If I would ever have known that going to a gym at night makes you more alert than sleepy, I probably would have staid home. Going to the gym I usually listen to my iPod. The same is true tonight. Instead, however, listening to music, I choose to turn on Focus on the Family's radio play "Dietrich Bonhoeffer."
Having just finished Eric Metaxas's biography of Bonhoeffer I can't get enough of this man who was not only a committed Christian, but a true example of what it means to live Christ like. In this radio play, while in America, Bonhoeffer made a statement after his own exposure to racism targeting his black friend at a coffee shop outside of Harlem. He said, "if the Blacks become godless, I will blame the white people of this country."
During the year as Bonhoeffer attented Union Seminary in New York, NY, as well as some of the more prominent churches, he found the gospel of Christ to be dead. Instead the itineraries were filled with all kinds of do good activities and entertainment for their parishioners. It was the Black church where Bonhoeffer saw the gospel of Jesus Christ alive. A Gospel that associates with those who suffer.
Sadly, the church in America was silent on the slave issue before the Civil War. She was also silent on the Jim Crow laws. As the church in Germany was silent during Nazi Germany on the Jewish issue, even those of the Confessing church, as opposed they were to the "German Christians" who in reality was Nazi at its very core, therefore distancing themselves as true Christians from the "Reichs Church," when it came to the Jewish question, Bonhoeffer was unapologetically rallying to this cause and found himself alone in his pursue to shake the Confessing Church to the help of those who cannot help themselves.
What will happen to the church in America. Today we see many who adopt a "Social Gospel." Not the kind that Bonhoeffer identified with while he was in America visiting the Black churches. But the kind that identifies itself within the realm of political correctness, with Rick Warner and the Emerging Church at the forefront, doing charity for the poor, saving the environment, rallying for peace when there truly is no peace. Is it enough to bring a side note in our sermons of what is going on today, or should we make a bold stand, just as Bonhoeffer did and knowingly put his life on the line. What will the church of America do when all of a sudden the tide turns against Christians and Jews, will it become the Socialist Church of America? Things to ponder about.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
WalidShoebat.com - Muslims Show Their Destain for the Democratic Values of France
WalidShoebat.com - Muslims Show Their Destain for the Democratic Values of France
How much longer are we supposed to wait? Is this what we want in our country? The No-Go Zones of many French cities is a reality. It is not a fiction. Muslims have their own enclaves ruled by sharia where none of the French police is willing to go to except under dire circumstances for fear of their own lives. In Augsburg, my home town, population ca. 300,000. 20 % that, is 60,000, are Muslims. Last year while Israel invaded Gaza after years of rockets being launched at cities like Sderot, Ashkelon and even Beersheva, pro-Palestinian protest erupted all over Europe. My blogger friend heard statements being made like, "Jews to the gas chambers," "Hitler should have killed them all," these statements were not made by Augsburgers, they were made by Muslims who settled in Augsburg. WHAT DO WE NOT GET????
How much longer are we supposed to wait? Is this what we want in our country? The No-Go Zones of many French cities is a reality. It is not a fiction. Muslims have their own enclaves ruled by sharia where none of the French police is willing to go to except under dire circumstances for fear of their own lives. In Augsburg, my home town, population ca. 300,000. 20 % that, is 60,000, are Muslims. Last year while Israel invaded Gaza after years of rockets being launched at cities like Sderot, Ashkelon and even Beersheva, pro-Palestinian protest erupted all over Europe. My blogger friend heard statements being made like, "Jews to the gas chambers," "Hitler should have killed them all," these statements were not made by Augsburgers, they were made by Muslims who settled in Augsburg. WHAT DO WE NOT GET????
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
"For My Father"
"For My Father" is a movie that plays in Tel Aviv, Israel. It is the story of Tarek who crosses over from the Palestinian Autonomy to Tel Aviv in order to blow himself up and killing innocents by doing so. Right from the beginning you get the sense that those who equip him with the explosives belt aren't quite sure that he will pull through with it.
To be on the safe side, they attach a cell phone that can be remotely activated. However, the bomb will go off if someone tries to unhook the cell phone.
As Tarek makes his move on the Tel Aviv market, he is about to push the button but it is a dud. Unsettled, he walks around till he comes to a neighborhood where Katz, one of the store owners is in the business to get this and that for equipment that is outdated. So he asks him if he can get a new trigger part. Across from Katz is Keren who runs a shop that she hardly make a living with.
While Tarek is waiting for Sunday, the day after the Sabbath to go back to the market once he has the new trigger part, he becomes friends with Katz whose son died giving his service to the country and still deals with the loss even so it has been many years ago, and Keren who likes Tarek after being initially confrontational when asked if he could use her bath room.
Soon it becomes clear that, even so Tarek is angry with the Jews and their "occupation," he is not quite sure how to handle the situation. Katz takes on an immense liking who hired Tarek to fix the leak in his roof. Only one person does not welcome him. He is a sort of neighborhood police officer who watches out for any suspicious activities involving Arabs. Also the news is out that a terrorist made it through the check point.
