Can you shake the hand of a Jew?

I received this commentary from Glory of Zion:

"So they served him [Joseph] by himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because the Egyptians could not eat bread with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians" (Genesis 43:32; emphases ours).

The verse above was included in the Torah Reading for this week, and released in us a corresponding note to a bizarre happening at the recent "Annapolis" conference. Referring to her childhood as an African American girl in the segregated American South, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was quoted as saying, "I know what it is like to hear that you cannot go on a road or through a checkpoint because you are a Palestinian. I understand the feeling of humiliation and powerlessness." Yet at the conference, bowing to Saudi demands, the Americans refused to allow the Israeli delegation to enter the hall through the same door as the Arabs. The Israeli Foreign Secretary Tzipi Livni was reportedly required by Rice to instead enter the conference hall through the service entrance. At a meeting of foreign ministers, Livni was driven to explain, "Why doesn't anyone want to shake my hand? Why doesn't anyone want to be seen speaking to me?" This at a conference to which Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries had been invited for "contributions" they might have towards furthering peace between Israeli Jews and Palestinian Arabs.

In fairness, I'm aware from other reports that Ms. Rice also drew parallels between her childhood sense of terror and the Israelis' fears of terrorism, but why should the U. S. government bend over backwards to legitimize the hatred of Jews?

Speaking of atheists...

Dinesh D'Souza writes forcefully today about why atheists are so angry:

One reason I think is that they are God-haters. Atheists often like to portray themselves as "unbelievers" but this is not strictly accurate. If they were mere unbelievers they would simply live their lives as if God did not exist. I don't believe in unicorns, but then I haven't written any books called The End of Unicorns, Unicorns are Not Great, or The Unicorn Delusion. Clearly the atheists go beyond disbelief; they are on the warpath against God. And you can hear their bitterness not only in their book titles but also in their mean-spirited invective.

Atheists in Vernon

From Channel 8:

A sign posted by Atheists in the Rockville's Central Park has people talking, prompting calls to the town hall and the local clergy.

The Connecticut Valley Atheists posted the three-sided sign, which some call a billboard, and it was the only sign in the town center marking the Holiday season. Two sides of the display feature the Twin Towers, framed by the words "Imagine No Religion."

Yawn. What is interesting here is the equation of all religions here, as if religion in the abstract, or the religious impulse in human beings knocked down the Twin Towers. What atheists and others of a liberal bent are afraid to do is point out that the impulse of some religionists is to kill all who disagree with them, and intimidate others from speaking. That religion is not Christianity.

The Colorado shootings

Dan Wooding at Assist News wonders if persecution has finally come to the American Church and, if so, are we ready?

Fox News reports: "The police chief in Arvada, a suburb about 15 miles west of Denver where the mission workers were shot, said the shootings may be related to those at the Colorado Springs church but declined to elaborate."

Trench coats, high-powered rifles and an armed female security guard taking down the shooter. What a nightmare. We pray for all involved.

Is Mormonism a Christian religion?

Utah has great mountains. But maybe not such great theology.

Quite a lot of this in the news this week. Here, Baptist apologist Mike Licona talks about his investigations into the truth of Mormonism:

My second discovery was that the Book of Abraham, which is counted among the Mormon scriptures, discredits founder Joseph Smith as a true prophet. In 1835, Smith purchased some mummies that were accompanied by some ancient Egyptian papyri. Smith claimed to be able to translate the papyri because they were written in Egyptian, very similar to the "Reformed Egyptian," which Smith claimed was the language of the Book of Mormon. As he translated the manuscripts, he asserted it contained the Book of Abraham, a book written by Abraham himself.

The papyri for the Book of Abraham contained some drawings with Egyptian writing that were subsequently published in Times and Seasons, a Mormon newspaper. The papyri were lost after Smith's death in 1844 but were rediscovered in 1967 by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York who returned them to the Mormon church which in turn confirmed them to be the originals and published them for others to see. A Mormon academic journal named "Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought" asked three prominent Egyptologists to translate the papyri. If Joseph Smith was a true prophet, the contemporary translation would be very close to Smith's. The stakes were high, since the translations of the Egyptologists either could confirm Joseph Smith as a true prophet or expose him as a charlatan. For if Joseph Smith was terribly wrong in his translation of the Book of Abraham, it casts doubt on the Book of Mormon, too.

John Wilson and Klaus Baer, both professors of Egyptology at the University of Chicago, and Richard Parker, a professor of Egyptology at Brown University, were asked to do the task. The results were devastating. All concluded that the manuscript was a common Egyptian document buried with mummies for guidance in the afterlife and was not used until at least a thousand years after Abraham. They also concluded that Smith's translation did not bear the slightest resemblance to the actual translation. This is especially important when we consider that Smith claimed that the Book of Mormon was written in the same language. Since it can be demonstrated that Smith was gravely mistaken in his translation abilities when it came to the Book of Abraham, why should anything but the same conclusion be drawn pertaining to his ability allegedly to translate the Book of Mormon?

Read the rest here at Baptist Press.

Flickr photo by Katie; some rights reserved.

The number of same-sex civil unions in Connecticut plummets

Why have civil unions dropped almost in half from 2006 to 2007?

Is it because people are waiting for full marriage rights or is it because there really isn't that much demand for it?

I suspect the latter.

Behold The Lamb concert comes to New Milford

St. Paul's Church in Brookfield is sponsoring a concert called Behold the Lamb: The True Tall Tale of the Coming of Christ on December 8 at New Milford High. It will feature Andrew Peterson, Bebo Norman, Sara Groves, Jill Phillips, and many more.

For tickets, visit: www.rockthesoundtickets.com

Watch this documentary about the making of Behold the Lamb:

Cohabitation in Connecticut

Peter Wolfgang at FIC has a noteworthy piece here about cohabitation and child violence. I suppose it would be too much for people to acknowledge that the twin evils of easy divorce and cohabitation are actually evil, but perhaps crimes of violence against children will cause some people to think.

Modesty and purity dances get publicity

A look from a major U. S. paper into the modesty trend:

It was an evening for couples—girls in formal gowns, tiaras and curly updos, escorted by their dads, in tuxedos or dressy suits and ties.

They dined on roast beef and waltzed to classical music in a ballroom decorated with draped crosses and a mannequin in a white wedding gown. They listened as a guest speaker warned of the dangers of premarital sex. Then they stood at their tables, looked each other in the eye and vowed that they would remain pure.

He signed a pledge to be the protector of her purity and to live his own life with integrity. She gave her father a gold key to her heart, and asked him to hold on to it until her wedding day, when he would hand it over to her husband. They walked down the aisle with locked arms and she laid a white rose beside a cross, sealing her commitment....

For abstinence-only advocates such as Dannah Gresh, author of "And the Bride Wore White," there is no middle ground in the eyes of God. She brushes off criticism that her message is closed-minded and ineffective.

"Everyone has the right to promote their position. It seems contradictory to say you're open-minded by handing these girls condoms and not giving me the right to encourage them not to reach for them," said Gresh, the guest speaker at the Peoria purity ball. "These girls already know about condoms. We are telling them there is an alternative."

