In the midst of a governance crisis that threatens to divide the Philippines, several churches say they are marking the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity by setting aside doctrinal differences, praying and working for change.

“Even amidst new political trouble that threatens to polarize again our country, we Christians can take the lead in getting together in prayer,” the Rev. Felipe Ehican of the Lutheran Church of the Philippines told ENInews on 18 January.

The week of prayer usually takes place between 18 and 25 January. Resources such as texts for ecumenical servicees are sponsored jointly by the Geneva-based World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Roman Catholic Church’s Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity.

Ehican was referring to the current Senate impeachment proceedings of Supreme Court Justice Renato Corona, which began 16 January, also the start in the Philippines of the celebration of the week of prayer.

The Rev. Joie Galinato of the United Methodist Church likewise stressed the importance of strengthening the unity of the Christian population to prevent the country’s division as a result of the impeachment trial of Corona.

“The impeachment trial is now dividing the country between the pro-Corona and the anti-Corona,” Galinato told ENInews. “But we can help a lot in bridging divisions by our coming together in prayer as Christians from various denominations, united in our common desire for righteous and good governance.”

Roman Catholic lay leader Dr. Raylita Calimlim also acknowledged and prayed for Bukal, an ecumenical pastoral group. She said Bukal volunteers from Baguio City travelled to southern Philippines to counsel and rehabilitate traumatized survivors of a deadly storm there last December. “Bukal has been doing a great job in helping bring change,” she said.

The week of prayer in this northern Philippine city was organized by the Baguio-Benguet Ecumenical Group, an interdenominational organization, which has been celebrating the Vatican and WCC-led weekly activity since 1999.

As a spin-off of the week of prayer in past years, the ecumenical group has been actively involved in social and political advocacies such as honest, peaceful and clean elections, anti-gambling drives, and good governance. “We seek to sustain these as we continue to pray and work together,” said Galinato.

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Christian young people are bringing their passion for change to a U.N. climate conference in Durban, South Africa, eager to learn how to spread the message that God’s creation needs better care.

About 28 youths from church and faith-based organizations on six continents are taking “Youth For Eco-Justice” training during the 17th Conference of Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP 17, which runs from 28 November to 9 December.

Organized by Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and World Council of Churches (WCC), the courses include Bible study, workshops, training sessions on communication, campaign management and development of resources, and activities for promoting eco-justice.

“The idea is to bring young people together and impact communities at home. Young people have been demanding in our assemblies that they have to take action and this is the response,” said Roger Schmidt, LWF Secretary for Youth.

Schmidt said that creative young people, are capable of breaking the deadlock in the world in terms of climate change with a new understanding of the connection of justice and ecology.

Njideka Onwunyi, 26, a participant from Nigeria, said climate change is a major concern to Christian youths and the training has come at a time when young people are striving to influence changes in world systems.

“As Christian youths we are increasingly concerned about the ecological crisis and the way humans are treating God’s earth. Planet Earth is in peril and creation is suffering; this calls for a quick action to solve the situation,” said Onwunyi.

Onwunyi said global warming and conflicts over water resources are related to unsustainable and inequitable patterns of production and consumption, hence the need for advocating eco-justice.

“Our communities, especially in Africa and other regions, are really fighting and competing for water, food and land and we need to empower them,” said Onwunyi.

Countries represented by the participants include: the United States, Venezuela, the United Kingdom, Sweden, South Korea, South Africa, Palestinian Territories, Nigeria, Myanmar, Malawi, Kenya, Indonesia, India, Hungary, Georgia, Canada, Brazil, Belarus, Australia and Argentina.

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While nearly 7-in-10 (69%) Americans believe there is solid evidence that the average temperature on earth has been getting warmer over the past few decades, and nearly 6-in-10 (57%) Americans believe humans and other living things evolved over time, a new survey finds that approximately half of Americans who identify with the Tea Party reject both (50% reject global warming and 51% reject evolution).

The new PRRI/RNS Religion News Survey was conducted by Public Religion Research Institute, in partnership with the Religion News Service, amid back and forth among Republican presidential candidates on religion and science, especially the issues of climate change and evolution.

