Crown of Life Blog

Naghmeh Asks for Help in High Places

9/27/2015

Wife of American Imprisoned in Iran Seeks Pope Francis' Help
by Benjamin Siegel
ABC News

The wife of an American pastor imprisoned in Iran is hoping Pope Francis can help secure her husband’s release.

Naghmeh Abedini, married to pastor Saeed Abedini, who has been imprisoned in Iran for three years, says the leader of the Catholic church would be a strong advocate for the release of her husband and the two other Americans being held in Iran.

“He would be a crucial voice in getting Saeed out of prison,” she said. “They respect the pope, as a theocracy.”

Abedini has lobbied the Vatican for help releasing her husband, and will attend the pope's address to Congress Thursday as the guest of Rep. Robert Pittenger, R-North Carolina, who has helped advocate for her husband's freedom in Congress.

Saeed Abedini, along with Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian and former Marine Amir Hekmati are being held in Iranian prisons on what the United States considers trumped-up charges. A fourth American, retired FBI agent Robert Levinson, was kidnapped in Iran in 2007 and is thought to be held in the country.

Naghmeh Abedini's call for the pope’s assistance follows a report from Politico that the United States has asked the Vatican for help freeing Abedini and the other Americans held in Iran.

White House spokesperson Josh Earnest said Wednesday the administration has "pursued a variety of avenues" to free the Americans held in Iran, adding that the ongoing efforts "are more effective when we don't talk about them publicly."

"The pope is clearly someone with significant moral influence even with those who are not Catholic," he continued...

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Pastor Abedini Suffers

9/27/2015

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Pastor Saeed Abedini Abused, Threatened with New Charges as Third Anniversary Approaches in Prison in Iran
American Pastor Saeed Abedini was severely abused, repeatedly tasered, and threatened with new charges by Iranian intelligence officers, days before Iranian President Rouhani leaves for U.N. meeting in New York

09/24/2015
Washington D.C.
International Christian Concern

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that American Pastor Saeed Abedini has been severely abused by Iranian intelligence officers during interrogation at the Rajaei Shar Prison in Karaj, Iran. Saeed was also threatened with new charges that would extend his imprisonment beyond the eight years he currently faces. September 26, 2015 marks the third anniversary of his imprisonment in Iran.

During a family visitation on Wednesday, Saeed was able to relay to his family still in Iran some of the details of what he suffered the day before. Intelligence officers repeatedly used a taser stun gun on Saeed. They also threatened to add new criminal charges to his case, accusing him of political statements actions against the government of Iran. “Pastor Saeed denied all of these allegations, and once again asserted that he is apolitical and that he has never threatened the security of, made any statements against, or taken any action against the Government of Iran,” said the American Center for Law and Justice, which represents the Abedini family.

This development came just days after 67 Members of Parliaments from nearly 50 countries signed a letter to Mr. Ali Larijani, the Speaker of the Iranian parliament, specifically calling for the release of Saeed as well as other Christians and religious minorities held in Iran. The letter was part of Summit organized by the the International Panel of Parliamentarians for Freedom of Religion or Belief in New York before the start of the United Nations 70 th General Assembly.

Today, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani also heads to New York and will address the U.N. General Assembly on Monday, September 28. It will be his first trip to the United States since Iran signed a Nuclear Deal with the United States and other world leaders. While he has made good on his promises to his people regarding the nuclear negotiations, he has been “abject failure in delivering on his pledges to defend basic civil rights and liberties in Iran,” said the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran (ICHRI) pointed out. “Rouhani hides behind an ‘independent’ Judiciary but he is still head of state. It is indefensible that Rouhani has been silent and inconsequential on basic human rights,” said Hadi Ghaemi, executive director of ICHRI.

Pastor Saeed and the other religious minorities imprisoned in Iran are emblematic of the lack of these basic human rights. As of the beginning of 2015, Saeed was one of more than 90 Christians who were either currently in prison or awaiting trial for charges related to their faith, according to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.

These latest developments have added to the incredible hardships his family has endured over the past three years. “It was a heartbreaking visit,” Naghmeh Abedini told ICC. “The attacks are great, but God's grace is carrying Saeed,” she continued.