Read the rest here from the Chicago Tribune.

Shortage of priests affects Connecticut

The shortage of priests is hitting West Hartford

Despite an influx of Hispanics, the decline in the number of priests is making an impact even in heavily Catholic Connecticut:

Father Henry Cody has served at St. Timothy's Church in West Hartford for 19 years. He said that in that time, he's seen priests come and go, but lately priests have mostly been going.

"We need priests. We need them badly," he said. "People are concerned because they love their parishes -- they want them to remain whole."

Cody is the only priest at the parish, and serves more than 900 families. He said that he, like several other priests in the town, is considering retirement.

More here from Channel 3.

Flickr photo by Sage Ross; some rights reserved.

Happy Thanksgiving!

A Happy Thanksgiving to everyone - and here are some thoughts appropriate to the day from our first President:

"Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the Providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor, and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint committee requested me to commend to the people of United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness, now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next, to be devoted to the service of that great and glorious Being, Who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or will be."

Washington's First Thanksgiving Proclamation, October 3, 1789.

Thanks to Patriot Post.

Ousted Portland Selectman speaks out

Back in October we wrote about the case of one of the selectmen in Portland, CT, a Mr. Scott Adamsons, who had dared to say he was acting not just as a responsible public official but as a Christian when fighting so-called "adult entertainment." Mr. Adamsons has just left a very thoughtful comment and I wanted to run his remarks in the posts so that more of you could see his reply.

I am Scott Adamsons and I am a member of the Colchester Bible Baptist Church in Colchester, CT. Being a Christian is more than a choice, it is a lifestyle. While I do not push this lifestyle on anybody else, I do recommend it. On the flip side, I do not wish to have others (the world) push their way of life on me or my family. It is not unrealistic for a community that is comprised primarily by Christians, Jews, and some Muslims to fight against a developer opening an adult-entertainment establishment in their town. In fact, one would expect a fight if their faith is true. If a reader is caught off guard by this position, then they should consider why they have the beliefs that they do and how their daily decisions and actions are impacted by them. Most of us fall short of our beliefs in our daily walk (just being honest here), but where our hearts are directs the path that we go in. It’s a sobering picture some days. Other days are laced with victory.

Those who would use the first amendment of the US Constitution to claim a right to lewd conduct should know that Christians and those people of other faiths have a first amendment right to freedom of religion. How do lewd conduct and explicit images violate my rights? The mere presence of those types of establishments in the public arena assaults my senses, and undermines the values that I am trying to raise my children under. The advertizing of those establishments in public places accomplishes the same result.

If a vast majority of a town's population has beliefs against such behavior, then perhaps the will of the majority should prevail (for once). There are towns where such establishments are allowed. They are nearby and therefore people who have a strong desire to exercise their “right” of expression have existing outlets that they can use. Given this, for a town that has no such businesses, preventing their influx is not a violation of a developer’s first amendment rights.

Another thought: Over the past 200 years our small community has developed with business districts that are essentially integrated into the residential areas/uses of the town. There just isn’t a “good” place for such an establishment to operate in our community, not one that is far away from children anyway.

In conclusion, the comment in the article of being a "career threatening" move was more accurate than you'd think. I was not re-elected last week. As a close friend of mine has said many times over, “It’s going to get a lot worse before it gets better.” It is my hope that this position will encourage people in their own communities and on a personal level. What makes you a Christian and why do you have the beliefs that you do? Do your actions reflect those beliefs? It ain’t easy, but it is rewarding.

Respectfully Submitted,
Hon. Scott A. Adamsons
Selectman (out-going), Town of Portland, CT

Pray for our vets

This Veterans' Day, please remember to pray for all our veterans, young and old.

Flickr photo courtesy of Soldiers' Media Center. Some rights reserved.

Photo information: U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Michael Kaman helps secure an area along the Pech River during a meeting between key leaders in the Kunar province of Afghanistan on Feb. 4, 2007. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss local development projects that are a combined effort of the Coalition led Asadabad Provincial Reconstruction Team and local contractors. Kaman is attached to the 1st Battalion, 102nd Infantry Regiment, Connecticut National Guard. DoD photo by Staff Sgt. Joshua Gipe, U.S. Army. (Released)

National Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church this Sunday

Come Brother Andrew speak this Sunday at 7:00 pm at Wintonbury Baptist Church in Bloomfield about secret believers on the National Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.

Brother Andrew is the founder of Open Doors International and author of the international best-seller, God's Smuggler.

This event is free of charge.

The biggest story no one's talking about...

It would be smart to pray about this and what it can mean for our future:

The dollar fell to a record versus the euro and the lowest since 1981 against the pound after Chinese officials signaled plans to diversify the nation's $1.43 trillion of foreign exchange reserves.

The U.S. dollar also declined to the cheapest versus the Canadian dollar since the end of a fixed exchange rate in 1950 and a 23-year low against the Australian dollar. The New York Board of Trade's dollar index dropped to 75.077, the lowest since the gauge started in March 1973.

``The dollar is suffering a confidence crisis,'' said Michael Woolfolk, senior currency strategist at the Bank of New York Mellon in New York, the world's largest custodian bank with more than $20 trillion in assets under administration. ``The dollar is on the ropes. Comments from China about diversification and surging oil prices pushed the dollar to new lows.''

Read the rest here. And then check out this chart showing the strength of the Euro against the dollar.

Garage bands for Jesus

...but with high production values.

Dressed in a faded black T-shirt, jeans and skateboard sneakers, he bent his shaved head. “God,” he said, “I hope these songs we sing will be much more than the music. I know it’s so difficult at times when we’re thinking about chords and lyrics and when to hit the right effect patch, but would you just help that to become second nature, so that we can truly worship you from our hearts?...”

The house bands that play every weekend in High Desert Church — there are a dozen or so — scavenge some of their musical style from the radio and television. They reflect popular taste, though with lyrics about the power of God, not teenage turmoil.

They are not aiming for commercial success. Church-based Christian rock — often referred to as C.C.M., for contemporary Christian music — does not exist primarily to compete in mainstream culture; it exists first to bring together a community.

“When you start a church,” said Tom Mercer, 52, the senior pastor, “you don’t decide who you’re going to reach and then pick a music style. You pick a music style, and that determines who’s going to come.”

Interesting look at modern worship from the New York Times.

U. S. Senate to investigate televangelists

A. W. Tozer said we needed a "baptism of clear seeing." Many will see this as persecution; many others will see it as God having to judge his house because his own people would not.

CBS News has learned Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa, the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, is investigating six prominent televangelist ministries for possible financial misconduct.

Letters were sent Monday to the ministries demanding that financial statements and records be turned over to the committee by December 6th.

According to Grassley's office, the Iowa Republican is trying to determine whether or not these ministries are improperly using their tax-exempt status as churches to shield lavish lifestyles.

The six ministries identified as being under investigation by the committee are led by: Paula White, Joyce Meyer, Creflo Dollar, Eddie Long, Kenneth Copeland and Benny Hinn. Three of the six - Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland and Creflo Dollar - also sit on the Board of Regents for the Oral Roberts University.

