Showing posts with label Canon Andrew White. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Canon Andrew White. Show all posts

Thursday, October 26, 2017

Jews Speak Up For Christians - Charles Gardner ISRAEL TODAY

Jews Speak Up For Christians

Thursday, October 26, 2017 |  Charles Gardner  ISRAEL TODAY
A relatively new phenomenon has emerged on the Middle East scene in the form of Jews standing up for persecuted Christians.
It’s a true wonder, bearing in mind the shocking history of Jewish persecution at the hands of the ‘church’ over the centuries. But it is also no doubt a warm response to the growing worldwide support for Israel among Christian people, especially in Africa.
And so, keen to build on this developing friendship, the Israeli government has just hosted an unprecedented media summit in Jerusalem for Christian journalists from around the world.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used the occasion to speak up for embattled Christians in Iran and neighbouring Syria. “Christians today have been lashed for sipping wine during prayer services,” he said, “brutally tortured for doing nothing more than practicing their faith. Some world leaders are willing to ignore this oppression and seek to appease Iran, but I am not one of them.”
Yes, even much of the Western church is silent on the issue, apparently indifferent to their suffering.
Canon Andrew White, known as the ‘Vicar of Baghdad’ and also speaking in Jerusalem, asked why, adding: “Here we see Jews standing with us, but where is the Church?”
White saw much of his large congregation murdered in the crisis that followed the invasion of Iraq, and thousands of Christians have been forced to flee in the face of the Islamic State advance.
Does this weak response to the plight of persecuted Christians reflect the flabbiness of our faith? Do we simply fail to comprehend what it must be like because we are so comfortable and thus unable to identify with what suffering for Christ means? For the most part, we are not even willing to stand up for what we believe – for the gospel and the truth of the Bible – in case we should be arrested for ‘hate speech’ or ‘homophobia’.
While some indeed have spoken out, and paid dearly for it, the rest of us have been intimidated into silence as we retreat into our holy huddles. But if we can’t stand the low heat now, how will we fare when the temperature is turned up and we are called to endure the kind of persecution Jesus predicted for his followers?
“Be on your guard,” he warned. “You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues…You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.” (Matthew 10. 17, 22) Many Christians remained silent while Jews were hauled off to the gas chambers and, although now somewhat more secure in their own state, they are still in grave danger, and we mustn’t fail them this time. And yet they are prepared to help us!
It’s time to forsake cowardice and take on the sort of courage which Christians in some parts of the world are having to exhibit in bucketloads. Take the believers in Iran, for example, to which Mr Netanyahu drew the media’s attention. Despite the danger of following Jesus there, 20 Iranian Christians recently nailed their colours to the mast in a mass baptism. “I’ve been waiting for this moment for nearly nine years,” said one convert. “This was my wish before I die,” said another. Christianity is growing there by leaps and bounds amid reports of Muslims encountering Jesus through dreams and visions. “We have been praying for years that Iranian people believe in Yeshua (Hebrew for Jesus) and get baptized. Now this dream is coming true,” said a convert whose brother was murdered for his faith in 1994.
Another highly dangerous place to be a Christian is North Korea, where believers are actually meeting in holes in the ground, just as the faith heroes of old had done according to Hebrews 11.38.
A missionary friend of mine sometimes travels to a part of Africa that is equally dangerous, infested as it is by the Al Shabaab terror organization. As a result, some Christians are forced to sleep in the forest! But my friend was determined to bring comfort to them with his inspiring teaching skills, so he made his way there despite Foreign Office warnings to avoid the region, and the fact he could not even be covered by travel insurance for that part of his journey. On top of that, he nearly died from an infection he picked up on his last visit to the area!
That takes courage, but he said it was worth it just to see the sheer joy on the faces of his brothers so happy and encouraged by his visit.
I conclude with the heartwarming story of Israeli tennis player Dudi Sela who, due to the courage of his religious convictions, turned down the chance of reaching the semi-finals of an ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Tour event. Just eight minutes into the deciding set, he realised it was almost sunset, which marked the beginning of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement (the holiest day of the year for Jews). So the 32-year-old informed the umpire of his decision to retire and left the court.
The match was originally scheduled for Yom Kippur itself (i.e. the following day), but was changed to start before the fast following pressure from Israeli tennis officials. Unfortunately for Dudi (ranked 77 in the world), his quarter-final clash went to three sets and couldn’t be finished in time.
The Day of Atonement, when Jews seek forgiveness for sins committed over the past year, is ultimately fulfilled by the coming of Yeshua, their Messiah, who atoned for our sins through his death on the cross as the perfect Lamb of God. (Isaiah 53.6; 1 John 2.2)
Pray for Dudi.
For more information on the plight of persecuted Christians and how you can help, see www.barnabasfund.org