The survey finds that attitudes on climate change and evolution present strategic challenges for GOP presidential candidates: Americans who identify as Republican, along with key groups in the Republican base such as white evangelical Protestants and members of the Tea Party, hold views that differ significantly from the general population and from political independents.

“While most Americans say the issues of evolution and climate change do not strongly influence their support of candidates, these issues are symbolically important for two groups that play an outsize role in Republican primary politics: white evangelical Protestants and members of the Tea Party,” said Dr. Robert P. Jones, CEO of Public Religion Research Institute. “The challenge for Republican candidates is to talk about these issues now in a way that will not hurt them later in the general election.”

The survey also uncovers new complexity on the question of evolution. Among those affirming a belief in evolution, a majority (53%) say evolution is due to natural processes, compared to 38% who say a supreme being guided the process. Among those affirming creationism, fully half (50%) say humans and other living thing were created within the last 10,000 years, compared to 39% who disagree. There are large partisan differences on this question.

“Americans who identify with the Tea Party and white evangelical Protestants strongly reject evolution,” said Daniel Cox, PRRI Research Director. “In fact, roughly one-third of these groups believe humans and other living things were created within the last 10,000 years.”

Among the Findings:

A majority (57%) of Americans believe that humans and other living things have evolved over time, compared to 38% who say that humans and other living things have existed in their present form since creation.

• More than 6-in-10 political independents (61%) and Democrats (64%) affirm a belief in evolution, compared to 45% of Republicans and 43% of Americans who identify with the Tea Party.
• Nearly two-thirds (66%) of white mainline Protestants, 61% of Catholics, and 77% of the unaffiliated believe humans and other living things evolved over time, compared to only about one-third (32%) of white evangelicals. African American Protestants are evenly divided on the question, with 47% affirming a belief in evolution and 46% affirming a belief in creationism.

Nearly 7-in-10 (69%) Americans say that there is solid evidence that the average temperature on earth has been getting warmer over the past few decades, compared to only 26% who disagree.

• There are large, asymmetrical political divisions over belief about climate change. Eighty-one percent of Democrats and 7-in-10 independents believe the earth is getting warmer, compared to less than half (49%) of Republicans and only about 4-in-10 (41%) Americans who identify as members of the Tea Party.
• Strong majorities of every religious group say that the average temperature on earth has been getting warmer, including 7-in-10 Catholics and the unaffiliated, 63% of white mainline Protestants, and 57% of white evangelicals.

A majority (53%) of Americans say that if a candidate does not believe in evolution, it would have no effect on their likelihood of voting for the candidate. Among those who say it matters, more than twice as many say they would be less likely (32%) than say they would be more likely (13%) to vote for the candidate.

• White evangelical Protestants are the only demographic group among whom the balance is the other way: nearly one-third (32%) say they would be more likely to vote for a candidate who did not believe in evolution, compared to 24% who say they would be less likely. Only 40% say a candidate’s belief in evolution would make no difference to their vote.

A majority (54%) of Americans also say that if a candidate said they did not believe climate change is caused by human activity, if would have no effect on their likelihood of voting for the candidate. Among those who say it matters, four times as many say that they would be less likely (36%) than say they would be more likely (9%) to support a candidate who does not believe in human-caused climate change.

• Members of the Tea Party are much more likely than any other group to say that they would be more likely (33%) than less likely (24%) to support a candidate who does not believe in climate change. Only 16% of Republicans, 9% of independents, and 5% of Democrats say they would be more likely. Half of Democrats say it would make them less likely.

A slim majority (51%) of Americans believe that scientists generally agree that humans evolved over time. About one-quarter (26%) say they are divided, and 15% say scientists generally disagree that humans evolve over time.

Only 4-in-10 Americans believe that scientists generally agree that the earth is getting warmer because of human activity. Nearly as many (37%) say the scientific community is divided, and 15% believe scientists generally disagree that humans are causing temperatures on earth to rise.

Nearly 6-in-10 (57%) of Americans agree that God gave humans beings the task of living responsibly with animals, plants and the resources of the planet, compared to 36% who say that God gave human beings the right to use animals, plants and all the resources of the plant for human benefit.

