Is a serious Israel-EU crisis in the works?

From Haaretz.Com

Israeli government sources say it is likely that after the current diplomatic crisis and pressure by the United States regarding the Palestinian issue, Israel will soon face an even more serious row with the European Union.

A government source in Jerusalem said this was the concern voiced during a conference call between Foreign Ministry Director-General Yossi Gal and seven of Israel’s ambassadors in important world capitals.

Gal spoke last Thursday with Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, and the envoys to the European Union, London, Rome, the UN, Moscow and Paris.

Oren’s laconic retelling of Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington, revealing no details of the prime minister’s meetings, roused the ire of the other ambassadors, who said they were not kept abreast of events and so could not represent Israel adequately regarding the dispute with the United States.

“The American embassy in London knows what went on in Netanyahu’s meetings in Washington and I have no idea,” said Israel’s ambassador to Britain, Ron Prosor.

The envoys all said that if U.S. pressure continued, the European Union would go even further in condemning Israel and promoting diplomatic initiatives.

Netanyahu told the cabinet Sunday that he saw “no signs of moderation” among the Palestinians. “However, we will maintain a restrained framework of debate and continue our talks with the U.S. administration to move the process of dialogue forward,” he said.

Netanyahu said the statements reported in Yedioth Ahronoth that an anonymous associate had called Obama “a disaster for Israel” were “improper,” and that “we are trying to move the peace process ahead but also to serve our interests, and we continue to narrow the gaps with the administration.”

In a first extensive statement by a senior minister on the diplomatic dispute with the United States, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said continued cooperation with America was necessary to protect Israel’s security.

However, he added, “Only we have the exclusive responsibility when it comes to the fate and security of Israel, and only we can determine the matters pertaining to the fate of Israel and the Jewish people. But we must never lose sight of how important these relations are, or the ability to act in harmony and unity with the United States.”

Barak said it was “crucial to remember that the United States is friendly to Israel in a deep and substantial way.”

Barak underscored the key difference between his positions and those of most of Netanyahu’s coalition partners. “The components of the agreement are clear,” he said.

“I believe that it is our obligation to seek an agreement that sets a clear border within the Land of Israel based on security and demographic considerations, with the Jewish state, the State of Israel, on one side with a solid majority of Jews through the generations, and the demilitarized Palestinian state on the other side with territorial, economic and political viability.”
- From Prophecy News Watch

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Arab countries look to establish their own EU and are ready to integrate Turkey and Iran

From The Sun.Co.UK

The Arab states received the proposal made by Yemeni President Ali Abdallah Saleh for creation of an “Arab union”, an analogue of the European Union (EU).

The Statement of the XXII Summit of the League of Arab States says that the Arab leaders endorsed establishment of quadrilateral commission to draw up a document on improvement of joint activity. The commission includes heads of Lybia, Egypt, Qatar, Iraq and Yemen and LAS secretary general.

The document to be prepared by the commission will be presented for consideration of Arab countries’ foreign ministers and already this September or October an extraordinary Arab summit will discuss the ready plan.

Besides, the Arab leaders also decided to focus in details on the proposal of LAS secretary general Amra Mussa for creation of an organization to unite the Arab world with its neighbours — Iran and Turkey.

The League unites 21 countries and the Palestine Liberation Organization.

The seven founding members of the League; Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Jordan and Yemen signed an agreement establishing it at a conference in Cairo on March 22, 1945. The Headquarters of the pan-Arab organization is located in Cairo.

The LAS summits take place annually.

In March 2005, at a summit in Algiers, a transitional pan-Arab parliament, which has advisory functions, was created.

Currently, all Arab countries each appoint four deputies, but it is planned that in future they will be elected. The headquarters will be located in the Syrian capital Damascus. The Arab countries are also trying to implement a major project to create a single customs zone.
- From Prophecy News Watch

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Survey: Financial Strain Worsens for More Churches

From Christian Post

The economic recession delivered a hard blow to more churches this past year than at the start of the downturn, new research indicates.

Findings from a new survey show that 38 percent of churches reported a decline in giving in 2009. Only 29 percent reported the same the previous year.

“Churches today are in unchartered waters financially,” said Brian Kluth, founder of Maximum Generosity, in a statement. “Multiple research projects last year documented the sharp decline in church giving and our research this year shows things have only gotten worse for a growing number of churches.”

Kluth partnered with Christianity Today International’s Church Finance Today and Leadership publications for the 2010 “State of the Plate” research, which surveyed more than 1,000 church leaders. The first State of the Plate report was launched in 2008.

Among the hardest hit churches this past year were those in Pacific and Mountain states, which experienced a 55 percent and 46 percent decline in giving, respectively.

