Fresh Violence in Orissa India Against Christians

It seems there's no more end to the violence hurled at Indian Christians living in the State of Orissa. A report from Zenit.org has the story what's really happening.

Extremist Hindus are responsible to these horrifying threat and the Indian Government is doing very little to ease the tension.

BHUBANESWAR, India (Zenit) - "The slaying of another Christian in the Eastern Indian state of Orissa has rekindled fears among a population driven from their homes by a wave of persecution at the hands of Hindu extremists.

Hrudyananda Nayak, 45, was found dead last Thursday, showing signs of a violent end to his life, Aid to the Church in Need reported.

Ongoing Hindu-Christian tensions in India flared into a wave of violence at the end of last August, after extremists blamed the slaying of a Hindu leader on Christians. Dozens of Christians, including a priest, were killed and thousands fled their homes.

More than 10,000 of those same Christians are still living in displacement camps. According to Father Madan Singh, spokesman for Archbishop Raphael Cheenath of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar, "People from relief camps have been slowly returning to their villages. But after this incident, the fear has been doubled, movement has been controlled, suspicion has increased."
(read here for more)
Read related story here

On the other news, Christians (Catholics in particular) relationship with Moderate Muslims has remarkably improved in the past century healing the past wound that haunted these two great faiths from the Crusades. Hopes for a more tolerant Muslim States in the Middle East is one of the most important issues the Church is having dialogue with our Muslim brethren. In 2007, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, His Highness King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia paid visit to the Vatican and meeting the Pope (read here).

Frequent visitors are His Highness King Abdullah of Jordan and his wife Her Royal Highness Queen Rania (read here). Other Islamic States' head had paid visit to the Vatican in particular the State of Bahrain has invited the Pope to visit them (read here). Thanks to the effort of the Holy See through the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI's (and to John Paul the Great) desire to have a meaningful dialogue with our Muslim brethren.

"VATICAN CITY (Zenit) - Benedict XVI is affirming that Christians add a richness to Muslim-majority countries.

The Pope said this in a message written on his behalf by his secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, and sent to a conference Monday sponsored by the Community of Sant'Egidio. The conference was on "The Value of the Churches in the Middle East: Christians and Muslims Discuss Together."

In the message, the Holy Father expressed the hope that the Middle East will be "a land of dialogue and fraternal collaboration, mutual respect and peace, thanks to the responsible contribution of all believers who live in it."

The letter, published Monday by L'Osservatore Romano, stated that the issue discussed in the meeting has a "clear religious and social significance."

The meeting, the papal statement said, "is one more step in the patient and beneficial journey of dialogue between Christians and Muslims on [topics] of mutual interest." In particular, it affirmed, the congress confronts the "crucial" issue "of the presence of Christian communities in regions of strong Islamic supremacy."
(Read here for more)

As I always say, nothing is impossible with good intention prayers. Let us all ask God to heal our differences and bring peace in our land starting from the three Great Monotheistic Religions flowing to those who have faiths different from us, not to proselytize but to do good works working through our faith in One God.

Olmert, Sorry for TV Show Mocking Catholics!

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert apologized for an Israeli TV show that mocked Christians:

JERUSALEM — Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert says he feels "regret, sorrow and disapproval" for a comedy show that mocked Christian theology and offended the Vatican.

Government spokesman Mark Regev said Olmert told ministers at a Cabinet meeting Sunday the comedy segment was "in stark contrast" to good relations between Israel and Christians worldwide.
(read here for more...)

Catholics Should Chastise Israeli TV for Religious Intollerance!

According to an Israeli TV through Catholic.org "comic pokes fun at Jesus and Our Lady, saying he wants to 'deny Christianity' since Christians 'deny the Holocaust'". Perhaps this reaction was caused by Bishop Williamson's denial of the Halocoust. Bishop Williamson belong to the excommunicted Levebrian sect Society of St. Pius X which was recently re-admitted to the fold by Pope Benedict XVI (read more here). To my knowledge, the Pope has chastised the Bishop and was told to recant his views (read here) in line with the sensitivity of the topic that could hamper Jewish-Catholic relations.