Half of Americans believe dealing with climate change now will create new jobs and help avoid more serious economic problems in the future, compared to 43% who believe that given current economic problems we cannot afford to deal with climate change.

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The CEO of Starbucks, Howard Schultz, has ruffled some feathers because he backed out of a speaking engagement, in the last minute, at an event sponsored by a leading megachurch.

Schultz was scheduled to speak last Friday at the two-day Global Leadership Summit, an annual event that is organized by Willow Creek Community Church in Barrington, Ill.

The evangelical, nondenominational megachurch is the third largest church in the U.S., with a membership of 24,000 worshippers. It is considered by many pastors nationwide to be one of the most influential churches in the country.

Schultz backed off from the speaking engagement one week after Change.org said in a post that his presence at the event would be unacceptable. The organization also posted an online petition, which garnered 799 signatures, for him to snub the event.

The organization also slammed Willow Creek, saying that it is homophobic and referring to links that it formerly had with Exodus International, a Christian organization that councils lesbians and gays, and teaches them strategies by which they can change their ways. The megachurch has not had any working relationship with Exodus since 2009.

Whether or not Schultz made the right decision has yet to be seen. Up to 150,000 viewers normally tune in to watch The Global Leadership Summit annually via satellite, far exceeding the 799 signatories of the online petition.

This year, 1,100 people paid to attend the Chicago summit. Past speakers have included former President Bill Clinton, rock singer Bono and GE’s Jack Welch.

Touchy about Homophobia

Starbucks has been touchy about homophobia since 2008, when a lawsuit was filed against the coffee shop brand by two of its former employees, who claimed that they were fired from their jobs because they were gay.

Last June, Starbucks was again assailed after a blogger from Long Island wrote a post about a homophobic incident she witnessed in her local Starbucks by some of its employees.

In her Lil Family Blog the writer, Alison, described the incident as “one of the most brazen and unapologetic displays of homophobia I have ever witnessed in my entire life.”

The post was picked up by newspapers, including the Seattle Post Intelligencer and the New York Daily News. Many others in the blogosphere also joined in the discussion about the blog post.

In a statement, Starbucks flatly denied that it is homophobic and said that it’s company policy does not tolerate any type of discrimination by its employees.

Christian goodwill

Bill Hybels, pastor of Willow Creek, denied accusations by Change.org that the church is homophobic. He told the AP, “To suggest that we check sexual orientation or any other kind of issue at our doors is simply not true. Just ask the hundreds of people with same-sex attraction who attend our church every week.”

At the summit, Hybels suggested to participants that they show love for Starbucks, saying affably, “Buy a cup of coffee in the next couple of days and show some Christian goodwill.”

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A U.S. evangelist addressed recently some 16,000 Christians in a stadium in Vietnam–the first American preacher to do so openly since 1975–in an event that was almost cancelled by Vietnamese government authorities.

Luis Palau, keynote speaker at the celebration of the Centennial of Protestantism in Vietnam, told BosNewsLife that thousands received Jesus Christ into their lives, even as Vietnamese authorities almost prevented the event from happening.

Although the event had been planned well in advance and permission was granted by the government, three hours before it was to begin, the venue had to be moved to a location site 45 minutes away by car, BosNewsLife said.

The Argentine-born U.S. citizen told BosNewsLife that the original plan was to hold the celebration at an open air field, but the government moved it to the Thanh Long Stadium in Ho Chi Minh City.

This called for moving equipment from the original site to the new venue, and then reassembling it. Thousands also had to be informed about the change of venue  and hundreds of cars, motorcycles and buses had to be redirected within three hours, BosNewsLife
said.

Messages were hurriedly transmitted through Twitter, the internet, Facebook, phone texts and by word of mouth. Technicians showed up to move equipment, did volunteers by the hundreds to redirect people, Compass Direct News said.

In light of the lack of government support and obstructions, the fact that the event pushed through at all was considered to be “an absolute miracle,” according to Compass Direct News.

Palau, 76, said in a video, “The tensions went on quite a bit. At the last minute they had a change of venue…about 45 minutes drive away from the one [larger open field] area where [the Christians] hoped to have it to the [stadium] area where we had it,” BosNewsLife reported.

