CHRISTIAN STUDENT LEADER CALLS FOR PEACE MONITORS

A leader of the Student Christian Movement of Zimbabwe has urged the international community to intervene in the southern African nation, following the decision of opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai to withdraw from the presidential runoff, citing escalating violence against his supporters.

     "We need peace monitors that make sure we have a stable environment to stop this violence and madness that [President Robert] Mugabe is orchestrating," Prosper Munatsi, general secretary of the SCMZ, said in a 23 June interview in Geneva.

     Munatsi was speaking before reports emerged from the Zimbabewan capital that Tsvangirai had sought refuge in the Dutch embassy in Harare, citing fears about his safety.

     STEPHEN BROWN and DAVID WANLESS report for Ecumenical News International...  | more...|

NATIONAL CRISIS CONTINUES AS OPPOSITION LEADER MORGAN TSVANGIRAI PULLS OUT OF ELECTION

Zimbabwe's main opposition leader decided Sunday, 22nd June, to pull out of next week's presidential run-off after reports of intimidation and a ban on foreign aid groups which also impact thousands of Christians in the country.

     In a statement, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) said its leader Morgan Tsvangirai decided there was no fair chance to stand against incumbent President Robert Mugabe as at least 70 opposition supporters have been killed in the run-up to the 27th June poll.

     Tsvangirai has been arrested five times in the past month and his lieutenant, Tendai Biti, is in police custody facing a treason charge that could carry a death sentence.

     STEFAN J. BOS of Bosnewslife, reports...  | more...|

They tackle everything from the abolition of slavery, the plight of children living in Colombia, and the global sex trade through to the inspiring story of South African farmer Angus Buchan and the Biblical stories of Moses and Esther.

     Such is the programme of the inaugural Faith On Film Festival, a joint initiative between national cinema chain Hoyts and film distributor Heritage HM.

     The festival, which kicks off in Sydney on 12th July, showcases nine films, all of which have an aspect of faith to them, and even includes two world premieres - The Disposable Ones, a documentary which follows former NRL star Jason Stevens as he travels with Christian child sponsorship ministry Compassion to Colombia to see first hand the plight of the nations children, and the I Heart Revolution, a documentary which follows the band Hillsong United as they tour the world over an 18 month period.

     DAVID ADAMS reports on the inaugural Faith on Film Festival which it is hoped will become an annual event ...  | more...|

Global refugee numbers have hit an historic high with the United Nations saying there were as as many as 11.4 million refugees worldwide and a further 26 million people displaced internally by conflict or persecution at the end of last year.

     Key factors have included the ongoing conflict in Iraq where the number of internally displaced people rose from 1.8 to 2.4 million over the course of the year and the ongoing concerns about climate change.

     Releasing the figures this week ahead of World Refugee Day (20th June), Antonio Guterres, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said that the world continued to face a series of complex challenges that could force even more displacement of people.

     On this World Refugee Day, DAVID ADAMS reports on the world's growing refugee numbers...  | more...|

FOR PREVIOUS:

World Refugee Day to prick the conscience of the Christian church...  | more...|

The Zimbabwean woman who sat next to the general secretary of the World Council of Churches telling her story was quite blunt. "Please don't write my name - if it is known I will be killed," she said at the meeting moderated by the WCC general secretary, the Rev. Samual Kobia. The following day Zimbabwean women told the United Nations in Geneva they are watching a "silent genocide" unfurl in their country.

     "We, the Zimbabwean women and women worldwide, urgently call for an end to the violence in Zimbabwe and for the protection of women and girls in this post election catastrophe," they in a submission to the United Nations Human Rights Council's June hearing, as their southern African country gears up for a presidential run-off on 27th June.

     "The violence persists and is real. No election observers are yet in the country, despite our calls, appeals, cries to the Southern Africa Development Community, the African Union, and to the United Nations," the women said on 12th June.

     PETER KENNY, of Ecumenical News International, reports...  | more...|

In Dublin between 19th and 30th May, 110 governments negotiated a new international treaty, the Convention on Cluster Munitions, that will ban cluster munitions that “cause unacceptable harm to civilians”. Australia was part of the negotiations.

     While not perfect, this treaty will help on the path to getting rid of a class of weapon that has resulted in thousands of civilians being killed and maimed. The next step will be to get as many countries to sign up to the treaty as soon as possible.

     The Rudd Government is to be commended for its support in developing the new international treaty. It is hoped the Australian Government will be amongst the first to sign the new treaty when it is opened for signature in December in Oslo.

     Dr MARK ZIRNSAK, national co-ordinator for the Australian Network to Ban Landmines and the director of the Justice and International Mission Unit, Synod of Victoria and Tasmania, Uniting Church in Australia, examines what the new treaty means...  | more...|

World Environment Day this year should pierce the minds of more Australians than ever before. As we feel the pinch at the petrol pump our leaders are flinging solutions at us like tax cuts and biofuels. In the meantime, across the globe there is a massive food crisis brewing that is already threatening 100 million people.
      The two patterns are intimately linked. In our quest for fuel we are creating a global food shortage and driving the world's poorest towards a famine.
      It is incumbent on rich developed nations like ours to radically rethink the way we live on this planet. There is plenty for everyone, but we will not feed the poorest in the world if we do not change the way we act both globally and locally.

