Not The BBC News: 28 August 2014

An Iraqi Christian woman who had fled from Mosul after ISIS invaded decided to return to her home because the conditions in the refugee camp were so bad. She and her mother returned and stayed inside the house for three days, leaving only to go shopping (wearing the full Muslim-approved clothing). However, in the middle of the third night, soldiers arrived at the house and arrested them. They were told that they must convert to Islam, die, or leave town. She begged to be allowed to stay until dawn; permission was granted, but she was not allowed to return to her house. “It is ISIS property now,” they said.

Three thousand people marched in Ireland to protest against the new abortion law. The law allows abortion right up to birth if the mother claims to be suicidal. The march was triggered by just such a claim; the protesters allege that abortion is widely recognised as being an ineffective treatment for suicidal thoughts; that there was no adequate attempt to address the woman’s mental health status; and that consequently, an obstetrician was forced to deliver a healthy baby boy at 25 weeks’ gestation, who is now struggling for life in a Dublin hospital. A protester said, “This is exactly what we predicted.”

Christians in the UK are raising concerns about the Liberal Democrats’ plans, if re-elected, to extend sex education to children from the age of seven in all schools, rather than the current situation where it is only compulsory in state secondary schools. The concerns centre around the sexually explicit teaching materials being recommended by several groups that are lobbying for sex education to be mandatory.

Another Christian film being shown this year is “Holy Ghost,” which is a documentary in which the film maker attempts to be guided entirely by the Holy Spirit in his film-making. No reviews are yet available but the previous documentary from the same producer, “Father of Lights,” received good reviews for its positive Christian content. The film is being shown online for free by Bethel Church in California on September 6^th and 7^th.

In technology news, students who copy material from the Internet have apparently been using thesaurus-based applications to avoid detection by plagiarism software. This has resulted in some unusual phrases in submitted work; one student’s work used the phrase “sinister buttocks” instead of “left behind,” and another replaced “big players” with “mature musicians.”

Also in (science and) technology news, students at a university in North Carolina have developed a nail polish that changes colour if exposed to date-rape drugs such as Rohypnol and GHB. However, the invention has raised opposition from some anti-rape campaigners, on the grounds that it is a woman-only product, and therefore (they fear) increases the possibility of women who don’t use it being blamed for not taking all possible precautions. They want something that changes men’s behaviour instead.

And finally, a certain UK financial website offers stuffed meerkats as a reward to its customers, but a Russian bank has gone one better by offering a live cat with any mortgage. However, it turns out that new home owners cannot keep the cat; there is a Russian tradition that a cat is a sign of good luck to those moving into a new home, so home buyers are allowed to let the cat cross the threshold of the home first and to take photos with it, but must then return it to the bank.

Not The BBC News: 26 August 2014

It has been reported that two weeks ago, Boko Haram used speedboats to abduct over 100 people, mostly young men from the town of Doron Baga, near Lake Chad. However, Nigerian soldiers have contradicted reports of the kidnappings, saying they fought off Boko Haram’s attack on Doron Baga after Boko Haram, in a display of bravado, warned of the attack a few days in advance! The Nigerians say no civilians were abducted but that a few were killed in the crossfire. But a week later, there were reports that 65 men and 22 women were rescued when soldiers from Chad became suspicious at the large number of people in a convoy attempting to cross the Nigeria/Chad border. About 30 remain in captivity, as do many of the schoolgirls kidnapped four months ago.

A lawyer in China who regularly defended Christians against the Government in court has been released from prison after serving  a 3 year sentence for “subversion.” He hopes to join his family in the USA but permission has not yet been granted. He says that his teeth are so loose he cannot eat.

A Liberian doctor who contracted Ebola while treating patients has been given the experimental new drug that recently saved an American, but has died anyway. Two more of his colleagues are still being treated.

An Indonesian man who was raised a Muslim but converted to Christianity is receiving aid and medical attention from a  Christian charity after four years of moving from one place to another to avoid death threats from his family. His wife’s family also kidnapped their daughter and made her cut off contact with her parents. The man lost his job as a result of constant moves and his health is now deteriorating.

Two pastors in Bhutan who were arrested in April for holding a Christian seminar are still awaiting trial. A local source says the men are likely to be acquitted – additional non-religious charges of attempted financial extortion were refuted by witnesses -- but their trial is deliberately being delayed to harass them further; they have already spent 49 days in jail before being released on bail. One of the pastors said how encouraged he had been to receive cards of support from concerned Westerners: “I have never received so many cards,” he said.