Surprisingly, megachurches suffered more than ever before. While earlier studies indicated megachurches were faring fairly well in the downturn, the State of the Plate report found that churches with 2,000 or more attendees experienced the most financial strain in 2009 compared to smaller churches. Nearly half (47 percent) of megachurches reported a decline in giving in comparison to 40 percent of churches with 100-499 attendees, 36 percent of congregations with less than 100 people, 35 percent of churches with 500-999 worshippers and 26 percent of churches with 1,000-1,999 attendees.

Even Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church, with about 20,000 people attending weekly worship services, ran behind its multimillion-dollar budget before Warren sent out a last-minute email appeal encouraging year-end gifts, the report noted.

Though Warren was able to raise $2.4 million – more than double the goal – in the last days of the year, nearly a third of churches overall missed their expectations when it came to year-end giving. Many churches thus likely entered 2010 looking for ways to slow their church spending, the report noted.

Among some of the first cuts churches are likely to make are staff travel and programs. In 2009, 26 percent of surveyed churches said they cut travel and conferences and 21 percent reported cutting ministry programs after decreasing their budget. Meanwhile, 18 percent reported cutting out expenses connected to facilities/maintenance/utilities and expansion or renovation projects. Staff cuts followed with 16 percent saying they eliminated part-time positions and 15 percent reporting getting rid of full-time positions.

“When times are good and money is flowing it’s easy for a church or parachurch organization to start another new program and really not circle back and say ‘I wonder how well those programs are doing,’” Dan Busby, president of Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability, commented to The Christian Post before Tuesday’s release of the survey findings.

Though the current economy may have strained finances for many churches, Busby believes the recession also has a positive effect to it.

“It’s hard to say especially if you’re somebody who’s going through it but I think it’s been good for churches and parachurch organizations,” said Busby, who was recognized by 12 percent of surveyed church leaders for providing resources and expert advice related to church finances and budgets.

“I think the organizations are operating leaner and are more focused and are better prepared for the future so if the Lord prospers churches and charities and provides additional funds I think they’ll be in a better position to use those funds for their core ministries and I think they’d be more effective.”

Nearly a quarter of surveyed churches said they kept their budget about the same this year as last year. Thirty-five percent increased the current year’s budget one to 10 percent and 25 percent decreased their budget one to 10 percent.

The annual church operating budget for 23 percent of churches is $100,000 to $250,000. Sixteen percent reported a budget of $250,000 to $500,000 and 10 percent said their operating budget is $1 million to $2 million.

A majority of the church leaders said they plan on preaching on finances and generosity and offering financial classes and pamphlets. More than half are relying on Dave Ramsey and Crown Financial Ministries to help with church finances, giving and generosity and around two in five are looking to denominational resources and Kluth to help them out.

Despite money struggles, 31 percent of churches increased their benevolence giving to help people in their church and community facing critical financial needs and 30 percent upped giving to missions.
- From Prophecy News Watch

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Survey Tracks Trends in Evangelical, Oldline Congregations

From Christian Post

Nearly two-thirds of U.S. congregations said they feel at least a little competition from nearby churches, a new survey shows.

Oldline Protestant churches were most likely to say competition with nearby congregations is an obstacle to attracting new people, according to a national survey called American Congregations 2008, which was released Friday.

Forty-two percent of oldline Protestant churches indicated feeling the competition compared to 19 percent of evangelical Protestant ones and 13 percent of Catholic/Orthodox churches.

The report, which was written by David A. Roozen, director of the Cooperative Congregational Studies Partnership and professor of Religion and Society at Hartford Seminary, speculated that the sense of competition among oldline churches is being driven by “sameness” compared to other congregations.

“Indeed, the FACT (Faith Communities Today) 2008 survey shows that the greater a congregation’s sense of being different and the greater a congregation’s clarity about its purpose, the less competition it feels from others,” the report states.

Notably, 37 percent of non-Christian groups – including Jewish, Muslim, and Baha’i – said they feel at least some competition in drawing newcomers.

FACT 2008 is the latest in a series of trend-tracking national surveys of U.S. congregations conducted by the Cooperative Congregational Studies Partnership. CCSP is a collaborative, multifaith coalition of American faith communities affiliated with Hartford Seminary’s Hartford Institute for Religion Research.

The 2008 report, based on responses from more than 2,500 congregations, provides an in-depth look at various aspects of congregational life, including worship, identity, programs, fiscal health, and attracting and tracking new members, among others.

While competition from nearby congregations is a challenge for many, surveyed congregations were most likely to identify the general lack of interest in religion as an obstacle to attracting new people. Seventy-six percent said the lack of interest was at least a little bit of a challenge.

Mobile population was another challenge.

