Police Halt Christian Wedding in Eritrea

On July 25, police disrupted a Christian wedding ceremony in the Eritrean town of Senafe, arresting 30 guests and members of the wedding party, Compass Direct reported. Police ordered everyone who was not Pentecostal to leave immediately, Compass said. Thirty Christians remained and were taken to the police station. In early August, all but two had been released after signing a document promising not to participate in any evangelical Christian weddings in the future.

Anti-Conversion Bill Ruled Unconstitutional

Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court ruled that certain significant clauses in a controversial bill prohibiting conversions were unconstitutional, Sri Lanka’s Daily News reported. The Prohibition of Forcible Conversion of Religion Bill was introduced in July by the all-Buddhist Jathika Hela Urumaya party, which has been working to ban allegedly “unethical” conversions to Christianity. The legislation proposed fines of up to $11,000 and up to seven years in prison for violators. The court said the bill would have to be approved by two-thirds of the Parliament and put before the people through a national referendum in order to become law, the News reported.

Brazil Court Reverses Pastors’ Conviction

An appeals court in Sao Paulo has reversed the conviction last year of two evangelists charged with violating the South American nation’s “hate crime” law. The landmark case involving evangelicals and Afro-Brazilian spiritists is the first to test a federal law declaring it a crime to “practice, induce, or incite discrimination” against members of another religion, Compass Direct reported. Umbanda and Candomble spiritist groups brought criminal charges more than two years ago against Baptist pastor Joaquim de Andrade and Anglican Aldo dos Santos, claiming that gospel tracts they distributed at the annual Iemanja festival disparaged the African deity, and therefore violated the federal law. In April 2003, the men were found guilty, but refused to pay the fine imposed and appealed the verdict. Andrade hailed the appeals court’s decision as upholding freedom of speech and their right to conduct personal evangelism in public places.

Produced by Walden Media and Walt Disney Studios, the film is scheduled to release in late 2005

Following the success of The Lord of the Rings series, another fantasy film project with spiritual overtones is making its way to the big screen during the 2005 holiday season.

Walden Media–owned by Christian billionaire Philip Anschutz–is partnering with the Walt Disney Studios to create The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, based on the children’s book by C.S. Lewis first published in 1950.

Walden Media and Disney will co-finance the $100 million project, with Disney distributing it worldwide and retaining the merchandise and all ancillary rights, Walt Disney Studios Chairman Dick Cook said. Plans for a Narnia video game already are in the works.

“We’re pleased to partner once again with Walden Media,” Cook said. “I think this is just the kind of movie audiences are looking for, and we’re thrilled to be able to bring it to the screen.”

The Chronicles of Narnia is one of the most successful series in the history of children’s literature, with more than 85 million copies sold to date. Walden has optioned the rights to all seven of the titles, and Disney has optioned the right to retain its partnership with Walden for the entire series.

“Disney has been a great friend and partner with our company on Holes, Ghosts of the Abyss and this summer’s Around the World in 80 Days,” said Walden co-founders Cary Granat and Michael Flaherty. “The combination of C.S. Lewis’ visionary Chronicles of Narnia with the incredible strength and uniqueness of the Walt Disney brand and organization makes this a true dream project for us.”

Director Andrew Adamson (Shrek and Shrek 2) and award-winning writer Ann Peacock (A Lesson Before Dying) signed on to bring the first of the classic tales to theaters. Although casting had not been fully announced at press time, Tilda Swinton (Adaptation, Vanilla Sky) had been cast in the pivotal role of the White Witch and James McAvoy (Band of Brothers) was to play Tumnus.

Scheduled to be filmed this summer in New Zealand, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe tells the story of siblings Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy Pevensie, who are separated from their parents in London during World War II and sent to the country for their own safety. Once ensconced in an eccentric uncle’s estate, the children soon discover a magic wardrobe that leads them to the mystical world of Narnia. There, a classic battle of good vs. evil unfolds, with plenty of spiritual analogy that centers around Lewis’ Christian worldview.

Special-effects studio Rhythm & Hues is expected to create more than 700 shots for the film, including matte paintings and photo-realistic, computer-generated characters, such as Aslan, the talking lion. The effects studio is known for its recent work creating digital characters for such films as Daredevil, Scooby-Doo and its sequel, and Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat.

Walden Media burst onto the film scene in 2001, co-founded by Granat, a former Miramax film executive, and Flaherty, an education reformer. Walden is part of the Anschutz Film Group (AFG), along with Bristol Bay Productions, which focuses on projects that offer “compelling and positive messages that the entire family can enjoy,” and Crusader Entertainment, which produced the Christian movie Joshua. AFG is a subsidiary of The Anschutz Company, an investment and holding company Anschutz owns.

The media-shy Anschutz, who made his first fortune in oil and founded the Anschutz Company in 1958, today owns vast holdings in real estate, transportation, entertainment, communications and more. His entertainment holdings include 78 percent of Regal Entertainment group, which includes the Regal Cinemas, Edwards Theaters and United Artists Theaters.

The privately owned company recently purchased The San Francisco Examiner and owns the Staples Center in Los Angeles as well as sports franchises there. Anschutz is also chairman and majority owner of Qwest Communications, the nation’s fourth-largest long-distance company.

