Presbyweb - Daily news that impacts ministry



Tuesday, April 22, 2008 Come to Presbyweb first it is the quick and easy way to miss nothing of All the National PC(USA) news Something we may have overlooked? Please, tell us

Sand dam brings clean water to climate-stressed Kenyan village Simple, drought-resistant technology makes herders lives easier
	(CWS) – "...the global humanitarian agency Church World Service (CWS) joined with villagers in the remote, semi-arid Kenyan community of Akiriamet April 10 to celebrate the completion of a new, sustainable and community-managed source of fresh water made possible by the simple but highly effective technology of sand dams... A sand dam costs about $5,000 to construct and, depending on their size and scope, can provide clean water for a thousand or more people, for livestock and gardens.

Alan Hirsch to keynote Inside-Out Conference Presbyterian Global Fellowship conference, Long Beach, August 14-16
	"Alan Hirsch, Director of Forge Australia, is known for his innovative approach to mission. Alan is a teacher and key mission strategist for churches across the western world. His popular book The Shaping of Things to Come is widely considered to be a seminal text on mission and The Forgotten Ways has quickly become a key reference for missional thinking. His experience includes leading a local church movement among the marginalized as well as heading the Mission and Revitalization work of his denomination. Alan is an adjunct professor at Fuller Seminary and lectures frequently throughout Australia, Europe and the U.S. He is co-founder of shapevine.com, a forum for engaging with world transforming ideas. Other speakers: Rick Warren, Mark Labberton, Brenda Salter McNeil, Lauren F. Winner, John Azumah.

An absurd process – GA blog by Bob Davis The process for electing the Stated Clerk is absurd, unless the goal is to control the process.
	The announcement that Ed Koster is standing for election as Stated Clerk (Presbyweb, April 21, 2008) gives me an opportunity to review the election procedure... I think the election of the Stated Clerk is among the most important things the General Assembly will do. I do not have any vested interest in the election of Gradye Parsons, Ed Koster, or anyone else who will be standing for election. I do, however, have some strong feelings about the process. It needs to change. Commissioners must have a more substantive say in the decision. The Stated Clerk is a four-year position. It is an election for the chief constitutional officer of the whole denomination; specifically, a denomination deep in the throws of a constitutional crisis. Thus, the limited process... is an absurd way to elect a person to such a high-profile position; that is, unless the goal is to control the process... "... the limits on what the candidates may do are Orwellian..."

Letters from PC(USA) missionaries and YAVs
•	David & Sue Hudson in India
•	Katie Griffin in Argentina (2)
•	Gloria & Roger Marriott in Guatemala
•	Tim & Yuko Boyle in Japan

Scripture lessons for today – from the Lectionary
	"...I will praise the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God all my life long.." "...God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him...." "...your Father knows what you need before you ask him..."

Today in the Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study Earth Day
	"When members of a Kansas congregation attended church one Sunday last April, they got a worship service, fellowship – and energy-saving fluorescent lightbulbs. The church, Village Presbyterian in Prairie Village, gave away 1,500 bulbs as part of its commitment to environmental stewardship..."

News of all churches.
in the USA and worldwide.
and their interaction with the world around them.
Included: opinions, resources

Voices from the entire spectrum
Therefore:
Always something to like,
always something to dislike,
always something to ponder...


Messianic Jews win citizenship victory in Israel – Supreme Court rules Messianic believers must be granted citizenship rights in many cases. By Tim Morgan / Christianity Today
	For decades, Israel has made it next to impossible for immigrant Messianic Jews, who affirm belief in Jesus as Messiah, to become citizens of Israel. Often, if Messianic believers disclosed their faith in 'Yeshua,' the name they use for Jesus, government authorities would reject their citizenship application. But last week, the Supreme Court of Israel, ruled on a case involved 12 Messianic Jews who sued the government Ministry of the Interior for their legal 'right of return' (and then to become citizens of Israel).

Zimbabwe Church leaders say people are being tortured / AP
	HARARE, Zimbabwe – Zimbabwe church leaders say people are being tortured, abducted and some murdered in a campaign of political retribution. The leaders of all church denominations in Zimbabwe issued a joint statement Tuesday calling for international intervention to help end the country's election crisis. They say "the nation is in a crisis" that could escalate to genocidal proportions if nothing is done to help. Zimbabweans are still awaiting results of the presidential election held three weeks ago. Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai claims he won the presidency outright and that the delay in reporting results is part of an attempt to steal the election by longtime President Robert Mugabe.