Good thing is that, we are not alone. Thanks to moderate Muslims who are backing up the issue with Catholics in the Holy Land.

JERUSALEM (AsiaNews) – The Assembly of Catholic Bishops in the Holy Land slammed the “repulsive attacks” on Jesus Christ and Our Lady on an Israeli TV show. For them the incident is a sign of the growing intolerance and hatred towards other faiths, best exemplified by a recent incident in which copies of the New Testament were publicly burnt in the yard of a synagogue in Or Yehuda.

In the TV show which ran at the start of the week Israeli humorist Yair Shlein said that since Christians “deny the Holocaust, then I want to deny Christianity” in order “to teach a lesson”. (read here for more!)

Picture Credit: Thanks to pennantshop.com

While we are banned to do it...

How I wish non-Muslims can freely do this in Islamic States as they freely enjoy doing it in our democratic cities.

NYPost

Miami New Times Blog

Or perhaps one Muslim would stand up and use his/her democratic rights to pressure Islamic States allowing Christians to put up their ads in buses and in main streets calling them to consider reading the Bible. That is but fair enough...

Would anyone dare?

Lastly, Mr. Robert Spencer carefully evaluated what's the difference between our sense of dialogue to non-Christians in Christian dominated states such as the United States of America:

In the United States, for example, Muslim minorities have the exact same rights — to build places of worship (mosques), publicly carry their scriptures (Korans), to worship and proselytize, and, simply, to be Muslim — as do Christians, Jews, and the rest. That is proof that the West is prepared for dialogue over ancillary matters: it has already visibly demonstrated that it firmly believes all humans are guaranteed basic rights.

Countries like Saudi Arabia evince no respect for basic human rights and freedoms. The contrast is amply demonstrated by the recent comments of one high ranking Saudi who said that “It would be possible to launch official negotiations to construct a church [note the singular] in Saudi Arabia only after the Pope and all the Christian churches recognize the prophet Muhammad” — which of course would make all Christians Muslim. (read here for more)

Fr. Samir Khalil Samir on UK's Gagging Mr. Wilders

The producer of the controversial and now being banned movie "Fitna" (watch here) has been barred from entering the United Kingdom to avoid "displeasing Muslims" according to AsiaNews. Mr. Geert Wilders, a member of Parliament in Netherlands who wished to visit London perhaps to promote his movie to a more "tolerant" and "free" country to his dismay was disallowed by airport securities for political reasons.

Earlier, issues such as the cartoon depiction of Islam's prophet (read here)caused widespread casualties particularly targetting Westerners with violence. Some churches were vandalized with hate and some received death threats. Among those who were killed were Theo Van Gogh who was slit with a sharp knife on his neck and was left dead on the street by his assailant. Another case which was reported from Turkey was Fr. Andrea Santoro who was gunned down by a teenager, believed to be acted upon the said cartoon scandal.

In reaction to these violence done in the name of "Islam", none among any Muslims denounce the violence itself nor they condemned those "terrorists" doing such henious crimes in the name of "Islam". Fr. Samir Khalil Samir a Catholic priest, an Islamologist isn't happy with the gagging of Mr. Wilders. Here's what he has to say about the issue:

(AsiaNews) "One thing is clear: the decision of the British foreign office to block the visit of Dutch parliamentarian Geert Wilders is a political reaction, dictated by political motives. The question that can be asked is whether this is a good policy. It could be that this expedient on the part of Great Britain is the only way to avoid religious conflict, but it seems worthwhile to me to make an observation.

I saw the film "Fitna" a year ago, and recently I have viewed a few clips from it again. The film is rather violent and crude, on purpose: its intention is to demonstrate that Islam is a violent religion in itself.

I don't like the film. For one thing, it depicts a reality with many citations from the Qur'an, to demonstrate the violence of this religion. Without a doubt, the reality presented in "Fitna" is partial, and in no way an accurate depiction of Islam as a whole.

The film is certainly provocative, because it intends to assert that Islam is a religion of violence. But in effect, there is violence both in the Qur'an, and in the life of Mohammed. Still today, there are Muslims who carry out violence in the name of the Qur'an and of the prophet of Islam.

