agency reported, citing an official from the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

The torrential rains that triggered the flooding were expected to continue over the next couple of days, Xinhua said.

It said the heavy rains have lashed the provinces of Hunan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Jiangxi and Fujian over the last week.

Television footage showed destroyed homes and flooded fields, and the ministry said overall economic losses have reached $436 million.

The worst-hit province was Guangdong — the heart of China’s export-driven light manufacturing industries.

Xinhua said damages in Guangdong totaled $160 million, although there were no immediate reports of any damage to factories or shipping facilities.

New Games Merge Fantasy With Real World

Jun 11 12:04 PM US/Eastern
By GREG BLUESTEIN
Associated Press Writer

ATLANTA (AP) - 0611tAugmentedReality There's no alien world behind the virtual reality gear, just a modestly decorated living room that can be seen without the video goggles.
But once the game "AR Facade" starts, you might wish there were space invaders. That's because it puts you in the middle of an excruciatingly uncomfortable argument between Trip and Grace, a bickering thirty-something married couple.

Do you play moderator and decide to help broker a truce? Do you instigate them by complimenting Grace on her decorating style or pretending to be impressed with your pal Trip's place? Or do you act as if everything's peachy while their arguing heats up?

Whatever path is taken, this participatory soap opera at a Georgia Tech research lab is at times funny, awkward and intriguing. And it's always intense and emotionally draining.

"AR Facade" is an "augmented reality" game, a genre that mixes a virtual world with physical reality. The technology is still emerging, though someday people may play such games with gear as simple as their cell phones.

So far, scientists seem to be having fun with the possibilities.

'Military plan against Iran is ready'

'Military plan against Iran is ready'
By YAAKOV KATZ

Predicting that Iran will obtain a nuclear weapon within three years and claiming to have a strike plan in place, senior American military officers have told The Jerusalem Post they support President George W. Bush's stance to do everything necessary to stop the Islamic Republic's race for nuclear power.

Bush has repeatedly said the United States would not allow Iran to "go nuclear."

Israel successfully launches Ofek 7 spy satellite

JPost special: US candidates talk tough on Iran
A high-ranking American military officer told the Post that senior officers in the US armed forces had thrown their support behind Bush and believed that additional steps needed to be taken to stop Iran.

Predictions within the US military are that Bush will do what is needed to stop Teheran before he leaves office in 2009, including possibly launching a military strike against its nuclear facilities.

On Sunday, Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut said the US should consider a military strike against Iran over its support of Iraqi insurgents.

Iran threatens Gulf blitz if US hits nuclear plants

From The Sunday Times

Iran threatens Gulf blitz if US hits nuclear plants

Michael Smith

IRAN has threatened to launch a missile blitz against the Gulf states and plunge the entire Middle East into war if America attacks its nuclear facilities.

Admiral Ali Shamkhani, a senior defence adviser to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned that Gulf states providing the US with military cooperation would be the key targets of a barrage of ballistic missiles.

Shamkhani told the US journal Defense News that missiles would be launched not only at US military bases but also at strategic targets such as oil refineries and power stations.

Qatar, Bahrain and Oman all host important US bases and British forces are based in all three countries. Any Iranian attack would be bound to draw in the other Gulf Cooperation Council states: Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait.

The attacks on Arab states would be in addition to airstrikes on Israel, which have been threatened repeatedly. An Iranian foreign ministry official said: “The objective would be to overwhelm US missile defence systems with dozens and maybe hundreds of missiles fired simultaneously at specific targets.”

Sunday, June 3, 2007

IRS to church: Shut up – Church to IRS: No way

IRS to church: Shut up – Church to IRS: No way
Pastor under investigation says he 'will not stop preaching God's word'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 2, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A Christian church in Kansas has told the Internal Revenue Service that it will not stop teaching and preaching God's Word, "even if it relates to contemporary issues in the world," after the federal agency demanded answers to 31 questions about its beliefs and warned about "political" activity.

Spirit One Christian Center Pastor Mark Holick told WND that the IRS, perhaps, should brush up on the freedoms assured U.S. citizens regarding religion and speech before making such demands in the future.

He said the issues the church addressed – and will continue to address – concern issues that the Bible addresses, such as killing and protecting the defenseless.

The response came to a series of questions from the IRS questioning whether the church was involved in "political" activity. In specific, Holick said, the IRS cited a sign that read: "Sebelius accepted $300,000.00 from abortionist Tiller, price of 1000 babies."