In this “year of the Christian film,” two more films have been released that are worthy of mention. “The Perfect Wave” is a love story with an explicit Christian message; it is notable for starring former Charlie’s Angel and lifelong Christian Cheryl Ladd. “The Giver”, starring Jeff Bridges and Meryl Streep, is not an explicitly Christian film but is noteworthy because it is jointly funded by the (liberal/left wing) producer Harvey Weinstein and (conservative) Walden Media, who financed the Narnia films. Its plot features a futuristic world where the government runs everything in a “nanny state” and secretly euthanises non-contributors and dissenters. Such plots have been seen before in films like “Equilibrium” and “Nineteen Eighty-Four”, but the key difference in this film is that the dystopian futuristic world appears to be based on the current policies of the American left wing, but implemented to extremes.

In technology news, the US Copyright Office has issued new guidance saying that copyright cannot be owned by animals; nor can it be owned by any “divine or supernatural being” who is purportedly the creator of a document or image. The ruling comes in the wake of the “monkey selfie” controversy. The British photographer whose camera was used by the monkey to take the “selfie” has some chance of claiming copyright if he can prove that he created the conditions in which the “monkey selfie” was taken, but it would probably involve a long legal test case.

And finally, a Starbucks drive-through in St Petersburg, Florida has set an unofficial record for consecutive “pay it forward” gifts. At 7:21 in the morning, a lady paid for her iced coffee and decided to pay for the caramel macchiato ordered by the customer behind her. The staff informed the next customer, who accepted the gift but paid for the order of the person behind them. Throughout the day, each customer was greeted with, “Your order is free; it has been paid for by the previous customer. Would you like to buy a coffee for the next customer?” The “pay it forward” sequence continued until the 458^th customer in the chain arrived at 6pm, gratefully accepted the free coffee, but declined to pay for the next customer’s drink.

Not The BBC News: 21 August 2014

In Ferguson, Missouri, where there has been looting and rioting following a police shooting of a black teenager for an apparently minor offence, a central Pentecostal church has been working with other churches to reduce the violence. Church members have marched down the street where the rioting occurred, handing out bags of supplies; food and toiletries; stood outside buildings or sat in cars in people’s driveways all night for protection; and cleaned up a lot of post-riot mess.

France has removed the last legal obstacle to abortion on demand. When abortion was first permitted in France, it could only be given to women who were ”in distress”. However, five years later the decision about whether a woman was in distress was given to the woman herself, rather than to medical professionals. Now the “in distress” requirement has been removed from the law entirely.

Richard Dawkins has said on Twitter that parents of unborn children with Down’s syndrome have a moral obligation to abort them because it would be “immoral” to bring them into the world. His comments have provoked strong criticism.

The American medical missionary who contracted Ebola has now recovered completely after being given an experimental drug; he called his recovery a “miracle”. However, he took most of his worldly possessions to Liberia with him, and they must all be destroyed for fear of contamination.

David Cameron gave a major speech on family. He said that “nothing matters to him more than family” but also argued for “a right of marriage for all people; where the law comes between people’s love, it is the law that needs to change.” He also supported adoption by same-sex couples.

In sport, England have qualified for the Women’s (football) World Cup with a 4-0 victory over Wales. Wales can still qualify via the play-offs.

In science news, scientists have drilled into a lake that exists half a mile below the Antarctic ice sheet – and have found life. The lake, which has not seen sun for an estimated millions of years, contains micro-organisms that convert ammonia and methane into energy.

And finally, the best joke award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe went to Tim Vine for his one liner: “I decided to sell my Hoover … it was just collecting dust.” The runner up was: “I wanted to make a joke about a fat badger but I couldn’t fit it into my set.” Vine is the first comedian to win the award, sponsored by TV channel Dave, for the second time; his comment was, “Well, Dave loves repeats.”

Not The BBC News: 20 August 2014

The Pope has apologised publicly for Catholic persecution of Pentecostals, especially under Italy’s pre-war fascist regime. He did so while visiting a Pentecostal congregation in southern Italy. The outgoing leader of the World Evangelical Alliance responded by apologising for past Protestant discrimination against Catholics. Italian Protestants remain wary, however, and have (for the first time) produced a jointly agreed statement of faith that disagrees with the idea of “the church as a mediator of salvation, and that presents other figures as mediators of grace.”