     On World Environment Day (June 5th), TIM COSTELLO, chief executive of World Vision Australia, says we must change the way we're using the planet's resources if we are to truly address the world's food crisis...  | more...|

Last month in Westminster Cathedral, I set out the purpose of the Tony Blair Faith Foundation. It will concern itself with the six leading faiths: Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh and Jewish. Today we launch the first of a series of partnerships to give effect to that purpose.

     Let me describe the reason for this Foundation. The world is undergoing tumultuous change. Globalization, underpinned by technology, is driving much of it, breaking down boundaries, altering the composition of whole communities, even countries and creating circumstances in which new challenges arise that can only be met effectively together. Interdependence is now the recognised human condition.

     So, the characteristic of today's world is change. The consequence is a world opening up, and becoming interdependent. The conclusion is that we make sense of this interdependence through peaceful co-existence and working together to resolve common challenges.

     On 30th May, former British Prime Minister TONY BLAIR launched the Tony Blair Faith Foundation in New York. The Foundation aims to bring together people of different religious faiths to tackle global issues like poverty and conflict and promote respect and understanding between followers of major religions including Christianity. Here, in a speech Mr Blair gave at the launch, he outlines why he believes religious faith has a key role in changing the world for the better...  | more...|

More than 40 key leaders from around the globe will be traveling to Uganda - a refugee “hot spot” - to stand in solidarity with suffering refugees, and join together with the African church on World Refugee Sunday.

     World Refugee Sunday 2008 promoted by the Refugee Highway Partnership (RHP), will be held on Sunday, 22nd June, for the purpose of uniting the churches around the globe in prayer in an effort to remember the millions who have been displaced.

     Originally launched as a cooperative network within the World Evangelical Alliane (WEA) in 2001, the RHP is a unique blend of individuals, churches and organizations around the world who are working to assist refugees at diverse points along their journey. Through World Refugee Sunday, RHP seeks to engage people of faith on refugee issues.

     MICHAEL IRELAND, of Assist News Service, reports...  | more...|

NEW HOPE FOR AID DISTRIBUTION IN BURMA

Relief agencies have joined with governments around the world in cautiously welcomed news Burmese authorities have agreed to open up the nation to international aid assistance.

    Late last week, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced that the country’s leader, Senior General Than Shwe, had agreed to allow international aid workers into the worst affected areas within the country.

    “I am encouraged by my discussions with Myanmar’s leadership in recent days,” Mr Ki-moon said on Sunday. “They have agreed on the need to act urgently. I hope and believe that any hesitation the Government of Myanmar may have had about allowing international humanitarian groups to operate freely in the affected areas is now a thing of the past.”

     DAVID ADAMS reports... | more...| 

SOUNDBITE: 22.5.08 - Phil Wilkerson, associate overseas program coordinator at TEAR Australia, was in Burma the week after the cyclone struck. He talks to DAVID ADAMS about the situation in the country then and now. Click here to download the MP3 file (17 mins/3.9 MB)... | more...|

FOR PREVIOUS COVERAGE OF THE HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN BURMA... | more...|

They’re not your average couple. Well, she routinely saws her husband in half using a chainsaw, for a start.

     Meet Tim Ellis, 45, and Sue-Anne Webster, 43, two of Australia’s most high profile performing magicians.

     Mr Ellis has been working in the industry for more than 30 years and his wife for more than 22. While their faces may be familiar to many thanks to their decades of work, not to mention Mr Ellis’ more than 80 TV appearances, what you may not know is that they are both committed Christians.

     Mr Ellis, who grew up in Melbourne, first encountered magic when he was about 10-years-old and his grandfather gave him a magic set.

     DAVID ADAMS reports...  | more...|

Tetsuo Nakajima was once a powerful leader in Japan's yakuza, the country's organised crime syndicates. But now the former gangster is a pastor who tells his compatriots that anyone can kick a life of overindulgence and turn over a new leaf.

     "What matters in life is who you meet and what to believe in to live," said the Nakajima, the pastor of NAOS International Christ Church, an evangelical denomination, in Tokyo speaking to a group of mainly young people in the Japanese capital.

     He started going to church in 1988 for his marriage to a Korean Christian woman and later turned to Jesus. Ten years later, he was invited with another ex-yakuza pastor, the Rev Keisuke Suzuki, to the National Prayer Breakfast with then US president, Bill Clinton.

     HISASHI YUKIMOTO, of Ecumenical News International, reports...  | more...|

Religious believers in Turkmenistan don't have freedom. We can be raided as we meet for worship, and be stopped and searched anywhere. But one of the biggest problems we face is not being able to freely maintain public places of worship. You cannot build, buy, or securely rent such property, let alone put up a notice outside saying "This is a place of worship". Officials won't give a place of worship legal status as such - I don't know why. All kinds of obstructions are imposed, whether through rules or just in practice.

    Some places of worship do exist. Mosques and Russian Orthodox churches are usually reasonably visible and known as such. Within the capital Ashgabad [Ashgabat] the handful of registered non-Muslim and non-Orthodox religious communities are able to meet quietly for worship, however insecure their arrangements, though not in a formal place of worship. Other faiths - and those of us outside the capital - have it more difficult.

    In an essay first published on Forum 18 News, a Turkman Protestant writes about the lack of religious freedom in the Central Asian nation of Turkmenistan... ...  | more...|

More than 140 international Christian leaders signed a joint declaration on Israel's 60th anniversary calling for a just peace between Israeli and Palestinians. The declaration was released to the media to coincide with Israel's celebration of the anniversary on 8th May.