The more Tarek and Keren get to know each other, it is clear that both are outcasts within their own societies. Keren for stopping being religious after she had a baby out of wet lock that died within her womb and her orthodox brothers and friends who are overzelous for her to come back to the fold while she despises everything it stands for after being ridiculed and condemned for her pre-marital actions which make her believe that God is not the God of forgiveness and mercy. Tarek is the procuct of Islamist fundamentalist brain washing. His family is being frowned upon because of his father wanting the best for his son.
For months and years he managed to take his son to the Natzeret soccer team in which Tarek excelled. Even when the 2. intifada started his father still managed to bring his son, less often though, to the practices and games. Because of that, his family lost their status in society, they were out of work and poverty took over. So Tarek wants to kill himself and others in order to bring honor back to his father and also the money that has been promised to his family for doing a "righteous" act. Also, Tarek is being threatened that they will come after his parents if he doesn't do as being told. At one point, the suspicious person who was with Tarek in the beginning is about to explode the bomb remotely, only to be stopped in the nick of time.
On Sunday as Tarek decends upon the market, ready to activate the bomb, he runs into Katz. He asks Katz, who he likes, to leave. Instead Katz retords "why don't you leave, I was here first?" Katz prods into Tarek's conscience, knowing full well what he came for to do. He asks him for who he does it and Tarek tells him "for my father." Katz almost convinced him that he will only kill his parents by doing so. For a moment it seems that Tarek realizes the predicament that he is in. He doesn't want to hurt the ones he cares for but is in conflict with what he came to do. In the meantime the neigborhood cop rounded up snipers to be placed around the market who successfully hit Tarek. However, in the last moments of his consciousness, the brainwashing takes over and lastly he pushes the button.
Just as the explosion is about to happen, Keren, with whom Tarek spent the night together on the beach of Tel Aviv, awakens. As she hears the explosion, she discovers the nails that Tarek left behind, which was part of his explosives belt and would have caused so much more mortal damage to bystanders.
Truly, I felt as if I could cry. I do not have zero sympathy for the Imams who declare their hatred to their congregations year in and year out. Islam is through and through satanic. And yet, I sympathize with Tarek who clearly wasn't the typical suicide bomber who would scream "Alahu Akbar" just before he pushes the button. Instead he does it with ulterior motives. First and mostly to restore the good name of his family, his father, a well known violinist, and to ease the financial burden with the money promised for committing this murderous act. While in the same token he is torn between the people he comes to love and respect as well as his family that he, right or wrong, wants to make their lives better.
Sadly, this is not the normal case. However, several women who chose to do the same did it as a last resort for their honor after they either were unable to work or because their husbands divorced them or some other kind of dishonor fell upon them to make this the only avenue they knew with the hope of being in paradise for eternity. It also clearly showed the legalism of those that do not love God in the Spirit but by the letter of the law and therefore themselves are unable to show forgiveness and mercy to those who failed and stumpled. Instead of doing everything to come lovingly alongside them, and help them back on the right path, they drive them further away from the love of God into a live of hopelessness.
Definitely a must see movie even after I spoiled the plot. :-)
To be on the safe side, they attach a cell phone that can be remotely activated. However, the bomb will go off if someone tries to unhook the cell phone.
As Tarek makes his move on the Tel Aviv market, he is about to push the button but it is a dud. Unsettled, he walks around till he comes to a neighborhood where Katz, one of the store owners is in the business to get this and that for equipment that is outdated. So he asks him if he can get a new trigger part. Across from Katz is Keren who runs a shop that she hardly make a living with.
While Tarek is waiting for Sunday, the day after the Sabbath to go back to the market once he has the new trigger part, he becomes friends with Katz whose son died giving his service to the country and still deals with the loss even so it has been many years ago, and Keren who likes Tarek after being initially confrontational when asked if he could use her bath room.
Soon it becomes clear that, even so Tarek is angry with the Jews and their "occupation," he is not quite sure how to handle the situation. Katz takes on an immense liking who hired Tarek to fix the leak in his roof. Only one person does not welcome him. He is a sort of neighborhood police officer who watches out for any suspicious activities involving Arabs. Also the news is out that a terrorist made it through the check point.
The more Tarek and Keren get to know each other, it is clear that both are outcasts within their own societies. Keren for stopping being religious after she had a baby out of wet lock that died within her womb and her orthodox brothers and friends who are overzelous for her to come back to the fold while she despises everything it stands for after being ridiculed and condemned for her pre-marital actions which make her believe that God is not the God of forgiveness and mercy. Tarek is the procuct of Islamist fundamentalist brain washing. His family is being frowned upon because of his father wanting the best for his son.
For months and years he managed to take his son to the Natzeret soccer team in which Tarek excelled. Even when the 2. intifada started his father still managed to bring his son, less often though, to the practices and games. Because of that, his family lost their status in society, they were out of work and poverty took over. So Tarek wants to kill himself and others in order to bring honor back to his father and also the money that has been promised to his family for doing a "righteous" act. Also, Tarek is being threatened that they will come after his parents if he doesn't do as being told. At one point, the suspicious person who was with Tarek in the beginning is about to explode the bomb remotely, only to be stopped in the nick of time.
