Christian World News: March 2, 2012

Efrem Graham: Today on Christian World News – A church Christmas service becomes the site of a deadly terror attack. See where Christians are being targeted and how the victims are responding. Heather Sells: And breaking down barriers. Suzan Cook went from Wall Street to Washington. See how she’s pushing for religious freedom around the world. Efrem Graham: Plus – Cameroon Christians playing a huge role in translating the Bible into their native tongue and taking the Good News to this African country. * * * Efrem Graham: Nigeria’s Christians offer forgiveness to terrorists trying to drive them out of the north. Hello, I’m Efrem Graham. Heather Sells: And I’m Heather Sells. George and Wendy are on assignment. Efrem Graham: Three people died in a suicide bombing against Christians in a northern Nigerian church this week. It is the latest attack in a radical Islamic group’s war against them. Heather Sells: Muslim fighters have killed scores in multiple attacks on Christian homes and churches. There have been calls for revenge but also for forgiveness. George Thomas brings us a story from Kano, Nigeria. * * * (text on screen): Madalla, Nigeria. December 25, 2011. 8:26 a.m. Uche Bonaventure: (Voice of Interpreter). It was a beautiful day. We came to church to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. People started coming as early as 6 in the morning. It was going to be a joyous occasion. (text on screen and woman screaming): God! God! God! George Thomas: But it never turned out that way. A suicide bomber in a vehicle packed with explosives drove up this busy street and stopped in front of the church. Uche Bonaventure and his 17-month-old son had just walked out the church front doors when the bomb exploded. Uche Bonaventure: (Voice of Interpreter). The explosion threw me back and my son was hurled across the other side. Around me I could see bodies on fire. George Thomas: Within minutes, husbands became widowers, wives became widows, children became orphans, and parents were childless. The suicide bomber knew precisely when to strike. It was shortly after 8 o’clock that Christmas morning as one service was just concluding and the next one was about to begin. Twenty-six of the 44 people who died that day attended St. Theresa’s church. Father Isaac Achi, St. Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla: (Voice of Interpreter). The people who carried out this attack are under the influence of the devil. They have only evil in their heart and they want to divide us. George Thomas: The radical Muslim group Boko Haram claimed responsibility for this and several more attacks in other parts of Nigeria that Christmas Day. Boko Haram’s goal is to turn Africa’s most populous nation into an Islamic country. Uche Bonaventure: (Voice of Interpreter). I am very angry at them. We didn’t do anything to deserve this but if they are trying to get me to respond out of anger I will not. George Thomas: He and his son spent several weeks in the hospital recovering from third degree burns. Today you’ll find him and his family praying for their attackers. Uche Bonaventure: (Voice of Interpreter). I want God to touch their hearts so that they will know that what they are doing is not good. George Thomas: A sentiment echoed in Father Achi’s sermons about the importance of forgiveness. Father Isaac Achi: (Voice of Interpreter). I have personally forgiven them but what I need from Boko Haram is that they should repent and stop doing this evil work and confess. George Thomas: That, however, isn’t likely to happen anytime soon. In January alone, Boko Haram struck 21 times, killing more than 250 people. Nine hundred plus have died in recent months in multiple attacks around the country. Two hundred miles north of St. Theresa’s church... Ester Garba… Ester Garba, Husband Killed in Bomb Attack: (Voice of Interpreter). So many people loved my husband. He loved to share the Gospel with others. George Thomas: Isaac Kure... Isaac Kure, Father Killed in Bomb Attack: (Voice of Interpreter). They would not let me see my father’s body. He was beyond recognition. George Thomas: Margaret Frames... Margaret Frames, Husband Killed in Attack: (Voice of Interpreter). He was shot in the mouth, in the elbow and in the back. George Thomas: and Salametu Joshua... Salametu Joshua, Husband Killed in Bomb Attack: (Voice of Interpreter). I am asking God to bring peace to our city. George Thomas: …are blanketing northern Nigeria’s most important city of Kano with prayer. On January 20th, 26 days after the Christmas Day massacre, Boko Haram killed 185 people in a string of coordinated attacks in Kano. It was the