Abraham - the father of the faithful.

As we move on in our monthly look at the Tanakh (the Hebrew Scriptures: the Old Testament in the Christian Bible), we come to one of the most significant figures in Biblical history. Over the next three (!) posts, we shall be looking at a man who was named Abram, but had that name changed, by Almighty God (El Shaddai), to Abraham (Avraham).

I am currently reading through the book of Deuteronomy in my personal devotions, and read these words a couple of days ago: "For you are a people holy to the Lord your God.  The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be His people, His treasured possession." (7:6).  

The Jewish people are  often referred to as "The Chosen People". This has caused many to accuse El Shaddai of favouritism! Indeed, "chosenness"is so strongly associated with favouritism and arrogance that even some modern Jewish people reject the concept. Yet the idea of El Shaddai choosing the Hebrew people runs throughout the Tanakh. For example (emphases added):

"But you, Israel, My servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Avraham My friend.”  (Isaiah 41:8)

“You His servants, the descendants of Israel, His chosen ones, the children of Jacob.”  (I Chronicles 16:13; see also Psalm 105:6)

“For YHWH has chosen Jacob to Himself, and Israel for His peculiar treasure.”  (Psalm 135:4)

In fact, contrary to feeling smug and favoured, observant Jews are keenly aware that "chosenness" deflates any sense of significance! Indeed, those words already quoted, from the book of Deuteronomy, continue: "It was not because you were more in number than any other people that YHWH set His love upon you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples; but it is because YHWH loves you, and is keeping the oath which He swore to your fathers, that YHWH has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt." (vs.7-8; emphasis added).

Understanding El Shaddai's choosing of the descendants of Avraham, Isaac (Yitzac) , and Jacob (Yacob/Israel) is central to having a firm foundation in His providential plan! And the record starts with Abram.

In Genesis 18, we read these words of YHWH: "Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of YHWH by doing righteousness and justice, so that YHWH may bring to Abraham what He has promised him." (vs.18-19).

Only 400 years had passed since the great Flood in the time of Noah, so that the world was not yet populated by a great variety of peoples living in powerful nations. "Nations", at that time, were more like city-states, rife with paganism and polytheism. A mere four centuries after the Flood, mankind was still lost. It was still the case "... that every imagination of the thoughts of [man's] heart was only evil continually." (Gen.6:5).

El Shaddai called Abram out of one of those city-states - Ur of the Chaldees - and told him to go to a land that He would show him. The people of Ur were Moon-worshippers, but El Shaddai spoke to this one man. "Now YHWH said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who curses you I will curse; and by you all the families of the earth shall bless themselves." He didn't know where this land was located, but he trusted the direction, and promise, of this One Whom he recognised as the Almighty God. He believed God, and headed for the Promised Land. Please note that this was millennia before the founding of the very Islam that lays claim to that Promised Land, today!

This,then, was the start of the Chosen People. God chose one man - and that one man chose God! We are not told if God had called any other person before Abram. We are told that Abram chose to accept God's promises, and that he put feet to faith! That, surely, is a salutory lesson to all of us!

More in a couple of nights. Do keep an eye out for the next "instalment"!

St Valentin

First point - the spelling is correct! "Valentine" (with an 'e') is the feminine form of the name!

However, it was earlier, on Facebook, that a friend had posted a picture - a likeness (one presumes) of Valentin with, above it, the familiar words: "Roses are red; violets are blue;" Then underneath were the words: "I was beaten with clubs; beheaded; buried under cover of darkness; and disinterred by my followers. And you commemorate my martyrdom by sending each other chocolates!" (slightly amended!).