On Sunday as Tarek decends upon the market, ready to activate the bomb, he runs into Katz. He asks Katz, who he likes, to leave. Instead Katz retords "why don't you leave, I was here first?" Katz prods into Tarek's conscience, knowing full well what he came for to do. He asks him for who he does it and Tarek tells him "for my father." Katz almost convinced him that he will only kill his parents by doing so. For a moment it seems that Tarek realizes the predicament that he is in. He doesn't want to hurt the ones he cares for but is in conflict with what he came to do. In the meantime the neigborhood cop rounded up snipers to be placed around the market who successfully hit Tarek. However, in the last moments of his consciousness, the brainwashing takes over and lastly he pushes the button.
Just as the explosion is about to happen, Keren, with whom Tarek spent the night together on the beach of Tel Aviv, awakens. As she hears the explosion, she discovers the nails that Tarek left behind, which was part of his explosives belt and would have caused so much more mortal damage to bystanders.
Truly, I felt as if I could cry. I do not have zero sympathy for the Imams who declare their hatred to their congregations year in and year out. Islam is through and through satanic. And yet, I sympathize with Tarek who clearly wasn't the typical suicide bomber who would scream "Alahu Akbar" just before he pushes the button. Instead he does it with ulterior motives. First and mostly to restore the good name of his family, his father, a well known violinist, and to ease the financial burden with the money promised for committing this murderous act. While in the same token he is torn between the people he comes to love and respect as well as his family that he, right or wrong, wants to make their lives better.
Sadly, this is not the normal case. However, several women who chose to do the same did it as a last resort for their honor after they either were unable to work or because their husbands divorced them or some other kind of dishonor fell upon them to make this the only avenue they knew with the hope of being in paradise for eternity. It also clearly showed the legalism of those that do not love God in the Spirit but by the letter of the law and therefore themselves are unable to show forgiveness and mercy to those who failed and stumpled. Instead of doing everything to come lovingly alongside them, and help them back on the right path, they drive them further away from the love of God into a live of hopelessness.
Definitely a must see movie even after I spoiled the plot. :-)
Saturday, May 21, 2011
What Did Bonhoeffer Know?
What did Bonhoeffer know?
Dohnanyi told him that n, w, under the dark cover of war, Hitler had unleashed force that beggared description, that mad the usual horrors of war quaint things of the past. Reports from Poland indicated that the SS were committing unspeakable atrocities, things unherd of in civilized times. On September 10, a group of SS men had brutally overseen the forced labor of 50 Polish Jews who spend the day repairing a bridge. When the work was completed, the SS herded the workers into a synagogue and murdered them. That was only one example. On a widespread systematic level, the Wehrmacht advances in Poland were occupied by the intentional mass murder of civilians.
Dohnanyi’s primary source was his boss Admiral Canaris. It was so disturbing that Canaris insisted on meeting with Wilhelm Keitel, the head of the German military. They met in Hitler’s private railroad train on September 12, and Canaris questioned OKW chief about the peinious evils, which would destroy Germany. What Canaris could not have known at that civilized meeting was that it would continue and would get much worse. It would not only destroy Germany, but would do so more completely than he had ever dared to fear. The German culture and civilization that he, Dohnanyi, and Bonhoeffer knew and loved would be obliterated from history. Future generations would be convinced that nothing good could ever have existed in a country that produced such evil. They would think only of these evils. It would be as if these unleashed dark forces had grotesquely marched like devils on dead horses, backward through the gash in the present, and had destroyed the German past too.
“Bonhoeffer, Pastor, Prophet, Martyr, Spy” has been the most revealing read to me of this new decade if not even the last. Never did I learn more about the era between WWI and WWII than I have through this book. Thanks to Eric Metaxas’ masterful biography of the life and death of Dietrich von Bonhoeffer.
As a German I have been plagued for many years, why could a people so civilized and cultured commit such horrendous crimes. It is the country of the poets, thinkers and theologians. Now I’m not saying that Anti-Semitism never existed on German soil. This would be dishonest. But especially since Bismarck, Jews were very much part of the fabric of German society. Every walk of live had its Jews and they were just as much German as the rest of Germany. Some of them were amongst the wealthiest. Many sported a proud heritage of serving in the German Armed Forces. But this passage out of chapter 22 “The End of Germany” clearly demonstrates the damage Hitler’s atrocities left on the German nation. To this day we dare not do what we ought to do for German survival. Patriotism, Conservatism is considered fascist even so America has been known for it’s strong Patriotism and the many good this nation did to help the less privileged. When I mentioned to someone that it is sad to see our cities becoming a melting pot and the Germaness of it is less and less visible, I have been told that they do not dare to tighten their borders out of fear of being equated with Nazism. How damaging Hitler’s actions have been on our national psyche.