The implications are disturbing, both in terms of what we have already heard about lavish lifestyles, and in terms of increasing government supervision of churches as a result. If things go on as they are, I fully expect churches to lose the tax-exempt status they have enjoyed in the U.S.

Read the full story here at CBS News.

Follow-up story here, and video here.

Episcopal Church seeks to intervene in lawsuit against Bristol church

The saga continues:

The national church has filed papers in court seeking intervenor status in a lawsuit against Trinity Episcopal Church brought by the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut. It accuses the Rev. Donald Helmandollar and church leaders of trespassing on church property.


Members of the Trinity parish voted to leave the Episcopal Church last May because of disagreement over the 2003 election of an openly gay New Hampshire bishop and the church's blessing of same-sex unions. Around the same time, Trinity members voted to join the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, a self-described mission of the conservative Anglican Church of Nigeria.

Read the rest here in the Courant.

Family Fun Fest returns to Plantsville

Faith Living Church in Plantsville invites you and your family to an exciting event, The Family Fun Fest '07. This safe, exciting and fun-filled family evening will be Friday, October 26th from 6pm to 9pm. Hundreds of people attend the Family Fun Fest each year!

A 40x100 foot tent will be packed with carnival games, an inflatable moonwalk, and the back parking lot will have an awesome paintball range. Everyone wins, play a game, shoot a target or Dunk the Pastor and you'll get a prize. Guarantee you go home with a bag full of bounty! Not to mention the whole event is absolutely free, including free cotton candy, popcorn, hot chocolate, & hot apple cider.

For more information or directions call 860.621.6452 or visit the church website.

End-times message in Bristol tonight

Bethel Christian Church in Bristol, Connecticut will host Evangelist Rev. Cecil Peasley of Living Ministries International from South Africa on Wednesday, October 17, at 6:30 pm. Rev. Peasley will be speaking on the world's Midnight Hour. The event is free and all are welcome.

For directions, please visit the church website here.

New churches added to the Connecticut Church Map

We're happy to announce the following churches have been added to the Connecticut Church Map:

Church On The Move, East Haddam, and

Faith Living Church, Plantsville.

Know of other good churches? Write us at info@prayct.org!

Radio ministry profiled

The Day has an interesting profile today of the ongoing strength and growth of shortwave radio ministry around the world:

He wound the little plastic handle round and round, charging the radio like winding a watch, and soon a preacher's voice boomed across a courtyard filled with goats and turkeys. Twenty miles from the nearest paved road, Matsimbe smiled as he listened to a Texas preacher's sermons about Jesus and Saint Paul, translated into a local language spoken only in the southern African backcountry.

“I love that this person has brought us this message,” said Matsimbe, 59, a farmer with 24 grandchildren, whose native language, Xitshwa, is spoken by only a million or so people. “It makes us feel like there is somebody who cares for us.”

Read the rest here.

Regional Prayer Conference with Jackson Senyonga, October 25-26

Jackson Senyonga, Pastor of Christian Life Church in Kampala, Uganda is coming to Connecticut for 2 days of transforming prayer and impartation.

Meetings will be held at The Westin Hotel, 1 Stamford Place, in Stamford, CT, each night at 7:00 pm.

Pastor Senyonga is the leader of the Ugandan prayer movement featured on the widely acclaimed Transformation 2 Video produced by the Sentinel Group.

Christian Life Church in Kampala has a membership of more than 40,000 people, with an average Sunday attendance of 22,000. The Church has also planted more than 600 new churches and is building homes for widows and orphans.

More information about Jackson Senyonga is available at www.christianlifeministries.org.

A Night To Honor Israel, October 21

On Sunday evening, October 21, Gateway Christian Fellowship in West Haven will host Connecticut's first annual "A Night To Honor Israel." The Christian community in Connecticut is invited to come and demonstrate our love and support for the State of Israel.

A Night To Honor Israel is a non-conversionary tribute to the nation of Israel and the Jewish people of the world. Its purpose is to promote esteem and understanding between Christians and Jews and to emphasize that the beliefs we hold in common are greater than the differences we have allowed to separate us.

Among the guests will be: Ambassador Asaf Shariv, the Consul general of Israel in New York; Roz Rothstein, the National Director of Stand With Us; David Brog, the Executive Director of Christians United For Israel; and Robert Stearns, Northeast Director of Christians United For Israel and Founder and Director of Eagles' Wings Ministries.

More information can be obtained from Christians United For Israel's Connecticut chapter (click here.)

New church added to Connecticut Church Map

We're happy to announce that we've added the Branford Evangelical Free Church to the Connecticut Church Map.

Got a church you'd like us to add? Write us at info@prayct.org.

Litchfield County prayer meetings make an impact

Good news from the northwest corner:

For the past 18 months, many local churches have been working together to bring another awakening to Litchfield County.

"When Greater Litchfield County Prays - A United Celebration" was the culmination of three weeks of prayers at every town green in the county, Pastor Ron Boratko of Torrington Foursquare Church said. The celebration was held at Coe Memorial Park late Sunday afternoon.

"This is the result of 18 months of churches getting together," Boratko said.

Boratko lamented that many churches have stuck to their denominations and prayers and have not worked with other churches in spreading the word of God. He said that people have been stuck in their own worlds, only concerned with themselves.

"No one church will bring an awakening to a city," Boratko said.

Another great awakening will come when the church gets on its knees and repents its sins and when churches come together to preach live and love Jesus Christ, Boratko said.

Amen. More here from the Torrington Register-Citizen.

America: Christian or Secular?

Michael Medved, who is no shrinking violet, is out with an op-ed piece claiming that the Founders intended a Christian America, not a secular one. Although this would have been obvious to anyone born prior to 1900, his historical review is instructive for us who live in this benighted latter day:

In fact, the same Congress that approved the First Amendment gave a clear indication of the way they understood its language when, less than 24 hours after adopting the fateful wording, they passed the following Resolution: “Resolved, that a joint committee of both Houses be directed to wait upon the President of the United States, to request that he would recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging, with grateful hearts, the many signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceable to establish a Constitution of government for their safety and happiness.” It never occurred to this first Congress in 1789 that their call for a government sponsored day of “thanksgiving and prayer” would conflict with the prohibition they had just adopted prohibiting “an establishment of religion.” Not until the infamous Everson decision of 1947 did the Supreme Court create the doctrine of a “wall of separation between church and state,” quoting (out of context) from an 1802 letter from Thomas Jefferson to the Danbury Baptist Association. President Jefferson created the image of the wall in order to reassure the Baptists that government would never interfere with their religious life, but he never suggested that religion would have no role in government. In 1803, in fact, Jefferson recommended to Congress the approval of a treaty that provided government funds to support a Catholic priest in ministering to the Kaskaskia Indians.