A coloured woman who was caught on video stealing and destroying a sign from a pro-life march at the University of California in Santa Barbara and physically assaulting a 16 year old girl has been sentenced in court for theft, vandalism and battery. It turns out that she is a professor of feminist and pornographic studies at the University. The 16 year old girl said, “She was mocking me in front of the students, saying she was twice as old as me and had three degrees, so they should listen to her and not me. She then started a chant with the students saying, ‘tear down the sign’; when the chant died out, she grabbed the sign.” The girl was scratched when she tried to get the sign back. The professor pleaded “no contest” to the charges, although she did say that she was pregnant at the time and the march had “triggered her off.” She has issued an apology for trying to deny the marchers the right to express their opinion, but she has not yet apologised for the assault, nor for comments made before trial when she said, “I set a good example for my students. I was showing them how to protect themselves.” Her university colleagues wrote letters of  support for her; a history professor blamed her arrest and charge on “an energetic smear campaign … that has a great deal to do with fomenting racial hatred and rallying right wing political sentiment.” In the end, she was sentenced to three years’ probation and ordered to pay $493 to the victim, plus community service and anger management classes (run by the Quakers).

A Korean-American (and American citizen) who was arrested for Christian evangelism and missionary in North Korea two years ago was released from his labour camp to a hospital for health reasons – and then sent back to the labour camp to continue his 15 year sentence. US officials are pressuring North Korea to release Kenneth Bae to the USA on health grounds.

Another Christian minister who remains in prison for his faith is Saaed Abedini in Iran. Abedini has served two years of an eight year sentence. He was active in establishing more than  100 house churches in Iran up to 2005, when he fled the country (and eventually became an American citizen); however, he was arrested in 2012 when making a visit to Iran to see his family and oversee progress on building an orphanage. He has received death threats from ISIS militants in his prison, some of whom have managed to breach the barriers between their wing and his, forcing him to hide.

Travelodge has removed Gideon Bibles from its hotel rooms. After a refurbishment which removed the drawers where the Bibles were kept, the Bibles were removed “because we live in a multicultural society and to avoid discriminating against any religion.” The Bibles will be kept at reception for guests to borrow on request.

In sport, England won the World Cup of women’s rugby, defeating Canada 21-9 in the final. England have been in the last 4 finals of the competition, but have not won it for 20 years.

And finally, the Indonesian couple who found their daughter 10 years after the Boxing Day tsunami  have announced that they have also found their son, due to the widespread media coverage of their daughter being found. The  brother and sister survived the tsunami by clinging to a board; a fisherman found them both but decided he could only adopt the (younger) girl. The boy was living as a street orphan in Sumatra. 

Not The BBC News: 13 August 2014

The UK Department for Education has rushed out new standards for independent schools in the wake of the controversy over Islamisation in several schools in Birmingham.  The standards seem to have been written by a socialist-dominated committee, since they require all independent schools to “actively promote” the protected characteristics in the Equality Act 2010 (ignoring the contradiction of an ‘Equality Act’ that considers certain characteristics as especially equal; schools are currently merely required “not to discriminate” on these characteristics). The standards also explicitly sideline the views of parents, and allow people to sue schools over the content of the curriculum. If the standards are implemented, then (in theory) a school could fail its OFSTED inspection or be sued for failing to promote LGBT Awareness Month, or a school governor could publicly rebuke a parent for telling her child that other religions are wrong. The Department claim that the fast-track consultation process (six weeks long, which overlapped with summer holidays) was adequate, but the Christian Institute says that less than 0.5% of schools directly affected are known to have responded. The Institute has written to the Department threatening a judicial review unless the consultation period is extended.

Meanwhile in Fremont, California, parents are pressuring the school district to withdraw a new “health” book for secondary schools that covers topic including oral sex, bondage, sex toys and drug use. Their biggest objection is that the book gives no indication that such activities are not normal.

A blue plaque that marked the Belfast birthplace of Chaim Herzog, a former president of Israel, has been removed “for the foreseeable future” because of vandalism to the plaque and to the house. A city councillor said, “This is a shocking indication of the level of tension and anti-Semitism which currently exists in parts of Belfast.” The same councillor is also campaigning for the city council to withdraw permission for George Galloway to use the Ulster Hall for a speaking engagement, because of Galloway’s widely publicised desire to bar all Israelis from entering the UK.