But it must be said that the response to a violent, partial film cannot be violence, and not even the decision to prevent someone from speaking. The minister's decision to block Wilders, and the threats against him, fall into this category.

I have seen that the European Arab League has responded to this film with another film, a sort of "anti-Fitna"; other Muslim filmmakers have done the same thing. Such a reaction is more admirable than the one displayed by the Foreign Office. Although I do not like "Fitna," I am against the decision of the British government. All the more so in that Wilders was supposed to present the film to the House of Lords, and not to a political group.

Wilders's speech is, without a doubt, violent and fanatical. This is clear from reading just a few of his statements. But in the West, freedom of speech is a right that cannot be denied without creating other problems.

I have read at least 60 reactions from Muslims to the film "Fitna," although few of them had seen it. Their reactions are mainly of rejection, a violent response. Only one commentary states: "It is true, this film is violent, it is not helpful, and it increases our perception of being besieged on every side; we see Islamophobia everywhere. But it is also true that our reactions make a great deal of room for this Islamophobia."

I wonder: how is it that the Muslim world - and also part of the West - is so sensitive that it must gag every critic and even raise so much (physical) violence against (verbal) violence?

The Muslim world has not yet assimilated certain values, like the right to speech and to criticism, even though this can sometimes be unjust, or partially unjust.

There is a beautiful verse in the Qur'an that says: "In debate, dispute with them in a superior manner, and not on their level." This verse should exclude this kind of violent reaction. And yet it must be said: there is violence in the name of Islam.

In some of the "anti-Fitna" films, there are images of Israelis fighting against the Palestinians; then there are images of crusaders, with cross and swords; then images of Americans in Vietnam. One film has been produced by the Islamic society al Furkan. In these "anti-Fitna" films as well, violence connected to religion is denounced. But the difference is that the Muslims who carry out violence do so in the name of their faith, constantly citing passages from the sacred book and the hadiths. The Israelis and Americans wage war not in the name of the Bible or the Gospel, but in the name of their politics. This is not a question of crusades, because it is foolish to compare contemporary events with those of a long gone past.

If the West goes to war, it does so for political purposes, economic, etc. Unfortunately, in Islam there are many imams who preach a religious war against nonbelievers, not a moral war, but a physical war, always quoting the Qur'an. Violence in the name of God is to be rejected in every religion. John Paul II spoke out against it many times, and Benedict XVI is doing so today. It is therefore worthwhile not to block discussions, but to become engaged and demonstrate falsehood, the connections between religion and politics, correcting one another.

In conclusion, I do not believe that the film "Fitna"is helpful: it serves only to provoke Muslims to make a break with violence, and non-Muslims to react, and not remain silent. On the other hand, the British reaction is not valid either, it does not help Muslims to criticize themselves, nor to stop violence in the name of Islam.

It is increasingly urgent that there be a group of Muslims and non-Muslims fighting together for freedom of speech and conscience, and capable of dialogue; to advance self-criticism of persons and civilization; distinguishing precisely between religion and politics."

Having said that, one website Islam4UK Muslims are inviting non-Muslims for a conference, suggesting it's website's title:

:: CONFERENCE (1/3/09) :: THE ISLAMIC STATE - PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE

What is this conference about?

On the 3rd March 2009 C.E. it will have been 85 years since the destruction of the Islamic State, or in other words 85 years of tyranny, oppression and injustice. For over 1300 years this magnificent superpower dominated world affairs and introduced a law and order that lifted the masses from the darkness of man-made law and into the light of al-Islam. This special conference will be dedicated to providing an in depth overview of the Islamic State, its past, present and future as well as emphasise the need for all Muslims worldwide to struggle as much as they can for the sake of Allah (SWT) to implement the Shari'ah on the earth.

Who are the speakers and what are their topics?

1. The Reality of the Islamic State in the Past

2. How its destruction led to mankind's present sufferinng

3. How its inevitable establishment will illuminate human life in the future

[Speakers to be confirmed soon...]

When is it?

1st March 2009

3pm - 6pm

Where is it?

Vale Farm Sports Centre

76 Watford Road

North Wembley

Middlesex

HA0 3HQ

How much will it cost?

There is no admission fee.

Will there be any merchandise available?