Three times he signed extensions of another measure described as “An Act regulating the grants of land appropriated for Military services and for the Society of the United Brethren for propagating the Gospel among the Heathen.” Jefferson also participated every week in Christian church services in the Capitol Building in Washington DC; until 1866, in fact, the Capitol hosted worship every Sunday and, intermittently, conducted a Sunday school. No one challenged these 71 years of Christian prayer at the very seat of federal power: given the founders' endorsement of the positive role of organized faith, it hardly inspired controversy to convene worship at the Capitol. In fact, at the time of the first Continental Congress, nine of the thirteen original colonies had “established churches” – meaning that they each supported an official denomination, even to the point of using public money for church construction and maintenance. These religious establishments – clearly in contradiction to the idea of a “secular government” – continued in three states long after the adoption of the First Amendment. Connecticut disestablished its favored Congregational Church only in 1818, New Hampshire in 1819, and Massachusetts in 1833.

Amazingly enough, these established churches flourished for nearly fifty years under the constitution despite the First Amendment’s famous insistence that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.”

Read the whole thing (and comments if you can tolerate it) here.

Photo by Joey Gannon; some rights reserved.

A Christian hangs a bullseye on his back to fight adult entertainment

But Portland First Selectwoman Susan Bransfield
Expresses First Amendment Concerns

A professing Christian in Portland, Connecticut has taken the career-threatening step of using the "C word" - "Christian" - in his role as a public official. In a Middletown Press article about the possibility of adult entertainment in that small town (pop. 10,000 approx.) we learn that:

The town presently has no adult entertainment venues. However, there have been persistent rumors that one may be in the offing.

The town restricts adult entertainment from being established closer than 500 feet from schools, churches, public parks, etc.

Deanna L. Rhodes, the town's planning and land use administrator, has proposed increasing the boundary to 750 feet.

But Selectman Scott A. Adamsons is pressing for a wider boundary.

When the selectmen discussed the issue earlier this week, Adamsons initially proposed a 3,000-foot barrier; however, he was persuaded to reduce that to 1,000 feet. But in a subsequent written communication, Adamsons said his real intent to is "take a stand on principle and ask for a three-mile buffer."

"As a responsible Christian and public official, it is my duty to bring this concept before the board and the community," Adamsons said.

First Selectwoman Susan S. Bransfield cautioned Adamsons that an effort to enact more stringent regulations could run afoul of court rulings that have designated adult entertainment as "protected free speech."

Adamsons was unmoved, however, saying that is a fight he would welcome. He said he wanted to "protect kids from doing things they probably shouldn't be doing." And, he said, adult entertainment is one of three of what he called "the fatal vices," the other two being gambling and alcohol.

We don't know Mr. Adamsons, what church he attends, or anything else about him. But we do applaud his willingness to revive the antiquated idea that there are things probably "shouldn't be doing." To some, this sort of rhetoric makes Christians look like the Taliban. To others, it just marks a call for a return to sanity.

Read the whole thing here.

Religious people are the happiest

Despite the recent disclosures about Mother Teresa's spiritual struggles, the data suggest that religious people are happier than the somewhat religious and the nonreligious alike:

Americans can be divided into three groups when it comes to religious practice. Surveys indicate that about 30% attend houses of worship at least once per week (I will call them "religious"), while about 20% are "secular"--never attending. The rest attend sometimes, but irregularly. These population dimensions have changed relatively little over the decades: Since the early 1970s, the religious group has not shrunk by more than two or three percentage points.

How do religious Americans compare to the secular when it comes to happiness? In 2004, the General Social Survey asked a sample of Americans, "Would you say that you are very happy, pretty happy, or not too happy?" Religious people were more than twice as likely as the secular to say they were "very happy" (43% to 21%). Meanwhile, secular people were nearly three times as likely as the religious to say they were not too happy (21% to 8%). In the same survey, religious people were more than a third more likely than the secular to say they were optimistic about the future (34% to 24%).

The happiness gap between religious and secular people is not because of money or other personal characteristics. Imagine two people who are identical in every important way--income, education, age, sex, family status, race and political views. The only difference is that the first person is religious; the second is secular. The religious person will still be 21 percentage points more likely than the secular person to say that he or she is very happy.

More here from the Wall Street Journal's OpinionJournal.com.

Attorney Admits Guilt in Church Pornography Case

Back in February we blogged about the case of Attorney Phil Russell, who was accused of obstructing justice by destroying a church computer containing child pornography. Yesterday, Russell pled guilty in a case that lawyers think will hinder their ability to represent people effectively. From the Courant:

After signaling for months that he intended to fight the charges, lawyer Philip Russell disclosed in federal court that he had reached a negotiated settlement with prosecutors. He then pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of misprision of a felony, which means he was aware that a felony had been committed, but did not report the crime to authorities.

Russell had been charged with obstruction of justice and destruction of evidence. He was accused of destroying a laptop computer after his clients, officials of Christ Church in Greenwich, found the computer and determined that it contained pornographic images of children. The computer was the property of Robert Tate, the church's former longtime choirmaster.

The problem here for lawyers:

The Connecticut Criminal Defense Lawyers Association argued that Russell learned of the computer's contents in a confidential conversation with his client, the church. To turn the computer over to authorities would violate that confidence [creating potential problems for Russell with the Bar]; to retain it would violate federal child pornography laws.

(Read the full story here.)

Not a good choice - ruin your career or be be prosecuted for violating child pornography laws! In any case let's continue to pray for Christ Church in Greenwich and all the persons involved.

Episcopal bishops continue to defy the worldwide Anglican Communion

If nothing else the current crisis in the Anglican Church has showed us that some Christians, mostly concentrated off our shores, are still ready to uphold the historic faith. They are doing so reasonably and graciously, to be sure, but uphold it they will, in the face of all the weasel words and agitprop the American Left can muster. From the BBC:

The head of Kenya's Anglican Church has rejected a compromise over gay bishops by US Episcopal Church leaders.

They have said they will halt the ordination of gay bishops and public blessings of same-sex relationships to prevent a split in the Anglican Church.

"That word 'halt' is not enough," said Archbishop Benjamin Nzimbi....

Last month, Archbishop Nzimbi presided over the consecration of two US bishops, Bill Murdoch and Bill Atwood, who left the US branch of the Anglican Church - the Episcopal Church - after it consecrated an openly gay bishop, Gene Robinson, in 2003.

The Kenyan archbishop said the US church leaders' comments did not go far enough.

"What we expected to come from them is to repent - that this is a sin in the eyes of the Lord and repentance is what me, in particular, and others expected to hear coming from this church," he said.

My goodness, he used the R word - repent! How backwards. Archbishop Akinola of Nigeria explains it for us (thanks to TitusOneNine):

Instead of the change of heart (repentance) that we sought what we have been offered is merely a temporary adjustment in an unrelenting determination to “bring the rest of the Communion along” as stated by a bishop at one of the press conferences. We also note that while we have repeatedly asked for a moratorium on same-sex blessings –across the Episcopal Church the clergy have continued with these blessings with the full knowledge and support of the Diocesan bishops even if not technically authorized.

So I ask: without this repentance, in what sense can the Episcopal Church be called a Christian body?

The rise of the nonbelievers

People continue to fall away from the faith once delivered to the saints:

The majority of nonbelievers say they are speaking out only because of religious fanatics. But some atheists are also extreme and want, for example, people to blot out the words “In God We Trust” from every dollar bill they carry.