The latest survey found a slight uptick in evangelism and recruitment activity compared to 2005. Twelve to 14 percent more Protestant congregations that reported high levels of evangelism or recruitment activities also reported worship attendance growth over the past five years than was the case for congregations with no or little evangelism or recruitment activities. Larger congregations (with 400 or more attendees) experienced higher growth spurts (more than 30 percent jump) compared to smaller churches.

When it comes to helping newcomers assimilate, the survey found that congregations with high spiritual vitality are more intentional in their attention to new persons than less spiritually vital congregations.

Congregations in America conduct lots of programs but they (especially evangelical Protestant churches) place particular emphasis on Sunday School or religious school classes. The emphasis on music program is on par with Scripture study (in addition to Sunday School), the study found.

Compared to other congregations, non-Christian ones were found to most likely specialize in Scripture study and parenting or marriage enrichment activities. Evangelical churches were most likely to specialize in spiritual development activities, support groups, evangelism and young, single adult activities. Oldline Protestants were most likely to focus on community service activities and music program. And the specialty for Catholic/Orthodox churches was fellowships and sports activities.

Among other findings, congregations that identify themselves as more liberal were most likely to be “willing to change to meet new challenges,” compared to congregations that are more conservative or right in the middle.

Also, while more than half (53 percent) of more conservative congregations said they hold strong belief and moral values, only 29 percent of more liberal ones said the same. More conservative groups (45 percent) were more likely to consider themselves a close-knit family compared to more liberal congregations (31 percent).

In regards to fiscal health, the survey revealed that congregations within the evangelical Protestant family were in the most positive fiscal circumstances, followed by the Catholic/Orthodox family, world religions (non-Christians) and oldline Protestantism, respectively.

It also showed that congregations with better financial health also had better spiritual vitality.

Among all congregations, the larger proportion of a total budget went toward salary and benefits. This was especially the case for oldline Protestant churches where 49 percent of their budget was directed to salary and benefits, compared to only 31 percent among evangelical congregations. Evangelical churches, meanwhile, allocated a higher proportion of their budget to buildings and operations (30 percent) and program support and materials (17 percent) compared to oldline Protestants (24 percent and 9 percent, respectively).

Surprisingly, the FACT report found that congregations with leaders who have a higher level of education scored lower in terms of spiritual vitality, attendance gain and financial health.

Fifty-one percent of evangelical Protestant churches with leaders who have a masters degree or higher recorded an attendance gain of two percent or more in the last five years. Such growth was seen among 54 percent of evangelical churches led by those with less than a masters degree.

In contrast to formal education, continuing education has a more noticeable and positive effect on congregational vitality, the study noted.

Other key findings: Congregations that changed to contemporary worship in the past five years show elevated levels of spiritual vitality and growth in worship attendance. In clergy time usage, worship and teaching about the faith are the top task priorities for both Protestant families. The Oldline congregations put higher priority on worship and the Evangelical congregations put higher priority on teaching. Catholic/Orthodox leaders spent more time and attention on administration than any other task.

Earlier FACT surveys were taken in 2000 and 2005. The latest survey was conducted to track short-term changes in a limited number of key areas of congregational life and structure, and to plumb the dynamics of selected congregational practices and challenges.
- From Prophecy News Watch

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Most Americans Consider Easter a Religious Holiday, But Fewer Correctly Identify its Meaning

From Barna.Org

As American society becomes more religiously diverse, the nation’s population has had to grapple with how to define its holidays and celebrations. A recent study by the Barna Group explored Americans’ definition of the Easter holiday, asking a nationwide, representative sample of American adults how they would describe what Easter means to them, personally.

The results indicated that most Americans consider Easter to be a religious holiday, but fewer identify the resurrection of Jesus as the underlying meaning. The study also explored the degree to which Americans are likely to invite an unchurched friend or family member to attend worship service on Easter weekend.

Sacred Descriptions

In response to a free-response query, most Americans described Easter as a religious celebration. Two out of every three Americans (67%) mention some type of theistic religious element. Common responses included describing it as a Christian holiday, a celebration of God or Jesus, a celebration of Passover, a holy day, or a special time for church or worship attendance.

However, while a majority of Americans indicated some type of spiritual connection with Easter, the research also showed that a minority of adults directly linked Easter to the Christian faith’s belief in the resurrection of Christ. In all, 42% of Americans said that the meaning of Easter was the resurrection of Jesus or that it signifies Christ death and return to life. One out of every 50 adults (2%) said that they would describe Easter as the most important holiday of their faith.