It's an interesting point, is it not?! Those familiar words at the top usually continue: "sugar is sweet; and so are you!". They are intended to be an expression of love - but it's a love that is more "Mills & Boon" than anything else! Valentin, however, had discovered a deeper love that led to his martyrdom. It's the love of which the Paul writes to the disciples of Jesus in Corinth - a city that was known, contemporaneously, as the centre of immorality. The late Prof. William Barclay writes: "She had a reputation for commercial prosperity, but she was also a byword for evil living. The very word korinthiazesthai - to live like a Corinthian - had become a part of the Greek language, and meant to live with drunken and immoral debauchery. ... Aelien, the late Greek writer, tells us that if ever a Corinthian was shown on the stage in a Greek play, he was shown drunk. The very name Corinth was synonymous with debauchery and there was one source of evil that was known all over the civilised world. Above the isthmus towered the hill of the Acropolis and, on it, stood the great temple of Aphrodite, the goddess of love. To that temple there were attached one thousand priestesses who were sacred prostitutes and, in the evenings, they descended from the Acropolis and plied their trade upon the streets of Corinth until it became a Greek proverb, 'It is not every man who can afford a journey to Corinth.' In addition to these cruder sins, there flourished far more recondite vices, which had come in with the traders and sailors from the ends of the earth until Corinth became not only a synonym for wealth and luxury, drunkenness and debauchery, but also for filth."

It was to people living in that kind of environment that Paul wrote: "If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends; as for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For our knowledge is imperfect and our prophecy is imperfect; but when the perfect comes, the imperfect will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall understand fully, even as I have been fully understood. So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love." (I Cor.13).

This is the love that is based on the love of the God Who is love (I John 4:8,16). This is the love that is so great, that as we shall shortly be remembering in a special way, it paid the penalty for your sin, and for mine, on a cross outside Jerusalem. 

Sadly, much of what modern society terms love is little (if any!) more than lust. Real love is commitment! It was his commitment to the Lord Jesus that led Valentin to his death. It is that same commitment to that same Jesus that enables so many, even today, to die rather than deny Him. I don't need to remind you of those Coptic Christians who were so callously murdered and beheaded on a Libyan beach, by thugs who were serving the moon-god cult of Islam; of those who were burned alive in cages, for the same reason; of women and girls gang-raped to satisfy the lust of the Muslim men who had captured them.

So, as we come to the end of Valentin's Day 2018, please consider the kind of love that you show to others - and remember the love that Father God shows to you, and to which you may respond while you have time. As always, if I can be of any further help at a personal level, please contact me using the e-mail address at the top of the page. I don't check that Inbox every day - but I shall get back to you as quickly as possible.

Concert carnage.

It is rare for me to comment in the immediate aftermath of an incident, but I am making this post one of those exceptions.

The latest reports that I have read have stated that 22 people - including children - died as a result of the "suicide bombing" at the end of a concert in Manchester. Accounts of the injuries sustained by many more would suggest that that number may well rise in the next few days.

How does one react to such an atrocity - apparently planned over a number of weeks? One can bring pious platitudes - but they seldom have any positive effect. One may rant and rave - but anger seldom has any positive effect either. One may turn away, simply relieved that one was not personally involved - but that, to me, would be a display of callousness.

It would appear, from reports, that the first problem was inadequate security precautions at the venue. many have complained - sadly, too late - that they were not properly searched; that bags were not even checked. This is, most assuredly, a major factor in such a situation. These large venues need to ensure that their patrons are as safe as is humanly possible - especially when groups such as Daesh (aka ISIS) have made no secret of their intention to inflict mayhem in "western" countries.

Of course, the situation is made easier for the terrorists when we permit a claimed 3,900 who were involved in the conflict in Syria, to return to the UK with no more than "a watchful eye" being kept on them! With numbers like that, it is no surprise that many "slip through the net"!

Another problem is that of the so-called "moderate Muslim". It is reported that "The Muslim Council of Britain said the Manchester attack was “horrific” and “criminal”. Secretary general Harun Khan said: “May the perpetrators face the full weight of justice both in this life and the next." However, what many decide to ignore is that the terrorists are the true Muslims! Since its founding by the false, paedophile "prophet", Muhammad, the aim of Islam has been the world-wide Caliphate - the whole world under the control of Islam, and under the restrictions of shariah (Islamic Law), by military force where that is deemed to be necessary. So how do the so-called "moderate" Muslims fit in with this, in the light of their pious-sounding comments? They are simply following the example of their founder. It is called "taqiyya" and is the deliberate deception of the infidels (that's all of us who do not profess to be Muslims) in order to further the expansion of Islam and the attainment of that final goal - that world-wide Caliphate.