Police have foiled 15 terror plots in Britain since the London bombings / The Daily Mail
	Fifteen planned terrorist attacks in Britain have been foiled since the 2005 London bombings, Met chiefs said today. The revelation came as Met Commissioner Sir Ian Blair warned that the country was being threatened by dangerous extremists who were emerging from "left field" to attempt terrorist attacks. Sir Ian added that some suspects were moving "very fast" to carry out their plots, forcing police to make pre-emptive arrests to protect the public.

U.S. dismisses Hamas comments described by Carter / Reuters
	The United States brushed off on Monday former U.S. President Jimmy Carter's report that Hamas would accept a peace deal with Israel if the Palestinians voted for it, saying the group's basic stance had not changed. "What is clear to us... is that nothing has changed in terms of Hamas' basic views about Israel and about peace in the region," State Department spokesman Tom Casey told reporters. "They still refuse to acknowledge or recognize any of the basic... principles, including recognizing Israel's right to exist; renouncing terrorism; and acknowledging all the previous agreements that have been made between the Palestinian Authority and Israel," he added.

Christians clash at Jesus' tomb on Orthodox Palm Sunday / AP
	Dozens of Greek and Armenian priests and worshippers exchanged blows at one of Christianity's holiest shrines on Orthodox Palm Sunday, and used palm fronds to pummel police who tried to break up the brawl. The fight came amid growing rivalry over religious rights at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, built over the site in Jerusalem where tradition says Jesus was buried and resurrected. It erupted when Armenian clergy kicked out a Greek priest from their midst, pushed him to the ground and kicked him, according to witnesses.

Doctors who kill themselves – by David Noonan / Newsweek Every year, between 300 and 400 doctors take their own lives – roughly one a day. No other profession has a higher suicide rate.
	"...From the outside, the doctor's life seems a rich and rewarding one. And surely it is. But a new documentary, "Struggling in Silence" (airing next month on public-television stations), explores a dark side of the profession – the little-known and rarely discussed problem of depression and suicide among physicians..."

1 man dead, 1 hurt as gunfire disrupts funeral service By Gadi Dechter / The Baltimore Sun
	The packed West Baltimore funeral was unsettled before the shots rang out. At 12:15 p.m. yesterday, the Rev. Napoleon Rush was preaching on the need to stop the violence that had brought 300 mourners to Unity United Methodist Church to view the body of Anthony Lamont Izzard Sr., 26, killed April 11 in a triple shooting. "I noticed a lot of things that was out of order," Rush said of the overflow crowd, many of them young and, according to him, "in the drug life." Instead of sitting quietly in the pews, many mourners were walking in and out of the church, according to Rush, and not abiding by his calls for order. Rush said Izzard's violent death and criminal history led him to preach a message of peace yesterday. "My thing was that we have to learn to come together as one, as a people, and stop the violence," he said. "We need to bring some unity toward ourselves." It is a theme he has been plying for years, at similar funerals, but after yesterday's violence, Rush said he would think twice before accepting another such assignment. On the exterior of Unity United hangs a banner: "Put down the guns. Love or perish."

More German shepherd than Rottweiler Pope Benedict's visit offers encouragement to U.S. flock By Cathleen Falsani / Chicago Sun-Times
	Three years and a few days ago, I was standing in the middle of St. Peter's Square in Vatican City, eating a cone of hazelnut gelato when smoke began to appear from the chimney atop the Sistine Chapel... I recall vividly the massive cheer from the crowd in the square, followed almost immediately by an audible groan. "Papa Ratzi," I heard one of the seminarians standing near me say when he recognized the German cardinal. A few hours later, as the world began to learn more about Pope Benedict's personal history, some folks began to call him "Papa Nazi"... Many people were disappointed that the new pope was the man they knew as the austere, hyper-conservative cardinal nicknamed "God's Rottweiler."... Benedict showed the warmth and kindness that people who have known him privately for years insist is very much central to who he is.

On faith and human rights – Reflecting on the pope's visit By Richard J. Mouw / The New York Times
	"...In his U.N. speech, the pope emphasized justice, reconciliation and hope as comprising the foundation for guaranteeing human rights for all times and all peoples. This is no mere pious rhetoric. Not only are there places in the world where human rights are systematically violated, but the North American intellectual community also needs to hear the pope’s message on this subject..."

Tough questions for Islam – The challenge of Fr. Botros His television talks are leading not only to mass conversions, but to the disempowering of radical Islam. By Chuck Colson
	"Zakaria Botros is a conservative television star with a huge audience. He is even more hated by his political enemies than Rush Limbaugh and Hillary Clinton put together, if you can believe that. At least one newspaper has labeled Botros: “Public Enemy Number One.” "So why haven’t you heard about this guy? It is probably because you do not watch Arab television. On channel al-Hayat, or “Life TV,” you will find Father Botros, a Coptic priest, discussing theology in a way that embarrasses – and enrages צ Muslim leaders. His television talks are leading not only to mass conversions, but to the disempowering of radical Islam... "...at the end of each program, Botros reads from the Bible and invites his listeners to follow Christ. That he is successful in this endeavor is acknowledged by none other than al-Jazeera, which complains of Botros’s “unprecedented evangelical raid” on the Muslim world..."