     "We urge all those working for peace and justice in Israel/Palestine to consider that any lasting solution must be built on the foundation of justice, which is rooted in the very character of God. After all, it is justice that 'will produce lasting peace and security'," they said, quoting from the prophet Isaiah (32:17) in the Bible.

     The Christian leaders called on all those working for peace to commit themselves to a "courageous settlement" which would honour both peoples' "shared love for the land, and protect the individual and collective rights of Jews and Palestinians in the Holy Land."

     JUDITH SUDILOVSKY, of Ecumenical News International, reports...  | more...|

It’s almost 10 years since OM’s mission ship, the MV Doulos, was in Australia. But later this year the ship - which, having been built two years after the Titanic, is the world’s oldest ocean-going passenger ship - will return to the land downunder in late July for a three month visit aimed at raising awareness about the work it’s involved in.

     “The purpose of the visit is to raise missionary awareness among the church’s young people: to let them know that the day of mission is not over; that they don’t just have to go on three week short-term missions but they can go longer,” says Sam Scott, director of recruitment and training at OM Australia.

     “We want to...preach the Gospel and raise awareness of OM throughout Australia because a lot of people have heard of the Doulos but they don’t know that the parent organisation is OM.”

     DAVID ADAMS speaks to OM's Sam Scott about the mission organisation and the return of the MV Doulos to Australia later this year...  | more...|

The National Day of Thanksgiving - officially held on 10th May - represents an opportunity for all Australians to give thanks - both to God and to their fellow citizens.

     Given it's followed by Mothers' Day this year, the day particularly celebrates the contribution of mothers and all those people throughout our respective communities who nurture, train, teach, mentor or care for babies, children and youth - workers and volunteers in babies and children's homes, foster carers, child care and pre-school staff , staff and volunteers working in youth shelters, school teachers and chaplains, youth workers, sporting team coaches and administrators.

      So, why not tell the world what you have to be thankful for?...  | more...|

Sight spoke to a couple of people who participated in last year's National Day of Thanksgiving...  | more...|

For more information on the National Day of Thanksgiving, visit www.thanksgiving.org.au.

Christian Surfers Australia held the Jesus Pro Am at Manly's Queenscliff Beach in early May with Maroubra surfer Blake Thornton taking our the honors in the Open Men's division and Yvonne Byron from Figtree in Wollongong winning back-to-back titles in the Open Women's...  | more...|

There is a “growing need” for the church in Zimbabwe “to speak and be heard” and give leadership to the people of the southern African nation, according to a new report from two international ecumenical bodies.

     The report, written by a delegation from the World Council of Churches and the All Africa Conference of Churches who spent a week in Zimbabwe to observe the 29th March elections - a process which was hampered by government limitations placed upon them, concludes that the 2008 elections were “far from being fair and free”.

     The report says that although the 29th March was generally characterised by a "peaceful atmosphere" on the day itself, “violence, intimidation and outright confrontation” were all employed in the run-up to the election, food was used as  a "political tool" and media coverage was skewed in favor of the ruling party.

     DAVID ADAMS reports on international calls for an end to Zimbabwe's ongoing political impasse...  | more...|

It's an oft-cited reason why we shouldn’t give aid to poorer nations: that corruption in developing nations makes giving them foreign aid simply a waste of money.

    While previous reports have shown that foreign aid can be effective and corruption held in check if the correct checks and balances are in place when aid is given, a new report from the Uniting Church in Australia goes one step further in addressing the issue. It takes a look at what developed nations - and, in particular, Australia - is doing to help fight corruption on a global level and what improvements it needs to make.

    Dr Mark Zirnsak, director of the Justice and International Mission Unit at the Uniting Church's Synod of Victoria and Tasmania, was one of the co-authors of the report - From Corruption to Good Governance - which was produced with assistance from TEAR Australia and the Micah Challenge campaign.

     “We wanted to go a step further - we wanted to look at what role do developed countries play?...” he says. “Not just looking at the developing (country) side of it but giving recognition to the fact that it’s a global problem.”

     DAVID ADAMS reports...  | more...|

     Having courted controversy around the world, the Olympic Torch Relay arrived briefly in the Australian capital of Canberra last week on its way to Beijing. RAMON WILLIAMS was on hand to record the day...  | more...|

The national day of commemoration of those who sacrificed in times of war immortalised on the 25th April each year - Anzac Day - has become much more than a symbol of a battle. The current generation of new adults has captured and taken ownership of it in a revived nationalism.

     There was a sentiment across Australia from the ‘60s and into the '80s that downgraded Anzac Day. Some have put this down to the anti-Vietnam sentiments, exacerbated by the feeling of abandonment by its veterans; but it began long before that when the post war baby-boomers, only ever experiencing affluence, disassociated themselves from their father's and grand father's war exploits.

    Their sentiments were often encouraged by the war veterans themselves, who ached for peace and who never spoke about their war experiences because they either wanted to forget, or they wanted to protect their own children from the horrifying aspects of anything to do with war.

     MARK TRONSON writes about how our perceptions of Anzac Day are changing...  | more...|

THE BIG PICTURE: AN ANZAC'S VIEW

     The National Archives of Australia have published on online exhibition of 41 photographs of Anzac Beach and its surrounds, taken in 1915 by  three young servicemen: George Downes, Arthur James Cook and Henry James Lowe. Here, we publish six of the images in the exhibition...   | more...|

A thousand people from the ranks of Australia’s “best and brightest” gathered in Canberra on the weekend and talked. And talked. And talked.