Walden Media produced several highly regarded family-friendly films in its first three years, and planned to release Carlisle School, about the life of Olympic gold medal winner Jim Thorpe, in September, and I Am David starring James Caviezel (The Passion of the Christ) in October. In addition, Regal Cinemas has heightened awareness of Christian music in the last year through three premieres. The company hosted DVD release parties on the big screen for Third Day and MercyMe, as well as a live presentation of the 35th Annual Gospel Music Association Music Awards on 50 theaters nationwide.
Natalie Nichols Gillespie

100 Chinese Church Leaders Released

One hundred Chinese house-church leaders were released from police custody after being arrested June 11, Asia Harvest reported July 2. The leaders were gathered in the central city of Wuhan for a retreat organized by the China Gospel Fellowship, one of the largest house-church networks in China. The arrests were believed to confirm a crackdown on China’s underground Christian movement. Upon their release, the church leaders were told to return to their hometowns and villages, where they are required to stay. They must also report regularly to local authorities, Asia Harvest said. The advocacy group noted that the action is an attempt to control their movements, as many of those arrested are evangelists who minister throughout China.

Anti-Conversion Law Approved in Sri Lanka

The Sri Lankan Cabinet gave initial approval June 18 for a draft bill that would make religious conversion illegal in the predominantly Buddhist nation. The Parliament was to give the bill further consideration July 20, Window International Network (WIN) reported. At press time, the Act for the Protection of Religious Freedom was to be revised by the government’s draftsman before being made law, Compass Direct reported. Under the Sri Lankan Constitution, after Parliament has passed a law, it cannot be considered for judicial review. If the bill becomes law, Christians would not be able to share their faith without being accused of “inducement” and possibly facing fines or imprisonment, WIN said. Churches and missionaries also could be charged with forcible conversion, WIN said.

Pakistan Drafts Bill To Revise Blasphemy Laws

In July the Pakistani government announced that it would introduce a bill to revise the Hudood Ordinances and blasphemy laws that religious-liberty activists say have been used to persecute Christians in the Muslim-dominated region, Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) reported. The draft bill would also criminalize “honor” killings. Mervyn Thomas, chief executive of CSW, welcomed the draft bill but said ultimately the “unjust” blasphemy laws needed to be repealed.

How to Find Peace With God

Perhaps in reading this issue of Charisma you realized that you have never made a Christian commitment. Don’t delay that decision! We encourage you to embrace God’s love today and receive the salvation that only Jesus Christ gives. Here are five simple steps you can take to find assurance of salvation:

1. Recognize your need. The Bible tells us that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23, NASB). All of us are sinners, and we must admit our need for a Savior.

2. Repent of your sins. Our sins create a wall that separates us from God. By confessing your sins and turning from them, you will find forgiveness. The Bible promises: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

3. Believe in Jesus. God wrought a miracle when He sent His only Son to die so that He could pay for all our sins. Put your faith in Him and believe in His power to save you. The Bible says, “‘For God so loved the world, that He gave His only

4. Receive His salvation. God has given us a great gift in His Son, but we must receive His gift. Thank Him for loving and forgiving you, and ask Him to live in your heart. His promise to us is clear: “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12).

5. Confess your faith. The Bible assures us: “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom. 10:9). You have been born again and are now part of God’s family. Tell someone else what Jesus has done in your life!

WORLD RELIEF PRESIDENT CLIVE CALVER RESIGNS
In July Clive Calver announced his resignation as president of World Relief (WR), effective Sept. 30. He and his wife will then serve as ministers-at-large until March 31. After seven years at the helm of the 60-year-old organization, which is the humanitarian-assistance arm of the National Association of Evangelicals, Calver, 55, said he plans to transition into local-church ministry. WR board chairman Gordon MacDonald praised Calver’s networking ability, saying the London native “led the organization to a place of respect and partnership with a growing number of American churches.” A search for a new president is under way.

GWEN SHAMBLIN’S REMNANT FELLOWSHIP UNDER SCRUTINY
Police raided the headquarters of the church founded by Weigh Down diet author Gwen Shamblin as part of an investigation into the beating death of an 8-year-old boy whose parents are members of her Remnant Fellowship, the Associated Press (AP) reported. Former members told police the ministry sanctioned severe beatings and locking children in bare rooms with a Bible until they learned obedience, the AP said. Authorities say Josef Smith showed signs of chronic abuse, but Shamblin said she believes Joseph and Sonya Smith’s claim that their son’s death was an accident, the AP said. Remnant is helping the Mableton, Ga., couple pay for legal expenses. In 2002, several Christian bookstores pulled Shamblin’s books from their shelves after she claimed the members of Trinity were not equal in authority. Shamblin told the AP the investigation was an attempt to bring down her ministry, which she said has 130 affiliated churches.