DVD's (£2), Shahadah flags (£5), and other memorabilia will be sold inshaa'allah.

Is it for brothers and sisters?

Yes.

Please note however, strict segregation will be enforced.

I am a non-Muslim can I attend?

Yes. And you are welcome to embrace Islam as well.

Who can I contact for further information?

Media enquiries: 07956 600 569

General enquiries: 07547 032 668

Is UK soon to be the new Islamic State?

The views of Patriotic Australian Prime Minister

Today, a friend sent me this message. This message has been circulated since 2005. I am sorry if this would offend some.

The whole world needs a leader like this! "Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law were told on Wednesday to get out of Australia , as the government targeted radicals in a bid to head off potential terror attacks.. Separately, Kevin angered some Australian Muslims on Wednesday by saying he supported spy agencies monitoring the nation's mosques. Quote: 'IMMIGRANTS, NOT AUSTRALIANS, MUST ADAPT. Take It Or Leave It. I am tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending some individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks on Bali , we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Australians. ' 'This culture has been developed over two centuries of struggles, trials and victories by millions of men and women who have sought freedom' 'We speak mainly ENGLISH, not Spanish, Lebanese, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, or any other language. Therefore, if you wish to become part of our society . Learn the language!' 'Most Australians believe in God. This is not some Christian, right wing, political push, but a fact, because Christian men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation, and this is clearly documented. It is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls of our schools. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of the world as your new home, because God is part of our culture.' 'We will accept your beliefs, and will not question why. All we ask is that you accept ours, and live in harmony and peaceful enjoyment with us.' 'This is OUR COUNTRY, OUR LAND, and OUR LIFESTYLE, and we will allow you every opportunity to enjoy all this. But once you are done complaining, whining, and griping about Our Flag, Our Pledge, Our Christian beliefs, or Our Way of Life, I highly encourage you take advantage of one other great Australian freedom, 'THE RIGHT TO LEAVE'.' 'If you aren't happy here then LEAVE. We didn't force you to come here. You asked to be here. So accept the country YOU accepted.' Maybe if we circulate this amongst ourselves, WE will find the courage to start speaking and voicing the same truths. If you agree please SEND THIS ON and ON to as many people as you know.

Although this message carries truthfulness to radical Islamists living in democratic countries such as Australia it is still divisive in its essence. According to hoax-slayer.com, this circulated email wasn't Mr. Rudd's comments. In fact it was Federal Treasurer Peter Costello's commentaries. Some parts of the message were that of Barry Loudermilk, a US Air Force veteran and columnist for a local newspaper in the American state of Georgia.

Further, hoax-slayer calmly suggests:

"[T]hus, while the more lengthy version of message that includes Loudermilk's article is still partially factual, it is nonetheless outdated, contains inaccurate information and may perpetrate a quite misleading understanding of Australia's policies on immigration in general and Muslims in particular. Taken out of context, and with the falsely attributed Loudermilk article thrown into the mix, this email may give the impression that Australia is intolerant of migrants, especially those of the Muslim faith. This is not the case. One of Australia's great strengths is its rich cultural diversity and it welcomes migrants from all parts of the world and with many and varied systems of belief.

Sending on factually dubious information such as this is unlikely to be helpful and may even add to the cultural divisions and misunderstandings that plague our strife-torn world."

Prophecies Fulfilled by Felix Manalo

PASUGO- the official magazine of the Iglesia ni Cristo founded by Felix Manalo who's the fulfillment of Biblical prophecies according to its apologetics has numerously printed teachings contradicting its own teachings. From its earliest publications, their Minister article writers were either confused or ignorant of the Holy Scripture. Lost most rounded debates with experts and scholars beginning from its own founder, they never acknowledge defeat. When unable to defend or sensing defeat, their members would run and hide or challenge their opponents to visit any of their chapels and debate with their minister in a one-sided territory.

As an example, one of PASUGO's writer wrote things damaging acknowledgement of the Catholc Church as Christ's TRUE CHURCH:
PASUGO Abril 1966, p. 46:
“Ang Iglesia Katolika na sa pasimula ay siyang Iglesia ni Cristo..."