     And, at the end of it, the Government was given a list of “big ideas” which included everything from creating a ‘community corps’ to allow university students to reduce their HECS debts through voluntary work to developing a bionic eye, holding a comprehensive review of tax laws and becoming a republic.

    As the dust from the summit settles, the inevitable criticism has come - some delegates voice complaints about not having their ideas heard while senior Liberal figures dismiss the event as a stage-managed ‘Festival of Kevin’. Others, however, are united in seeing the experience as a worthwhile undertaking, not only for those who were at the summit but for the nation.

     DAVID ADAMS reports...  | more...|

Migration is a fact of life. It is as much an instinct to survive as it is an inevitable consequence of globalisation. We can neither turn our backs on it, nor control it. It will have decisive consequences for the world as we know it and a massive impact on the church and the ecumenical movement both at the local, regional and global levels. We need not, however, react with hysteria and fear. Migration is as much a part of who we are as it is a part of the history that has shaped us.

     However, if states continue to speak only of ‘migration’ and not ‘migrants’, then migrants will continue to be exploited as nothing more than cheap labour for factories or slave labour for construction sites. If populist politicians and media outlets continue to brand migrants and refugees as ‘illegals’, ‘aliens’, ‘queue jumpers’ and ‘bogus’ asylum seekers, then migrants will continue to suffer from the racist, discriminatory and xenophobic undercurrents in every society. If we as churches only see migrants as victims, then we undermine their strengths and their resilience. If source countries only consider emigration as a loss - a brain drain - then migrants will be discouraged from returning and the potential ‘brain gain’ will be lost.

     From 14th to 16th April, the Middle East Council of Churches hosted a public hearing in Beirut, Lebanon, on the impact of migration. Below is the text of a statement released by the Middle East Council and the World Council of Churches following completion of the hearing, the first of eight to take place on the issue over the next few years...  | more...|

In March, the price of rice in the West African nation of Ivory Coast was more than double that of the same time last year. The situation was similar in Sri Lanka and worse in Bangladesh where they had increased by two thirds during the same period.

     From Uganda to Tajikstan, rising food prices are plunging the world’s poor into even greater desperation and have already resulted in riots in at least 10 countries in the past month - the most recent being in Haiti where five people have died and the prime minister was ousted.

     The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization have called for urgent measures to address the escalating situation, noting that there are now food crises in as many as 37 nations around the world.

     DAVID ADAMS reports on an issue of global concern...  | more...|

The Australian Christian Lobby is calling for a nationwide public campaign to promote marriage in its submissions to the upcoming national 2020 Summit.

     The ACL has also called for a range of policy actions to strengthen marriages including the introduction of free vouchers for marriage preparation courses and parenting courses, the remodelling of welfare and tax systems to eliminate disincentives to marriage and an increase in the support available through Family Relationship Centres.

     “People should be assisted to learn how to achieve lasting love and lifelong commitment in relationship through marriage, with more government support for marriage preparation, education and counselling,” the ACL says in its submission.

     DAVID ADAMS reports...  | more...|

Dr Sylvia Collinson was only eight-years-old when her long association with Scripture Union began.

      “It began with reading Scripture Union notes at the age of eight...” the 62-year-old recalls. “We had a little mission sort of thing at Sunday school and you had to put up your hand if you were going to be a Christian and I did. I came home and my mother said 'Well now, if you are a Christian, you'll have to start reading the Bible for yourself. Here are some Scripture Union notes to get you started’. It was kind of a pattern in the family and we just realised we were old enough and that just become a pattern in our lives."

     The relationship has continued ever since - Dr Collinson went on to complete as many as 10 beach missions with the organisation and in more recent times has served on the boards of both South Australia (as vice chairperson) and Western Australia (as chairperson). Earlier this year, Dr Collinson, a former primary school teacher who these days lives in Baulkham Hills in Sydney, was appointed chairperson of Scripture Union Australia.

     DAVID ADAMS speaks to Scripture Union chairperson, Dr Sylvia Collinson, about her long involvement with the organisation... | more... |

ESSAY: MARTIN LUTHER KING - THE POWER OF PROMISE OVER REJECTION

As we mark the death and remember the work of Dr Martin Luther King, Jr, it does us good to ask what it was about him that has made his legacy so enduring.

     This son and grandson of Baptist ministers became the pastor of a local church, little dreaming in his early pastoral days that he would soon be leading a movement of black Christian leaders - and later people of all races - who would inspire radical change to America's long-standing racial divide.

     Most people think of King as a great activist, a campaigner for  human rights. However, he was, by his own admission, first and foremost a man of God, a minister of the Christian Gospel.

     MAL FLETCHER reflects on the life of Dr Martin Luther King, Jr... | more... |

INSPIRING LIVES: MARTIN LUTHER KING - AN UNFORGETTABLE FIRE

On 4th April, many people around the world, and in the south of the United States in particular, will observe the 40th anniversary of the death of Dr Martin Luther King, Jr.

   When I first began to explore Dr King’s life in my late teens, I saw a man whose passion, faith and conviction I wanted for myself. Here was a man who gave his life to the kingdom of God, who from the bottom of his heart was totally committed to what was right. In the spirit of Moses of old, he boldly confronted the powers that be with the cry ‘let my people go’.

