Nine Years for Pastor, Armed Church Security? Interfaith Award, Truth or Guns? Sikhs Help in Fires, Evangelicals Polled, Falun Gong “Cult”
Chinese Sentence Christian Pastor to Nine Years in Prison
Charged with “subverting state power.” Pastor Wang Yi ran afoul of Chinese authorities for founding an unlicensed Christian church and was sentenced to nine years in prison. In 2006, Wang Yi was invited to the White House to meet then-President George Bush. “Beijing must release him and end its intensifying repression of Christians and members of all other religious groups,” said U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Wang Yi’s Early Rain Covenant Church in Chengdu, Sichuan, has about 500 members.
After Shooting, Churches Differ on Use of Armed Security
When a shotgun-wielding man killed two people inside the West Freeway Church of Christ in White Settlement, Texas, a church deacon and former law enforcement officer killed the shooter with a single shot to the head. He was called a hero by many in the state, as he most likely prevented the killing of others in attendance. But church officials in Texas differ as to whether church security should be armed. Reverend Katheryn Barlow-Williams, for example, of Central Presbyterian Church in Austin, cited the example of Jesus: “He was being arrested and about to be crucified,” she said, “Peter picked up a sword and Jesus said ‘put it back down.’” Barlow-Williams said her church would rather operate from faith than fear.
Retired Buddhist Sensei to Receive Interfaith Award
A former Methodist Minister who became a Buddhist leader will receive an award from Manitoba’s Lieutenant Governor for the Advancement of Interreligious Understanding at a Government House ceremony. Sensei Fredrich Ulrich contributed to the community and brought people together to understand each other, said the president of the Manitoba Multifaith Council. Ulrich said Buddha taught that we should “Avoid killing, avoid stealing, avoid lying, avoid sexual abuse, avoid drugs and chemicals that pollute the body and mind.”
Truth Stronger than Guns
Sikhs Pitch in to Help Australian Firefighters and Evacuees
Fifty fires are raging in New South Wales and Victoria, covering an area the size of West Virginia, with 1,400 homes destroyed and 20 people dead. Among the many people providing help to those driven from their homes are a Sikh restaurateur and Melbourne-based Sikh Volunteers Australia. Kanwaljit Singh and his wife Kamaljit Kaur, owners of the Desi Grill restaurant in Bairnsdale, provided hundreds of free meals of curry and rice to firefighters and evacuees. Sikh Volunteers Australia usually provides free food twice a week to those in need around Melbourne.
Poll of White Evangelicals
A recent poll of evangelical Christians highlight major differences with other religious groups especially on matters related to abortion and LGBTQ policy. Evangelical support for Trump is squarely linked to his anti-abortion stance, according to Rev. Franklin Graham. In other respects, the AP-NORC poll found evangelicals in agreement with more liberal policies on immigration and aid to the poor.
Shen Yun Labeled “Falun Gong Cult” by Communist China