Barnabas Fund launches e-Petition to help protect rights of Iraqi Christians
Barnabas Fund has created an e-petition to raise awareness of the huge dangers facing Iraqi Christians. This petition is open for signature by UK citizens or UK residents only. It will run until April 2007, and when closed will be forwarded directly to the British Prime Minister.

The more signatories we can get, the higher profile this issue will assume in the eyes of UK MPs. Barnabas Fund would encourage all of our UK supporters to sign this petition, and to ask their friends and colleagues to do the same.

For more information and to sign the petition, please log on to http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Iraqi-Christians

What is Barnabas Fund?
Barnabas Fund serves the suffering Church and makes their needs known to Christians around the world, encouraging them to pray. It provides practical help to strengthen and encourage the Church in many different ways. Barnabas Fund was established in 1993 and channels aid to projects run by national Christians in more than 40 countries.

The problems faced by Christian minorities in some parts of the world range from discrimination to genocide. Even in places that allow worship and evangelism, a convert to Christianity will almost always be rejected by family and community. Whilst many ancient churches are declining because of intense social pressure, new growth is suppressed by the persecution of converts. The recent spread of anti-Christian violence is reducing Christian numbers by the most savage means.

Barnabas Fund is a Christian organization and in accordance with clear Biblical teaching we believe that Christians should treat all people with love and compassion. We believe that even in the face of violence and persecution Christians should turn the other cheek and respond with love to those who persecute them. As an organization concerned with events in the Islamic world we hold that it is possible to be deeply critical of elements of the Islamic faith, which impinge on human rights and religious liberty, without hating Muslims or wishing to see violence done against them. We reject utterly any implication that our literature stirs up hatred against Muslims or any attempt by any individual or organization to use it for that purpose.

© 2007 ASSIST News Service, used with permission