On September 26 and 27 th , hundreds of prayer vigils across the United States and more than 30 countries will mark the third anniversary of Saeed’s imprisonment and once again appeal for his release.

Todd Daniels, Regional Manager for the Middle East said, “Iran continues to violate the most basic rights of their citizens and of an American citizen Saeed Abedini. Now they have once again added physical injury by this torturous treatment in addition to the continued violation of rights. We urge the government of Iran to release Saeed who has not committed any crimes and is in prison simply for having met with others who share his faith. As Iran’s President Rouhani comes to the United Nations we urge all world leaders to press him on how he can claim to stand for values of human dignity and yet allow the abuse of people simply for what they believe.”

For interviews, contact Olivia Miller, Press Manager: [email protected]

You are free to disseminate this news story. We request that you reference ICC (International Christian Concern) and include our web address, www.persecution.org. ICC is a WashingtonDC based human rights organization that exists to help persecuted Christians worldwide. ICC provides Awareness, Advocacy, and Assistance to the worldwide persecuted Church. For additional information or for an interview, contact ICC at 8004225441.

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Christians under Attack in Alexandria

9/27/2015

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International Christian Concern
2020 Pennsylvania Ave. NW #241
Washington, D.C. 20006

www.persecution.org | E-mail: [email protected]
Media Contact: Olivia Miller, Communications Coordinator [email protected]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Coptic Christians Hospitalized, Homes Attacked, Families Flee Village After Attack Over Land Dispute

09/23/2015
Washington, D.C.
International Christian Concern

International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that the Christians of El Oula village, El Amerya district, Alexandria have been under attack since Sunday. At least two Christians have been hospitalized in critical condition after suffering serious injuries, and four homes have been attacked.

On Sunday, September 20, police from El Amerya attempted to execute the court order to return land owned by the Makanouti family that had been seized by another family in the village, Mousa Zarif, a nephew of the owner of the land told ICC.

When police approached the land in question, a group of armed men confronted the police and opened fire. At least one of the assailants was fatally wounded by the security forces, but they drove the security forces away.

"After the security forces left the area, they attacked our homes but our moderate Muslim neighbours intervened and protected us from them," Zarif said.

Father Boktor Nashed, priest of the Mar Girgis church in El Amerya district, told ICC, "After the security forces left, a large crowd surrounded [the] church and hurled stones at it. They then attacked four homes owned by Christians; they attacked a Christian man named Demian Maher resulting in the breaking of his spine. " Fr. Boktor continued.

The story goes back to 2013 when the El Houty took over land belonging to a wealthy Christian named Hamdy Makanouti. He first tried to regain the land through a mediator between him and the El Houty family. This course of action failed, so he pursued the case through formal channels. The court then determined that the possession of the land belonged to him as the rightful owner of the land.

The police first tried to execute the court order in 2014 but were unable to because of the violent resistance they got from El Houty family at the time. "The El Houty family used the microphones in the local mosque and in nearby villages to call out for the Muslims from everywhere around the village saying that the police have come to take their lands and give it to the Christians," Zarif told ICC.

In addition to the spinal injury suffered by Mr. Maher, a Christian woman named Therese Hanna has suffered a serious head injury that placed her in the hospital.

Father Boktor told ICC, "Many families have left the village fearing for their safety in this volatile situation; there is a strong feeling of terror and fear among the Christian families here."

Todd Daniels, Regional Manager for the Middle East said, "This latest incident of violence highlights once again the vulnerable situation that many Christians in Egypt face. It has now been nearly two years since the courts determined that the land should be returned and still this family faces violence as they attempt to regain their land. Egypt should act to protect the basic rights of all of its citizens. We urge the local security forces to act swiftly to bring security and to ensure that those guilty of these attacks are brought to justice."

For interviews, contact Olivia Miller, Communications Coordinator: [email protected]

# # #

You are free to disseminate this news story. We request that you reference International Christian Concern (ICC) and include our web address, www.persecution.org. ICC is a Washington D.C.-based human rights organization that exists to help persecuted Christians worldwide. ICC provides Awareness, Advocacy, and Assistance to the worldwide persecuted Church. For additional information or for an interview, contact ICC at 800-422-5441.