Charles Gardner is author of Israel the Chosen, available from Amazon, and Peace in Jerusalem, available from olivepresspublisher.com
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Friday, July 7, 2017

Christian Leader Hunted by ISIS Finds Shelter in Israel - Israel Today

Christian Leader Hunted by ISIS Finds Shelter in Israel

Friday, July 07, 2017 |  Israel Today Staff
To hear some of Israel's antagonists speak one would think the Jewish state was hostile toward Christians.
Why then has a Christian leader dedicated to serving the Arab world sought shelter in Israel after having a price put on his head by ISIS?
Could it be that he, unlike Israel's detractors, knows that the Jews and their army (called by many an "occupation force") are a bulwark against the rising tide of Islam, and therefore a haven for Christians?
Canon Andrew White, dubbed the "Vicar of Baghdad," spent years serving the Christians of Iraq, even under direct threat from radical Muslim groups.
But his outspokenness regarding the atrocities faced by Iraq's Christians eventually earned White a spot at the top of ISIS's "most wanted" list, and that's when his superiors in the Church of England ordered him to get out.
"ISIS were threatening to kill me, they were after me," White said in an interview with CBN. "They wanted that priest from England. So, the Archbishop of Canterbury said, ‘You’ve got to leave now.’ I can’t argue with the Archbishop of Canterbury, especially as he used to be my colleague.  We used to work together. So, I’m in Israel now. He wanted me to get out of Baghdad."
Canon Andrew White is one of many local Messianic and Christian figures that Israel Today has interviewed in the past.
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Sunday, February 12, 2017

Time for Another Reformation - Charles Gardner ISRAEL TODAY

Time for Another Reformation

Sunday, February 12, 2017 |  Charles Gardner  ISRAEL TODAY
From reports of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting with his British counterpart Theresa May, it seems that the UK government doesn’t really believe Iran is a threat to world peace or, for that matter, that God’s chosen people are worth supporting to the hilt.
In defying a call for fresh sanctions against Iran, Mrs May indicated her continued commitment to the nuclear deal which Mr Netanyahu believes to be highly dangerous, saying: “Iran seeks to annihilate Israel, it seeks to conquer the Middle East, it threatens Europe, it threatens the West, it threatens the world.”[1]
I am reminded of the indelible link between Bible-believing Christians and comfort for Israel (Isaiah 40) – and where this is lacking, it is through ignorance.
In a year that we are celebrating the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, sparked off by Martin Luther, we should be thankful that it opened the way to an understanding of the Bible that had a hugely civilizing effect on the West, the heart of his rediscovery being that salvation in Christ comes through faith alone, not by good deeds.
Sadly, however, there was a major flaw in Luther’s understanding in that he failed to grasp that God had not forsaken the Jews despite their overall rejection of Christ. And it is widely reckoned that his anti-Semitic statements sowed the seeds of the Holocaust. Indeed, Anglican clergyman Simon Ponsonby has said that Nazism was a legacy of Luther, who had called for the urgent expulsion of Jewish people from Germany in his last sermon.[2]
But a 20th century hero named after him, Martin Luther King Jr, had a very different view which certainly does not chime with current political correctness.
“When people criticize Zionists, they mean Jews. You’re talking anti-Semitism!” Those with a different agenda try to re-write history by claiming, for example, that this quote is a hoax. But it comes through unscathed on closer examination.[3]
“Peace for Israel means security,” said King, “and we must stand with all of our might to protect its right to exist, its territorial integrity. I see Israel as one of the great outposts of democracy in the world, and a marvelous example of what can be done, how desert land can almost be transformed into an oasis of brotherhood and democracy. Peace for Israel means security and that security must be a reality.”[4]
Judging by the strong Christian content of his inaugural speech along with the make-up of his cabinet including several Bible-believing Christians as well as Jews, I am most encouraged by the new U.S. President Donald Trump.
On important matters of politics, as in society as a whole, the Bible trumps all other agendas. And we are much nearer to being on the right track in world affairs when its ethos and principles begin to dictate policy once more – as it did 100 years ago when the (mostly) evangelical Christian members of David Lloyd George’s War Cabinet understood the importance of a re-born Israel. That led to the Balfour Declaration, promising that the British Government would do all in its power to facilitate the re-creation of a Jewish state in the Holy Land.
That it happened was clearly part of God’s plan, and the Bible’s agenda, but now the world condemns Israel for stealing land from the Palestinians. Yet, in addressing Israel’s restoration, a recurring theme of the Bible, the prophet Amos writes: “I will bring my people Israel back from exile… and will plant them in their own land, never again to be uprooted…” (Amos 9.14f)
I’m told that, earlier this week, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson took the trouble to show Mr Netanyahu the very desk at which Balfour wrote and signed the declaration.
That both Balfour and Trump have come under ferocious fire is because they have challenged the fashionable so-called ‘anti-fascists’ of the anti-God brigade. Canon Andrew White – the clerical equivalent of Trump when it comes to plain-speaking – put it perfectly when he said that “the world is anti-Semitic because it is anti-God. This land (Israel) is God’s land…”[5]
Also known as the Vicar of Baghdad, the Anglican clergyman has stood up to brutal terrorists while negotiating the release of hostages and has become the voice of reconciliation amidst the hatred and bitterness of Middle East conflict.
In an interview with this month’s issue of the Israel Today magazine, he added: “The conflict exists because Israel’s opponents are fundamentally anti-Jewish. One cannot merely say that they are only opposed to Israel; after all, Israel represents the essence of Judaism. No Judaism, no Israel. No Judaism, no God!”
Speaking of his experience in Baghdad, where he built up a church of over 6,000, he said: “At first the Iraqi Christians were against Israel, as were the Muslims. I was shocked by this and decided to enlighten them…about the Jewish roots of their faith.”
And it was as a result of this that they developed a love for Israel.
Hatred of Israel is due in large part to biblical illiteracy. So it is surely time for a new reformation which sees the Word of God restored to its rightful place as the sure foundation for all who claim to be followers of Jesus.
It is revealing that among Christian denominations that have taken issue with Israel are the Presbyterians and Methodists, who are in serious decline both spiritually and numerically.
Israel also needs to restore their relationship with God, as they did in Jehoshaphat’s day. But Christians are called to help with this process by praying for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122.6) and by sharing the gospel with them both in word and deed. (Romans 1.16)

