Asia / Africa: devastating floods and landslides
The annual monsoons in India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sierra Leone have caused hundreds of deaths, while thousands have fled flash floods and mudslides. In Nepal’s southern plains, the home to much of its agriculture, huge swathes of land and 48,000 homes have been totally submerged by floods. Pray for those stranded on higher ground taking shelter in sheds, unable to move until the water recedes. Pray for the Bangladesh troops shoring up embankments, in places where such severe flooding has not been seen for thirty years. Authorities suggest the flooding is man-made, caused by the dams built on the India-Nepal border. Pray also for those grieving for the many hundreds who were killed by mudslides and floods in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown. Many were buried alive as they slept. Pray for governments and NGOs as they work to support those who have lost not only homes but paddy fields, vegetable plantations, and fish farms. See: http://edition.cnn.com/2017/08/17/africa/sierra-leone-mudslide/index.html
Nigeria: unreasonable demands, further violence
In 1966 an Igbo leader, in south-east Nigeria, said that only one thing would prevent a civil war - ‘that Nigeria be split, with all southerners in the north repatriated to the south and northerners in the south repatriated to the north’. This demand was followed by the Biafra civil war. In June 2017, irked by renewed secessionist calls from the same Igbo ethnic group, a coalition of northern groups demanded that ‘all Igbo currently residing in northern Nigeria relocate within three months, and all northerners residing in the east are advised likewise’. Pray for peace. Meanwhile on 6 August, masked gunmen stormed into the early morning service at a church in the southeast and opened fire, killing 35 Christians. On Tuesday a woman suicide bomber blew herself up and killed 27 others at a market in the northeast. See http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/08/dead-nigeria-church-shooting-170806153758051.html and https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nigeria-security-idUSKCN1AV25K
Global: poverty and slavery
When locusts descended on the American Midwest in 1875, they didn’t just devour crops and forests. They destroyed years of hard-earned progress from settlers struggling to build a better life. In the same way, everyday violence is destroying the efforts of millions trying to rise out of poverty today and, because they are unsafe, the poor cannot benefit from the world’s best efforts to help them thrive. There is an undercover plague that the world is ignoring or has failed to see. The violence crisis is silently undermining the fight against poverty. For the poor, violence is as much a part of life as hunger, illness or unemployment - but it is less visible. Without effective justice systems to protect them from violence (like rape, trafficking and police brutality), the world’s poor live in a state of constant fear.
North Korea: Kim to Trump, ‘It's your move’
Ecclesiastes 9:17,18 says, ‘The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouts of a ruler of fools. Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.’ Tensions around Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un are dangerous. No one is backing down in their war of words. Yesterday Trump implied in a tweet that he had North Korea to back down over its threat to Guam. It is a dangerous misperception that could cause the crisis to escalate. Trump could miss the best chance he will have to halt the missile tests that threaten the American homeland. Anxious about annual US-South Korea military exercises that begin next week, Pyongyang has presented the US with clear choices: reduce tensions or face a destabilising missile strike to the waters around Guam. Kim Jong-un is waiting to see what the ‘foolish Yankees’ do next. Pray for God's protection over Korea, Japan, Guam, and the USA.
Middle East: feeding the energy of youth
Tony Fayez is a freelance singer-songwriter who performs for SAT-7, a media outlet broadcasting in Arabic, Turkish and Farsi. He writes lyrics and composes hip-hop worship songs, to reach out to young people and help young Christians worship in a language they feel belongs to them. ‘The fast rhythm of rap reflects the passion, energy and speed of teenagers’, he says. ‘That’s the music they listen to when they are together. It’s a good way to reach them, using Christian lyrics that they can remember and sing along to.’ Traditional churches and some parents say the language degrades Christian values and encourages poor vocabulary. Tony believes in giving youth freedom to express their faith in ways that are meaningful to them. ‘They can listen to whatever music they choose so instead of trying to fit them into a rigid form, we can reach out to them and speak their language.’
Ireland post-Brexit border proposals
The UK Government has said it does not want any border posts between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland after Brexit. Northern Ireland secretary James Brokenshire insists the proposals are realistic because of the trade involved for all sides. The UK stresses there should be no physical infrastructure, such as customs posts, at the border, which has almost 300 crossing points. Instead, the Government is arguing for a wide-ranging exemption under which small- and medium-sized businesses will not have to comply with any new customs tariffs. If the proposals are accepted, customs officials envisage using a mix of technology and physical checks to monitor the compliance of bigger businesses engaged in international trade. Critics are concerned that an open border might prove to be a ‘back door’ for EU citizens who wish to enter the UK without proper checks.
Spain: Terror Attacks
A mass murder in Barcelona on 17th August by a van driving into a crowd outside a metro station and continuing along Las Ramblas for 500 metres killed thirteen and injuring one hundred. The driver fled on foot. Later, five suspected terrorists were shot dead at Cambrils. The terrorism began on the 16th with an explosion at Alcanar, killing one and wounding sixteen when they were attempting to ‘prepare an explosive device’. The Las Ramblas attack suspect, Driss Oukabir, was arrested after turning himself in. Josep Lluis Trapero, was arrested in Alcanar. Islamic State claimed responsibility. God desires all men to live in peace, pray for peace in the hearts of all affected by these attacks. May God strategically position police and security services across Spain, so that they will be at the right place at the right time to catch all the perpetrators and prevent further attacks.
Tackling the causes of knife crime
A Christian youth charity has warned that ‘knife crime will continue to go up and down if we don't tackle the causes of why it happens in the first place’. Despite a new London-wide strategy intended to reduce knife crime, more needs to be done to prevent young people from carrying knives. The Metropolitan Police Commissioner said they are looking again at stop and search and sentencing, but that is looking at symptoms and trying to get knives off the street. It is not looking at why young people are carrying knives in the first place. A lot of it is down to fear and believing that 'since everyone else is carrying a knife, I should carry one just in case'. The Centre for Social Justice said that crime-linked poverty, family break-down, educational failure, and the idea of worklessness are all reasons why people are growing up in situations where carrying a knife seems like a good option.
People to pick their own gender?
The Government is planning to reform gender identity rules to make it easier for people to choose their own gender in law. Under plans being considered by ministers, adults will be able to change their birth certificates at will without a doctor’s diagnosis, while non-binary gender people will be able to record their gender as ‘X’. Changes to the law will be consulted on and will ultimately be included in a planned Gender Recognition Bill, set to be published in the autumn. Under current laws, established in 2004, a person who wishes to transition must apply for a Gender Recognition Certificate. This requires a doctor's diagnosis of gender dysphoria and the person must spend two years of living as a member of the opposite gender.
Religious freedom
‘Preach the Word, but if you want to preach the whole gospel of God, the state wants to shut you up. Rev Barry Trayhorn, a Pentecostal minister, worked in HMP Littlehey, a prison for male sex offenders. Barry provided music, ministry and sermons at the chapel service, which prisoners could choose to attend or not. During a service, he quoted from memory 1 Corinthians 6: 9-11 and then continued, ‘You may want to complain about this, but this is the Word of God. God loves you and wants to forgive you.’ A single complaint was put in by one of the ‘cross-dressed’ prisoners to the equality and diversity officer of the prison, saying that his human rights had been violated by the preaching. Barry lost his job, went to the Employment Tribunal and then an appeal tribunal, but lost his case. The judge questioned whether 1 Corinthians 6 should be preached in a prison chapel service.