Pray for Vietnam

The event started two hours late at 9 pm, with huge banners waving that said, “God loves Vietnam,” and “Pray for Vietnam.” After opening prayers son Andrew Palau testified on his deliverance by God from drug abuse and alcoholism, Compass Direct News said.

Luis Palau spoke at about 11 p.m. As music played, provided by Don Moen, some 2,000 committed their lives to Jesus. The succeeding night, with some 16,000 in attendance, up to 3,500 prayed to receive Jesus, BosNewsLife said.

In a statement from the Luis Palau Evangelistic Association, the gatherings were emblematic of growing understanding between the country’s communist administration and churches in the country, according to BosNewsLife.

Montagnard-Degar Christians

Still, much needs to be done, especially for Vietnam’s Montagnard-Degar Christians in the Central Highlands, where hundreds of church leaders and Christian followers are believed to be detained for their faith, BosNewsLife said.

While the constitution of Vietnam permits freedom of faith, in actuality all churches must register, and those that do experience strong government control, BosNewsLife said.

Palau, who is slated to visit Hanoi and has other appearances scheduled in the Vietnam on Apr. 15-16, reaches tens of millions daily through 3,000 radio networks in some 48 countries. He has authored some 50 books, BosNewsLife said.

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Apple rejected recently a revised iPhone/iPad “app” of the Manhattan Declaration, a document that upholds Christian beliefs on life, marriage and religious freedom, giving rise to fears of a growing intolerance of orthodox Christianity.

The Declaration’s website said Apple’s move is “appalling,” more so considering that 500,000 people, including Catholic bishops, Orthodox Church leaders and the heads of many major Protestant denominations have already signed it.

Christian leaders who signed the Declaration, which opposes, among others, embryonic stem cell research, abortion and same-sex marriage, include James Dobson, Charles Colson, Albert Mohler Jr., Richard Land and Timothy Dolan, Baptist Press said.

Apple said the content “violates our developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people,” according to Baptist Press.

In its website the Manhattan Declaration wrote, “Apple is telling us that the apps’ content is considered ‘likely to expose a group to harm,’ and ‘to be objectionable and potentially harmful to others.’”

Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, said Apple has curtailed civil discourse by removing the app, adding, “It is sadly ironic that a document written out of a growing unease about very real efforts in the culture ‘to marginalize the Christian voice in the public square, to redefine marriage, and to move away from the biblical view of the sanctity of life’ has itself been marginalized by Apple,” Baptist Press reported.

No objectionable content

Apple originally gave the Manhattan Document a 4+ rating, meaning “no objectionable content.” However, it pulled out the app after some 7,700 people from Change.org emailed Apple objecting to its content.

Apple removed the app, despite half a million signatories who supported the app; and rejected the revised version despite 47,000 people who signed online seeking its reinstatement, Baptist Press said.

Change.org called for “supporters of equal rights and the right of women to control their own bodies,” to stand together against the app. In its website, Change.org described the Declaration as “a cattle call for right-wing activists who think the most important issue facing the world is the ‘threat’ of same-sex couples getting married and starting families.”

Land, one of the original editors and signers of the Manhattan Document, wrote in his Baptist Press column, “The declaration does not promote hate or homophobia. Instead, the declaration proclaims that all human beings are loved by God and are worthy of respect.”

Macnn reported that “The actual declaration calls for signatories to …engage in civil disobedience where existing law is in conflict with Christian dogma.” It also noted that “[The document] is completely silent on the topics of war and capital punishment.”

However a review of the actual document at http://www.manhattandeclaration.org/the-declaration/read.aspx shows that the writers of the declaration call on the government and society to “protect and serve every member of our society, including the most marginalized, voiceless, and vulnerable among us.” It also mentions innocent victims of war, children orphaned by war; and decries genocide and “ethnic cleansing.”

Macnn also reported that the document says nothing about divorce and remarriage. However, the document says “the institution of marriage [is] already buffeted by promiscuity, infidelity and divorce, [and] is in jeopardy of being redefined to accommodate fashionable ideologies.”

Manhattan Declaration said on its website that they will appeal to Apple’s App Review Board to submit the matter for arbitration.