This is not to make lite of the Holocaust, not in the least. But if this book did not show me anything, it showed me that many people amongst the German officers and the upper class deeply despised Hitler and saw it necessary to get rid of this evil. Not just for the sake of Germany’s future, but also because of the evil, done to others who were not part of the “Aryan” people. As the book reveals, Bonhoeffer’s family knew much of the things that went on, years before the rest of the German people got to know about it. Bringing shame to multitudes including my own mother who was ashamed to show a green passport at America’s ports of entry and only in her later years realized that the typical German Lanzer was no worse or better than the GI Joe. It was Hitler’s worst of worst, the SS, SA, and every one else who in a normal society would not even have come to the power but under Hitler no one could be depraved enough not to be a viable tool in Hitler’s evil murderous machinery. Sadly enough, appeasers existed throughout history. If Neville Chamberlain (don’t want to call him a name) wouldn’t have agreed to Hitler’s invasion of the Sudetenland, Canaris and his men would have had every legal means to get Hitler on criminal charges and foremost for treason to the German people. I’m proud of each and every one who risk their lives to stand up in the face of evil. Whether it was to end Hitler’s rain through assassination or those that harbored Jews from the Nazis, some of them loosing their own lives in the wake of being found out.
Dohnanyi told him that n, w, under the dark cover of war, Hitler had unleashed force that beggared description, that mad the usual horrors of war quaint things of the past. Reports from Poland indicated that the SS were committing unspeakable atrocities, things unherd of in civilized times. On September 10, a group of SS men had brutally overseen the forced labor of 50 Polish Jews who spend the day repairing a bridge. When the work was completed, the SS herded the workers into a synagogue and murdered them. That was only one example. On a widespread systematic level, the Wehrmacht advances in Poland were occupied by the intentional mass murder of civilians.
Dohnanyi’s primary source was his boss Admiral Canaris. It was so disturbing that Canaris insisted on meeting with Wilhelm Keitel, the head of the German military. They met in Hitler’s private railroad train on September 12, and Canaris questioned OKW chief about the peinious evils, which would destroy Germany. What Canaris could not have known at that civilized meeting was that it would continue and would get much worse. It would not only destroy Germany, but would do so more completely than he had ever dared to fear. The German culture and civilization that he, Dohnanyi, and Bonhoeffer knew and loved would be obliterated from history. Future generations would be convinced that nothing good could ever have existed in a country that produced such evil. They would think only of these evils. It would be as if these unleashed dark forces had grotesquely marched like devils on dead horses, backward through the gash in the present, and had destroyed the German past too.
“Bonhoeffer, Pastor, Prophet, Martyr, Spy” has been the most revealing read to me of this new decade if not even the last. Never did I learn more about the era between WWI and WWII than I have through this book. Thanks to Eric Metaxas’ masterful biography of the life and death of Dietrich von Bonhoeffer.
As a German I have been plagued for many years, why could a people so civilized and cultured commit such horrendous crimes. It is the country of the poets, thinkers and theologians. Now I’m not saying that Anti-Semitism never existed on German soil. This would be dishonest. But especially since Bismarck, Jews were very much part of the fabric of German society. Every walk of live had its Jews and they were just as much German as the rest of Germany. Some of them were amongst the wealthiest. Many sported a proud heritage of serving in the German Armed Forces. But this passage out of chapter 22 “The End of Germany” clearly demonstrates the damage Hitler’s atrocities left on the German nation. To this day we dare not do what we ought to do for German survival. Patriotism, Conservatism is considered fascist even so America has been known for it’s strong Patriotism and the many good this nation did to help the less privileged. When I mentioned to someone that it is sad to see our cities becoming a melting pot and the Germaness of it is less and less visible, I have been told that they do not dare to tighten their borders out of fear of being equated with Nazism. How damaging Hitler’s actions have been on our national psyche.
This is not to make lite of the Holocaust, not in the least. But if this book did not show me anything, it showed me that many people amongst the German officers and the upper class deeply despised Hitler and saw it necessary to get rid of this evil. Not just for the sake of Germany’s future, but also because of the evil, done to others who were not part of the “Aryan” people. As the book reveals, Bonhoeffer’s family knew much of the things that went on, years before the rest of the German people got to know about it. Bringing shame to multitudes including my own mother who was ashamed to show a green passport at America’s ports of entry and only in her later years realized that the typical German Lanzer was no worse or better than the GI Joe. It was Hitler’s worst of worst, the SS, SA, and every one else who in a normal society would not even have come to the power but under Hitler no one could be depraved enough not to be a viable tool in Hitler’s evil murderous machinery. Sadly enough, appeasers existed throughout history. If Neville Chamberlain (don’t want to call him a name) wouldn’t have agreed to Hitler’s invasion of the Sudetenland, Canaris and his men would have had every legal means to get Hitler on criminal charges and foremost for treason to the German people. I’m proud of each and every one who risk their lives to stand up in the face of evil. Whether it was to end Hitler’s rain through assassination or those that harbored Jews from the Nazis, some of them loosing their own lives in the wake of being found out.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Christian Persecution
This is just another incident showing clearly Islam's Peace towards those of different faiths. THERE IS NONE! The story speaks for itself. Pray for Christians and Jews persecuted all around the world.