Even within the religious definitions offered by Americans there is a certain degree of confusion: 2% of Americans said that Easter is about the “birth of Christ”; another 2% indicated it was about the “rebirth of Jesus”; and 1% said it is a celebration of “the second coming of Jesus.”Not included in the theistic category was another 3% who described Easter as a celebration of spring or a pagan holiday.

Not included in the theistic category was another 3% who described Easter as a celebration of spring or a pagan holiday.

Secular Descriptions

On the non-religious side, 13% of respondents said they were not sure how to describe Easter. Another 8% of Americans said the holiday means nothing to them or that they do not celebrate the occasion. Other non-religious descriptions of Easter included: getting friends and family together (4%), spring break (3%), a symbol of new beginnings, rebirth, and renewal (2%), a time to dye and hide eggs (2%), an event for children to have fun (2%), the Easter bunny (1%), an occasion that is too commercialized (1%), and an opportunity to enjoy food and candy (1%).

Who Celebrates Easter as Religious Holiday?

The types of Americans who were most likely to express some type of theistic religious connection with Easter were evangelicals (93%), attenders of large churches (86% among those whose congregation has 500-plus adult attenders), born again Christians (81%), and weekly churchgoers (77%).

Republicans (77%) and Democrats (71%) were more likely than were independents (59%) and non-registered citizens (51%) to say Easter has religious meaning for them.

In terms of age, members of the Boomer generation (73%, ages 45 to 63) were among the most likely to describe Easter as a religious holiday for them, compared with two-thirds of Elders (66% of those ages 64-plus) and Busters (66%, ages 26 to 44). The youngest adult generation, the Mosaics (ages 18 to 25), were the least likely age segment to say Easter is a religious holiday (58%), reflecting the increasingly secular mindset of young adults.

Other population segments describing Easter with a non-religious bent were faith groups other than Christianity (just 31% said Easter’s meaning is religious), atheists and agnostics (36%), and unchurched adults (46%).

Resurrection Views

Those who identify Easter explicitly as a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus were most likely to be evangelicals (73%), large church attenders (60%), born again Christians (55%), active churchgoers (54%), upscale adults (54%), and Protestants (51%).

Showing a perceptual gap between political conservatives and liberals, those on the political “right” were nearly twice as likely as those on the political “left” to say that Easter is a celebration of the resurrection (53% versus 29%, respectively).

In terms of the audience that most Christian churches attempt to attract on Easter weekend – non-churchgoing adults – the research shows that while 46% of unchurched adults view the meaning of Easter to be religious, while just 25% connect the holiday to Jesus’ return to life.

As for denominational affiliation, most Catholics said they celebrate Easter as a religious holiday (65%).Still, just one-third of Catholics listed the resurrection as the meaning of the holiday (37%). In comparison, Protestants were more likely than Catholics both to view Easter as a religious holiday and to connect the occasion to Jesus’ awakening from death (78% and 51%, respectively).

Easter and Evangelism?

The Barna research also examined whether churchgoing adults perceive Easter weekend to be a good time to invite people to attend worship services with them. While most active churchgoers said they would be open to doing this, a minority said they would be likely to do so. Overall, 31% of active churchgoers said they would definitely invite someone they know who does not usually attend a church to accompany them to a church service on Easter weekend this year.

Those most likely to invite people to church on Easter were women, parents of young children, evangelicals, Protestants, those who attend small churches (less than 100 adult attenders), and non-white adults.

Interestingly, those who articulate a resurrection-related concept of Easter are no more likely than other religiously oriented Americans to indicate that they will invite friends to worship with them on Easter.

Observations

The Barna researcher who directed the project, David Kinnaman, pointed out that “most Americans continue to view the Easter holiday as a religious celebration, but many of them are not clear as to the underlying reason for the occasion. Perhaps most concerning, from the standpoint of church leaders, is that those who celebrate Easter because of the resurrection of Christ are not particularly likely to invite non-churched friends to worship, suggesting that their personal beliefs about Jesus have not yet translated into a sense of urgency for having spiritual conversations with their acquaintances.”

Kinnaman, president of the Barna Group, also pointed out that there may be a substantial gap between people’s openness to inviting a non-church person to attend a church service on Easter and the likelihood of them actually doing so. “Realistically, if all of the people who said they would bring unchurched people with them on Easter were to follow through, America’s churches couldn’t handle the overflow. The statistics project to something like 40 million church regulars who claim they are likely to bring someone as their guest. If each of those people brought just one adult as their guest, that’d be the equivalent of adding 115 new people per Christian congregation. That would more than double the size of the average church! That is clearly an over-estimate.