  1. Independent, February 7 2017  ↩
  2. Peace in Jerusalem (p157) olivepresspublisher.com, quoting Simon Ponsonby addressing the CMJ (Church’s Ministry among Jewish people) Conference at Swanwick, England, in 2013  ↩
  3. See The forgotten MLK: An ally of the Jews and Israel - Conservative Review January 16 2017  ↩
  4. Interview with Aviel Schneider, Israel Today, February 2017  ↩

Charles Gardner is author of Israel the Chosen, available from Amazon, and Peace in Jerusalem, available from olivepresspublisher.com
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Sunday, January 29, 2017

'The World is Anti-Israel and Anti-God' - Aviel Schneider ISRAEL TODAY

'The World is Anti-Israel and Anti-God'

Sunday, January 29, 2017 |  Aviel Schneider  ISRAEL TODAY
As the “Vicar of Baghdad,” he and his team helped provide Arab Christians and Muslims with food, medicine and education.
The full article appears in the February 2017 issue of Israel Today Magazine.
CLICK HERE to read it all
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Monday, October 19, 2015

How Obama Ushered in the New Age of Christian Martyrdom - BIN



How Obama Ushered in the New Age of Christian Martyrdom


“Do you realize what you have done?” — Vladimir Putin, President of Russia
Everywhere that U.S. leadership helped Islamic jihadis topple secular autocrats in the name of “democracy and freedom,” indigenous Christian minorities are forced either to convert to Islam or die.
Many are accepting death.
Most recently, on August 28 near Aleppo, the Islamic State (IS or ISIS) tortured, mutilated, publicly raped, beheaded and crucified 12 Christians for saying they “would never renounce Christ” for Muhammad.
The jihadis took one group in front of a large crowd. They cut off the fingertips of a 12-year-old boy, who steadfastly refused to submit to Islam. They “severely beat him, telling his father they would stop the torture only if he, the father, returned to Islam.” He refused, so they “also tortured and beat him and the two other ministry workers. The three men and the boy then met their deaths in crucifixion.”
According to a Christian leader associated with the martyrs, “They were left on their crosses for two days. No one was allowed to remove them.” A sign saying “INFIDELS” was placed next to their crosses.
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The other eight Christians, including two women, aged 29 and 33, were also ordered to renounce Christ and embrace Islam before a large crowd. When they refused,
“The Islamic extremists then publicly raped the women, who continued to pray during the ordeal, leading the ISIS militants to beat them all the more furiously.
“As the two women and the six men knelt before they were beheaded, they were all praying.
“‘Villagers said some were praying in the name of Jesus, others said some were praying the Lord’s prayer, and others said some of them lifted their heads to commend their spirits to Jesus,’ the ministry director said. “One of the women looked up and seemed to be almost smiling as she said, ‘Jesus!'”
“After they were beheaded, their bodies were hung on crosses, the ministry director said.”
The same is happening in the two other Arab nations where the U.S., under the pretext of “freedom and democracy,” overthrew the secular dictators who had long kept a lid on the jihadis: Libya and Iraq.
Late last year, Andrew White, an Anglican priest known as the “Vicar of Baghdad,” recounted the horrific atrocities against Christians in Iraq — including seeing their children chopped in half for refusing to embrace Islam:
“ISIS turned up and they said to the [Christian] children, ‘You say the words [shehada, convert to Islam], that you will follow Muhammad.’ And the children, all under 15, four of them, they said, ‘No, we love Jesus [Yesua]. We have always loved Jesus. We have always followed Jesus. Jesus has always been with us.” They [ISIS] said, ‘Say the words!’ They [children] said, ‘No, we can’t.’ [White starts sobbing] They chopped all their heads off. How do you respond to that? You just cry. They are my children. That is what we have been going through. That is what we are going through.”
Targeting Christian children in Iraq goes back to soon after the ousting of Saddam Hussein. In June 2008, a Canadian parliamentary committee heard about how “militant Muslims” were crucifying Christian children: “Since the war began in 2003, about 12 children, many as young as 10, have been kidnapped and killed, then nailed to makeshift crosses near their homes to terrify and torment their parents.”