group’s deadliest strike to date. Among the dead were the loved ones of these Christian families. Margaret Frames: (Voice of Interpreter). I can’t do anything to bring my husband back; all I can do is trust in God. The Bible says we should love our enemies and pray for them. George Thomas: A Boko Haram spokesman has declared war on Nigeria’s government, the security services, and the country’s Christians. (on screen) YouTube video of leader speaking: George Thomas: In a video released online he says, “I enjoy killing anyone that God commands me to kill the way I enjoy killing chickens and rams.” In January, the group gave Christians three days to leave the north or be attacked. And the Christians in the state of Kano are very, very much on edge, so many of them are beginning to consider the idea of leaving the state and moving south. We spoke to some of them who are very fearful and concerned that the security apparatus is not in a position to protect them. Nigeria is evenly split between Christians in the south and Muslims in the north. Kano is overwhelmingly Muslim. Extremist groups routinely use the city and the surrounding areas as a base of operation. Joshua (not his real name) Secret Evangelist: (Voice of Interpreter). It is very difficult to share the Gospel here in the extreme northern parts of Nigeria. George Thomas: Joshua works quietly as an evangelist in northern Nigeria. CBN News agreed to conceal his identity to protect him. He says the indigenous people consider Christians here as invaders and members of a western religion. Joshua: (Voice of Interpreter). I was born and raised here. I’m part of the north, yet because I’m a Christian I am viewed and treated as a second, third or fourth class citizen. George Thomas: And now he fears Boko Haram is trying to spark a religious war by provoking Christians into attacking Muslims. Some Christian neighborhoods are taking measures to defend themselves. Others rely on God for protection and take comfort in his Word. Garba (Reading from Bible): “Even when I walk through the dark valley of death I will not be afraid for you are close beside me.” George Thomas: George Thomas, CBN News, Kano, Nigeria. * * * Heather Sells: Psalm 23 takes on a whole different connotation there! Efrem Graham: I tell you, I tell you, just the forgiving spirit is amazing. Seventy times seven indeed. Heather Sells: Well, you can join a discussion on persecution and the church’s response at our Christian World News FaceBook page. You can log on to post your comments, encouragement and prayers for persecuted Christians around the world. Efrem Graham: An American Christian teacher is murdered in northern Iraq by one of his students. Authorities say the 18-year-old shot Jeremiah Small and then killed himself at a Christian school in Kurdistan. It is not clear if religion was a motive. Small’s mostly Muslim students said he frequently talked about Jesus Christ and prayed in class. Servant Group International, a Tennessee-based mission organization, commissioned Small to go to Iraq. Friends say he wanted to go to share the Gospel with Muslims. Heather Sells: U.S. lawmakers are standing up for Iranian pastor Youcef Nadarkhani. The House of Representatives passed a resolution condemning Iran for its persecution of the Christian pastor. Iran has sentenced him to death on charges of apostasy. The 34-year-old father refuses to deny his faith and renounce Jesus Christ. He’s been in prison there since 2009. Efrem Graham: Pastor Nadarkhani’s case is raising awareness of persecution in Iran and across the globe. The U.S. is a leader in fighting religious persecution. There’s even a special ambassador for the issue. Recently on CBN’s the Brody File program, White House correspondent Jennifer Wishon profiled the woman who monitors the world’s religious wrongs. * * * Jennifer Wishon: Suzan Johnson Cook has been described as the Harriet Tubman for women in ministry. She’s broken barriers, becoming the first female chaplain for the New York police department, and the first black woman to be elected senior pastor of the American Baptist Churches of the U.S.A. Before she became ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, you could find her just off Wall Street presiding over the Hour of Power, a lunchtime ministry she founded. Suzan Johnson Cook, Internat’l Religious Freedom: The Wednesday after 9-11, people came in here physiologically their eyes were big, there was fear all over them. And they left here, as the Scripture says, a different way than they came in, glorifying and praising God. So to see that I was able to be used to bring healing and comfort and consolation to people, not just being