In case you haven’t been reading news over the holiday weekend, here’s a round up of some interesting stories relating to Christians, Christianity and the Middle East:

The Dallas Morning News reports that Baylor President Ken Starr, whose claim to fame is investigating Bill Clinton’s Affair with Monica Lewkinsky, is aiming to exalt faith and academic rigor at the Christian university he leads.

The debate over God continues on a New Jersey billboard as an atheist message is replaced by a Christian proclamation that “God is,” the UPI reports.

NPR offers a look at Christian tourism, which has become a billion dollar industry for Israeli and Palestinian tour operators that capitalize on the region’s holy sites.

The AP reports that an Al-Qaida threat on Iraq Christians is  linked to Egypt.

Finally, the Dallas Morning News tells the story of a young Dallas artist that refuses to  let illness his illness hinder his goal of creating an illustrated Bible.

What were the most interesting stories you read about over Christmas?

DUBLIN, (CDN) — In the wake of several attacks on worship services by Indonesia’s notorious Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), several Jakarta area church leaders rejected the FPI’s offer to help protect them over Christmas.
 
FPI leader Rizieq Shihab made the offer last week, saying he was working in cooperation with the Indonesian Communion of Churches and the Indonesian Bishops Conference. But several churches publicly rejected the offer, with online forums comparing FPI church protection to “foxes protecting a chicken coop.”

Jakarta’s police chief on Friday (Dec. 18) promised protection for every “registered” church in the area, The Jakarta Globe reported. Many Indonesian churches are unregistered, however, since they fail to meet the strict conditions of a Joint Ministerial Decree (SKB) governing places of worship.
 
The Indonesian public has harshly criticized FPI members for their role in multiple church attacks over the past year and faulted police and politicians for failing to intervene.
 
The most recent attack occurred last Sunday (Dec. 19), when more than 100 Islamists gathered outside the sealed home of the Rev. Badia Hutagalung of Huria Kristan Batak Protestan (HKBP) church in Rancaekek to disrupt worship services, sources said.
 
Another attack on Sept. 12 led to the arrest and detention of 13 FPI members, including Murhali Barda, leader of the FPI’s Bekasi branch. During the attack, assailants stabbed and critically wounded church elder Hasian Sihombing and beat the Rev. Luspida Simanjuntak over the head with a wooden beam. (See, “Indonesian Church Leaders Wounded in Attack,” Sept. 15.)
 
‘Christians Should Not Provoke Us’
After making the offer of FPI assistance at the Jakarta police headquarters on Dec. 14, Shihab told The Jakarta Post that “Islam is not allowed to disrupt other religions worship,” but he added the warning that “Christians should not provoke us.”
 
His offer came just two days after some 300 Islamists from FPI, the Indonesian Ulama Forum and the Islamic Reformist Movement, together with civil service police officers, raided and forcibly closed seven churches in Rancaekek. (See “Islamists Raid House Churches in West Java,” Dec. 17.)
 
Sub-district head Meman Nurjaman on Nov. 16 had sent out a decree ordering 11 churches in Rancaekek to close, citing protests from the local community. Nurjaman later admitted that he had acted under pressure from Muslim hardliners living outside the housing estate, according to a Compass source, who added that Nurjaman had no legal authority to issue the decree.  

During the Dec. 12 raid, Islamists forcibly removed at least 100 worshipers from a residential building used by the HKBP Bethania church and several other churches, and they urged the local government to seal the building immediately because it was not a registered place of worship.
 
Hutagalung said the congregation only worshipped there because they could not meet the terms of the SKB, which requires proof of at least 90 church members, signatures of approval from at least 60 local residents, and approval from village officials and a local interfaith forum.
 
The mob also attacked six other house churches in Rancaekek on Dec. 12, forcing five of the seven to close.
 
A day after the raids, Adj. Sr. Comr. Hendro Pandowo, the Bandung police chief, said Christians in Bandung should refrain from putting themselves in harm’s way.
 
“If they pray in churches, I will protect them if anybody disturbs them,” he told the The Jakarta Globe. “If they pray in places they are not allowed to, they are breaking rules, so why would I protect them?”
 
Readers posting comments to the Globe article online said it was almost impossible for congregations to obtain a building permit under existing regulations, leaving them no option but to worship in private homes or empty building sites.
 
