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 9th 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.
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