“But we shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that so many people are at least open to the idea of offering such invitations to their friends and family. One of the challenges to pastors and other church leaders is to find out what’s actually preventing them from following through on that willingness.”
- From Prophecy News Watch

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Preacher is fined for homophobia

From ScotsmanonSunday.Scotsman.Com

A Street has prompted concerns over religious freedom in Scotland after being fined £1,000 for telling passers-by in Glasgow city centre that homosexuals deserved the “wrath of God” and would go to hell.

Shawn Holes admitted breaching the peace earlier this month by “uttering homophobic remarks” that were “aggravated by religious prejudice”.

The American Baptist, who was touring Britain with colleagues, was arrested by police while responding to questions from people in Sauchiehall Street on 18 March.

Holes, 47, from New York State, when asked his views on gay people, said: “Homosexuals are deserving of the wrath of God – and so are all other sinners – and they are going to a place called hell.”

He said later: “There were homosexuals listening – around six or eight of them – who were kissing each other and cuddling, and asking ‘What do you think of this?’

“It felt like a set-up by gay campaigners. When asked directly about homosexuality, I told them homosexuals risked the wrath of God unless they accepted Christ.”

Holes said he had no choice but to admit the charge at Glasgow Sheriff Court because he was desperate to fly home to see his wife, and his father, who is in a hospice. However, he said he had expected to be fined only about £100.

New legislation introduced last week increased the penalties available for people convicted of “hate crimes” against groups such as gay and disabled people to the same level as race crimes.

But Tony Kelly, Holes’ lawyer, said: “This case raises important issues about the interface between the criminal law and religious freedom.”

Gordon Macdonald, of Christian Action Research and Education for Scotland, said: “This is a concerning case. I will be writing to Chief Constable Stephen House of Strathclyde Police for clarification of the guidance given to police officers in these situations.”

The Roman Catholic Church, which backed stiffer “hate crime” penalties, said the fine seemed to criminalise anyone who repeated a widely held conviction.

Peter Kearney, its spokesman, said: “We supported this legislation but it is very difficult to see how this man can be charged for expressing a religious conviction.

“The facts of this case show his statement was clearly his religious belief.

“Yes, it is strong language he has used, but it is obviously a religious conviction and not a form of discrimination.”
- From Prophecy News Watch

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History Channel to air “The Real Face of Jesus” using 3-D Rendering Technology From Shroud Of Turin

From WND.Com

The world will have an extraordinary opportunity to look upon an undistorted, never-before-seen, moving 3-D portrait of a man who many think is the crucified Jesus Christ.

In just a few days, graphic experts will bring to life an imprint on the holy relic known as the Shroud of Turin, believed by millions to be the burial shroud of Christ.

The Shroud of Turin bears the full-body, back-and-front image of a crucified man that is said to closely resemble the New Testament description of the passion and death of Christ. The 14-foot cloth long has posed mysteries because of its age and its negative image of a bloodstained and battered man who had been crucified. Believers claim it to be the miraculous image of Jesus, formed as he rose from the dead.

The History Channel will air “The Real Face of Jesus?,” a special two-hour event that premieres March 30 at 9 p.m. EST. It aims to bring the world as close as it has ever come to seeing what Jesus may have actually looked like.

Computer graphics artist Ray Downing of Studio Macbeth used today’s most sophisticated electronic tools and software in a yearlong effort to recreate the face imprint on the Shroud of Turin.

“The presence of 3-D information encoded in a 2-D image is quite unexpected, as well as unique,” Downing said. “It is as if there is an instruction set inside a picture for building a sculpture.”

He told WND some scientists debate whether 3-D information is provided in the shroud.

“It’s so unusual to find this kind of information – in ancient cloths, photographs, paintings, drawings and etchings – it’s so unusual that some think it’s a miracle and some doubt it’s even there,” he said. “The people who say it’s not there haven’t examined it for themselves. Disbelievers disbelieve it. Believers think it’s a miracle ”

3-D computer image of body based on information found on the Shroud of Turin (photo: History Channel)

Downing used similar computer graphics techniques in 2009 to create moving images of Abraham Lincoln in “Stealing Lincoln’s Body.” He said in “The Real Face of Jesus?,” viewers will learn how artists used the technology to build the figure.

“There comes a time in the show where there’s a climax where we actually reveal the face of Jesus,” he explained. “What you’ll see is a very, very close shot of Jesus in the tomb, and then he comes to life.”

Downing said there are two lessons within the story of the shroud.

“There is the story of the shroud which, artistically and scientifically, is the story of a transition from two dimensional to three dimensional. But there is as well the story of the man in the shroud, and a record of His transformation from death to life,” Downing observed. “The two stories are intertwined; they seem to be one and the same.”

In 2009, Downing and the History Channel traveled to see John Jackson, a physics lecturer at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs who runs the Turin Shroud Center of Colorado, to learn more about the science of the cloth from the man who has studied it first-hand.