One reader, identified only by the log-in name of Aki-Amani, wrote, “Thank you Chief Hendro for your promise of protection – if we follow your dictates. However, don’t be surprised if we are found anywhere, everywhere … praying as we go about our daily activities at home and in the market place, whether you approve and will protect us or not.”
 
Christmas Security
Jakarta police on Friday (Dec. 18) met with leaders representing 1,600 churches in greater Jakarta to discuss security measures for the Christmas season.
 
Jakarta Police Chief Insp. Gen. Sutarman, identified only by a single name, said at least 9,000 security personnel would be deployed in and around churches in greater Jakarta as part of a total 87,000 security personnel stationed at houses of worship throughout Indonesia over the Christmas and New Year season, the Globe reported.
 
Police began providing Christmas security for churches after a series of 38 coordinated church bombings on Dec. 24, 2000, left at least 18 people dead and dozens injured across the nation. The bombings were organized by Jemaah Islamiyah, a local Islamic terrorist group.
 
“The Jakarta police guarantee that celebrations will be conducted peacefully across all churches registered with us in the city,” Sutarman reportedly said.
 
What that implies for unregistered churches remains to be seen.
 
Spokesmen from two unregistered churches told the Globe they would meet this Christmas despite explicit threats from the FPI to ransack “controversial” Christmas celebrations.
 
The congregation of HKBP Filadelfia in Bekasi will meet in a tent on the street next to their sealed church, despite the risk of further aggression or physical harm from the FPI, sources said.
 
Members of Gereja Kristen Indonesia Yasmin in Bogor, however, reportedly said they will break open the seals on their partially-constructed church, closed in September due to pressure from the FPI and other hard-line groups despite having a legal permit.
 
“We want to celebrate religious freedom in our church,” spokesman Bona Sigalingging told reporters, adding that police would not be asked to provide security.

JAKARTA, Indonesia (CDN) — Two and a half years after an Islamic attack on a seminary here left hundreds of students without facilities, they are still in temporary shelters and the government has not compensated the loss of eight buildings.

Students from the Arastamar Evangelical Theological Seminary (SETIA) have until the end of this month to leave the Wisma Transito building, and no alternative shelter has been arranged. At the same time, the school is still wrangling with the Jakarta Provincial Government over compensation for eight buildings the government took in Kampung Pulo, Pinang Ranti, East Jakarta.

More than a 100 SETIA students demonstrated in front of Jakarta City Hall on Dec. 14 over compensation for their property that was expected a year ago. They urged officials to pay 7 billion rupiah (US$765,100) immediately so they can buy a school building to accommodate 1,000 students, that have been staying at Wisma Transito and Wisma Daan Mogot shelters in Jakarta.

“We demand the governor follow up on its promises immediately,” said the chairman of the SETIA Student Senate, identified only as Suriedi. “Also, help us to provide proper educational facilities.”

On July 25, 2008, a group of Muslims claiming to be residents attacked the SETIA campus, leaving more than 1,000 students without classroom or housing facilities.

Suriedi said SETIA students are tiring of holding classes as refugee for two and half years.

“This clearly would disrupt the teaching-learning process that did not work as it would on a campus,” he said.

Suriedi said that he and other students would continue to demonstrate until the governor of Jakarta answers their demands.

The Rev. Matheus Mangentang, rector of SETIA, said that the most recent meeting with the head of the Civil Service Police Unit (Satpol PP) Jakarta, Effendi Anas, had not yet produced an agreement over the SETIA buildings.

“Satpol PP insisted on paying 5.3 billion for the eight buildings owned by SETIA, while we still want to be paid a price of 7 billion rupiah,” he said.

Mangentang said Jakarta Provincial officials are standing firm on a price of 5.3 billion rupiah (US$579,300), based only on land prices as assessed for tax purposes.

SETIA, he added, is asking for only 7 billion rupiah of the total 10 billion rupiah that local governments promised. And 7 billion rupiah figure is not categorized as a commercial exchange, but a form of compensation for SETIA as a victim, he said.

“The provincial government must remember that SETIA never intended to sell the land,” Mangentang said.

The 7 billion rupiah figure, he said, is well below the material and moral losses that have been suffered by SETIA.

“Even 7 billion rupiah is actually not enough,” he said. “When calculated as a whole, including the value of the building, then SETIA suffered losses of more than 20 billion rupiah.”

In earlier meetings, Mangentang said he had expressed regret that the governor of Jakarta was not handling the issue directly, but rather had handed it over to Satpol PP.