Gaining political clout and access to television and radio airtime is the goal of many of these groups. With a higher profile, they say, they can, for instance, lobby for all religious rooms in public hospitals to be closed, as a response to Muslims demanding prayer rooms because Christians have chapels.

Associations of nonbelievers are also moving to address the growing demand in Britain, Spain, Italy and other European countries for nonreligious weddings, funerals and celebrations for new babies. They are helping arrange ceremonies that steer clear of talk of God, heaven and miracles and celebrate, as they say, “this one life we know.”

Click here for more from The Day.

Ballet Magnificat to perform "The Hiding Place," Saturday, September 29

This Saturday, Ballet Magnificat will perform an adaptation of Corrie ten Boom's classic true story, "The Hiding Place." Enjoy this marvelous retelling of a Christian family's struggle to survive under Nazi occupation and the price they were willing to pay to safeguard the Jews of Holland. Performance will be held at Western Connecticut State University in Danbury.

Tickets are available at the Box Office, (203) 837-8499, or at www.wcsu.edu/tickets. Regular Seating is $28.

Faith and Science at Yale

An interesting look from the Yale Daily News at creation, evolution and intelligent design. (Note the term "worship team" in quotes. A good reminder to Christians that people really don't know us.)

A “worship team” sang praises of the Lord, while professor Fred Sigworth prepared do his best to reconcile the demands of faith and the demands of science.

“God of wonders beyond our galaxy / You are holy, holy / The universe declares your majesty / You are holy, holy,” the crowd intoned.

After the introduction by the Yale Christian Fellowship’s worship team on Friday, Sigworth launched into a lecture that stressed the compatibility of science and faith by focusing on the idea of the “unexpected vista,” the discovery or witnessing of a unique occurrence, a phenomenon which he said was common to science and religion.

Sigworth’s talk spanned the foundations of modern science and the debate over evolution and intelligent design, with ample reference to philosophy and the Bible.

“Being a Christian is good preparation for work as a scientist, and science can help prepare you for being a Christian,” he said.

Click here to read the rest.

The Fulton Street Revival: 150 Years

This month marks the 150th Anniversary of the Fulton Street Revival, a work of prayer that reshaped American society in the 19th century and beyond.

To commemorate the event and to pray for an awakening in the New York City region, New York Concerts of Prayer is promoting a conference from September 21- 23 featuring tours and numerous prayer events with well-known Christian leaders such as Jack Hayford and Henry Blackaby.

If you can't attend, please take some time to pray for New York that weekend. No other city has such an impact on our nation and certainly the one-fourth of our State who lives in Fairfield County is heavily affected by what happens in the Big Apple.

For more information, visit New York Concerts of Prayer here.

Series of Prayer Meetings in Litchfield County this month

From Connecticut House of Prayer:

WHAT IS GOING ON IN LITCHFIELD COUNTY?

A coalition of pastors called When Greater Litchfield County Prays is organizing a series of open-air prayer meetings taking place on their town greens, starting on Saturday, September 15. Following is a listing of the prayer meetings. Please uphold these pastors as they pour out their hearts in intercession for their towns. If you’re able, plan to attend some of these marvelous prayer meetings to show your support!

Vision: Pray for “repentance, reawakening & release of God’s grace and power in Greater Litchfield County.

Prayer Sites: The Town Green.

Region:

I. MA: Ashley Falls, CT: North Canaan, Canaan, Norfolk / Salisbury, Sharon, Cornwall, Goshen.
Date/Time: Saturday, September 15th / 22nd - 9:00AM
Contacts: Pastor Ed Eastman - 413-229-8560
- Pastor Ron Boratko - 860-496-1580

II. Colebrook, Winchester, Barkhamsted / New Hartford, Canton, Harwinton.
Date/Time: Saturday, September 22nd / 29th - 10:00AM
Contacts: Pastor Jim Wheeler - 860-693-6333
- Pastors: Jeff/Lynda Brewer - 860-738-8675

III. Plymouth, Thomaston, Litchfield / Watertown, Woodbury, Bethlehem, Morris,
Date/Time: Saturday, September 22nd / 29th - 8:30AM
Contacts: Pastor Tim Olsen - 860-286-9146
- Pastor Ron Boratko - 860-496-01580

IV. New Milford, Bridgewater, Roxbury / Kent, Warren, Washington.
Date/Time: Saturday, September 15th / 29th - 9:00AM
Contacts: Pastor Chris Sakis - 860-335-3719
- Pastor Ron Boratko - 860-496-01580

V. Torrington/County Wide Prayer - Coe Park Torrington.
Date/Time: Sunday, September 30th - 4:00-6:00PM
Guest Facilitator: Pastor Frank Mwebasa - Uganda, Africa

Writer Madeleine L'Engle dies

A favorite of many schoolkids back in the day, including yours truly, Madeleine L'Engle passed away in a Litchfield nursing home yesterday. Wonder if they still read her?

The Newbery Medal winner wrote more than 60 books, including fantasies, poetry and memoirs, often highlighting spiritual themes and her Christian faith.

For many years, she was the writer in residence and librarian at the Episcopal Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in New York City.

Although L'Engle was often labeled a children's author, she disliked that classification. In a 1993 Associated Press interview, she said she did not write down to children.

"In my dreams, I never have an age," she said. "I never write for any age group in mind. ... When you underestimate your audience, you're cutting yourself off from your best work."

"A Wrinkle in Time" - which L'Engle said was rejected repeatedly before it found a publisher in 1962 - won the American Library Association's 1963 Newbery Medal for best American children's book. Her "A Ring of Endless Light" was a Newbery Honor Book, or medal runner-up, in 1981.

In 2004, President Bush awarded her a National Humanities Medal.

More here.

Music festival this Saturday in Middletown

Siloam

Eternal Perks Coffee House is hosting an outdoor Music Festival with food, crafters, exhibits, and playground on their 14-acre property. Bring your lawn chairs, blankets, picnic and coolers for a fantastic day. The following New England artists will be featured:

Raging Grace – Blues Rock (www.raginggrace.com)
Undue Favor – Pop (www.unduefavor.com)
Siloam Band – Pop Rock (www.siloamband.com)
White Stone – Contemporary (www.whitestonemm.com)
2 Plus Change – Folk (www.myspace.com/2pluschange)
Grace Worship Band – Eclectic

Tickets are $8.00 in advance and $10.00 day of festival. Children under 12 are free.

Advance tickets can be ordered by check from Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church, Attn: Festival Committee, 1055 Randolph Road, Middletown, CT 06457. For more information call 860-346-2641 or visit www.GraceMiddletown.org

Directions from Route 9: Exit 11 Randolph Road/Route 155. Turn left at end of exit ramp onto Randolph Road/Route 155. Drive 1.8 miles. Free parking is on the right. Festival is on the left behind Grace Lutheran Church.

Pastoral counseling classes available

Christian Community Outreach Ministries in Danbury is announcing that it will be the site of a Pastoral Counseling Training Class beginning this month in Danbury. This is an excellent course and opportunity for evangelists, missionaries, lay ministers, pastors, or others interested in ministry.

The Pastoral Counseling Training Basic Class will begin September 11th through October 9th from 6 p.m. till 8 p.m. The Advanced Pastoral Training Class is for the Graduates of the Basic Class and will start October 16th.

