World News Through the Third Lens: Dare We Speak Against Islam?

Woman in Austria faces prison for speaking against Islamic law (Diana West, Johnson City Press editorial, November 19, 2010). On a recent trip to India (which, by the way, cost our bankrupt nation an outrageous sum) President B. Hussein Obama set us up for the Big Lie when he said, "I think all of us recognize that this great religion [Islam] in the hands of a few extremists has been distorted to justify violence towards innocent people that is never justified." Then why is it that all of the sacred books and schools of Islam say differently? One need not distort the Islamic texts to justify the violence of jihad from Mumbai to Tel Aviv to New York City to Bali to Madrid and beyond.

Just yesterday, the Religious Freedom Coalition reported that in the past week there were 30 Islamic terror attacks in 12 different nations with 83 dead and over 200 wounded. RFC also reported that two weeks earlier and Islamic terror attack on a Syriac Catholic church in Baghdad left 58 dead and 78 wounded. Not a week goes by but what multiple events like this happen, most of them not reported by the media. Asia Bibi, a 45 year old Christian woman in Pakistan (supposedly one of the USA's partners in the war against terror) has been condemned to death for insulting Islam. You can click this link to get a first-hand report on what conditions are like in Afghanistan, a country where our military have been laying it on the line for the past 9 years - for what? http://video.foxnews.com/v/4348748/daanger-of-missionary-work-in-afghanistan

All that is backdrop for the case of Elisabeth Sabaditsch-Wolff, the Viennese mother and housewife who will go to trial on November 23, in which her home country of Austria will attempt to send her to prison for as long as three years for "hate speech" against Islam, very similar to those I've just written. Her statements were not without foundation based on personal experience and intense study. From living as a child of an Austrian diplomat stationed in Iran during the 1979 Islamic Revolution, to working in the Austrian embassy in Kuwait at the time of the Iraqi invasion, to working at the Austrian embassy in Libya on 9/11, she has seen wide-spread fanaticism on display. She has studied the Islamic texts, commentaries, apologetics and critiques at length and eventually decided to exercise her God-given right to free speech and begin educating others.

In seminars promoted by the Association of Vienna Academics and the anti-Islamization Freedom Party, since 2008 she has been educating Austrians about Islam, the Koran and Shariah law. It so happened that one of the seminar attendees was a journalist for the left-wing publication NEWS, who branded the seminar as a "hate school." This caused a huge uproar in the establishment, and one bishop, who never attended a seminar, weighed in with, "One must never speak about any religion the way Ms. Sabaditsch-Wolff did about Islam." Elisabeth's husband, a military surgeon and her father (a career diplomat) know the truth and support her 100 percent.

Through the third lens of Scripture: It appears to me that Elisabeth is about to stand trial because she is a courageous proclaimer of the truth - something which threatens all states of denial. He plight mirrors that of Paul with the Galatians, where he said, "Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth?" (Galatians 4:16). I know experientially how quickly this can happen within the Body of Christ; therefore it's no surprise how one's own country can turn against some of its best and brightest citizens. I'm not a doomsayer, just an encourager - be prepared all of you Christian patriots.

And when it comes to confronting false religion, Jesus was the Master, and He warned His disciples, "All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved....A student is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master....If the head of the house has been called Beelzebub, how much more the members of his household!" (Matthew 10:22, 24-25). I don't have time in this article to point out all of the places where Jesus confronted false religion. Here are just a few examples: Matthew 23; Mark 7:6-13; John 7:23.

No confrontation with false religion would be complete without exposing the truth. To begin with, every Muslim who claims to have no affiliation with jihad, terror, or Shariah does not have far to go to remove themselves from Islam. And the "fanatics!" Well, they already have what it takes to become zealous Christians. We must remember that Jesus' sacrifice on the cross was the full and satisfactory payment, not just for our sins, but for the sins of the whole world. (1 John 2:2). And so let us not be afraid of sharing the Gospel (Good News) of Jesus Christ, even with those who would appear to be its greatest enemy. Just reread Acts 7-9 for a refresher.

World News Through the Third Lens: Public Prayer

Christian Leader to Plead "Not Guilty" at Arraignment after being arrested for praying on a public sidewalk outside of a Planned Parenthood Clinic in Washington, D.C. (www.christiannewswire.com June 29, 2010). The article goes on to say that Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, Director of Christian Defense Coalition, was charged with "unlawful entry" as he was praying and reading his Bible on a public sidewalk, several dozen feet from a Planned Parenthood Clinic in the nation's Capital. Rev. Mahoney stated, "This marks the first time in the history of our nation's capital that prayer and First Amendment activities have been prohibited and banned on the public sidewalk. Sadly the city of Washington, D.C. has chosen to protect the abortion industry and Planned Parenthood rather than the First Amendment. These actions should send shock waves to all Americans who cherish free speech and civil liberties."

Rev. Mahoney has pleaded, "Not Guilty!" to the charges and will be represented by the American Center for Law and Justice." He further stated, "As I plead not guilty to these outrageous ad baseless charges, I am affirming the power of the First Amendment and free speech and joining a long, proud tradition of Americans who refused to keep silent and go quietly into the night and surrender their God-given rights and liberties."

Rev. Mahoney can be contacted at (540)-538-4741 for more information.

