Family Radio Founder Harold Camping Repents, Apologizes for False Teachings
Bible Teacher Confesses He Was Wrong to Predict Christ's Return; Says God Has Not Stopped Saving People
http://global.christianpost.com/news/family-radio-founder-harold-camping-repents-apologizes-for-false-teachings-59819/
The Christian Post > International > N.America|Sun, Oct. 30 2011 12:20 PM EDT
By Nicola Menzie | Christian Post Reporter
With his speech sounding somewhat slurred and labored, Family Radio Stations Inc. founder and chairman Harold Camping sought to address in a recent message why Christ failed to return on Oct. 21 as the Bible teacher had predicted. Camping confessed, after decades of falsely misleading his followers, that he was wrong and regrets his misdeeds.
In addition to attempting to correct his erroneous teachings on the Rapture and God's day of final judgment on the world, Camping, 90, also confessed, "incidentally," that he was wrong to claim that God had stopped saving people after May 21 – the date which God's so-called "spiritual" judgment had begun.
This is undoubtedly a radical shift for Camping, who has staunchly claimed since 1992 that he had discovered a special numerical system in the Bible that allowed him to calculate the exact dates of certain events, such as the Great Flood, the Crucifixion and the day of Jesus Christ's return to Earth.
Camping first falsely predicted that the world would end on Sept. 6, 1994, then again on May 21, 2011, and finally on Oct. 21.
When Camping's final doomsday predication failed to come to pass, Family Radio soon removed its teachings regarding the failed May 21 rapture, which also included the claim that God had stopped saving people after that date and that the world was headed for a final judgment on Oct. 21.
On Oct. 24, 2011, The Christian Post also reported in an exclusive interview with a member of Camping's Bible ministry that the Alameda, Calif., Bible teacher was no longer able to lead Family Radio or his ministry.
A transcript of the audio message, published to Family Radio's website on Oct. 28, 2011, is below:
We're living in a day when one problem follows another. And when it comes to trying to recognize the truth of prophecy, we're finding that it is very very difficult.
Why didn't Christ return on Oct. 21? It seems embarrassing for Family Radio. But God was in charge of everything. We came to that conclusion after quite careful study of the Bible. He allowed everything to happen the way it did without correction. He could have stopped everything if He had wanted to.
I am very encouraged by letters that I have received and [am] receiving at this time concerning this matter. Amongst other things I have been checking my notes more carefully than ever. And I do find that there is other language in the Bible that we still have to look at very carefully and will impinge upon this question very definitely. And we should be very patient about this matter. At least in a minimal way we are learning to walk more and more humble before God.
We're ready to cry out and weep before God: 'Oh Lord, you have the truth, we don't have it. You have the truth.' And this is another place where we have to cry out for... There's one thing that we must remember – God is in charge of this whole business, and we are not. What God wants to tell us is His business. When He wants to tell us is His business. In the meanwhile, God is allowing us to continue to cry to Him for mercy – oh my, how we need His mercy – and continue to wait on Him. God has not left us. God is still God. But we have to be very careful that we don't dictate to God what He should do.
In our search in the Bible, we must continue to look to the Bible, look to the Bible. Because there is where truth comes from. And God in His own timetable and in His own purposes will reveal truth to us when it's His time to do it. In any case, we do not have to have a feeling of calamity or a feeling that God has abandoned us. We are simply learning. And sometimes it's painful to learn. We are learning how God brings His messages to mankind, and my my, we have claimed to be a child of God, and therefore as we search the Bible, we're bound to feel the darts of the Lord. Sometimes He gives us the truth and sometimes He gives us something that causes us to wait further upon Him.
Whatever we do, we must not feel for a moment that we have been abandoned by God – that He is no longer helping us or interested in us. Oh my, what an encouragement it is to go to the Lord again and again – "Oh Lord, I don't know anything. You teach me." And that's the attitude that has to be apart of each one of us. And God will not abandon us, He will provide, but we have to be just very careful that we don't dictate to him when that has to happen.
Incidentally, I have been told that I said back in May that people who did not believe that May 21 should not be the rapture date, probably had not been saved. I should not have said that, and I apologize for that. One thing we know for certain, is that God is merciful, merciful beyond anything that we would ever expect. And so, we can pray constantly, and should be praying constantly: "Oh Lord, we look to Thee for Thine mercy, and we're so thankful that we know that Thou art so merciful."
How wonderful to know that God is still on the throne, that He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords and that He hears every one of our prayers. And let's not hesitate, let's be, if anything, let's pray more than ever for God's mercy, and keep praying and God will provide. But God is in charge, and we must always keep that in mind.
Saturday, 5 November 2011
The Sin of Racism: John Piper Confronts Sin of Racism, Including His Own
John Piper Confronts Sin of Racism, Including His Own
The Christian Post > Church & Ministries|Fri, Nov. 04 2011 05:21 PM EDT
http://www.christianpost.com/news/john-piper-confronts-sin-of-racism-including-his-own-60575/
By Lillian Kwon | Christian Post Reporter
Evangelical theologian John Piper admits it: he was "racist to the core" and a born-again Christian at the same time.
But thankfully, he says, "God had mercy on this teenage racist who little by little was awakened to something beautiful – namely racial diversity – and to something horrible – namely my own sin – and to repentance as an ongoing way of life."
The influential pastor tackled the controversial issue of racism on Thursday at Greater Friendship Missionary Baptist Church, a predominantly black church in Minneapolis. He addressed a diverse audience as he spoke about his latest book, Bloodlines: Race, Cross, and the Christian, where he defined racism this way: The heart that believes one race is more valuable than another is a sinful heart.
While Piper has come a long way from his years as essentially a white supremacist, he made it clear that he was not there to lift himself up as a shining example for others to follow. But he wanted to convey the seriousness of the issue.
"I know that my tribe, my evangelical conservative white tribe, they're suspicious of social issues – 'that sounds like social gospel leading us away from Jesus and the cross' (they'd say)," Piper said. "So I'm playing to their music. I want to say this is not a social issue. This is a blood issue."
Piper grew up in Greenville, S.C., where racial segregation was enforced. Along with separate drinking fountains, schools and bus seating were also churches that excluded blacks. His home church voted in 1962 not to allow blacks into their services.
He writes in his book that he was "manifestly racist" during those years.
But God began to sow "seeds of deliverance" in his heart. Among those seeds was one sown during his senior year in college. He heard the general director of the Conservative Baptist Foreign Mission Society respond to a student's question about the possibility of his daughter marrying a Pakistani while on the mission field.
His response was something like: "Better a Christian Pakistani than a godless white American!" Piper recalled.
Also, during his seminary years, Piper was given "shocking" readings on racial prejudice, detailing crimes of hatred toward blacks. He had a hard time coming away from the readings without trembling.
Such seeds have helped him to, as he says, "awake from [his] stupor." He has repented and grown in abhorrence to racism. But, he emphasized Thursday, he's not done. It's a process and he is continuously trying to bear the fruits of the seeds God sowed.
Piper is 65 now and currently serves as pastor for Preaching & Vision at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis. His church has grown in diversity and love but it's not a model church, he said.
Moreover, racism continues to plague America.
In fact, it was just in the year 2000 when Alabama removed its ban on interracial marriage. Piper's previous home state of South Carolina lifted its ban in 1998. And more than a quarter of the residents didn't favor it, the pastor lamented.
Piper also believes there are more "vicious white supremacists in America today than there were in 1968."
The longtime pastor, who adopted a black daughter 15 years ago, was commended by African-Americans on Thursday for his courage in addressing a controversial issue. Piper told the audience that he wrote Bloodlines because of some profound convictions on what the Bible says on this issue – an issue, he acknowledges, that many people choose to avoid – and because of longings for what he wants to see happen.
"There are many pointers in the Bible concerning the rightness, the goodness, the beauty, the justice, the preciousness of racial harmony and diversity," Piper said.
"The most important one is the Gospel," he stressed. "You can talk about all of us … being in the image of God but I’m going straight to the cross."
Backing his argument with Scripture, Piper said Jesus died and ransomed his people – and that includes all ethnicities, tribes and races.
"He's gathering them by the power of the blood of Christ. That's huge if you believe in the blood of Christ," he emphasized. "This is a blood issue. This is a why Jesus died issue."
"The bloodline of Jesus," he highlighted, "is thicker, deeper, stronger than the bloodline of race, ethnicity and family."
Paraphrasing Romans 3:27-30, Piper added, "I (God) have sent my son into the world to provide a righteousness that no human being can provide on their own. There's one way to get it, and it isn't Jewishness. It isn't white. It isn't black. It's faith.
"So right at the heart of the doctrine of justification by faith on the basis of the blood of Jesus is God saying I did it that way because .... I mean there to be a unity in the way of salvation and that means I mean to gather people of every stripe because those stripes don't matter."
Racism still in the church
Piper addressed the question of why the church isn't better at racial harmony if all that he presented was scriptural truth.
The answer he offered was that either the church didn't really believe in the Gospel or the issue is just a major blind spot for many believers. Satan, pride and guilt are also factors that can deter racial harmony.
"Why does God sanctify us so slowly?" he posed, not having an answer to the question but trusting in God's ways.
Not blaming God, however, Piper said, "We shouldn't make any excuses. Just say 'God, help me be part of the solution and not part of the problem.'"
After decades of wrestling with this issue, the Minneapolis pastor owes his life to the Gospel, which he views as the only solution to racism.
"Without it (Gospel) I would still be strutting with racist pride, or I would be suffering the moral paralysis of 'white guilt,'" he writes in his book.
But not boasting of his new self either, Piper pointed Christians to the cross.
"I am 65 years old. I'm going to meet Jesus real soon. I’m going to stand before my judge real soon and I will give an account for how I served him," he said.
"My confidence before Jesus at that day does not rest there (my actions)," he emphasized.
"If he says 'why should I let you in here you former racist sinner?' You won't say 'I cleaned up my act.' If you say that, you don't get the Gospel."
"You're going to say 'there's no reason you should let me in ... I am expecting you to let me in ... because I held on to Jesus and he held on to me."
Piper invited Christians to join him in "a desperate dependence on the blood of Jesus."
"You've got to stand, if you stand at all, on the cross."
The Christian Post > Church & Ministries|Fri, Nov. 04 2011 05:21 PM EDT
http://www.christianpost.com/news/john-piper-confronts-sin-of-racism-including-his-own-60575/
By Lillian Kwon | Christian Post Reporter
Evangelical theologian John Piper admits it: he was "racist to the core" and a born-again Christian at the same time.
But thankfully, he says, "God had mercy on this teenage racist who little by little was awakened to something beautiful – namely racial diversity – and to something horrible – namely my own sin – and to repentance as an ongoing way of life."
The influential pastor tackled the controversial issue of racism on Thursday at Greater Friendship Missionary Baptist Church, a predominantly black church in Minneapolis. He addressed a diverse audience as he spoke about his latest book, Bloodlines: Race, Cross, and the Christian, where he defined racism this way: The heart that believes one race is more valuable than another is a sinful heart.
While Piper has come a long way from his years as essentially a white supremacist, he made it clear that he was not there to lift himself up as a shining example for others to follow. But he wanted to convey the seriousness of the issue.
"I know that my tribe, my evangelical conservative white tribe, they're suspicious of social issues – 'that sounds like social gospel leading us away from Jesus and the cross' (they'd say)," Piper said. "So I'm playing to their music. I want to say this is not a social issue. This is a blood issue."
Piper grew up in Greenville, S.C., where racial segregation was enforced. Along with separate drinking fountains, schools and bus seating were also churches that excluded blacks. His home church voted in 1962 not to allow blacks into their services.
He writes in his book that he was "manifestly racist" during those years.
But God began to sow "seeds of deliverance" in his heart. Among those seeds was one sown during his senior year in college. He heard the general director of the Conservative Baptist Foreign Mission Society respond to a student's question about the possibility of his daughter marrying a Pakistani while on the mission field.
His response was something like: "Better a Christian Pakistani than a godless white American!" Piper recalled.
Also, during his seminary years, Piper was given "shocking" readings on racial prejudice, detailing crimes of hatred toward blacks. He had a hard time coming away from the readings without trembling.
Such seeds have helped him to, as he says, "awake from [his] stupor." He has repented and grown in abhorrence to racism. But, he emphasized Thursday, he's not done. It's a process and he is continuously trying to bear the fruits of the seeds God sowed.
Piper is 65 now and currently serves as pastor for Preaching & Vision at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis. His church has grown in diversity and love but it's not a model church, he said.
Moreover, racism continues to plague America.
In fact, it was just in the year 2000 when Alabama removed its ban on interracial marriage. Piper's previous home state of South Carolina lifted its ban in 1998. And more than a quarter of the residents didn't favor it, the pastor lamented.
Piper also believes there are more "vicious white supremacists in America today than there were in 1968."
The longtime pastor, who adopted a black daughter 15 years ago, was commended by African-Americans on Thursday for his courage in addressing a controversial issue. Piper told the audience that he wrote Bloodlines because of some profound convictions on what the Bible says on this issue – an issue, he acknowledges, that many people choose to avoid – and because of longings for what he wants to see happen.
"There are many pointers in the Bible concerning the rightness, the goodness, the beauty, the justice, the preciousness of racial harmony and diversity," Piper said.
"The most important one is the Gospel," he stressed. "You can talk about all of us … being in the image of God but I’m going straight to the cross."
Backing his argument with Scripture, Piper said Jesus died and ransomed his people – and that includes all ethnicities, tribes and races.
"He's gathering them by the power of the blood of Christ. That's huge if you believe in the blood of Christ," he emphasized. "This is a blood issue. This is a why Jesus died issue."
"The bloodline of Jesus," he highlighted, "is thicker, deeper, stronger than the bloodline of race, ethnicity and family."
Paraphrasing Romans 3:27-30, Piper added, "I (God) have sent my son into the world to provide a righteousness that no human being can provide on their own. There's one way to get it, and it isn't Jewishness. It isn't white. It isn't black. It's faith.
"So right at the heart of the doctrine of justification by faith on the basis of the blood of Jesus is God saying I did it that way because .... I mean there to be a unity in the way of salvation and that means I mean to gather people of every stripe because those stripes don't matter."
Racism still in the church
Piper addressed the question of why the church isn't better at racial harmony if all that he presented was scriptural truth.
The answer he offered was that either the church didn't really believe in the Gospel or the issue is just a major blind spot for many believers. Satan, pride and guilt are also factors that can deter racial harmony.
"Why does God sanctify us so slowly?" he posed, not having an answer to the question but trusting in God's ways.
Not blaming God, however, Piper said, "We shouldn't make any excuses. Just say 'God, help me be part of the solution and not part of the problem.'"
After decades of wrestling with this issue, the Minneapolis pastor owes his life to the Gospel, which he views as the only solution to racism.
"Without it (Gospel) I would still be strutting with racist pride, or I would be suffering the moral paralysis of 'white guilt,'" he writes in his book.
But not boasting of his new self either, Piper pointed Christians to the cross.
"I am 65 years old. I'm going to meet Jesus real soon. I’m going to stand before my judge real soon and I will give an account for how I served him," he said.
"My confidence before Jesus at that day does not rest there (my actions)," he emphasized.
"If he says 'why should I let you in here you former racist sinner?' You won't say 'I cleaned up my act.' If you say that, you don't get the Gospel."
"You're going to say 'there's no reason you should let me in ... I am expecting you to let me in ... because I held on to Jesus and he held on to me."
Piper invited Christians to join him in "a desperate dependence on the blood of Jesus."
"You've got to stand, if you stand at all, on the cross."
Tuesday, 1 November 2011
Joel Osteen Says Mormons Are Christian
Joel Osteen Says Mormons Are Christian
http://www.newsuganda.net/opposition-leader-wants-imf-chief-dismissed/
Friday, October 28, 2011
Megachurch pastor Joel Osteen said he believes Mormon's are Christians, even though other denominations may disagree with some aspects of the faith.
"I don't know if it's the purest form of Christianity, like I grew up with. But you know what, I know Mormons," Osteen told The Washington Times in an article published Wednesday, regarding recent criticism of GOP candidate Mitt Romney's Mormon beliefs.
"I hear Mitt Romney -- and I've never met him -- but I hear him say, 'I believe Jesus is the son of God,' 'I believe He's my savior,' and that's one of the core issues," he added.
Romney's faith came to the forefront again after a prominent pastor backing Texas Gov. Rick Perry called Mormonism a "cult."
Osteen, who pastors Lakewood Church in Houston, was in Washington for a book signing for his latest release, "Every Day a Friday."
He plans to return to the nation's capital during election season next April for an "America's Night of Hope" event.
While in Washington, Osteen shied away from political questions, but did say he prays for Perry as both a candidate and friend.
Despite the dreary economy, Osteen also said America's faith and hope for the better is "at an all-time high" right now.
Osteen, who's widely known for his charisma and optimistic sermons, added that a positive attitude will eventually pay off for those who are struggling.
"Part of our core message is that seasons change, and when you believe, if you don't get bitter, and you don't get discouraged, you may not change overnight, but you can get peace," he said.
Osteen's 40,000-member Lakewood Church is the largest in the U.S.
At his book signing, Osteen said he wants everyone to know and believe God is "on our side" and "can help us overcome."
*Original post Oct. 26, 2011.
http://www.newsuganda.net/opposition-leader-wants-imf-chief-dismissed/
Friday, October 28, 2011
Megachurch pastor Joel Osteen said he believes Mormon's are Christians, even though other denominations may disagree with some aspects of the faith.
"I don't know if it's the purest form of Christianity, like I grew up with. But you know what, I know Mormons," Osteen told The Washington Times in an article published Wednesday, regarding recent criticism of GOP candidate Mitt Romney's Mormon beliefs.
"I hear Mitt Romney -- and I've never met him -- but I hear him say, 'I believe Jesus is the son of God,' 'I believe He's my savior,' and that's one of the core issues," he added.
Romney's faith came to the forefront again after a prominent pastor backing Texas Gov. Rick Perry called Mormonism a "cult."
Osteen, who pastors Lakewood Church in Houston, was in Washington for a book signing for his latest release, "Every Day a Friday."
He plans to return to the nation's capital during election season next April for an "America's Night of Hope" event.
While in Washington, Osteen shied away from political questions, but did say he prays for Perry as both a candidate and friend.
Despite the dreary economy, Osteen also said America's faith and hope for the better is "at an all-time high" right now.
Osteen, who's widely known for his charisma and optimistic sermons, added that a positive attitude will eventually pay off for those who are struggling.
"Part of our core message is that seasons change, and when you believe, if you don't get bitter, and you don't get discouraged, you may not change overnight, but you can get peace," he said.
Osteen's 40,000-member Lakewood Church is the largest in the U.S.
At his book signing, Osteen said he wants everyone to know and believe God is "on our side" and "can help us overcome."
*Original post Oct. 26, 2011.
Friday, 28 October 2011
Bishop John Michael Mugerwa has died in a motor accident
UGANDA: Bishop John Michael Mugerwa has died in a motor accident
It is sad that Pastor John Michael Mugerwa has passed on. This is a lesson for all of us to know that we are just pilgrims and sojourners in this world. We should be more concerned with the next life than this life on earth. Dear brothers and sisters we must repent and turn away from the American prosperity Gospel. It is just a lie. Let us preach the gospel of repentance and most important of all let us prepare the saints to meet their Lord.
My 2008 warning to Pastor John Michael Mugerwa
Another Pastor who amuses me is John Michael Mugerwa. According to his biography, he really had a humble beginning. But interestingly, after escaping poverty, instead of preaching the gospel of the kingdom, he is preaching, the blessing of the city on LTV (Omukisa gwe Kibuga). Hiiii!!!!. Dear John Michael, if apostle Paul lived during your time and had the chance to preach to millions of people, do you think he would tell people about the material blessings of the city, like you. Repent and preach the true gospel my dear brother in Christ. (http://watchmanafrica.blogspot.com/2008_07_01_archive.html)
SAINTS GATE CHURCH KAMPALA-UGANDA WELCOMING THE NEW YEAR 2011 WITH BISHOP JOHN
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxqJMPT-LL8
Two American evangelists perish in Jinja accident
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/18725-two-american-evangelists-perish-in-jinja-accident.html
By Donald Kirya and Herbert Ssempogo
TWO American evangelists are among four people, who perished in a Thursday night accident along the Jinja-Iganga highway.
Dr. Reos Godzck, fellow citizen Leos Both and their hosts namely Bishop John Michael Mugerwa and Ronnie Ssebunya died after a trailer crashed their vehicle at Kakira at 7pm.
According to Jinja police spokesperson, Samsom Lubega, Paul, the driver of a Toyota Super Custom in which the deceased were, attempted to overtake two fuel tankers.
“As he overtook, he realized there was oncoming traffic so he decided to squeeze into a narrow gap between the two trailers,” Lubega stated.
Owing to humps on the road, the trailer in front reduced speed and Paul followed suit, Lubega said, adding that in the next few minutes, the trailer behind rammed into the Super Custom.
Godizic, Both, Mugerwa and Ssebunya died on the spot while Paul was rushed to hospital in Jinja. The police by Friday morning could not establish his state.
A fire brigade team from Jinja had to cut the wreckage to extract the bodies. The remains were taken to the city mortuary in Kampala.
From Phoenix, Arizona in US, the two Americans were here on the invitation of Mugerwa of Fast Assemblies Church located in Nkere zone, Katwe Makindye Division, Kampala.
Earlier in the day, they had attended a crusade for married couples in Namutumba district.
Saidi Nyogolo, the driver of the killer trailer disappeared but the police apprehended his colleague, Hamasi Kaizera. Kaizera disclosed that their vehicles contained jet fuel, which they were driving to Entebbe.
South Eastern traffic chief, Washington Labeja, who assessed the accident scene, attributed the crash to recklessness.
The vehicles were towed to Nalufenya police post traffic police continued investigating the tragedy continued. Accidents are among the leading causes of death in Uganda. Thousands of people perish in accidents annually.
Pastor John Michael Mugerwa's Personal Testimony
http://www.destinyschooluganda.com/Story/JMM.php
Hello my friends, my name is John Michael Mugerwa. I’m happy to introduce myself to you. I was born March 3, 1961 in the jungles, and raised up in those remote places. I grew up in a Catholic family. Both of my parents were Catholic and were also raised up as Catholic. I feared God, though I didn’t know much about salvation. When I was 16 years old, I moved to the city of Kampala, which was the only city we had in Uganda to further pursue my studies. Because by then I had finished my Primary section and I needed to join the Secondary level. I came to Kampala in 1977, but I didn’t go further as far as school was concerned. I ended up dropping out having lost my father who died in 1979. It wasn’t easy for my mother to pay for my school dues. Though she struggled and tried very much, she couldn’t push me ahead for long. She only pushed me for one year, and then in 1980 I dropped out due to the lack of school fees.
When I dropped out of school in 1981, I started working. I got a job washing cars and I started doing that as a source of my income. I washed cars many years, for almost 10 years from 1981 to 1991. However, in 1982 it was a Monday early in the morning, and I was on my way walking to work. One man who was a stranger to me asked me whether it was okay to join me, to walk together to town. I agreed, he joined me and we walked in company, and after we had walked for just a few meters, he asked me, “John, did you go to church yesterday?” Because it was Monday and yesterday was Sunday, so he wanted to know if I had gone to church. I told him “Yes”, and my yes was true because I had gone to church that Sunday. Then he asked me another question, “What did the priest talk about, what did he teach?” I had gone to the church, and attended only the mass, I wasn’t ready for that question, and I didn’t know much about the sermon. But this stranger wanted to know the sermon and I wasn’t able to answer that question. I tried to dodge it by trying to argue with him and say, “You don’t belong to my faith, and I don’t belong to yours, why should you like to know much about my faith?” But the fact is I was only trying to dodge him, I couldn’t answer his question. During that time we started arguing and when he saw that I was arguing even more, I don’t know how it came about, but he reached into his bag and pulled out a new bible and gave it to me. In my life I had never owned a bible so that gift simply shocked me, humbled me and I couldn’t argue with him any more.
When he realized that I had been humbled, he took the advantage of preaching to me and he went ahead and to tell me that I needed to clear my life, put my life right with Jesus. Remember, we are on our way walking but he was busy preaching to me. During that time he went ahead to ask me, “John, were you baptized?” I said, “Yes.” And he asked me, “When was that?” I told him that I was baptized as an infant, but he told me, “But John, you need to know that you must believe first so that you might be baptized.” He told me to open my bible, (because by then it was my bible) to the book of Mark, chapter 16, verse 15. But I didn’t know where the book of Mark was, so he helped me and we opened to the book of Mark, and we read “Go into the whole world and preach the gospel. Whoever believes shall be baptized.” He told me I must believe first so that you might be baptized.
During that sharing a light shone upon my mind and I knew I needed to believe in Jesus Christ to be my personal saviour. I told him, “I need to believe.” He was excited and he took me to the side of the road, it was a busy road. By then I was still a young man and this man led me to confess my sins and to repeat after him a confession prayer. I tried to argue with him, “Brother just give me the directions to your church, and I will come on Sunday”. But he couldn’t let me go, he wanted me to confess the sinners prayer. It was a bit of an embarrassment to me, I knew he wouldn’t let me go, and I didn’t want to disappoint him, thinking that he might even withdraw his bible from me. So I just agreed, he took me to the side of the street and I repeated after him and he told me to speak louder after him, though it was a bit of embarrassment to me, but you know I had to do it.
Then after that, he told me to close my eyes though people were looking at us. Most of them knew me, and they were surprised and wondered what I was doing. It was early in the day and they were wondering what had happened to me. He couldn’t let me go and he prayed over me, this was a Pentecostal man. He just shouted in his prayer and it was a long prayer, but what could I do. Then after that it was time for him to let me go and that is when I realized he wasn’t even going to town, he was just pretending, just using it as a trap to trap people like me. But good enough, he gave me money to catch a bus so that I didn’t have to walk to town. And the balance was enough for me to get lunch and supper for that day. What a blessing I received on the same day, salvation and money.
After that day, I went back home, by then I had entered into a traditional marriage with my wife Evah that happened in the same year. So I went back home and told my wife, she couldn’t believe me what happened, but it was the truth. And she told me “Okay, when you go to church on Sunday, then I will accompany you.” Sunday came and I dressed up and my wife did the same and she accompanied me and we ended up going to the church where that street preacher had directed us. We met him at the door, he introduced us to the pastor and the whole church was excited and received us with joy. When my wife saw what happened, how gladly they received us, she also surrendered her life to Christ on that day. So since then that was our turning point.
We stayed in that church, the pastor loved us, together with the street preacher, they loved us and he started to disciple me. Sometimes I would join him on the streets and we would preach together and then after, I became an interpreter for my pastor. He would preach and I would interpret in Swahili, sometimes he would preach in Swahili and I would interpret in Luganda, the local language mostly spoken here in Kampala. Being an interpreter of a man of God, I became acquainted with the Holy Ghost and the Holy Ghost would deliver the message some times through me. Then, in 1984 two years after my salvation, there was an apostle in the city, his name is Alex Mitala. Together with my pastor of the local church I was attending, they planted a church in one of the slum areas of Kampala, named Katwe. This was a place full of gangs, prostitutes, thugs, bandits and people of that calibre. So, I was to take the job of pastor to that newly established church. I accepted by the grace of the Lord though I was still young in the Lord and I didn’t know much about ministry. But I accepted by the grace of the Lord and on January 31, 1984 we took over the responsibility and the work of that church.
The church began with only two women, but we had to begin somewhere. It was only the might of the Lord which enabled me to stay. Just imagine, I was from a large church and now here I am beginning with only two women, that even shocked my wife and she went back to our former church. She did not like to come to my new church of only two women. But anyway, I stayed there and served those two ladies, the grace of the Lord was there and I ended up serving them and leading them what to do. One was the secretary, the other was the treasurer and I became the chairman, so the three of us were the elders. From time to time I wanted to quit, I thought that maybe this was not the right place, but spiritual fathers in the city told me to be faithful with few and the Lord would bless me with many.
One time I was attending a minister’s conference and I heard one preacher talking about how faithful Jesus was with one woman at the well, and after that faithfulness, the Lord poured out the whole city to him. That message changed my thinking and I went back and decided to be faithful with the two women, but as I am speaking now I have good news. The church started growing and growing. Right now the church has grown, we have given birth to many sister churches. I have many spiritual sons and have shown them how to plant churches around the nation. The church I started with is still growing and now if you visit us on Sunday morning you will see about 800 people and in the evening service you would see about 2,000 people. So God has just been taking us from glory to glory time after time. That is how the church has been growing, and the Lord has blessed us in that area.
To take you back, remember I had married my wife in 1982 the traditional way. We decided to renew our marriage vows in 1985, and that was a great blessing. As I am speaking right now, the Lord has blessed us so much, as I have told you. Our church has existed for 20 years and we have given birth to over 20 sister churches, and our church has grown to 2,000 people and the Lord continues to bless us. We constructed a church building which accommodated us for seven years, but we outgrew the building and the Lord gave us an additional piece of property. There we have set up a temporary shelter and by the year 2005 we will commence the work of constructing a new church building.
It is sad that Pastor John Michael Mugerwa has passed on. This is a lesson for all of us to know that we are just pilgrims and sojourners in this world. We should be more concerned with the next life than this life on earth. Dear brothers and sisters we must repent and turn away from the American prosperity Gospel. It is just a lie. Let us preach the gospel of repentance and most important of all let us prepare the saints to meet their Lord.
My 2008 warning to Pastor John Michael Mugerwa
Another Pastor who amuses me is John Michael Mugerwa. According to his biography, he really had a humble beginning. But interestingly, after escaping poverty, instead of preaching the gospel of the kingdom, he is preaching, the blessing of the city on LTV (Omukisa gwe Kibuga). Hiiii!!!!. Dear John Michael, if apostle Paul lived during your time and had the chance to preach to millions of people, do you think he would tell people about the material blessings of the city, like you. Repent and preach the true gospel my dear brother in Christ. (http://watchmanafrica.blogspot.com/2008_07_01_archive.html)
SAINTS GATE CHURCH KAMPALA-UGANDA WELCOMING THE NEW YEAR 2011 WITH BISHOP JOHN
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxqJMPT-LL8
Two American evangelists perish in Jinja accident
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/18725-two-american-evangelists-perish-in-jinja-accident.html
By Donald Kirya and Herbert Ssempogo
TWO American evangelists are among four people, who perished in a Thursday night accident along the Jinja-Iganga highway.
Dr. Reos Godzck, fellow citizen Leos Both and their hosts namely Bishop John Michael Mugerwa and Ronnie Ssebunya died after a trailer crashed their vehicle at Kakira at 7pm.
According to Jinja police spokesperson, Samsom Lubega, Paul, the driver of a Toyota Super Custom in which the deceased were, attempted to overtake two fuel tankers.
“As he overtook, he realized there was oncoming traffic so he decided to squeeze into a narrow gap between the two trailers,” Lubega stated.
Owing to humps on the road, the trailer in front reduced speed and Paul followed suit, Lubega said, adding that in the next few minutes, the trailer behind rammed into the Super Custom.
Godizic, Both, Mugerwa and Ssebunya died on the spot while Paul was rushed to hospital in Jinja. The police by Friday morning could not establish his state.
A fire brigade team from Jinja had to cut the wreckage to extract the bodies. The remains were taken to the city mortuary in Kampala.
From Phoenix, Arizona in US, the two Americans were here on the invitation of Mugerwa of Fast Assemblies Church located in Nkere zone, Katwe Makindye Division, Kampala.
Earlier in the day, they had attended a crusade for married couples in Namutumba district.
Saidi Nyogolo, the driver of the killer trailer disappeared but the police apprehended his colleague, Hamasi Kaizera. Kaizera disclosed that their vehicles contained jet fuel, which they were driving to Entebbe.
South Eastern traffic chief, Washington Labeja, who assessed the accident scene, attributed the crash to recklessness.
The vehicles were towed to Nalufenya police post traffic police continued investigating the tragedy continued. Accidents are among the leading causes of death in Uganda. Thousands of people perish in accidents annually.
Pastor John Michael Mugerwa's Personal Testimony
http://www.destinyschooluganda.com/Story/JMM.php
Hello my friends, my name is John Michael Mugerwa. I’m happy to introduce myself to you. I was born March 3, 1961 in the jungles, and raised up in those remote places. I grew up in a Catholic family. Both of my parents were Catholic and were also raised up as Catholic. I feared God, though I didn’t know much about salvation. When I was 16 years old, I moved to the city of Kampala, which was the only city we had in Uganda to further pursue my studies. Because by then I had finished my Primary section and I needed to join the Secondary level. I came to Kampala in 1977, but I didn’t go further as far as school was concerned. I ended up dropping out having lost my father who died in 1979. It wasn’t easy for my mother to pay for my school dues. Though she struggled and tried very much, she couldn’t push me ahead for long. She only pushed me for one year, and then in 1980 I dropped out due to the lack of school fees.
When I dropped out of school in 1981, I started working. I got a job washing cars and I started doing that as a source of my income. I washed cars many years, for almost 10 years from 1981 to 1991. However, in 1982 it was a Monday early in the morning, and I was on my way walking to work. One man who was a stranger to me asked me whether it was okay to join me, to walk together to town. I agreed, he joined me and we walked in company, and after we had walked for just a few meters, he asked me, “John, did you go to church yesterday?” Because it was Monday and yesterday was Sunday, so he wanted to know if I had gone to church. I told him “Yes”, and my yes was true because I had gone to church that Sunday. Then he asked me another question, “What did the priest talk about, what did he teach?” I had gone to the church, and attended only the mass, I wasn’t ready for that question, and I didn’t know much about the sermon. But this stranger wanted to know the sermon and I wasn’t able to answer that question. I tried to dodge it by trying to argue with him and say, “You don’t belong to my faith, and I don’t belong to yours, why should you like to know much about my faith?” But the fact is I was only trying to dodge him, I couldn’t answer his question. During that time we started arguing and when he saw that I was arguing even more, I don’t know how it came about, but he reached into his bag and pulled out a new bible and gave it to me. In my life I had never owned a bible so that gift simply shocked me, humbled me and I couldn’t argue with him any more.
When he realized that I had been humbled, he took the advantage of preaching to me and he went ahead and to tell me that I needed to clear my life, put my life right with Jesus. Remember, we are on our way walking but he was busy preaching to me. During that time he went ahead to ask me, “John, were you baptized?” I said, “Yes.” And he asked me, “When was that?” I told him that I was baptized as an infant, but he told me, “But John, you need to know that you must believe first so that you might be baptized.” He told me to open my bible, (because by then it was my bible) to the book of Mark, chapter 16, verse 15. But I didn’t know where the book of Mark was, so he helped me and we opened to the book of Mark, and we read “Go into the whole world and preach the gospel. Whoever believes shall be baptized.” He told me I must believe first so that you might be baptized.
During that sharing a light shone upon my mind and I knew I needed to believe in Jesus Christ to be my personal saviour. I told him, “I need to believe.” He was excited and he took me to the side of the road, it was a busy road. By then I was still a young man and this man led me to confess my sins and to repeat after him a confession prayer. I tried to argue with him, “Brother just give me the directions to your church, and I will come on Sunday”. But he couldn’t let me go, he wanted me to confess the sinners prayer. It was a bit of an embarrassment to me, I knew he wouldn’t let me go, and I didn’t want to disappoint him, thinking that he might even withdraw his bible from me. So I just agreed, he took me to the side of the street and I repeated after him and he told me to speak louder after him, though it was a bit of embarrassment to me, but you know I had to do it.
Then after that, he told me to close my eyes though people were looking at us. Most of them knew me, and they were surprised and wondered what I was doing. It was early in the day and they were wondering what had happened to me. He couldn’t let me go and he prayed over me, this was a Pentecostal man. He just shouted in his prayer and it was a long prayer, but what could I do. Then after that it was time for him to let me go and that is when I realized he wasn’t even going to town, he was just pretending, just using it as a trap to trap people like me. But good enough, he gave me money to catch a bus so that I didn’t have to walk to town. And the balance was enough for me to get lunch and supper for that day. What a blessing I received on the same day, salvation and money.
After that day, I went back home, by then I had entered into a traditional marriage with my wife Evah that happened in the same year. So I went back home and told my wife, she couldn’t believe me what happened, but it was the truth. And she told me “Okay, when you go to church on Sunday, then I will accompany you.” Sunday came and I dressed up and my wife did the same and she accompanied me and we ended up going to the church where that street preacher had directed us. We met him at the door, he introduced us to the pastor and the whole church was excited and received us with joy. When my wife saw what happened, how gladly they received us, she also surrendered her life to Christ on that day. So since then that was our turning point.
We stayed in that church, the pastor loved us, together with the street preacher, they loved us and he started to disciple me. Sometimes I would join him on the streets and we would preach together and then after, I became an interpreter for my pastor. He would preach and I would interpret in Swahili, sometimes he would preach in Swahili and I would interpret in Luganda, the local language mostly spoken here in Kampala. Being an interpreter of a man of God, I became acquainted with the Holy Ghost and the Holy Ghost would deliver the message some times through me. Then, in 1984 two years after my salvation, there was an apostle in the city, his name is Alex Mitala. Together with my pastor of the local church I was attending, they planted a church in one of the slum areas of Kampala, named Katwe. This was a place full of gangs, prostitutes, thugs, bandits and people of that calibre. So, I was to take the job of pastor to that newly established church. I accepted by the grace of the Lord though I was still young in the Lord and I didn’t know much about ministry. But I accepted by the grace of the Lord and on January 31, 1984 we took over the responsibility and the work of that church.