For more information, visit www.pastoralcounselingtraining.com.

Dr. D. James Kennedy, RIP

Headlines are reading today that a "megachurch pastor" has died. In the current climate that tells most people all they need to know, I suppose, but it's hard to overemphasize the impact of the ministry of Dr. Kennedy over the last several decades. An unfriendly-to-Christians article in Rolling Stone a couple of years ago called him "the most influential evangelical you've never heard of."

That pretty well sums it up. The scourge of leftists and squishy Christians, Dr. Kennedy upheld without fear or compromise a Christian vision of America at a time when it was vanishing from memory. In this regard he held the fort for the next generation of believers, which seems to be less ashamed of what made America great and will certainly advance that vision.

New Church Added to Connecticut Church Map

We're happy to announce that we've added New Life Christian Center in New Hartford to the Connecticut Church Map.

Know a good church that should be on the map? Write us at info@prayct.org!

What does Connecticut believe?

Apparently we're not in Kansas any more:

It's not that people in the state aren't religious - 62 percent said religion was an "extremely important" or "very important" part of their lives.

But even the state's most devout residents draw a clear line between religion and politics: 51 percent of those who said religion was "extremely important" to them said religious leaders should stay clear of politics.

"One of the things that make Connecticut distinct is that even the most religious residents believe that religious leaders shouldn't get involved in politics," said Monika McDermott, research director of the center and an assistant professor of political science at UConn....

The survey provides further evidence of just how different Connecticut's political culture is from that of the bulk of the nation. A Newsweek poll of 1,004 Americans conducted in March found that only 32 percent of the respondents said religion has too much influence on public policy - and 31 percent believe it has too little influence. Only 17 percent of Connecticut respondents said religion has too little sway.

The results don't surprise David A. Roozen, director of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research at Hartford Seminary. Though evangelical Christians are the dominant voice of religion in American politics these days, their views are sharply out of step in a socially liberal state such as Connecticut, he said.

"Here in the Northeast, we're blue states," he said. "The perception of religion in politics is that it's this conservative, reactionary evangelical Christian movement. ... That's not our religion."

I hadn't noticed! See more here at The Courant.

More on Connecticut's abortion clinics

Peter Wolfgang at FIC graciously quoted our story yesterday about Planned Parenthood and has done an admirable job digging further into the netherworld of Connecticut's abortion clinics and what happens after the "procedure" is over.

People seldom have the taste for a real examination of all the various businesses that surround the trade in abortion. This is understandable. But reflexive politics shouldn't keep the public and its representatives from looking again - and looking hard.

Read the rest of the FIC Blog story here.

Will States ever prosecute Planned Parenthood facilities for violations?

Disturbing and yet apparently all too common:

Police investigating a kidnapping and sexual abuse case in Connecticut have confirmed that a Planned Parenthood abortion business did an abortion on a 15 year-old girl who is the victim. The news is the latest in a string of cases across the country where abortions have been used to cover up cases of sexual abuse.

That sad saga continues, complete with the revelation, gruesome to me, that abortion centers apparently keep remains long enough to allow DNA testing, but another large question is whether statutory rape statutes are being taken seriously enough by officials and electorates. Does the value they assign on easy abortion on purely ideological grounds outweigh the State's interest in protecting teen (and pre-teen) girls from predation?

Will anyone draw the proper conclusions from the circumstances of the Gault case?

For more on the problem, read this story from the National Catholic Register.

"Under the Fire Of God" in New Haven

Carlos Annacondia

New Haven will be the scene of the annual Evangelical Parade on Saturday, September 8, with the theme Under the Fire of God. This is beyond a bilingual event - it's a multilingual event, with prayer being offered in 10 different languages! Pastor Jose Champagne of Holy Mount Church of God of Prophecy says:

This is completely a community and family event. This event commences with a March lead by the leaders and ministers of God in unity and it culminates with a Great Concentration in the Green Park of New Haven in front of the City Hall with a free concert and a powerful message from the Word of God.

The featured speaker is renowned evangelist Carlos Annacondia.

For more information, write: connecticutparacristo@hotmail.com.

Seven Great Resources for Connecticut Homeschoolers

Should you homeschool? Maybe this young lady's parents should have...
Hat Tip to Judy Aron

Even though it has taken off like a rocket in recent years, the very thought of homeschooling can still be very intimidating. And lack of information can breed paralysis, too. There are lots of questions. Am I capable of teaching my kids? How much will it cost? What are the legalities? Do homeschoolers sit around in calico dresses watching Anne of Green Gables? What are all the pros and cons?

If I were interested in homeschooling, where would I go for dependable information? Here's a list of some top resources for Connecticut homeschoolers and those wondering whether they should take the plunge:

• CT Homeschoolers Inclusive (Yahoo Group)
  

• CT Homeschool Network
  

• Homeschoolblogger.com
  

• HSLDA (Homeschool Legal Defense Association)
  

• HSLDA's analysis of Connecticut Homeschooling Law (PDF)
  

• TEACH (The Education Association of Christian Homeschoolers)
  

• Don't forget Judy Aron's great blog, Consent of the Governed!

Gay marriage hearings at the Connecticut Supreme Court

Listen here to the story, and continue to pray for the Supreme Court to exercise godly wisdom.

What do teenagers really want?

As we head back to school many are touting as good news the results of a recent MTV/AP poll showing what teens really think and want:

Religion and spirituality are an integral part of happiness for most American young people. 44 percent say that religion and spirituality are either a very important or the single most important thing in their lives, with more than one in ten reporting the latter. And those for whom religion and spirituality play a bigger role in life tend to be happier. 80 percent of those who say spirituality is the most important thing in life say they are happy with life in general, compared with 60 percent of those who say that spirituality is not an important part of life at all.

This is comforting, and Christian groups should take heed:

Bob Waliszewski, director of Focus on the Family's Plugged In magazine and Web site, said teens want sustenance for their souls.

“It’s no surprise to find out that kids are searching. Many of them consider themselves ‘spiritual’ – I say that in quotation marks. It doesn’t say that they are Christians or evangelicals. But they are wired by God to seek after a Creator.

“I think one of the things that this study could help lead to is more openness, especially on campus, for student-led groups exploring Christianity.”

Read more here from Citizen Link.

Our 500th post

To hit 500 posts is a big milestone for us, especially when so many blogs start every day - something like 175,000.

Most blogs have precisely the same number of posts before dying a lingering death on the Web: 1!

So thanks for your support! Continue to support the growth of the "Christian Web" and pray that God's people continue to find creative ways to reach people in this technological age.

Rally for Liberty in Hartford on September 12

From the Family Institute of Connecticut comes this notice:

On Wednesday, September 12, 2007 at 10:00 a.m. FIC will hold a Rally for Liberty on the east grounds of the state capitol in Hartford. Please come to show your support for marriage protection and for self-government! Please also forward this message to every pro-family state resident you know and encourage them to do likewise!

We want to encourage the Supreme Court to do the right thing. The Court should not take it upon themselves to undemocratically impose a radical redefinition of marriage-our most precious social institution-on all of society. They should let the people decide!