Through the Third Lens of Scripture: This is not the first time, nor will it be the last, that a Christian gets in trouble for praying publicly. In Daniel 6, as King Darius was about to place Daniel in charge of all 120 of his governors, the governors got jealous and wanted to see Daniel convicted of some sort code of conduct violation. They concluded. "We will never find any basis for charges against this man Daniel unless it has something to do with the law of his God." (Daniel 6:5) So the governors went to the king and hoodwinked him. Appealing to his pride and vanity, they convinced him to make a decree that for 30 days, no one in the kingdom could pray to any god or man except the king. The penalty for violating the decree would be an overnight stay in the Hungry Lion Motel. Their motive is revealed five verses later.

"Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows faced toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before." (Daniel 6:10) Daniel got to stay at the Hungry Lion Motel, but the power of God that attended him made the lions a whole lot more sleepy and content, than hungry. The attack against Daniel was at its roots an attack against the God Whom he worshipped. It is no different with Rev. Mahoney.

This explains why, in our Nation's Capital, a city filled with public prayer, Rev. Mahoney was arrested. Sessions of Congress open with prayer; sessions of the Supreme Court open with prayer; and references to the Bible, Almighty God and prayer are inscribed in granite all over the city. But that's old stuff. It's OK - it's part of the pluralism which is running rampant in the land. This year - 2010 - Tony Perkins was disinvited to pray at Andrews Air Force Base; Franklin Graham was disinvited to pray at the Pentagon; and there was no National Day of Prayer observance at the White House. More and more it is becoming clear that to allow public prayer to the One True God is to acknowledge that He may in fact exist, and if He exists, then we might just be accountable to Him........And that is unthinkable in these days of secular humanism, socialism, Marxism and all the other "isms" which are an affront to Holy God.

My encouragement to the body of Christ is to pray all the more. Yes, pray in your prayer closet, for we are admonished to do so (Matthew 6: 5-15). The real point here was not so much to pray in a closed room where no one could see you, but to not pray so as to curry favor and admiration from men. So go ahead, pray in public also. Pray corporately; don't just be "led" by a celebrity prayer. Pray with and for others - even your enemies (Matthew 5:44). Let your light shine; individually like a candle set upon a stand and corporately like a city set upon a hill (Matthew 5:13-15). How much better, as a follower of Christ, to be arrested for Patrick Mahoney type behavior than for running a red light or neglecting our kids. (1 Peter 2:20).

Practical Application: Coming this fall (Sept. 22 - Oct. 31) to a city near you is a 40 Days for Life event. Get involved.

World News Through the Third Lens: Free Speech and the First Amendment

Free speech is a right that must be used with wisdom said the headline in an editorial by Kent Bush, of GateHouse News Service, May 4, 2010. Don't let the date bother you - the applications are timeless. Mr. Bush states: "There is a fine line between a tool and a weapon. A hammer is a very useful tool. Few structures would be built without one. But in a fit of rage, a hammer can be used in a gruesome attack." He goes on to state that the First Amendment gives all Americans the right to free speech, and that like a hammer, most applications are beneficial.

While espousing the value of the First Amendment, Mr. Bush wishes that more people would use this basic right with more restraint and wisdom. He says, "The difference is one of can and should. He points out the work of Matt Stone and Trey Parker in their crudely drawn and written cartoon, "South Park" as something that constantly pushes the bounds of decency, with mockery, blasphemy and obscenity in almost every episode. Recently they took a swipe at Islam by making a not so flattering depiction of the prophet Muhammad, just to show that they could.

A website called revolutionmuslim.com posted a poorly veiled threat saying that Parker and Stone might end up like Dutch Filmmaker, Theo Van Gogh - dead. So the South Park episode went in the tank. In response, Molly Norris, and artist from Seattle declared May 20 to be celebrated as "Everyone Draw Muhammad Day." She has since stated she is not involved with this any more. We may have freedom to speak, but words - like actions - often have consequences. Bush concludes his editorial with these words: "You have to choose wisely if you should say everything you can say. (My note: Today's issue of the Norwich Bulletin ran a blurb that Comedy Central was developing a cartoon series that would be titled "J.C." depicting Christ as a "regular guy" who moves to New York to "escape his father's enormous shadow." I think a typical Christian response to insult is seen by most people as being a polar opposite to an Islamic response to insult.)

Through the third lens of Scripture: The Bible has a lot to say about our manner of speech. I good place to start would probably be the Golden Rule. "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 7:12) The Bible tells us that "We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check....The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and itself set on fire by hell." (James 3:2,6)

As Christians find themselves aligned with Conservatives and Tea Partiers on many issues, we must be careful not to pick up on hurtful and defaming rhetoric. If there are things wrong in government, society, culture or even the church, we should "Have no fellowship with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose (reprove) them." (Ephesians 5:11) If we, as followers of Christ, feel we must engage in such activities, "Let your speech be always seasoned with salt, that you may know how you should answer every man." (Colossians 4:6) We should remember and apply the words of wisdom from David and Solomon: "Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies." (Psalms 34:13) "He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin." (Proverbs 13:3) Although much more could be written on this topic, we'll close with words from James, the brother of Jesus. "If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight reign on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless." (James 1:26). The First Amendment grants us freedom, not license.