If you wanted to create a religion that almost everyone would love, how would you do it? Perhaps you would change your faith to make it more appealing to a modern world that is changing at blinding speed. Perhaps you would indicate that you are willing to become more “mainstream” on hot button issues such as gay rights. Perhaps you would invite leaders of other religions from all over the planet to come visit you and make it clear that you consider all of those religions to be valid as well. And all of that “unscientific stuff” about God creating the world in six days and creating mankind out of the dust of the Earth? Well, all of that is just going to have to be thrown out. If all of this sounds vaguely familiar to you, that is because this is exactly what Pope Francis has been doing. (Read More...)
religion
Pope Francis And Shimon Peres Discuss The Establishment Of A ‘United Nations Of Religions’
Last Thursday, Pope Francis and former Israeli President Shimon Peres met for an extended 45 minute private conversation. The focus of this discussion was a proposal by Peres to establish a “United Nations of Religions”. It was the third meeting between the two men in a little more than four months. As you will see below, Pope Francis showed “his interest, attention, and encouragement” as Peres explained his proposal. Of course Pope Francis didn’t commit to anything, and we probably will not see a “United Nations of Religions” any time soon, but every idea has to start somewhere. If Pope Francis does ultimately decide to actively push for such a thing, could we eventually see a single global body that claims to represent all of the religions of the world? (Read More...)
60 Days In Prison And A $12,180 Fine For Hosting A Home Bible Study In Arizona
The war on home Bible studies and house churches is heating up again. Down in Phoenix, Arizona a man has been sentenced to 60 days in prison and has been fined $12,180 for hosting a Bible study in his home. Since 2005, Michael Salman and his wife have been hosting gatherings of about 15 or 20 people where they share food, fellowship and discuss the Bible. Unfortunately, that kind of thing is against the law in Phoenix, Arizona apparently. At one point, nearly a dozen armed police officers raided their home and “evidence” of their “crimes” was gathered. Michael Salman was found guilty of 67 “code violations”, and now he is going to be ripped away from his family and put in prison for two months. In addition, the assistant city prosecutor is asking the court to “revoke his probation and convert it into a 2 1/2 year jail sentence since he continues to hold worship gatherings on his property despite court orders.” This kind of case has the potential to have a huge “chilling effect” on home gatherings of all kinds all over the United States. (Read More...)
The Fastest Growing Religion In America Is Islam
Do you know what the fastest growing religion in America is? It isn’t Christianity. According to the latest U.S. Religion Census that was just released on May 1, 2012, the fastest growing religion in America is Islam. The data for the census was compiled by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies, and the results were released by the Association of Religion Data Archives. From the year 2000 to the year 2010, the census found that the number of Muslims living inside the United States increased by about 1 million to 2.6 million – a stunning increase of 66.7 percent. That is an astounding rate of growth. Meanwhile, most Christian denominations had rates of growth that were far below the overall rate of population growth in the United States, and some Christian denominations actually lost members. Sadly, when Barack Obama once said that “we are no longer a Christian nation” he wasn’t too far off the mark. Christianity is rapidly losing influence and other religions such as Islam are rapidly gaining members and building new places of worship. As other major religions such as Islam continue to grow in the United States, it is inevitable that this will reshape America in many different ways in the years ahead. (Read More...)
Barack Obama Apologizes For Burning Korans But Not For Burning Bibles?
It has become exceedingly clear that Barack Obama does not believe that all religions should be treated equally. In recent days Barack Obama has gone to great lengths to apologize for the “inadvertent” burning of Korans by U.S. military forces in Afghanistan. In fact, Obama has given his word that the United States will be “holding accountable those responsible” for the burning of the Korans. But when the U.S. military purposely burned Bibles in Afghanistan a few years ago, there was never any apology from Barack Obama. Christian groups all over the U.S. expressed great outrage but there was dead silence from Obama. So why the double standard? Do Muslims get an apology because they are willing to become violent over the burning of a Koran? Does Barack Obama consider a Koran to be more valuable than a Bible? Exactly what in the world is going on here? (Read More...)
Another Step Closer To A One World Religion: 50 U.S. Churches To Read From The Quran On Sunday
The three main pillars of the “New World Order” that the global elite want to bring about are a one world economy, a one world government and a one world religion. A lot of attention gets paid to the development of the first two pillars, but the third pillar gets very little attention. But the truth is that a one world religion is getting closer than ever. “Interfaith” conferences and meetings are being held with increasing frequency all over the globe. Major global religious leaders are urging all of us to focus on our “shared” religious traditions. The belief that all religions are equally valid paths to the same destination is being taught in houses of worship and at religious institutions all over the globe. This “interfaith movement” is being promoted by NGOs, “charitable foundations” and top politicians and it is being backed by big money all over the planet. (Read More...)
Christian Church Burnings Are Happening All Over The World And The U.S. Media Is Deadly Silent About It
Did you know that hundreds of church burnings have taken place all over the globe so far in 2011? For a large percentage of those of you that are reading this article, this is the first that you have heard of it. And do you want to know why? News stories about church burnings and the persecution of Christians around the world are not “politically correct” enough to get into the mainstream media most of the time. Have you ever noticed that an overwhelming percentage of news stories about Christianity in the mainstream media are negative? There seems to be an unspoken rule that you should never report on anything that would portray the Christian faith in a positive light – even if it is reporting on how churches are being mercilessly burned to the ground. Others fear that reporting on church burnings would somehow justify the endless wars in the Middle East. But the truth is that many of the regimes that the U.S. government has put in place or is propping up are actively involved in the persecution of Christians. Whatever religion you belong to, and whatever your political philosophy is, we should all be able to agree that church burnings are evil. If you cannot agree that there is something wrong with burning churches to the ground then something is wrong. (Read More...)
Does America Deserve What Is Happening In The Gulf Of Mexico?
Before you read this, please be warned that the subject matter of this article is controversial. It is going to upset a lot of people who read it. In fact, it is likely to absolutely infuriate a large number of people. Why? Well, because it asks some really hard questions. You see, most Americans prefer to see this nation as a “good” and “moral” country that God has richly blessed. And there is no denying that God did tremendously bless the United States in the past. But over the past several decades we have been relentlessly pushing God away as a society. We have indulged in an orgy of endless greed, we have made lust and sexual gratification a national pastime and we have killed over 40 million babies since abortion was legalized in 1973. Our families are fractured and our love has grown cold, and yet we continue to borrow mountains of money so that we can go buy things at the store to make ourselves feel better as we pursue “the American Dream”. The truth is that the United States is not a “good” nation anymore. In fact, we have become filled with evil and wickedness. But most Americans seem to think that there will never be any consequences for all of this evil and wickedness. In fact, most Americans seem to expect God to snap to attention whenever we decide that we need to ask Him to do something for us. Of course the rest of the time we are more than happy to totally ignore Him. As the Gulf of Mexico oil spill crisis continues to get worse, many Americans are beginning to wonder where God is in all of this. Well, is it possible that God has taken His hand of protection off of us due to all of our wickedness? Is it possible that America could actually deserve what is happening in the Gulf of Mexico right now? (Read More...)