Meanwhile, a large Christian festival (Momentum, in Shepton Mallet, run by Soul Survivor) has withdrawn permission for an exhibition stand by the charity Christian Friends of Israel, on the grounds that it could stir up controversy over the conflict on Gaza.

In sport, Jo Pavey, who won bronze in the 5,000 metres race at the Commonwealth Games at the age of 40, has taken gold in the 10,000 metres at the European Championships. The early pace of the race was very slow, which suited the fast-finishing Pavey.

In technology news, tax discs for cars are to be replaced by an electronic registration system (and automatic numberplate recognition) from October 1 this year. Existing tax discs will remain valid unless the car is sold. The paper section of the UK driving licence will also be phased out from January next year.

And finally, an innovative new marketing method at a supermarket in Copenhagen allows shoppers to order food for free. For a ₤2 monthly fee, customers are allowed to pre-order up to 10 items per month and take them home free as long as they write an online review of the product within a reasonable time. The same “tryvertising” concept has also been applied to hire cars (for hotel residents) and coffee (at bus stops). 

Not The BBC News: 12 August 2014

Some doubt has been cast on the claim that ISIS militants in northern Iraq have been beheading children. The claims were originally reported to be from a Chaldean archbishop but were in fact made by a Chaldean-American in the USA who acts as a spokesperson for the Chaldean church. Journalists are now suspicious of the claim because there has been no verification from other sources. Also, a horrific picture of a decapitated girl that is alleged to be from Iraq was apparently taken in Syria in 2013 (she was killed by a bomb or artillery shell). However, many other reports of atrocities as reported by the archbishop himself, Canon Andrew White in Baghdad and others appear to be true on the basis of available evidence.

There was an unexpected response to a pro-Gaza demonstration in New York City. Similar demonstrations in other cities have focussed on commemorating the Palestinian dead and calling for peace, but this demonstration had a more violent tone; there were chants for a “free Palestine from the river to the sea” (i.e. replacing the whole of modern Israel) and also some chants of “Intifada” and “Allahu Akhbar.” The march also deliberately targeted the Diamond District of New York City where there are many Jewish businesses. The response was a spontaneous counter-demonstration with many local business owners closing their shops to join in; their chants and songs in support of Israel eventually drowned out those of the original demonstrators.

In the last bulletin, I reported how a legal case in Nevada to force an abortion on a pregnant mentally handicapped mother was rejected. A near-identical law is now to go before the Russian parliament; that if the mother is “unable to express her will,” abortion will be legalised right up to birth. Furthermore, if the Bill is passed, any statements made by the mother before she was incapacitated will be ignored; the decision will be solely in the hands of her legal representative. Pro-life groups in Russia are petitioning their state deputies to reject the Bill.

The American missionary doctor who contracted Ebola in Liberia has recovered sufficiently to speak about his ordeal. “When I started feeling ill, I immediately isolated myself until the test confirmed my diagnosis three days later,” he said. “I remember feeling a  deep sense of peace that was beyond all understanding… God was reminding me that he will give me everything I need to be faithful to Him.” He also said, “I held the hand of countless individuals as this terrible disease took their lives away from them. I can still remember every face and name.”

The pastor of a mega-church in Singapore has gone on trial accused of mis-using almost $20 million in church finances to support the pop star career of his wife. Pastor Kong Hee is not denying the payments, but his defence rests on two arguments; firstly, that he was out of the country for much of the time when the donations were made, and trusted his chief auditor to notify him of issues; and secondly, that his wife’s pop concerts were a key outreach strategy for the church. Her concerts generally consisted of 75 minutes of secular music, followed by her giving her testimony and then singing one Gospel song.

In sport, Mo Farah has revealed that he withdrew from the Commonwealth Games after collapsing in his bathroom and spending four days in hospital, less than a week before the start of the Games. He feared it was due to heart problems but it was eventually traced to an infection in a recently removed tooth. “I didn’t want to disappoint those who had tickets,” he said, “but I was nowhere near ready.”

And finally, a village parish church in Wales was amazed last month to learn that they had received a bequest from woman who left the village 23 years ago – of ₤2.6 million. No one had any idea she was that wealthy; it is thought that her wealth may derive from having outlived two husbands. The money is intended for the whole diocese; half of it will be invested in youth projects, and in training for clergy and lay ministers. 

