Via CatholicVote:
1. Christianity is growing worldwide.
"Christianity should enjoy a worldwide boom in the coming decades, but the vast majority of believers will be neither white nor European, nor Euro-American," writes scholar Philip Jenkins of Baylor University, author of The Next Christendom.
A few examples: Christianity grew from 40 million African members in 1900 to 100 million in 2000, and hasn't stopped; India has five times as many Catholics as Ireland, and China will be the country with the largest number of Christians in the world by the year 2050.
Secular scholars see this: Books like God's Century by Monica Duffy Toft of Public Policy at the John F. Kennedy School of Government and God Is Back by John Micklethwait and Adrian Wooldridge of The Economist are trying to figure out what that will mean. British geneticist Steve Jones sees sceptics dying out and religious people on the rise.
2. Believing Christians are Replacing Nominal Christians.
Meanwhile, in America, research showing Christian numbers in decline is a little misleading. Ed Stetzer points out that the data shows a decline in "cultural Christians" and "congregational Christians" but a rise in "convictional Christians."
In other words: The total number of people claiming they are Christians is dropping; the total number of people saying they have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is growing.
3. Catholics are rediscovering Confession and Mass.
Meanwhile, among Catholics, there is a rise in interest in the sacraments. Many parishes that rarely offered confession have returned to regular schedules and the Church has gone through a long process of renewing the Mass.
The Church is promoting confession as never before: Examples from Lent included Vatican's 24 hours for the Lord churchwide, a successful effort in Great Britain, Chicago's Festival of Forgiveness and Philadelphia's confession initiative.
4. Eucharistic Adoration is on the rise.
The worldwide church is led by a man who prays a daily Eucharistic hour and the Church in America is actively promoting Eucharistic adoration through events like the Eucharistic Adoration Novena.
In 2005, RealPresence.org's president, Mike Mortimer, estimated that there were 715 perpetual adoration chapels in America. The Vatican now estimates that there are 1,100 perpetual adoration chapels in America. More people are spending more time with the Lord than they have for years.
I don't remember encountering Eucharistic Adoration ever as a child or teen in the faith; now it is part of every youth activity my children attend from a variety of different groups.
5. Catholic youth movements are huge…
A movement's future is only as strong as its next generation, and so for Catholicism to have a future it has to have a youth movement. Catholicism does. Our most recent World Youth Day attracted 3.7 million - one of the 30-year event's largest gatherings ever.
At home, we see a pro-life force largely led by young American Catholics, which dwarfs almost every other activist movement.
I love the startled reaction of Nancy Keenan of NARAL when she stopped at Union Station in Washington, D.C., during the March for Life. She saw the young pro-life protesters and said, "There are so many, and they are so young..."
I encourage you to follow the link and read the rest of the list!
Pope tells presidents only God can bring peace to Holy Land
Praying for peace in the Holy Land alongside leaders of long-antagonistic nations, Pope Francis called on God to act where human efforts had failed, to end what he described as violence inspired by the devil.
"More than once we have been on the verge of peace, but the evil one, employing a variety of means, has succeeded in blocking it," the pope said June 8 at an evening ceremony in the Vatican Gardens. "That is why we are here, because we know and we believe that we need the help of God."
The pope addressed his remarks to Israeli President Shimon Peres and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas during an "invocation for peace" in the Holy Land, to which he had invited them during his visit to the region two weeks earlier.
The event, at which Christians, Muslims and Jews prayed in each other's presence, was almost certainly the first of its kind at the Vatican, according to Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Holy See Press Office.
Also read: Palestinian Christians: A New Generation Rises for Peace
Tom Shillue hosts and welcomes guests Joe DeVito and Patti Ann Browne.
No Hashtag For Pregnant Christian Facing Execution in Islamic Sudan
There will not be a hashtag for the pregnant Christian facing execution in Islamic Sudan, set to die for apostasy. The Obama Administration will not take up her cause, or in feigned outrage, protest her execution with a little shout out on social media.