Nigerian Pastor’s Wife, Children among Christians Killed in Attack
Obed Minchakpu
May 12, 2011
KURUM, Nigeria (CDN) — As she lay on the ground after being shot and then slashed with a machete, Dune James Rike looked into her husband’s tear-filled eyes and asked, “Is this the end between us, so we shall not be together again?”
Pastor James Musa Rike told Compass he held the hands of his dying, 35-year-old wife and told her, “Hold on to your faith in Jesus, and we shall meet and never part again.”
Muslim extremists who attacked Kurum village, in the Bogoro local government area of Nigeria’s Bauchi state, had already killed two of the couple’s children in a rampage that began Wednesday (May 4) at midnight. Rike, pastor of a Church of Christ in Nigeria (COCIN) congregation in Kurum, next heard the cries of his 13-year-old daughter, Sum James Rike, a few yards away.
“I rushed to my daughter, only to discover that she too was cut with a machete on her stomach, and her intestines were all around her,” he said. “I held her hand and began to pray, knowing she too was about to die. She told me that the Muslim militants told her they would kill her and “see how your Jesus will save you.”
The girl told her father that she responded by telling them that Jesus had already saved her, and that by killing her they would only be making it possible for her to be with Him. Pastor Rike prayed for her as she died.
Shooting and setting homes on fire, the Muslim extremists killed 12 other Christians in the attack. Bauchi police reported 16 people dead – one man, three women and 12 children.
Pastor Rike said that when the attackers reached his house, they tried to force their way into their bedrooms.
“I opened a backdoor, and we ran out into the dark night while the militants pursued us,” he said. “They shot my wife and two of our kids as they tried to escape.”
Pastor Rike said that after killing the two children, Faith James Rike and 1-year-old Fyali James Rike, the assailants cut his wife’s abdomen with a machete.
"I was shocked at what I saw,” he said. “I knew my wife would not last long, and the only thing I did was to encourage her to hold on to her faith in Jesus.”
The Muslim extremists set more than 20 houses ablaze before leaving the village, he said.
Pastor Rike and his son survived the attack, and he said his adopted daughter, Whulham James Rike, was injured and receiving treatment at the General Hospital in Bogoro. He said five others others were also receiving hospital treatment.
Among those killed, church sources said, were Murna Ayuba; Angelina Ezekiel; Dorcas Sunday; Asabar Toma; Rhoda Joseph; Dhunhgwa Zakka; Bukata Amos; Ishaku Amos; Kalla Amos; Amos Daniel; Samidah Joel; and Changtan Joel.
The Muslim jihadists also stole money and the other valuables from the Christian village as they withdrew, church sources said.
The area has a history of sectarian violence, and the attack follows the death of hundreds of people in Bauchi and other northern states last month after Muslims rioted over the April 16 election of a Christian, Goodluck Jonathan, as president. He defeated a Muslim candidate, Muhammadu Buhari. Saying more than 200 church buildings were burned, Christian leaders in northern Nigeria have called for a federal probe into the violence, in which Christians mounted counter attacks.
Northern Nigeria climbed to 23rd place in 2010 from 27th in 2009 on Christian support organization Open Doors’ World Watch List of nations with the worst persecution.
The church where Pastor Rike ministers has about 30 members and has been in existence for more than 50 years. Those killed were members of the three churches in the village – the COCIN church, St. John’s Catholic Church and an Evangelical Church of West Africa congregation.
Pastor Rike said the incident has strengthened his faith in Jesus.
“Whatever is the situation, I will never forsake Christ,” he said. “All human beings are created by God, and our attackers must know that they need to abandon anything that will lead them to destroy creations of God.”
Nigeria’s population of more than 158.2 million is almost evenly divided between Christians, who make up 51.3 percent of the population and live mainly in the south, and Muslims, who account for 45 percent of the population and live mainly in the north. The percentages may be less, however, as those practicing indigenous religions may be as high as 10 percent of the total population, according to Operation World.
Copyright 2011 Compass Direct News. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Nigerian Pastor’s Wife, Children among Christians Killed in Attack
Obed Minchakpu
May 12, 2011
KURUM, Nigeria (CDN) — As she lay on the ground after being shot and then slashed with a machete, Dune James Rike looked into her husband’s tear-filled eyes and asked, “Is this the end between us, so we shall not be together again?”
Pastor James Musa Rike told Compass he held the hands of his dying, 35-year-old wife and told her, “Hold on to your faith in Jesus, and we shall meet and never part again.”
Muslim extremists who attacked Kurum village, in the Bogoro local government area of Nigeria’s Bauchi state, had already killed two of the couple’s children in a rampage that began Wednesday (May 4) at midnight. Rike, pastor of a Church of Christ in Nigeria (COCIN) congregation in Kurum, next heard the cries of his 13-year-old daughter, Sum James Rike, a few yards away.
“I rushed to my daughter, only to discover that she too was cut with a machete on her stomach, and her intestines were all around her,” he said. “I held her hand and began to pray, knowing she too was about to die. She told me that the Muslim militants told her they would kill her and “see how your Jesus will save you.”
The girl told her father that she responded by telling them that Jesus had already saved her, and that by killing her they would only be making it possible for her to be with Him. Pastor Rike prayed for her as she died.