Church Map update: map is fixed

Thanks for your patience. By the way, to submit a church, just drop us a line at info@prayct.org.

Map update

We're experiencing a problem with our Church Map not showing pointers, which we will try to get squared away as soon as possible. Thanks for your patience - we know it's the most popular page on our site and we'll try to have it fixed straightaway.

State Senate votes to investigate one of its own

From Capitol Watch:

The Senate unanimously voted today to create a bipartisan committee that will recommend if Sen. Louis C. DeLuca of Woodbury should face disciplinary action for conspiring with a trash hauler to threaten his granddaughter's husband.

DeLuca, a Republican who pleaded guilty in June to conspiracy to commit a threat, was one of three senators who spoke during the brief, solemn debate. He left the chamber before the vote, barred by Senate rules from voting on a measure that directly affects him.

“The course of action that we take today is not easy, but it is necessary, and we do not embark upon it lightly,” said Senate President Donald E. Williams Jr., D-Brooklyn.

No indeed. Equal time from a leading Republican by way of Channel 8:

One of DeLuca's Republican colleagues, Senator David Capiello of Danbury, has called for his resignation for the good of the Senate.

"Frankly, I'm concerned about Senator DeLuca and his family and what he will be going through. This is not going to be a good time for anyone involved," said Capiello.

Senator Lieberman speaks before Christian Zionist organization

I'm not sure how this one got past me (especially because it was heavily blogged by the political left) but I have been mighty busy since returning from vacation...

CNN has an interesting profile of an Orthodox Jewish woman named Sondra Oster Baras who speaks to Evangelical groups to raise support for Israel - part of Christiane Amanpour's upcoming series called "God's Warriors." Noted there was Sen. Lieberman's support for Christians United for Israel. From the article:

A recent poll found that 59 percent of American evangelicals believe Israel is the fulfillment of biblical prophecy.

The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs estimates 85 million evangelicals believe God tells them to support Israel -- more than six times the world's Jewish population.

One of the most successful Jewish fundraisers, Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, raised $39 million last year from Christian Zionists to fund human services and humanitarian work in Israel and the settlements.

Christian Zionists often converge on Washington by the thousands to lobby members of Congress in support of Israel.

Sen. Joseph Lieberman, I-Connecticut, was among the speakers at last month's convention of Christians United for Israel.

"There are a lot more Christian Zionists in America than Jewish Zionists," the former Democratic vice presidential candidate told the group. "The support of Christian Zionists today is critical to Israel's security and strength and to America's security and strength."

I think this is becoming one of the key issues of the next several years. Are there many real Zionists left in American government? By that I mean are there any who are willing to publicly base their support for Israel on Zionism of any kind?

New church added to Connecticut Church Map

We've happy to announce that Huntington Chapel of Shelton has been added to the Connecticut Church Map!

Check out the map here.

More on Trinity Episcopal Church in Bristol

Thanks to the sharp-eyed anonymous reader who alerted us to the fact that the Episcopal Diocese lawsuit against Rev. Helmandollar and church vestry members was mentioned today in the Bristol Press. (Link unavailable.) Other folks are now picking it up as well:

Hartford Courant (an AP story which was also picked up by Channel 3 and some newspapers)

Channel 8

Channel 30

I'm sure we'll be hearing about this one for months to come. I'll be interested to see just how deeply the Connecticut courts want to enmesh themselves in matters of church governance. Oddly, there are actually sections of our State statutes (see Sect. 33-266) dealing with the polity of the Episcopal Church:

The manner of conducting the parish, the qualifications for membership of the parish and the manner of acquiring and terminating such membership, the number of the officers of the parish, their powers and duties and the manner of their appointment, the time of holding the annual meeting of the parish and the manner of notification thereof and the manner of calling special meetings of the parish shall be such as are provided and prescribed by the constitution, canons and regulations of said Protestant Episcopal Church in this state.

Here's my short list of questions:

• Will the State follow this statute, and is it even constitutional for Connecticut to have legislated in this manner?
• What if the Episcopal Church has severed itself from the Anglican Fellowship worldwide?
• What if Bishop Smith has acted improperly in taking this step?
• In other words, should a Connecticut Superior Court judge be deciding this or should the Episcopal or Anglican bishops?

Connecticut Episcopal Bishop reportedly sues priest, church members

In the latest chapter of this saga, the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut has reportedly brought a lawsuit against the Rev. Donald Helmandollar and ten other persons for trespass and other claims. Although I might have missed it, but I haven't seen this hit the media outlets yet. However, a PDF copy of a civil complaint brought in New Britain Superior Court has been posted on the Connecticut Six blog.

It's quite possible that the mainstream media is unaware of the suit because the suit papers have not been returned to the Court yet. Under Connecticut practice, a lawsuit papers are first served upon the defendants and only then are they filed in the Court. The lawsuit bears a return date of September 11 and would not technically be pending in the New Britain Superior Court until a couple of days after that. For this reason suit papers are sometimes served on people as a negotiating tactic in hopes the persons sued will wish to avoid going to Court altogether.

Stay tuned...

At last! Something left and right can agree on.

Holes in bridges: bad!

The best social program we ever had was the DAD

In the office of the DAD they had phones like this one

The DAD.

That's not an acronym. It's Dad. Your Pop. The Old Man. He was the best social program we ever had, back in the day when we had them - and only one, mind you, not two.

In an article entitled Urban Pathology And Distance, Don Pesci nails it:

If the root cause of urban pathologies is to be found, as some analysts have suggested, in partial family structures – single parent households abandoned by fathers, or those in which fathers never were present – then a solution to the pathologies must include a restoration of more adequate social structures.

What is the possibility that architects of social policy, including politicians and legislators, will in the future dedicate themselves to writing laws and policies that encourage the formation of traditional family structures, remembering that such legislation must include sanctions that discourage less successful forms?

To ask the question is to answer it. There are many powerful political interests arrayed against such a restoration, and politicians are not celebrated for an excess of courage in opposing powerful and politically well connected interests. Children in the cities are the victims of such timidity, not to say cowardice; and however much money is thrown their way, they will continue to be victimized by a system of sanctions and rewards that is blissfully unconcerned with families and convinced – despite clear evidence to the contrary – that it is possible for a village to raise a child in the absence of honorable, loving and working fathers.

Bingo. Read the whole thing here.

Photo by Bill Gantz. Some rights reserved.

More on Asian Christianity...

Can the Western press understand what vibrant Christianity looks like? The abduction and killing of South Korean missionaries by the Taliban has spurred many to explore the growth of the faith there.

To understand the phenomenon of Korean evangelism, he says, you need to go to where it all began. It is 4:30 on a frigid Monday morning in Seoul, but the parking lot is full and the church filled to its 9000-person capacity. In a city that also worships the work ethic, this is how tens of thousands of Koreans begin their work week. At the Onnuri church, it's a two-hour prayer service. Onnuri calls itself an evangelical Presbyterian church. It began 20 years ago and has seen massive growth.