“We will continue to struggle, because the contract term in Wisma Daan Mogot will already be exhausted by the end of December,” he said. “We must extend the contract period, or the rent will rise from 290 million rupiah to 700 million rupiah.”

Mangentang said the East Jakarta mayor had told him that the deadline for students taking shelter at the Wisma Transito facility is also the end of December, and so far SETIA has yet to find an an alternative for students.

“We need money to pay the contract and other operational costs,” he said.

The Jakarta Provincial Government had claimed to have allocated funds in the 2009 budget for the SETIA buildings. The vice governor of Jakarta, Prijanto, said in February 2009 he would pay for the eight buildings owned by SETIA in accordance with market prices.

Israel is getting ready to welcome 90,000 tourists this
Christmas. The nation is promoting access to holy sites and working to ensure
the safety of all visitors.

One third of the 2.4 million Christian tourists expected to
visit Israel by year’s end are pilgrims visiting holy sites in the West Bank
and Jerusalem. Nazareth, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the Via Dolorosa and
the Mount of Olives are located in Israel. Bethlehem is in the West Bank.

Israeli security and civil administration leaders met with
the head of the Franciscan Monastery, the Ambassador to the Vatican, as well as
the Greek Orthodox, Armenian, and Latin Patriarchs to facilitate freedom of
worship and movement during the holiday season.

What’s more, Israel is expediting transport and crossing
arrangements so that pilgrims and visitors can participate in traditional
Christmas ceremonies. For example, Major General Eitan Dangot, the Coordinator
of the Government Activities in the Territories, is working with the Israel
Police and the Israel Defense Forces to make sure the Bethlehem area crossings
would be constantly open for tourists to freely enter the city during the
holidays.

Christians constitute about 2 percent of Israel’s overall
population, but their number is steadily growing. By the end of 2009, 151,700
Christians lived in Israel, a 0.6 percent increase from the previous
year. 

Have you been to
Israel during the Christmas season? I would love to hear about your experience.

What if there were a special television channel that carried the most popular church services and ministry programs featuring America’s favorite Christian leaders—24 hours every day of the week?

That was the question Dr. Paul Crouch, founder of the religious broadcasting giant Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN), began asking himself several years ago as he and the team at TBN looked for ways to expand the influence of faith-and-family TV to new audiences.

“We were seeing an increase in the number of specialty —or niche—networks on cable and satellite television, channels that were geared for a particular group of viewers,” Crouch recalls. “At the same time our research was showing that churches services were among the most watched religious programs on television.”

In addition, Crouch notes, cultural shifts were beginning to dramatically impact the worship habits of millions of Americans—a shift that continues to this day. Researcher George Barna, one of the leading authorities on the changing face of religion in America, has noted that while a majority of Americans retain a strong belief in God and many express a desire to maintain a connection to church and organized worship, fully one-third of Americans do not attend church on a regular basis. In fact, over the past few years the number of “unchurched” Americans has grown by nearly a million individuals annually.

“But Barna’s research was telling us that these millions of folks who weren’t going to church were still looking for spiritual input in their lives,” says Crouch, “and many were relying on Christian media as that spiritual touchpoint.”

In 2002 TBN launched the Church Channel, the only network dedicated to broadcasting church services and ministry programs 24 hours a day. Since its beginnings the Church Channel has drawn some of the most influential and popular Christian leaders in the nation, from a broad range of denominations and traditions.

Bob Higley, TBN’s vice president for cable and satellite relations, notes that the Church Channel stands out among the scores of niche networks vying for attention in the world of cable and satellite.

“Among current cable subscribers, we found that a healthy 31 percent were interested in receiving the Church Channel,” Higley says. “That interest goes to the heart of our philosophy behind all of TBN’s networks. From the very beginning our focus has been to respond to that need every individual has to be uplifted and inspired in their daily life. We think the Church Channel, like all our networks, does that pretty well.”

What about you? Do you watch the Church Channel? Can TV replace a local church?

Pat Robertson doesn’t condone smoking weed, but he’s giving the nod to legalizing the drug. On a recent episode of the 700 Club, the Christian Coalition founder says legalizing marijuana is one way to get smart on crime.

“It got to be a big deal in campaigns: ‘He’s tough on crime,’ and ‘lock ’em up!'” Robertson  said on the show. “That’s the way these guys ran and, uh, they got elected. But, that wasn’t the answer.