The church began with only two women, but we had to begin somewhere. It was only the might of the Lord which enabled me to stay. Just imagine, I was from a large church and now here I am beginning with only two women, that even shocked my wife and she went back to our former church. She did not like to come to my new church of only two women. But anyway, I stayed there and served those two ladies, the grace of the Lord was there and I ended up serving them and leading them what to do. One was the secretary, the other was the treasurer and I became the chairman, so the three of us were the elders. From time to time I wanted to quit, I thought that maybe this was not the right place, but spiritual fathers in the city told me to be faithful with few and the Lord would bless me with many.
One time I was attending a minister’s conference and I heard one preacher talking about how faithful Jesus was with one woman at the well, and after that faithfulness, the Lord poured out the whole city to him. That message changed my thinking and I went back and decided to be faithful with the two women, but as I am speaking now I have good news. The church started growing and growing. Right now the church has grown, we have given birth to many sister churches. I have many spiritual sons and have shown them how to plant churches around the nation. The church I started with is still growing and now if you visit us on Sunday morning you will see about 800 people and in the evening service you would see about 2,000 people. So God has just been taking us from glory to glory time after time. That is how the church has been growing, and the Lord has blessed us in that area.
To take you back, remember I had married my wife in 1982 the traditional way. We decided to renew our marriage vows in 1985, and that was a great blessing. As I am speaking right now, the Lord has blessed us so much, as I have told you. Our church has existed for 20 years and we have given birth to over 20 sister churches, and our church has grown to 2,000 people and the Lord continues to bless us. We constructed a church building which accommodated us for seven years, but we outgrew the building and the Lord gave us an additional piece of property. There we have set up a temporary shelter and by the year 2005 we will commence the work of constructing a new church building.
Thursday, 27 October 2011
Ghana: Men of God Cautioned Against Materialism, Exploitation
Ghana: Men of God Cautioned Against Materialism, Exploitation
http://allafrica.com/stories/201110260248.html
Sebastian R. Freiku
The Chronicle, 25 October 2011
Kumasi — Apostle Kofi Nkansah-Sarkodie, General Overseer of the Open Arms Ministries at North Suntreso in Kumasi, has admonished Ministers of the Gospel to stay clear of anything that relates to the power of Satan, with the view of performing miracles and wonders for material gain and fame.
The man of God condemned the negative expose of Christendom, following the misconduct of some men of God on the local scene.
Apostle Nkansah-Sarkodie, who is also known as Brother Sark, noted that "Satan is seriously at work and infiltrating the ranks of Ministers of the Gospel," and cautioned them to beware and not allow the devil to use them perform miracles and wonders.
According to him, those men of God lose guard and fall to the tricks of Satan. He as well cautioned Ministers against resorting to lies, falsehood, and deceit, because they would be exposed, disgraced, and punished at the end of the day.
Apostle Nkansah-Sarkodie pointed out that recent reported cases of fornication, rape, armed robbery, adultery, stealing, and fraud, among other vices allegedly involving some men of God, which situation, he said, was driving many Christians away from God.
"Our church leaders, who should be shepherding the flock towards salvation, are themselves shamefully leading ungodly lifestyles."
The General Overseer has therefore, admonished Christians to be wide awake, lead godly lives, and not sway in their faith, so as not to lose salvation. He also advised unbelievers to repent their sins, and take up to Jesus Christ, in order to escape hellfire.
In a related development, Prophet Emmanuel Amoah of Gentle Prayer Ministry at Atwima Kokoben in the Ashanti Region has cautioned colleague pastors not to exploit the membership of their churches.
He said pastors who exploit and extort monies from their members are doomed and hellbound, because it was not right in the sight of God.
Pastor Amoah said in radio evangelism on BOSS FM in Kumasi recently that men of God who defy divine directive and milk their members dry, would face the wrath of God, and be judged.
He said it was against God's design for pastors to feed fat on members of their congregation.
The concerned man of God pointed to the common feature among most pastors who take care of themselves by living ostentatious lives at the expense of their members as in Ezekiel 34:1-10. Quoting 1 Peter 5:1-4, Prophet Amoah said pastors were bound to willingly take proper care of the flock God entrusts into their care. "Do your work not for pay, but from a real desire to serve," so that they (pastors) will share in God's glory, he advised.
Referring to Ephesians 2:2 and James 4:1-5, Prophet Amoah reiterated that pleasure seekers were God's enemies, and admonished that pastors who desire pleasures and do what pleases them are destined to suffer God's anger.
The Prophet noted that it was common to see the flock shepherding the shepherd, instead of the other way round, and attributed this situation to the fact that some men of God follow and obey the world's evil spirits and disobey God.
"Pastors, who do not do the right thing to save souls are doomed," Prophet Amoah cautioned.
He noted that in the face of lack of proper shepherding, the flock, which is vulnerable, is scattered out of frustration, thus falling prey to from one such pastor to another.
Prophet Amoah has, therefore, urged pastors to respond positively to their calling, and preach salvation to save souls for God's Kingdom, instead of preaching prosperity which never comes to the flock, because in the true sense, they (said pastors) care for themselves.
Prophet Amoah said the admonition to cater for the vulnerable and weak equally applies to politicians, ministers of state, district chief executives, government functionaries, public officers, civil servants and people in positions of trust, including journalists.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201110260248.html
Sebastian R. Freiku
The Chronicle, 25 October 2011
Kumasi — Apostle Kofi Nkansah-Sarkodie, General Overseer of the Open Arms Ministries at North Suntreso in Kumasi, has admonished Ministers of the Gospel to stay clear of anything that relates to the power of Satan, with the view of performing miracles and wonders for material gain and fame.
The man of God condemned the negative expose of Christendom, following the misconduct of some men of God on the local scene.
Apostle Nkansah-Sarkodie, who is also known as Brother Sark, noted that "Satan is seriously at work and infiltrating the ranks of Ministers of the Gospel," and cautioned them to beware and not allow the devil to use them perform miracles and wonders.
According to him, those men of God lose guard and fall to the tricks of Satan. He as well cautioned Ministers against resorting to lies, falsehood, and deceit, because they would be exposed, disgraced, and punished at the end of the day.
Apostle Nkansah-Sarkodie pointed out that recent reported cases of fornication, rape, armed robbery, adultery, stealing, and fraud, among other vices allegedly involving some men of God, which situation, he said, was driving many Christians away from God.
"Our church leaders, who should be shepherding the flock towards salvation, are themselves shamefully leading ungodly lifestyles."
The General Overseer has therefore, admonished Christians to be wide awake, lead godly lives, and not sway in their faith, so as not to lose salvation. He also advised unbelievers to repent their sins, and take up to Jesus Christ, in order to escape hellfire.
In a related development, Prophet Emmanuel Amoah of Gentle Prayer Ministry at Atwima Kokoben in the Ashanti Region has cautioned colleague pastors not to exploit the membership of their churches.
He said pastors who exploit and extort monies from their members are doomed and hellbound, because it was not right in the sight of God.
Pastor Amoah said in radio evangelism on BOSS FM in Kumasi recently that men of God who defy divine directive and milk their members dry, would face the wrath of God, and be judged.
He said it was against God's design for pastors to feed fat on members of their congregation.
The concerned man of God pointed to the common feature among most pastors who take care of themselves by living ostentatious lives at the expense of their members as in Ezekiel 34:1-10. Quoting 1 Peter 5:1-4, Prophet Amoah said pastors were bound to willingly take proper care of the flock God entrusts into their care. "Do your work not for pay, but from a real desire to serve," so that they (pastors) will share in God's glory, he advised.
Referring to Ephesians 2:2 and James 4:1-5, Prophet Amoah reiterated that pleasure seekers were God's enemies, and admonished that pastors who desire pleasures and do what pleases them are destined to suffer God's anger.
The Prophet noted that it was common to see the flock shepherding the shepherd, instead of the other way round, and attributed this situation to the fact that some men of God follow and obey the world's evil spirits and disobey God.
"Pastors, who do not do the right thing to save souls are doomed," Prophet Amoah cautioned.
He noted that in the face of lack of proper shepherding, the flock, which is vulnerable, is scattered out of frustration, thus falling prey to from one such pastor to another.
Prophet Amoah has, therefore, urged pastors to respond positively to their calling, and preach salvation to save souls for God's Kingdom, instead of preaching prosperity which never comes to the flock, because in the true sense, they (said pastors) care for themselves.
Prophet Amoah said the admonition to cater for the vulnerable and weak equally applies to politicians, ministers of state, district chief executives, government functionaries, public officers, civil servants and people in positions of trust, including journalists.
Saturday, 15 October 2011
Obama sends 100 US troops to Uganda to fight LRA: It is not what you think!!!
First read:
THE MAIN REASON THAT THE U.S. IS TARGETING THE LRA IS THAT IT IS "UNSETTLING" AMERICA'S ATTEMPT TO RAPE THE AREA OF ITS OIL AND MINERAL RIGHTS.
http://www.antipasministries.com/other/article026.htm
Crisis In The Congo: Uncovering The Truth
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLV9szEu9Ag
Obama sends 100 US troops to Uganda to fight LRA
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/18452-obama-sends-100-us-troops-to-uganda-to-fight-lra.html
US President Barack Obama said Friday he is sending 100 "combat-equipped" troops to Uganda to help and advise forces battling Lord's Resistance Army rebels accused of grievous human rights abuses.
The US troops, subject to the approval of national authorities, could also deploy from Uganda into South Sudan, the Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of the Congo, Obama said in a message to Congress.
LRA rebels are accused of terrorizing, murdering, raping and kidnapping thousands of people in the four nations, and tens of thousands of people died in their 20-year war with security forces in northern Uganda.
"These forces will act as advisors to partner forces that have the goal of removing from the battlefield Joseph Kony and other senior leadership of the LRA," Obama said, but warned they would not lead the fighting themselves.
"Although the US forces are combat-equipped, they will only be providing information, advice, and assistance to partner nation forces.
"They will not themselves engage LRA forces unless necessary for self-defense. All appropriate precautions have been taken to ensure the safety of US military personnel during their deployment."
According to AFP, the president said a small group of troops deployed on Wednesday and that additional forces will deploy over the next month.
Kony, accused of war crimes and wanted by the International Criminal Court, appears to have dropped any national political agenda and in recent years his marauding troops have sown death and destruction in the region.
The civil war effectively ended in 2006 when a peace process was launched, but Kony and his top commanders continue to commit atrocities in remote areas of neighboring countries.
General Carter Ham, the head of US Africa Command, said last week that his best estimate was that Kony was probably in the Central African Republic
AFP
An Excerpt from the letter President Obama Sent to the Congressional Leaders
For more than two decades, the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) has murdered, raped, and kidnapped tens of thousands of men, women, and children in central Africa. The LRA continues to commit atrocities across the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and South Sudan that have a disproportionate impact on regional security. ...
In furtherance of the Congress's stated policy, I have authorized a small number of combat-equipped U.S. forces to deploy to central Africa to provide assistance to regional forces that are working toward the removal of Joseph Kony from the battlefield. I believe that deploying these U.S. Armed Forces furthers U.S. national security interests and foreign policy and will be a significant contribution toward counter-LRA efforts in central Africa.
On October 12, the initial team of U.S. military personnel with appropriate combat equipment deployed to Uganda.
During the next month, additional forces will deploy, including a second combat-equipped team and associated headquarters, communications, and logistics personnel. The total number of U.S. military personnel deploying for this mission is approximately 100.
These forces will act as advisors to partner forces that have the goal of removing from the battlefield Joseph Kony and other senior leadership of the LRA. Our forces will provide information, advice, and assistance to select partner nation forces.
Subject to the approval of each respective host nation, elements of these U.S. forces will deploy into Uganda, South Sudan, the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The support provided by U.S. forces will enhance regional efforts against the LRA. However, although the U.S. forces are combat-equipped, they will only be providing information, advice, and assistance to partner nation forces, and they will not themselves engage LRA forces unless necessary for self-defense. All appropriate precautions have been taken to ensure the safety of U.S. military personnel during their deployment.
Sourced from: http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2011/10/obama-dispatches-100-troops-to-uganda/1?csp=34news
US denies interest in Uganda oil
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/18504-us-denies-interest-in-uganda-oil.html
THE US on Monday denied that its renewed interest in Uganda is a strategy to get hold of the newly found oil in the count.
The US government has announced that it will deploy troops to help Uganda fight the rebels of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) who are currently in the Central African Republic.
Critics have said that the only reason that America seems to be coming up strongly to offer troops to help in fighting Kony when they did not when he was killing people here was because of the oil.
But the Charge d’Affairs at the American embassy in Kampala, Virginia Blaser, said yesterday that the US has been helping Uganda with especially with the humanitarian situation in the North where Kony was killing people. She was addressing journalists at a press conference.
“The US is deeply committed to supporting Uganda’s effort to eliminate the threat of LRA and providing humanitarian assistance to LRA affected regions,” Blazer said. “Since 2008, the LRA has been responsible for at least 2,400 attacks and over 3,400 abductions. According to the UN, there have been approximately 250 attacks attributed to the LRQA this year.
She said that over the recent years, the Ugandan military has persevered through some of the most difficult terrain in the world and significantly reduced the LRA numbers and kept them from regrouping.
She insisted that the US troops will assume an advisory, not a combat role. She said that the continued stay of the US troops is dependent on the continued cooperation of regional governments i8n fighting Kony.
“The US military personnel will assume a supporting role to strengthen information-sharing and operational effectiveness against the LRA,” She said and added that the decision to do so was taken in 2009. She said that only a portion of the personnel will travel to the field locations, but also to advise and would only defend themselves if attacked.
President Yoweri Museveni also told journalists on Sunday that American soldiers will not fight Kony, but will advise the Ugandan army.
“We have American advisors not fighters so there are no American troops here,” Museveni said in answer to journalists’ queries at a press conference yesterday.
According to an earlier message by US president Barrack Obama, the , US troops, could also deploy from Uganda into South Sudan, the Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of the Congo.
LRA rebels are accused of terrorizing, murdering, raping and kidnapping thousands of people in the four nations, and tens of thousands of people died in their 20-year war with security forces in northern Uganda.
According to AFP, the president said a small group of troops deployed on Wednesday and that additional forces will deploy over the next month.
Kony, is wanted by the International Criminal Court, over crimes against humanity appears to have dropped any national political agenda and in recent years his marauding troops have sown death and destruction in the region.
The civil war effectively ended in 2006 when a peace process was launched, but Kony and his top commanders continue to commit atrocities in remote areas of neighboring countries.
THE MAIN REASON THAT THE U.S. IS TARGETING THE LRA IS THAT IT IS "UNSETTLING" AMERICA'S ATTEMPT TO RAPE THE AREA OF ITS OIL AND MINERAL RIGHTS.
http://www.antipasministries.com/other/article026.htm
Crisis In The Congo: Uncovering The Truth
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLV9szEu9Ag
Obama sends 100 US troops to Uganda to fight LRA
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/18452-obama-sends-100-us-troops-to-uganda-to-fight-lra.html
US President Barack Obama said Friday he is sending 100 "combat-equipped" troops to Uganda to help and advise forces battling Lord's Resistance Army rebels accused of grievous human rights abuses.
The US troops, subject to the approval of national authorities, could also deploy from Uganda into South Sudan, the Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of the Congo, Obama said in a message to Congress.
LRA rebels are accused of terrorizing, murdering, raping and kidnapping thousands of people in the four nations, and tens of thousands of people died in their 20-year war with security forces in northern Uganda.
"These forces will act as advisors to partner forces that have the goal of removing from the battlefield Joseph Kony and other senior leadership of the LRA," Obama said, but warned they would not lead the fighting themselves.
"Although the US forces are combat-equipped, they will only be providing information, advice, and assistance to partner nation forces.
"They will not themselves engage LRA forces unless necessary for self-defense. All appropriate precautions have been taken to ensure the safety of US military personnel during their deployment."
According to AFP, the president said a small group of troops deployed on Wednesday and that additional forces will deploy over the next month.
Kony, accused of war crimes and wanted by the International Criminal Court, appears to have dropped any national political agenda and in recent years his marauding troops have sown death and destruction in the region.
The civil war effectively ended in 2006 when a peace process was launched, but Kony and his top commanders continue to commit atrocities in remote areas of neighboring countries.
General Carter Ham, the head of US Africa Command, said last week that his best estimate was that Kony was probably in the Central African Republic
AFP
An Excerpt from the letter President Obama Sent to the Congressional Leaders
For more than two decades, the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) has murdered, raped, and kidnapped tens of thousands of men, women, and children in central Africa. The LRA continues to commit atrocities across the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and South Sudan that have a disproportionate impact on regional security. ...
In furtherance of the Congress's stated policy, I have authorized a small number of combat-equipped U.S. forces to deploy to central Africa to provide assistance to regional forces that are working toward the removal of Joseph Kony from the battlefield. I believe that deploying these U.S. Armed Forces furthers U.S. national security interests and foreign policy and will be a significant contribution toward counter-LRA efforts in central Africa.
On October 12, the initial team of U.S. military personnel with appropriate combat equipment deployed to Uganda.
During the next month, additional forces will deploy, including a second combat-equipped team and associated headquarters, communications, and logistics personnel. The total number of U.S. military personnel deploying for this mission is approximately 100.
These forces will act as advisors to partner forces that have the goal of removing from the battlefield Joseph Kony and other senior leadership of the LRA. Our forces will provide information, advice, and assistance to select partner nation forces.
Subject to the approval of each respective host nation, elements of these U.S. forces will deploy into Uganda, South Sudan, the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The support provided by U.S. forces will enhance regional efforts against the LRA. However, although the U.S. forces are combat-equipped, they will only be providing information, advice, and assistance to partner nation forces, and they will not themselves engage LRA forces unless necessary for self-defense. All appropriate precautions have been taken to ensure the safety of U.S. military personnel during their deployment.
Sourced from: http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2011/10/obama-dispatches-100-troops-to-uganda/1?csp=34news
US denies interest in Uganda oil
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/18504-us-denies-interest-in-uganda-oil.html
THE US on Monday denied that its renewed interest in Uganda is a strategy to get hold of the newly found oil in the count.
The US government has announced that it will deploy troops to help Uganda fight the rebels of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) who are currently in the Central African Republic.
Critics have said that the only reason that America seems to be coming up strongly to offer troops to help in fighting Kony when they did not when he was killing people here was because of the oil.
But the Charge d’Affairs at the American embassy in Kampala, Virginia Blaser, said yesterday that the US has been helping Uganda with especially with the humanitarian situation in the North where Kony was killing people. She was addressing journalists at a press conference.
“The US is deeply committed to supporting Uganda’s effort to eliminate the threat of LRA and providing humanitarian assistance to LRA affected regions,” Blazer said. “Since 2008, the LRA has been responsible for at least 2,400 attacks and over 3,400 abductions. According to the UN, there have been approximately 250 attacks attributed to the LRQA this year.
She said that over the recent years, the Ugandan military has persevered through some of the most difficult terrain in the world and significantly reduced the LRA numbers and kept them from regrouping.