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Senate Democrats Block Life-Saving Vote

9/27/2015

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Democrats Defeat Pro-Life Senate Bill...
by Steven Ertelt
Life News

Senate Democrats today blocked a vote on a pro-life Senate bill to ban late-term abortions — a bill that would save as many as 18,000 unborn babies form abortions each and every year.

The Senate voted today to stop the Democrats’ filibuster of the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, legislation that would ban abortions after 20 weeks — as neither Congress nor state legislatures can vote to ban all abortions under Roe v. Wade. The bill highlights how unborn babies feel intense pain when they are killed in abortions. The vote comes at a time when 10 expose’ videos have exposed the Planned Parenthood abrogation business selling aborted babies and their body parts.

“What I am asking every colleague is this: look in your hearts and help us stand up for the most innocent life,” said Senate Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in advance of the vote.

But Democrats defeated the cloture vote 54-42, with pro-life Senate Republicans not getting the 60 votes needed to end debate and proceed to a vote on the pro-life bill itself. Three Democrats joined with Republicans to support the pro-life bill, including Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Joe Donnelly of Indiana. Two pro-abortion republican, Susan Collins of Maine and Mark Kirk of Illinois — voted with Democrats to support late-term abortions. (SCROLL TO BOTTOM to see how all Senators voted).

Had the Senate approved the bill, President Barack Obama has issued a veto threat. But pro-life groups hope to use the measure as an election tool in 2016 in an attempt to wrest control of the White House and approve a pro-life president who will sign it into law.

Senator Dan Coat, a pro-life Republican from Indiana, was one of the many pro-life lawmakers speaking for the bill during the debate leading up to the vote.

“Advances in science and medical technology require us to confront, both now and in the future, some ethical questions that are profoundly important,” said Coats. “This week, the United States Senate will have the opportunity to do so. We have the opportunity to protect the unborn children in this country whose lives are being ended – in many cases brutally – at an age at which these children are capable of experiencing pain...”

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Beginning to Respond

9/22/2015

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Syrian Refugee Resettlement in the US
by Ruth Kramer
Mission Network News

Photo Courtesy Church World Service

On the heels of failing food programs, squalid refugee camps, disease, and the migration of millions of war refugees around the world, the United Nations has launched an ambitious 15-year plan...

...You might be wondering how this can be done with the world’s largest ongoing humanitarian refugee crisis underway, or how to measure success. Admittedly, these are questions for which no one has an answer other than to point out: “What choice do we have?”

It’s important to note that since the crisis burst onto the world’s consciousness, more and more people are beginning to respond. Bethany Christian Services says some of those refugees have been brought to Michigan. Kristine Van Noord, the Program Manager for Refugee Adult and Family Services, says, ”Michigan, so far, has resettled 162 Syrian refugees. There are some of those refugees that have family members in the Detroit area. So that’s one reason [they’re coming to Michigan]. The other reason is that here in Grand Rapids, for example, the local community has really said, ‘We want to resettle Syrian refugees.’”

In fact, adds Van Noord, “Here in Grand Rapids, there is a Syrian–American community that really wants to get involved in helping the Syrian refugees, and then a large Christian community that wants to help, as well.” There are other reasons Syrian refugees are coming to Michigan. Some have family in the Detroit area, which is home to a large Arabic community. Michigan isn’t alone in responding, says Van Noord. “So far, in the United States, the largest states resettling refugees have been Texas, Michigan, California, Illinois, and Arizona.”

However, it’s a drop in the bucket, compared to the need. Right now there are over 4 million Syrian refugees and 8 million displaced within Syria. Yet, the U.S. has welcomed less than 1500 this year. Van Noord acknowledges that “the U.S. has committed to taking up to 10,000 refugees, and it’s just not enough out of 4 million.” By comparison, “Germany is taking 835,000. We’re asking the U.S. government to do more. There is a petition...” Click here for that petition.

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Ambushed in Uganda

9/22/2015

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College Student in Uganda Whose Family Left Islam Is Beaten, Raped
Assailants spoke of killing her, 19-year-old says.

September 18, 2015
By Our East Africa Correspondent
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NAIROBI, Kenya
Morning Star News

Three men eat and raped a 19-year-old Catholic woman in Uganda last week, sources said.

The student at St. Mary’s Teachers College in Bukedea, in the district of the same name about 50 miles from Mbale in Eastern Uganda, said she was returning from class on Sept. 9 when she was ambushed by three masked men who indicated they knew that her parents had left Islam.