But that, he said, was just part of a responsibility on the part of a Christian church to comment on abortion, a red-hot topic in the church's home city of Wichita.

That's also the location of the abortion business of George Tiller, whose political connections in Kansas have been documented by Operation Rescue, a pro-life organization, and reported by WND.

A Christian organization needs to be able to talk of the moral issues of the day – including abortion, Holick noted. The sign just told of Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius' connections to the abortion industry.

Christian sentenced to death for blasphemy

Christian sentenced to death for blasphemy
After objecting to rape of believers, accused of crime against Muhammad
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 2, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Michael Ireland
© 2007 Assist News Service

LAHORE, Pakistan – A Pakistani Christian has been sentenced to death for blasphemy by the sessions court in Lahore.

According to sources in Pakistan, following the sentencing Wednesday, a large mob led by Islamic clerics responded by shouting slogans against Younis Masih and threatening anyone involved in providing security or legal assistance to "blasphemers."

Christian Solidarity Worldwide says Masih, a Christian from Chungi Amar Sadu in Lahore, was charged Sept. 10, 2005, under Section 295C of the Pakistan Penal Code. Section 295C relates to blasphemy against the Prophet Muhammad and carries the death penalty.

Al-Qaida cited in persecution of 200 million Christians

Al-Qaida cited in persecution of 200 million Christians
Intel report says terrorist network among major perpetrators in 60 countries
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 2, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

The following report is excerpted from Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin, the premium online newsletter published by the founder of WND. Subscriptions are $99 a year or, for monthly trials, just $9.95 per month for credit card users, and provide instant access for the complete reports.

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

LONDON – A report by Britain's intelligence service MI6 reveals for the first time an estimated 200 million Christians in 60 countries are now facing persecution orchestrated, in part, by al-Qaida.

The report has been sent to the pope and church leaders. It is the first time the secret intelligence service has shared its information with religious leaders.

"We do so because we believe the situation is extremely serious," said an MI6 source.

The report is based on details from MI6 agents stationed in the countries. North Korea is identified as the world's worst repressor of Christians. More than 50,000 Christians are incarcerated in work camps because they refuse to submit to the extreme views rigorously enforced by the country's dictator, Kim Jong-il.

An estimated 40,000 Christians are imprisoned in China for their beliefs. The MI6 analysis calculates there are some 70 million "active Christians" in the People's Republic, all living in a climate of fear because of their beliefs.

4 Men Charged in Plot to Bomb Kennedy Airport

By WILLIAM K. RASHBAUM
Published: June 2, 2007

Federal law enforcement officials and New York City police said today that four people have been charged with conspiring to bomb Kennedy International Airport.

The plan, which was described by United States Attorney Roslynn R. Mauskopf as “one of the most chilling plots imaginable,” involved a former airport worker who is a United States citizen of Guyanese descent and a former member of the Guyanese parliament, who is also an imam.

“Once again would-be terrorists have put New York City in their crosshairs and once again the F.B.I., New York Police Department and other law enforcement agencies have joined forces to stop them,” said Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly.

The former airport worker, Russell Defreitas, was in custody in Brooklyn and was expected to be arraigned this afternoon. The former Guyanese parliament member, Abdul Kadir, and Kareem Ibrahim of Trinidad, were in custody in Trinidad. A fourth man, Abdel Nur, of Guyana, was still being sought, law enforcement officials said.

If convicted, the men could face a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Two senior law enforcement officials said that there was no imminent threat to the airport and that the men had yet to obtain any explosives. They had conducted surveillance and the former airport worker had made several trips to Guyana and one trip to Trinidad and Tobago to try to get support for the plot.

Kindergarteners choose 'death for the sake of Allah'

Kindergarteners choose 'death for the sake of Allah'
'Armed' boys in camouflage, ski masks, declare devotion to jihad
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

In a kindergarten graduation ceremony featured yesterday on Palestinian television, boys outfitted with toy machine guns, camouflage fatigues and ski masks marched to a military beat and declared their "most lofty aspiration" to be "death for the sake of Allah."

Hamas' Al-Aqsa TV reported the ceremony of kindergarteners of the Islamic Association in Gaza.

The video, with translation, was made available by the Middle East Media Research Institute, or MEMRI, in Washington, D.C.

Gays and lesbians allowed conjugal visits in prisons

Gays and lesbians allowed conjugal visits in prisons
Mark Martin, Chronicle Sacramento Bureau

(06-01) 04:00 PDT Sacramento -- California's prison system is changing its regulations to allow conjugal visits for gay and lesbian inmates in response to a legal threat and a 2003 law that gave domestic partners many of the same rights as married couples.