Shooting and setting homes on fire, the Muslim extremists killed 12 other Christians in the attack. Bauchi police reported 16 people dead – one man, three women and 12 children.
Pastor Rike said that when the attackers reached his house, they tried to force their way into their bedrooms.
“I opened a backdoor, and we ran out into the dark night while the militants pursued us,” he said. “They shot my wife and two of our kids as they tried to escape.”
Pastor Rike said that after killing the two children, Faith James Rike and 1-year-old Fyali James Rike, the assailants cut his wife’s abdomen with a machete.
"I was shocked at what I saw,” he said. “I knew my wife would not last long, and the only thing I did was to encourage her to hold on to her faith in Jesus.”
The Muslim extremists set more than 20 houses ablaze before leaving the village, he said.
Pastor Rike and his son survived the attack, and he said his adopted daughter, Whulham James Rike, was injured and receiving treatment at the General Hospital in Bogoro. He said five others others were also receiving hospital treatment.
Among those killed, church sources said, were Murna Ayuba; Angelina Ezekiel; Dorcas Sunday; Asabar Toma; Rhoda Joseph; Dhunhgwa Zakka; Bukata Amos; Ishaku Amos; Kalla Amos; Amos Daniel; Samidah Joel; and Changtan Joel.
The Muslim jihadists also stole money and the other valuables from the Christian village as they withdrew, church sources said.
The area has a history of sectarian violence, and the attack follows the death of hundreds of people in Bauchi and other northern states last month after Muslims rioted over the April 16 election of a Christian, Goodluck Jonathan, as president. He defeated a Muslim candidate, Muhammadu Buhari. Saying more than 200 church buildings were burned, Christian leaders in northern Nigeria have called for a federal probe into the violence, in which Christians mounted counter attacks.
Northern Nigeria climbed to 23rd place in 2010 from 27th in 2009 on Christian support organization Open Doors’ World Watch List of nations with the worst persecution.
The church where Pastor Rike ministers has about 30 members and has been in existence for more than 50 years. Those killed were members of the three churches in the village – the COCIN church, St. John’s Catholic Church and an Evangelical Church of West Africa congregation.
Pastor Rike said the incident has strengthened his faith in Jesus.
“Whatever is the situation, I will never forsake Christ,” he said. “All human beings are created by God, and our attackers must know that they need to abandon anything that will lead them to destroy creations of God.”
Nigeria’s population of more than 158.2 million is almost evenly divided between Christians, who make up 51.3 percent of the population and live mainly in the south, and Muslims, who account for 45 percent of the population and live mainly in the north. The percentages may be less, however, as those practicing indigenous religions may be as high as 10 percent of the total population, according to Operation World.
Copyright 2011 Compass Direct News. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Friday, February 11, 2011
US Intelligence Dir Says Muslim Brotherhood is Secular Hours After Memb...
Okay, I can't take this any longer. The Director of the National Intelligence? is that the CIA? Since when do we call it National Intelligence? Well, I got that straight. It's US National Security's director James Clapper if I'm not mistaken. He says that the Muslim Brotherhood is by and large a secular group consisting of a number of sub groups. Well, if that is not the biggest baloney I've ever heard. If someone ever will show up at my door step in a black suit and sunglasses, then it's only for my remark on Facebook where I asked for someone to get me this guy so I can slap him right and left and up and down. At least it's not a threat. I'll just chastise him like a naughty boy gets chastised after he got caught in the act of doing something he wasn't supposed to do.
This may seem out of line ranking, but seriously, I don't know if I can take much more of this, and I say it as it is, willfull evil stupidity. Because what will happen is when Islam will become the rule of the land, God have mercy on us, Mr. Clapper will be first of one of the "useful idiots" that will be beheaded under Sharia law, just like what the Communists did with their useful idiots, once they took over. Oh well, I can't wait for Yeshuah ha Moshiah's soon return. The sooner, the better.
Monday, January 3, 2011
I just received this from Bill Warner's "Political Islam." The part I put in quotation is, I would call so, at the core of all that's wrong with "political correctness." What started out as a necessity to bring true equality to a nation that struggled for centuries with slavery, even so our constitution calls all men to be created equal, became cannon fodder for all those who want to blame white America for all the wrongs in the world. It is not so much different from Germany's psyche, where the horrors of the Holocaust and crimes against humanity period, still puts a guilt on many if not most Germans. This is the same reason that, unlike Switzerland for one, Germany did not dare to deport "Guest Workers," who were and are mainly Turkish, back to their country of being afraid for being reminded of our Nazi past. While Switzerland granted no more than a two year work visa which could never be renewed but gave many an opportunity to make some serious money in order to create a better existence in their home country, Germany didn't dare to pull through with it, because, they could be criticized of still being Nazis in doing so.
In the same way, the civil rights movement, good and noble as it was, got into the wrong hands after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. who would be turning in his grave by now, and therefore became the milking cow of white guilt. Therefore, we do not dare to speak the truth about Islam, because we do not want to be reminded about our own imperfections even so they took place over a century ago. "True" equality should have reigned in this country of the United States as the aftermath of the civil rights movement. Instead, it became another chain that ties us down and instead of being truly equal, we are reminded of our past sins, no matter if the things we proclaim are true or false. It became a convenient shut up method for those that counter the agenda for their own financial gain as well as those of the world elite.