PENTECOSTAL PASTOR MENTIONED IN BILL CLINTON BOOK
In his memoirs, My Life, former President Bill Clinton discusses his relationship with Louisiana pastors Anthony and Mickey Mangun, who lead The Pentecostals of Alexandria, the Alexandria Town Talk reported. Clinton credits the ministers with helping him get through the fallout from his affair with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky. Anthony Mangun, who met the Clintons at an Arkansas Christian camp meeting in 1977, said that though their political views are opposite, he and Clinton have remained friends. “As he says in the book, when others jumped ship and everything was against him, we stayed with him as friends,” Mangun told the Town Talk.

PRAYER VIGIL SEEKS TO ‘CHANGE HEART’ OF STRIP CLUB OWNER
More than 100 Christians in a Nevada community recently gathered near a new strip club to pray for owner Joe Richards’ soul. Opponents of the Kingdom Gentleman’s Club in Pahrump, located 60 miles west of Las Vegas, held hands and prayed during the vigil in early July, The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. “We need to pray for Mr. Richards, because only God can change his heart and bring those signs down,” said Shirley Trummell, a 19-year Pahrump resident who organized the vigil. Since Richards opened the Kingdom Gentleman’s Club on June 9, the business and its prominent signs featuring scantily clad women in suggestive poses have caused an uproar. The backlash has even fueled a push to abolish legal prostitution in Nye County, the Review-Journal reported.

Pentecostal Pastor Leads Re-Election Drive

A Seattle-area Assemblies of God pastor is spearheading a statewide effort to re-elect President George W. Bush, as well as an ambitious drive to register 60,000 people statewide to vote. Joe Fuiten, pastor of Cedar Park Assembly of God, one of the largest churches in the state, said he believes “God wants us to be involved in government,” the Seattle Times reported. Some say his efforts violate the separation between church and state. However, Fuiten said his voter-registration drive is separate from the re-election campaign he leads as a private citizen.

Tenney Novel Headed To Big Screen

Filming is scheduled to begin this month on a movie adaptation of evangelist Tommy Tenney’s popular novel, Hadassah: One Night With the King. Based on the life of Esther, the film is being produced by Matt Crouch’s Gener8Xion Entertainment and is set to release in March. Best known for his book God Chasers, Tenney said he plans to spend more time working with film producers to create biblically themed motion pictures.

Pastor Gunned Down During Church Service

A 26-year-old Presbyterian pastor was assassinated in Indonesia July 18 while preaching in her church, the Associated Press reported. Four masked gunmen arrived on motorcycles at Efatah Church in Palu and opened fire on the Rev. Susianty Tinulele and her worship team. Ten people were injured. Christian Solidarity Worldwide and Barnabus Fund, which investigate persecution of Christians, said militants may have wanted to punish Tinulele for her support of jailed pastor Rinaldy Damanik, head of the Crisis Center of Central Sulawesi, Assist News Service (ANS) said. Damanik was imprisoned in 2002 after speaking out about human rights abuses. Human rights groups say the murder may be linked to a campaign to kill prominent Christians in the area, possibly to disrupt Indonesia’s elections, ANS said.

BOOKS

Fatal Attractions
By Jack Hayford, Regal Books,

softcover, 152 pages, $.

No-nonsense straight talk is what pastor and author Jack Hayford delivers in his newest book, Fatal Attractions: Why Sex Sins Are Worse Than Others. A great communicator, Hayford reiterates that God forgives and cleanses individuals from sex sins as easily as other sins. But he warns readers that the consequences of these sins may remain for a lifetime. Sex sins do more damage to individuals, marriages, families and even societies as a whole than other sins. They affect people in body, soul and spirit.

Hayford delicately balances proclaiming hope of recovery for those who have already messed up and yet holding out the promise and possibility of living pure for those who have not. He also makes it clear that he is speaking to Christians who want to live under the lordship of Jesus Christ; he doesn’t expect the unconverted to understand these principles or have the power to live them.

And for the non-Christians who open this book, Hayford doesn’t leave them without hope. An appendix includes prayers for salvation, being filled with the Holy Spirit and deliverance. The prevalence of deception surrounding promiscuous sex makes this book a valuable tool for today’s church.
Deborah L. Delk

From Zero to Eternity in 60 Seconds Flat
By Wendell Smith, Charisma
House, softcover, 180 pages, $.

Wendell Smith, senior pastor of the City Church in Seattle, provides believers with a quick and simple guide on how to evangelize in a matter of minutes in From Zero to Eternity in 60 Seconds Flat. Smith, who takes an assertive approach to being a witness, exhorts readers to open their eyes to see the many opportunities Christians are given each day to evangelize.

Getting to the point quickly, Smith offers multiple lists, ranging from Scripture verses on evangelism to places Christians normally would not think of to evangelize. He also provides “door openers” such as, “Are you ready for heaven?” and “God knows where you are, God knows where you need to be and only God knows how to get you there.”

With wisdom and sensitivity, Smith addresses being led by the Spirit, the gifts of the Spirit and prayer–all essential for effective evangelism–making this book suitable for readers who appreciate the value of making the most of every encounter with the lost.
Tara Ringham

FICTION

The Priest
By Francine Rivers, Tyndale House
Publishers, hardcover, 232 pages, $.

Award-winning author Francine Rivers’ newest series, Sons of Encouragement, begins with its first novella, The Priest, a story about Moses’ brother and encourager, Aaron. Similar in style to her Lineage of Grace series, which highlighted the lives of women in the Bible whom God included in the lineage of Christ, this series highlights men in the Bible who played a key role in bringing the story of redemption.