She insisted that the US troops will assume an advisory, not a combat role. She said that the continued stay of the US troops is dependent on the continued cooperation of regional governments i8n fighting Kony.
“The US military personnel will assume a supporting role to strengthen information-sharing and operational effectiveness against the LRA,” She said and added that the decision to do so was taken in 2009. She said that only a portion of the personnel will travel to the field locations, but also to advise and would only defend themselves if attacked.
President Yoweri Museveni also told journalists on Sunday that American soldiers will not fight Kony, but will advise the Ugandan army.
“We have American advisors not fighters so there are no American troops here,” Museveni said in answer to journalists’ queries at a press conference yesterday.
According to an earlier message by US president Barrack Obama, the , US troops, could also deploy from Uganda into South Sudan, the Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of the Congo.
LRA rebels are accused of terrorizing, murdering, raping and kidnapping thousands of people in the four nations, and tens of thousands of people died in their 20-year war with security forces in northern Uganda.
According to AFP, the president said a small group of troops deployed on Wednesday and that additional forces will deploy over the next month.
Kony, is wanted by the International Criminal Court, over crimes against humanity appears to have dropped any national political agenda and in recent years his marauding troops have sown death and destruction in the region.
The civil war effectively ended in 2006 when a peace process was launched, but Kony and his top commanders continue to commit atrocities in remote areas of neighboring countries.
Thursday, 13 October 2011
Mugabe urged to end attacks on Anglicans in Zimbabwe
Mugabe urged to end attacks on Anglicans in Zimbabwe
http://www.sabc.co.za/news/a/dded840048a5b01aa6d0a65c3e4e6c86/Mugabe-urged-to-end-attacks-on-Anglicans-in-Zimbabwe-20111011
Tuesday 11 October 2011 05:35
The Archbishop of Canterbury asked President Robert Mugabe to end attacks on Anglicans in Zimbabwe, where a renegade bishop has forced the faithful out of their churches.
Rowan Williams, the spiritual leader of Anglicans worldwide, met for two hours with Mugabe at State House to lay out his concerns about the assault on the Church that has seen even teachers and nurses chased from schools and orphanages.
"We have asked in the clearest possible terms that the president use his powers as head of state to put an end to all unacceptable and illegal behaviour," Rowan Williams told reporters afterwards.
"It was a very candid meeting, disagreements were expressed clearly, but I think in a peaceful manner," he said.
"We deeply deplore the manner in which many of the historic assets of the church... hospitals, schools have not only been seized by the breakaway group but are no longer used for the purpose for which were designed."
The police must perfrom their duties in a non-partisan way. Cabinet made that decision very clearly that when it comes to praying the state has no role in the church but protect people when they do pray
Mugabe, who at 87 has ruled since independence from Britain in 1980, made no comments either before or after the meeting.
Williams later met with Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, Mugabe's long-time rival who joined a unity government two years ago.
"The police must perform their duties in a non-partisan way. Cabinet made that decision very clearly that when it comes to praying the state has no role in the church but protect people when they do pray," Tsvangirai said.
Renegade bishop and Mugabe ally Nolbert Kunonga broke away from the Anglican Communion three years ago in a dispute over homosexuality. His new grouping seized all the Church's property and forcefully evicted Anglicans from their places of worship.
Kunonga, who has praised Catholic Mugabe as a "true son of God", has backed the president's violent land reform programme and endorsed his condemnation of homosexuality.
Mugabe, Archbishop of Canterbury set for fiery meeting
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/18307-mugabe-archbishop-of-canterbury-set-for-fiery-meeting.html
HARARE - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe will question the Anglican Church's silence on Western sanctions against him and its position on homosexuality, and Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams will press him to end violent suppression of the church and its priests at a meeting expected on Monday.
Williams arrived in Zimbabwe on Sunday as part of a tour of southern Africa and is expected to meet 87-year-old Mugabe on Monday. Mugabe has yet to confirm the arrangement.
His spokesman George Charamba told the state-run Sunday Mail in an interview that "if ever" Mugabe and Williams were going to meet, Mugabe would ask why the church had not condemned the sanctions he says are hurting ordinary Zimbabweans.
"Has the Church consorted with the British State to impose sanctions against us?" said Charamba.
Western countries led by former colonial power Britain have maintained financial and travel sanctions on Mugabe and senior members from his ZANU-PF party since 2000 over charges of human rights abuse and electoral fraud. Mugabe denies the charges.
Charamba said that Mugabe had nothing to do with a dispute between the church and a rebel bishop who has taken over Anglican church assets.
The Anglican church is appealing against an Aug. 4 ruling that gave Nolbert Kunonga, a Mugabe supporter who leads a breakaway faction of the church, custody of the Anglican church's Zimbabwean properties.
Kunonga is a former head of the Anglican church in the country but resigned in 2007 claiming homosexual priests and congregants had gained influence in the church, although it does not conduct same-sex marriages or ordain gay priests.
"The second issue that the President wants this man of God (Williams) to clarify is why his Anglican Church thinks homosexuality is good for us and why it should be prescribed for us," said Charamba.
"He (Mugabe) thinks the Archbishop will be polite enough to point to him what portion of the Great Book sanctions homosexuality and sanctions."
Mugabe makes frequent verbal attacks on gays and lesbians and has previously said they are "worse than pigs and dogs".
On Sunday, a group of about 200 members from Kunonga's faction marched in central Harare denouncing homosexuality.
http://www.sabc.co.za/news/a/dded840048a5b01aa6d0a65c3e4e6c86/Mugabe-urged-to-end-attacks-on-Anglicans-in-Zimbabwe-20111011
Tuesday 11 October 2011 05:35
The Archbishop of Canterbury asked President Robert Mugabe to end attacks on Anglicans in Zimbabwe, where a renegade bishop has forced the faithful out of their churches.
Rowan Williams, the spiritual leader of Anglicans worldwide, met for two hours with Mugabe at State House to lay out his concerns about the assault on the Church that has seen even teachers and nurses chased from schools and orphanages.
"We have asked in the clearest possible terms that the president use his powers as head of state to put an end to all unacceptable and illegal behaviour," Rowan Williams told reporters afterwards.
"It was a very candid meeting, disagreements were expressed clearly, but I think in a peaceful manner," he said.
"We deeply deplore the manner in which many of the historic assets of the church... hospitals, schools have not only been seized by the breakaway group but are no longer used for the purpose for which were designed."
The police must perfrom their duties in a non-partisan way. Cabinet made that decision very clearly that when it comes to praying the state has no role in the church but protect people when they do pray
Mugabe, who at 87 has ruled since independence from Britain in 1980, made no comments either before or after the meeting.
Williams later met with Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, Mugabe's long-time rival who joined a unity government two years ago.
"The police must perform their duties in a non-partisan way. Cabinet made that decision very clearly that when it comes to praying the state has no role in the church but protect people when they do pray," Tsvangirai said.
Renegade bishop and Mugabe ally Nolbert Kunonga broke away from the Anglican Communion three years ago in a dispute over homosexuality. His new grouping seized all the Church's property and forcefully evicted Anglicans from their places of worship.
Kunonga, who has praised Catholic Mugabe as a "true son of God", has backed the president's violent land reform programme and endorsed his condemnation of homosexuality.
Mugabe, Archbishop of Canterbury set for fiery meeting
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/18307-mugabe-archbishop-of-canterbury-set-for-fiery-meeting.html
HARARE - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe will question the Anglican Church's silence on Western sanctions against him and its position on homosexuality, and Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams will press him to end violent suppression of the church and its priests at a meeting expected on Monday.
Williams arrived in Zimbabwe on Sunday as part of a tour of southern Africa and is expected to meet 87-year-old Mugabe on Monday. Mugabe has yet to confirm the arrangement.
His spokesman George Charamba told the state-run Sunday Mail in an interview that "if ever" Mugabe and Williams were going to meet, Mugabe would ask why the church had not condemned the sanctions he says are hurting ordinary Zimbabweans.
"Has the Church consorted with the British State to impose sanctions against us?" said Charamba.
Western countries led by former colonial power Britain have maintained financial and travel sanctions on Mugabe and senior members from his ZANU-PF party since 2000 over charges of human rights abuse and electoral fraud. Mugabe denies the charges.
Charamba said that Mugabe had nothing to do with a dispute between the church and a rebel bishop who has taken over Anglican church assets.
The Anglican church is appealing against an Aug. 4 ruling that gave Nolbert Kunonga, a Mugabe supporter who leads a breakaway faction of the church, custody of the Anglican church's Zimbabwean properties.
Kunonga is a former head of the Anglican church in the country but resigned in 2007 claiming homosexual priests and congregants had gained influence in the church, although it does not conduct same-sex marriages or ordain gay priests.
"The second issue that the President wants this man of God (Williams) to clarify is why his Anglican Church thinks homosexuality is good for us and why it should be prescribed for us," said Charamba.
"He (Mugabe) thinks the Archbishop will be polite enough to point to him what portion of the Great Book sanctions homosexuality and sanctions."
Mugabe makes frequent verbal attacks on gays and lesbians and has previously said they are "worse than pigs and dogs".
On Sunday, a group of about 200 members from Kunonga's faction marched in central Harare denouncing homosexuality.
Reverse Psychology: Rwanda to send back minerals to the DRC
FIRST READ: Impunity and Complicity in the Genocide in Rwanda and Congo: African Mercenaries for the American New world order system
http://watchmanafrica.blogspot.com/2011/09/impunity-and-complicity-in-genocide-in.html
Rwanda to send back minerals to the DRC
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/18400-rwanda-to-send-back-minerals-to-the-drc.html
KIGALI,Rwanda - Government has announced that it will soon send back to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 70 tonnes (70,000Kgs) of untagged minerals smuggled into the country.
The New Times daily published in Kigali yesterday quoted Dr Michael Biryabarema, the Director General for Mines and Geology in the Ministry of Natural Resources, saying the handover date was yet to be determined by the relevant ministers from both countries.
The minerals were seized by Revenue Protection Department’s anti-smuggling unit as they were sneaked into the country, from DRC, through the western corridors of Rusizi and Rubavu, over the last five months, Biryabarema said.
They include cassitarite and wolframite, tungsten and tantalum, he added.
“We no longer export untagged minerals. So, any minerals that come into Rwanda without a tag are impounded and taken back to the country of origin,” Biryabarema said.
In January, this year, Rwanda set up a mineral tagging and sealing scheme that is internationally recognised as the iTSCi project, which aims at curbing illegal trading of minerals, particularly from conflict areas in the DRC.
DRC is singled out as a conflict zone.
Between March and September this year, 91,000 Kgs of smuggled minerals have been impounded. 55,000kgs in Rubavu district, 27,000 in Rusizi and 9,000 in Kigali.
The 70,000kgs to be sent back to DRC are part of 91,000 kgs impounded. The ministry of Mines is in the process of identifying the origin of the remaining minerals.
The US passed a law putting an end to the exportation of untagged minerals in July 2010, with the aim of discouraging trading in ‘blood minerals’, a requirement that came into force in April, 2011.
Rwanda has the capacity to tag up to 98 percent of its minerals.
http://watchmanafrica.blogspot.com/2011/09/impunity-and-complicity-in-genocide-in.html
Rwanda to send back minerals to the DRC
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/18400-rwanda-to-send-back-minerals-to-the-drc.html
KIGALI,Rwanda - Government has announced that it will soon send back to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 70 tonnes (70,000Kgs) of untagged minerals smuggled into the country.
The New Times daily published in Kigali yesterday quoted Dr Michael Biryabarema, the Director General for Mines and Geology in the Ministry of Natural Resources, saying the handover date was yet to be determined by the relevant ministers from both countries.
The minerals were seized by Revenue Protection Department’s anti-smuggling unit as they were sneaked into the country, from DRC, through the western corridors of Rusizi and Rubavu, over the last five months, Biryabarema said.
They include cassitarite and wolframite, tungsten and tantalum, he added.
“We no longer export untagged minerals. So, any minerals that come into Rwanda without a tag are impounded and taken back to the country of origin,” Biryabarema said.
In January, this year, Rwanda set up a mineral tagging and sealing scheme that is internationally recognised as the iTSCi project, which aims at curbing illegal trading of minerals, particularly from conflict areas in the DRC.
DRC is singled out as a conflict zone.
Between March and September this year, 91,000 Kgs of smuggled minerals have been impounded. 55,000kgs in Rubavu district, 27,000 in Rusizi and 9,000 in Kigali.
The 70,000kgs to be sent back to DRC are part of 91,000 kgs impounded. The ministry of Mines is in the process of identifying the origin of the remaining minerals.
The US passed a law putting an end to the exportation of untagged minerals in July 2010, with the aim of discouraging trading in ‘blood minerals’, a requirement that came into force in April, 2011.
Rwanda has the capacity to tag up to 98 percent of its minerals.
Wednesday, 12 October 2011
President Museveni calls for inter religious cooperation
President Museveni calls for inter religious cooperation
http://www.256newsonline.com/index.php?category=stories&id=441&cd=1&hl=President%20Museveni%20calls%20for%20inter%20religious%20cooperation
9th,October 2011
President Yoweri Museveni has said that the movement of righteous people from all religions is good for society.
The President was this morning speaking during the annual Uganda National Prayer Breakfast held at Hotel Africana in Kampala. The 13th Uganda National Prayer Breakfast is a brainchild of the Uganda Parliamentarians that is traditionally held to give Uganda a spiritual strength as the country prepares for the annual Independence Day Anniversary celebrations that fall on October 09th.
This year’s Prayer Breakfast session was held under the theme: “For God and My Country: A Call for Excellence in service”. In reference to the Bible, the President urged Uganda Parliamentarians and leaders at large to “let your light shine before the people so that they may praise you for the good deeds.”
President Museveni commended Mr. Steven Akabway former Commissioner General of the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), Ms. Allen Kagina presently the URA Commissioner General and Ms. Jennipher Musisi a former employee at the national tax body, for having served as exemplary tax collectors in the Uganda Revenue Authority.
He noted that they were among the people who have served without stealing the tax payers’ money and attributed this to their commitment to their faith. He further commended Ms. Musisi, now the Executive Director of Kampala City Council Authority (KCCA) for the good start in her new assignment of reorganizing the City of Kampala into a better place.
Mr. Museveni also challenged Africans to multiply their God-given talents adding that the continent’s major challenge is underdevelopment. He warned that Africans must not remain weak thereby offering a bait to greedy people to steal from the innocent ones. He strongly called for efforts to tame and dominate nature but also cautioned leaders against dividing the people along unprincipled sectarian lines.
The wife of the President, Mrs. Janet Museveni, prayed to God to visit Uganda with a heart of blessings as the country enters its jubilee year of Uhuru. She also prayed for permanent peace and harmony as well for all people to work with integrity.
The Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, saluted the President for promoting African women. She also lauded him for facilitating and attending the national prayer breakfast.
The guest Speaker, who is the Ambassador of Zambia to Belgium, Dr. Inonge Lewanika, said that by attending the national prayer breakfast, became a dream come true. She challenged the leaders to work for the good of the future generations adding that “dig wells for the good of the people.”
The Minister of Health, Dr. Christine Ondoa in her testimony, revealed that she has achieved a lot due to her commitment to God. She noted that “we are blessed to have President Museveni who has a good vision for the country”.
Museveni wanted Musisi for judiciary
http://www.observer.ug/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=15398&Itemid=59
Written by David Tash Lumu Monday, 10 October 2011 00:05
President Museveni has said Jennifer Musisi, the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) executive director, turned down an offer of an appointment to the judiciary and chose to take up the challenge of cleaning up Kampala.
“I wanted her to bring some Christianity and godliness to the judiciary, so I called her and told her to apply to the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), but she said: ‘I cannot apply to be a judge’,” Museveni said.
The President, who was speaking at the 13th national prayer breakfast at Hotel Africana on Saturday, added that he did not give up on his quest to persuade the woman he describes as a “heroine”.
“I later told her that if you don’t want to go to the judiciary, why don’t you become a garbage cleaner? She agreed.”
Museveni said he does not regret having appointed Musisi as ED of Kampala and that very soon, he will write a letter congratulating her for “saving us from the floods at Clock Tower”.
“KCC had become a centre of filth, dirt, theft and disorganisation, but for the short time this woman has been there, you have all seen the work,” he said.
Musisi belongs to a group of people the President describes as “righteous” and whom he believes will change the way his government operates by restoring integrity. Uganda Revenue Authority Commissioner General Allen Kagina and Health minister Christine Androa are some of the other people in this group that Museveni mentioned.
He implored born-again Christians (balokole) to continue nurturing “a nursery of producing cadres who can deliver excellent service”.
But, in his usual humorous way, Museveni turned around and described the style of worship in balokole churches as “simply just jumping and dancing around”.
He was prompted to say this shortly after Androa’s testimony detailing how God compelled the President to appoint her a minister even when she had never had any connection to him.
“I didn’t know that Androa belongs to one of these churches where they dance and shout. They simply just jump and dance around. You see, I was tired of corrupt doctors and I told my network to look around and they contacted her,” Museveni said.
The joke sparked off some grumbling in the audience, but Museveni tactfully calmed the people when he reaffirmed that Androa’s appointment was ordained by God: “She told me that I was compelled by God to appoint her. It’s true that I was compelled; God compelled me”.
However, the President maintained that balokole are “mad”. Quoting from stories his grandmother used to tell him, Museveni said if she was still alive, she would say, “You are beyond madness”.
He said one of the reasons he remains close to balokole is the fact that they do not indulge in alcohol. “You are mad without drinking alcohol. Since you don’t drink alcohol, I welcome you. Anybody who is voluntarily mad without [the influence of] alcohol, I welcome,” he said.
The guest speaker, Dr Inonge Mbikusita Lewanika, advised Museveni and other leaders to start planning for Africa’s future generation if they are to change the continent from “a problem to a solution”.
“Are we digging wells for the future generation? We are here because someone dug a well for us. What are we doing for our children?” she asked.
The Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, said the prayer meeting cost Shs 90 million.
dtlumu@observer.ug
Museveni Warns on Religious Extremism
http://allafrica.com/stories/201008260067.html
Cyprian Musoke, John Ssemakula and Francis Kagolo
The New Vision, 25 August 2010
Kampala — President Yoweri Museveni has warned against religious intolerance, saying it is one of the reasons that prompted him and his comrades to go to war in order to stabilize the country.
Addressing the All Africa Bishops Conference in Entebbe yesterday, Museveni said the formative years of religion in Uganda were characterised by friction between denominations. "There was friction between the Protestants and Catholics and later between the two and Muslims. Protestants came in 1877 and the Catholics in 1879, but by 1890, we already had a civil war. You can imagine the confusion allegedly in the name of God," he said.
From 1888, he noted, people were killing each other 'on behalf of God'. "I don't know where they met God to instruct them to go and kill each other, you should study this," he told the prelates, throwing them into laughter. That rivalry, Museveni added, went on into the 1970s, climaxing into the (former dictator) Idi Amin regime.