Not The BBC News: 10 August 2014

Following further atrocities in northern Iraq, President Obama has authorised US air strikes against the ISIS insurgents. The justification for the air strikes does not mention the genocide of Christians (possibly because the US government fears the ramifications for US domestic and foreign policy of being seen to support Christians with military action); it is based instead on ISIS’ attempted genocide of the Yazidi tribe, who have been targeted because of their syncretistic Christian/Zoroastrian/Muslim religion. The first air strikes took place less than 24 hours after authorisation was given.

There have been a number of reports over the last few years of strange sounds coming “from the heavens” or “out of nowhere.” The sounds variously resemble droning alpenhorn-style trumpets, or occasionally locomotives crashing or explosions (leading to callouts for the emergency services), yet have no discernible cause. The first video recording of such an event (available on YouTube) took place in Kiev in 2011; since then there have been reports from several former “Iron Curtain” countries, from towns in the USA and Canada, and even from television coverage of a major league baseball game in the USA. Some Christians have pointed to verses in the Bible (and an incident recorded by the early historian Josephus) that talk about “sounds in the heavens” and have speculated about whether the sounds have prophetic portents.

A 2012 legal case over forced abortion in Nevada has had a happy ending. A mentally handicapped woman wandered away from her care home and, when she returned, had been impregnated by an unknown man. Social services went to court for a decision on whether the mother should be forced to abort the baby and sterilised. The mother’s parents opposed abortion because of their strong Christian beliefs about life beginning at conception, but the judge stated that their faith was irrelevant in the courtroom and that he would defer to the judgment of doctors and social workers. One doctor argued that the only compassionate thing to do would be to “end this pregnancy and tie her tubes”; however, after a strong rebuttal by the opposing attorney, and many phone calls and emails lobbying the judge to allow the baby to live, the forced abortion was rejected. A healthy baby girl was born, and last week was officially adopted by her grandparents.

China has announced that it plans to create its own “Chinese Christian” theology that integrates Christian beliefs with Chinese culture and is compatible with socialist political beliefs. The state-backed China Daily website quotes a senior Government official as saying that China supports the development of Christianity within the country, but that the construction of Chinese Christian theology should adapt to China’s “natural condition.”

A Christian film that was made last year has recently been released on (region 1) DVD. “Camp” is based on a true story of a Christian summer camp for foster children; the tagline is “Hope is found in unexpected places.” Unlike many Christian films, Camp has good reviews on the Internet Movie Database, scoring an average 7.1 out of 10 from its viewers. Also, the first trailer for “Left Behind” starring Nicholas Cage has been released; the film makes a dramatic story out of a “pre-millenial” view of the end of the world.

In sport, the Football League season has started, and Huddersfield Town have set a new record; they have sacked their manager after just one game of the season. Admittedly the result was a 4-0 home defeat to Bournemouth.

And finally, Saturday August 9^th was officially Dull and Boring day; it is the anniversary of the twinning of the village of Dull, in Glenlyon, Scotland with the town of Boring, Oregon, USA. The day is celebrated as a public holiday in Boring and events are laid on; unfortunately, no-one from Dull (population: 80) was able to attend this year. Dull’s name derives from Scottish Gaelic, though exactly which word is disputed; Boring is named after William Boring, the town’s founder. 

Not The BBC News: 7 August 2014

Boko Haram has burned another five churches in Nigeria. It has also attacked some mosques, perhaps in retaliation for Muslim clerics publicly condemning their violent approach to establishing an Islamic state. In a disturbing new tactic, Boko Haram are relying increasingly on suicide bombers and are starting to use young females in this role; police recently arrested two suspected Boko Haram members travelling with a 10 year old girl who was wearing a belt of explosives.

A Polish Jehovah’s Witness was sacked from a fitness centre in Rochdale for regularly discussing his religious beliefs, including telling one woman that performing yoga “allowed evil to enter.” A tribunal recently decided that he was unfairly dismissed on a technical point: he was sacked after sending an email to senior staff outlining his religious opinions, but the court decided that his final warning had only prevented him from discussing his opinions with customers. However, his financial award was reduced by 75% due to his earlier behaviour.