     Dr King drew his inspiration from people like Gandhi, as well as from Jesus himself. His conviction that it was redemptive non-violence that would save his nation and bring justice to his people was what drove him to his dying day. That and his faith in the power of love, a love both inspired by the example of Jesus and driven by the power of the Spirit.

     In the first of a new column on inspirational people, NILS VON KALM reflects on the life of Dr Martin Luther King, Jr, as the world marks the 40th anniversary of his death... | more... |

It’s the largest celebration of Easter in this country; it heralds a kaleidoscope of music, debate, art and extreme games in one destination, boasts it’s very own ‘canvas’ city, and has people from across this nation and around the globe flocking to southeast Queensland by the tens of thousands. In 2008, this event turned ten, embraced a new name and evolved....no longer just a festival at Easter; it’s a festival about Easter.

     For some, it was difficult to let go of ‘AGMF’ - the acronym affectionately pulled from the ‘Australian Gospel Music Festival’, as it was known until this year.

    “We thought it was great how people were so passionately supportive of the old ‘AGMF’ name – some even turning up this year in special t-shirts and with signs! It shows that people really have a commitment to this festival,” says Isaac Moody, CEO of the newly-named Easterfest.

     HAYLEY MILLER reports... | more...|

His African tales of Precious Ramotswe, the traditionally-built first lady of crime-stoppers and private detectives in Botswana, have been best sellers all around the globe.

     Sales of his No 1. Ladies' Detective Agency have exceeded 15 million and it has been published in 42 languages. Now the novel that made the Zimbabwe-born Scottish academic turned writer, Alexander McCall Smith, one of the world's most successful authors, reached a new audience last Easter Sunday when the story was shown to millions of BBC television viewers.

     The television version of his best-known book features not only the American R&B singer Jill Scott as Bataswana sleuth Precious but also the bishop of Botswana, the Rev. Musonda Trevor Selwyn Mwamba. The bishop plays a village priest enrolled by Precious to halt the spread of crime in diamond-rich Botswana, which neighbours South Africa.

    TREVOR GRUNDY, of Ecumenical News International, reports... | more...|

ESSAY: THE REAL JESUS OF EASTER

This week, the BBC began its long-awaited three part series called, simply, The Passion. It looks, from various perspectives, at some of the dramatic events during the last week of Jesus' life, leading up to his trial and crucifixion.

     The writer has taken some liberties along the way with regard to the story. There are clear departures from the narrative given in the Gospels, which are our major historical source for information about the man Jesus of Nazareth.

     However, I get the feeling from the one part of three that we've seen thus far, that the writer and director have tried at least to depict the humanity of Jesus - and what impending crucifixion must have meant for him. At least the story is being told.

     In an age of rampant secularism and religious plurality some would argue that poetic license with a story like this one is par for the course.

As Christians all around the globe prepare to celebrate Easter, MAL FLETCHER takes another look at Jesus' claims about who He was and what He'd come to achieve... | more...|

YOUTUBE: Watch Mal Fletcher talking about why

Jesus was unique HERE...

ESSAY: DON'T 'CRUCIFY'  VULNERABLE AUSTRALIANS
"As Easter approaches this year, Australian Christians and Australian churches will retell and reflect on the great Gospel events - the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. As we look back on the Gospel story that, more than any other, gives meaning and purpose to all we do, it is important also to look to the present and future and to re-examine our motives and priorities in the light of the central Gospel event."

    Rev Dr Ross Clifford, president of the Baptist Union of Australia, says Easter represents an opportunity for political and church leaders to examine themselves... | more...|

AUSTRALIAN CHURCH LEADER'S EASTER MESSAGES

Easter messages from Australian church leaders... | more...|

Violence has escalated in the last few weeks. What is your response?

"We are very concerned about the escalating violence and any loss of life, whether that be the Palestinians who have been killed or the Jewish seminarians. It is deeply concerning and a great tragedy."

What kind of role do you see Evangelicals playing in the present crisis?
"We have to pressure everybody in the region to promote peaceful resolutions to the current crisis. Otherwise we could get into a new cycle of violence. Violence breeds violence so we need to find a way of stepping back from that and encouraging political and religious leaders to stand for peaceful resolutions."

Geoff Tunnicliffe, international director of the World Evangelical Alliance, has returned from the Holy Land after a weeklong visit to give encouragement to Evangelicals and other Christian communities in the region, and promote peaceful resolutions to the conflict among Israeli and Palestinian political leaders. In an interview supplied by the WEA, he talks about his trip... | more...|

As we approach Easter and remember the death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth, we are reminded again of the consumerist madness of the sale of untold amounts of chocolate that we ‘must’ buy for our family and children. Whilst there is something I like about the idea of giving at times like Christmas and Easter, in these days when we are made more aware than ever of the consequences of our purchasing choices, we need also be aware of the power that we have to exercise our choices wisely, in ways that will benefit the most vulnerable people in the world.

     If we are going to buy Easter eggs this year, have a think about where the chocolate is coming from and what processes are performed to have that sweet tasting stuff in our hot little hands. Much of the chocolate that we eat is the result of trafficking and child labour in cocoa farming in West Africa. We are the grateful recipients of a long process that keeps thousands of the world’s poor in a state of helplessness and vulnerability.