“I tried to scream, but one blocked my mouth and another slapped me as they forcefully dragged me off the footpath,” said the woman, whose name is withheld. “I heard one of them telling the others that I should be killed because my parents deserted Islam. But another said, ‘But we are not sure whether this girl is a Christian.’”

Instead of killing her, they raped and beat her so severely that she is still receiving hospital treatment for her injuries, sources said.

“Her father called me over the phone and informed me what had happened to his daughter,” a Christian leader said. “I then met him at their home and prayed with the family, as the daughter is still in the hospital.”

The men attacked her seven miles outside of Mbale on Kumi Road and dragged her about 100 meters off the footpath, she said. After beating her until she was unconscious, they left her to die near a swamp.

Area resident James Kalanga found her early the next morning, Sept. 10.

“Just before connecting to the paved road, I saw a piece of school uniform on top of the trees,” Kalanga said. “I was a bit suspicious, then I saw some marks of human footprints and moved closer. Then I heard the sound of a person from the bush. I got scared and returned back, but good enough I met two men who were traveling on the same route and told them what I had seen.”

The three men went back into the wilderness and found her half-naked and groaning in pain, still unable to speak, he said.

Nearby they found her school backpack; they opened it and discovered her name and school, he said. They took her to a medical clinic and reported the matter to the school.

The school informed her parents, who went to the clinic and then took her to a hospital for treatment.

The family left Islam five years ago and joined Bulefe Catholic Church.

Threat to Take Children

In an undisclosed village in Budaka District, also in eastern Uganda, a 36-year-old mother of eight requested prayer after area Muslims forced her to return to Islam, she said.

Madina (full name withheld) said she maintained her faith in Christ in spite of her husband leaving her 10 years ago because she became a Christian, but that she returned to Islam this month after her former in-laws threatened her.

“The relatives of my husband threatened to kill me and take away the children if I refused to go back to Islam,” she said. “They said, ‘We are not going to lose our children to Christianity. We better kill you and get back the children.’”

Madina told Morning Star News she is spiritually troubled from returning to Islam, and she asked for prayer that God would supernaturally restore her to Christ.

“The family of my husband had cut all ties with me when they discovered that I joined Christianity, but this was not much of a problem to me as compared with the death threats that they have issued,” she said.

A Muslim relative had allowed her family to stay with them after her husband divorced her, and the relative had also provided medicine and funds for her children’s education, “but now he has joined the rest of the family members in issuing death threats to us,” she said. “I have nowhere to go with my children, so I have decided to return to Islam to save the children and myself. I know Issa [Jesus] will remember me one day.”

If you would like to help persecuted Christians, visit http://morningstarnews.org/resources/aid-agencies/ for a list of organizations that that can orient you on how to get involved.

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© 2015 Morning Star News. Articles/photos may be reprinted with credit to Morning Star News.

Morning Star News is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation that relies solely on contributions to offer original news reports of persecuted Christians. By providing reliable news on the suffering church, Morning Star News’ mission is to empower those in the free world to help and to encourage persecuted Christians that they are not forgotten or alone. For free subscription or to make tax-deductible donations, contact [email protected], or send check to Morning Star News, 34281 Doheny Park Rd., # 7022, Capistrano Beach, CA 92624, USA.

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Holding Close to One Another

9/22/2015

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Syrian Christians Face Life-and-Death Choices
by Reagan Hoezee
Mission Network News

Holding Close to One Another, Courtesy Christian Aid Mission

Three years after a pastor moved his family from a war-torn town in Syria to the more serene city of Sweida, a deadly bombing there last week brought the violence home. Along with other Christian leaders in Syria, the pastor must decide whether to stay or flee.

Like members of his congregation, the pastor must constantly evaluate the risks of staying–with the added weight of having to choose between fleeing to protect his family and remaining to disciple the converts who make up most of his church. The car bombing on Friday (Sept. 11) killed a prominent Druze cleric and 25 others on the outskirts of Sweida, and retaliatory violence has reportedly killed another 21 people. In the initial attack, a second car bomb exploded near a hospital in a neighborhood where at least 50 injured people had been taken. No one has taken responsibility for the bombings.