Why I left Greenpeace – by Patrick Moore / The Wall Street Journal "...abandoning science in favor of political agendas forced me to leave..."
	"In 1971 an environmental and antiwar ethic was taking root in Canada, and I chose to participate. As I completed a Ph.D. in ecology, I combined my science background with the strong media skills of my colleagues. In keeping with our pacifist views, we started Greenpeace. "But I later learned that the environmental movement is not always guided by science. As we celebrate Earth Day today, this is a good lesson to keep in mind. "...after six years as one of five directors of Greenpeace International, I observed that none of my fellow directors had any formal science education. They were either political activists or environmental entrepreneurs. Ultimately, a trend toward abandoning scientific objectivity in favor of political agendas forced me to leave Greenpeace in 1986. "The breaking point was a Greenpeace decision to support a world-wide ban on chlorine... "Sadly, Greenpeace has evolved into an organization of extremism and politically motivated agendas. Its antichlorination campaign failed, only to be followed by a campaign against polyvinyl chloride... Phthalates [such as DINP] are the new bogeyman..."

Gore says laws must change, individuals don't care enough By Clodagh Hartley / The Sun
	"...Despite the success of his film An Inconvenient Truth and last year’s Live Earth concerts in raising awareness, the former US Vice President believes little has changed where it counts and the situation is even more urgent. "And he warns that while individual efforts such as changing to low-energy lightbulbs are important, it is more significant for world leaders to change laws to stop pollution pouring into the atmosphere and affecting the climate... "The man who is now as much part of the Hollywood Establishment as he was a political player with the Democratic Party is very careful not to upset any of his celebrity friends. "He wouldn’t dream of suggesting that their lavish jet-setting and gas-guzzling lifestyles could be reined in for the good of the environment..."

Time fights carbon emissions; military fights evil It is much easier to fight global warming than to fight human evil. By Dennis Prager
	'The state of the liberal mind is on display on this week's cover of Time magazine. "The already notorious cover takes the iconic photograph of U.S. Marines planting the American flag on Iwo Jima and substitutes a tree for the flag. Why Time's editors did this explains much about contemporary liberalism... "...whereas liberals had led the fight against Nazism before and during World War II, and against Communism after the War, the liberal will to fight Communism, the greatest organized evil of the post-War world, collapsed during the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War did to American liberals what World War I did to most Europeans – it rendered them anti-war rather than anti-evil... "As during the post-Vietnam Cold War, when liberals fought anti-Communists much more than they fought Communists, they fight anti-Islamists much more than they fight Islamists... "But – and this is a primary reason for Time's cover – liberals... know that they have to fight some evil – after all, the world really seems threatened by something. So they have channeled their desire to fight threats to the world to fighting an enemy that will not hurt them or their loved ones – man-made carbon dioxide emissions..."

The 'evidence for belief': An Interview with Francis Collins By the Pew Forum
	For Francis Collins, head of the Human Genome Project and an evangelical Christian, scientific knowledge complements rather than contradicts belief in God. "If you see God as the creator of the universe – in all of its amazing complexity, diversity and awesome beauty – then science, which is, of course, a means of exploring nature, also becomes a means of exploring God’s creative abilities. And so, for me, as a scientist who is also a religious believer, research activities that look like science can also be thought of as opportunities to worship..."

Hawking: Life likely on other planets / AP
	Famed astrophysicist Stephen Hawking has been thinking a lot about the cosmic question, "Are we alone?" The answer is probably not, he says. One option is that there likely isn't life elsewhere. Or maybe there is intelligent life elsewhere, but when it gets smart enough to send signals into space, it also is smart enough to make destructive nuclear weapons. Hawking said he prefers the third option: "Primitive life is very common and intelligent life is fairly rare," he then quickly added: "Some would say it has yet to occur on earth." So should you worry about aliens? Alien abduction claims come from "weirdos" and are unlikely.

Letters from readers – email us
•	Jack C. Volkers "I want to add an endorsement for the nomination of Ed Koster for GA Stated Clerk... "Ed is basicly a liberal from the Detroit Presbytery and I am basically a conservative evangelical. There are many issues on which we disagree. However, I have found that Ed loves the church enough to put the church and its polity ahead of his own agenda. He may work vigorously to change the Constitution, but he won't ignore what it says or pretend it has already been changed as the present Stated Clerk has done on numerous occasions..."