‘A wound that can’t heal’: Church calls for recognition of genocide

“The Anglican Diocese of Melbourne has joined calls for the 1915–1923 Armenian, Assyrian and Greek genocides to be recognised by the state government.

More than 3 million Armenian, Assyrian/Syriac and Greek Orthodox Christians suffered from the systematic mass murder, expulsion and forced conversion beginning on 24 April 1915.

This population continues to be one of the most persecuted, dispossessed and scattered in the world. …”

– Report from The Melbourne Anglican.

Praying for those in authority — and for the US Elections

With the US elections a week away, Christians understand that no human leader can deliver the salvation and security we need.

But we also know that leaders can promote peace, and they can promote strife.

For that reason, do remember, and be encouraged to act on, these words from 1 Timothy 2:1-4:

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.

This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” – ESV.

Sheltering families in north Lebanon

From Anglican Aid (Sydney):

“Over the last month, many families from the conflict zone in south Lebanon have moved north, seeking safety. Believing that the Christians there would help them, some have sought help from Anglican Aid’s long-term partner, Good Shepherd School. In response, the school is now sheltering some of these displaced families.

Directors of Good Shepherd School, Reem and Emil Bourizk, have also taken some families into their home alongside their own children.

They told us yesterday that bombardments in their area early this week have brought the conflict very close to home. …”

– Read more, watch their video, pray, and support Good Shepherd School if you are able.

Anglican Aid CEO Statement: Responding to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East

“When the terrible violence erupted in Israel and Gaza in October last year, I was genuinely appalled and saddened. At the time, I wrote a prayer pleading for God’s protection of the innocent and urging Anglican Aid supporters to pray. Now, one year on, I continue to grieve over this devastating conflict, which has now also spread to Lebanon.  

As this conflict continues to escalate, Anglican Aid supporters may understandably want to give to provide aid to those who have been caught up in the crossfire. However, at this stage we are not launching an emergency appeal for Lebanon (or for Israel and Gaza), for two main reasons…”

– CEO of The Archbishop Of Sydney’s Anglican Aid, Canon Tim Swan, explains the current situation and asks for your prayers for peace.

A Day of Infamy for Israel and the Civilised World

In his The Briefing broadcast for Monday 7th October 2024, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary’s Dr. Albert Mohler comments on what the year since the attacks on Israel has revealed.

– Listen here.

More World news you might not have seen

AP, the Presbyterian Church of Australia’s national online journal, regularly publishes brief items of world news you likely won’t see in the mainstream media.

From their latest summary (06 October 2024), for your information and your prayers:

“It’s now a year since the brutal Islamist atrocity that ignited the Middle East, the plight of our Christian brothers and sisters continues to worsen. In just the past few weeks the ongoing conflict has spilled over into Lebanon like never before. Christians (around a third of the population) are among the many Lebanese people who do not support the Hezbollah terrorist group. ‘We consider them the oppressors,’ said our project partner.

Some Christians have been forced to flee to the north, where IDPs Camps in some areas of the north are run by Hezbollah …

Please pray for Mojdeh Falahi, a Christian convert from Islam who was arrested on 9 September and at the time of writing was still being held in a detention centre run by Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence …”

– Read it all here.

A prayer for the Middle East

At SydneyAnglicans.net, Archbishop Kanishka Raffel has posted this prayer which you could share, and use in your own prayers:

“Lord of the Nations,

We pray for the Middle East.

We pray for women, children and men who have been caught up in a war not of their own making. We pray for people separated, displaced from their homes and grieving the death of family, loved ones and neighbours. May they know your help, comfort and hope.

We pray for the release of those held hostage, for those impacted by rockets and missiles and for those traumatised and helpless. We pray for the restraint of evil, for peace and justice.

We pray especially for our brothers and sisters in Christ in Israel, Palestine and Lebanon. Please preserve them in the knowledge and love of your Son. May they be ambassadors of reconciliation among their own people.

We pray for Australians trying to get home from the war zones. We pray for our neighbours, friends and fellow citizens here in Australia who are grieving, anxious and fearful for their loved ones in other places or themselves. Comfort and sustain then, may they know your peace and presence. Help all Australians to live in respect, harmony and peace with one another.

And banish from the leaders of the nations the spirit that makes for war. We ask it in the name of the Prince of Peace, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Archbishop Kanishka Raffel

1 October 2024.”

– from SydneyAnglicans.net, where you will also find a Downloadable PDF file to print and share.

A prayer for the displaced

“I’m sure that, like me, many of you are deeply concerned about the ongoing civil war in Sudan, which is being increasingly covered by the international news media.