Sweida Province will be coveted territory for the Islamic State (ISIS), said the pastor, whose name is withheld for security reasons.

“Sweida is a target for two reasons,” he said. “First, religious reasons: the Druze are not Muslims. The Druze are very educated and modern. Druze women dress quite modernly. Secondly, Druze are considered to be loyal to the government, which makes Sweida a big target to ISIS.”

ISIS militants can be found near Tadmore, less than 20 miles from Sweida, he said.

After leading a church in Daraa in southern Syria for 8 years, he had moved to his home village of Kharaba, about 30 miles east, when civil war broke out in 2011. From there he was still able to serve his church in Daraa, but the next year rebel militias took over Kharaba, forbidding Christian worship or even the ringing of church bells. Most Christians fled, and the militias resettled 500 Muslim families to take over their homes.

The pastor moved his family another 30 miles east to the Druze stronghold of Sweida. He has been able to continue visiting his church in Daraa once a month while leading a new church among Sweida’s Druze, who made up 3% of Syria’s pre-war population but account for 96% of the Sweida area.

Unlike his congregation in Daraa, where most people came from Christian families, those in his Sweida church are former Sunni Muslims displaced from other areas, and former Druze, a religion originating in the early 11th century as a gnostic mix of various philosophies and religions. The Sweida church’s ministry has expanded to serving people displaced by the war.

Christians make up 2% of the Sweida population, and between them and the displaced, most would like to leave.

“When we talk with the Christians here, we find that 80% of them want to leave,” the pastor said. “But there are two things that keep them here. First, most don’t have the ability to leave financially. Secondly, where would they go...”

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Cradle of Christianity Wiped off the Map

9/20/2015

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Christians Are Being Denied US Visas while Cradle of Christianity Is 'Wiped off the Map...'
by Stoyan Zaimov
Christian Post

A faith-based global ministry has initiated a "Fostering Families" program in which it's calling on over 1,000 churches in America to take in persecuted refugees from the ongoing crisis. Rev. Kevin Jessip, president of Global Strategic Alliance, said Christians are being wiped out from the Middle East, while at the same time being denied visas in the United States, and it's an urgent time for the rest of the Christian body to wake up and help.

"It's inappropriate for the Untied States of America to discriminate against a minority religion who is in dire need of asylum. These are proven cases at the UNHCR that we've seen of people who have been denied, and are in jeopardy of losing their lives," Jessip told The Christian Post in a phone interview on Thursday.

"Not only have they ran and lost everything, but now, in many cases, we are seeing people facing another impending threat, and that is starvation," he said, noting that most of the Christian refugees don't even have basic resources to provide food for themselves.

Grace Knodt, vice president of GSA, who also spoke with CP over the phone, noted the urgency of the situation.

"As far as our Christian brothers and sisters are concerned, they are facing imminent death, many of them," Knodt said.

The program's goal is to enroll a minimum of 1,000 American churches and embrace the refugees who are fleeing war and terrorism in Syria and the surrounding region by the millions.

"I believe that the church needs to wake up, and we need to revive that which is about to die. The very church, the body of Christ, is being eliminated in the Middle East, and the very cradle of Christianity, is being wiped off the map," Jessip added, drawing from Revelation 3:2 in the Bible...

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Taking a Stand

9/20/2015

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Protest Palace, page 25
Persecution Magazine, September 2015
International Christian Concern

HKBP Filadelfia church in Bekasi faced a similar history of intense persecution. Pastor Palti was sent to the church in 2007. At that time, the church had already been pushed out of three different locations by radical Islamic groups, but that is not particularly unusual in Bekasi, a hotbed of Islamic radicalism just outside of Jakarta. In 2007, the congregation finally purchased its own property and applied for a license to build a church. It took more than three years for the church to secure the expensive and difficult-to-obtain IMB. In the meantime, the church started holding services on its vacant property.

In December 2009, an angry mob showed up during the church’s Christmas service. Though no one was hurt that time, the mob kept returning, and the military had to be called in to protect the church. An official claimed congregation members had forged the signatures of their Muslim neighbors in order to get the IMB needed to establish the church. The local government then yielded to pressure from radical Islamic groups to seal off the church property in January 2010 — the fourth time in 10 years. On this occasion, however, Pastor Palti and his congregation decided to take a stand, and for the next two years, the church assembled on the street outside of its sealed property and attempted to hold services there. It was a very challenging time.