“We’re locking up people that have taken a couple puffs of marijuana and next thing you know they’ve got 10 years with mandatory sentences,” Robertson said. “These judges just say, they throw up their hands and say nothing we can do with these mandatory sentences. We’ve got to take a look at what we’re considering crimes and that’s one of ’em.

“I’m not exactly for the use of drugs, don’t get me wrong, but I just believe that criminalizing marijuana, criminalizing the possession of a few ounces of pot, that kinda thing it’s just, it’s costing us a fortune and it’s ruining young people. Young people go into prisons, they go in as youths and come out as hardened criminals. That’s not a good thing.”

During the segment, there was talk of Right on Crime, a new conservative group that also questions the wisdom of locking up young people for drug-related charges. Right on Crime’s research shows that the United States arrested about million people for drug-related offenses in 2006. That’s up from 581,000 in 1980. Many of them were jailed for non-violent crimes and were no immediate threat to public safety.

Right on Crime reports that incarceration can cost anywhere from $16,000 to $50,000 per year per offender. And there is little evidence that drug abusers who enter prison have overcome their addiction. Right on Crime favors drug courts, specialty courts with judges who impose supervision, drug testing, treatments and sanctions on defendants instead of incarceration. Right on Crime’s studies show drug courts only cost about $2,500 to $4,000 a year and offer help to people who want to change.

What do you think? Should the U.S. legalize marijuana? Are drug courts a better option to incarceration for young offenders?

Francis Chan has picked up and moved his family to Asia. Chan pastored the 4,000-member Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, Calif.

Chan was making quite a name for himself in Christian circles, penning two best-selling books, including Crazy Love and Forgotten God, and authoring a DVD teaching series. But he has resigned and left for an unnamed country in Asia. Chan reportedly told his church that he “wanted to disappear far a while” in late September.

“Even in my own church I heard the words, ‘Francis Chan’ more than I heard the words, ‘Holy Spirit’,” CNN’s Belief Blog reports Chan as saying. “I think there has been too much emphasis on me. I want to be used by God, but I think we have this desire to make heroes out of people rather than following God and the Holy Spirit.”

Chan is the founding pastor of Cornerstone Church. He started the church in 1994. This is not the first time he has left the church. In May he left to work directly in mission with the poor locally and internationally.

“When there is a large constituency, there’s a lot of voices,” Chan said in the Belief Blog. “It makes you arrogant or it makes you want to shoot yourself. When thousands of people tell you what they think, how can I be quick to listen, like the Bible says? I don’t want to be a jerk and tune everyone out. At the same time, you can’t love every single person and answer them.”

Chan is the chancellor and founder of Eternity Bible College and serves on the board of directors for Children’s Hunger Fund, an international humanitarian aid foundation to assist the poor, and on the board for World Impact, an inner-city missions organization dedicated to planting churches among the urban poor in America. Chan has given all author royalties for Crazy Love to the Isaiah 58 Fund.

Chan’s blog offers the following message:

“Francis appreciates that you have visited this site and that you may want to get in touch with him. However, due to the many e-mails that he was receiving with regard to his announcement of stepping down at Cornerstone and the many different requests and suggestions he was also receiving, he cannot answer them individually…

“With regard to going on a prayer walk with he and Lisa to the different cities they are praying about possibly moving, they plan to go alone in order to get away quietly to pray.  He hopes you understand and certainly hopes you will continue to pray for them whenever you think of it…

“Francis is not currently accepting any speaking engagements until January 2011.  After this time, if you are still interested, please refer back to this site for a speaking request form.”

Want to put the Bible on your iPod? You could download an app, or you could carry the entire 2011 NIV version around in your pocket with you.

Zondervan just launched the first product featuring the updated New International Version of the Bible—a digital e-book. The digital release marks the first time that a new Zondervan Bible translation has launched in a digital format before it is released in print. The printed version is due out March 2011.

“Launching in a digital format and spreading God’s Word through a one-for-one Bible giveaway follows the heritage of the NIV—to reach more people with God’s Word by translating in the language that ordinary people can understand,” says Moe Girkins, president and CEO of Zondervan.