Rivers stays true to the biblical narrative’s outline, adding insightful details that give a richer understanding of what may have been happening between the lines in the lives of these characters. Readers will see their own human nature in the life of Aaron as he battles fear, envy and doubt in order to overcome failure and to fulfill his calling from God.

Scriptural portions and questions are included in the book for personal devotion or group study. The Priest will certainly prove to be an encouragement to those who read it.
Deborah L. Delk

A Delirious Summer
By Ray Blackston, Revell,
softcover, 336 pages, $.

A Delirious Summer, literary sequel to Ray Blackston’s Flabbergasted, takes you into the psyche of a single man, Neil, a language teacher and missionary living in Ecuador. Based on a whimsical suggestion from one of his students, Jay–who found love in the first novel–Neil searches for Miss Right in South Carolina, during his summer furlough.

As he encounters many of the same quirky characters from the first novel, Neil experiences life-altering events and exhilarating adventures. A thrill-seeking blonde, a zany Italian and a rule-abiding redhead lead Ladies of the Quest, girls ever ready to church-hop in search of Mr. Right. Neil quickly discovers that the jungles of Ecuador are no match for what he encounters in the jungles of dating, and even there, he finds there are people in need everywhere and that a missionary is never truly on furlough.

A humorous yet thought-provoking novel about dating, church-hopping, friendship and missions, A Delirious Summer is an enjoyable romantic escape that single as well as married individuals won’t want to put down.
Debra L. Edgar

Silenced
By Jerry B. Jenkins, Tyndale House
Publishers, hardcover, 348 pages, $.

As the dramatic saga of special agent Paul Stepola continues in the second book of the unnamed trilogy that began with Soon, the born-again agent is hot on the heels of the bomber who took down the Eiffel Tower and Big Ben with simultaneous explosions.

Keeping secret his newfound faith while on assignment for the government to root out believers in Christ, Stepola is on the verge of being discovered because his father-in-law, a former war hero, thinks Stepola has become sympathetic to Christians. If discovered, he could lose his wife and kids and, possibly, his life.

The bomber, meanwhile, takes credit for an ultimatum to the new world government when it is announced all believers must register or be executed. But when the bomber is killed in an attempt to capture him, many scoff at the ultimatum, and any doubts that Stepola had crossed over to the other side are erased.

However, the ultimatum is fulfilled by God with a plague on unbelieving families that surely will heighten Stepola’s anxiety about being discovered in the final book.
Larry J. Leech II

MUSIC

A Call to Worship: Live in D.C.
By Stephen Hurd, Integrity Music.

Stephen Hurd, a new Integrity Gospel artist, just released his debut project titled A Call to Worship. Hurd, a native of Washington, D.C., has been a worship leader at some of the largest and most influential churches.

He gained fans with two independent projects but now introduces himself to the world on the first cut, “Let It Rise,” remade with a smooth, sweet orchestral arrangement. He also includes “Cry Out O Zion,” a Caribbean-flavored tune, and the jazzy “Rejoice.”

Flowing into worship, Hurd leads listeners into God’s presence on “Lead Me to the Rock.” He also wrote “Philippians 4:13,” which is inspiring and moving with the beautiful background vocals of Hurd’s group, Corporate Worship.

“Undignified Praise (I Will Dance, I Will Sing),” written by worship artist Matt Redman, is a hand-clapping, foot-stomping tune beckoning listeners to take an active part in the praise experience. The Spirit keeps flowing with “The Oil of Your Anointing,” featuring melodious saxophone solos from James Cheeks.

This is a wonderful project from one of praise and worship’s most noted leaders.
René Williams

Today
By Brian Doerkson, Integrity Music.

For Brian Doerkson, his newest worship project must have felt like coming home. Recorded live in his hometown of Abbotsford, British Columbia, it’s quite the hometown effort, with a 75-voice chorus, children’s choir and the Mennonite Jazz Committee all pitching in to help.

Doerkson, who is known as the writer of “Come, Now Is the Time to Worship,” leads the experience with capable yet low-key vocals. Several songs deserve extra attention, including the opening celebration of the title song, which also benefits from vocals by Doerkson’s father and daughter in the closing reprise.

A men’s chorus heartily sings “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” setting the stage for the guitar pop of “Fortress 144.” The Jazz Committee blends perfectly on the reworking of the classic “Great Is Thy Faithfulness,” a duet with Brenda Janz.

By alternating tempos and moods, Doerkson has created a fine release with songs that could be easily incorporated into church worship.
DeWayne Hamby

VIDEOS

Sumo of the Opera
By VeggieTales, Big Idea Inc.

VeggieTales friends are back with a lesson from Hebrews 10:36. Sumo of the Opera teaches the importance of perseverance.

This Rocky-style flick features Larry the Italian Scallion as a wrestler who does not follow through. But when Larry has his eye on a prize, he is willing to enter the ring to face Apollo Gourd. But will the Italian Scallion persevere even though he’s outweighed?

