Religion Today Summaries – May 29, 2008
Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.
In today's edition:
- Chinese Persecution of House Churches Intensifies
- Missionaries and Relief Organizations Address Rising Food Costs
- Church Transition Statistics Studied
- Creation Museum Prepares Anniversary Celebration
Chinese Persecution of House Churches Intensifies
ASSIST News Service and the Institute on Religion and Democracy report that the Ministry of Public Security has received funding from the Chinese Central Government to increase their campaign of eradicating house churches throughout China. While the amount of funds allocated for this campaign is unknown, the steady increase of persecution against house churches continues to rise substantially across China, says the China Aid Association (CAA). The IRD said a sudden increase of incidents involving both the Religious Affairs Bureau (RAB) and the Public Security Bureau (PSB) is indicative of a crackdown. Whether or not the government is beginning a comprehensive effort to clear out house churches, local authorities of the government’s enforcement apparatus are bearing down on Christians. In Xinjiang Province, officials have posted signs asking citizens to report any “evil cult activity,” in this case meaning house churches, and two Christians in Xinjiang have been charged with the serious crime of being “separatists.”
Missionaries and Relief Organizations Address Rising Food Costs
As food prices soar, many struggle to find – much less afford – even basic food items, the Baptist Press reports. Political strife and natural disasters in recent weeks have only compounded the problem in some countries. International Mission Board missionaries are working alongside Baptist Global Response, a Southern Baptist international relief and development organization, to help people in places like Zimbabwe, Niger, Senegal, Thailand and other countries, where bread prices have as much as tripled in recent weeks. Relief organizations are also stepping up efforts to combat food prices. Compassion International has created the Global Food Crisis Fund to help meet children's immediate physical needs around the globe. "Pray that those who are being helped ... will see God's concern for them and turn to the One who is sending them help," said Jack Kinnison, an IMB missionary to Thailand.
Church Transition Statistics Studied
OneNewsNow reports that a new survey on people changing churches shows that 69 percent of church-goers have switched their place of worship during their adult lives, but there is not a broad, overall trend favoring a particular denomination or music style. Conducted by Ellison Research, the study found that more than half of adults who changed places of worship said their new church is, theologically, about the same as their previous one. Ron Sellers, president of Ellison Research, says the number of those who changed churches varies by faith group, with evangelical Protestants being highest at 81 percent. Outside of a job-related move, the most common reasons for changing places of worship were theology and teaching at 39.39 percent, worship style at 21.84 percent, and opportunities for children at 18.56 percent.
Creation Museum Prepares Anniversary Celebration
The Creation Museum in Kentucky has attracted over 400,000 visitors since it opened in May 2007, and celebrates its one year anniversary this weekend, according to the Christian Post. "We are delighted to continue to welcome new visitors to the museum and we are excited about the future as we continue to reach new people with the creation/gospel message," said Ken Ham, president and co-founder of Answers in Genesis, the founding organization of the museum. The museum features state of the art exhibits and displays, such as animatronic dinosaurs and a huge wooden ark, all delivering a literal account of the biblical creation story as aligned with natural history. Today, the museum celebrates the anniversary with fireworks, a musical about Noah’s flood, and the opening of its brand new petting zoo.
Originally published May 29, 2008.