the pastor of Wonderful Wall Street Wednesday, but really being thrust into becoming a pastor of the city of New York. It’s tremendous and it’s humbling. Jennifer Wishon: She now plays pastor to the world. Hillary Clinton (at swearing in ceremony for Cook): So help me God. Suzan Johnson Cook: So help me God. Jennifer Wishon: She says her rock is Jesus Christ. But as ambassador she looks out for people of all faiths in every nation. Her role takes her on journeys across the globe through a maze of diplomatic land mines. Suzan Johnson Cook (at swearing in ceremony): Religious freedom provides a cornerstone for every healthy society. In this season of the Arab Spring we must encourage the highly religious countries of the Middle East and North Africa to guarantee full equality under the law for all religious actors. Jennifer Wishon: Cook’s job is to promote religious freedom, report to the president on the status of religious freedom in 195 countries, and call out countries of particular concern that are then subject to U.S. sanctions. She works under Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton (at swearing in ceremony): Around the world authoritarian regimes abuse their own citizens, violent extremists attempt to exploit sectarian tension, and religious freedom is under threat from both quiet intolerance and violent attacks. Jennifer Wishon: The position was created in the ‘90s by legislation sponsored by Virginia Congressman Frank Wolf. He sees the office as the thermometer to help identify America’s friends and enemies. Rep. Frank Wolf (R) Virginia: When a country has human rights and religious freedom, they’re generally a democratic country. They’re generally a country that you’re not at war with, you’re not arguing with, you’re not fighting with. Jennifer Wishon: The U.S.-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the Arab Spring have drawn more attention to religious persecution in the world. Suzan Johnson Cook (at swearing in ceremony): For this season of change to succeed, Coptic Christians must have the right to worship freely in Cairo just as Shia must never have their mosques destroyed in Bahrain. Jennifer Wishon: Ambassador Cook tells me her ministry in New York City, working with people of different cultural and religious backgrounds, along with some missions work overseas, really helped prepare her for this job. Jennifer Wishon, CBN News, Washington. * * * Heather Sells: Coming up – Learning in their own language. How receiving the Word of God in their native tongue is transforming lives in Cameroon. – Commercial Break – Heather Sells: Some 340 million people across the globe do not have a Bible in their own language. Efrem Graham: For decades, Wycliffe Bible Translators has been working to eliminate that number. CBN reporter Charlene Israel is with us. Charlene, you’ve been to the mission field, you’ve seen Wycliffe and their translators at work. Charlene Israel: It’s absolutely fascinating. I recently traveled to the western African nation of Cameroon and the work there to see people seeing the Word of God translated into their own language is absolutely fascinating. * * * Charlene Israel: These are the sights and sounds of Cameroon. Located on Africa’s west coast, it is home to 19 million people. Most speak the official languages of English or French. But some 280 language groups blanket the country. Forty percent of the people here are Christians, yet most do not have Bibles in their native tongue. The Bible says in Revelation that God will gather a people from every nation, every tribe and every tongue. Well, part of that is being fulfilled here in this village in Cameroon where the Word of God is being translated into Yambetta, which is the native language of the people here. Here in the remote village of Babetta, life is simple. Especially when it comes to communicating. The native language of Yambetta is usually only spoken, but that’s about to change. In this tiny room, translators work from dawn till dusk translating the Gospel into Yambetta, their mother tongue. Leonard Bolioki is the project’s main translator. Leonard Bolioki, Bible Translator: We are very glad when they understand the Word of God in their own language. Charlene Israel: This work is close to the heart of Wycliffe U.S.A. President Bob Creson. For nearly ten years, Bob and his wife Dallas served as missionaries in Cameroon. He says the work of Bible translation has changed dramatically in the last 20 years. Bob Creson, Wycliffe Bible Translators: I think the thing that’s hit me the hardest, Charlene, is to see the number of Cameroonians that are taking leadership in the Bible translation process here in