VeggieTales movies wouldn’t be complete without silly songs. This time it’s “Schoolhouse Polka.” A clever, silent vignette featuring Three Veggie Stooges, of course based on the classic trio, reiterates the lesson. It’s available on VHS as well as DVD–which includes extra features such as a maze game, Veggie karaoke, coloring pages and more.

Classic VeggieTales. Classic fun!
Leigh DeVore

We don’t play black artists,” Christian radio stations told Integrity Music when it was promoting Live From Another Level, the new CD by Israel Houghton and New Breed.

Houghton, a worship leader at Lakewood Church in Houston, is not deterred. “It creates a vacuum of challenge for me to be an advocate. I’m half-black, half-white, raised in a Hispanic church. I love the meshing of these cultures.”

Houghton’s songwriting for the last 14 years reflects that blend, and at Lakewood Church he is at home among the culturally diverse congregation of 30,000. In most churches, though, Houghton finds that Sunday morning worship services are segregated.

Houghton says: “It’s sad there’s still a skin-tone issue. … In heaven are there sections? A black section? A white section?”

Houghton is motivated even more because he was born of a white teenager shunned for getting pregnant by her black boyfriend. Pressured to abort, Houghton’s mother ran away, was led to the Lord and named him after reading about Israel in the Bible.

He now feels like the captain of an all-star team. All 14 members of New Breed also lead music in their own churches. The group spreads a message that crosses cultural, generational and denominational boundaries. Houghton says New Breed creates interactive worship for “an audience of one; everything is lyrically geared toward ministering to God.”
Marsha Gallardo

CHARISMATIC TOP SELLERS

1. Pigs in the Parlor
Frank and Ida Mae Hammond

(Impact Christian Books)

2. Total Forgiveness
R.T. Kendall (Charisma House)

3. A Divine Revelation of Hell
Mary K. Baxter (Whitaker House)

4. The Three Battlegrounds
Francis Frangipane
(Arrow Publications)

5. Matters of the Heart

Juanita Bynum (Charisma House)

6. Prison to Praise
Merlin R. Carothers (Merlin R. Carothers)

7. Heaven Is So Real
Choo Thomas (Creation House Press)

8. A Divine Revelation of Heaven
Mary K. Baxter (Whitaker House)

9. The Tongue
Charles Capps (Harrison House)

10. Blessing or Curse: You Can Choose
Derek Prince (Chosen)

‘Creation care’ advocates say protecting the environment is part of biblical stewardship
For the last 20 years, charismatic pastor Leroy Hedman has taught his small Seattle congregation that caring for the environment is part of being a good Christian.

“Romans 8 says creation is in travail, and we can help that as Christians,” said Hedman, pastor of the nondenominational Georgetown Community Chapel.

The congregation of several dozen grows a large vegetable garden that it uses to feed people in the community. And in 1999, Georgetown became the first U.S. church to be awarded an Energy Star Award from the Environmental Protection Agency for its use of energy-efficient appliances, lighting, heating and cooling, which Hedman said has cut its electricity bill down to $25 a month.

He said the savings are used to fund outreach and missions activities. “It honors Christ to serve the creation,” Hedman told Charisma. “Why should the New Agers be the ones gathering the attention for preserving ‘Mother Earth’?”

For many Christians, environmental issues haven’t been high on the list of social concerns. But that may be changing as a small but growing number of believers begin to view “environmental stewardship” as part of their Christian responsibility, and examine ways to become more vocal about such issues as global warming, air and water pollution, and species extinction.

In June, about 30 ministry leaders–including representatives from the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE), World Vision, Southern Baptist Convention, Church of God (Cleveland, Tenn.), International Church of the Foursquare Gospel and Charisma magazine–convened at the Sandy Cove Christian Retreat Center outside Baltimore for a “creation care” conference aimed at raising awareness among Christians about pressing environmental issues.

Organized largely by the Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN), the invitation-only meeting included presentations from Sir John Houghton, an evangelical British physicist who is widely considered to be a leading authority on global warming; Howard Snyder, an Asbury Theological Seminary professor who discussed developing a theology that embraces creation care; and Larry Schweiger, a Christian who was recently named president of the National Wildlife Federation.

Several participants were hopeful that Christians would one day reclaim biblical environmental stewardship from radical extremists who have been accused of valuing trees and birds over humans. “Many people believe that in order to be concerned about the environment, you have to embrace liberal politics,” said NAE President Ted Haggard. “That is not true, and we need to reverse that stereotype.”

The three-day conference ended with participants agreeing to give further study to environmental issues, to educate their constituents about them and to develop a formal position on global warming within a year.

For people like the Rev. Jim Ball, who has been trying to mobilize Christians around environmental causes for 10 years, the meeting was an encouraging sign. “This [conference] was to reach out to those key leaders who really hadn’t thought about [the environment] much,” said Ball, executive director of the EEN (). “This is what we were hoping to achieve, that they would be open to listening to what other evangelical leaders were saying about this issue.”

Last year, Ball organized the What Would Jesus Drive? campaign to challenge Christians to purchase more fuel-efficient vehicles. It is widely believed that fuel emissions from cars are raising the level of carbon in the atmosphere, which some, such as Houghton, say is causing the earth to grow dangerously warmer. Other scientists say the warming trend is part of a natural weather cycle.