Here is Mr. Bill Warner's report.
Tend My Flock
January 3, 2011
If you ask a Christian leader why he does not speak out on Islam, you get some version of: My duty is to tend to my flock, to help them become better Christians. My job is not to oppose Islam. What if a Christian leader actually took the advice to tend to his flock? Start with the image of tending the flock. This is a Christian image of Christ tending to the flock, the church, a warm pastoral image of lambs and no violence. Jesus is the Good Shepherd. There is a common abbreviation, WWJD, what would Jesus do? This should be a living question in a Christian's mind. An even more important question is: What did Jesus do? It turns out that we have detailed accounting of Jesus debating and criticizing religious leaders. Even a causal observation of the gospel accountings shows two things. Jesus knew more about the subject under debate than anyone in the room. He also stood up in public and private and confronted error, even against leadership. What would it mean if a Christian leader tried to follow Christ's example of knowing the subject? It would mean that the leader would know the Koran and the Sunna of Mohammed. He would be able to comment on the great themes of the Koran and know it as a story. He would know the Sira, the life of Mohammed, and have detailed knowledge of the Hadith. He would know the history of the Christian dhimmi. He would know what happened to the Seven Churches of Asia mentioned in Revelation. He would know how Egypt, Turkey, North Africa, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon all went from being Christian to Islamic. This is not difficult work for a scholar. It can be done in six months with present books. Just reading Mark Durie and Bat Ye'or's The Third Choice, would give them a running start. He would know more than 90% of all Christian leaders. Once you get your knowledge, you need one more quality, courage. A leader would stand in public and discuss the truth of the facts of Islam. According to political correctness and multiculturalism, that would not be nice, since someone might disapprove or become upset. Nice people do not confront others. That is not nice. The modern Christian prefers the Gospel of Nice to the Gospel of Christ. As a result of the Gospel of Nice, the Christian leader does not need courage. Does tending the flock include being able to give fact-based advice to the Christian woman who comes to him and asks if it all right to marry a Muslim? Tending the flock would mean knowing the doctrine of wife-beating found in the Sharia, Koran and Hadith. The nice thing to do is saying, "Sure marry the Muslim. We worship the same god." That is nice, but it is a lie. That nice lie is the one that many shepherds have given their flock. Tending the flock would mean being able to teach a Christian who is flirting with Islam the truth about Islamic doctrine. But if the leader is ignorant, how can they refute Islamic arguments for the Christian to convert? What if the flock extended beyond the limits of the boundaries of the church building? Tending the flock would include the suffering of Christians in Africa and the Middle East. A good Shepherd would tell of the murder, rape and abuse perpetrated by Islam to Christians on a daily basis. Would the idea of a larger flock mean inviting persecuted Christians to speak to the congregation? Should the persecuted be recognized and prayed for at church? The current nice policy is to never mention the martyrs or the oppression of the Christians in Muslim countries. The Black Church is hemorrhaging young males to Islam. If tending the flock meant seeing the flock large enough to include the black church, then a true Shepherd would be able to give guidance to the black leaders and educate them about the cruel Islamic doctrine of slavery still in existence.
"Tending the flock would include the story of Mohammed as a retail and wholesale slave trader, a man who owned white slaves, Arab slaves, black slaves, and sex slaves. The wise Shepherd would tell the story of how Islam enslaved a million white Christians and murdered 120 million Africans in the process of running the Islamic slave trade on the Mediterranean coast, the east and west coast of Africa. Of course, talking about Islam and slavery is not nice. And besides, it would marginalize all that white guilt about slavery in America." (quotation marks my own)
The Christian leader can bemoan that history and wallow in guilt, since that is considered nice. But to talk about the 1400 year old Islamic slave trade active in Africa today would require both knowledge and courage, and that is not nice. A Christian leader would be able to see that the Great Commission of preaching the gospel would include converting Muslims to Christianity, increasing their flock. Preaching the Gospel to Muslims may be in the Gospel of Christ, but it is excluded from the Gospel of Nice. As a result, Christian leaders avoid the Great Commission when it comes to Islam in the West. We will never defeat Political Islam as long as our Christian leaders see their job as being nice. Some of Islam's biggest supporters are our ignorant religious leaders. Although this article has focused on Christian leaders, let be a public record that Christian leaders are ahead of Jewish leadership. If Christian leadership is tragic, then Jewish leadership is pathetic. A piece of advice to Christian leaders: be a real shepherd, don't just be nurturing and caring, but be a defender of the flock as well. Stop being nice. Be like the Good Shepherd, be wise, and be courageous.