The deteriorating situation means the country is facing what the UN has described as “one of the worst humanitarian disasters in recent memory.” There are now 10.5 million internally displaced people (IDPs)* in Sudan, making this the largest displacement crisis in the world. Almost all of these IDPs are in areas with acute levels of food scarcity.

And it’s not just Sudan that is seeing an increase in IDPs.…”

– Canon Tim Swan, CEO of The Archbishop of Sydney’s Anglican Aid, writes to encourage you to pray – and offers a prayer you could use.

World news you might not have seen

AP, the Presbyterian Church of Australia’s national online journal, regularly publishes brief items of world news you probably won’t see in the mainstream media.

From their latest summary, for your information and your prayers:

“Iran … Laleh Saati, 45, an Iranian Christian convert from Islam, was sentenced on 16 March to two years’ imprisonment for ‘acting against national security by connecting with “Zionist” Christian organisations’. A further two-year ban on leaving Iran is effective upon her release. …

Nepal … Four Christians in Madhesh province, eastern Nepal, face trial, accused of trying to secure forced conversions to Christianity. … Seven Australian Christians in the town were detained and subsequently deported. …”

– Read it all here.

 

A Call to Prayer from the Archbishop of the Anglican Church in North America

From Archbishop Steve Wood [after the assassination attempt on former President Trump]:

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In the midst of this time of uncertainty, social tensions, and violence, please join Jacqui and me as we pray for peace in the United States tonight:

Eternal God, in whose perfect kingdom no sword is drawn but the sword of righteousness, no strength known but the strength of love: So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, that all peoples may be gathered under the banner of the Prince of Peace; to whom be dominion and glory, now and for ever. Amen. (BCP, pg 654).

– Source.

And 1 Timothy 2:1-4:

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” – ESV.

I think we need to mention the war

“By ‘the war’, I mean world war II, of Basil Fawlty fame. The war during which the Holocaust happened.

Since the 7 October 2023 terrorist attacks on Israel by Hamas, there’s been an alarming upswing in antisemitism in Australia. What is antisemitism? A useful definition is:

a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.

International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance …”

– Theologian and ACL Council member Dr. Lionel Windsor reports on today’s ‘Never Again is Now’ rally in Sydney.

Related:

Archbishop Kanishka Raffel’s statement on antisemitism – 13 October 2023.

Why is Christian persecution often met with indifference?

“It has never been more dangerous to be a Christian than today.

According to the newly released 2024 World Watch List – an authoritative survey by Open Doors, an organisation that supports persecuted Christians – 365 million Christians, or one in seven, are at high or extreme risk of persecution every day because of their faith. …”

– Barney Zwartz contributes this piece at The Sydney Morning Herald.

See also:

Open Doors.

Nigeria – Christian Christmas massacre continues

“Attacks against Christian communities in Nigeria have continued into the new year, following a coordinated massacre of civilians over Christmas.

Partners of Release International, which serves the persecuted Church around the world, say 238 people were killed in attacks by Fulani militants between the 23rd of December and December 30. More have been killed since.

The governor of Plateau State has declared a week of prayer and mourning and there have been international calls to designate Nigeria as a country of particular concern…”

– Anglican.ink has this report from Andrew Boyd.

(Boyd also wrote the book Neither Bomb nor Bullet on Archbishop Ben Kwashi.)

Nigeria Christmas massacre — death toll nears 200, attacks continue

“The death toll in the Nigeria Christmas massacre has now risen to almost 200. And more bodies are still being discovered, according to partners of Release International, which supports persecuted Christians around the world.

Even as attempts continue to recover the bodies, Release International has been told of another attack by Fulani militia on the same area on December 28, and has received intelligence of plans for further attacks in Plateau State, central Nigeria. …

According to the Nigerian NGO Intersociety, 52,000 Nigerian Christians have been killed by jihadists since 2009, and 18,000 churches destroyed.”

– You might not have heard much about this in the legacy media.

Kel Richards calls on Australians to ‘refuse to walk backwards’ in the fight against the evils of anti-Semitism

“A new expression was coined at the recent Alliance for Responsible Citizenship (or ARC for short) conference in London: ‘civilisational moment’.

The 1,500 delegates were warned that Australia, Britain the United States and all of the western world is facing a ‘civilisational moment’  – a tipping point in which we could lose the civilised values that have guided us for well over than a thousand years, and which have given us the freedoms we enjoy. …

The warning sign of our ‘civilisational moment’ is the epidemic of anti-Semitism sweeping the western world – what we thought was the civilised world. …”

– Kel Richards writes this opinion-piece at Sky News Australia.

Related:

Archbishop Kanishka Raffel’s statement on antisemitism — 13 October 2023.

Image: ABC.

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