October 2009 Journal Summary

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Summary of the articles and information in the Journal.

Editorial (full version below)
The Parliament of the World's Religions (PWR) will descend on Melbourne in just two months (3-9 December). Unfortunately, there is a great lack of understand and discernment about the aims and objectives of this 'Parliament'.

Same-sex attraction - What is Change?
Peter Stokes questions the definition of "change" as used by the American Psychological Association when they declare that "there is no solid evidence that change [from a homosexual orientation] is likely".

The new 'lows' of social engineering
The  United Nations Sexuality Education Program released a document in June 2009 called 'International Guidelines on Sexuality Education' and is meant to be the 'global template' for how to teach sexual education in schools.

News & Action
Queensland - late term abortion; South Australia: Euthanasia; Cancer and Survival; Tasmania: lesbian parents

Homosexual 'marriage' ad
Shelley Argent, president of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, is campaigning through a television ad for same-sex couples to be allowed to marry.

Resistance Thinking
Cameron Spink has come on board to fill the role of Resistance Thinking co-ordinator.

Youth Decides - on climate change
Nicole Reddy writes on Youth Decide, a campaign run by partners World Vision and the Australian Youth Climate Coalition asking young people to vote on what kind of world they want to live in.

Few sun spots: colder climate?
Recent reports from NASA show that the sun has very few sunspots at present. The report says that when the sun has few sunspots, earth's temperature often declines.

Amy K: Silent Cry
Christian artist Amy K has released a new single called 'Silent Cry'. It is about post-abortion syndrome and the effects on women who have had an abortion from the perspective of a sufferer.

Queensland: Abortion Update
The Cairns couple who were charged with importing drugs for an abortion have been sent to trial in Queensland. A magistrate has ruled that there is sufficient evidence that a criminal offence occurred.

Christians celebrating Ramadan?
During the past month, emerging church leader Brian McLaren celebrated the Muslim fasting month with a US Muslim group. He wrote a five-part article on his blog about being involved in celebrating Ramadan.

Anal sex is dangerous for men and women!
An official with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently announced that in the US HIV/AIDS is fifty times more prevalent among homosexual men and bisexual men (who engage in anal sex) than in women and heterosexual men.

PWR: Many gods, many lords, but only one Lord Jesus Christ
The Acts 4:12 Committee has produced four pamphlets about various aspects of the Parliament of the World's Religions. This is the second one - designed for Christians.

The Jesus Seminar
Jenny Stokes investigates the Jesus Seminar when a Fellow, Dr Francis McNab, called for the establishment of a 'new religion' and said that that the Ten Commandments was 'the most negative document' ever written.

Google Scholar
Using Google Scholar to find articles, peer-reviewed journal articles or references to books.

Abortion Documentary: 'Blood Money'
A new documentary that investigates and exposes the financial motives and strategies of the abortion industry has been produced in the USA. It will have an important role in showing the 'money trail' of the abortion industry.

World News
UK: Rainbow conservative; USA: Lutherans - homosexuality; USA: Pro-lifer killed; Islam: child brides; Slovakia: abortion consent; Global Central Bank envisaged.

 

Full Editorial - October 2009 Journal

The Parliament of the World's Religions (PWR) will descend on Melbourne in just two months (3-9 December).

Unfortunately, there is a great lack of understanding and discernment about the aims and objectives of this 'Parliament'.

Many assume it is just a 'talk fest'. The involvement of some high profile Christians also leads some to think it is OK to engage with other religions in this way. Some even think it is an opportunity to evangelise - how wrong they all are.

It is interesting to look at some of the statements made in conjunction with this event to gain an understanding of its true nature. In the aboriginal 'Welcome' from those who claim to be the "original owners" of this part of Australia, they say, "The Wurundjeri people are known as the Manna-Gum (eucalyptus tree) people and we invite you to share with us from a branch of Gum leaves. Taking a leaf means that you are welcome to everything from the tops of the trees to the roots of the earth on our ancestral country. It also means that you and I, we become linked symbolically and spiritually. By this action you join with us to honour our ancestors who have nurtured our land for thousands and thousands of years."  (Emphasis ours)

No doubt, like us, you always assumed it was the Australian government who gave out visas, but that is a minor point compared to the "we become linked symbolically and spiritually". People who claim this is simply a 'talk fest' need to ponder these words because it is clear from this 'welcome' that this is a spiritual gathering.

The first such gathering, in Chicago USA in 1893, claimed that it was the "first formal gathering of representatives of eastern and western spiritual traditions." Many say that the gathering resulted in the first introduction of Hinduism to the USA and the west.

No surprise, then,  that 100 years later it was two Hindu Monks from the Vivekananda Monastery, founded following the first gathering, who instigated the revival of the Parliament of the World's Religions.

Two other founders of this gathering were atheists! The two people heading up the Melbourne gathering, Gary Bouma and Des Cahill, were responsible, a few years ago, for three books: one promoted Council- sponsored interfaith networks, one was a very sanitised introduction to Islam and one suggested a rotating roster of 'faith' prayers to open our Federal parliament to replace the daily Christian Prayer and Lord's Prayer.

Bouma also spoke for the Muslims and against the Christians involved in the 'Two Dannys' vilification case in the Tribunal.

One session is titled "Sharing wisdom in the search of inner peace". Whose wisdom?

The Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions says it seeks to "promote interreligious harmony, rather than unity", but then states, "Religious and cultural fears and hatreds are replaced with understanding and respect".

'Respect' is something that denotes acceptance and 'to hold in esteem or honour'. It is one thing to respect the 'people' of other religions and befriend them with a goal of introducing them to the 'One True God'; it is a very different thing to respect a religion that leads people AWAY from that One True God towards a myriad of false gods and eventually to Hell.

We need great wisdom and discernment as we travel in perilous times when the deception of, and by, fellow Christians is so great.

Yours in the service of Jesus the King

Peter and Jenny Stokes