“The [Muslims] would cover the ground where we planned to sit with animal and human feces and animal carcasses. We started to come early to clean up the street beforehand, and the congregation got used to holding their noses during the service,” Pastor Palti told ICC.

With a smile, he said the congregation eventually got so used to it they even started to laugh at their predicament. But there was more to come.

Muslim groups starting hanging signs near the property. They read, “Jesus is a dog” and “kill the Christians.” Soon, an angry mob was regularly showing up during services, and by January 2012, they had hung loudspeakers up and were blasting the Christians with loud Joshua Adams / Global Post Nearly 100 services have been held outside the presidential palace since the government forcefully shut down two churches in Indonesia. 27 PERSECU ION.org INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN music and obscenities. The Christians continued to worship, even though their ears were splitting and they couldn’t hear themselves. Pastor Palti continued to preach, but the congregation couldn’t even hear his sermon.

In March, the mob started to block all the routes to the church property. When church members tried to get through, they were jostled and forced back. So each Sunday the church would simply meet as close to the property as they could get, but each Sunday the mob pushed them farther and farther back. Eventually, they ended up on the steps of Pastor Palti’s home.

By May 2012, the mob had grown to more than 1,000 and had started hurling stones, dirt, eggs and frogs into the congregation. After one service, Pastor Palti saw his 7-year-old daughter covered in rotten eggs. That month in 2012, HKBP Filadelphia received international media attention after an Islamic mob threw bags of urine at the congregation. In an act of protest, church members finally decided to move their services to the area outside the presidential palace. That is where the church is meeting today, still waiting for justice.

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Little Miracles

9/20/2015

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House Passes Bill to Hold Planned Parenthood Criminally Liable
by Steven Ertelt
Life News

The House of Representatives today approved a pro-life bill that would hold the Planned Parenthood abortion business criminally liable for harvesting body parts from aborted babies who are technically still alive.

The center for Medical Progress has released 10 videos catching and exposing Planned Parenthood officials selling aborted babies and their body parts. One of the most shocking videos caught the nation’s biggest abortion business harvesting the brain of an aborted baby who was still alive.

The Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, sponsored by pro-life Congressman Trent Franks would make failure to provide standard medical care to children born alive during an abortion a federal crime. It would also apply stronger penalties in cases where an overt act is taken to kill the abortion survivor.

Under the pro-life bill there is also a civil right of action for mothers of children who survive an abortion to hold the abortion provider accountable.

Congressman Chris Smith implored the House to pass the bill.

SIGN THE PETITION! Congress Must De-Fund Planned Parenthood Immediately

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Crown of Life Blog

The Martyrdom of ST Stephen, Pietro da Cortona, 1660

News and Information about
Persecuted Christians from all around the
World

Persecuted saints benefit most from your heartfelt and earnest prayer.

Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial;
for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
James 1:12

'Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the
devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so
that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Revelation 2:10

New American Standard Bible
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Copyright ©
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1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995
by The Lockman Foundation

HOW TO READ A PERSECUTION NEWS STORY

Trials make the promise sweet;
Trials give new life to prayer;
Trials bring me to His feet,
Lay me low, and keep me there.

"God often takes away our comforts and our privileges in order to make us better Christians. He trains His soldiers not in tents of ease and luxury, but by turning them out and subjecting them to forced marches and hard service. He makes them ford through streams, and swim through rivers, and climb mountains, and walk many long miles with heavy backpacks of sorrow. Well, Christian, may this not account for the troubles through which you are passing? Is the Lord bringing out your graces and making them grow? Is it for this reason He contends with you?"

Read Why Do I Face Trials?,
by Alistair Begg, Truth for Life Daily, at One Place

Christian persecution is just a phenomenon in the
Middle East.

Christians aren’t greatly
impacted by persecution.

Whatever persecution there is, the damage is superficial - more a loss of multicultural diversity than anything else.

Christians supposedly bring persecution upon themselves by proselytizing.

Persecution couldn’t
happen here.

Please read 5 Myths about Persecution of Christians, by
Kristin Wright, at Religion Today.

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