The debate, and the complicated scientific jargon, is what has kept many Christians from engaging environmental concerns, said NAE Vice President of Governmental Affairs Richard Cizik, who attended the creation care meeting with Haggard. Although both men say they are committed to addressing environmental issues, they want to find solutions that nurture free-market capitalism. “There are over 6 billion people on the earth. During our lifetime it could go up to 9 billion,” Haggard said. “The only way to provide enough goods and services is through capitalism.”

But for many other Christians, environmentalism is not a debate about science or economics; it’s about theology. “Any time Christians get seriously involved in public policy issues, Christians have to be clear that they understand how things work and that they’re not being taken advantage of by the left or the right because you’re bringing the moral authority of the church [to the debate],” said Gerald Zandstra, programs director for the Acton Institute, a Christian think-tank that studies religion, economics and public policy.

Cheryl Johns, professor of church formation at the Church of God Theological Seminary and a participant in the Sandy Cove meeting, said Christians have a unique responsibility toward the environment. “I think most Pentecostals and charismatics understand that Jesus saves, but He also heals,” she told Charisma. “God is at work restoring and bringing healing. We participate in that as people of God. We participate in the creation being restored. To care for creation, I think, is to participate in healing.”

Snyder has studied renewal movements extensively, and he said mobilizing charismatic and Pentecostals around this issue would cause a significant shift in momentum, as that demographic is believed to be the largest segment of Christianity worldwide.

“The same God who is concerned about the renewal of the church is concerned with the renewal of creation,” Snyder told attendees at Sandy Cove. “The same Spirit who hovers over the church hovers over the waters and wants to bring both into reconciliation under the headship of Jesus Christ.

“If we are concerned about revival in its truest sense, we will be concerned about creation care. Conversely, if we are genuinely concerned with creation care we will want to see the Holy Spirit renew God’s people, sending a revival of such depth that it not only stirs our hearts but also heals our land.”

For Francis MacNutt, a longtime leader in the charismatic renewal, change begins when individuals decide to do something. In 2002, he bought a Toyota Prius, a hybrid car that gets an estimated 52 miles per gallon in the city, compared with 36 miles per gallon for a nonhybrid Honda Civic and 22-25 miles per gallon for the more fuel-efficient SUVs.

“It would take a million people driving Priuses to make a dent in [global warming]; I know that,” MacNutt said. “But it’s something I can do.”
Adrienne S. Gaines

Christian leaders are still urging support for laws banning gay marriage despite the Federal Marriage Amendment’s failure to pass in the Senate.

The American Family Association (AFA) is encouraging supporters to visit and sign a petition calling for an amendment prohibiting same-sex marriage. The AFA hopes to present 3 million signatures to the House of Representatives before it votes on the issue in September.

Other efforts are under way to get gay marriage banned on the local level. So far the November ballots in nine states will include referendums calling for amendments prohibiting gay marriage.

On July 23, conservative Christian leaders welcomed the passage of Indiana Republican Rep. John N. Hostettler’s Marriage Protection Act in the House. The bill limits the jurisdiction of federal courts over questions arising from the Defense of Marriage Act, which was signed into law by former President Bill Clinton in 1996. The act protects states from having to recognize gay marriages performed in other states.

But limiting the scope of federal judges is a secondary strategy in the battle to defend traditional marriage, which some say could be a 10-year fight. Several conservative Christian leaders say amending the Constitution is the most certain way to bar gay marriage.

Bishop Paul S. Morton plans to submit 8,000 petitions collected during his Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship convention to the Congressional Black Caucus. He is calling for its opposition to same-sex marriage and noted that his group would “remember those who do not support family values.”

Meanwhile, pastor Ken Hutcherson of Antioch Bible Church in Seattle hopes to convene thousands of Christians in Washington, D.C., Oct. 15 for a Mayday for Marriage Rally (). Similarly, Bishop John Giminez of Rock City Church in Baltimore plans to host an America for Jesus rally Oct. 22 on the National Mall (). The event is aimed at getting Christians to fast and pray for the nation’s future.
Adrienne S. Gaines

Organizers plan to hold a Day of Prayer for Jerusalem each October until the second coming of Christ
Christians from around the world are joining a massive army of intercessors to pray for Israel on Oct. 3, as part of an annual Day of Prayer inaugurated by Eagles’ Wings (EW) ministry based in Clarence, N.Y.

“This is a biblically mandated requirement for all who believe,” said Robert Stearns, EW executive director, at the Jerusalem Prayer Banquet held in New York City on May 20. “We have gathered here at a crucial moment in history.”

About 500 Christian and Jewish leaders attended the interdenominational gathering co-chaired by Stearns and Jack W. Hayford, president of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel and founding pastor of The Church on the Way in Van Nuys, Calif. Many signed a public resolution affirming their commitment to the Day of Prayer. Hayford said the signing was a significant action for the church to the biblical call to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

Hayford sees Israel’s role in the end times as a turning point for the church because of the prophetic season. “I don’t mean how you read the prophetic handbook,” he said. “I mean recognizing that this is a moment that God is at work in our world. It’s manifest first in the recovery of Israel, the challenge to that recovery by hostile forces that are more than political forces. They clearly are spiritual forces that are antichrist-nourished, antichrist in spirit.”