How then should we infidels - and especially Jews and Biblical Christians - react? We should certainly not shun any Muslims we know. Rather, we should seek to win them over from what is, I firmly believe, a satanic cult. That is not easy - yet there are reports, from many parts of the world, of hundreds, even thousands, of Muslims turning to the Lord Jesus for salvation. We who believe in the power of prayer must engage in that particular activity, faithfully and fervently. However, we must also remember the words of Jesus that His followers be "wise as serpents [whilst being ] harmless as doves." (Mt.10:16). The first is every bit as important as the second.

The government, also, has a major part to play. One of the first responsibilities of any government is the safety and welfare of the people it governs. Under the Terrorism Act 2000, the police have extensive powers. Using these powers, people can be detained for up to nine hours, with DNA samples and fingerprints taken, without the need for any reasonable suspicion. If it is considered to be necessary, police may also detain and search an individual, with the aim of determining whether, or not, that person appears to be someone who is or has been concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism.

However, the latest quarterly Home Office report on the use of police powers under the Terrorism Act, which was released in March, shows that there has been a decrease in the use of these powers. This, it has been claimed, is due to pressure from groups like Stop Watch, which argues that they infringe the human rights of Muslims and other communities.

It is my personal opinion, that enough has been done to pander to the alleged "rights" of, particularly, the Muslim community. Those 22 young people and children who were so callously murdered last night, surely had some right to life! However, that right was over-ridden by one man's desire to kill and maim in the name of Islam!

I pray for those who have been bereaved; I pray for those who have been injured; I pray for those who have been traumatised; I pray for the members of the Emergency Services who responded so quickly and so competently. I pray, too, for the perpetrators of all such deeds, in the UK, in France, in other parts of the world; that they may yet be saved by the only blood that was ever shed that has a lasting, and positive, affect - the blood of Jesus the Christ, on the cross at Calvary. In Him, and in Him alone, is found salvation, and the forgiveness of sin. And one doesn't have to be an Islamic terrorist to need all of that!

So - what IS a "Christian"?

It was a headline in an online newspaper that first caught my eye: "A third of French ISIS fighters were born CHRISTIAN and converted to Islam, expert reveals." (emphasis in the original).

My first thought was, of course, that no-one is "born a Christian".  That, as Jesus pointed out very clearly to Nicodemus, requires that one be "born again"! (See John 3).  My second thought, coming from a Christian perspective, was that no-one is "converted" to Islam. If anything, one would be PERverted to that particular ideology.

So, what is a Christian?  Well, I am not the only preacher to have preached on that question - and on more than one occasion!  I could give a list of criteria that would define a Christian, in Biblical terms - and anything else is, at best, suspect!  My idea was to share some of the points that I have made, in the past, in this post.

Then I read today's 'Daily Article' by Dr Jim Denison - whom I have quoted before in this blog. In it, he refers to a couple who appear on American television.  He states that "Their HGTV show, Fixer Upper, is one of the most popular shows on the network. They are smart, funny, and entertaining. And the good they do in helping couples renovate houses into homes is terrific." We are informed, however, that this couple are "Christians" - and when Jim Denison uses the term, he knows exactly what he means!  He tells us that a reporter from a particular publication asked this couple where they stood on the issue of same-gender "marriage" (my quotation marks), and whether or not they would ever feature a same-gender couple on their show.    

The reporter then turned her attention to the Fellowship of which this couple are a part, carefully editing a sermon by the pastor that he preached on the Sunday after the USoA Supreme Court had declared that same-gender "marriage" was to be legal in all fifty States of the Union. (Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts are all officially Commonwealths, but are counted as States for all administrative purposes!).

Now you may be wondering what has all of this to do with the question "What is a Christian?"? Well, Jim Denison makes the point that "Christians facing persecution is an escalating theme today." and, while he readily concedes that "... it is unfair to compare believers facing execution and/or confiscation of their churches and property with believers being ridiculed for their biblical beliefs regarding marriage.", he also concludes that "What the two kinds of persecution have in common is that both intend to pressure Christians to change their convictions."