"This problem is one of the issues that formed my political awareness and together with my colleagues, we were determined to stop it. As a Christian, I challenged this and said: 'This is not what God told you to do; you are all wrong'," he said, to thunderous applause. He reminded them of the story of the Good Samaritan who helped a man who had been beaten up by robbers, yet he (Samaritan) was not of the victim's social caste.
"I am always looking for the Good Samaritan. Jesus said we shall know them by their deeds. Not clothes, titles or names, but by their deeds," he stressed. He described the religious wars going on in the world as okuhimbagira, "to disorient oneself in a very fundamental way".
"You fight this one, fight that one; what is your problem? That I am a Muslim? If you are, so what? If I am a Christian, what's your problem?" "You are what you are, I am what I am and everyone of us is here in their own right by the permission of God; so you must accept me the way I am."
He said there were some groups in Kawempe on the outskirts of Kampala some years ago who wanted to riot because somebody had eaten pork. "I don't eat fish because my people call it snake. I don't eat chicken because my people think it makes one unstable, don't eat pork and sheep but I am the number one promoter of piggery in the whole of Uganda.
"I think tolerance is firmly based on the Biblical story of the Good Samaritan," he said. The President, who was jolly and kept cracking jokes, invited the clergy to visit Uganda again, saying it is unique, being on the equator but experiencing permanent snow on Mt. Rwenzori because it is 5,000 metres above sea level. Only Kenya and Ecuador in South America, he added, have such an experience.
Addressing a press conference later, Orombi said they had met the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, over homosexuality which has split the Anglican church. "He recognised that he has complicated work to do. We impressed it on him that he had totally gone in a different direction and he has to sort it out," Orombi said.
He said the church in Singapore, south-east Asia and Africa had decided to stick to the Word of God and the Anglican Communion was strengthening its ties with them. "We sympathise with his (Williams) position. It's like having unruly kids in his house and he can't sit down to eat food. We told him no more diplomacy on that matter," he said.
Experts on family issues, maternal health and HIV/AIDS also made their presentations. Dr. Peter Okaalet said the 10 killer diseases in Africa like malaria, HIV/AIDS and accidents are preventable. "Africa has failed to prevent these 10 killer diseases because its health system is overburdened to the extent that it cannot deliver anything," Okaalet said.
"Most of the budgets of the African countries offer $10 to $20 for health per person every year, which cannot do anything."
Sylvia Mwichuli said Africa has the potential to end poverty. "Africa is not doomed, it has a lot of potential and South Africa has just exhibited it when she hosted a successful World Cup recently," she added.
Mwiculi observed that the gap between the rich and the poor who struggle to live is very big and needs to be bridged urgently.
She challenged religious leaders to support people and groups of people who advocate for the positive change on the continent.
Museveni Warns Religious Extremists
http://allafrica.com/stories/200004270093.html
Jonathan Angura and Nathan Etengu
The New Vision, 27 April 2000
Kampala — President Yoweri Museveni has said religious extremism will not be tolerated in Uganda. He said having fought the liberation war, he will ensure that Uganda remains a peaceful and organised society.
"We are not going to allow anyone to use religion to disturb the peace we have sacrificed our lives, energy and resources to bring about," Museveni said in a speech read yesterday by second deputy prime minister Moses Ali at the seventh graduation ceremony of the Islamic University in Uganda A total of 289 students, 93 of them women, graduated in various disciplines.
President Tells African Bishops - 'There Should Be No Room for Intolerance Because Everyone is Made in the Image of God'
http://allafrica.com/stories/201008271108.html
Uganda's President Museveni said today that tolerance was a biblical imperative and that Christians should not "have one minute of time wasted" by those promoting prejudice.
Speaking to almost 400 bishops and other guests at the All Africa Bishops Conference in Entebbe this morning, President Museveni used the Biblical parable of the Good Samaritan to highlight the need to overcome difference and pursue peace and healing.
Drawing on Ugandan religious history, President Museveni explained it took only ten years after the first convert to Christianity in Uganda before Catholics and Protestants were fighting and killing each other.
"I don't' know where they heard God wanted them to fight and kill each other," he said. "A civil war between those calling themselves Catholics and those calling themselves Protestants! Then there was another war between the two of them and Muslims. They were all fighting on behalf of God, they said."
He recounted the Biblical story of the Good Samaritan to demonstrate that prejudice should not get in the way of peace and helping other human beings. In this New Testament story it is a traditional enemy of the Israelites, a Samaritan, who aids an injured Israelite when members of the Jewish religious elite fail to do so.
"I am always looking for the good Samaritan," he said. "Jesus says you shall know them by their fruits. You shall know them by their actions. Not by their words, not by their addresses, not by their titles, but by their works, by their deeds, by the products of their works."
The President said those of all denominations or faiths needed to recognise one another's right to exist: "If you are a Muslim, so what? I am a Christian. OK, so what's your problem? You are what you are, but I am what I am. We're different...I'm here by the permission of God. You must accept me the way I am whether you want it or not."
He added that anyone promoting intolerance should not "waste one of our minutes with this...We are all created in the image of god, so you are made in the image of god. I don't know whether God is black or white or Chinese, but we are created in his image-that's what the bible says."
He concluded his well-received speech by officially opening the CAPA-run conference for bishops of the Anglican Communion in Africa that is running until Sunday 29 August at the Imperial Beach Hotel, Entebbe. Aims for this conference include mobilising the bishops to tackle the obstacles that continue to keep the continent in conflict, poverty, corruption, poor leadership and disease.
http://www.256newsonline.com/index.php?category=stories&id=441&cd=1&hl=President%20Museveni%20calls%20for%20inter%20religious%20cooperation
9th,October 2011
President Yoweri Museveni has said that the movement of righteous people from all religions is good for society.
The President was this morning speaking during the annual Uganda National Prayer Breakfast held at Hotel Africana in Kampala. The 13th Uganda National Prayer Breakfast is a brainchild of the Uganda Parliamentarians that is traditionally held to give Uganda a spiritual strength as the country prepares for the annual Independence Day Anniversary celebrations that fall on October 09th.
This year’s Prayer Breakfast session was held under the theme: “For God and My Country: A Call for Excellence in service”. In reference to the Bible, the President urged Uganda Parliamentarians and leaders at large to “let your light shine before the people so that they may praise you for the good deeds.”
President Museveni commended Mr. Steven Akabway former Commissioner General of the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), Ms. Allen Kagina presently the URA Commissioner General and Ms. Jennipher Musisi a former employee at the national tax body, for having served as exemplary tax collectors in the Uganda Revenue Authority.
He noted that they were among the people who have served without stealing the tax payers’ money and attributed this to their commitment to their faith. He further commended Ms. Musisi, now the Executive Director of Kampala City Council Authority (KCCA) for the good start in her new assignment of reorganizing the City of Kampala into a better place.
Mr. Museveni also challenged Africans to multiply their God-given talents adding that the continent’s major challenge is underdevelopment. He warned that Africans must not remain weak thereby offering a bait to greedy people to steal from the innocent ones. He strongly called for efforts to tame and dominate nature but also cautioned leaders against dividing the people along unprincipled sectarian lines.
The wife of the President, Mrs. Janet Museveni, prayed to God to visit Uganda with a heart of blessings as the country enters its jubilee year of Uhuru. She also prayed for permanent peace and harmony as well for all people to work with integrity.
The Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, saluted the President for promoting African women. She also lauded him for facilitating and attending the national prayer breakfast.
The guest Speaker, who is the Ambassador of Zambia to Belgium, Dr. Inonge Lewanika, said that by attending the national prayer breakfast, became a dream come true. She challenged the leaders to work for the good of the future generations adding that “dig wells for the good of the people.”
The Minister of Health, Dr. Christine Ondoa in her testimony, revealed that she has achieved a lot due to her commitment to God. She noted that “we are blessed to have President Museveni who has a good vision for the country”.
Museveni wanted Musisi for judiciary
http://www.observer.ug/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=15398&Itemid=59
Written by David Tash Lumu Monday, 10 October 2011 00:05
President Museveni has said Jennifer Musisi, the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) executive director, turned down an offer of an appointment to the judiciary and chose to take up the challenge of cleaning up Kampala.
“I wanted her to bring some Christianity and godliness to the judiciary, so I called her and told her to apply to the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), but she said: ‘I cannot apply to be a judge’,” Museveni said.
The President, who was speaking at the 13th national prayer breakfast at Hotel Africana on Saturday, added that he did not give up on his quest to persuade the woman he describes as a “heroine”.
“I later told her that if you don’t want to go to the judiciary, why don’t you become a garbage cleaner? She agreed.”
Museveni said he does not regret having appointed Musisi as ED of Kampala and that very soon, he will write a letter congratulating her for “saving us from the floods at Clock Tower”.
“KCC had become a centre of filth, dirt, theft and disorganisation, but for the short time this woman has been there, you have all seen the work,” he said.
Musisi belongs to a group of people the President describes as “righteous” and whom he believes will change the way his government operates by restoring integrity. Uganda Revenue Authority Commissioner General Allen Kagina and Health minister Christine Androa are some of the other people in this group that Museveni mentioned.
He implored born-again Christians (balokole) to continue nurturing “a nursery of producing cadres who can deliver excellent service”.
But, in his usual humorous way, Museveni turned around and described the style of worship in balokole churches as “simply just jumping and dancing around”.
He was prompted to say this shortly after Androa’s testimony detailing how God compelled the President to appoint her a minister even when she had never had any connection to him.
“I didn’t know that Androa belongs to one of these churches where they dance and shout. They simply just jump and dance around. You see, I was tired of corrupt doctors and I told my network to look around and they contacted her,” Museveni said.
The joke sparked off some grumbling in the audience, but Museveni tactfully calmed the people when he reaffirmed that Androa’s appointment was ordained by God: “She told me that I was compelled by God to appoint her. It’s true that I was compelled; God compelled me”.
However, the President maintained that balokole are “mad”. Quoting from stories his grandmother used to tell him, Museveni said if she was still alive, she would say, “You are beyond madness”.
He said one of the reasons he remains close to balokole is the fact that they do not indulge in alcohol. “You are mad without drinking alcohol. Since you don’t drink alcohol, I welcome you. Anybody who is voluntarily mad without [the influence of] alcohol, I welcome,” he said.
The guest speaker, Dr Inonge Mbikusita Lewanika, advised Museveni and other leaders to start planning for Africa’s future generation if they are to change the continent from “a problem to a solution”.
“Are we digging wells for the future generation? We are here because someone dug a well for us. What are we doing for our children?” she asked.
The Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, said the prayer meeting cost Shs 90 million.
dtlumu@observer.ug
Museveni Warns on Religious Extremism
http://allafrica.com/stories/201008260067.html
Cyprian Musoke, John Ssemakula and Francis Kagolo
The New Vision, 25 August 2010
Kampala — President Yoweri Museveni has warned against religious intolerance, saying it is one of the reasons that prompted him and his comrades to go to war in order to stabilize the country.
Addressing the All Africa Bishops Conference in Entebbe yesterday, Museveni said the formative years of religion in Uganda were characterised by friction between denominations. "There was friction between the Protestants and Catholics and later between the two and Muslims. Protestants came in 1877 and the Catholics in 1879, but by 1890, we already had a civil war. You can imagine the confusion allegedly in the name of God," he said.
From 1888, he noted, people were killing each other 'on behalf of God'. "I don't know where they met God to instruct them to go and kill each other, you should study this," he told the prelates, throwing them into laughter. That rivalry, Museveni added, went on into the 1970s, climaxing into the (former dictator) Idi Amin regime.
"This problem is one of the issues that formed my political awareness and together with my colleagues, we were determined to stop it. As a Christian, I challenged this and said: 'This is not what God told you to do; you are all wrong'," he said, to thunderous applause. He reminded them of the story of the Good Samaritan who helped a man who had been beaten up by robbers, yet he (Samaritan) was not of the victim's social caste.
"I am always looking for the Good Samaritan. Jesus said we shall know them by their deeds. Not clothes, titles or names, but by their deeds," he stressed. He described the religious wars going on in the world as okuhimbagira, "to disorient oneself in a very fundamental way".
"You fight this one, fight that one; what is your problem? That I am a Muslim? If you are, so what? If I am a Christian, what's your problem?" "You are what you are, I am what I am and everyone of us is here in their own right by the permission of God; so you must accept me the way I am."
He said there were some groups in Kawempe on the outskirts of Kampala some years ago who wanted to riot because somebody had eaten pork. "I don't eat fish because my people call it snake. I don't eat chicken because my people think it makes one unstable, don't eat pork and sheep but I am the number one promoter of piggery in the whole of Uganda.
"I think tolerance is firmly based on the Biblical story of the Good Samaritan," he said. The President, who was jolly and kept cracking jokes, invited the clergy to visit Uganda again, saying it is unique, being on the equator but experiencing permanent snow on Mt. Rwenzori because it is 5,000 metres above sea level. Only Kenya and Ecuador in South America, he added, have such an experience.
Addressing a press conference later, Orombi said they had met the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, over homosexuality which has split the Anglican church. "He recognised that he has complicated work to do. We impressed it on him that he had totally gone in a different direction and he has to sort it out," Orombi said.
He said the church in Singapore, south-east Asia and Africa had decided to stick to the Word of God and the Anglican Communion was strengthening its ties with them. "We sympathise with his (Williams) position. It's like having unruly kids in his house and he can't sit down to eat food. We told him no more diplomacy on that matter," he said.
Experts on family issues, maternal health and HIV/AIDS also made their presentations. Dr. Peter Okaalet said the 10 killer diseases in Africa like malaria, HIV/AIDS and accidents are preventable. "Africa has failed to prevent these 10 killer diseases because its health system is overburdened to the extent that it cannot deliver anything," Okaalet said.
"Most of the budgets of the African countries offer $10 to $20 for health per person every year, which cannot do anything."
Sylvia Mwichuli said Africa has the potential to end poverty. "Africa is not doomed, it has a lot of potential and South Africa has just exhibited it when she hosted a successful World Cup recently," she added.
Mwiculi observed that the gap between the rich and the poor who struggle to live is very big and needs to be bridged urgently.
She challenged religious leaders to support people and groups of people who advocate for the positive change on the continent.
Museveni Warns Religious Extremists
http://allafrica.com/stories/200004270093.html
Jonathan Angura and Nathan Etengu
The New Vision, 27 April 2000
Kampala — President Yoweri Museveni has said religious extremism will not be tolerated in Uganda. He said having fought the liberation war, he will ensure that Uganda remains a peaceful and organised society.
"We are not going to allow anyone to use religion to disturb the peace we have sacrificed our lives, energy and resources to bring about," Museveni said in a speech read yesterday by second deputy prime minister Moses Ali at the seventh graduation ceremony of the Islamic University in Uganda A total of 289 students, 93 of them women, graduated in various disciplines.
President Tells African Bishops - 'There Should Be No Room for Intolerance Because Everyone is Made in the Image of God'
http://allafrica.com/stories/201008271108.html
Uganda's President Museveni said today that tolerance was a biblical imperative and that Christians should not "have one minute of time wasted" by those promoting prejudice.
Speaking to almost 400 bishops and other guests at the All Africa Bishops Conference in Entebbe this morning, President Museveni used the Biblical parable of the Good Samaritan to highlight the need to overcome difference and pursue peace and healing.
Drawing on Ugandan religious history, President Museveni explained it took only ten years after the first convert to Christianity in Uganda before Catholics and Protestants were fighting and killing each other.
"I don't' know where they heard God wanted them to fight and kill each other," he said. "A civil war between those calling themselves Catholics and those calling themselves Protestants! Then there was another war between the two of them and Muslims. They were all fighting on behalf of God, they said."
He recounted the Biblical story of the Good Samaritan to demonstrate that prejudice should not get in the way of peace and helping other human beings. In this New Testament story it is a traditional enemy of the Israelites, a Samaritan, who aids an injured Israelite when members of the Jewish religious elite fail to do so.
"I am always looking for the good Samaritan," he said. "Jesus says you shall know them by their fruits. You shall know them by their actions. Not by their words, not by their addresses, not by their titles, but by their works, by their deeds, by the products of their works."
The President said those of all denominations or faiths needed to recognise one another's right to exist: "If you are a Muslim, so what? I am a Christian. OK, so what's your problem? You are what you are, but I am what I am. We're different...I'm here by the permission of God. You must accept me the way I am whether you want it or not."
He added that anyone promoting intolerance should not "waste one of our minutes with this...We are all created in the image of god, so you are made in the image of god. I don't know whether God is black or white or Chinese, but we are created in his image-that's what the bible says."
He concluded his well-received speech by officially opening the CAPA-run conference for bishops of the Anglican Communion in Africa that is running until Sunday 29 August at the Imperial Beach Hotel, Entebbe. Aims for this conference include mobilising the bishops to tackle the obstacles that continue to keep the continent in conflict, poverty, corruption, poor leadership and disease.
Friday, 30 September 2011
U.S. condemns Iranian pastor's conviction
U.S. condemns Iranian pastor's conviction
http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/29/iranian-pastor-refuses-to-reject-religion-faces-execution/?hpt=hp_t2
By Dan Merica, CNN
Washington (CNN) – The White House Thursday condemned the conviction of an Iranian pastor, who may be executed in Tehran for refusing to recant his religious beliefs and convert from Christianity to Islam.
Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani "has done nothing more than maintain his devout faith, which is a universal right for people," a White House spokesman said in a statement. "That the Iranian authorities would try to force him to renounce that faith violates the religious values they claim to defend, crosses all bounds of decency and breaches Iran's own international obligations."
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, an independent advisory group appointed by the president and Congress to monitor religious freedom around the world, Wednesday expressed "deep concern" for Nadarkhani, the head of a network of Christian house churches in Iran.
After four days of an appeals trial for apostasy, Nadarkhani refused to recant his beliefs, the commission said. Chairman Leonard Leo said the pastor "is being asked to recant a faith he has always had. Once again, the Iranian regime has demonstrated that it practices hypocritical barbarian practices."
While the trial is closed to the press, Leo said the commission collects information from sources in Iran and around the world.
The commission's statement also called the trial a sham and said Iran is violating the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which it is a party.
"A decision to impose the death penalty would further demonstrate the Iranian authorities' utter disregard for religious freedom, and highlight Iran's continuing violation of the universal rights of its citizens," the White House statement said. "We call upon the Iranian authorities to release Pastor Nadarkhani and demonstrate a commitment to basic, universal human rights, including freedom of religion."
Nadarkhani was first sentenced to death in November 2010, the commission said, and in order to avoid the death penalty, he is being asked to recant his beliefs and convert to Islam. Leo said an apostasy trial is rare in Iran; the last occurred in 1990.
Iran's claim stems from the pastor's Muslim parents. According to Leo, the court needed to verify if Nadarkhani had ever been a Muslim. In order to be given what Iran claims is the opportunity to recant his beliefs, Nadarkhani must have never been a Muslim before the age of 15, Leo said.
