Franklin Graham held his first evangelistic festival event at the maximum-security Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, La., last weekend. Graham’s message outlined spiritual freedom through Christ to the 3,321 inmates, resulting in 156 people committing their lives to Christ. Graham took time to personally visit Death Row inmates who were unable to attend the larger Festival. Additionally, Graham committed $200,000 from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association to complete the chapel building in the final camp on the grounds of Angola. Burl Cain, the prison’s warden who invited Graham, said the facility has been transformed from one of the worst prisons in America to a model penitentiary by incorporating faith-based programs to “give these men purpose and hope, even behind bars.” (Assist News Service)

UPDATE: GAZA BOOKSHOP REOPENS 5 WEEKS AFTER BOMB THREATS

The Palestinian Bible Society bookshop in Gaza reopened on Monday, April 3, after a five-week closure in response to unknown militants’ threats to bomb the building, reported Hanna Massad, pastor of Gaza Baptist Church. Massad, whose wife, Suhad, is the Bible Society bookshop’s director, said that the store reopened with permission from the Gaza Interior Ministry despite objections from the building’s owner.

“Today was a very special day for us after we faced the pressure and the power of the kingdom of darkness face to face, especially in the last four days,” Massad wrote in an e-mail to prayer partners. “We experienced the power of answering prayer. Thank you for praying with us and for us.”

The reopening comes after an initial false report in late March that Gaza authorities had captured a small group responsible for the threats. “It wasn’t true, so the threat is still on,” Massad wrote. “We don’t know who is behind it.” On Friday, Feb. 3, unidentified militants exploded two small pipe bombs in front of the bookshop, destroying its steel and glass doors.

A note left by the militants threatened to kill the landlord and others living in the building unless the Bible Society vacated by Feb. 28. The militants also warned the society not to continue ministry elsewhere. (Open Doors)

ALGERIA BANS CONVERSION OF MUSLIMS TO ANOTHER RELIGION

In an attempt to keep the practice of religion and politics separate, the North African country of Algeria passed new laws forbidding non-Muslims from seeking to convert Muslims to another religion. Mohamed Aissa, director of the ministry of religious affairs, said the March 20 legislation was prompted by the activities of Christian evangelical sects, particularly in the restive ethnic Berber Kabylie region. Algeria, reeling from more than 10 years of Islamist violence, is seeking to be “immunized against the use of religion, all religions, in Algeria as political tools to destabilize the country,” said Aissa. Before this law passed there was no legal barrier to religious conversion in this country of 33 million people, almost exclusively Muslim. According to officials, less than 5,000 Christians, including expatriates, live in Algeria. (WorldWide Religious News)

UNIDENTIFIED ATTACKERS ATTEMPT TO BURN DOWN CHURCH IN PAKISTAN

On the evening of Thursday, March 30, unidentified attackers attempted to burn down a church in Mian Channu, a town approximately 60 miles east of Multan, Pakistan. Local residents quickly extinguished the fire that destroyed some of the church’s furnishings. Although there were no injuries, Pastor Nathaniel Barkat is asking for police protection for local Christians who were shaken up by the attack. Local authorities believe the motive may have been an attempt by militant Muslims to stir up conflicts between Christians and Muslims in the community. (Voice of the Martyrs)

* HCJB World Radio sent two medical teams from Ecuador to Pakistan following the Oct. 8, 2005, earthquake that left tens of thousands dead and thousands more injured and homeless. Staff members helped SIM International with relief efforts.

SURVEY: CHURCH ATTENDANCE HELPS LOWER CHOLESTEROL, EXTEND LIFE

Church attendance can add up to three years to a person’s life according to research done by University of Pittsburgh Medical Center physician Dr. Daniel Hall. Hall, who is also an ordained Episcopal priest, drew his conclusions from analyzing age-specific, actuarial death rates derived from census statistics. His study compared the effectiveness of regular church attendance, cholesterol-lowering drugs and regular exercise. He found all three to have health benefits and wrote, “The real-world, practical significance of weekly religious attendance is of similar magnitude as these other widely recommended therapies of health behavior.” His study, published April 3 in the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine, also mentioned that church attendance is more cost effective than cholesterol drugs but not as inexpensive as exercise. (WorldWide Religious News/Washington Times)

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