Zprávy HCJB 25.1.2008

 70letá žena v Bangaladéši popálena, aby se nestihla svůj křest
   7. ledna se neznámí útočníci se pokusili upálit 70letou ženu, jelikož se dozvěděli, že tento měsíc má být pokřtěna. Rahima Beoa plánovala na 13. února svůj křest na znamení přijetí křesťanství. Žije v převážně muslimské čtvrti města Rangpur 154 mil severozápadně od hlavního města Bangladéše Dhaky. Při útoku utrpěla popáleniny na 70 procentech povrchu těla. „Neznámí lidé chtěli zaživa upálit starší ženu, protože vešlo ve známost, že se příští měsíc chce nechat pokřtít,“ řekl Khaled Mintu, oblastní dozorce bangladéšské evangelijní denominace Isha-E-Jamat. ve čtvrti Rangpur. „Šlo o ďábelské spiknutí, které mělo zabránit, aby se stala křesťankou.“ K útoku došlo, když ostatní členové rodiny byli na večerních bohoslužbách. Beoa a její 9letý vnuk doma spali a útočníci dřevěný dům zapálili. Chlapec unikl z plamenů nezraněn zatímco babička byla popálena, dvě krávy uhořely a dům lehl popelem. Zdroj: Compass Direct News, Religion Today
 
 Vyzvánějící řecký kněz dostal podmínku
   Řecký pravoslavný kněz dostal podmínečný trest 70 dnů vězení na základě stížností okolních obyvatel, že příliš často a příliš silně zvoní na kostelní zvon. Obyvatelé čtvrti podali na tohoto kněze Chrámu Uchvácení na hoře Pelion ve středním Řecku žalobu. Soudní znalec pak zjistil, že zvuk zvonů převyšuje intenzitu povolenou řeckými zákony. K podobným soudním sporům již v Řecku došlo, protože mnoho kostelů je v lidnatých oblastech, ale trest vězení, i když podmíněný, je zde bezprecedentní. Řecký obhájce lidských práv řekl, že jde o vážný problém, a že „hladina hluku a s ním spojeného snížení kvality života ohrožuje zdraví obyvatel.“ Zdroj: Council for World Missions

*HCJB Global Voice se svými spolupracovníky z Helénského mezinárodního misijního svazu pracují na zprovoznění rozhlasového studia v Aténách.
 
 Všechny zprávy v angličtině
   SMALL RELIGIOUS GROUPS FIND NICHE IN ATHEISTIC CZECH REPUBLIC

Sources: WorldWide Religious News, The Prague Post
Despite the Czech Republic’s atheist reputation, experts say a trend toward small religious organizations -- as opposed to powerful institutions such as Catholicism -- has intensified in the past decade.

“Probably as a consequence of Czech history, most are extremely suspicious of social institutions, especially religious ones,” said Zdeněk Vojtíšek, professor of religious studies at Charles University. “Small, new and alternative religious groups seem to possess better resources to overcome this common dislike.”

According to Christian Associates International team leader Craig Springer, his organization has received an enthusiastic response from members of the public, many of whom are eager to explore the Bible from a spiritual, practical and literary standpoint. Springer helped found the Prague congregation, with current membership around 50, in December 2006.

Springer says the individualistic approach is considerably more akin to post-modern culture and spiritual mentality in the Czech Republic. “I think that’s why these network-based movements are really finding their place here,” he said.

Vojtíšek also sees the value in a small-scale format. “These minority groups can enjoy some advantages over older and bigger religious institutions. They are not burdened by their history,” he added. “They can be perceived as attractive alternatives to what can be seen as old and worn out and they are better equipped to provide close, warm relationships.”

*Czech programs recorded by HCJB Global Voice producers in the Czech Republic and the U.S. air on local stations in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Programs also air on a Trans World Radio’s 24-hour satellite service, Radio 7, and on the Internet (www.radio7.cz). In addition, the staff publishes a magazine that is available in both Czech and Slovak.

