You know of or about Mennonites, right?
Mennonites — the religious sect…er…the people that distinguish themselves by __________________________.
What does go in the blank, anyway?!
Mennonite used to mean “stuff” like… Read it all
Christians
Chicken-Livered Christians
Maybe I mean noodle-spined. Or pansy-hearted. Or gutless.
On the other hand, perhaps all those adjectives are ill-fitted to the term Christian.
Whatever the case, I call to your attention the matter of risk-taking disciples of Jesus: Read it all
Does Fidel Castro Know?
“A health professional without
a specialized textbook at his fingertips
is like a Christian without
a Bible.”
Fidel Castro
a specialized textbook at his fingertips
is like a Christian without
a Bible.”
Fidel Castro
Lebanon: Christian Emigration
Middle East. Good news. Mutually exclusive words? Maybe not.
According to the Jerusalem Post, Lebanon’s ruling party issued a call to save the Christian communities of the Middle East.
Ahmad Hariri, secretary-general of the Lebanese Future Movement, said he was “extremely worried about the repercussions of the Christian emigration from some Middle East countries.” Speaking at a press conference marking the closure of the Future Movement’s founding congress in Beirut, the key political figure added that “nurturing the Christian presence [in the region] was an Arab and Islamic responsibility as much as it is a Christian one.”
Greg Mussleman with Voice of the Martyrs, Canada says, “You’ve got the moderate Muslims that don’t want the more militant ones taking over. Keeping the Christian presence there is positive for the country. They’re good citizens.”
Christians used to be the majority in the nation. However, Christians have lost their majority due to decades of emigration and the high birthrate of Muslims.
[…]
What about the church in Lebanon? Mussleman says, “It’s not strong. There’s a lot of ‘religion’ mixed in there. It’s not a strong following of Christ. They need to be a stronger witness for Christ.”
How will this announcement affect Muslims turning to Christ? Mussleman says some moderate Muslim families won’t care. “[With] the more militant aspect of families with Islamic roots, regardless of what the law is, they may still persecute and kill and do all sorts of things. But at least this is a start.”
Source: Christians protected in Lebanon?
Radar Blip: Palestinian Christians
Ed Vitagliano reports at OneNewsNow.com:
But there is another group of people whose circumstances, while increasingly precarious, are almost invisible to the world: Palestinian Christians.
A combination of threats and intimidation from Muslim extremists and the fallout from the ongoing Arab-Israeli conflict are driving many of these believers from their ancestral homes.
David Parsons, media director for the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem and contributing editor of the Jerusalem Post Christian Edition, said that the “Palestinian Christian community is dwindling fast, from about 10 percent of the population in 1948 to barely 1.5 percent today.”
[…]
Muslim journalist Khaled Abu Toameh dismisses any attempts to blame Israel above all factors. “True, Israel’s security measures in the West Bank have made living conditions more difficult for all Palestinians, Christians and Muslims alike,” he said. “But to say that these measures are the main and sole reason for the Christian exodus from the Holy Land is misleading.”
The exodus is not simply the fault of the entire Muslim community, either, Toameh said. The Arab-Israeli conflict has ruined the economy in many places throughout the Palestinian region and has heightened the dangers facing Christian families.
[…]
“Over the past few years, a number of Christian businessmen told me that they were forced to shut down their businesses because they could no longer afford to pay ‘protection’ money to local Muslim gangs,” Toameh said.
[…]
The persecution is taking its toll in some locales. “Today, Christians in Bethlehem constitute less than 15 percent of the population,” said Toameh. “Five or six decades ago, the Christians living in the birthplace of Jesus made up more than 70 percent of the population.”
Squeezed between Israel and Palestinian Muslims — especially Muslims on the more radical fringe — the difficulties endured by many of these Palestinian Christians are often completely off the radar screen of believers elsewhere.
Are You a Fishing Spot?
Or to put it another way, did you cause anyone’s flag to wave?
Still not getting my drift?
Facts are stubborn things, indeed. 😯
OK, so maybe Macon Phillips will end up resigning or being fired over that Facts Are Stubborn Things, If You Smell Something Fishy, Be An Informant post at the White House blog. Or maybe we will end up losing some of our trust in those with whom we interact, as we wonder whether they will find us fishy in some way. Or maybe freedom of press and informants will co-exist just fine
But, really, what about what we say?
How did your speech and/or email communications qualify today? Or Facebook or Twitter or MySpace or Xanga or Blogger or WordPress or other online forums?
Something fishy?
Will you and your writing/speaking make a good fishing spot?
Would you want someone to inform on you?
Look. What the White House is thinking and opining is important enough.
But what God opines and thinks is infinitely of greater importance and consequence.
“In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise” (Proverbs 10:19).
“He that keepeth his mouth keepeth his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction” (Proverbs 13:3).
“Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles” (Proverbs 21:23).
“But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned” (Matthew 12:36,37).
“I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me” (Psalm 39:1).
“Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer” (Psalm 19:14).
Oh, you’re wondering why I would file this under Endangered Christians? Hmmm. If this fishing expedition sticks, do you really think it will be remain under its publicly posted limitations?
Now chew on that one, will ya?
After all, facts are stubborn things!