     NILS VON KALM writes about a World Vision campaign to raise awareness about where our chocolate eggs will be coming from this Easter... | more...|

We are all guilty of collective punishment. This is a serious allegation, as collective punishment is condemned by the Fourth Geneva Convention, and classified as a war crime. Yet we are all complicit in it, either consciously or subconsciously, and all guilty of causing the dangerous consequences that it results in.

     In the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the term ‘collective punishment’ is used quite frequently, so it is important to define it clearly. Collective punishment means punishing a whole group of people, for the actions of some of the members of the group, regardless of whether or not they are responsible for the offense. In a recent Haaretz article, Bradley Burston noted how both Israelis and Palestinians make use of collective punishment, and how the innocent residents of Gaza, and of cities like Sderot, are the ones who suffer as a result of it. For the majority of Gazans, living confined in squalid conditions, often without food, water, heating, and ever fearful of Israeli military strikes, it is clear that they are suffering because of the actions of others, such as Hamas attacks against Israel that they had no part in. Their situation was recently made far worse by the Israeli closure, or siege, that even further limited their access to the bare essentials needed to survive.

     JOSHUA KORN, publishing manager at Musalaha - a non-profit, Jerusalem-based organisation that promotes reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians, writes that only by "tapping into God's love" can we reverse the trend of dehumanisation that occurs in contexts such as that now playing out in Middle East...  | more...|

Frances, a woman aged around 50 who lives in the West African nation of Sierra Leone, would barely say a word - and certainly not smile - when Australian surgeon Dr Judith Goh met her in 2004.

     Three decades ago she developed a genito-urinary fistula during a prolonged labour and, like many of the estimated 100,000 women who develop the problem around the world every year, found herself shunned by her family and friends, embarrassed by her subsequent incontinence. 

     Dr Goh, who was working with a surgical team at a permanent fistula hospita in the nation's capital of Freetown run by international charity Mercy Ships, says that the fistula was able to be closed during an operation.

    Dr Goh describes the transformation of this small, thin woman: “Frances was sent home with a new dress, as a symbol of a new start. The farewell ceremony involved dancing and singing with music, African-style. Frances danced and sang, and I felt privileged to have participated in her care."

     Marking International Women's Day on 8th March, DAVID ADAMS speaks to Queensland's Dr Judith Goh about her work in tackling the problem of obstetric fistula among Africa's women...  | more...|

It’s more than five months since tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets of Burmese cities and the nation’s military regime responded with a bloody crackdown which left an official death toll of 10, although sources within Burma put the actual figure at many times that number.

     While there remains hope that the so-called 'Saffron Revolution' heralds the start of a journey toward a new era for Burma, London-based human rights organisation Christian Solidarity Worldwide says in a recent report that the nation continues to “deteriorate into further political, human rights and humanitarian crises”.

     In particular, the report, which follows a recent two week fact-finding visit to the Thai-Burma border region and Malaysia by CSW members, cites the assassination of 14th February of the general secretary of the Karen National Union, Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan, as a “major setback” for the Karen people and the entire movement for democracy in Burma.

     As Christians all around the world mark the Global Day of Prayer for Burma on 9th March, DAVID ADAMS speaks to Christian Solidarity Worldwide's Benedict Rogers about what's been happening since last year's violent crackdown ...  | more...|

HAVE YOUR VOICE HEARD!

Want to see change in Burma? Help build international pressure for change by having Your Say HERE...

Church leaders in Kenya have welcomed the announcement of a power-sharing agreement between President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga as an important step to ending a two-month political crisis in the east African country.

     "It is good news for Kenya," the Rev. Peter Karanja, general secretary of the National Council of Churches of Kenya, told Ecumenical News International on 28th February.

     "Any agreement signed between the top two portends good and peace for the country. It is a framework for starting the work on the real issues," Karanja said.

    FREDRICK NZWILI, of Ecumenical News International, reports...  | more...|

FOR MORE ON KENYA:

INTERNATIONAL CHURCH DELEGATION URGES COMPROMISE

A top level international ecumenical delegation has met with key figures in the Kenyan crisis, asking them to move on from their dispute over the 27th December presidential election and seek out a compromise solution.

    The seven member delegation - sent by the World Council of Churches - visited the strife-affected East African nation for five days in late January and early February.

    DAVID ADAMS reports on the recent visit of a World Council of Churches delegation to Kenya...  | more...|

VIOLENCE LEAVES NATION REELING

More than 700 people dead and countless injured in what can only be described as horrific attacks. More than 250,000 people displaced from their homes.

     The toll in terms of lives and properties damaged or destroyed in the violence that swept across the Kenya following a presidential election in late December is staggering and has led many observers around the world to wonder what it will mean for the East African nation in the long-term.

    DAVID ADAMS speaks to Kenyan Emily Kagiri, director of Compassion International's Child Survival Program, about the recent violence...  | more...|

Ten per cent of 12 to 17-year-olds in Australia - 168,000 young people - are binge drinking every week.

     That’s among among a bevy of startling findings released at an Australian National Council on Drugs national press conference held in Sydney earlier this week.

     The council, which is calling for more support for families coping with Australia’s burgeoning drug problem following a new report looking at the issue, says that as well as binge drinking, one in seven secondary school children have used cannabis in the past year and one in 25 have used amphetamines.

     It also says latest estimates show that at least 451,000 children are living in a household where they are at risk of exposure to binge drinking by an adult and that 78,000 children live in households with at least one daily user of cannabis.