Because he was given the opportunity during the four-day trial, it is apparent that the Iranian court found he was never a Muslim and therefore Nadarkhani could have converted.
According to a source close to the situation within the Commission on International Religious Freedom, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, would have to sign off on the execution. Speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the subject's sensitivity, the source said such cases in Iran are difficult because of the lack of transparency in leaders' decision-making.
The source also said that in the past, political prisoners have had their prison time and punishment reduced by the Iranian government. Though they did not say that was guaranteed in this situation, the source indicated it was a possibility.
The American Center for Law and Justice, a right-leaning organization founded by television evangelist Pat Robertson, reported Wednesday night that Nadarkhani's death sentence had been overturned, meaning that the pastor would be receiving a lesser punishment. They sourced the claim to someone in Iran.
Those reports could not be independently verified by CNN. The Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the United Nations failed to comment on the ruling.
Jordan Sekulow, executive director of the ACLJ, said the outcry from Christians in America has been loud and sustained.
"American Christians, like never before, are engaged in this," Sekulow said. "This is evidence that Christians in America over the past decade have done a better job engaging in the persecution issue."
http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/29/iranian-pastor-refuses-to-reject-religion-faces-execution/?hpt=hp_t2
By Dan Merica, CNN
Washington (CNN) – The White House Thursday condemned the conviction of an Iranian pastor, who may be executed in Tehran for refusing to recant his religious beliefs and convert from Christianity to Islam.
Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani "has done nothing more than maintain his devout faith, which is a universal right for people," a White House spokesman said in a statement. "That the Iranian authorities would try to force him to renounce that faith violates the religious values they claim to defend, crosses all bounds of decency and breaches Iran's own international obligations."
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, an independent advisory group appointed by the president and Congress to monitor religious freedom around the world, Wednesday expressed "deep concern" for Nadarkhani, the head of a network of Christian house churches in Iran.
After four days of an appeals trial for apostasy, Nadarkhani refused to recant his beliefs, the commission said. Chairman Leonard Leo said the pastor "is being asked to recant a faith he has always had. Once again, the Iranian regime has demonstrated that it practices hypocritical barbarian practices."
While the trial is closed to the press, Leo said the commission collects information from sources in Iran and around the world.
The commission's statement also called the trial a sham and said Iran is violating the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which it is a party.
"A decision to impose the death penalty would further demonstrate the Iranian authorities' utter disregard for religious freedom, and highlight Iran's continuing violation of the universal rights of its citizens," the White House statement said. "We call upon the Iranian authorities to release Pastor Nadarkhani and demonstrate a commitment to basic, universal human rights, including freedom of religion."
Nadarkhani was first sentenced to death in November 2010, the commission said, and in order to avoid the death penalty, he is being asked to recant his beliefs and convert to Islam. Leo said an apostasy trial is rare in Iran; the last occurred in 1990.
Iran's claim stems from the pastor's Muslim parents. According to Leo, the court needed to verify if Nadarkhani had ever been a Muslim. In order to be given what Iran claims is the opportunity to recant his beliefs, Nadarkhani must have never been a Muslim before the age of 15, Leo said.
Because he was given the opportunity during the four-day trial, it is apparent that the Iranian court found he was never a Muslim and therefore Nadarkhani could have converted.
According to a source close to the situation within the Commission on International Religious Freedom, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, would have to sign off on the execution. Speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the subject's sensitivity, the source said such cases in Iran are difficult because of the lack of transparency in leaders' decision-making.
The source also said that in the past, political prisoners have had their prison time and punishment reduced by the Iranian government. Though they did not say that was guaranteed in this situation, the source indicated it was a possibility.
The American Center for Law and Justice, a right-leaning organization founded by television evangelist Pat Robertson, reported Wednesday night that Nadarkhani's death sentence had been overturned, meaning that the pastor would be receiving a lesser punishment. They sourced the claim to someone in Iran.
Those reports could not be independently verified by CNN. The Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the United Nations failed to comment on the ruling.
Jordan Sekulow, executive director of the ACLJ, said the outcry from Christians in America has been loud and sustained.
"American Christians, like never before, are engaged in this," Sekulow said. "This is evidence that Christians in America over the past decade have done a better job engaging in the persecution issue."
Are "Spiritual Fathers" Supported by The New Testament?
Are "Spiritual Fathers" Supported by The New Testament?
http://www.yesumulungi.com/index.php/commentaries/470-are-qspiritual-fathersq-supported-by-the-new-testament.html
Kato Mivule | September 27, 2011
One of the popular teachings today in Evangelical circles is that of “Spiritual Fathers”, individuals who are supposed to act as mentors, guides, and accountability partners between a Christian and Jesus Christ. Often success, prosperity, fame, blessings, and attaining “the anointing” are tied to this mentor, a.k.a. Spiritual Father, without whom, the believer cannot attain the full blessings of God.
This teaching has become popular due to the trend that Christians today have in the pursuit of monetary success and prosperity. The teaching is also tied to the “Breaking the Curse” teaching, in that believers who don’t have a “Spiritual Father” often “suffer” the prolonged consequences of curses and lack of monetary success and prosperity.
However, the question that critical thinking Christians must ask themselves before submitting to one of the “Spiritual Fathers”, is this teaching biblical, is it supported anywhere in the New Testament? What did Jesus Christ say about “Spiritual Fathers”?
The New Testament does not at any time support the teaching on Spirituals Fathers. The word “Spiritual Father” is not found anywhere in the New Testament. Just like many other extra biblical teachings, the proponents of “Spiritual Father” often take one or two scriptures in the New Testament out of context and then build on that with heavy out of context reliance on the Old Testament as their back up.
Matthew 23:8-10 (NKJV)
8 But you, do not be called ‘Rabbi’; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren. 9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.
Jesus Christ was very clear that we do not call anyone ‘father’ here on earth as we have one Heavenly Father, our Heavenly Spiritual Father, God Creator of Heaven and Earth. The New Testament uses Father in reference to God in Heaven and He is the only one who has authorized blessing for us believers through Jesus Christ, by Grace and not works. No “Spiritual Father” on earth or inside your Church can grant you any blessing, none…
Ephesians 1:2-4(NKJV)
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
On the contrary, The New Testament does support Christian Church Leadership and that must not be confused with “Spiritual Fathers”. Yes, the New Testament speaks about leaders in the Church, Paul the Apostle appointed various leaders in the Churches he opened. However, never did he refer to them as “Spiritual Fathers”. Never did Paul state that blessings and success come from “Spiritual Fathers”.
The concept of "Spiritual Fathers" is used by some for control, manipulation, and monetary gain, driven largely by a Christian’s fear of being “cursed”. The more people who call some individual a “Spiritual Father”, the more that “Spiritual Father” can gain in terms of influence.
When it comes to “Receiving the Anointing”, there is no New Testament backing for such teachings and a Christian does not need a “Spiritual Father” to be anointed. As a matter of fact John the apostle tells us that we are all anointed by the Holy Spirit as Christians after we receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
1 John 2(NKJV)
26 These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. 27 But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.
The anointing you received from The Holy Spirit is able to teach you all things, that is to say, The Holy Spirit should guide you through God’s Word and your mentor should be Jesus Christ and not a Man who will fail you the next day. The Teaching on “Spiritual Fathers” is about placing a level of trust in a human being but that is disastrous to your spiritual faith as you will discover that humans fail and therefore your true mentor should be Jesus Christ and what He taught and said.
Nowhere does it say in the New Testament that you receive an anointing from your “Spiritual Father”. Yes, we do have Church leaders and their duty is to guide you in your PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP with Jesus Christ so that you receive directly from The Lord and relate with Him personally, not to serve as intermediaries between you and Jesus Christ.
The most misquoted verse by the proponents of the “Spiritual Fathers” teachings is 1 Corinthians 4:15-16 in which Paul tells the Christians in Corinth that they may have many instructors but not many fathers …
1 Corinthians 4:15 (NKJV)
15 For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. 16 Therefore I urge you, imitate me.
Paul was not trying to act as an intermediary between Christians and Jesus Christ, he was not telling them to emulate to him per say, but rather that they should submit to Jesus Christ just as Paul had submitted to Jesus Christ. It is reason that Paul used the phrase, “imitate me”. Many proponents of the “Spiritual Fathers” teaching stop there but in 1 Corinthians 11: 1, Paul completes that phrase, “imitate me as I imitate Christ”.
1 Corinthians 11(NKJV)
1 Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.
The teaching on “Spiritual Fathers” is not found anywhere in the New Testament and contradicts the Teachings of Jesus Christ on that subject. You don’t need a “Spiritual Father” to be anointed and blessed. Our Heavenly Father has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Jesus Christ and anointed us by The Holy Spirit with an anointing that abides with us. Cultivate your personal relationship with Jesus Christ and have no spiritual intermediaries, let Jesus Christ and His Words be your Mentor, and let God of Heaven be your Spiritual Father.
God Bless You.
Kato Mivule
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Are we giving fellow humans God’s glory?
Sunday Vision | 25th September, 2011| http://tiny.cc/it29q
THE FAITH DEBATE
Moses Mulondo explores the concept of spiritual fathers
LAST month, I attended a pastor’s conference at Zion Wakening Centre in Bweyogerere, where a Pentecostal bishop from Kenya told believers that those who wished to be successful in church ministry should have both a vision and a spiritual father. One of the participants opposed him, citing St Paul who never had a spiritual father nor any spiritual leader who taught him salvation, yet became one of the greatest apostles.
The pastor was referring to Galatians 1:11-17 where Paul says: “I want you to know, brothers the Gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.” Pastor Martin Ssempa also opposes the doctrine of calling fellow believers spiritual fathers. “This question needs to be resolved once and for all. There are many people calling themselves our spiritual fathers but let it be known that our one and only spiritual father is God the creator of heaven and earth,” Ssempa argues. The teaching of spiritual fathers has, for long, been emphasised in the Catholic Church more than in any other denomination, as evident in the head of the Catholic Church — the Pope, called the Holy Father.
The Pentecostal church, which started at the beginning of the 20th Century, never classified Jesus’s followers into fathers and children or sons and daughters. They believed that all believers related as equal brothers and sisters working together. They carried the notion that calling some spiritual fathers created inequality in the Church. But today, they teach the importance of having spiritual fathers.
http://www.yesumulungi.com/index.php/commentaries/470-are-qspiritual-fathersq-supported-by-the-new-testament.html
Kato Mivule | September 27, 2011
One of the popular teachings today in Evangelical circles is that of “Spiritual Fathers”, individuals who are supposed to act as mentors, guides, and accountability partners between a Christian and Jesus Christ. Often success, prosperity, fame, blessings, and attaining “the anointing” are tied to this mentor, a.k.a. Spiritual Father, without whom, the believer cannot attain the full blessings of God.
This teaching has become popular due to the trend that Christians today have in the pursuit of monetary success and prosperity. The teaching is also tied to the “Breaking the Curse” teaching, in that believers who don’t have a “Spiritual Father” often “suffer” the prolonged consequences of curses and lack of monetary success and prosperity.
However, the question that critical thinking Christians must ask themselves before submitting to one of the “Spiritual Fathers”, is this teaching biblical, is it supported anywhere in the New Testament? What did Jesus Christ say about “Spiritual Fathers”?
The New Testament does not at any time support the teaching on Spirituals Fathers. The word “Spiritual Father” is not found anywhere in the New Testament. Just like many other extra biblical teachings, the proponents of “Spiritual Father” often take one or two scriptures in the New Testament out of context and then build on that with heavy out of context reliance on the Old Testament as their back up.
Matthew 23:8-10 (NKJV)
8 But you, do not be called ‘Rabbi’; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren. 9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.
Jesus Christ was very clear that we do not call anyone ‘father’ here on earth as we have one Heavenly Father, our Heavenly Spiritual Father, God Creator of Heaven and Earth. The New Testament uses Father in reference to God in Heaven and He is the only one who has authorized blessing for us believers through Jesus Christ, by Grace and not works. No “Spiritual Father” on earth or inside your Church can grant you any blessing, none…
Ephesians 1:2-4(NKJV)
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
On the contrary, The New Testament does support Christian Church Leadership and that must not be confused with “Spiritual Fathers”. Yes, the New Testament speaks about leaders in the Church, Paul the Apostle appointed various leaders in the Churches he opened. However, never did he refer to them as “Spiritual Fathers”. Never did Paul state that blessings and success come from “Spiritual Fathers”.
The concept of "Spiritual Fathers" is used by some for control, manipulation, and monetary gain, driven largely by a Christian’s fear of being “cursed”. The more people who call some individual a “Spiritual Father”, the more that “Spiritual Father” can gain in terms of influence.
When it comes to “Receiving the Anointing”, there is no New Testament backing for such teachings and a Christian does not need a “Spiritual Father” to be anointed. As a matter of fact John the apostle tells us that we are all anointed by the Holy Spirit as Christians after we receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
1 John 2(NKJV)
26 These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. 27 But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.
The anointing you received from The Holy Spirit is able to teach you all things, that is to say, The Holy Spirit should guide you through God’s Word and your mentor should be Jesus Christ and not a Man who will fail you the next day. The Teaching on “Spiritual Fathers” is about placing a level of trust in a human being but that is disastrous to your spiritual faith as you will discover that humans fail and therefore your true mentor should be Jesus Christ and what He taught and said.
Nowhere does it say in the New Testament that you receive an anointing from your “Spiritual Father”. Yes, we do have Church leaders and their duty is to guide you in your PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP with Jesus Christ so that you receive directly from The Lord and relate with Him personally, not to serve as intermediaries between you and Jesus Christ.
The most misquoted verse by the proponents of the “Spiritual Fathers” teachings is 1 Corinthians 4:15-16 in which Paul tells the Christians in Corinth that they may have many instructors but not many fathers …
1 Corinthians 4:15 (NKJV)
15 For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. 16 Therefore I urge you, imitate me.
Paul was not trying to act as an intermediary between Christians and Jesus Christ, he was not telling them to emulate to him per say, but rather that they should submit to Jesus Christ just as Paul had submitted to Jesus Christ. It is reason that Paul used the phrase, “imitate me”. Many proponents of the “Spiritual Fathers” teaching stop there but in 1 Corinthians 11: 1, Paul completes that phrase, “imitate me as I imitate Christ”.
1 Corinthians 11(NKJV)
1 Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.
The teaching on “Spiritual Fathers” is not found anywhere in the New Testament and contradicts the Teachings of Jesus Christ on that subject. You don’t need a “Spiritual Father” to be anointed and blessed. Our Heavenly Father has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Jesus Christ and anointed us by The Holy Spirit with an anointing that abides with us. Cultivate your personal relationship with Jesus Christ and have no spiritual intermediaries, let Jesus Christ and His Words be your Mentor, and let God of Heaven be your Spiritual Father.
God Bless You.
Kato Mivule
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Are we giving fellow humans God’s glory?
Sunday Vision | 25th September, 2011| http://tiny.cc/it29q
THE FAITH DEBATE
Moses Mulondo explores the concept of spiritual fathers
LAST month, I attended a pastor’s conference at Zion Wakening Centre in Bweyogerere, where a Pentecostal bishop from Kenya told believers that those who wished to be successful in church ministry should have both a vision and a spiritual father. One of the participants opposed him, citing St Paul who never had a spiritual father nor any spiritual leader who taught him salvation, yet became one of the greatest apostles.
The pastor was referring to Galatians 1:11-17 where Paul says: “I want you to know, brothers the Gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.” Pastor Martin Ssempa also opposes the doctrine of calling fellow believers spiritual fathers. “This question needs to be resolved once and for all. There are many people calling themselves our spiritual fathers but let it be known that our one and only spiritual father is God the creator of heaven and earth,” Ssempa argues. The teaching of spiritual fathers has, for long, been emphasised in the Catholic Church more than in any other denomination, as evident in the head of the Catholic Church — the Pope, called the Holy Father.
The Pentecostal church, which started at the beginning of the 20th Century, never classified Jesus’s followers into fathers and children or sons and daughters. They believed that all believers related as equal brothers and sisters working together. They carried the notion that calling some spiritual fathers created inequality in the Church. But today, they teach the importance of having spiritual fathers.
Impunity and Complicity in the Genocide in Rwanda and Congo: African Mercenaries for the American New world order system
Impunity and Complicity in the Genocide in Rwanda and Congo: African Mercenaries for the American New world order system
http://www.antipasministries.com/other/article181.htm
'Dear Brother Jean Baptiste Bagaza, we have the greatest honour to extend our sincere gratitude to you both for your financial and technical support in our struggle that has just ended with the taking of Kigali.
'Rest assured that our plan to continue shall be pursued as we agreed at our last meeting in Kampala. Last week I communicated with our big brother Yoweri Museveni and decided to make some modifications to the plan. Indeed, as you have noted, the taking of Kigali quickly provoked a panic among the Hutus who fled to Goma and Bukavu. We have found that the presence of a large number of Rwandan refugees at Goma and the international community can cause our plan for Zaire to fail. We cannot occupy ourselves with Zaire until after the return of these Hutus. All means are being used for their return as rapidly as possible. In any case, our external intelligence services continue to crisscross the east of Zaire and our Belgian, British and American collaborators, the rest of Zaire. The action reports are expected in the next few days.
Obama requests immunity for Kagame re Rwanda Genocide and Congo wars
http://sfbayview.com/2011/obama-requests-immunity-for-kagame-re-rwanda-genocide-and-congo-wars/
September 14, 2011
Reporting on the mass protest on Tuesday, Sept. 13, in Paris against Kagame’s visit, Susana Sanz Guardo of Basta de Impunidad en Ruanda (Stop Impunity in Rwanda) wrote that an unprecedented 1,300 people from several European countries marched to the Parliament Building protesting Kagame’s human rights abuses in Rwanda and Congo, calling him “genocidaire (someone who commits or advocates genocide).” “The biggest success has been, without doubt, that for the first time Rwandans and Congolese living in Europe, being victims of the policy of Kigali, have joined together in the same march and with one common voice,” she wrote. “For the first time the protest has been massive. This means that they have lost the fear, that we will not stop and that there is no turning back.”
KPFA Weekend News report broadcast Sept. 10, 2011
On Aug. 29, Barack Obama’s State Department filed “Suggestion of Immunity Submitted by the United States of America,” a request for immunity for Rwandan President Paul Kagame in the civil lawsuit Habyarimana vs. Kagame, which alleges Kagame’s guilt in the Rwanda Genocide and Congo wars and demands damages for the widows of assassinated Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira.
Obama seems to be requesting more legal immunity for a foreign head of state than he himself enjoys, after the landmark Supreme Court case Clinton v. Jones, which established that a sitting president of the United States has no immunity from civil litigation against him for acts done before taking office and unrelated to the office.
Plaintiffs' complaint in Habyarimana vs. Kagame promises to prove that then Gen. Paul Kagame, now president of Rwanda, ordered the assassination of Rwandan President Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira on April 6, 1994. The crash triggered the ethnic massacres known as the Rwanda Genocide.