The two American missionaries who contracted Ebola while working in a Liberian hospital have apparently been saved by a new experimental “cocktail of antibodies” drug, which was flown to Liberia and used to treat them there. Questions are now being asked about why the drug has not been made available to Africans; the answer, apparently, is that the drug has not finished its clinical trials yet, so its use requires case-by-case authorisation according to the rules of the US drug regulator.`

To say that the situation for Christians in northern Iraq has deteriorated is perhaps the understatement of the year. A leader of the Chaldean Christian community has told CNN that there is a park in Mosul where children have been beheaded and their heads put on sticks. The international community’s first decision is whether and where to offer asylum to the 300,000 Christians who have fled Mosul; the Christian leader is also calling on the UN and world leaders to recognise that genocide is occurring.

In the UK government, the resignation of Baroness Warsi (over disagreements about government policy towards Israel and Palestinians) has led to the promotion of Eric Pickles (formerly Communities Minister) to Faith Minister. Pickles dismayed secularists earlier this year by saying, “Britain is a Christian nation. Get over it.”

In technology news, a photographer has repeatedly asked Wikimedia to stop distributing one of his most famous photographs (of a macaque monkey which played with his camera and took a smiling selfie) for free. However, Wikimedia has refused his requests, on the grounds that American copyright law assigns copyright in a photo to whoever took it – and since American law doesn’t allow non-humans to have intellectual property rights, Wikimedia claim the image falls in the public domain. They have, however, decided to take a vote on whether they should change this policy. The fact that the images were taken by a British photographer in Indonesia makes the situation legally complicated.

Also in  technology, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have come up with a  way to extract sound from completely silent videos. The technique relies on using high speed cameras to record tiny fluctuations caused by sound waves in crisp packets, pot plants or other everyday objects in a room. MIT’s innovation is to make the technique work with everyday digital cameras which use a “rolling shutter” (i.e., don’t actually save the whole image in one go).

And finally, an Argentinian woman who has made it her life’s work to reunite families with snatched babies has just conducted her 114^th reunion – with her own grandson. The right wing dictatorship of the 1970s took many babies from left wing parents and gave them to government sympathisers for adoption; many of the parents were arrested, tortured and/or killed. The organisation Grandmothers of the Plaza del Mayo has called for anyone of the right age with suspicions about their parentage to take a DNA test; her grandson did so about a month ago.

Not The BBC News: 3 August 2014

Uganda’s recently passed strict anti-gay laws have been declared unconstitutional by a Ugandan judge because they were not passed by the necessary quorum of lawmakers. The Ugandan government may appeal, or go through the long process of re-introducing the laws, because the flaw was found in procedure rather than in content. Homosexual practice was illegal in Uganda before these laws were passed; the recent laws placed severe sentences, including death in some cases, on homosexual acts that are considered crimes in other countries. Many Western countries had reduced their aid payments to Uganda to pressure the Ugandan government to change these laws.

Canon Andrew White from Baghdad reports receiving a photograph of an Iraqi family of 8, all shot in the face and lying in a pool of blood, with their Bible open on the couch. “They would not convert and it cost them their lives,” he said. He has refused to publish the picture because it is too awful.

This blog reports (too often) on cases where people who oppose homosexual practice/rights/marriage are mistreated by employers or authorities. However, there are sometimes similar cases where the employers are the ones who are opposed. One such case happened recently in Utah, where a teacher at a language centre who was also head of social media for the centre was asked to leave his social media job because of a blog post; his boss feared the blog would give the impression that the school was promoting homosexual behaviour. The topic of the blog post was “homophones.”

The American missionary doctor with Ebola fever has been flown to the USA for treatment in an Atlanta hospital. There is no known cure for Ebola, but patients get fluids, blood transfusions and antibiotics.

There are many stories of pastors who have difficulty getting along with their deacons. However, the situation does not usually deteriorate to the extent that it did recently in Lake Charles, Louisiana, where a deacon walked into a church and shot the pastor dead while he was preaching. The deacon had no known criminal history and the motive for the shooting is currently unknown.

In sport, the Commonwealth Games have concluded with England topping the medal table, ahead of Australia, Canada, and (in by far their best ever performance) Scotland. Success stories included Scotland’s 800 metre runner Lynsey Sharp, who spent the night before her final race vomiting and attached to a drip in the athlete’s hospital, got no sleep, yet still won the silver medal; England’s Jo Pavey winning the bronze medal in the 5000 metres at the age of 40, having returned to athletics after having two children; and Usain Bolt being so relaxed while waiting for the 4x100 metres relay to start that he danced along to “500 Miles” by the Proclaimers as it was broadcast for the umpteenth time over the PA (Jamaica still won). There were also some big losers in the games, including Wales’ team captain Rhys Williams who inadvertently took something that made him fail a drugs test;  the Australian diver who slipped on the springboard and belly-flopped into the water; and one of the women who acted as a dancing teacake in the opening ceremony, who was officially on sick leave from her job at the time.

And finally, a woman who ate at a diner in Winston-Salem, North Carolina was surprised to see her bill had a 15% discount because she and her friends publicly prayed over the meal before they ate it. She posted her receipt on social media where it went viral. The restaurant has confirmed that, although the discount is not policy, they have offered it fairly often.

Not The BBC News: 1 August 2014

Two American missionaries in Liberia, who have been helping treat patients with Ebola in a clinic, have themselves contracted the disease. Attempts to evacuate them to Europe have so far failed because of complaints from the countries they would have to fly over en route. One of the two, a 33 year old doctor from Texas, has simply asked people to pray for him and his (absent) family. Several top Liberian doctors have already died of the disease. A Canadian missionary doctor working for the same organisation as the Americans has returned to Canada, and even though he has no symptoms of Ebola, has quarantined himself as a precaution.

A Pentecostal church in Rio de Janeiro is about to open a new 10,000 capacity building that is an exact replica of Solomon’s temple. The building, which is twice the height of the famous statue of Christ the Redeemer, allegedly includes a replica of the Ark of the Covenant.

The USA’s Internal Revenue Service was strongly criticised last year for targeting strict and detailed investigations at pro-life, pro-family and right-wing groups, and is currently prevented from investigating any tax-exempt organisations while a congressional investigation takes place. However, it has emerged that the IRS has agreed (once investigations restart) to monitor the content of church sermons after a lawsuit from the atheist Freedom From Religion Foundation alleged that churches promote political issues, legislation and/or candidates from the pulpits – subjects that are forbidden to registered tax-exempt organisations. This issue is likely to develop on the grounds that (a) such monitoring may violate freedom of speech (b) there have been more complaints about churches that preach a right wing political message than those that preach a left wing one and (c) the rules about tax exemption suggest churches don’t actually need to register.

Also in the USA, the “Hobby Lobby” decision by the Supreme Court, which freed Christian-run businesses from parts of Obamacare on grounds of conscience, is still producing strong reactions amongst opponents. The latest initiative has come from Satanists who claim they want to be exempted from restrictions on abortion because such restrictions go against their consciences. While this suit is unlikely to succeed (even in literal-law America), it shows how unhappy many Americans are about the Supreme Court respecting conscientious objections by business owners.

A UK judge has ruled that a 13 year old boy can be treated with donated blood plasma, even though his mother, a Jehovah’s Witness, is unable to consent because of her beliefs. The boy is suffering from a disease of the central nervous system, and the judge was advised that the boy’s prospects of recovering without the plasma treatment were slight.

In sport, I have to make a correction. When Clare Balding, commentating on the Commonwealth Games, said “We have two English swimmers, one from Scotland, one from Wales,” she was referring to a total of four British swimmers in that final, rather than confusing England with Britain. Other stories from the Games include England taking all three medals in women’s all-disciplines gymnastics; Kiribati (formerly the Solomon Islands) winning their first ever gold medal from a 103.5kg (16st4lb/228lb) weightlifter who celebrated with some fancy dancing footwork; and Olympic champion and world record holder David Rudisha being surprisingly beaten in the 800 metres by Nijel Amos from Botswana, who sprinted the last 70 metres.

In technology news, Russia has passed a law requiring all bloggers with 3000 readers or more to register with the mass media regulator. The bill also contains measures to ensure that bloggers cannot remain anonymous, and new powers for the government to obtain data from  ISPs.  An influential Russian blogger argues that individual bloggers will find a way around the restrictions, but the new rules do provide grounds for blocking social networks such as Facebook and Twitter.

And finally, a major incident was avoided at Aberdeen airport thanks to some clever flying and brave ground crew. A helicopter with 16 passengers was unable to lower its front undercarriage wheel, so the pilot decided to hover four feet from the ground while ground crew manually lowered the leg. The helicopter firm has commended all who were involved.