    DAVID ADAMS reports...  | more...|

Larry Norman, the original “Jesus Freak”, died in Salem, Oregon, early on Sunday morning after a long battle with heart problems.

     With his long blonde flowing hair, Norman was a true pioneer of Christian rock music with hits like Why Should The Devil Have All The Good Music and I Wish We'd All Been Ready.

     For years, he was a permanent fixture on Hollywood Boulevard, where, despite being a star with Capital Records, he would spend his days and nights sharing one-on-on with the lost youth of Hollywood about the love of Jesus Christ.

     He is also credited with inventing the "One Way To Jesus" finger-pointing sign.

     But in recent years, Larry was battling serious health problems and he finally passed away on Sunday morning, 25th February.

    DAN WOODING, of Assist News Service, reports...  | more...|

“I’ve learnt to accept the impossible from God.”

     That’s how David Bussau, co-founder of micro-enterprise development organisation, Opportunity International, answers when asked how he responds to the countless amazing stories he's heard of how micro-enterprise development is transforming the lives of people living in poor communities all around the world.

     Stories about families who have been able to buy their children out of bondage thanks to a job created by a growing enterprise or who have been able to hold a wedding ceremony they’ve never been able to afford thanks to a small loan. Or like that of a Ghanian man, who borrowed money to start a poultry farm and who, now the largest poultry producer in the nation with a staff of 4,000 people, recently stood for the position of the nation’s president.

     “(I)t doesn’t surprise me when these outcomes happen,” the 67-year-old says. "I get joy out of seeing it happen but I’m not really surprised by it...You can look at the spectacular and you can look at the normal and they’re both significant from God’s perspective.”

    DAVID ADAMS speaks to 2008's Senior Australian of the Year, David Bussau...  | more...|

On 7th February, the day after the Christian penitential season of Lent began, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, took up his cross in a new and unforeseen way.

     Just when many thought his greatest challenge and burden in the first part of 2008 was the fragmentation besetting the world-wide Anglican Communion, a firestorm has erupted in Britain itself over his comments in a lecture at the Royal Courts of Justice and a related BBC interview concerning possible application of Sharia, the Muslim legal tradition.

     The reactions of the British press and public to his reflections have pushed gay American bishops and strident African fundamentalists well onto the backburner.

    In an article first published on the ABC Unleashed website, ANDREW McGOWAN takes a look at the controversy surrounding the recent comments made by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, concerning Sharia law...  | more...|

ESSAY: AUSTRALIA, ROLL UP YOUR SLEEVES. NOW THE REAL WORK BEGINS

It is a rare sight to see the Australian people - and, with some exceptions, the Australian Parliament - so united. But this is an issue that will not go away; an issue that Australia as a nation must - must - address.

     Wednesday morning’s apology was a watershed moment in Australia: for the first time we had a Prime Minister apologise to the stolen generations for the injustices they, and the indigenous people of Australia as a whole, have suffered.

     “To the stolen generations, I say the following: as Prime Minister of Australia, I am sorry,” Mr Rudd said in his speech. “On behalf of the Government of Australia, I am sorry. On behalf of the Parliament of Australia, I am sorry. I offer you this apology without qualification.”          

     DAVID ADAMS reflects on this week's apology... | more...|

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO SAY SORRY? REACTIONS AND COMMENTS...

“It is a day that Australia has an opportunity to come of age. Symbolic reparation is important in dealing with the past. A formal apology which recognises and expresses sorrow for the deep pain and hurt of Indigenous children who were removed from their families, and for the anguish of families and communities who were traumatised by the removal of their children, provides the opportunity for a process of genuine healing to begin."
      - Dr Philip Freier, Anglican Archbishop of Melbourne.

We asked a range of prominent Christians why it's important to say sorry. Here's their responses and some more general reaction to the national apology... | more...|

WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE APOLOGY AND SPEECHES BY PRIME MINISTER KEVIN RUDD AND OPPOSITION LEADER BRENDAN NELSON? HAVE YOUR SAY HERE...

THE NATIONAL APOLOGY

"Today we honour the Indigenous peoples of this land, the oldest continuing cultures in human history.

     "We reflect on their past mistreatment.

     "We reflect in particular on the mistreatment of those who were stolen generations - this blemished chapter in our nation's history.

     "The time has now come for the nation to turn a new page in Australia's history by righting the wrongs of the past and so moving forward with confidence to the future.

     Read the full text of the historic national apology read in the Australian Parliament on 13th February plus links to both the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader's speeches... | more...|

HOPES THAT SAYING SORRY TO THE STOLEN GENERATIONS IS 'JUST THE FIRST STEP'

“An awakening of the Australian conscience.”

     That’s how Graeme Mundine, executive secretary of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Ecumenical Commission (NATSIEC) - the peak ecumenical indigenous body in Australia, characterises the national apology to the stolen generations that Prime Minister Kevin Rudd read in the nation’s Parliament House last week.

     “It’s something that’s been long overdue. It’s an awakening of the Australian conscience about what took place for Aboriginal people - specifically for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people of the stolen generation; that these things did take place and that Australia is beginning to recognise and accept that wrongs were committed in the past.”

     DAVID ADAMS speaks to Graeme Mundine, executive secretary of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Ecumenical Commission (NATSIEC), about what the national apology to the stolen generations means...  | more...|

FOR MORE ON THE NATIONAL APOLOGY TO THE STOLEN GENERATIONS...