One reader of their "The Messanger" by the name Christopher Dawson from Los Angeles, California, USA was questioning INC’s very confusing teachings about Jesus and its angel Felix Manalo and the many copied teachings from other Christian denominations he was once a member including the Catholic Church which the Iglesia ni Cristo substantiated to be the REAL CHURCH Christ founded!!!

"I read the history of your Church and I learned that Mr. Felix Y. Manalo had been a member of many different churches like the Roman Catholic, Methodist, Presbyterian, Christian Mission, and Seventh-Day-Adventist. Doesn’t this prove that he is not a true messenger since he took all of his teachings from these different churches and combined them to form the teachings of the Church of Christ.?”

Mr. Dawson was right in consulting history. In fact, Felix Manalo was baptized Catholic, later became an Aglipayan, a Methodist pastor, a Presbyterian Bible student, a Disciples’s evangelist, a Christian and Missionary Alliance evangelist after he was struck by how they baptized through immersion. He was convinced to convert to Seventh-Day-Adventists after he lost a debate with one of its ministers.

Mr. Manalo's disagreement with his personal interpretation of the Bible drifted him to be a wanderer; he became an atheist and agnostics; he even lost his faith in God according to Wikipedia. Before he founded his own church, he took all accumulated teachings he gathered from different denominations, with Lamsa translation of the Bible, he concluded that in order to legitimize his own church, he must declare the Catholic Church to have been apostatized which history and Biblical facts couldn't agree either.

And the most shameful part of his story is that, HE DIED WITHOUT BEING BAPTIZED IN HIS OWN CHURCH TO GAIN SALVATION…



For the sake of Mr. Dawson’s question, let’s see how their Ministers would answer him. Here was their most intelligent reply:

“The Bible testifies that the one sent by God speaks according to the law and to the testimony (Is. 8:20). To speak according to the law is to teach the will or doctrine of God, not one’s own will—no addition nor subtraction (Jn. 7:16-17; Dt. 12:32). A messenger of God must also possesses the testimony or the spirit of prophecy (Rev. 19:10).”

True! The Bible testifies that “the one sent by God speaks according to the law and to the testimony” but again it’s true that when God calls his own messenger, he calls him by his name. Felix Manalo’s name was never mentioned in the Bible. Isaiah 8:20 which they quote is talking about something else, not about Felix Manalo as “God’s Last Messenger" was taken out of context .

John 7:16-17 which they also quoted was talking about Christ being God’s mouthpiece and it has nothing to do with Felix Manalo’s status as “God’s Last Messenger.”While they quoted Dt. 12:32, there’s not even a slightest clue about Felix Manalo being “God’s Last Messenger.”

Let’s continue their response to Mr. Dawson:

"Brother Felix Y. Manalo is the last messenger because he is the fulfillment of the various prophecies recorded in the Bible (Rev. 7:2-3; Is. 46:11; Is. 41-9-10). The fact that he became a member of other religions prior to his being called by God does not in any way prove that he was not sent by God.

They nailed it right in the middle! Yes, Felix Manalo has fulfilled many of biblical prophecies. This includes a prophesy about the imminent coming of the false teacher, or false prophet, a false angel (see Gal. 1:5-6).

Before Apostle Paul was called to become Christ’s apostle, he belonged to the religious group known as the Pharisees and he had been one of the ruthless persecutors of the Church (Act 22:1-4).

Paul's name was mentioned in the same way Moses and other great OT Prophets and sages however Felix Manalo's name was left out. His name was never mentioned just as Paul was (in the case of their analogy to Felix Manalo's case). This nullifies their teaching that Felix Manalo was called by God.

In the last portion of their response to Mr. Dawson, they said:

"The doctrines that Brother Felix Y. Manalo taught are the words of God written in the Bible--no additions nor subtractions--which is a character of the true messenger of God."

We are not certain if what Bible are they referring to. The Lamsa Translation was among their favorite which wasn't a translation of a scholar. Anyway, let's see if their claim is true.

In John 1-- the Bible says the "Word was God" and made his dwelling among us.
INC says, he was just a man.

Philippians 2 says though Jesus "is in the form of God..."
INC says, he's just a man.

In John 8, Jesus said "Before Abraham came to be, I AM" signifying his divinity.
INC says, he's just a man.

