(SRN NEWS)- ( ) Officials in Iraq report that only about 70 Christian families have returned to the northern city of Mosul since ISIS was driven out. Before the war there were at least 50,000 believers in the city. International Christian Concern says “Believers in Iraq have faced many challenges during the past two decades, from […]
Religious News
RELIGION HEADLINES THR 10-16
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( ) Officials in Iraq report that only about 70 Christian families have returned to the northern city of Mosul since ISIS was driven out. Before the war there were at least 50,000 believers in the city. International Christian Concern says “Believers in Iraq have faced many challenges during the past two decades, from war to religious extremism and systematic discrimination, which have all contributed to the sharp decline of Christians in the region.” Making up less than one percent of the Iraqi population, Christians have little influence with local officials or the federal government. Christianity has a 2000-year history in Iraq.
( ) A small congregation in a remote Alaska town now has a church building thanks to help from Samaritan’s Purse. Hundreds of volunteers from the giant Christian relief agency helped construct the Lake Clark Bible Church in Port Alsworth over the summer. It was dedicated this month with a visit by Franklin Graham, who heads Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Writing on Facebook Graham says “This building will make such a difference to the entire community. It will be a center for the teaching of God’s Word, ministry, and missions. Every night, the lit cross serves as a beacon to all.
( ) California’s Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom has signed a bill that makes the state’s physician-assisted suicide law permanent. It was to have expired in 2031. The law allows anybody who is at least 18 years old and has a terminal disease to obtain a deadly dose of drugs from their physician. A small but growing number of states are embracing the practice. Assisted suicide is currently legal in Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, Washington state, the District of Columbia and California. Pro-life advocates are campaigning hard to keep the practice from spreading.
( ) Turkey is cracking down on Christians. Alliance Defending Freedom International reports that the government in Ankara has labeled foreign believers “national security threats” and is deporting them in large numbers. Turkey is officially a secular state, but President Erdogan has been taking the nation in an increasingly conservative Islamic direction. This has been followed by an uptick in persecution of Christians all across the nation, primarily by local authorities and private individuals. Christianity has a long history in Turkey, dating back to the first century. Apostles including Paul, Peter and John traveled there to preach the gospel.