That, as I read it, gave me a clue to the answer to my question. What is a Christian? A Christian is one who puts Jesus first - every time, in every situation, in every place. I recalled those young Egyptian Coptic Christians, murdered on a Libyan beach simply because they were faithful followers of Jesus. It was reported that they had the opportunity to deny Jesus, and recite the shahadah (the basic Islamic creed). Each one refused, even although they knew that it might be the means of saving their lives. I think of a Pakistani Christian named Asia, who has now spent about seven years in prison because she had the temerity to offer a cup of water to a fellow-worker in the fields, on a hot day. That fellow-worker was a Muslim - and was so offended by this, that Asia was reported under the "Blasphemy Laws" of Pakistan, and sentenced to death! She has been given many opportunities to become a Muslim, and be set free - but she has steadfastly refused to do so.

I wonder where you, and I, if we claim to be disciples of Jesus, stand in our faithfulness to Him? The anonymous (human) author of the Letter to Hebrew disciples of Jesus writes: "Consider Him Who endured from sinners such hostility against Himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood." (Heb 12:3-4; emphasis added). I wonder if, with the knife-blade of a fanatic already at my throat, I would be as faithful as those young Copts.  I wonder if, after about seven years in prison, in solitary confinement for my own safety, I would still be faithful to the Lord Jesus. I trust that I would - and believe that, if I were to be in any such situation, I would indeed receive the grace that I needed to remember to "... take the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." (Eph 6:13).

Let us never forget those who, on a daily basis, are indeed called upon to show that they are truly His. Let us pray that we, who enjoy so much relative ease in the "west", will be likewise faithful if, and when, real persecution comes to us!

"Facts are chiels that dinna' ding"!

I posted this video on my Facebook page, last night, but believe that it should also be offered to a different audience.  Please feel free to share - at least by directing folk to the blog.

When Jesus of Nazareth appeared before the Roman Procurator, Pontius Pilate, He was asked: "What is truth?" One answer to that question might well be: "Something that some people do not wish to have made public"!

This is a brief video that should be compulsory viewing for all of the anti-Jewish George Galloways, etc., of this world. It simply provides a number of easily-verifiable points.

Truth will out!

There are few days in which some reference is not made, in the British media, to the situation in the Middle East.  This does not simply mean reports from the ongoing civil war in Syria; or to the continuing unrest in Egypt; or to the latest visit to one of the Middle eastern countries by some 'high-flying' diplomat/politician.  It invariably means that those nasty Israelis are, yet again, bullying the poor Palestinians.  At least that is what much of the media would have us believe! 

At the centre of the situation is the city of Jerusalem.  It is claimed to be holy (i.e. separated from, and different to, anything else) by both Judaism and Islam.  However, the way in which it is treated by both gives the lie to one of those claims!  Here's a clue - the "Holy City" of Islam is Makkah (Mecca) in Saudi Arabia!

This video gives some interesting information - as does the "Show More" button, just under the screen if you go to the YouTube page to view.   The sound doesn't commence until about 1m20s into the video - so don't adjust your volume!



sh’alu shalom yerushalayim.   (Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.)  Ps.122:6

The truth will out!!

In an interview for a research project at the University of Oxford, the head of the BBC, Mark Thompson, has admitted that the broadcaster would never mock Mohammed like it mocks Jesus.

He justified the astonishing admission of religious bias by suggesting that mocking Mohammed might have the “emotional force” of “grotesque child pornography”.

But Jesus is fair game because, he said, Christianity has broad shoulders and fewer ties to ethnicity.

Mr Thompson says the BBC would never have broadcast Jerry Springer The Opera – a controversial musical that mocked Jesus – if its target had been Mohammed.

Mr Thompson said: “The point is that for a Muslim, a depiction, particularly a comic or demeaning depiction, of the Prophet Mohammed might have the emotional force of a piece of grotesque child pornography.”

Last year former BBC news anchor Peter Sissons said Christians are “fair game” for insults at the corporation, whilst Muslims must not be offended.

Mr Sissons, whose memoirs were serialised in the Daily Mail, said: “Islam must not be offended at any price, although Christians are fair game because they do nothing about it if they are offended.”

The former presenter also said that staff damage their careers if they don’t follow the BBC’s mindset.

PA Leader: All Muslims are Obligated to Kill Jews

A top Palestinian Authority religious leader claimed in a sermon at a major Fatah event that Muslims are obligated to kill the Jews.  The Mufti Muhammad Hussein presented the murder of Jews by Muslims as a religious Islamic goal while celebrating the 47th anniversary of the Palestinian Authority’s Fatah faction.

An appointee of Palestinian Authority Chairman and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas, the Mufti made the claim at an official Fatah event marking the founding of the largest faction in the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), also led by Abbas, as well.

Citing what he said was the Hadith (the Islamic tradition attributed to Muslim prophet Muhammad), the Mufti claimed “The Hour [of Resurrection] will not come until you fight the Jews. The Jew will hide behind stone or trees. Then the stones or trees will call: ‘O Muslim, servant of Allah (God), there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.’ ”

Although a video of the speech was previously available on YouTube, it has been removed because it violated the site’s Terms of Service for violence.

A poll sponsored by the Israel Project found that 73 percent of Palestinian Arabs “believe” this Hadith, according to the findings of a July 2011 study by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner.  The moderator who introduced the Mufti also reiterated another “Islamic belief” — that the Jews are descendants of apes and pigs,” according to a broadcast on PA TV translated by the media watchdog agency Palestinian Media Watch (PMW).  “Our war with the descendants of the apes and pigs (ie: the Jews) is a war of religion and faith,” the moderator said.

The Mufti added to the moderator’s statement, saying that Islam’s goal is to kill the Jews. The same cleric preached in a sermon at Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa Mosque in 2010 that the Jews are “enemies of Allah.”

Persecution continues, unabated!

Recently, on my Facebook page, I was taken to task (albeit, politely, by a former pupil) for raising the issue of the continuing persecution of disciples of Jesus by some of those who claim to be upholding the religion of Islam.  Unfortunately, I am able to publicise only a small percentage of the cases of persecution that come my way - not all of them, admittedly, the actions of Muslim extremists!

Today, I received the following     
http://mail.google.com/mail/#inbox/132caa82431ce1f4   
which I recommend to all who visit this blog.  The site (please copy, and paste, the link) provides a number of cases of overt persecution - most of them by Muslims.  Each and all of them may be verified.

Whatever one may say, and however one may seek to "sweeten the pill", it is a simple fact that there are those within Islam whose strongest desire is to see the re-establishment of the "ummah".  This is a world-wide Islamic 'state' in which shariah (Islamic law) alone is practised.  The late al-Quaeda leader, Osama bin Laden, called for Muslims to "establish the righteous caliphate of our ummah."

I have no desire to deliberately offend any moderate Muslim and, indeed, have been friendly with such in the past, and continue to have a good relationship with some at the present time.  However, as the Scottish Bard pointed out in The Dream: "... facts are chiels that winna ding, an' downa be disputed" [= "facts are fellows that will not be overturned, and cannot be disputed"], and the fact is that extreme Islam is the most militant force in the world today - whether against other religious groups, or against secular society.  Hassan al-Banna, founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, has stated that it "is the nature of Islam to dominate, not to be dominated, to impose its laws on all nations and to extend its power to the entire planet."(Islam: A Mosaic, Not a Monolith; Vartan Gregorian, 2003).

It is surely incumbent upon people of good-will, everywhere, to be alert to such a goal - and to do all that is possible to thwart its realisation.

Sharia

Some will be aware that there are Sharia (Islamic Law) Courts already operating in certain parts of the U.K. This has been a cause for concern to many for some time.  However, at last, someone is taking positive action with regard to the situation.  Baroness Cox - a 'cross-bench' peer, and a leading humanitarian campaigner - has introduced, to the House of Lords, the Arbitration and Mediation Services (Equality) Bill, which is intended to outlaw the use of Sharia law where it conflicts with English law.

You may read about this in more detail at

http://www.christianconcern.com/our-concerns/social/new-bill-to-stop-sharia-law-operating-in-the-uk

and, if you wish (and you have a UK home address), you may encourage other members of the House of Lords to support the Bill, by going to

http://equalandfree.org/take-action-now  (in both cases, please copy and paste.  I still haven't found out how to add 'hot links' to a post!)

and following the directions given there.