Facing a complaint from an inmate in a Vacaville prison and pressure from the American Civil Liberties Union, the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has begun to allow overnight visits for inmates with registered domestic partners and is to adopt permanent regulations later this year. The change will allow gay and lesbian inmates the same rights as other inmates, who are eligible to spend up to three days with family members in living areas -- usually trailers -- on prison grounds.

Corrections officials say they are responding to legislation signed by former Gov. Gray Davis that awarded more rights to registered domestic partners and prohibited state agencies from discriminating against domestic partners.

"We intend to comply with the law,'' said Terry Thornton, a spokeswoman for the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Only five other states -- Connecticut, Mississippi, New Mexico, New York and Washington -- allow conjugal visits of any kind; California is believed to be the first state in the country to allow visits for domestic partners.

The new regulations will add domestic partners to a list of family members, ranging from spouses to siblings to grandparents, who can visit inmates overnight.

Indian Christians Demand Protection

Indian Christians Demand Protection
By Gary Lane
CBN News

CBNNews.com - Minority voters returned India's Congress party to national power in 2004. Now, three years later, the country's Christian minority said it is time their government protect them from a surge of attacks by Hindu extremists.

More than 4,000 Christians from across India gathered in Delhi and marched to the steps of the parliament to demand an end to violence against Christians.

They carried signs saying "let Christians live and serve the marginalized and oppressed" and "Christians are as Indian as anyone else born in India."

"We have all come here to protest against what is going on and we are saying the central government's silence is totally unacceptable to the Christian community across the country," Joseph D'souza, president of the All India Christian Council, said.

The Christian protest and rally came in the wake of a recent brutal televised attack against Rajistan pastor, Walter Massih.

Young militants members of a radical, Hindu nationalist group known as the VHP (Vishwa Hindu Parishad) are believed to be responsible for the assault against the pastor April 29, as he cried out to the Lord.

Billy Graham's 'journey of faith' preserved in newly dedicated library

Allie Martin
OneNewsNow.com

The Billy Graham Library has been dedicated by three former presidents along with family and friends of the evangelist. The 40,000-square-foot facility depicts the life of Dr. Billy Graham and is located on the grounds of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association in Charlotte, North Carolina.

More than a thousand invited guests turned out for the event, which featured a number of dignitaries, including former Presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and George H.W. Bush, who delivered the keynote address. Speaking at the dedication on Thursday, the 88-year-old evangelist said the dairy barn-styled library and museum -- designed to recall Graham's childhood on the family dairy farm in Charlotte -- focus on the message of Christ.

"This building behind me is just a building -- it's an instrument, it's a tool for the Gospel," Graham said. "The primary thing is the Gospel of Christ, which Franklin has already outlined. I'm very grateful for his leadership. I pray that God will use this to speak to many people who come through this facility."

The audience laughed in response when Graham, commenting on the speeches and the museum itself, said "I feel like I've been attending my own funeral." He then added that he felt "terribly small and humbled by it all."

Abortionist pays to avoid assault trial

Abortionist pays to avoid assault trial
Civil case says he tried to hit man with car, 'escort' attacked child
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 2, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

An abortionist and his Granite City, Ill., clinic have paid an undisclosed settlement to a family that runs a pro-life ministry to avoid a civil trial for damages from his attempt to run down the father as well as an assault by a clinic "escort" on a child.

The settlement this week comes from Hope Clinic and its chief abortionist, Yogendra Shah, and was being paid to Daniel, Angela and Arielle Michael, their Small Victories ministry confirmed.

With their lawyers, Tom Brejcha of the of Chicago's Thomas More Society and Jason Craddock of Chicago, the family appeared before Judge David Hylla for the settlement conference with Mark Levy, a lawyer for the abortion business, and Sally Burgess, a director for the abortion business.

"After several hours of mediation, the Hope Clinic along with chief abortionist Yogendra Shah agreed to pay an undisclosed settlement amount to the Michael family, to avoid going to trial," the ministry announcement said.

Christian denied permission to join 'gay' parade

Christian denied permission to join 'gay' parade
Charges hypocrisy, saying homosexuals don't 'accept us for who we are'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A Christian street preacher is charging that the homosexual community in Chicago is guilty of hypocrisy because he was refused permission to march in a June 24 "gay" pride parade.

"I see this as nothing but hypocrisy," said Ruben Israel, who has been at the Chicago event for seven previous years, protesting the homosexual lifestyle choice from the sidewalks.