Cameroon. It’s just different than it was years ago. Charlene Israel: George Shutlz helps train Cameroonians in Bible translation. George Shultz, Bible Translation Degree Program: I think it gives them a great sense of pride, and ownership. Charlene Israel: Wycliffe teams up with the Cameroonian Association for Bible Translation and Literacy. Efi Tembon says Bible translation is just part of the story. Efi Tembon, CABTAL: Most of the languages we work in are languages that had never been written before, never had an alphabet, never had even one book in their language. So when we start to work in a language we send a linguist in to study the language, come out with an alphabet with a writing system and start to do books in the language, a reading and writing book to help the people learn how to read and write their language. Charlene Israel: Here, they’re translating the Bible into Tunen and they’re working on the book of Revelation or Apocalypse in Tunen. Technology has been another game changer. Here, translators use a portable satellite to collaborate with experts in other parts of the world. This helps ensure biblical accuracy. The translating has helped lead to “transmitting.” In addition to reading the scriptures, people are also “listening” to the Word in their own language through the program “Faith Comes By Hearing.” Ambassa Apolinaire, “Faith Comes By Hearing”: In Africa people prefer listening to reading. Most of the time, we record the whole New Testament from Matthew to Revelation. After the recording we go into the field and we set up listening groups in churches, in quarters, in houses, and people meet to listen to the Word and discuss. Charlene Israel: Local pastors say having the Word of God in a language they can understand is a great blessing. Georges Mossasso, Pastor: (Voice of Interpreter). When I went to Biblical school I studied the Word of God in French and I thought that I had mastered it. The fact now that I can speak, read, write and even preach in my own language, that makes me proud. Efi Tembon: When I visited this church they were doing their service in their own language . They sang in their language and preached the Gospel in their language. I had no understanding what they were saying but when I looked at the faces of the people it was clear to me that God was in that place because there was joy on their faces. Charlene Israel: Translators say that makes their work worthwhile. Paul Kimbi, Translator: To be a translation consultant is both a distinction and it’s an affliction of the joy of doing it. And the joy of seeing people read the Word of God and understand helps us overcome whatever difficulties we encounter. Charlene Israel: And the work leads to unexpected blessings. Crepin Sintsime, Nugunu Project Coordinator: (Voice of Interpreter). When it was in the process of being translated, the person who did the translation listened to the CD. He said it was as if he were hearing the parables of Jesus for the first time. Charlene Israel: Meanwhile, Leonard and his team have completed about 60 percent of the New Testament translation into Yambetta. He joyfully awaits the day when he can read the scriptures in his native tongue and share it with others. Leonard Bolioki: Very happy, yes, I will be very happy that day, yes. Bob Creson This Word that became flesh moves into the village. He’s no longer a foreign god. He’s no longer someone who doesn’t understand my deepest needs. Charlene Israel: And now more than ever, that realization can help lead to a life-changing relationship. * * * Efrem Graham: Wow! And speaking of a life-changing relationship, I understand that that whole translation process in Cameroon is bringing many people to Christ naturally. Charlene Israel: It’s absolutely fascinating. The translators take their work before it’s completely done to the people in the village to say, “Does this sound right?” – just sort of a checks and balance – “Does this sound like it’s right in your language?” And many of the people when they hear that for the first time they give their hearts to Christ. Whole villages of people are getting saved through the translation process. Absolutely amazing! Efrem Graham: In terms of getting saved, it’s pulling some away from witchcraft? Charlene Israel: This is really interesting. I found out that many people, even though they’ve given their lives to Christ, because when they run into hardships they would go back to their villages, back to their African tradition religion to the witchdoctors. But now they’re learning that God, this God who speaks my language, can help me in a language that I can understand through the Bible. We can use the Bible to