Colson wrote in his San Francisco Chronicle column, “If the Manhattan Declaration’s positions alone are enough to have its app removed, then I have to wonder whether Apple is considering removing other Bible-based — or even Jewish or Islamic — apps from its store.

“Apple has every right to decide what to offer in its app store and what not to offer. But it is chilling that such a culture-shaping company would so quickly take sides in a debate,” Baptist Press reported._objectionable

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Singer-songwriter and record producer Montell Jordan, formerly of Def Jam Records, will hang up his music career next year so that he can become a worship leader in Norcross, Ga.

The star, who is best known for the 1995 mega-hit song, This is How We Do It, is set to earn his license as a minister and to serve at Victory World Church in Norcross, GA, according to AllAccess.

The change is expected to take place early next year, AtlantaGeorgia reported. Other hit songs of Jordan’s include Somethin’ 4 Da Honeyz, Let’s Ride, Talk Show, Get it on Tonite and Friends, Liars and Haters. His last album was released in 2008.

According to AtlantaGeorgia, Jordan is at peace with his choice saying, “It’s just been an amazing career. And, it has been great. But it’s [career change] a calling that’s probably been with me all my life since I was a child. And I’ve known it. A lot of people in the business know it and have the same calling but that leap of faith is difficult.”

Jordan announced his plans on the day before Thanksgiving through Twitter. He wrote, “I often have spoken of my Christian belief and faith throughout my R&B career, yet this is my official retirement letter,” according to the Toronto Sun.

Jordan told AtlantaGeorgia, “The teaching at that church is very strong and it’s very real. It’s a practical, multi-cultural church, multi-generational. You’re there worshipping with different people of different nationalities, different ages and that’s my idea of what heaven really looks like.”

Jordan also told AtlantaGeorgia that he was okay with using his fame and charisma as a singer to lead more people to God, adding, “I’ve travelled all over the world and I know there are a lot of people out there who are hungry for God and I think I have an opportunity not just to reach people who know God, but also people who don’t know God.”

Jordan said that he will perform a goodbye concert on New Year’s Eve, his last secular concert before taking up the role as worship leader with Victory, the Toronto Sun reported.

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The gypsy people are being viewed as fertile ground for ministry, with potential to make great strides in spreading Christianity in Europe.

Gypsies are largely populated in Romania and Bulgaria. However in their own countries they face harsh discrimination that has lasted through centuries, causing many of them to migrate to other countries in Europe, Christianity Today said.

But in other European countries things are no better. Recently, France evicted thousands of gypsies and sent them back to imminent poverty in their own land. In Romania, many gypsies have no birth certificates and no marriage licenses, CBN News said.

Beni Lup, an attorney and regional director of Walk Thru the Bible Ministries told Christianity Today that the emerging vastness of Christian witness among the gypsy population, however, can be a significant source of change in a continent that had long rejected them.

The fact that they are mobile also poses possibilities for Christian gypsies to evangelize wherever they are. Lup said, “I think the Romani witness that is emerging—as it gets written down [and] people understand what is going on—[will be seen as] a moment in world religion,” Christianity Today reported.

Europeans have long viewed gypsies as thieves and deceivers, Lup said. Many gypsies as they turn to Jesus become hopeful that their testimony will affect others, even as their own lives change, according to Christianity Today.

No upward mobility in Romania

Kevin Hoy, founder of The Smile Foundation, has worked in Romania for a decade. He said the ethnic group has no chance of upward mobility even after living in their country for up to 20 years, CBN News reported.

Some 500 gypsies for example live in the village of Salard, one of Romania’s poorest neighborhoods where homes are made of mud bricks that crumble easily. Hoy attributes their situation to prejudice just as much as lack of education opportunities, CBN News said.

And yet such seeming hopelessness has led many gypsies to turn to Jesus. In 2009 the “Toflea miracle” occurred, where 500 gypsies—the largest baptism in Romanian history—took place, CBN News said.

The following year hundreds more from the village turned to Christ, CBN News said.

Hoy’s first project in Romania was in Tileagd village where he helped to set up a school, a neighborhood store and a church where many gypsies received Jesus, CBN News said.