Stearns unveiled EW’s ambitious plan labeled The Jerusalem Project, which calls for an International Day of Prayer on the first Sunday of October every year until the Messiah returns. EW () is seeking to enlist the support of 20,000 U.S. churches and 50 million believers in 70 countries to back the effort.

More than $100,000 was raised at the banquet to fund a $1 million budget that includes literature, videos, a Web site (), offices on six continents, and scholarships for a three-week Israel Experience college-student ambassador program.

A group of 10 handpicked students returned from the first ambassador trip in June. They met with educational, political, business and religious leaders. Members of the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, mentored each student for a day.

Brewing for several years, The Jerusalem Project has been warmly received by Yona Metzger, the chief rabbi of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu and other members of the Knesset, as well as Arab leaders in Jerusalem.

Among almost 500 international Christian leaders endorsing the idea are broadcaster Pat Robertson, Korean pastor David Yonggi Cho, prayer leader Mike Bickle, Elim Bible Institute President Paul Johansson, Charisma publisher Stephen Strang and Ted Haggard, president of the National Association of Evangelicals.

“There is going to be a massive end-times swell of prayer across the globe for Israel,” said Lou Engle, co-founder of The Call prayer events. “It’s the heartbeat and sweetheart of heaven. I have a dream to mobilize a young generation for Israel.”

In addition to Alon Pinkus, consul general of Israel in New York, members of the Knesset participated in the banquet. “I think to have friends here in the United States of America, people of the Bible, with the point of view that brings them together with us in this celebration is a unique thing,” said Binyamin Elon, chairman of Israel’s Moledet Party.

Yuri Shtern, chairman of the National Union Faction, told Charisma about the Christian Allies Caucus (CAC) formed in January. “The CAC is a group of 10 members of the Knesset from six different parties who committed themselves to developing our relationship with the Christian world,” he said. “People appreciate what the evangelical Christians are doing for Israel politically, in American politics especially.”

Shtern reported that the World Council of Churches has denounced the CAC. “They told us it’s a new provocation of the extreme Israeli right with fanatical evangelists, which I think is a compliment,” he said. “It means we are on the right path.”

Messianic believers also back the project. “There is no question Israel has risen to the center stage of Gentile and world attention,” said Felix Halpern, rabbi of Beth Chofesh, an Assemblies of God congregation in Wykoff, N.J. “God is supernaturally imparting a love for the Jewish people through a restorative work of Hebraic roots. Out of this Jewish people are being provoked for the first time in a long time.”

Stearns expects 4,000-5,000 Christians from many nations to participate in the final ceremony in Jerusalem on Sunday, Oct. 3, when the prayer resolution signatures will be presented to representatives of the Knesset.
Peter K. Johnson in New York City

Jesus House director William Bumphus says Christians don’t have to wait for grant funding to reach out to former prisoners

With tan siding, a porch dotted with oversized furniture and a fireplace in the living room, the modest, two-story home in inner-city Indianapolis doesn’t look like the cutting edge of prison reform.

But after six years in operation Jesus House boasts a recidivism rate of 6 percent, or less than one-tenth the national average. Only eight of 130 men who have lived at the halfway house have returned to prison–a feat the federal government is still trying to duplicate. Two years ago the Department of Justice announced a “re-entry initiative” to offer education, job training and substance-abuse treatment to help ex-convicts adjust to life on the outside.

Jesus House director William Bumphus is doing his part–but without any of the grants available under the Justice Department initiative. The 57-year-old founder of Jesus Inside Prison Ministry says he can’t qualify because of his insistence that residents attend two church services and a weekly men’s support group.

However, Bumphus plans a similar approach at Freedom House, a 60-bed residential drug-treatment center that he hopes to open in 2005. With 55 percent of federal inmates locked up for drug crimes, the affable, smiling minister says it makes more sense to send them to drug treatment. When they get there, though, Bumphus wants them to find the same Savior who released him from the grip of heroin in 1978.

“I’m suggesting Christians open drug-treatment centers like Teen Challenge and deal not only with the physical and emotional part of men, but the spiritual element,” Bumphus said. “Then a whole lot of crime would go away.”

As for the expense, he thinks Christian ministries should depend on God instead of Uncle Sam. Even if they obtain funding, they still won’t be able to run such treatment centers the way they want, said the pastor of Faith Center Church, an independent charismatic congregation. “There’s enough money in the church for everyone to have a Jesus House if they wanted one,” he said.

The home’s population fluctuates between a few and 10, although its director envisions remodeling it to double its capacity to 20. Many current and former residents credit its wholesome influence with steering them straight, including its first resident director, Robert Weddington.

Scholarly-looking behind wire-rim glasses, Weddington stepped aside last fall to run a Christian bookstore and Faith Center’s men’s ministry. He still serves as an informal adviser and counselor.

“When I left prison, it wasn’t in my program to lead Jesus House,” Weddington said. “God just put it together.”