In 1978, Jackson led a team of American scientists which was given exclusive access to the Shroud of Turin for five days of intensive scientific examination. Jackson has continued his analysis of that data until the present time.

“People are so fascinated by this because there’s a real possibility that this might be the historic burial cloth of Jesus,” Jackson told WND. “If it’s the burial cloth of Jesus, then it would also be the resurrection cloth. Suddenly, you have a physical object – here we are 2,000 years later – that conceivably could just bring us right into the Easter tomb.”

Jackson said the shroud shows all the blood wounds that are recorded in the gospels. Among Jackson’s findings he cited:

- Bloodstains on the shroud are real, and the blood has not been degraded by heat.
- Historians say the stains are consistent with crucifixion, including puncture wounds from thorns and scourge marks from a Roman whip.
- A puncture wound in the man’s side is consistent with a Roman spear. And the wound marks showing nail holes through the wrists and heels are consistent with Roman crucifixion.
- A textile restorer, Mechthild Flury-Lemberg, in 2002 announced the stitching found in the material had been seen in material from only one other source: the ruins of Masada, a Jewish settlement destroyed in A.D. 74. And the herringbone weave was common in the First Century but rare in Middle Ages.

“It would seem that it’s pretty unique,” Jackson explained. “Crucifixion was done quite a bit in the Roman Empire. It was their way of controlling the population that they wanted to subjugate. But the crown of thorns, according to the gospel accounts, was something that was invented for Jesus because of his claim of being King of the Jews. He was also scourged as well. There was no record that the other two men who were crucified along with Jesus had it happen to them.”

Jackson said generations upon generations of people have passed on the shroud, and much of the information about the origins of the burial cloth was not passed along with it.

“So you just have a degradation of what you know about this cloth,” he said. “So you have to rely upon scientific archeology of the cloth to bridge over some of that ignorance and tie things together.”

The cloth is in the custody of the Vatican, which stores it in a protective chamber of inert gases in Turin’s Cathedral of St. John. History reveals it was exhibited in France about 1360 by Geoffrey de Charney, a French knight who owned it then.

The Catholic Church in Turin, Italy, will exhibit the Shroud of Turin from April 10 through May 23, the fifth public exposition since 1898 and the longest in the shroud’s modern history. Jackson is preparing to embark on a pilgrimage to see the Shroud from April 29 to May 6 and is inviting the public to join him.

The official website created by the Archdiocese of Turin for this year’s exhibition estimates 2 million people will travel to Turin to view the shroud. Pope Benedict XVI is scheduled to visit the shroud May 2.

“The shroud is not shown every other weekend,” Jackson said. “If you look at the 20th century, it was only shown four times: 1931, 1933, 1978 and 1998. That’s, on average, about once every 25 years.”

While the shroud was also shown in 2000, it was to celebrate the new millennium.

“I didn’t expect the shroud to be shown again in Italy until about 2025, so about once every generation,” he said. “Suddenly, we have the shroud being shown 10 years after the last time, so that’s an opportunity that people might really want to consider taking because it’s not going to be out next year. It may be 2035 before it’s ever shown again, if you follow the averages of the last century.”

Jackson has organized pilgrimages to see the shroud twice before. On his tour, he seeks to educate people about the shroud rather than simply capturing a glimpse of the cloth.

“We will bring own computer capability, and we will show just to our group what we think about the shroud in a lot of different ways,” he said.

Jackson said he will explain the tablecloth hypothesis – or the idea that the shroud was the tablecloth at the Last Supper before it was used as a shroud. He’ll also discuss its relevance to the resurrection and radio carbon dating, among various other topics of research.

“When we take people to the shroud, we want them to have a pretty good idea of what they’re looking at so they can appreciate it more,” he said. “I’ve been at this for 35 years and Rebecca, my wife, for 20 years. We want to take 55 years of thinking about this cloth from different perspectives and help people understand it the way we understand it.”

Even after the 1978 Shroud of Turin Research Project subjected the shroud to scientific analysis, how the image was formed on the 14-foot-long linen cloth remains a subject of debate. The theory of the shroud being Christ’s burial cloth took a serious blow in the late 1980s when scientists including those at an Oxford University laboratory performed the age-dating process on a fragment of the material and came up with the results that it was no older than the 13th or 14th century, more than a millennium after New Testament times.

But Jackson later reported he had convinced Prof. Christopher Ramsey, head of the Oxford University Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit, to test his hypothesis that carbon monoxide contamination could have skewed the test results by more than 1,000 years.

Ramsey later stated, “There is a lot of other evidence that suggests to many that the shroud is older than the radiocarbon dates allow and so further research is certainly needed.”