Roma 16:16 was written "iglesia"
INC wrote it "Iglesia" (making it into Proper Noun).
Catholic Answers says "Paul is referring to a collection of local churches, not giving an organizational name."

So is it true that there's "no addition nor subtractions" from the Bible in the teachings of Felix Manalo?

A huge NO!

And if that's the faultless character test to identify the true messenger of God,most certainly Felix Manalo WAS NOT!

Remember Fr. Andrea Santoro—Priest and Martyr

We can only recall how Father Andrea Santoro suffered martyrdom (in its truest sense) when he was shot from behind by a Muslim youth in modern day Turkey in February 5, 2006 while he’s kneeling in prayer. He was murdered inside Santa Maria Church in Trabzon, Turkey as a Catholic missionary priest of Fidei Donum. According to AsiaNews, the 15 years old young man who was convicted later shouted “Allahu Akhbar" (God is Great)before he shoots Father Andrea. As the issue spilled over to Europe and the world, his hearing was widely covered by local newspapers and some international media. According to Wikipedia, “neither the killer nor his mother showed any remorse during the trial.”

Today, we ask the Lord to look upon his servant Father Andrea Santoro for all Catholics and Christians who are facing persecution at the hands of “unbelievers” and fanatics. We pray to his intersession that through his prayers and the prayers of all the saints and angels, his blood would be the seed of evangelization in Turkey which was once a Christian country before it was conquered. Pope Benedict XVI during his address to Turkey’s Bishop, he specifically asked the Bishop to uphold Religious Freedom in Turkey, remembering Father Santoro’s brutal murder.

“[F]rom Saint John to Saint Ignatius of Loyola, from Saint Polycarp of Smyrna to “the many eminent Fathers of the Church, not to mention [the participants in] the Council of Ephesus which proclaimed the Virgin Mary to be Théotokos. More recently Benedict XV and the Blessed John XXIII marked the life of the nation and the Church in Turkey.”

“I also want to mention that every Christian, priests and laity, who bore witness to the charity of Christ, have sometimes made the ultimate sacrifice of their life, like Fr Andrea Santoro. May this impressive history be for your communities—the vigour of whose faith and abnegation under trial I am well aware—not only be a reminder of a glorious past, but also an incentive to continue with generosity along the journey you have begun, bearing witness among your brothers and sisters to God's love for all human beings.” [Read more…]

I ask all Catholics and our separated brethren to remember all those who suffered persecution just because they’re Christians. If our enemies’ weapon is bullet, let’s armor ourselves with love and respect. As the Lord said, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do."[Luke 23:34].

As a consolation, let’s listen to Christ when he said, “And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.” [Matthew 10:28]

To Jesus Christ be praised!

----------------------------------

Picture Credit: summagallicana.it and la-croix.com

Behold, Felix Manalo, the Angel...

Hardliner INC Ministers and its blind followers are quick to defend Felix Manalo’s angelic status while they can easily dishonor and ignore the more obvious Biblical facts about Jesus' Dinivity revealed by prophets of old.

Carefully choosing chopped verses of the Bible, their endless argument-- John 8:40; I Tim. 2:5; Is. 53:3; Ps. 80:17; Col. 3:1; Jn. 10:36 [check the verses in the Holy Bible].

Come to think of how they cheat people. Choosing only verses that suits their argument and connects it to other verses is very unprofessional practice for its ignorant ministers. They’re liars and cheaters and deceivers.

"By its fruit, you will know them," says Christ Jesus (Mat. 7:20). But I say, but its founder you can judge them.

