PRAY FOR AMERICA: THANK GOD for His many blessings on America throughout it's history. May we then ask that AMERICA once again be a blessing TO GOD, by once again submitting to HIS will in our affairs - both personal and national - that He may truly "heal our land." (2 Chron. 7:14)
SIGN A PETITION TO THE UN FOR THE PROTECTION OF CHRISTIANS :" The church in Syria has shone brightly for 2,000 years. But today violence and persecution threatens its survival. Thanks to an incredible response, Open Doors is helping 8,000 families in Syria survive each month. We believe the signatures and prayers of 500,000 people will encourage the UN to act and protect the rights and lives of all Syrians, especially the vulnerable Christian community." Go to: http://lp.opendoorsusa.org/emails/nov-13-action/save-syria.html?utm_source=action&utm_medium=email&utm_content=button&utm_campaign=november
WORLD-WDE PRAYER REQUESTS:
LATEST SAHEED NEWS! May 22 - "Pastor Saeed Forcibly Returned to Prison after Beating" - By Caitlin Burke,CBN News, May 22, 2014;http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2014/May/Pastor-Saeed-Beaten-Sent-Back-to-Iran-Prison/ "Saeed Abedini, a U.S. pastor imprisoned for his faith, was severely beaten at an Iranian hospital before being returned to the brutal Rajai Shahr prison. His Iranian family claims the transfer was unexpected and the reason is unclear. But one of the guards involved in the transfer suggested recent Iranian nuclear talks could be a motive, the family said...""
We need to continue to pray for Pastor Saeed - that his health will improve and that he will be re-united with his wife and two young children who live in the United States. We also remain hopeful that in addition to getting the medical care he so desperately needs, that Iranian officials display the kind of humanitarian treatment that often accompanies the start of the Iranian New Year which began on March 21st. This is the time of year when the Iranian government frequently offers clemency to prisoners of conscience. [If you have not yet, please sign the petition for his clemency- http://beheardproject.com/saeed#sign]
PRAY ALSO : - For comfort and peace for Saeed’s wife and children here in the U.S.\
- For a strong witness and testimony from Pastor Abedini in the prison where God has placed him
- For Christians around the world who are being persecuted for their faith in Christ
- For leadership from the White House and State Department in defending the freedoms of Abedini and other Americans
- GO TO SaveSaeed.org to sign a petition over 600,000 others asking for his immediate release
The U.S. State Department believes the Russian army is now prepared to launch an invasion of eastern Ukraine if President Vladimir Putin decides to pull the trigger, according to a senior Administration official."At this point, they are amassed and they could go at a moment’s notice if Putin gave the go ahead," the official said...Top Ukrainian security officials said Thursday that Russia now has 100,000 troops on its side of the Russia-Ukraine border.(Sources: CBS News, Washington Post, Huffington Post, Daily Beast)
As the Lord leads, please pray:
*For God to suppress President Putin’s ambitions to "restore" the Soviet empire.
*For the people of Ukrainen [esp. for the church 'to be THE church'] as they wait to see if the Russian troops will advance.
*About President Obama and to use wisdom in crafting our foreign policy, and wisdom for his advisers.
NEWS/PRAYER ALERT!"Kim Jong-un Calls for Execution of 33 Christians" - 3/7/2014; http://www.presidentialprayerteam.com/Prayerwatch?pw=3651 "North Korea tyrant Kim Jong-un has reportedly ordered that 33 Christians believed to be working alongside South Korean Baptist missionary Kim Jung-wook be put to death. The South Korean missionary - who was arrested last year - and his accomplices have reportedly started 500 or so underground churches..."[PRAY that the plans for execution would be rescinded, and these believers released.] [Che\ck out: They'll Be Dead By Morning (What Difference Will It Make) http://loristanleyroeleveld.blogspot.com/2014/03/theyll-be-dead-by-morning-what.html
NEWS ALERT/PRAISE! "Iran Allows Surgery on Ailing, Imprisoned Pastor" - CBNNews.com,March 07, 2014;http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2014/March/Iran-Allows-Dire-Surgery-on-Ailing-Imprisoned-Pastor-/ The Iranian government has finally allowed doctors to perform surgery on imprisoned Pastor Benham Irani.Irani suffered from a herniated disc and bleeding intestines and urgently needed medical care. PRAY for the final release of Pastor Irani and others imprisoned for their faith.
Oct. 23: "Christians Fleeing IRAQ Area Once Considered Safe," - CBNNews.com, http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/October/Christians-Fleeing-Iraq-Area-Once-Considered-Safe/ PRAY that believers in Iraq will know God's protection and provision; that believers will know[ whether they are called to flee or remain and persevere; and that their persecutors may come to hear the gospel and come to faith in Christ. - Stan]
Continue to Pray for EGYPT - Continue to pray for the tense situation in Egypt and especially for the Christian believers who are being targeted with violence by Muslim Brotherhood members.]