As for the History Channel documentary, “The Real Face of Jesus?,” Downing said at the end of the show viewers will see something rather exciting and unexpected.

“There’s a revelation concerning the nature of the encoded information itself,” Downing said. “It’s a discovery that’s going to be there. It doesn’t disprove the shroud. It’s quite the opposite. It demonstrates that the shroud image is a result of a natural process.”

He added, “It witnessed an actual physical event that Christians have come to call the resurrection.”
- From Prophecy News Watch

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Christian Counselors Could Lose Jobs For Failing To Provide Pro-Gay Counsel

From Christian Post.Com

Attorneys with a Christian legal firm plan to appeal a recent ruling against a Christian counselor who was laid off after she referred a lesbian to another counselor.

“A counselor who is a Christian shouldn’t lose her job for upholding the highest professional standards,” said Alliance Defense Fund Senior Counsel Brian Raum on Friday.

U.S. District Judge Julie E. Carnes last week rejected the lawsuit filed by Marcia Walden of Atlanta, Ga., and ruled that she cannot establish a case of religious discrimination.

Walden was one of four Employee Assistance Program counselors at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In August 2007, a CDC employee met with Walden for an initial counseling session.

The employee, identified in the lawsuit as Jane Doe, said she had been in a same-sex relationship for 18 years, had an 8-year-old son, and recently learned that her partner forged her name in order to obtain lines of credit. She became emotional during the course of the session.

After hearing what kind of counseling the employee was seeking, Walden informed Doe that she couldn’t provide the requested counseling because it would conflict with her values and therefore, it would not be fair to the potential client for her to counsel Doe.

Doe agreed to meet with another counselor and Walden referred her to a colleague who was available.

Later, however, Doe complained to the EAP director. The CDC employee testified that she felt “judged and condemned” by Walden because of the manner and timing of her explanation as to why she could not counsel her.

Walden was advised by her directors to use other methods when referring employees to other counselors without mentioning her religious objections or personal values. But Walden refused to be dishonest to those seeking counseling.

She was subsequently fired.

“It is unlawful to punish Marcia for following her Christian faith, particularly when she made every effort to accommodate the needs of a potential client,” said Raum. “Referring her to another competent counselor instead of attempting to offer her own counsel in such a situation was the ethical thing to do for the person seeking help. It’s egregious to be fired for honoring professional and ethical obligations, and we regret the court didn’t see this.

“We will certainly appeal.”
- From Prophecy News Watch

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Mother Grove Goddess Temple to celebrate spring equinox inside Episcopal Church

From GKUpsidedown.Blogspot.Com

Just up the road in Asheville it seems the Episcopalians are welcoming witches onto their property to celebrate the Spring equinox together.

Of course it is rather easy to poke fun at aging ladies in flowing robes and dangly earrings lighting candles and dancing around in a circle to celebrate the flowering of mother earth, and the Episcopal Church is an easy target for such ridicule, but we ought to stop chortling for a moment and realize that the witchy folks are very serious about their witchcraft, and while ridicule is one response we should remember that any sort of dabbling in the occult opens one to demonic influence. All the literature on the deliverance ministry affirms that the easiest way to pick up demonic mainfestation is through intentional occult activity.

This being the case, what can we say about the fact that a once Christian denomination–the Episcopal Church–and an Episcopal cathedral no less– is welcoming a pagan group of witches onto their property? We might be dismayed, but why should we be surprised?

When I was an Anglican priest fifteen years ago the feminists were already inserting prayers and canticles and other ‘alternative worship material’ which addressed God as ‘Mother’ and offered alternative liturgies to ‘Mother Wisdom–She by whom all things were created” etc. etc. Even then the feminists in the Church of England were saying, “Christianity is irreformably patriarchal. Nothing but a complete overhaul of the Judeo Christian religion from within will cleanse the patriarchal stain.” Fifteen years ago in the seemingly staid Church of England they were pushing to rid the liturgy of any reference to God the Father and change the language to affirm the Mother Goddess. The Cathedral in Asheville and the goings on there are, after all, not much different than what we get from lesbian Bishop-to-be Mary Glasspool and presiding bishop Schori in any case.

Does my link of witchcraft to Anglicanism displease conventional Anglicans? Can they deny that feminism and mother goddess worship is absent from their new liturgies and prayerbooks? No, because it is there. They can’t deny it, but will simply say, “But it’s not witchcraft! and besides, it’s only an alternative. You don’t have to use it!” It may not be witchcraft as such, but it is the same theology as the pagans–it’s just been slipped into a Christian setting using Christian sounding language. Or they may say, “They’re only meeting in the church hall. It’s not like they’re meeting in the cathedral proper!”