And the “Last Messenger” they so revere deified to an angelic state was just the best liar and deceiver. Using Biblical standards for a divinely envoy would deride their assertions: Zoom this .jpeg file but for now, here’s what’s in the letter:

Philippine Mission Churches of Christ Leslie Wolfe Carrie A. Wolfe P.O. Box 8774 Manila, P.I. Oct. 14, 1933 Mr. Salvador Laspinas, 1535 Felix Huertas, Int. C., Manila Dear Bro. Laspinas: I have your letter of Oct. 7th. You know I am sick. I am not able to give you all the information about Felix Manalo that you desire. He was a student in our mission and I was one of his teachers. We had him employed as an evangelist, paying him a salary. He was minister for the church at Singalong for some time. His wife accused him of cruelty and of adultery. She came to my house and showed the wounds which Felix had made by blows on her back. I called the doctor who is now in Manila to examine her wounds. The church at Singalong had an investigation of Felix. The wife of Felix came andmade complaints, but Felix did not come. The church at Singalong voted that Felix was guilty of the charges of his wife. As a consequence we took away the salary that we were giving to Felix. Then Felix left us. I do not have further personal knowledge of the life of Felix. There was, however, a Teresa who studied with us. It was proven in court that Felix was the father of her child. Bro. Baronia has much typewritten information about Felix Manalo and especially about the Teresa case, which he says he will be glad to furnish to any one desiring the information. I hope you will be able to continue your work and that you will be very successful. I am Cordially your, Leslie Wolfe

[source: http://www.pipeline.com/]

You must have heard ROSITA TRILLANES. She's a member of the newly founded Iglesia ni Cristo during its early years but later accused Felix of immorality. ExamineIglesiniCristo has its archive copy.

From these extracted facts, for me, the only reason why an INC sticks its nose to Manalo's church is pride and unwillingness to submit himself to Christ's founded church' Authority, although overwhelmingly, historical facts alone can prove that the church which Christ founded is still alive and vibrant. Wikipedia says about the Catholic Church

"[T]he Catholic Church,[note 1] is the world's largest Christian Church representing over half of all Christians and one-sixth of the world's population.[6][7] It comprises 2,782 dioceses grouped into 23 particular rites—the Latin Rite and 22 smaller Eastern rites. The pope, currently Benedict XVI, is the Church's highest earthly authority in matters of faith, morality and Church governance.[8] The community is made up of an ordained ministry and the laity; members of either group may belong to organized religious communities[...]

"With a history spanning almost two thousand years, the Church is one of the world's oldest institutions,[20] and has played a prominent role in the history of Western civilization since at least the 4th century[...]

"The Catholic Church traces its foundation to Jesus and the twelve Apostles.[25] It sees the bishops of the Church as the successors of the apostles and the pope in particular as the successor of Peter, the leader of the apostles[...],

The final proof is its own admission printed in their PASUGO that "the Catholic Church is the true Church of Christ...

PASUGO Nobyembre 1940, p. 23:

Iisa lamang ang tanging makapagtatayo ng Iglesiang magiging dapat sa Dios. Kung sino-- ang ating Panginoong Jesu-Cristo lamang! Sino mang tao-- maging marunong o mangmang, maging dakila o hamak-- ay walang karapatang magtayo ng Iglesia"

PASUGO Mayo 1968, p. 7:

Ang tunay na INK ay iisa lamang. Ito ang Iglesiyang itinayo ni Cristo. Kung mayroon mang nagsisibangon ngayong mga Iglesia at sasabihing sila man ay Iglesia ni Cristo rin, ang mga ito ay hindi tunay na Iglesia ni Cristo kundi huwad lamang."

PASUGO Mayo 1954, p. 9:

Alin ang tunay na Iglesia? Ang Iglesiang itinayo ni Cristo sa Jerusalem."

PASUGO Abril 1966, p. 46:

Ang Iglesia Katolika na sa pasimula ay siyang Iglesia ni Cristo."

I don't need to prove it further...

A Dangerous Symbol

This is only a symbol Catholics use. It represents their faith in Christ who was crucified and died to bring life to all. While others hate it, Catholics and other Christians love it and displays it with honor, reverence and pride.

To some, it attracts violence. Windshields are smashed by those who oppose it's truthfulness. Others within Christianity sees it as "Catholic symbol" than Christ's salvific suffering to "free" all men and women from the bondage of sin.

It is a symbol of contradiction-- it means peace for some and conflict for some. No matter how other people see this sacred symbol, this cross will always represent the whole truth about salvation. This symbol will always stands high amidst persecution, death threats, bullets, bombs, and insults. If they have insulted and persecuted the Master, we are not even greater than him. So rejoice, have the courage to make this simple yet so powerful symbol to say the least of your true faith in the Lord Jesus.