His replacement, Jerry Banks, arrived early in 2003 after four prison stays. Accepting Christ in 2001 was his first step toward reformation; coming to Jesus House marked the second. “It had a strong impact on my life,” Banks said. “I was able to maintain my Christianity and continue to be around godly men who want to grow [spiritually].”

The outreach continues despite financial challenges. Thanks to various churches donating food, clothing and other supplies, Bumphus operates the home for less than half the projected cost.

Jesus House is only one aspect of what Bumphus sees as a thriving revival in the nation’s prisons. Since 1997 the number of annual conversions he records has more than doubled to more than 2,000.

For those who would shrug at the relatively small numbers he has helped–in comparison with an inmate population in excess of 2 million–Bumphus notes that he saves taxpayers $100,000 a year for every five residents who aren’t locked up.

“[Many] guys who came through were major drug dealers; they hurt people,” Bumphus said. “[Jesus House] gives hope to thousands from all over the [nation]. We get applications from all kinds of people who want to come to Jesus House.”
Ken Walker in Indianapolis

Organizers say they hope the new group will bridge the gap between liberal and conservative ministry organizations
Despite critics who fear it will be dominated by liberals, a new ecumenical organization is forming with support from several Pentecostal and charismatic denominations.

After a three-year organizational process, Christian Churches Together in the . (CCT) plans its formal launch next year. Participants will span five major groups: Roman Catholic, Orthodox, racial-ethnic churches, historic Protestant and evangelical-Pentecostal.

Supporters say it will help bridge a longtime gap between members of the theologically liberal National Council of Churches (NCC) and the theologically conservative National Association of Evangelicals (NAE). The group envisions holding annual meetings for prayer, fellowship and theological discussions, and various regional forums.

Organizers foresee participants speaking out on such issues as pornography, sexual trafficking of women, the persecuted church and poverty.

The steering committee includes three Pentecostals: the Rev. Jeffrey Farmer, president of Open Bible Churches; Bishop James Leggett of the International Pentecostal Holiness Church and Bishop George McKinney of the Church of God in Christ.

Representatives at recent meetings have also come from the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, Association of Vineyard Churches and Church of God (Cleveland, Tenn.). The Missionary Pentecostal Churches of God sent an observer. Evangelicals participating included members of The Salvation Army, Free Methodist Church, Church of the Nazarene and World Vision.

“I’m extremely excited about it,” said Farmer, who joined the committee in January. “It’s an historic thing, and this time it appears it’s going to happen.”

Leggett agreed, saying CCT will create a group that is broader and more faithful to Scripture than the National Council of Churches. “There are areas of agreement and common commitment to the core of the Christian faith,” Leggett said of the two meetings he attended. “I think that is going to be the strong point.”

Though acknowledging the criticism that has cropped up because of mainline church involvement, Farmer said he and other Pentecostals made it clear they wouldn’t be involved if the NCC played an active role.

Noting that the late David du Plessis founded Pentecostal-Catholic dialogues years ago, Farmer expressed excitement about born-again Christians from various backgrounds coming together.

“Mainline denominations are losing members fast, and evangelicals and Pentecostals are at least holding their own,” Farmer said. “They’re coming to us and saying, ‘We need to hear from you.’ I think it would be a mistake not to take the opportunity.”

CCT, which has sponsored exploratory meetings the last three years, hasn’t selected the site of its next meeting or a city for its headquarters. Still, it hoped to reach its target of 25 member organizations by June and start operating in the fall of 2005.

Steering committee chairman Wesley Granberg-Michaelson expects CCT to overcome past divisions between evangelical and mainline Christians. That process has already begun through its preliminary meetings, said Granberg-Michaelson, general secretary of the Reformed Church in America.

In addition to fostering a deep sense of communion and fellowship, the group will help mainline churches gain valuable insights into evangelicals’ and Pentecostals’ faith, Granberg-Michaelson said. “I think they can learn that the knowledge of faith in Christ really needs to be lived out at a deeply experiential level that allows for personal freedom,” he said. “And how individuals testify to what God is doing in their lives.”

But after growing up in a liberal Presbyterian church where he never heard the gospel, NAE President Ted Haggard doubts that CCT will be able to mesh such divergent views.

Noting that evangelicals and Pentecostals emphasize the born-again experience and a high view of Christ and the Bible, Haggard is wary of the influence of those who don’t uphold those positions.

If a group doesn’t stake a position on high moral ground, it inevitably becomes liberal because of the tendencies of the old sin nature, said Haggard, senior pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colo.

“That’s exactly what we’ve seen with the steady decline in the Methodist Church and so many others,” Haggard said. “Now many in their churches don’t even believe the Bible is the Word of God. Or they may say it symbolically, but they don’t read it and live it as if they believe it.

“I believe we need to have respectful and cordial relationships, but I’m … not going to take my time pretending that those who don’t believe in being born again are helpful to the cause of Christ.”

But Farmer, whose family was kicked out of the Disciples of Christ Church in the 1960s after being baptized in the Holy Spirit, thinks CCT will increase networking and empower Christians.

“We can speak louder to our nation at a time when our nation needs to hear from Christians,” Farmer said. “It’s all about relationships and relating to one another.”
Ken Walker