Preaching without words

Hoy says in Romania the gospel is best shared without talking. He told CBN News, “In an educated society preaching the word is fundamental. But many of the people we are dealing with here are uneducated. We could talk to them all day long and they would not be able to grasp what we are trying to say. Practical evidence of God’s love is what the people need.”

Gypsies are usually Orthodox or Catholic, depending on which country they are born in. However, they don’t practice their faith. Pentecostals and evangelicals are making great inroads as a result, Christianity Today said.

Thomas Acton of the University of Greenwich in the U.K. specializes in Romani studies. He told Christianity Today that gypsies have “nativized” the gospel. “It’s not a foreign ideology; it’s the gospel that has taken on Romani colors. When you hear [a] Romani translation of the Bible, it sounds like it was written yesterday.”

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It’s not the YMCA any more, it’s just the Y.

And from Texas to Tennessee, people have something to say about it.

New YMCA logo/ YMCA of the USA

Bryan Fischer of the American Family Association said to the Star-Telegram, “The YMCA was founded because the founder, George Williams, realized boys need Christ to become grown men. By removing Christ or Christianity from their title, they’re just taking another step away from their original mission.”

Others expressed a similar concern that the name change would imply a lessening of the Christian aspect of the organization.

James Reed, a 24-year member from Tennessee said, “Is this a way of becoming more politically correct?” Volunteer TV reported.

Molly Clark, a member of five years said, “Why would they do that? Because this organization was founded on Christianity. Its goal is to minister. The fact that they may take that name out makes me think maybe it’s becoming more secular,” Volunteer TV reported.

Since many people know the YMCA as the Y, a volunteer coach at a Texas Y is indifferent about the new name. More important to him is the foundation, the mission statement, and how the Y carries out its task to communicate with the public, Star-Telegram said.

Despite the differences of opinion about the name change, the YMCA said its name change was one way of revitalizing its image and promoting understanding of the operation’s main mission: improving the mind, spirits and bodies of young people.

To reflect the name change, the organization’s logo has morphed as well. The new logo is svelter, more modern and colorful, and it also, according to the YMCA Group, is more vibrant and expresses the diversity of the people to whom the organization caters.

New logo notwithstanding, the organization will still be legally called the YMCA and will form a part of The Heritage YMCA Group title, the Naperville Sun said.

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Some 100 faith leaders across Virginia urged recently senators Jim Webb and Mark R. Warner to endorse far-reaching climate change legislation as a moral imperative.

The effort, spearheaded by Virginia Interfaith Power & Light, gathered the signatures of the faith leaders from five religious traditions—Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Unitarian Universalism and seven denominations of Christianity, Episcopal Life said.

The Virginia Interfaith Power & Light, a nonprofit organization, promotes energy conservation due to climate change; and seeks to help faith groups see their role as stewards of creation, according to their website.

The VIPL letter said, “As religious leaders from across the Commonwealth, we are writing to express our alarm at the state of environmental stewardship here in Virginia, and nationwide.

For us as people of faith, this is an issue of basic fairness and justice; not only because we are called to care for creation, but because of who will be harmed most by inaction: the poor and voiceless,” Episcopal Life reported.

The letter said that landfills and toxic plants are generally placed in low-income communities, causing health problems and perpetuating the cycle of poverty, the Richmond Times-Dispatch said.

The letter sought legislation in the Senate that would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 25 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 and by 80 percent by 2050, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

It also said, “In affirming the moral need for climate legislation, we are mindful that this may raise the cost of basic goods, so we also ask that any such legislation include social safety-net provisions for families that are already struggling,” the Richmond Times-Dispatch said.

However, the Senate may not take up the legislation this year, the Richmond Times-Dispatch said.

Webb is traveling in Asia this week, while Warner is traveling in South America. The letter was presented to their staffs. However, a spokesman said Warner “is fully on board for energy independence and climate-change legislation,” the Richmond Times-Dispatch said.

Will Jenkins, a spokesman for Webb, said: “Senator Webb appreciates the input of these leaders on this important issue. The United States should pursue energy policies that include conservation, renewable and efficient energy technologies, and the expansion of our domestic energy resources in a safe and secure manner,” the Richmond Times-Dispatch said.

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