ESSAY: THE HEARING OF 'SORRY'
It is now ten years since the release of Bringing Them Home, the report of the national inquiry into the separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families. Prime Minister Rudd now intends to apologise to members of the Stolen Generation, in contrast to former Prime Minister John Howard’s response, which the Labor Party has always considered to be inadequate.

    In a paper written for the Social Issues Executive at the Anglican Diocese of Sydney, ANDREW CAMERON, ANDREW FORD and LISA WATTS examine why it seems so important for ‘sorry’ to be heard from the lips of the nation’s leader, and what the sticking-points against saying it are...  | more...|

Gustavo Cabezas has a novel, perhaps revolutionary, idea. He is working to start a gang in one of San José's poorest areas - a gang for Jesus.

      “There are many reasons that a kid joins a gang,” Mr Cabezas says as he shows a visitor around the New Horizon’s center in the La Carpio area. “Most are the product of a disintegrating family. Others come because they think that there are no opportunities for them in the community, And, studies show that six out of ten kids join a gang to pass the time.”

     To address these needs and prevent gangs from growing in this low-income community made up primarily of poor immigrants from Nicaragua, Mr Cabezas and the team from Christ for the City International have established the New Horizons center on the edge of town.

    In an article first published by Assist News Service, KENNETH D. MacHARG reports on a mission which is transforming lives in the central American nation of Costa Rica...  | more...|

Celebrating a 60th birthday for some is a milestone marked by visions of retirement - celebrating achievements and dreaming of new endeavours. The World Council of Churches (WCC), however, on its 60th "birthday" in 2008 does not want to rest on past feats as it looks ahead to the challenges of the 21st century. The largest, most inclusive fellowship of churches in the world, and the pre-eminent face of 20th century ecumenism, is grappling with a very different world today - politically, economically, religiously - than the one it faced following the Second World War.

     The WCC came into formal existence on 23rd August, 1948, in Amsterdam, where the delegates of 147 churches from 44 countries met to participate in the first and founding assembly. While the gathering was impressive for its unprecedented diversity, with representatives from Anglican, Old Catholic, many Orthodox and nearly all Protestant churches, the inauguration was also notable for the absence of the world's two largest churches, the Roman Catholic Church and the Russian Orthodox Church.

    SARA SPEICHER reports...  | more...|

The natural historian Sir David Attenborough this week explained why he does not mention God in his award-winning TV programmes.

     The revered presenter of such groundbreaking series as The Living Planet and producer of the classic Life on Earth, told The Times: "I tend to think of an innocent little child sitting on the bank of a river in Africa, who's got a worm boring through his eye that can render him blind.

     "Now, presumably you think this Lord created this worm, just as he created the hummingbird. I find that rather tricky."

     Attenborough has, of course, touched on one of the great dilemmas facing people who believe in God - and perhaps particularly Christians, who believe that God is love.

     How can a wise, just and above all compassionate God allow a situation in which such injustice can occur?

     There are no easy answers to this conundrum. However, it is worth noting that atheism offers us no explanation for the presence of evil in the world or any hope for the eventual redemption and restoration of the natural order - both of which Christianity does.

    MAL FLETCHER says that while people have grown up believing science to be the "bastion of atheism and naturalism", for a sizeable number of scientists today, the complexity of our universe is pointing to a "creator of some kind"...  | more...|

What's your main reason for writing Journey of a Princess? Is there a particular event which inspired you to write it? 

     "So many of our heroes are based on their Hollywood status; the dress size they squeeze into; their lip size; the brand of hand bag they carry - and there are so many amazing heroes all around us who are incredibly inspiring and are doing things that impact our world and are changing the course of history - but if we don't know about them, how can we be inspired by them? Journey of a Princess is a book that I wanted to read but couldn't find on the book shelves. There are some great books out there but I wanted a book on girls who had done and were doing things that I could relate to; not necessarily a girl who grew up wanting to be the prom queen or the college cheer leader."

     Australian Carolyn Donovan is an internationally known model, writer and speaker. Released last year, her book, Journey of a Princess, features a range of women - including Olympic swimmer Jessicah Schipper, performers Marina Prior and Darlene Zschech, surfer Tara Ryan and the indigenous art world’s Heather Blacklock - sharing where they find inspiration and how they have achieved success. She speaks with CHARLOTTE DURUT...  | more...|

NASA's Messenger spacecraft provided a new view of Mercury, the closest planet to our sun, this week when it flew past and snapped some images of previously unmapped portions of the planet. Here are some of the stunning images Messenger captured during the flight...   | more...|

Pastor Sidheswar Digal was making Christmas preparations on 24th December when he heard a mob howling anti-Christian slogans outside his house.

     "When I came out, I saw our people running away into the jungle. They urged me, 'run', and I joined them," said Pastor Digal. He said his Assembly of God church was destroyed by a 600-strong mob which destroyed all three churches in Pobingia, his, a Baptist and a Roman Catholic place of worship.

     In the Orissa state capital of Bhubaneswar on 10th January almost 10,000 people protested against the Christmas attacks on Christians. Rally speakers called on the Orissa state government to stop making allegations purporting that Christians are linked to an outlawed Maoist rebel movement. They also demanded that Christian churches and groups be allowed to provide direct relief to victims.

    ANKO AKKARA reports for Ecumenical News International...   | more...|