actually help them solve whatever issues they’re facing. It’s amazing! Efrem Graham: In terms of the folks doing this translation, how long is their day to get this done? Charlene Israel: All day. That’s what really struck me as fascinating because they go there early in the morning totally committed to this process, this tedious work of studying and making sure that every word is correct. It’s an all-day process, well into the evening. It’s amazing! Efrem Graham: And it really resonates when it’s finally in your own native tongue. Charlene Israel: It’s the “heart language,” they say. This is the heart language. God speaks to my language. He moves into my village and he speaks my language. Efrem Graham: Indeed. Thank you so much, Charlene. Great report. Charlene Israel: Thank you. * * * Heather Sells: Still ahead – Thousands pour into the streets of Moscow. Why Russian voters are rising up in protest. – Commercial Break – Heather Sells: Russia’s Christians are asking the global church to pray for their presidential elections. Thousands of Russians took to the streets of Moscow this week. They are protesting Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s bid to reclaim the presidency. Russians believe the March 4th elections are rigged in Putin’s favor. Last year his political party gained from widespread election fraud. We spoke with Sergey Rakhuba of Russian Ministries. He tells us that while the Kremlin is allowing the protest to go on for now, many expect a crackdown after the elections. Sergey Rakhuba, Russian Ministries: There will be some difficulties. That’s what some intelligentsia, some opposition leaders predict that after this election there will be more control, more pressure put on the opposition, intelligentsia, independent media groups. I would challenge people to continue praying for Russia, for political wisdom, for Vladimir Putin, and also pray for political wisdom for the opposition leaders. Heather Sells: Russian Ministries works to help build up the church throughout the former Soviet Union. Efrem Graham: Churches can once again meet for worship in New York City public schools while their legal case plays out. A judge issued a new injunction that said “In this court’s view, losing one’s right to exercise freely and fully his or her religious beliefs is a greater threat to our democratic society than a misperceived violation of the establishment clause.” An appeals court had ruled the judge’s previous injunction was too narrow and only covered the one congregation named in the petition. The city now says it will file another appeal. Heather Sells: When we return – Meet the rock and roll pastor who’s winning young people to Christ. That story is next. – Commercial Break – Heather Sells: On the outskirts of Bogota, Colombia, an unlikely church attracts rock fans. Efrem Graham: Stan Jeter has this story about a pastor who spreads the Good News with a heavy metal beat. * * * Stan Jeter: This small group of heavy metal fans, gathers every Saturday in a suburb of Colombia’s capital. And though it looks like a concert or party as they jump and toss their long hair, these rockers are actually gathering for church. Cristian Gonzalez, Pantokrator Pastor: (Voice of Interpreter). I think that if Jesus were present right now, in the flesh, he would accept everyone without making distinctions or despising anyone. Stan Jeter: Thirty-one-year-old Cristian Gonzalez founded this heavy metal church and calls it, Pantokrator, a Greek term meaning “all powerful.” He preaches a message of love and acceptance. Cristian Gonzalez: (Voice of Interpreter). Whether it’s tattoos or piercings, the Bible says in Corinthians that there are people who judge your appearance, but they don’t judge the heart. Stan Jeter: The church is evangelical, and claims fifty members who gather weekly to sing along with heavy metal hymns and join in head-banging prayers. This is where 21-year-old Ana Maria says she connected to God. Ana Maria Cabrera, Church Member: (Voice of Interpreter). I have learned to know God inside this church, that loyal friend who is always with you, who does not let go of your hand, that God who stays close to you and makes you feel like you have someone with you 24 hours a day. That is what is really important, no matter what you look like or what music you listen to. Stan Jeter: And regardless of their appearance, most of these young people claim they are free from drugs and alcohol. Ana Maria Cabrera: (Voice of Interpreter). If you look at all the people here they have a smile on their face. Stan Jeter: Stan Jeter, CBN News. Heather Sells: And thanks a lot for joining us this week. Efrem Graham: Good-bye.