MAJOR BOMB BLAST IN BEIRUT KILLS 10 IN CHRISTIAN AREA

Source: BosNewsLife
A major bomb blast rocked a Christian area of the Lebanese capital Beirut today (Friday, Jan. 25), killing up to 10 people and injuring many others. The blast reportedly targeted a car used by a senior police official on a street in Hazmieh on the Christian eastern edge of the capital. Television footage showed black smoke and flames rising from the street. A body sat slumped in a delivery truck that was caught up in the explosion, eyewitnesses said. Thick black smoke curled into the sky as ambulances rushed to the scene, an area of office buildings and parking lots on a highway leading out of Beirut. Cars in one parking lot were set ablaze and badly damaged by the force of the blast. Christian areas in Lebanon have been hit by several bomb blasts and attacks in recent months and years, several of them blamed on Syria, which has denied responsibility for the violence. Friday’s blast came 10 days after a car bomb damaged an American diplomatic car in the Lebanese capital, killing three people and wounding 16. It was not yet clear who was responsible for the latest attack. Observers say Lebanon’s stability has been undermined by growing tensions between Muslims and Christians.

70-YEAR-OLD BANGLADESH WOMAN SET ON FIRE TO STOP HER BAPTISM

Sources: Compass Direct News, Religion Today
Unknown attackers tried to burn a 70-year-old woman to death on Monday, Jan. 7, after learning that she would be baptized as a Christian this month. Rahima Beoa, who was planning to be baptized on Sunday, Feb. 13, in the Muslim-majority Rangpur district, 154 miles northwest of the capital city of Dhaka, Bangladesh, suffered burns to 70 percent of her body. “The unknown people wanted to burn alive the elderly woman because they came to know that she would be [baptized as a] Christian in the next month,” said Khaled Mintu, a regional supervisor of the Rangpur district of the Isha-E-Jamat Bangladesh denomination. “It was a devilish conspiracy to stop her from being a Christian.” The attack came while Beoa’s family members were at an evening church service. While Beoa and her 9-year-old grandson were sleeping, the attackers set their bamboo and wood home ablaze. The boy escaped the flames unharmed, but two cows and the house were incinerated.

REPORT: U.S. ABORTIONS AT LOWEST RATE IN 30 YEARS

Sources: Baptist Press, Evangelical News
The number of abortions in the U.S. has reached its lowest level in three decades, according to a report released on Jan. 17. The study found there were 1.21 million abortions in 2005, down from 1.31 million in 2000 and the smallest annual total since 1.18 million were performed in 1976, according to the Guttmacher Institute. The 2005 total was nearly 25 percent less than the 1990 figure of 1.6 million abortions, the annual record since the Supreme Court legalized abortion nationwide in its 1973 Roe vs. Wade opinion. Southern Baptist pro-life leader Richard Land expressed thankfulness for the reduction in abortions but was not celebratory. “Perhaps we can offer one cheer and a prayer of gratitude to God that the tide is turning,” said Land, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. “It would be unseemly to do more than that until we see a far more drastic reduction in abortions in the U.S. We’ll reserve three cheers for when we have succeeded in making most abortions illegal. Sadly, America is still one of the most abortive societies in the world.”

BELL-RINGING GREEK PRIEST GETS SUSPENDED PRISON SENTENCE

Source: Council for World Missions
A Greek Orthodox priest was given a suspended 70-day sentence after residents complained he rang his church bell too loudly and too often. Residents of a nearby resort town filed a lawsuit against the priest of the Assumption Church on Mount Pelion in Central Greece. Court-appointed specialists found the volume exceeded the maximum permissible level set out by Greek law. Several similar trials have taken place in the country, as many churches are situated in densely populated areas, but the prison term, although suspended, was unprecedented. The Greek human rights commissioner said the problem is serious and “leads to noise pollution and reduced quality of life, and threatens citizens’ health.”

* HCJB Global Voice has worked in partnership with Hellenic Mission Union International to establish a radio studio in Athens, Greece.

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