This year he sought permission to participate, and was refused. He followed up with a statement making the accusation.

"Is this not the same group that demands everyone accept them for who they are?

"Is this not the same group that cries discrimination, if not recognized?

"Is this not the same people that will not accept us for who we are?

"Is this not the same people that demand tolerance?

"Is this not the same group that wishes to walk in Macy's parade and [be] allowed in the 'Boy Scouts?" Israel asked.

Gaza fundamentalists threaten to behead 'immodest' women

Fundamentalists in Gaza threaten to behead 'immodest' women broadcasters

Radical Islamist group Swords of Truth, responsible for internet cafe bombings, threatens specific group for first time

Associated Press Published: 06.02.07, 19:17 / Israel News

A Muslim extremist group threatened to behead female TV broadcasters if they don't don strict Islamic dress, leaving the women terrified and marking a further downward spiral in Gaza's anarchy.

The threat to "cut throats from vein to vein" was delivered by the Swords of Truth, a fanatical group that

has previously claimed responsibility for bombing Internet cafes and music shops.

The new threat was the first time the organization targeted a specific group of people, and adds to a growing climate of extremism, fear and suspicion in Gaza.

In many parts of the Muslim world, religious conservative policies keep women out of TV anchoring positions or only let them take the jobs if they wear headscarves. But in some countries scarves are uncommon, like Lebanon and Jordan, and Egypt even keeps newscasters who wear them off its TV stations.

Most of the 15 women broadcasters on government-run Palestine TV wear headscarves. But they also wear makeup and Western clothing, which is not considered strictly observant by the extremists.

The Swords of Truth issued the statement Friday in an e-mail sent to news organizations. "We will cut throats, and from vein to vein, if needed to protect the spirit and moral of this nation."

The group accused the broadcasters of being "without any...shame or morals" and said it knew where to find the women.

Pro-life teenager released from charges by university

Ed Thomas
OneNewsNow.com

A South Dakota teenager who spoke about pro-life issues on a college campus before being arrested for failure to leave has had the charges against him dismissed by a state attorney.

Stephen Wesolick, an attorney for 18-year-old Joey Cox, says his client was a member of a team from the California-based Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust group, which came to South Dakota School of Mines & Technology as part of its "Campus Life Tours Project." Cox was arrested on campus May 8 after his arrival because of a policy that allegedly required previous permission through a two-week notice for free-speech activities on campus.

"Mr. Cox was arrested, and charges were brought against him as a Class 1 misdemeanor, in which he faced up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine," Wesolick says. However a state attorney dismissed the charges against Cox.

The order dismissing the charges states it was "in the best interests of justice" to do so, Wesolick notes. He says he thinks the state attorney made that decision because the school was enforcing what the attorney terms an unconstitutional policy. "Free speech is a protected right under the Constitution and does not require adherence to this type of school policy," he asserts.

FDA: throw away toothpaste made in China

Kevin Freking - Associated Press writer
OneNewsNow.com
June 2, 2007

WASHINGTON - The government warned consumers on Friday to avoid using toothpaste made in China because it may contain a poisonous chemical used in antifreeze. Out of caution, the Food and Drug Administration said, people should throw away toothpaste with labeling that says it was made in China. The FDA is concerned that these products may contain diethylene glycol.

The agency is not aware of any poisoning from toothpaste in the United States, but it did find the antifreeze ingredient in a shipment at the U.S. border and at two retail stores: a Dollar Plus store in Miami and a Todo A Peso store in Puerto Rico.

Officials said they are primarily concerned about toothpaste sold at bargain retail outlets. The ingredient in question, called DEG, is used as a lower-cost sweetener and thickening agent. The highest concentration of the chemical found in toothpaste so far was between 3 percent and 4 percent of the product's overall weight.

"It does not belong in toothpaste even in small concentrations," said the FDA's Deborah M. Autor.

The FDA increased its scrutiny of toothpaste made in China because of reports of contamination in several countries, including Panama.

The agency is particularly concerned about chronic exposure to DEG in children and in people with kidney or liver disease.

Agency officials said they had no estimate of how many tubes of tainted toothpaste might have made it into the U.S.

Thursday, June 21, 2007

Sunday, June 17, 2007

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Sunday, June 3, 2007

Search the Bible

Ray Comforts Blog...

Subscribe To Biblical News

News Archive: Click News Headline, or click Arrows to show news for that date

Christian Articles: ...(May Need to Disable PopUp Blocker)

Christian Links:

About Me

Email

Followers

.