RELIGION HEADLINES

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(SRN NEWS) – A North Dakota judge will not let the state’s near total ban on abortion stand while the state appeals a ruling striking down the law. Last month District Judge Bruce Romanick ruled that North Dakota’s abortion restrictions are unconstitutionally vague, and that pregnant women in the state have a fundamental right to abortion up until the unborn baby is viable.  North Dakota’s abortion ban made performing the procedure a felony. The only exceptions were to prevent the mother’s death or a “serious health risk” to her.

Vice President Kamala Harris is touting her promotion of the LGBT agenda in the waning weeks of the presidential campaign. As vice president, Harris claims to be part of the most pro-LGBT administration in the history of this country.  While in the Senate, Harris sponsored several bills promoting the gay agenda in health care and the criminal justice system.  As California’s attorney general in 2011, Harris refused to defend the state’s marriage protection act in court.  She also supported allowing men to use women’s restrooms and locker rooms.

Religious freedom advocates are raising alarms about proposed legislation that would increase the power of Islamic courts in Malaysia.  International Christian Concern says  “It’s about power and control. If this bill passes, it could lead to a situation where religious authorities have the final say on a wide range of issues, from personal relationships to public policy.” That would be bad news for Malaysia’s small Christian population, which has to abide by the decisions of the Islamic courts.  The latest census finds that about two-thirds of the country’s people are Muslims while 20 percent are Buddhists and 10 percent are Christians.

Persecution of Christians around the world is at a peak that may have no precedent in modern history.  However, the faith continues to spread.  The Pew Research Center projects that by the year 2060, there will be 34 percent more Christians on earth than there were in 2015.  Experts say most of that increase will come in Africa, Asia and Latin America, shifting the center of Christianity to the global South.  Africa and Asia are also the regions where persecution of believers is the strongest.  In Africa it is powered primarily by Muslim extremists.  In Asia the attacks come from both Muslims and Communist governments.