Print this page

News in Brief, 21 September 2018

21 Sep 2018 General
News in Brief, 21 September 2018

A selection of this week's happenings to aid your prayers.

Society & Politics

  • Hundreds rally against anti-Semitism in Manchester: Crowds at the ‘No to Anti-Semitism’ rally were addressed by speakers including Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and Dame Margaret Hodge. Read more here. Also this week, in a snub to Jeremy Corbyn, Theresa May has delivered a strong speech in support of Israel, Zionism and the Jewish people. Read it here.
  • Screening test prompts ‘gendercide’ concerns: A prenatal screening test being rolled out by the NHS could be used to tell a child’s gender as early as eight weeks, prompting renewed calls for an explicit ban on sex-selective abortion. Find out more and watch a recent BBC documentary here. Labour MP Naz Shah has been criticised for condemning sex-selective abortion while upholding the test’s use to ‘screen out’ children with Down’s Syndrome. Read more here.
  • Govt launches no-fault divorce consultation: The Government is proposing to remove the requirement to provide a reason for divorce, prompting concerns that the state is doing more to help break marriages up than keep them together. Read more here and take part in the open consultation here.
  • Equalities Minister keen to understand rise in trans referrals of girls: A 4,400% rise in the number of young girls being referred for gender transition treatments in the last nine years is prompting concerns amongst both politicians and specialists. Read more here.

Church Issues

  • Call to pray for Leah Sharibu: Groups supporting persecuted Christians are uniting in a call to prayer for 15-year-old Nigerian Leah, a Chibok schoolgirl who is still being held by Boko Haram because she refuses to renounce her faith. The terror group are threatening to kill her within a month unless their demands are met. Read more here and here.

World Scene

  • Chinese churches take bold stand for religious freedom: In the midst of an enormous crackdown on Christianity by Chinese authorities, 279 pastors have bravely signed a public declaration calling on the Government to respect religious freedom. Read more here.
  • Abbas under increasing pressure: The Trump administration has reportedly closed all US bank accounts linked to the PA or PLO, intensifying pressure on the Palestinians. The IDF Chief of Staff says there is a 60-80% chance of a major outbreak of violence in the West Bank due to the waning influence of Abbas, who is coming to Europe soon seeking support for an alternative peace plan. Read more here and here. Also this week, Belgium has cut its funding of PA schools over the Palestinian policy of renaming of schools after terrorists.

Israel & Middle East

  • Iran in Iraq: Concern is growing about Iran’s extension into Iraq through proxy groups, taking advantage of regional instability left in the wake of ISIS to replicate and expand Hezbollah’s threat to Israel. Israel is unlikely to tolerate this. Read more here. Read a useful summary from the Jewish News Syndicate of the circumstances that led to the downing of a Russian plane by Syrian anti-aircraft fire on Monday.
  • Hamas has used 17,000 children in warfare since 2016: The Jerusalem Institute for Justice is seeking to sue Hamas at the International Criminal Court for using thousands of children as soldiers, terrorists, human shields and military targets. Read more here.
  • Tensions increase around High Holidays: After the fatal stabbing of Ari Fuld on Sunday, there has been more unrest around Temple Mount and another attempted stabbing at Damascus Gate. Read more here. This unrest adds to riots ongoing at the Gaza border.

Upcoming Events

  • European Creation Conference (Central London): 21-22 September. Creation Ministries International’s two-day conference including fascinating presentations on a range of subjects from 16 speakers, as well as a youth programme. Emmanuel Centre, Westminster. Full price £20, day tickets £12, kids go free. Click here for full details and to book, or call 01162 848999 (normal office hours).
  • Launch: The Reshaping of Britain (Central London): Wednesday 3 October. Join the Prophecy Today UK and Issachar Ministries teams at the launch of Dr Clifford Hill’s new book, published by Wilberforce Publications. £12 per person (including a complimentary copy of the book), £8 concessions. Click here for full details and to book.
  • Next Moedim (head of the month) meeting (London): Friday 12 October. 6:30-9:30pm, All Souls Clubhouse, London. Hebraic worship and teaching. Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information.
  • Launch: International Federation for Therapeutic and Counselling Choice (London): Monday 15 October. Speakers from a range of professional bodies will respond to the UK Government’s recent ‘LGBT Action Plan’ and assault on ‘conversion therapy’. Booking essential - click here for more details.
  • Christian Concern’s 10th anniversary celebration (Central London): Saturday 20 October. Join Christian Concern staff and clients to celebrate a decade of ministry, learn about their work, rejoice in past

 

Recommended Sources

At Prophecy Today UK we are aware that the world is moving very quickly and it is difficult to keep up with all the latest developments – especially when the material circulated by our mainstream media is increasingly far from reality and definitely not devoted to a biblical perspective!

Though we are not a news service, we want to help keep you informed by passing on updates and reports as we are led. This will be a selective, not an exhaustive, round-up, which we hope will be helpful for your prayers. Click here to browse our News archive.

We also recommend the following news services for regular updates from a Christian perspective: