The head of Poland’s largest child protection agency has urged the Roman Catholic church to respond to growing complaints of sexual abuse by its priests.

“It’s not the scale of this phenomenon which is worrying, but the church’s attitude. So far, the Bishops Conference has said nothing,” said Jakub Spiewak, director of the independent Warsaw-based Kidprotect Foundation, which runs a hotline for abuse victims and seven separate child protection programs.

“The Catholic church occupies a special position here, but could begin to lose it if it fails to address problems like this,” said Spiewak, speaking in the wake of the publication of a book of interviews with Polish Bishop’s Conference president Archbishop Jozef Michalik, who says Polish church leaders are doing everything possible to counter “inappropriate behavior” among Catholic priests.

Kidprotect has launched a campaign, “Silence is Not Golden,” to encourage victims to come forward. However, Spiewak said police and civic officials were sometimes afraid to challenge priests suspected of abuse in small towns and villages, where they were “often the most powerful people.”

Leading Roman Catholics, including Poland’s Children’s Rights Spokesmen, have urged clear church procedures for handling abuse claims since 2002, when the archbishop of Poznan, Juliusz Paetz, resigned after media reports he had molested local seminarians.

A movement of priest’s victims, recently formed with U.S. backing, says several dozen Polish priests convicted for molestation have received only light suspended jail terms, while most are still serving in parishes, often working with children.

Many cases were not reported by the Polish church’s Catholic information agency, KAI, which has covered abuse scandals in other countries extensively.

Sexual abuse claims against priests have severely affected the Roman Catholic church in several countries over the past two years, including Ireland, Germany, Austria, and the United States.

In May, the Vatican instructed all Bishop’s Conferences to have abuse guidelines in place by May 2012, and to introduce child protection programs, exchange information about clergy transferring between dioceses and ensure “spiritual and psychological assistance” for victims.

However, in a recent special issue, a Catholic monthly called “The Link” said the Polish church lacked psychological checks for its clergy and “transparent norms” for vetting employees, and had no “information policy” or “norms of conduct” for handling abuse accusations. It also cited a “lack of co-operation between church and state” on abuse issues.
Spiewak says the Catholic journal’s warnings have been ignored, adding that most bishops were showing “extraordinary laxity.”

“There’s growing frustration here; any criticism of a priest, even by loyal Catholics, is treated as a frontal attack on the church and faith,” Spiewak said.

“If the church doesn’t uphold the law and stop sheltering its priests from canonical and criminal responsibility, it will face the same crisis as the church in other countries. But its leaders seem to think they can simply avoid the issue.”

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Three countries, namely China, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam slammed recently a U.S. government religious freedom report which included two of them, China and Saudi Arabia, among eight Countries Of Particular Concern regarding religious freedom.

Vietnam was not included among the eight cited in the U.S. State Department’s annual International Religious Freedom Report, but was nonetheless mentioned for its treatment of Catholics in detention, including an ailing Catholic priest.

Religious groups backed by China’s government said the report was simply an attempt to smear the country’s image, and denied all of the report’s findings.

“The U.S. report … attempted to smear the image ofChina. The Chinese government has…protected the legal rights and interests of religious people,” a statement from five government-controlled religious associations said, according to the AFP.

“We feel greatly disturbed as the US has tried to interfere in China’s domestic affairs by targeting religion and create chaos among religious people in a bid to harm social harmony,” the AFP reported.

‘World police’

Legal activists and religious scholars in Saudi Arabia also censured the report, and said the US should stop acting as ‘world police’ by meddling in other countries’ internal affairs.

Dr. Muflah Al Qah’tani, chairman, National Society for Human Rights, KSA told Gulf News, “There is a need for those who prepare the report to be objective because there is much focus on individual cases, which are generalized in case of the country. The report ignores reference to any positive or reformatory steps taking place in the KSA.”

Biased, erroneous

Vietnam also rejected the report, and Foreign Ministry spokesman Luong Thanh Nghi told the government-controlled newspaper, Nhan Dan, that the report had “biased assessments” and “erroneous” information, according to World Community.

Nghi claimed that Vietnam’s constitution protects religious freedom and claimed that the nation’s practice of these rights has gained international recognition.

Especially troubling records

The U.S. State Department International Religious Freedom report covers the second half of 2010, and said that China and Saudi Arabia have especially troubling religious freedom violation records, while Vietnam has a “mixed record.”

The report cited methods of active repression in these and other countries, including the use of torture and violence against religious groups, laws on blasphemy and apostasy, restrictions on religious expression and anti-Semitism.

In China, some 500 Protestants were imprisoned in the past year, according to a report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom.

China was also cited for imprisoning dozens of Catholic priests who did not register with the government, and for destroying places where Christians meet—all of which China denies.

Perhaps the highest incidence of persecution of Christians in China which has gained publicity internationally is that of Shouwang Church in Beijing, which has not been allowed to meet since Easter. (See http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2011/06/more-members-of-shouwang-arrested-in-china-on-eighth-week-showdown-16180/).

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has been cited for disallowing the public practice of any faith except Islam. News reports have cited imprisonment of Christians, including two Pentecostal Indian nationals who were jailed in Saudi Arabia for six months on trumped up, faith-related charges. (See http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2011/07/2-christians-released-from-saudi-jail-after-six-months-imprisonment-16808/).

Vietnam

In the case of Vietnam, the freedom report cited issues of religious harassment in provinces and villages, including the treatment of detainees arrested for protesting the closure of the Con Dau Parish Catholic cemetery, and the re-imprisonment of Catholic activist, Father Nguyen Van Ly who is frail after enduring a number of strokes while in detention.

Media reports often cite harassment, repression, and pressure on Christians and other people of different faiths to coerce them to renounce their religious beliefs.

Also mentioned in the report as Countries Of Particular Concern are Myanmar, Eritrea, North Korea, Sudan, Iran and Uzbekistan.

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Archeological digs in Gath have uncovered new findings that reveal information about the life of the Philistines, who are often mentioned in the Bible as the enemies of the Israelites.

Some of the findings include:

•  Several Philistine earthenware vessels up to 3,000 years old, including a painted shard of a jug with a black spiral and reddish frame, a common ancient Grecian design which hints of the Aegean origin of the Philistines.
• Ancient bones showing that aside from a main diet of grass pea lentils, the Philistines also ate dogs and pigs—animals which the Israelites considered unclean, and which are still restricted in the Jewish diet.
• Traces of 9th-century destruction in the city including a dark line across hills which indicate that a protective wall was probably built that surrounded the city. The Book of Kings in the Bible tells of King Hazael who, in 830 B.C., razed the city to the ground.
• The remains of a large structure with two pillars, possibly of a temple, similar to that described in the Biblical Book of Judges which Samson shattered when he broke through his shackles, bringing the temple down. Maeir says the structure might be an accepted design for Philistine temples at that time.
•     * Shards with names akin to Goliath, indicating that the Philistines used this name, and supporting the geopolitical milieu of the period as described in the Bible.

Diggings in Gath have been conducted annually since 1996 under Aren Maeir, co-director of the Bar-Ilan University/Weizmann Institute of Science Joint Program in Archaeological Science.

Some 100 diggers are involved in this year’s summer excavation project. They come from various countries including the U.S.,Canada and South Korea. The project will be ongoing until July 29.

Gath is extremely significant because it has plentiful material which reveals compelling details about the life of the Philistines in the 9th and 10th centuries B.C., Seymour Gitin, director of W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem, told the AP.

“Gath fills a very important gap in our understanding of Philistine history,” because of its “wonderful assemblage of material culture.”

Gath, once a sprawling city in southern Israel, occupies land that today is known as the Gaza Strip.

The Philistines, who reached Gath in 1200 B.C., came from land that today is called Greece. The diggings show that even 500 years after landing in Gath, they still worshiped gods bearing Greek names. At the same time, the Philistines absorbed facets of the local culture of their new-found land.
The most famous Philistine in the Bible is Goliath, mentioned in the book of Samuel as the giant who was felled by David, a young shepherd and who later became king.

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Looking for a Christian college that suits one’s personal needs and parameters is now more easily achieved with the recently-launched, upgraded Christian College Search Website.

The Christian College Search Website is the work of the combined efforts of Christianity Today International and Council for Christian colleges and Universities. It is designed to facilitate one’s search for a Christian educational institution that is the best fit for a student’s individual needs.

The Christian College Search Website has been dramatically redesigned to better embody the vision of CCCU and CTI to address the growing needs of Christian families in the search process of the various Christian colleges available.

A look at the website shows a feature on George Fox University, advice on how to answer questions when applying for Christian aid, and an article on how to handle the ups and downs that are intrinsic to college life.

There is also a Freshman Starter Kit on dealing with issues like homesickness, making new friends, finding your niche and developing good study habits. There is also a resource for scholarships on the website.

The site contains CCCU’s database of some 111 member schools in North America. There is also expanded information about each of the schools, and a feature that allows the searcher to compare schools.

Included too are help guides for parents and teens as they undergo the search process. There is also assistance for parents and students to directly contact the schools to request information.

The new design, which is clean and uncluttered, provides free articles entitled Paying for College, Life at College, and Preparing for College written from a Christian viewpoint.

Harold Smith, president and CEO of CTI said, “We are pleased to partner with the CCCU to advance the cause of Christian education by offering even more relevant school information and features to our users. Prospective college students and their parents will find this site to be a dynamic and useful tool in their search for a Christian college or university.”

CTI is a nonprofit communications ministry. Its publications—print, digital, websites and blogs–spread the gospel. Together, all its material reaches some 2.5 million monthly.

Paul Corts, president of CCCU said, “By partnering with a highly-respected and well-known organization like Christianity Today, the Council is providing families and students considering Christian higher education with a reliable and trustworthy resource to help them find a quality institution that is a good fit for them. We believe students and their families will find this a great resource in identifying Christ-centered institutions that match their wishes as they are seeking the Lord’s leading in choosing a college or university.”

The CCCU is an association for higher Christian education with 184 Christian institutions globally, and 111 member campuses in North America that are fully accredited. There are also 73 affiliate colleges from 25 countries linked to CCCU. The Council seeks to advance the cause of education that is grounded on Jesus Christ.

To visit the Christian College Search website go to ChristianCollegeGuide.net.

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Gov. Rick Perry of Texas led recently a ceremonial signing of a bill that will require women to have a sonogram before having an abortion.

In a room filled with supporters of the bill, Perry said that women will now have access to all the information they will need to make an informed decision whether or not to end their pregnancies, Star Telegram said.

Perry said, “Every life lost to abortion is a tragedy we all must work together to prevent. This important bill will ensure that every Texas woman seeking an abortion has all the facts about the life she is carrying, and understands the devastating impact of such a life-changing decision,” the Star Telegram reported.

Perry had designated the bill as an emergency item during the house session. The law will take effect on Sept. 1, and requires doctors to make available to women who plan to have an abortion the image of the fetus, with the sound of the fetal heartbeat.

Under the law, a woman may choose not to see or hear the sonogram. In such case, the doctor will describe the fetus’ size and condition of organs and limbs, Star Telegram said.

The woman will then have to wait for 24 hours before the abortion is performed. However, if she lives more than 100 miles from the abortion clinic, she will only have to wait for two hours, the Star Telegram reported.

Exemptions will be permitted in case of emergency, if the fetus has abnormalities, or if the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest, Star Telegram said.

During the ceremony Perry told supporters, “I’m very proud to say Texas is a state that respects and defends life,” according to The Houston Chronicle. Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, said, “Standing for life is not a partisan issue. It’s a God issue.”

Legal challenge

Meanwhile a pro-abortion group is preparing its own legal challenge. Bebe Anderson, counsel for the Center for Reproductive Rights in New York, told Star Telegram that her group plans to file a lawsuit in Texas that will challenge the law.

Anderson told Star Telegram, “One of the big problems is the way it forces women to hear or see information when they have chosen not to do that. It gets the government in between the doctor and the patient in a totally inappropriate way.”

Anderson also told the Star Telegram it “treats women as too immature and incompetent to make this decision themselves. It implies women don’t know the information they need.”