Or will the Obama team argue that Kagame is immune from legal action for assassinating the Rwandan and Burundian presidents because that was part of Kagame’s path to seizing power and is therefore related to his office as president of Rwanda?
Plaintiffs’ counsel say they can prove that Kagame ordered the assassination of the Rwandan and Burundian presidents by shooting down their plane, which crashed into the presidential palace in Kigali, Rwanda, on April 6, 1994, triggering the panic and subsequent massacres that came to known as the Rwanda Genocide. The two presidents were returning from peace talks in Arusha, Tanzania, called to try to bring an end to the Rwandan civil war of 1990-1994, which began when then Gen. Paul Kagame and his Rwandan Patriotic Army invaded Rwanda from Uganda on Oct. 2, 1990.
Habyarimana v. Kagame
Habyarimana v. Kagame alleges that Gen. Paul Kagame and nine of his top military commanders and officials are guilty of “wrongful death and murder, crimes against humanity, violation of the rights of life, liberty, and security, assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, torture, and continuing conspiracy in furtherance thereof” in Rwanda and its neighbor, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Plaintiffs allege that many of these crimes, including the assassination of the Rwandan and Burundian presidents, were committed before Kagame succeeded in overthrowing the government and becoming first a government official and then president.
The suit demands a jury trial, in which evidence would become public record, and might then be included as evidence in a criminal trial.
Peter Erlinder and lawyers Kurt Kerns and John P. Zelbst filed the suit on behalf of Mesdames Habyarimana and Ntaryamira in the federal District Court of Western Oklahoma in Oklahoma City prior to Kagame’s April 30, 2011, commencement address at Oklahoma Christian University.
Kagame failed to answer the complaint within the time allowed, and the court thus declared a default judgment in favor of Mesdames Habyarimana and Ntaryamira.
This judgment could, however, quite likely be overturned if Kagame, Obama and the State Department were willing to let the case proceed on its merits to a jury trial.
Pierre Prosper, a lawyer who served as George Bush’s second United States ambassador-at-large for war crimes issues from 2001 to 2005, is representing Kagame in his claim that he was not properly served with the lawsuit and that he therefore cannot be expected to answer the lawsuit or be declared in default for failing to answer.
Kagame was not properly served?
It seems unlikely that the State Department would have intervened had they expected Pierre Prosper’s challenge of proper service, by a team of experienced lawyers and private investigators, to succeed.
Claude Gatebuke, with other Rwandans and supporters, protested the April 30, 2010, visit of Kagame to Oklahoma Christian University, where he was served with the lawsuit on behalf of the assassinated presidents’ widows. – Photo: Kendall Brown
But it’s difficult to argue that Kagame was not properly served and remains unfamiliar with the lawsuit, considering that his own prosecutors presented portions of it as evidence against law professor Peter Erlinder following his arrest in Kigali, Rwanda, in May 2010, after he arrived to defend opposition leader Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza.
Kagame’s prosecutors’ use of the lawsuit now as evidence against Ingabire herself make it even harder to argue. Ingabire stands in the dock in Kigali, facing a possible sentence on charges of terrorism and “genocide ideology,” i.e., refusing to deny that Hutus as well as Tutsis died in ethnic violence before, during and after the genocide.
Executive immunity after Clinton v. Jones
This is the first time that the U.S. State Department has requested immunity in a civil lawsuit for a foreign head of state in U.S. courts beyond that which U.S. presidents can claim after Clinton v. Jones, a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case establishing that a sitting president of the United States has no immunity from civil litigation against him for acts done before taking office and unrelated to the office.
The State Department has claimed immunity for Kagame’s alleged wrongful acts before he became the president of Rwanda, an immunity which Bill Clinton could not claim from Paula Jones’s lawsuit, which she filed when he was president of the United States, suing him for what he allegedly did while he was governor of Arkansas.
On Monday, the wives of the assassinated Presidents of Rwanda and Burundi filed their “Objections to the August 29 State Department Suggestion of Immunity on Behalf of Rwanda’s President Kagame” and cited the State Department statement of interest of the United States of America, No. 1:104 CV 1360 (Feb. 14, 2011) (LMB), declaring that immunity is only applicable to “official acts by a sitting government,” with which all parties agree.
Law professor Peter Erlinder
“It is astounding that the Obama-Clinton-Koh State Department would choose Paul Kagame as the first head of state on whose behalf to assert immunity for unofficial actions,” observes law professor Peter Erlinder, “wrongful acts before becoming head of state, in light of the clear legal guidance of Clinton v. Jones and the factual record of massive crimes committed by Kagame before he became titular head of state under questionable circumstances in 2000 and again in 2003 and considering negative White House comments that ‘an election is not democracy’ after opposition parties were outlawed and journalists expelled and assassinated in the rigged election in August 2010.
Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza, who would likely have prevailed over Paul Kagame had he allowed her to run in last year’s presidential election, has endured nearly a year in Rwanda’s maximum security prison and is now on trial.
“The objection on behalf of the presidential widows filed today lists French and Spanish indictments; four U.N. Security Council reports from 2001-2008; a 600-page UNHCHR report of Kagame’s Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity between 1993 and 2003 issued Oct. 1, 2010; and U.N.-ICTR prosecutor reports from 1994 to 2003, all of which confirm massive crimes committed by Kagame and his Rwandan Patriotic Front that are in the public record.
“The irony of the ‘Suggestion of Immunity’ is compounded because Victoire Ingabire, the would-be presidential candidate against Mr. Kagame whom I attempted to advise in Rwanda in May 2010, which resulted in my own arrest by Kagame on charges of ‘genocide ideology,’ is now in the dock in Kigali facing trumped-up terrorism charges, as reported in the New York Times Sept. 10, 2011, during the same week that the Obama administration has asserted immunity for massive crimes for which Mr. Kagame is charged in multiple criminal indictments and U.N. reports.
“The question is, why IS protecting Mr. Kagame so important for U.S. policy-makers, anyway?”
Habyarimana vs. Kagame, the civil lawsuit, is available here.
Suggestion of Immunity [Kagame’s] submitted by the United States of America is available here.
Objections to the August 29 State Department Suggestion of Immunity on Behalf of Rwanda’s President Kagame is available here.
Ingabire on trial, Kagame in France, Obama for Kagame immunity
Transcript of KPFA Weekend News report broadcast Sept. 10, 2011
KPFA Weekend News Host Cameron Jones: Victoire Ingabire’s trial will resume in Kigali, Rwanda, on Monday, where Ingabire is expected to testify in her own defense. Ingabire is on trial for terrorism and genocide ideology, which, in her case, means refusing to deny that Rwandan Hutus as well as Tutsis died in ethnic violence before, during and after the 1994 Rwanda Genocide.
Law professor Peter Erlinder, arrested last year when he went to Rwanda to defend presidential candidate Victoire Ingabire, is featured in this poster worn by a protester against Rwandan President Kagame’s visit to Paris Sept. 12, 2011.
As Ingabire prepares to testify, Rwandan President Paul Kagame is on his way to France in response to the invitation of French President Nicholas Sarkozy and President Obama has requested immunity for Kagame as a head of state in the civil case, Habyarimana v. Kagame, which alleges Kagame and his officers’ guilt in the Rwanda Genocide and Congo wars and demands damages for the widows of Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira. Ann Garrison has this report:
KPFA/Ann Garrison: As Victoire Ingabire prepares to testify in her own defense, Rwandan President Paul Kagame is on his way to France at the invitation of French President Nicholas Sarkozy. Sarkozy has sent French Foreign Minister Alain Juppé to Asia for the duration of Kagame’s visit.
Juppé has publicly disapproved of the invitation and said that the official Rwandan report on French involvement in the genocide is a collection of lies assembled to stop the investigation of Kagame and his senior officers and government officials’ crimes, including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, an investigation conducted by the French court of Jean-Louis Bruguiere.
Susana Sanz Guardo is a principle organizer with Basta de Impunidad en Ruanda – in English, End Impunity in Rwanda – an international organization based in Spain. KPFA spoke to Sanz Guardo as she prepared to travel to France to join Rwandan, Congolese, Burundian and international human rights activists in protesting Sarkozy’s invitation and Kagame’s presence in France.
Susana Sanz Guardo: His visit is really surrounded by a strange atmosphere, and has awakened most human rights organizations, who have asked to be mobilized. Military diplomatic French people are also doing their work, who are all against Kagame’s visit.
KPFA: On Friday, in the United States, President Obama asked a federal court in Oklahoma City to grant Kagame immunity in the civil suit alleging his guilt in the Rwanda Genocide and Congo wars filed by William Mitchell law professor Peter Erlinder and Wichita lawyer Kurt Kerns. Rwandan American legal scholar Charles Kambanda, a professor at St. John’s University Law School in New York City, had this to say about Obama’s request:
Charles Kambanda: In this case, in my opinion, the interests of the people who have come to this court – of the United States court – are far greater than the interest the United States might have in protecting Kagame. Also the interest the United States has in protecting its image as the pioneer of fighting for the helpless people who are denied their rights by their leaders is far compelling to any interest the president of the U.S. can possibly think of in Kagame’s case.
http://www.antipasministries.com/other/article181.htm
'Dear Brother Jean Baptiste Bagaza, we have the greatest honour to extend our sincere gratitude to you both for your financial and technical support in our struggle that has just ended with the taking of Kigali.
'Rest assured that our plan to continue shall be pursued as we agreed at our last meeting in Kampala. Last week I communicated with our big brother Yoweri Museveni and decided to make some modifications to the plan. Indeed, as you have noted, the taking of Kigali quickly provoked a panic among the Hutus who fled to Goma and Bukavu. We have found that the presence of a large number of Rwandan refugees at Goma and the international community can cause our plan for Zaire to fail. We cannot occupy ourselves with Zaire until after the return of these Hutus. All means are being used for their return as rapidly as possible. In any case, our external intelligence services continue to crisscross the east of Zaire and our Belgian, British and American collaborators, the rest of Zaire. The action reports are expected in the next few days.
Obama requests immunity for Kagame re Rwanda Genocide and Congo wars
http://sfbayview.com/2011/obama-requests-immunity-for-kagame-re-rwanda-genocide-and-congo-wars/
September 14, 2011
Reporting on the mass protest on Tuesday, Sept. 13, in Paris against Kagame’s visit, Susana Sanz Guardo of Basta de Impunidad en Ruanda (Stop Impunity in Rwanda) wrote that an unprecedented 1,300 people from several European countries marched to the Parliament Building protesting Kagame’s human rights abuses in Rwanda and Congo, calling him “genocidaire (someone who commits or advocates genocide).” “The biggest success has been, without doubt, that for the first time Rwandans and Congolese living in Europe, being victims of the policy of Kigali, have joined together in the same march and with one common voice,” she wrote. “For the first time the protest has been massive. This means that they have lost the fear, that we will not stop and that there is no turning back.”
KPFA Weekend News report broadcast Sept. 10, 2011
On Aug. 29, Barack Obama’s State Department filed “Suggestion of Immunity Submitted by the United States of America,” a request for immunity for Rwandan President Paul Kagame in the civil lawsuit Habyarimana vs. Kagame, which alleges Kagame’s guilt in the Rwanda Genocide and Congo wars and demands damages for the widows of assassinated Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira.
Obama seems to be requesting more legal immunity for a foreign head of state than he himself enjoys, after the landmark Supreme Court case Clinton v. Jones, which established that a sitting president of the United States has no immunity from civil litigation against him for acts done before taking office and unrelated to the office.
Plaintiffs' complaint in Habyarimana vs. Kagame promises to prove that then Gen. Paul Kagame, now president of Rwanda, ordered the assassination of Rwandan President Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira on April 6, 1994. The crash triggered the ethnic massacres known as the Rwanda Genocide.
Or will the Obama team argue that Kagame is immune from legal action for assassinating the Rwandan and Burundian presidents because that was part of Kagame’s path to seizing power and is therefore related to his office as president of Rwanda?
Plaintiffs’ counsel say they can prove that Kagame ordered the assassination of the Rwandan and Burundian presidents by shooting down their plane, which crashed into the presidential palace in Kigali, Rwanda, on April 6, 1994, triggering the panic and subsequent massacres that came to known as the Rwanda Genocide. The two presidents were returning from peace talks in Arusha, Tanzania, called to try to bring an end to the Rwandan civil war of 1990-1994, which began when then Gen. Paul Kagame and his Rwandan Patriotic Army invaded Rwanda from Uganda on Oct. 2, 1990.
Habyarimana v. Kagame
Habyarimana v. Kagame alleges that Gen. Paul Kagame and nine of his top military commanders and officials are guilty of “wrongful death and murder, crimes against humanity, violation of the rights of life, liberty, and security, assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, torture, and continuing conspiracy in furtherance thereof” in Rwanda and its neighbor, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Plaintiffs allege that many of these crimes, including the assassination of the Rwandan and Burundian presidents, were committed before Kagame succeeded in overthrowing the government and becoming first a government official and then president.
The suit demands a jury trial, in which evidence would become public record, and might then be included as evidence in a criminal trial.
Peter Erlinder and lawyers Kurt Kerns and John P. Zelbst filed the suit on behalf of Mesdames Habyarimana and Ntaryamira in the federal District Court of Western Oklahoma in Oklahoma City prior to Kagame’s April 30, 2011, commencement address at Oklahoma Christian University.
Kagame failed to answer the complaint within the time allowed, and the court thus declared a default judgment in favor of Mesdames Habyarimana and Ntaryamira.
This judgment could, however, quite likely be overturned if Kagame, Obama and the State Department were willing to let the case proceed on its merits to a jury trial.
Pierre Prosper, a lawyer who served as George Bush’s second United States ambassador-at-large for war crimes issues from 2001 to 2005, is representing Kagame in his claim that he was not properly served with the lawsuit and that he therefore cannot be expected to answer the lawsuit or be declared in default for failing to answer.
Kagame was not properly served?
It seems unlikely that the State Department would have intervened had they expected Pierre Prosper’s challenge of proper service, by a team of experienced lawyers and private investigators, to succeed.
Claude Gatebuke, with other Rwandans and supporters, protested the April 30, 2010, visit of Kagame to Oklahoma Christian University, where he was served with the lawsuit on behalf of the assassinated presidents’ widows. – Photo: Kendall Brown
But it’s difficult to argue that Kagame was not properly served and remains unfamiliar with the lawsuit, considering that his own prosecutors presented portions of it as evidence against law professor Peter Erlinder following his arrest in Kigali, Rwanda, in May 2010, after he arrived to defend opposition leader Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza.
Kagame’s prosecutors’ use of the lawsuit now as evidence against Ingabire herself make it even harder to argue. Ingabire stands in the dock in Kigali, facing a possible sentence on charges of terrorism and “genocide ideology,” i.e., refusing to deny that Hutus as well as Tutsis died in ethnic violence before, during and after the genocide.
Executive immunity after Clinton v. Jones
This is the first time that the U.S. State Department has requested immunity in a civil lawsuit for a foreign head of state in U.S. courts beyond that which U.S. presidents can claim after Clinton v. Jones, a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case establishing that a sitting president of the United States has no immunity from civil litigation against him for acts done before taking office and unrelated to the office.
The State Department has claimed immunity for Kagame’s alleged wrongful acts before he became the president of Rwanda, an immunity which Bill Clinton could not claim from Paula Jones’s lawsuit, which she filed when he was president of the United States, suing him for what he allegedly did while he was governor of Arkansas.
On Monday, the wives of the assassinated Presidents of Rwanda and Burundi filed their “Objections to the August 29 State Department Suggestion of Immunity on Behalf of Rwanda’s President Kagame” and cited the State Department statement of interest of the United States of America, No. 1:104 CV 1360 (Feb. 14, 2011) (LMB), declaring that immunity is only applicable to “official acts by a sitting government,” with which all parties agree.
Law professor Peter Erlinder
“It is astounding that the Obama-Clinton-Koh State Department would choose Paul Kagame as the first head of state on whose behalf to assert immunity for unofficial actions,” observes law professor Peter Erlinder, “wrongful acts before becoming head of state, in light of the clear legal guidance of Clinton v. Jones and the factual record of massive crimes committed by Kagame before he became titular head of state under questionable circumstances in 2000 and again in 2003 and considering negative White House comments that ‘an election is not democracy’ after opposition parties were outlawed and journalists expelled and assassinated in the rigged election in August 2010.
Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza, who would likely have prevailed over Paul Kagame had he allowed her to run in last year’s presidential election, has endured nearly a year in Rwanda’s maximum security prison and is now on trial.
“The objection on behalf of the presidential widows filed today lists French and Spanish indictments; four U.N. Security Council reports from 2001-2008; a 600-page UNHCHR report of Kagame’s Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity between 1993 and 2003 issued Oct. 1, 2010; and U.N.-ICTR prosecutor reports from 1994 to 2003, all of which confirm massive crimes committed by Kagame and his Rwandan Patriotic Front that are in the public record.
“The irony of the ‘Suggestion of Immunity’ is compounded because Victoire Ingabire, the would-be presidential candidate against Mr. Kagame whom I attempted to advise in Rwanda in May 2010, which resulted in my own arrest by Kagame on charges of ‘genocide ideology,’ is now in the dock in Kigali facing trumped-up terrorism charges, as reported in the New York Times Sept. 10, 2011, during the same week that the Obama administration has asserted immunity for massive crimes for which Mr. Kagame is charged in multiple criminal indictments and U.N. reports.
“The question is, why IS protecting Mr. Kagame so important for U.S. policy-makers, anyway?”
Habyarimana vs. Kagame, the civil lawsuit, is available here.
Suggestion of Immunity [Kagame’s] submitted by the United States of America is available here.
Objections to the August 29 State Department Suggestion of Immunity on Behalf of Rwanda’s President Kagame is available here.
Ingabire on trial, Kagame in France, Obama for Kagame immunity
Transcript of KPFA Weekend News report broadcast Sept. 10, 2011
KPFA Weekend News Host Cameron Jones: Victoire Ingabire’s trial will resume in Kigali, Rwanda, on Monday, where Ingabire is expected to testify in her own defense. Ingabire is on trial for terrorism and genocide ideology, which, in her case, means refusing to deny that Rwandan Hutus as well as Tutsis died in ethnic violence before, during and after the 1994 Rwanda Genocide.
Law professor Peter Erlinder, arrested last year when he went to Rwanda to defend presidential candidate Victoire Ingabire, is featured in this poster worn by a protester against Rwandan President Kagame’s visit to Paris Sept. 12, 2011.
As Ingabire prepares to testify, Rwandan President Paul Kagame is on his way to France in response to the invitation of French President Nicholas Sarkozy and President Obama has requested immunity for Kagame as a head of state in the civil case, Habyarimana v. Kagame, which alleges Kagame and his officers’ guilt in the Rwanda Genocide and Congo wars and demands damages for the widows of Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira. Ann Garrison has this report:
KPFA/Ann Garrison: As Victoire Ingabire prepares to testify in her own defense, Rwandan President Paul Kagame is on his way to France at the invitation of French President Nicholas Sarkozy. Sarkozy has sent French Foreign Minister Alain Juppé to Asia for the duration of Kagame’s visit.