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In one of his Facebook postings, White, who regularly posted pictures of Christian martyrs, wrote:
“The photo I was sent today was the most awful I have ever seen. A family of 8 all shot through the face lying in a pool of blood, with their Bible open on the couch. They would not convert. It cost them their life.”
White also told of how ISIS members came to a Christian man and said, “Either you convert to Islam or we kill all your children.” The father, in desperation, declared the shehada: “There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah,” thus becoming a Muslim. He then phoned White:
“Abouna, abouna [father, father] I said the words! Does that mean Jesus doesn’t love me anymore? I have always loved Jesus but I said those words because I couldn’t see my children being killed!”
“No Elias,” White said. “Jesus still loves you — he will always love you.”
There are many historic accounts of Christians slaughtered for refusing to renounce Christ for Muhammad — whether 100,000 Georgians beheaded or burned alive, or a “mere” 813 Italians decapitated, or else “converting out of fear. A report, for instance, from Medieval Egypt states:
In 1389, a great procession of Copts who had accepted Muhammad under fear of death, marched through Cairo. Repenting of their apostasy, they now wished to atone for it by…returning to Christianity. So as they marched, they announced that they believed in Christ and renounced Muhammad. They were seized and all the men were beheaded one after another in an open square before the women. But this did not terrify the women; so they, too, were all martyred (Crucified Again, pgs. 113-114).
In Libya, earlier this year, the Islamic State released a video depicting 21 Coptic Christians being decapitated in the North African nation. While holding their victims’ bodies down, Islamic State members shoved their fingers in the Christians’ eyes, craned their heads back, and sliced away at their throats with knives. As with the recent public rape, beheading, and crucifixion of the 12 Christians near Aleppo, some of the Egyptian Christians were also seen praying to Christ. One Coptic priest later described the scene:
“The name of Jesus was their last word… With that name, whispered at the very last, their martyrdom was sealed.

ISIS terrorists prepare to murder 21 Egyptian Christians in Libya, February 2015.
Over one month before the video appeared, the BBC had falsely reported that the majority of those now slaughtered Copts were “released.” Sadly, such downplaying of Muslim persecution of Christians is standard for the BBC.
When the Islamic State released another video in April of more Christians in Libya being massacred, a masked IS spokesman addressed “Christians everywhere“:
“We say to Christians everywhere, the Islamic State will expand, with Allah’s permission. And it will reach you even if you are in fortified strongholds. So whoever enters Islam will have security… But whoever refuses will see nothing from us but the edge of a spear. The men will be killed and the children will be enslaved, and their wealth will be taken as booty. This is the judgment of Allah and His Messenger.”
The next scene portrays the captive Ethiopian Christians being shot in the back of the head or having their heads carved off.
The ongoing slaughter of Christians by the Islamic State, and the destruction of churches and antiquities, must be laid at the feet of those Western nations that, intentionally or unintentionally, paved the way for the Islamic State.
As Russian President Vladimir Putin recently said before the United Nations, while addressing those nations that supported the “Arab Spring” — chief among them America:
Instead of the triumph of democracy and progress, we got violence, poverty and social disaster — and nobody cares a bit about human rights, including the right to life. I cannot help asking those who have forced that situation: Do you realize what you have done?
Whether they realize it or not, they continue to do it in Syria — with Christians often paying the highest price.[1]

Read more at https://www.breakingisraelnews.com/51015/how-obama-ushered-in-the-new-age-of-christian-martyrdom-opinion/#MePCCEVkjZVTWwFA.99