She will die, unless divine intervention comes from another source. Leftists progressives have used the Boko Haram outrage for the own devices, to divert attention to any perceived "social injustice" committed against Muslims in Nigeria. This is appeasement in action.
If the Obama Administration cared anything about Islamic atrocities they would refocus attention to the certain execution of pregnant Christian Mariam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag. She will not convert to Islam, and her punishment will be 100 lashings and a hanging. This is Islamic punishment for apostasy and adultery, both for the same reason, in not marrying a Muslim and abandoning Christianity.
But there will be no uproar from the Obama Administration about this incident, no hashtag, and mention from Leftists on social media. It's selective attention, and the execution of a Christian woman is of no matter to Obama and company.
Also read: Pregnant Christian woman will be allowed to give birth before being hanged
This video was uploaded to YouTube last Saturday and probably took place either on that day or the previous day. If you haven't already seen this video then I must warn you that it does end in the murder of two teenagers and it is disturbing. It is disturbing not just in the final cruel, murderous brutality but in the way that the suspense of what is about to happen creeps along. You can really feel a sense of dread steadily increasing as you see the victims are trapped, with literally no place left to hide or run.
The killers are the same kinds of Muslim Brotherhood supporters of Mohamed Morsi who are now claiming that he was the "victim" of a "fascist" coup. I would remind everybody that it takes more than merely going through the motions of having an election to have a democratic government. They do, after all, hold "democratic" elections in Iran for instance. Yes, Egypt had an election and Morsi won but he immediately began asserting dictatorial control.
The people of Egypt who toppled him, with the aid of the military who represented the only enforcement mechanism available, were right to fear that there would be no later elections that would allow them to defeat Morsi democratically. And one of the reasons for the turning out of millions and millions of Egyptians in protest and Morsi's ouster is the kind of violence shown in the video that has been inflicted on those people and groups that Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood hate - Coptic Christians in particular.
Last week came the horrible news that a Roman Catholic priest, Father Francois Murad, was killed in Syria while attempting to protect nuns in their convent. Now this:
"The Vatican is confirming the death by beheading of Franciscan Father, Francois Murad, who was martyred by Syrian jihadists on June 23."
On Sunday, June 23 the Syrian priest François Murad was killed in Gassanieh, in northern Syria, in the convent of the Custody of the Holy Land where he had taken refuge. This is confirmed by a statement of the Custos of the Holy Land sent to Fides Agency. The circumstances of the death are not fully understood. According to local sources, the monastery where Fr. Murad was staying was attacked by militants linked to the jihadi group Jabhat al-Nusra.
Father François, 49, had taken the first steps in the religious life with the Franciscan Friars of the Custody of the Holy Land, and with them he continued to share close bonds of spiritual friendship. After being ordained a priest he had started the construction of a coenobitic monastery dedicated to St. Simon Stylites in the village of Gassanieh. After the start of the Civil War, the monastery of St. Simon had been bombed and Fr. Murad had moved to the convent of the Custody for safety reasons and to give support to the remaining few, along with another religious and nuns of the Rosary.
"Let us pray," writes the Custos of the Holy Land, Pierbattista Pizzaballa OFM, "so that this absurd and shameful war ends soon and that the people of Syria can go back to living a normal life." Archbishop Jacques Behnan Hindo, titular of the Syrian Catholic archeparchy in Hassaké-Nisibis reports to Fides: "The whole story of Christians in the Middle East is marked and made fruitful by the blood of the martyrs of many persecutions. Lately, Father Murad sent me some messages that clearly showed how conscious he was of living in a dangerous situation, and offered his life for peace in Syria and around the world."
This horrific war crime was committed by members of the Syrian "rebel" alliance - the same people for whom Barack Obama and John McCain are using taxpayer money to arm and equip. They are allies of the United States and they all have innocent blood on their hands. At the same time that Dear Leader is declaring an end to the War on Terror, he enters an alliance with monsters like this. He is is not attempting to stop genocide, he is facilitating it!