Juppé has publicly disapproved of the invitation and said that the official Rwandan report on French involvement in the genocide is a collection of lies assembled to stop the investigation of Kagame and his senior officers and government officials’ crimes, including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, an investigation conducted by the French court of Jean-Louis Bruguiere.
Susana Sanz Guardo is a principle organizer with Basta de Impunidad en Ruanda – in English, End Impunity in Rwanda – an international organization based in Spain. KPFA spoke to Sanz Guardo as she prepared to travel to France to join Rwandan, Congolese, Burundian and international human rights activists in protesting Sarkozy’s invitation and Kagame’s presence in France.
Susana Sanz Guardo: His visit is really surrounded by a strange atmosphere, and has awakened most human rights organizations, who have asked to be mobilized. Military diplomatic French people are also doing their work, who are all against Kagame’s visit.
KPFA: On Friday, in the United States, President Obama asked a federal court in Oklahoma City to grant Kagame immunity in the civil suit alleging his guilt in the Rwanda Genocide and Congo wars filed by William Mitchell law professor Peter Erlinder and Wichita lawyer Kurt Kerns. Rwandan American legal scholar Charles Kambanda, a professor at St. John’s University Law School in New York City, had this to say about Obama’s request:
Charles Kambanda: In this case, in my opinion, the interests of the people who have come to this court – of the United States court – are far greater than the interest the United States might have in protecting Kagame. Also the interest the United States has in protecting its image as the pioneer of fighting for the helpless people who are denied their rights by their leaders is far compelling to any interest the president of the U.S. can possibly think of in Kagame’s case.
Tuesday, 27 September 2011
Are Christians Bound By Generational Curses? No!
Are Christians Bound By Generational Curses? No!
http://www.yesumulungi.com/index.php/commentaries/469-are-christians-bound-by-generational-curses-no.html
Kato Mivule | September 20, 2011
An article appeared in the Ugandan Weekly, Sunday Vision September 17, 2011 that questioned if Christians are cursed. There is a popular teaching among Evangelical Christians in Uganda that Christians remain cursed until those curses are “broken” by some anointed Man or Woman of God. Usually, those who are deemed cursed are the poor, weak, destitute, unemployed, sick, and those facing various challenges of life.
One of the remedies for “breaking” the curse is to give “seed” money to preachers so as to “break” the curse. The teaching has become very popular given the current global economic malaise, that poor Christians will take the little savings they have and “sow the seed” into the ministries of these predatory preachers.
The popularity of these “breaking the curse” teachings caught the attention of media that the Ugandan Weekly, Sunday Vision published an article on the subject (see below). The catch phrase that these predatory preachers use is “if you are poor then you are cursed”. Thus many ignorant poor Christians give all they have as “seed money” so as to “break” the curse in hopes of getting a job.
However, the New Testament is very clear when it comes to the subject of being cursed. The only time the New Testament mentions about curses and deliverance is in Galatians 3; the New Testament is very clear that those who are in Christ Jesus have been redeemed from the Curse and by Grace and not works. This means that no one can buy their way out of being cursed by giving “seed money” to preachers for deliverance. Redemption from the Curse is a free gift from God through Jesus Christ by Grace and not works.
Galatians 3: 10- 13 (NKJV):
10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.” 11 But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for “the just shall live by faith.” 12 Yet the law is not of faith, but “the man who does them shall live by them.” 13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree), 14 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Therefore don’t waste your time and money by giving it to predatory preachers who mentally try to sway you that you are cursed. You have been redeemed from all curses in Christ Jesus as a free gift and that comes with your Salvation in Jesus Christ.
Now, this does not mean that you will not go through hard times, yes, you will face challenges in life but that does not mean you are cursed. Jesus Christ suffered and endured, Paul the apostle endured sufferings and difficult times, many Christians have had to endure suffering and pain but that does not mean that they were cursed.
In fact they turned those life challenges into good. They saw those life challenges as stepping stones for the better. Remember that Jesus Christ did not save His own to turn around and curse them; that is a lie from Satan and not from Jesus Christ. You are blessed, yes, even when you go through hard times, and face difficult challenges of life; you are blessed in Christ Jesus.
Are Christians bound by generational curses?
http://www.sundayvision.co.ug/detail.php?mainNewsCategoryId=7&newsCategoryId=525&newsId=765923
Sunday Vision September 17, 2011
THE FAITH DEBATE
Maureen Nakatudde asked several religious leaders to offer their advice... JONATHAN has been in the church for five years. He is a born again Christian, but has failed to find a job. Many of his schoolmates got jobs as soon as they graduated. He wonders what went wrong. To make matters worse, when the pastor comes to the pulpit, he says if you have been in a bad situation for long, you have generational curses. Jonathan’s pastor is not the only one who lauds the songs of generational curses. Many religious leaders do. But many other church leaders argue that immediately a person becomes born-again, the generational curse stops. So, what is the truth?
VINCENT KASHAIJA New Hope Missions, Matugga: “The Bible says all things become new when a person accepts Jesus Christ as his personal saviour. Therefore, there is no way a person can have generation curses if he or she is born again.” In addition, the Bible forbids people to say children pay for their parents’ sins. Jeremiah 31:29 states: “In those days, people will no longer say, the fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.”
Pastor Vincent Kashaija: Deuteronomy 24:16 says fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their fathers; instead, everyone will die for his own sin. The preachers who dismiss this teaching of curses among Christians also always make reference to John 8:36, where Jesus said: “He whom the Son sets free is free indeed!” Kashaija says today people have different doctrines, depending on the churches they belong to.
JAMES MBALIRE, Universal Church of God: “If a person gets saved and is not filled with the Holy Spirit, he or she can continue having the generational curses. In order to break the spell of a generational curse, Mbalire advises one to devote him or herself to prayer and repentance of all the sins committed. He adds that the person should turn away from evil; otherwise the curses will return and the person shall be worse off than before, so the Bible says. Even though as a Christian you have been sanctified, make sure that you leave no gap for the devil. Kashaija says the demons always look for an empty gap to fill and this time when they return, they will be more. (Mathew 12:45: The spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself). Mbalire concludes: “When you pray, always believe that God has answered your prayers and you are free from all the curses of the enemy.” He adds: “Christians should look out for any familiar traits in their families and tackle them so that they do not follow them or their children.”
Have you seen traits such as fornication, witchcraft, illiteracy, poverty and theft in your family? Analyse your life and see where it is heading to. If it inclines towards that direction, the best option is to have a will not to be like your relatives with those traits. Also, ask God to transform you. Remember God will help you if have faith in Him.
Published on: Saturday, 17th September, 2011
http://www.yesumulungi.com/index.php/commentaries/469-are-christians-bound-by-generational-curses-no.html
Kato Mivule | September 20, 2011
An article appeared in the Ugandan Weekly, Sunday Vision September 17, 2011 that questioned if Christians are cursed. There is a popular teaching among Evangelical Christians in Uganda that Christians remain cursed until those curses are “broken” by some anointed Man or Woman of God. Usually, those who are deemed cursed are the poor, weak, destitute, unemployed, sick, and those facing various challenges of life.
One of the remedies for “breaking” the curse is to give “seed” money to preachers so as to “break” the curse. The teaching has become very popular given the current global economic malaise, that poor Christians will take the little savings they have and “sow the seed” into the ministries of these predatory preachers.
The popularity of these “breaking the curse” teachings caught the attention of media that the Ugandan Weekly, Sunday Vision published an article on the subject (see below). The catch phrase that these predatory preachers use is “if you are poor then you are cursed”. Thus many ignorant poor Christians give all they have as “seed money” so as to “break” the curse in hopes of getting a job.
However, the New Testament is very clear when it comes to the subject of being cursed. The only time the New Testament mentions about curses and deliverance is in Galatians 3; the New Testament is very clear that those who are in Christ Jesus have been redeemed from the Curse and by Grace and not works. This means that no one can buy their way out of being cursed by giving “seed money” to preachers for deliverance. Redemption from the Curse is a free gift from God through Jesus Christ by Grace and not works.
Galatians 3: 10- 13 (NKJV):
10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.” 11 But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for “the just shall live by faith.” 12 Yet the law is not of faith, but “the man who does them shall live by them.” 13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree), 14 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Therefore don’t waste your time and money by giving it to predatory preachers who mentally try to sway you that you are cursed. You have been redeemed from all curses in Christ Jesus as a free gift and that comes with your Salvation in Jesus Christ.
Now, this does not mean that you will not go through hard times, yes, you will face challenges in life but that does not mean you are cursed. Jesus Christ suffered and endured, Paul the apostle endured sufferings and difficult times, many Christians have had to endure suffering and pain but that does not mean that they were cursed.
In fact they turned those life challenges into good. They saw those life challenges as stepping stones for the better. Remember that Jesus Christ did not save His own to turn around and curse them; that is a lie from Satan and not from Jesus Christ. You are blessed, yes, even when you go through hard times, and face difficult challenges of life; you are blessed in Christ Jesus.
Are Christians bound by generational curses?
http://www.sundayvision.co.ug/detail.php?mainNewsCategoryId=7&newsCategoryId=525&newsId=765923
Sunday Vision September 17, 2011
THE FAITH DEBATE
Maureen Nakatudde asked several religious leaders to offer their advice... JONATHAN has been in the church for five years. He is a born again Christian, but has failed to find a job. Many of his schoolmates got jobs as soon as they graduated. He wonders what went wrong. To make matters worse, when the pastor comes to the pulpit, he says if you have been in a bad situation for long, you have generational curses. Jonathan’s pastor is not the only one who lauds the songs of generational curses. Many religious leaders do. But many other church leaders argue that immediately a person becomes born-again, the generational curse stops. So, what is the truth?
VINCENT KASHAIJA New Hope Missions, Matugga: “The Bible says all things become new when a person accepts Jesus Christ as his personal saviour. Therefore, there is no way a person can have generation curses if he or she is born again.” In addition, the Bible forbids people to say children pay for their parents’ sins. Jeremiah 31:29 states: “In those days, people will no longer say, the fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.”
Pastor Vincent Kashaija: Deuteronomy 24:16 says fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their fathers; instead, everyone will die for his own sin. The preachers who dismiss this teaching of curses among Christians also always make reference to John 8:36, where Jesus said: “He whom the Son sets free is free indeed!” Kashaija says today people have different doctrines, depending on the churches they belong to.
JAMES MBALIRE, Universal Church of God: “If a person gets saved and is not filled with the Holy Spirit, he or she can continue having the generational curses. In order to break the spell of a generational curse, Mbalire advises one to devote him or herself to prayer and repentance of all the sins committed. He adds that the person should turn away from evil; otherwise the curses will return and the person shall be worse off than before, so the Bible says. Even though as a Christian you have been sanctified, make sure that you leave no gap for the devil. Kashaija says the demons always look for an empty gap to fill and this time when they return, they will be more. (Mathew 12:45: The spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself). Mbalire concludes: “When you pray, always believe that God has answered your prayers and you are free from all the curses of the enemy.” He adds: “Christians should look out for any familiar traits in their families and tackle them so that they do not follow them or their children.”
Have you seen traits such as fornication, witchcraft, illiteracy, poverty and theft in your family? Analyse your life and see where it is heading to. If it inclines towards that direction, the best option is to have a will not to be like your relatives with those traits. Also, ask God to transform you. Remember God will help you if have faith in Him.
Published on: Saturday, 17th September, 2011
Lawrence Brewer Executed: White Supremacist Executed For Texas Dragging Murder
Lawrence Brewer Executed: White Supremacist Executed For Texas Dragging Murder
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/21/lawrence-russell-brewer-executed_n_974926.html
HUNTSVILLE, Texas -- White supremacist gang member Lawrence Russell Brewer was executed Wednesday evening for the infamous dragging death slaying of James Byrd Jr., a black man from East Texas.
Byrd, 49, was chained to the back of a pickup truck and pulled whip-like to his death along a bumpy asphalt road in one of the most grisly hate crime murders in recent Texas history.
Brewer, 44, was asked if he had any final words, to which he replied: "No. I have no final statement."
He glanced at his parents watching through a nearby window, took several deep breaths and closed his eyes. A single tear hung on the edge of his right eye as he was pronounced dead at 6:21 p.m., 10 minutes after the lethal drugs began flowing into his arms, both covered with intricate black tattoos.
Byrd's sisters also were among the witnesses in an adjacent room.
"Hopefully, today's execution of Brewer can remind all of us that racial hatred and prejudice leads to terrible consequence for the victim, the victim's family, for the perpetrator and for the perpetrator's family," Clara Taylor, one of Byrd's sisters, said.
She called the punishment "a step in the right direction."
"We're making progress," Taylor said. "I know he was guilty so I have no qualms about the death penalty."
Appeals to the courts for Brewer were exhausted and no last-day attempts to save his life were filed.
Besides Brewer, John William King, now 36, also was convicted of capital murder and sent to death row for Byrd's death, which shocked the nation for its brutality. King's conviction and death sentence remain under appeal. A third man, Shawn Berry, 36, received a life prison term.
"One down and one to go," Billy Rowles, the retired Jasper County sheriff who first investigated the horrific scene, said. "That's kind of cruel but that's reality."
It was about 2:30 a.m. on a Sunday, June 7, 1998, when witnesses saw Byrd walking on a road not far from his home in Jasper, a town of more than 7,000 about 125 miles northeast of Houston. Many folks knew he lived off disability checks, couldn't afford his own car and walked where he needed to go. Another witness then saw him riding in the bed of a dark pickup.
Six hours later and some 10 miles away on Huff Creek Road, the bloody mess found after daybreak was thought at first to be animal road kill. Rowles, a former Texas state trooper who had taken office as sheriff the previous year, believed it was a hit-and-run fatality but evidence didn't match up with someone caught beneath a vehicle. Body parts were scattered and the blood trail began with footprints at what appeared to be the scene of a scuffle.
"I didn't go down that road too far before I knew this was going to be a bad deal," he said at Brewer's trial.
Fingerprints taken from the headless torso identified the victim as Byrd.
Testimony showed the three men and Byrd drove out into the county about 10 miles and stopped along an isolated logging road. A fight broke out and the outnumbered Byrd was tied to the truck bumper with a 24 1/2-foot logging chain. Three miles later, what was left of his shredded remains was dumped between a black church and cemetery where the pavement ended on the remote road.
Brewer, King and Berry were in custody by the end of the next day.
The crime put Jasper under a national spotlight and lured the likes of the Ku Klux Klan and the Black Panthers, among others, to try to exploit the notoriety of the case which continues – many say unfairly – to brand Jasper more than a decade later.
King was tried first, in Jasper. Brewer's trial was moved 150 miles away to Bryan. Berry was tried back in Jasper. DNA showed Byrd's blood on all three of them.
Brewer was from Sulphur Springs, about 180 miles to the northwest, and had been convicted of cocaine possession. He met King, a convicted burglar from Jasper, in a Texas prison where they got involved in a KKK splinter group known as the Confederate Knights of America and adorned themselves with racist tattoos. Evidence showed Brewer had violated parole and was involved in a number of burglaries and thefts in the Jasper area.
King had become friends with Berry and moved into Berry's place. Evidence showed Brewer came to Jasper to stay with them.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/21/lawrence-russell-brewer-executed_n_974926.html
HUNTSVILLE, Texas -- White supremacist gang member Lawrence Russell Brewer was executed Wednesday evening for the infamous dragging death slaying of James Byrd Jr., a black man from East Texas.
Byrd, 49, was chained to the back of a pickup truck and pulled whip-like to his death along a bumpy asphalt road in one of the most grisly hate crime murders in recent Texas history.
Brewer, 44, was asked if he had any final words, to which he replied: "No. I have no final statement."
He glanced at his parents watching through a nearby window, took several deep breaths and closed his eyes. A single tear hung on the edge of his right eye as he was pronounced dead at 6:21 p.m., 10 minutes after the lethal drugs began flowing into his arms, both covered with intricate black tattoos.
Byrd's sisters also were among the witnesses in an adjacent room.
"Hopefully, today's execution of Brewer can remind all of us that racial hatred and prejudice leads to terrible consequence for the victim, the victim's family, for the perpetrator and for the perpetrator's family," Clara Taylor, one of Byrd's sisters, said.
She called the punishment "a step in the right direction."
"We're making progress," Taylor said. "I know he was guilty so I have no qualms about the death penalty."
Appeals to the courts for Brewer were exhausted and no last-day attempts to save his life were filed.
Besides Brewer, John William King, now 36, also was convicted of capital murder and sent to death row for Byrd's death, which shocked the nation for its brutality. King's conviction and death sentence remain under appeal. A third man, Shawn Berry, 36, received a life prison term.
"One down and one to go," Billy Rowles, the retired Jasper County sheriff who first investigated the horrific scene, said. "That's kind of cruel but that's reality."
It was about 2:30 a.m. on a Sunday, June 7, 1998, when witnesses saw Byrd walking on a road not far from his home in Jasper, a town of more than 7,000 about 125 miles northeast of Houston. Many folks knew he lived off disability checks, couldn't afford his own car and walked where he needed to go. Another witness then saw him riding in the bed of a dark pickup.
Six hours later and some 10 miles away on Huff Creek Road, the bloody mess found after daybreak was thought at first to be animal road kill. Rowles, a former Texas state trooper who had taken office as sheriff the previous year, believed it was a hit-and-run fatality but evidence didn't match up with someone caught beneath a vehicle. Body parts were scattered and the blood trail began with footprints at what appeared to be the scene of a scuffle.
"I didn't go down that road too far before I knew this was going to be a bad deal," he said at Brewer's trial.
Fingerprints taken from the headless torso identified the victim as Byrd.
Testimony showed the three men and Byrd drove out into the county about 10 miles and stopped along an isolated logging road. A fight broke out and the outnumbered Byrd was tied to the truck bumper with a 24 1/2-foot logging chain. Three miles later, what was left of his shredded remains was dumped between a black church and cemetery where the pavement ended on the remote road.
Brewer, King and Berry were in custody by the end of the next day.
The crime put Jasper under a national spotlight and lured the likes of the Ku Klux Klan and the Black Panthers, among others, to try to exploit the notoriety of the case which continues – many say unfairly – to brand Jasper more than a decade later.
King was tried first, in Jasper. Brewer's trial was moved 150 miles away to Bryan. Berry was tried back in Jasper. DNA showed Byrd's blood on all three of them.
Brewer was from Sulphur Springs, about 180 miles to the northwest, and had been convicted of cocaine possession. He met King, a convicted burglar from Jasper, in a Texas prison where they got involved in a KKK splinter group known as the Confederate Knights of America and adorned themselves with racist tattoos. Evidence showed Brewer had violated parole and was involved in a number of burglaries and thefts in the Jasper area.
King had become friends with Berry and moved into Berry's place. Evidence showed Brewer came to Jasper to stay with them.
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