Bill Warner, Director, Center for the Study of Political Islam Permalink copyright (c) CBSX, LLC, politicalislam.com
In the same way, the civil rights movement, good and noble as it was, got into the wrong hands after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. who would be turning in his grave by now, and therefore became the milking cow of white guilt. Therefore, we do not dare to speak the truth about Islam, because we do not want to be reminded about our own imperfections even so they took place over a century ago. "True" equality should have reigned in this country of the United States as the aftermath of the civil rights movement. Instead, it became another chain that ties us down and instead of being truly equal, we are reminded of our past sins, no matter if the things we proclaim are true or false. It became a convenient shut up method for those that counter the agenda for their own financial gain as well as those of the world elite.
Here is Mr. Bill Warner's report.
Tend My Flock
January 3, 2011
If you ask a Christian leader why he does not speak out on Islam, you get some version of: My duty is to tend to my flock, to help them become better Christians. My job is not to oppose Islam. What if a Christian leader actually took the advice to tend to his flock? Start with the image of tending the flock. This is a Christian image of Christ tending to the flock, the church, a warm pastoral image of lambs and no violence. Jesus is the Good Shepherd. There is a common abbreviation, WWJD, what would Jesus do? This should be a living question in a Christian's mind. An even more important question is: What did Jesus do? It turns out that we have detailed accounting of Jesus debating and criticizing religious leaders. Even a causal observation of the gospel accountings shows two things. Jesus knew more about the subject under debate than anyone in the room. He also stood up in public and private and confronted error, even against leadership. What would it mean if a Christian leader tried to follow Christ's example of knowing the subject? It would mean that the leader would know the Koran and the Sunna of Mohammed. He would be able to comment on the great themes of the Koran and know it as a story. He would know the Sira, the life of Mohammed, and have detailed knowledge of the Hadith. He would know the history of the Christian dhimmi. He would know what happened to the Seven Churches of Asia mentioned in Revelation. He would know how Egypt, Turkey, North Africa, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon all went from being Christian to Islamic. This is not difficult work for a scholar. It can be done in six months with present books. Just reading Mark Durie and Bat Ye'or's The Third Choice, would give them a running start. He would know more than 90% of all Christian leaders. Once you get your knowledge, you need one more quality, courage. A leader would stand in public and discuss the truth of the facts of Islam. According to political correctness and multiculturalism, that would not be nice, since someone might disapprove or become upset. Nice people do not confront others. That is not nice. The modern Christian prefers the Gospel of Nice to the Gospel of Christ. As a result of the Gospel of Nice, the Christian leader does not need courage. Does tending the flock include being able to give fact-based advice to the Christian woman who comes to him and asks if it all right to marry a Muslim? Tending the flock would mean knowing the doctrine of wife-beating found in the Sharia, Koran and Hadith. The nice thing to do is saying, "Sure marry the Muslim. We worship the same god." That is nice, but it is a lie. That nice lie is the one that many shepherds have given their flock. Tending the flock would mean being able to teach a Christian who is flirting with Islam the truth about Islamic doctrine. But if the leader is ignorant, how can they refute Islamic arguments for the Christian to convert? What if the flock extended beyond the limits of the boundaries of the church building? Tending the flock would include the suffering of Christians in Africa and the Middle East. A good Shepherd would tell of the murder, rape and abuse perpetrated by Islam to Christians on a daily basis. Would the idea of a larger flock mean inviting persecuted Christians to speak to the congregation? Should the persecuted be recognized and prayed for at church? The current nice policy is to never mention the martyrs or the oppression of the Christians in Muslim countries. The Black Church is hemorrhaging young males to Islam. If tending the flock meant seeing the flock large enough to include the black church, then a true Shepherd would be able to give guidance to the black leaders and educate them about the cruel Islamic doctrine of slavery still in existence.
"Tending the flock would include the story of Mohammed as a retail and wholesale slave trader, a man who owned white slaves, Arab slaves, black slaves, and sex slaves. The wise Shepherd would tell the story of how Islam enslaved a million white Christians and murdered 120 million Africans in the process of running the Islamic slave trade on the Mediterranean coast, the east and west coast of Africa. Of course, talking about Islam and slavery is not nice. And besides, it would marginalize all that white guilt about slavery in America." (quotation marks my own)
The Christian leader can bemoan that history and wallow in guilt, since that is considered nice. But to talk about the 1400 year old Islamic slave trade active in Africa today would require both knowledge and courage, and that is not nice. A Christian leader would be able to see that the Great Commission of preaching the gospel would include converting Muslims to Christianity, increasing their flock. Preaching the Gospel to Muslims may be in the Gospel of Christ, but it is excluded from the Gospel of Nice. As a result, Christian leaders avoid the Great Commission when it comes to Islam in the West. We will never defeat Political Islam as long as our Christian leaders see their job as being nice. Some of Islam's biggest supporters are our ignorant religious leaders. Although this article has focused on Christian leaders, let be a public record that Christian leaders are ahead of Jewish leadership. If Christian leadership is tragic, then Jewish leadership is pathetic. A piece of advice to Christian leaders: be a real shepherd, don't just be nurturing and caring, but be a defender of the flock as well. Stop being nice. Be like the Good Shepherd, be wise, and be courageous.
Bill Warner, Director, Center for the Study of Political Islam Permalink copyright (c) CBSX, LLC, politicalislam.com
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