Rev. Yongjo Ha of Onnuri Presbyterian Church explains more about mission:

When we were hopeless, the Western missionaries came, and they introduced us to the hope in Jesus Christ, so we have a very holy obligation to share this hope in Jesus Christ with those people who are still in their misery.

Read more in this week's Religion & Ethics News Weekly Report from PBS. Hat tip: Titus One Nine.

Horror of the Cheshire murders spotlights nationwide crime fears

Video courtesy of the Washington Post.

The horrors of the Cheshire murder continue to echo, with no less than the Washington Post riffing on what it all means:

The killings have stunned this state known for its staid insurance companies and old whalers in Mystic Seaport, sparking the broadest review of Connecticut's criminal justice system in modern history. But while rare in their scope and viciousness, the slayings, experts say, highlight a crime wave underway in small bedroom communities across America, where statistics are showing the biggest increase in violent criminal activity in years.

Not only was violent crime in suburban communities with populations between 25,000 and 49,999 up for the third year in a row in 2006, but it grew by 3.2 percent -- significantly faster than the nationwide increase of 1.3 percent, according to recently released FBI statistics. By comparison, during that same period, cities with more than 1 million people saw violent crime edge up by only 0.2 percent while rural areas saw a decrease of 5.3 percent. Only cities between 250,000 and 499,999 witnessed similar increases, with violent crime in those areas also surging by 3.2 percent.

It happens as fast-growing suburban regions find themselves coping with more drug-related and, in some cases, gang-related crimes that were once largely considered urban problems. Cheshire, a relatively affluent municipality of 29,000 between New Haven and Hartford, offers a micro-portrait of a town grappling with at least some of those ills.

Last month, Cheshire police recorded one of their largest drug seizures in years -- 22 bags of heroin found during a drunken-driving stop. Although smaller towns are more likely to witness broader fluctuations in crime than larger cities, this year Cheshire has had 28 burglaries, a 75 percent increase over the same period last year. Additionally, in February, the town witnessed a double murder (the perpetrator committed suicide) that brought its homicide toll for the year, including the Petit killings, to a record five, according to Cheshire police.

Read the rest here.

Abortionist repents, prays for an end to abortion in America

Dr. Patti Gibbink at the recent The Call rally in Nashville

From LifeSiteNews.com:

During "The Call" rally, former Planned Parenthood abortionist Dr. Patti Gibbink stood up and testified, confessing her sins and begging God to end abortion. She told the crowds, "Ten years ago, I did abortions for Planned Parenthood." Here she paused, overwhelmed with tears.

"Oh Lord, oh God, God most holy and just," she continued, quoting Psalm 51, "You hate hands that have shed innocent blood. God, I acknowledge my transgression. My sin is always before me. Against you, you only have I sinned and done this evil in your sight."

"God, I repent. I repent for myself and all abortionists all over. We have sacrificed innocent lives to the altars of Baal and Moloch. God, God….Forgive me Lord and other abortionists. God, hear our cry. Be merciful to us. Jesus, I plead your blood over my sins and the sins of this nation."

She then cried out amidst thousands of cheers, "God end abortion and bring revival to America. God end abortion! It's time, it's time."

Others got up and gave their testimony, including one young woman, the daughter of a pastor, who had had an abortion when she was seventeen. She said, "I feared man, my boyfriend, more than I feared the Lord." Referring to her boyfriend, she said, "He set life and death before me, and I chose death."

That's what it comes down to.

What are you reading this summer?

Lots of people start off the summer planning to read a good book or two, so let me ask - have you read everything you wanted to this summer? Only a few weeks left to finish that book everybody in church is talking about or read that big spy thriller. You know the one.

This is what's been on my summer reading shelf, although I have to confess it's mostly work-related:

Natural Church Development: A Guide to Eight Essential Qualities of Healthy Churches, by Christian Schwarz

The Volunteer Revolution: Unleashing the Power of Everybody, by Bill Hybels

The Making of a Leader, by Frank Damazio

Authority in Prayer: Praying with Power and Purpose, by Dutch Sheets

What have you been reading this summer?

Young people are leaving churches in droves. What's the answer?

Spiritual damage is harder to see than weather damage

What is the answer to the American church's inability to retain young people? LifeWay research points us the pressing problem:

Seven in 10 Protestants ages 18 to 30 — both evangelical and mainline — who went to church regularly in high school said they quit attending by age 23, according to the survey by LifeWay Research. And 34% of those said they had not returned, even sporadically, by age 30. That means about one in four Protestant young people have left the church.

"This is sobering news that the church needs to change the way it does ministry," says Ed Stetzer, director of Nashville-based LifeWay Research, which is affiliated with the publishing arm of the Southern Baptist Convention.

"It seems the teen years are like a free trial on a product. By 18, when it's their choice whether to buy in to church life, many don't feel engaged and welcome," says associate director Scott McConnell.

The statistics are based on a survey of 1,023 Protestants ages 18 to 30 who said they had attended church at least twice a month for at least one year during high school. LifeWay did the survey in April and May. Margin of error is plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Any clues as to what will hold them and, more importantly, help them continue to grow into solid disciples?

The survey found that those who stayed with or returned to church grew up with both parents committed to the church, pastors whose sermons were relevant and engaging, and church members who invested in their spiritual development.

"Too many youth groups are holding tanks with pizza. There's no life transformation taking place," Stetzer says. "People are looking for a faith that can change them and to be a part of changing the world."

Read the rest here from USA Today.

What can churches do?

Photo by "cottergarage." Some rights reserved.

Time profiles Billy Graham

Be sure to read the Time Magazine profile of the "Pastor in Chief," which explores the fascinating relationships Billy Graham has had with presidents going back to 1955.

One day [President Lyndon] Johnson took Graham on a walk around his Texas ranch, to a clearing in the trees near where his parents were buried. Johnson wanted to know if he would see them again in heaven. And then another question: Would Billy preach at his funeral? Johnson knew the world listens when a President dies. "Don't use any notes," he said, and no fancy eulogizing either. "I want you to look in those cameras and just tell 'em what Christianity is all about. Tell 'em how they can be sure they can go to heaven. I want you to preach the Gospel." And just one more thing. "Somewhere in there, you tell 'em a few things I did for this country."

Read the rest here.

Have you seen GodTube?

You've probably heard of YouTube, but have you heard of GodTube?

Here's a FoxTV interview with GodTube.com's CEO Chris Wyatt:

Updates to the Connecticut Church Map

A quick note to let you know that we've updated the Connecticut Church Map by adding an index. You can now search for churches by town, making the map much more useful for everyone. Check it out here!

Connecticut minister takes part in delegation to Iraq

From today's Bristol Press:

Back from Baghdad, missionary Kris Keating said he and others in a Christian prayer delegation spoke with the country's prime minister about religious liberty and discrimination against the Christian minority.

"It went really well," said Keating, the missionary minister at Hillside Community Church in Bristol.

Keating was one of a group of six who recently traveled to Iraq as official guests of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to discuss what Keating said is the "very real" persecution of Christians there.

"We were able to speak frankly about some substantive issues that Christians face in Iraq," said Keating, who traveled with the Rev. Patrick Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Organization in Washington and a former Bristol pastor.

Read the rest here.