I would hope that many will do so, and take a stand against this creeping of Sharia into this country.  To fail to do so now could well mean that, at some time in the not-too-distant future, it would end up trumping traditional British Law which, while a long way from being perfect (it is, after all, man-made!), has a fairness, and equality, that is totally lacking in Sharia.

The secret 'Halal' meat scandal.

This is a longer video clip than I would normally post, but it just arrived in my mail-box and is, I believe, worth viewing. 

 

If you wish to register your own protest about this situation, please go to

https://barnabasfund.org/halal-petition/?m=10%2523245%2523445%2523522  (copy and paste!)

and sign the online petition sponsored by the Barnabas Fund.

SOMALIA – Militants murder Christian and snatch children for military training

The following has just arrived in my mail-box and, since Somalia seems to only be in the secular news when there is piracy on the high seas, or when a westerner has been taken hostage, I want to highlight the activities of those who deal in death, violence, and abduction against Christians.

Al Shabaab insurgents in Somalia are reported to have murdered a Christian and abducted his four children for military training.  Extremists shot dead Osman Abdullah Fataho in front of his wife and children at their home in Afgoi near Mogadishu – before kidnapping the woman and her family on July 21.  They later released Osman's wife – but kept her children, who are aged five, seven, ten and 15, according to Compass Direct news agency. Compass sources suggest the children will be forcibly converted to Islam and turned into child soldiers.

Osman, who was 'deeply involved' in the activities of his secret Christian community, is reported to have been raised as a Muslim – making him an obvious target for Al Shabaab.The insurgents are determined to extend Sharia or strict Islamic law across Somalia – and are actively targeting Christians, murdering at least 15 of them last year alone. Al Shabaab recently outlawed bell-ringing at the end of school classes – because it evoked the sound of church bells.  Compass Direct reports that this and other instances of anti-Christian violence have forced several leaders of Somalia's underground Christian movement to flee their homes and go into hiding.

Those of us who are disciples of Jesus would want to ask God to comfort and strengthen Osman's grieving and traumatised family, and to pray that his children will be rescued and reunited with their mother.  We would also want to pray that God will protect and multiply His church in Somalia so that they will 'shine like stars' in this troubled land (Philippians 2:15).

What is a Christian?

Sometimes I despair!  So many who claim to be followers of the Christ, yet whose every action seems to indicate that they are a million miles away from His character, His example, and His teaching.  George W. Bush and Tony Blair both claimed to be "Christian".  Yet they 'led' their respective countries into two major invasions that, between them, have cost the lives of hundreds of thousands - mostly civilian!  By the way, I placed the word 'led' in single quotation marks because, of course, they didn't actually lead.  One might have had some measure of, albeit grudging, respect for them had they donned uniform, and been found in the front line.  I suspect that neither man would have had the courage to do so.  It's much easier to send others - some still in their teens - to do one's fighting for one, and to die in the process!

However, now it's even a group who claim to be 'evangelical' Christians!  Today's Telegraph newspaper had an article about them.  "The Dove World Outreach Centre in Gainesville, Florida, has launched 'International Burn a Koran Day' to coincide with this weekend's anniversary of the September 11 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington in protest at what it calls "the evil of Islam".  'We will burn the Koran in remembrance of the fallen victims of 9/11 and to stand against the evil of Islam. Islam is of the devil,' said the Christian group."

Now I am certainly not here to defend Islam at any level, least of all the extremism that led to '9/11', and to other atrocities both before and since.   However, I have to ask, as does Gen.Petraeus, the U.S.of A. military commander in Afghanistan, what this group hopes to gain from this display.  Jesus said to His disciples: "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves." (Matt 10:16; RSV).  I see little wisdom in the proposed action of this group.  It will only make even moderate Muslims - who hold the physical Qur'an in much higher regard than many 'Christians' hold the Bible! - become more extreme, and politicised, in their views (and actions?!).

It is to be hoped that these misguided people will think again, and cancel their proposed action; rather than simply provide propoganda fuel for those whom they oppose.