Exloring Life Eternal

JORDAN-BASED MINISTRY DISTRIBUTES AID, BIBLES IN MIDDLE EAST
Manara Ministries, an evangelical relief and development agency based in Amman, Jordan, recently visited the two largest churches in Damascus, Syria,that are hosting Iraqi refugees. “Along with providing 2,000 Bibles, we were able to distribute some food parcels for needy widows in the area,” reports President Issam Ghattas. “We praise the Lord for obtaining government permission to ship 50,000 [Bible storybooks] for children into Syria.” Manara continues to operate Christian bookstores in Amman, Jordan, and Baghdad, Iraq, although book shipments from main suppliers in Cairo, Egypt, are sometimes blocked due to security problems. Manara, along with a local church, has organized the first widows’ conference in Iraq. [ASSIST 25 Oct.’05]

QATAR’S FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH IN 1,400 YEARS
The reform-minded emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, has
donated land on the outskirts of Doha for the construction of the first
Christian church in that country since the 7th century. The $7 million
Church of the Epiphany, which will open in 2006, will not have a spire or free-standing cross. Christianity was unknown in most Gulf Arab states within a few centuries of the arrival of Islam, but many Christians have migrated to the region since the discovery of oil. Qatar’s Anglican community is roughly 7,000 and 10,000 people. [CSM 10 Nov.’05]

SAT-7 LAUNCHES “2006 YEAR OF THE FAMILY” CAMPAIGN
Serving as the premier Arabic Christian satellite TV channel for millions of people in the Middle East and North Africa, SAT-7 announced today the launch of a new family initiative called the 2006 Year of the Family campaign to give the Christian message through the basic block of a family unit. Beginning next year, SAT-7 will be airing special television programs with the theme "Together we can shape the future!" Launched in 1996, SAT-7 developed satellite broadcasts for Christians of the Middle East and North Africa. Though it started airing only 2 hours of Arabic Christian TV per week, today the channel broadcasts 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, bringing the message of Christ into millions of homes. [CHRISTIAN POST 10 Nov.’05]

MUSLIMS IN EUROPE
More than 53 million Muslims are currently living in Europe; 14 million of
them reside in the European Union (EU), according to the Central
Institute-Islam Archives in Soest, Germany. Among the 25 EU states France
has the highest number of Muslims – 5.5 million – followed by Germany (3.2
million), the United Kingdom (1.5 million) and Italy (1 million). Taking
into account the whole continent, Russia has 25 million Muslims and the
European part of Turkey 5.9 million. The Muslim population in Germany is
mostly made up of Turkish migrants, but the number of Muslims holding a
German passport has risen to almost one million. Muslim worship in Germany is on the rise. One in five Muslim adolescents worships regularly. The number of converts to Islam has reached a new high in Germany. According to the institute more than 1,100 persons changed their religion to Islam between 2004 and 2005. Approximately 60% of converts were women, most of them converting because they married a Muslim. But the reverse is also true: more and more Muslims in Germany become Christians. Most of them are Iranians in exile. The Islam-Institute believes that altogether more than 100,000 Iranian Shiites have converted to the Christian faith since the Islamic revolution. Most of them live in the United States. [IDEA Nov.’05]

RESOURCES
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“Global Missiology” is a free quarterly e-journal with original research and contributions from researchers, practitioners and scholars of international representation with global perspectives. http://www.globalmissiology.org
Email: editor@globalmissiology.org

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SAT-7 REACHING MILLIONS
Surveys conducted in 8 Arab nations conservatively find that SAT-7, a Middle Eastern Christian satellite television broadcast, has 5-6 million regular or occasional viewers in the Arab world, AND 2-3 million devoted weekly viewers. Each month the team receives over 1,000 letters, emails and phone calls from viewers. SAT-7will soon be available to Arabic and Farsi speaking audiences in Australia and New Zealand. According to the 2001 census, over 210,000 Arabs have moved to Australia in recent years. Other sources say the actual number of Arabic speakers may be as high as one million. 50,000 Farsi speakers are also believed to live there. SAT-7 is also experimenting with live broadcast streaming on its websites www.sat7.com (Arabic) and www.sat7.org (English). [SAT-7 NEWS]

JERUSALEM'S "GAY PRIDE" FESTIVAL SPARKS OPPOSITION
A dozen top Christian, Jewish and Muslim leaders are uniting against what one New York Rabbi has called "a spiritual rape" of the Holy Land -- a homosexual pride festival expected to draw thousands from around the world this August. The leaders have drafted a joint statement urging the Israeli government to stop the festival. "Such an event would constitute a severe affront to the hearts and souls of adherents of all religions," they said in a Jerusalem Post report. The alliance called on the Israeli government to prohibit plans for an immodest street march. The event is being organized by the International Association of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Coordinators. [BAPTIST PRESS/CHARISMA 7 April '05]

ONLY ISLAM REPRESENTED AT EXPO 2005
Religion gets little attention at this year's world exposition, Expo 2005, in Japan. The only exception will be Saudi Arabia's presentation of Islam, in its pavilion. The Christian faith is absent as are other religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism. The German weekly magazine, Die Zeit, commented, "Religion, the major controversial issue of our times, is being ignored in Nagoya." By contrast, religion was prominently featured at Expo 2000 in Hanover, Germany, where Protestant and Roman Catholic churches presented the "Christ Pavilion." Evangelicals also operated a "Pavilion of Hope" as an evangelistic project. Expo 2005 (March 25 to Sept. 25) will be viewed by approximately 15 million spectators and represents 120 countries. [CMDNet 23 April '05]

TAKING THE GOSPEL TO JORDAN'S OUTCASTS
The 3 million Gypsies who live in Arab countries are considered "outcasts of the outcasts" and get little exposure to the gospel. In Jordan they are excluded from public medical benefits and education, perpetuating the cycle of poverty. National workers have begun providing medical care and distributing pairs of goats to poor Gypsy families, giving them a reliable means of income. This has opened opportunities to share spiritually and some Gypsies are coming to the Lord. Workers are now developing a Bible translation in their native Domari language since none yet exists. [CHRISTIAN AID 18 April '05]

A NEW "PEACE" PLAN TO MOBILIZE FOR MISSIONS
Rick Warren's book "The Purpose Driven Life" has sold 22 million copies, a world record for a nonfiction hardcover book. Warren and his wife have since founded three Trusts that channel 90% of the income from the books to world mission, including AIDS help in developing nations. Now Warren is launching a movement to mobilize a billion Christians for global missions, using small groups. Letter of the "PEACE" plan stand for: Planting churches, Equipping leaders, Assisting the poor, Caring for the sick, and Educating the next generation. [FRIDAYFAX 29 April '05]