So why be surprised when the same ladies take the short hop to fully fledged pagan Goddess worship? Fifteen years ago those of us who were opposed to this warned, “This is pagan and will lead to witchcraft in the church.” Hate to say I told you so…
- From Prophecy News Watch

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‘Christianity Lite’ – How A Church’s Wedding Policy Will Tell You The Direction Of The Church

From Christian Post.Com
A news report from Washington, D.C. tells the story of vestigial Christianity unhinged from biblical authority. Religion News Service [RNS] reports that many pastors in the nation’s capital are struggling with just how they can go about the wedding of same-sex couples now that gay marriage is legal in the District of Columbia.

“As gay rights spread through civil society, an increasing number of clergy are…caught by conflicting loyalties, forced to choose between church law and civil law in pastoring to their gay and lesbian congregants,” the news service reports.

Amy Butler, pastor of Calvary Baptist Church, is one minister who plans to move ahead with same-sex weddings. Of her colleagues caught between church policy and the same intention, she says: “My heart breaks for them because they do not know what to do.”

Pastor Jeffrey Krehbiel of the Church of the Pilgrims, a Presbyterian Church (USA) church that has already performed “services of holy union” for same-sex couples, sees uncertainty ahead. “You are taking a risk if you publicly perform gay marriages because you don’t know the consequences.”

Mary Kay Totty, a United Methodist pastor, intends to defy her church on the issue. “The institutional church has for so many years oppressed and excluded and harmed our (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) sisters and brothers…. We have to say, `Enough already. These are people’s lives and loves that we continue to exclude from the fullness of life in the church.’” RNS reports that nineteen other “current and former” UMC clergy have signed a statement supporting Totty and her congregation.

The United Church of Christ [UCC], the most liberal of the historic old-line Protestant denominations, allows ministers to perform same-sex marriages and unions. Denominations that seem determined to follow that lead include the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America [ELCA], the PCUSAUSA, and the Episcopal Church [ECUSA]. The United Methodist Church’s direction is less clear, with some pastors clearly determined to perform same-sex marriages, but the church’s General Conference is taking a more conservative course, at least partly due to the influence of delegates from African congregations.

A clear pattern is evident in this report and in the larger context – the churches and denominations that are supporting, recognizing, and conducting same-sex marriages are those that have adopted very liberal stances on other theological issues. This should not be surprising, since any approval of same-sex marriage requires a rejection of clear biblical teachings. Churches that accept and approve same-sex marriage must first find some way to subvert or neutralize the authority of the Bible and to revise the Gospel.

This brings to mind a recent essay by Mary Eberstadt. In “Christianity Lite,” published in the journal First Things, Eberstadt argues: “Rewriting the rules about sex does not, historically speaking, end with sex. Time and again, that rewriting has coincided with departures from traditional teaching in other areas too.”

As she explains:

Even in the hands of its ablest defenders, Christianity Lite has proven time and again to be incapable of limiting itself to the rules about sex alone. Once traditional sexual morality is dispensed with in whole or in part, it is hard, apparently, to keep the rest of Church teaching off the chopping block. To switch metaphors, which came first, the egg of dissent over sex-or the chicken of dissent over other doctrinal issues? We do not need to know the answer to grasp the point: History shows that Christianity Lite cannot seem to have one without the other.

“Christianity Lite” is a new religion that presents itself as an updated and modernized Christianity. But the effort to reject Christianity’s understanding of biblical sexuality goes hand-in-hand with the rejection of an entire range of biblical doctrines. Nothing less will sustain their effort. You cannot leave a biblical conception of sin and salvation in place if you are determined to deny the sinfulness of a behavior condemned in the Bible.

As Eberstadt concludes:

Christianity Lite has left enough evidence in its wake for us to judge the final outcome of that great experiment: It is a failure. The effort to throw out the unwanted bathwater of the sexual code has taken the baby-the rest of Christian practice and belief-along with it.

A project of theological revisionism is easy to start, but hard to stop. Like a spreading acid, theological liberalism moves from one doctrine to the next, developing patterns of argument that arise over and over again. It is no accident that the very churches and denominations now determined to ordain unrepentant homosexuals are the same churches and denominations that were determined to ordain women to the pastorate. The arguments used to get around, over, and under clear biblical teaching are the same.

The Religion News Service report states that many pastors are now caught “between church law and civil law” on the issue of same-sex marriage. They are really caught between the Bible and sexual revolution. The choice for any true minister of the Gospel is clear.

Before long, we will see all too clearly just who will show up to represent Christianity, and who will show up to represent “Christianity Lite.” A quick look at the church’s wedding policy will tell the whole story.
- From Prophecy News Watch

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