Information they deserve

However, Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston disagrees. He told Star Telegram, “Women are finally going to get the information they deserve before making a decision on an issue that can never be reversed. I believe at least one out of five women may decide to keep the baby or put it up for adoption. [This is] the beginning of the end for abortion.”

Kyleen Wright, president of Texans for Life Coalition told Star Telegram, “We are thrilled Texas women considering abortion finally have all the information every other surgical patient takes for granted. The window to the womb is forever open and there is no going back.”

Good news

Patrick told the crowd, “We had a 31-year-old nurse this year that testified that she aborted a child when she was in school, and if she had only seen the sonogram, she would be sitting in there with a 10- or 11-year-old son or daughter,” The Houston Chronicle reported.

Patrick continued, “The good news is – the good news is — through the blood of Jesus Christ he forgives and women who have aborted children need to know that message. I believe this can be the beginning of the end of 75,000 abortions we have every year in Texas,” according to The Houston Chronicle.

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The U.S. Holocaust Museum is joining forces with Ancestry.com to digitalize information about victims of Nazi persecution, whether Jewish or non-Jewish.

Ancestry.com is an online family history site. By working together, people can research the lives of anyone who was a victim or who survived the holocaust, The Washington Post said.

The project has been called WorldMemoryProject.org, and it will open the portals to information culled from millions of World War II documents of murders of Jews and other people for interested researchers, using the specially-designed software that has been specially designed by Ancestry, The Washington Post reported.

In due time, WorldMemoryProject.org will provide the largest online database of information about individual victims of Nazi persecution. This information will, for the first time, be available online for free, according to The Washington Post.

Volunteers are being recruited to sort through the museum’s 170 million documents which, curators say, contain data on some 17 million people whom the Nazis targeted, the AP said.

At present, some 50,000 records can be found on the website Lisa Yavnai, museum director told the AP. However, a lot still must be done. Yavnai said, “You might have a collection of 700 microfilm reels from Poland, but if you’re looking for one person, it’s really hard to find.”

Ancestry has some 60,000 volunteers who helped to index records, including municipal records and genealogies, to make them easy to search through. However, this was before the partnership was forged with the museum, the AP said.

Volunteers will be welcome to assist in indexing Holocaust records, such as German occupation records and community documents that cross through Europe recording displaced persons from Allied forces when the war ended, the AP reported.

Anyone is welcome to help, and the more who do, the faster the indexing can be accomplished in a project that is expected to take a number of years to accomplish, according to the AP.

Today, the youngest survivors of the holocaust are in their 70s and 80s. It is hoped that the information can be ready and indexed appropriately before it would be too late for them, the AP said.

Expected outcome

With the completion of the project much more information will be available and can be assorted much more quickly. The contrast can be seen in the experience of Joseph Finkelstein, 59, who was researching about his grandfather, Jacob Finkelstein.

For years Joseph and his father pored through microfilm and original documents in the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, and even traveled to Poland and Austria. They learned ultimately that Jacob survived the holocaust, but died four days afterwards because he was very weak and sick. The even found his burial spot in Austria, the AP said.

Joseph, of Bala Cynwyd, Pa. was able to put a gravestone on his grandfather’s unmarked grave, and to see his grandfather’s picture for the first time. He told the AP, “What I found is there’s truth to be discovered that has been unknown for almost seven decades. What I discovered is my grandfather — that he existed in that world. It’s part of my past and I’ve recovered part of it.”

But for those who don’t have the years to spare poring through documents or the money to travel to Europe, a resource such as WorldMemoryProject.org can be invaluable.

The archives of 17 million people are not limited to just Jews, but also Roma, Political prisoners, Ukranians, Poles and others. With the WorldMemoryProject.org, millions of others can easily find answers to their questions online, The Herald Sun said.

One volunteer is Alfred Traum, 82, who is retired. For three years he went through the museum’s documents to help index the information list. He told The Washington Post, “There was a ledger card at the top of each list, written in this beautiful handwriting. Then the list of people being sent to their death was typewritten.”

One day he was surprised to find two names on a list, his parents Elias and Geselle Traum. He told The Washington Post, “I had known that they didn’t survive the war for many years. It wasn’t any surprise. But seeing it written in this cold manner was horrific. It had the place where they were born, the date they were born and when they were deported to Minsk.”

Sara Bloomfield, museum director told the Herald Sun, “We hope to remind the public that the Holocaust is not about numbers but about individuals, just like us, and to help families uncover histories they thought were lost.”

Bloomfield said to the Herald Sun, “The Museum’s vast archives contain documentation that may be the only remaining link to an individual life. Preserving these personal histories and making them available online is one of the most powerful ways we can learn from history and honour the victims.”

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A new study shows that the use of the abortificient known as the “morning after” pill has doubled in usage since it became available over the counter.

The study, which was published in the Fertility and Sterility journal, revealed that out of 6,300 sexually active women in the U.S. who were surveyed from 2006 to 2008, (aged 15 to 44) some 10 percent admitted having used the pill, Reuters said.

This is more than double the four percent rate of sexually active women who responded to the survey when it was taken in 2002, when the pill could only be available with the use of a prescription, according to Reuters.

Megan L. Kavanaugh, senior researcher at Guttmacher Institute, New York, told Reuters, “It has more than doubled since the last time the data were collected.” However, she said, “Its use still seems relatively low, given that it’s easy to access.”

Kavanaugh blamed the increase largely on media exposure, noting that in both surveys, it was shown that doctors did not discuss Plan B with patients when they spoke of contraception, Reuters reported.

The pill is now available in pharmacies and online. A popular morning after pill brand in the U.S. is Plan B, which should be taken up to 72 hours after intercourse. Another pill is Next Step. In the UK and Europe Plan B goes by the name ellaOne, Atlanta Drugs said.

Plan B has been on the U.S. market since 1999 as a prescription medication. In 2006 it became available on the market without a prescription and age restriction went down to 17 years in 2009, Reuters reported.

Plan B contains progestin, a hormone that inhibits the release of a woman’s egg from the ovaries, according to Reuters. The medication also inhibits implantation of a fertilized egg by thinning the uterus lining, Care2com said.

Plan B is ideally taken within 12 hours of having intercourse, after which the possibility of pregnancy is boosted by 50 percent, Reuters said.

Lifesitenews takes issue with the fact that Plan B also can act as an abortifacient because it prevents a fertilized ovum from implanting in a woman’s uterus.

Marie Hahnenberg, director of American Life League’s The Pill Kills project said, “Plan B One-Step works like any other abortifacient drug. It can alter the lining (endometrium) of the mother’s uterus so that the newly-formed baby cannot implant and thus dies,” according to Lifesitenews.

Hahnenberg referred to the product’s own information saying, “Plan B One-Step’s product information itself states, ‘it may inhibit implantation.’ Women should not allow themselves to be misled by sales representatives for Plan B and Plan B One-Step, who claim that these products will not terminate an existing pregnancy,” Lifesitenews reported.

Others have noted that making an abortifacient like Plan B available can encourage young people to have sex thinking they are safe with this pill. However, there is still the danger of acquiring a sexually transmitted disease, Atlantic Drugs said.

Wendy Wright, president of Concerned Women for America told LifeSiteNews that making abortifacients available does not serve the best interest of children. “There’s a good reason why even the birth control pill requires a prescription, which is an even lower dose of the drug. . . . It offers an opportunity for the woman to get a check up, for the doctor to talk to her and check her for sexually transmitted diseases and find out if she is being abused.”

Wright also noted that a number of women use Plan B to substitute for normal methods of birth control, despite the fact that there is insufficient information about the consequences of regular use, LifeSiteNews said.

Wright told LifeSiteNews, “They haven’t done the tests. They’re not going to do the tests because they don’t want to find out. That’s why it is incredibly irresponsible for the FDA to continue approving these kinds of drugs.”

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Congress will launch an investigation, to determine whether a recently-discovered hidden application in some models of Apple iPhones, iPads and Androids that track a user’s movements and private information over the past year, is a violation of Americans’ privacy.

Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Privacy, Technology and the Law scheduled a hearing on May 10 called Protecting Mobile Privacy: Your Smartphones, Tablets, Cell Phones and Your Privacy, according to Bank Info Security.

The application was discovered by researchers Alasdair Allan and Pete Warden, who identified the unencrypted file as “consolidated.db.” It records where the owner had been, on what date and at what time, along with other vital personal information, without the knowledge of the owner of the device, GMA News said.

In a blog post, Allen and Warden noted, “What makes this issue worse is that the file is unencrypted and unprotected, and it’s on any machine you’ve synced with your iOS device. It can also be easily accessed on the device itself if it falls into the wrong hands. Anybody with access to this file knows where you’ve been over the last year, since iOS 4 was released,” GMA News reported.

Allan and Warden told the Telegraph, “At first we weren’t sure how much data was there, but after we dug further and visualized the extracted data, it became clear that there was a scary amount of detail on our movements.”  Warden formerly worked at Apple for five years in an unrelated department, and left on good terms, GMA News said.

The two men put up a website to detail these findings. It also enables people with these products to test the tracking system and to visualize it on a web-based mapping system on the website, the Telegraph said.

It is not uncommon for network operators to store records of the movements of users, which can be legally accessed by intelligence agencies and the police, the Telegraph said. However, this information is usually kept behind a firewall and a court order is needed to access the information, GMA News said.

In this case however the data is not password or encryption protected. This makes the information of the user accessible by anybody who gains possession of either the user’s phone and to any computer that it is linked to, the Telegraph reported.

Franken inquired about Apple’s iOS 4 and its function in secretly tracking down the location and information of a user on iPhones and 3G iPads, and any computer that is synchronized with the device, Bank Info Security reported.

In a statement, Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Wash) said, “I’m deeply disturbed by this report. I have been concerned that current law fails to ensure consumers are protected from privacy violations. Consumers are often left to learn of these breaches of privacy from hackers and security experts because companies fail to disclose what data they are collecting and for what purpose,” Fierce Mobile Content reported.

Franken, in his letter to Jobs wrote, “There are numerous ways in which this information could be abused by criminals and bad actors. Furthermore, there is no indication that this file is any different for underage iPhone or iPad users, meaning that the millions of children and teenagers who use iPhone or iPad devices also risk having their location collected and compromised.”

Dr. Ian Brown, senior research fellow of Oxford Internet Institute told The Telegraph, “I certainly think it’s something they should have brought much more to the attention of the user, and that it should only be switched on after an explicit user decision.”

Daniel Hamilton, director of Big Brother Watch told the Telegraph, “iPhone users will rightly be concerned that their movements are being covertly monitored in this way. Apple has a duty to immediately provide their customers with details about how to disable this invasive software.”

Apple has sold some 15 million iPads and over 100 million iPhones. Its iOS apps can be synchronized with any Windows or Mac computer that runs its iTunes software, GMA News reported.

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Concern has been raised over the whereabouts of three Christians in Iran who were arrested and detained after government forces raided a house church last March 17, especially amid news of secret prison executions.

During the March 17 raid, 10 Christians were arrested in a house church in Kermanshah city, some 375 miles from the capital city, Tehran, according to Worthy News.

The arrests were conducted with “extremely excessive force,” Worthy News reported, and Iran’s Intelligence Ministry agents seized bibles, DVDs, Christian art, identity documents and a computer case.

Seven of those arrested were released the following day after they were coerced into signing a document stating that they would never worship in a house church again, Worthy News said.

The three remaining in detention are Meghdad Babakarami, and the married couple Nahid Shirazi and Masoud Delijani. The families of the three have not been given any information as to their whereabouts nor their state of health, Worthy News reported.

Family members tried to get information from judicial authorities, but were simply told that the authorities had no knowledge “regarding these individuals,” according to Worthy News.

Secret executions

Concerns are particularly worrisome after it was learned recently that five people were secretly executed in Iran prisons, BosNewsLife reported.

Those who were secretly executed are Varoujan Petrosian, an Armenian Iranian Christian, and his Jewish Iranian wife Adiva Mirza Soleiman Kalimi. The couple was killed in the country’s infamous Evin Prison, BosNewsLife said.

Three others—a woman and two men—were also killed, but their identities have not been revealed. All executions were confirmed by Iran’s Revolutionary Court branch in Evin prison, according to BosNewsLife.

It is believed that they were killed between March 13 and March 14. Iranian officials did not say what charges they were executed for, nor did they give further details, BosNewsLife said.

The families of the deceased asked for the bodies of their relatives so they could bury them. However, the bodies were not returned, and the family members were threatened with arrest by Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence agents, according to BosNewsLife.

Christians believe Iran has stepped up pressure on house churches to curb the spread of Christianity among Muslims, Worthy News said.

Other Christians

Concern was also raised about Wilson Issavi, an elderly pastor in Kermanshah who was arrested in February last year but was released on bail 54 days later. His church, the Assyrian Pentecostal Church was closed down on charges of proselytizing, and he is awaiting a summons from the Revolutionary Court, Worthy News reported.

International concern was also raised about five Christians who have been charged with blasphemy, which carries the death penalty, Worthy News said.

The five Christians, Pastor Behrouz Sadegh-Khandjani, Mohammad Beliad, Mehdi Furutan, Nazly Beliad and Parviz Khalaj are from the evangelical Church of Iran, Worthy News reported.

They had already served one year in jail for “crimes against the Islamic Order.” Next month they will be tried for blasphemy, according to Worthy News.

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A new panel was formed by the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability to lead an independent, nationwide effort to study ways by which policies can be set in place for churches to have more accountability of its finances.

The panel was formed at the request of US Senate Finance Committee member Charles Grassley of Iowa, after he had completed his report on six media-based Christian ministries, the ECFA website said.

The report is a product of three years’ work and listed areas of concern that they wanted ECFA to address. ECFA is a 1,487 national accreditation organization for churches and other religious groups, according to Atlanta-Journal Constitution.

Grassley’s report investigated, among others, Rev. Creflo Dollar and Taffi Dollar of World Changers Church International/Creflo Dollar Ministries, and Bishop Eddie Long of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, AJC said.

In a statement, Long said he was “relieved that after more than three years of intense investigation and countless untrue allegations that Sen. Charles Grassley’s review has found no evidence of wrongdoing,” AJC reported.

Only two ministries, AJC said, namely those of Benny Hinn of World Healing Center Church and Joyce Meyer Ministries, answered all questions and were shown to have made significant internal reforms.

Three of the six ministries that were investigated gave partial information, AJC said, namely Long’s New Birth Missionary Baptist Church/Eddie L. Long Ministries, Kenneth and Gloria Copeland of Kenneth Copeland Ministries, and Randy and Paula White of Without Walls International Church.

The “least cooperative,” AJC said, was World Changers which did not provide the names of its board members nor information regarding compensation. Information came from public sources, watchdog groups, current and former members, and former officers in the church, among others.

The Grassley report mentions travelling by private jets, luxury homes, Rolls Royces and other luxury cars, and expensive gifts, among others, AJC said.

The new panel, called the Commission on Accountability and Policy for Religious Organizations will study tax and policy issues with regard to religious organizations, ECFA website said.

The website said that among the issues they will study are,

1) Whether churches should file form 990 which would contain the same, highly-detailed annual information return that is required of other nonprofit organizations.

2) Whether legislation is called for to curb clergy abuses of housing allowance.

3) Whether a repeal or amendment is needed on existing legislation that disallows churches and other nonprofits to engage in a political campaign intervention.

4) Whether legislation would be called for on tax rules for “love offerings.”

The commission will be headed by Michael Batts, who owns Batts Morrison Wales & Lee, PA, an accounting firm exclusively servicing nonprofit organizations. Batts told AJC that he hopes solutions can be reached without involving “burdensome legislation.”

Batts told AJC, “I would not say categorically that legislation would be bad, but certainly harsh, adverse or burdensome legislation would not be welcome.” He said he hopes the problems can be addressed through self-regulation and improved enforcement of rules for churches and nonprofits.

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