As part of the NIV e-book release, Zondervan launched a Christmas Buy One, Give One campaign. For every digital copy of the updated NIV Bible sold through Jan. 4, 2011, Zondervan will donate a New Testament of a new NIV-like Hindi translation through Biblica. Zondervan and Biblica hope to donate 30,000 copies of the all-new Hindi translation of the New Testament.

“There are more than 600 million people who speak Hindi, and Biblica is launching an NIV-like Bible translation in this native language so that God’s Word could be easily understood by average Hindi-speakers,” says Keith Danby, international CEO of Biblica.

The Bible is the bestselling book in history and the NIV Bible is the bestselling version year after year, selling more than 400 million copies since its first full publication in 1978. Following the launch of the newly designed NIV eBook, Zondervan plans to continue to release several new NIV e-books, apps and digital products by the end of 2011.

Do you read the Bible on a digital device? What are the pros and cons of the Bible as an e-book?

Can you do the Sanctified Slide? It’s nothing like “the hustle,” but in Christian circles it may become just as popular. That’s because the so-called Sanctified Slide is vying for a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records.

Next question: What on earth is the Sanctified Slide? It’s a Gospel line dance. You might have to see it to understand it. Click here to watch the video for yourself.

As he celebrates his 40th birthday, Stellar Award-nominated Gospel recording artist Christopher Page has applied to the Guinness Book of World Records to break the record for the “Longest Gospel Line Dance Display.” Christopher, along with some of his favorite line dance groups from across the country, will perform his Gospel Line Dance, dubbed the Sanctified Slide, 40 consecutive times. The event will take place in January 2011 in the Washington D.C. area.

Christopher, a spokesman for Donate Life America and the National Office of Transplantation, will use the event as a platform to encourage more African-Americans and Christians to commit to becoming organ donors. The event will include a workshop on organ donation and onsite organ donation registration. Christopher will also give appreciation gifts to every registered organ donor who attends the event.

Page’s 2009 project “A Page From My Heart” was nominated for a Stellar Award. Over the past 10 years he has ministered across the United States. He has performed with Gospel artists including Kirk Franklin, Vanessa Williams, Dottie Peeples, Maurette Brown Clark, Trin-i-tee 5:7, and All-4-One. Recently, the group has been featured on Bobby Jones Gospel, the Word Network and the Gospel Music Workshop of America.

What do you think about the Sanctified Slide?

The Kansas City of Mission is working to make sure churches in its area understand that there are two things certain in life: death and taxes—even in the sanctuary.

Mission implemented a property tax in the name of a “driveway fee” in efforts to evade having to grant tax exemptions to two local churches, according to the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF). ADF filed a suit on behalf of the churches, First Baptist Church of Mission and The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas.

The driveway tax—which bill property owners based on the number of trips in and out of their driveways—is similar to other fees supreme courts in Idaho and Florida have struck down. In the case of Mission, the city has labeled the driveway tax as a “fee” and is charging churches, non-profit organizations and charities that are ordinarily exempt from property taxes under state law. The city assessed the church property and parsonage of First Baptist Church nearly $1,000

“No one should be taxing church attendance, but that’s what this tax does: it punishes churches based on their attendance,” says ADF Senior Legal Counsel Erik Stanley. “Cleverly disguising a tax as a fee is just another way to penalize churches and other non-profit organizations and charities by subverting their tax exemptions so the government can collect more money. This driveway tax is simply outrageous. Will we soon be seeing a ‘sidewalk tax’ based on the number of people who walk to church?”

In August, the Mission City Council adopted Ordinance No. 1332 to establish the so-called “Transportation Utility Fee.” All property within city limits that has improvements—such as buildings, landscaping, outside storage, or parking lots—is subject to the fee, which functions as an additional property tax.

The ordinance itself states that properties considered exempt from property taxes under state law, such as churches, non-profits and charities, are not exempt from the fee. The amount of the tax is calculated by estimating the average number of vehicle trips generated by a property. Single family homes are assessed a fixed rate of $72 per year, while 5.8 total weekly vehicle trips are estimated per worship facility seat to calculate the tax amount for churches.

“The government should not attempt to disguise taxes as ‘fees’ in order to eliminate property tax exemptions, when that money could be better spent by churches in caring for the poor,” Stanley says. “It makes little sense to extract greater tribute from churches and charities when lost services mean a shift of the burden to the government anyway.  Not only is this scheme unlawful, it’s fiscally nonsensical.”

Has the government attempted to tax your church? Let me know if you’ve run into these issues in the comment box below.