This should make it clear to Christians around the world what jihadists are about. Make no mistake. Catholics and Christians around the globe are under dire threat, particularly from the spread of militant Islam. Until the threat is recognized and taken seriously, martyrdoms like this will continue.
We have a link to video provided via LiveLeak. We must warn you, the video is extremely graphic. We believe the first victim is Father Francois, and the second victim that is depicted is another person said to be a collaborator with the Assad regime.
The video CLEARLY depicts the beheadings of these victims. DO NOT follow the link unless you are over the age of 18, and are prepared to view content of this nature.
Catholic Online believes it is very important the world knows that Christians are being murdered for their faith, and that martyrdom isn't an ancient phenomenon.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW
Aftermath of Arab Spring proves worse for Christians than Qaddafi regime
What began as a Western-backed chance to assist Libyans in gaining freedom from an oppressive dictator has resulted, according to some reports, in nearly the entire population of 100,000 Libyan Christians leaving the country. The rising power of numerous radical Islamist militias, which have recently launched a low-scale terror war against Christians, is increasingly being felt throughout the country. This anti-Christian effort by Islamist militias has also been aided by a Libyan government incapable or even unwilling to protect Libya's Christians. While it is unknown if it is the Libyan jihadists' goal to have all Christians expelled, the fear created by their operations is producing that effect.
Tiny when compared to Libya's 97 percent Sunni Muslim population, most Libyan Christians are Roman Catholics or followers of the Egypt-based Coptic Orthodox Church. Libya's Coptic Orthodox, many of whom came to the country from Egypt (and have also fled back to the country), often run small businesses in urban locations such as Tripoli or Benghazi. Many Christians still in Libya are foreign laborers who have worked there since Qaddafi ruled the country.
Even before the revolution, Libya's previous leader, the ever capricious Muhammar Qaddafi, was no fan of Christianity. Immediately following Qaddafi's rise to power, he made sure to convert Tripoli's Roman Catholic Cathedral into Tripoli's Grand Mosque.
GLOBAL ASSAULT ON CHRISTIANS
Religious liberty scholar Paul Marshall, journalist Lela Gilbert, and human rights lawyer Nina Shea have released a new book on international torment of Christians by Islamists and communists called Persecuted: The Global Assault on Christians (Thomas Nelson). Their launch was March 27 at the Hudson Institute, where all three are affiliated, with Dietrich Bonhoeffer biographer Eric Metaxas moderating.
It's rarely if ever fashionable among Western elites to focus on persecution of Christians. According to secular and leftist mythology, Christians are habitually the persecutors and imperialists. Victims groups are typically non-Christians. But today most Christians are outside the West, in the East or Global South, where hundreds of millions are routinely vulnerable to oppressive regimes and/or hostile movements. The largest persecuted Christian group is in China. But persecution of Christians is most ascendant against Christians in majority Muslim countries.
Even U.S. citizens who are persecuted for their faith overseas are not a typical priority for the U.S. Government or the media, Shea observed. Pastor Saeed Abedini, a U.S. citizen and ethnic Iranian who returned to Iran, has been imprisoned and tortured there for 6 months because of his Christian ministry. It was not until March 22, in a statement issued very late on a Friday, that Secretary of State John Kerry publicly called for his release.
"I am deeply concerned about the fate of U.S citizen Saeed Abedini, who has been detained for almost six months and was sentenced to eight years in prison in Iran on charges related to his religious beliefs," Kerry wrote. "I am disturbed by reports that Mr. Abedini has suffered physical and psychological abuse in prison, and that his condition has become increasingly dire."
Oddly, Kerry never mentioned that the imprisoned pastor is Christian, although U.S. Government pleas on behalf of tolerance for other religious groups often cite the religion. Shea blamed a "misguided multiculturalism" that is unwilling to acknowledge Christians as victims and that thinks silence about radical Islam extends an olive branch that will earn good will. "It doesn’t work," she said. "And it sends the wrong signal."
