General
A selection of the week's happenings to aid your prayers
Society & Politics
- Home abortions face legal challenge in High Court: This coming week Christian Concern’s legal team will be in court seeking judicial review of the Government’s decision to allow women to take abortion pills by themselves, at home, during the lockdown. Read more here.
- NI abortion regulations re-tabled: After the draft regulations were initially withdrawn (read more here and here), the Government has re-tabled them, with Parliamentary votes expected next month. The extreme abortion framework being imposed by Westminster on Northern Ireland is facing mounting criticism.
- LGBTQ+ community claim NHS is hijacking ‘their’ rainbow: According to a Forbes article, some in the LGBTQ+ community feel ‘belittled’ and ‘erased’ because the symbol is being used to celebrate the NHS. Read more here.
- Ashers case goes to European Court: After the UK Supreme Court upheld the rights of the Christian bakers to freedom of conscience in 2018, the complainant has taken his case to the ECHR where it is now due to be heard. Read more here.
Church Issues
- ‘UK Blessing’ video receives accolade from PM: Boris Johnson has given an award and sent a letter of thanks to Tim Hughes, the worship leader behind the ‘UK Blessing’ video, describing it as a ‘sensational singing masterpiece’. Read more here.
- Pope promotes inter-faith day of prayer: The Pope has called people from all religions to ‘unite in prayer’ this week to ask for an end to the Covid-19 pandemic. Read more here and here.
World Scene
- Online divorces start in Ireland: Remote hearings, ostensibly to adhere to social distancing rules, will likely become the ‘new normal’ in Ireland, making it even easier for marriages to end. Read more here.
Israel & Middle East
- Israeli gospel ministry sees record levels of interest: OneforIsrael.org is reporting record interest in their website, which is filled with personal testimonies from Israeli Messianics (Jews who have discovered that Yeshua is the Messiah). Watch their update here (5 minutes).
- Israel’s new government sworn in: On Wednesday evening Netanyahu announced the official formation of the new administration, which will be the largest in Israel’s history and follows an unprecedented political impasse. Read more here.
- Jordan threatens conflict over annexation: Jordan's King Abdullah has threatened 'massive conflict' with Israel if plans to apply sovereignty to parts of the West Bank are implemented. Read more here. Also this week, whilst in Israel for talks, the US Secretary of State said that Israel has the ‘right’ and the ‘obligation’ to proceed with the annexation. Read more here.
- Iranian navy kills 19 of its own soldiers by accident: A friendly fire incident during a training exercise in the Gulf of Oman last weekend killed 19 and injured a further 15. Read more here.
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 recommend the following news services for regular updates from a Christian perspective:
- Christian Concern (UK)
- Christian Institute (UK)
- JNN News (Barry and Batya Segal, Israel)
- Worthy News (Israel)
- Family Watch International
- Barnabas Fund
- Kehila News (Israel)
For regular news briefings about Israel, the Jewish News Syndicate is also recommended.