Update on Kenneth Bae: "US Ready to Bargain with N. Korea for Bae's Release,"- CBNNews.com, Aug 14, 2013 http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/August/S-Ready-to-Bargain-with-N-Korea-for-Baes-Release/ - PRAY for 1) God's healing of and presence with Pastor Bae, 2) His earliest release by the North Korean government, and 3) God's comfort for his family and friends.]
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Continue to Pray for EGYPT - Continue to pray for the tense situation in Egypt and especially for the Christian believers who are being targeted with violence by Muslim Brotherhood members.]
Update on Kenneth Bae: "US Ready to Bargain with N. Korea for Bae's Release,"- CBNNews.com, Aug 14, 2013 http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/August/S-Ready-to-Bargain-with-N-Korea-for-Baes-Release/ - PRAY for 1) God's healing of and presence with Pastor Bae, 2) His earliest release by the North Korean government, and 3) God's comfort for his family and friends.]
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Photo: Carole Gomez/Getty Images
At least we know their names. The plight of Meriam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag in Sudan and Saeed Abedini in Iran, persecuted for their Christian faith, has become notorious around the globe. Countless others suffer for their religious beliefs unnamed and too often unnoticed by the rest of the world. As international outrage builds on behalf of Ishag and Abedini, it should focus on securing their individual freedom as well protection in law for the religious liberty of all.
The horrifying details of Ishag’s case have shocked the world in recent weeks. The 27-year-old pregnant mother was sentenced to death by a Sudanese court for the offenses–under its interpretation of Islamic law—of apostasy and adultery. Ishag is married to a Sudanese Christian who became a naturalized American citizen in 2005. She was imprisoned several months ago when she refused to recant her faith and has been shackled in a cell where her 20-month-old son, Martin, is with her. She was reportedly still in shackles as she gave birth to a girl in the prison last week. Sudanese officials have stayed Ishag’s execution for two years while she nurses her baby.
For the past two years, fragments of news about Pastor Abedini have made their way out of his Tehran prison cell. Abedini is a U.S. citizen from Iran who returned to that country in 2012 to help an orphanage there. He was arrested and sentenced to eight years in prison. After suffering brutal treatment, Abedini was hospitalized two months ago. His parents were allowed to visit him there, but while they were with him there about a week ago, armed guards reportedly stormed in, removed their son, beat him, and returned him to prison.
President Obama drew attention to Pastor Abedini’s suffering during the National Prayer breakfast in February and raised it in his much-publicized phone call with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani last September. More recently, the State Department has expressed concern about Meriam Ibrahim Ishag’s case.
But the administration has not fully deployed the tools at its disposal to promote religious freedom for these and others suffering persecution around the globe. A key post at the State Department, the Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, has been vacant for much of President Obama’s time in office. The position and the office it oversees were created by the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA). That law requires the administration to incorporate international religious freedom as a foreign policy objective and to seek the protection of religious liberty around the world.
President Obama did not nominate anyone for the Ambassador-at-Large post for the first 18 months of his administration. Nor has he nominated anyone in the seven months since the resignation of Suzan Johnson Cook last October. The fact that the Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom has been vacant 34 of the 64 months of the Obama administration says much about the relative priority of religious liberty in its dealings.
IRFA also requires the State Department Office of International Religious Freedom to identify annually “countries of particular concern” (CPC) for their ongoing egregious violations of the basic human right. Since 2006, the State Department has listed eight such countries: in addition to Iran and Sudan, these include Burma, China, Eritrea, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Uzbekistan.
Last month, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), a bipartisan independent body established by IRFA, recommended that another eight nations be added to the ranks of the worst offenders. The USCIRF report also criticized the administration—as well as its predecessors [this is news to me - Stan]—for failing to use the designation tool to pressure these countries to respect religious freedom.
“In addition to repeating the same countries for years, administrations generally have decided not to levy new Presidential actions in accordance with CPC designations,” says the USCIRF 2014 report. This approach has “provided little incentive for CPC-designated governments to reduce or halt egregious violations of religious freedom.”
As Christians around the world pray by name for Meriam Ibrahim Ishag and Saeed Abedini, the Obama administration should better deploy the tools designed to advance religious freedom around the globe. The prayers of countless persecuted individuals whose names we don’t know cry out for relief.
[bold and italics emphasis mine]
Jennifer Marshall is vice president for the Institute for Family, Community, and Opportunity at The Heritage Foundation, overseeing research in areas of education, marriage, family, religion, and civil society.
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