Iglesia ni Cristo: Oh Yes! We don't have official website, you better gonna see a minister

Plaridel, a pseudonym of an INC blogger Arephenos is a member of the Iglesia ni Cristo, once caught cheating just like what many INC bloggers did. Below is his response to an earlier post entitled Iglesia ni Cristo is a CULT! by Fr. Tom Martin.

Catholic Preist [sic] Got this wrong. "I was reading CD2000's blog and there was a post there entitled "Iglesia Ni Cristo -Cult!" The quotes this guy named Tom Martin. I went to the link  wthat CD2000 placed on his blog and it went directly to the post of Tom Martin. Tom Martin Claims to be a Catholic Priest in the last sentence of the first paragraph of his post. He also claims the following:[...] "The Iglesia Ni Cristo Has no official blog or website. The blogs of INC Members are unofficial this cannot be held as references on debates and arguments. What Website did this guy even go to? He dint provide a link so we don't know about what he saw but i say to you that they may be unofficial [...] What kind of god do the INC have by demanding "Still no official site."

OK. Two things Plaridel was most uncomfortable with Tom Martin's post. First, that INC do not demand 10% from its members. Second, they do not have OFFICIAL WEBSITE. Yet one might be wondering, something is smelling fishy here, don't you think?

West Java: Catholics celebrate Christmas Mass in a parking lot

by Mathias Hariyadi
An order by Bogor Regency prohibits members of the Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church from engaging in any public activity, ostensibly because they lack a proper place of worship. Muslim extremist groups increasingly threaten Indonesia’s Christians.

Jakarta (AsiaNews) – Hundreds of members of Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church in Parung (West Java) celebrated Mass under the sun and in a tent set up in the parking lot of the Marsudirini Elementary School. Bogor Regency chief’s prohibition of Christmas celebration was thus not repealed despite repeated attempts by Tulang Kuning Church leaders to negotiate with local authorities.

The latter justified their decision citing the lack of a permit to build a church. Without it, the local parish is not allowed to perform any public functions even on its own land.

According to Indonesia’s constitution however, no one has the right to prohibit any religious community from practicing its faith and celebrating its rites and services. Yet with the rising influence of Islamic radicals, the constitution has been repeatedly violated as local authorities kowtow to Muslim extremists and show greater hostilities towards Christians.

The Parish of Saint John the Baptist has at least 3,000 members. In April of this year, dozens of Muslim extremists threatened those from the community in Tulang Kuning, preventing them from celebrating Easter Mass.

The World from The Hill: Bipartisan effort pressures Obama to help Iraq's Christians

By Bridget Johnson

Comments can be read at JihadWatch.org

Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill are fervently pressing the White House to stem mounting attacks on Christians in Iraq.

Fearful of fresh violence in Iraq, many of the oldest sects of Christianity in the ancient biblical land are planning low-key Christmas celebrations this year.

Since 2004, 40 Christian churches and institutions have been bombed, according to the Chaldean Assyrian Syriac Council of America, seven on the eve of Orthodox Christmas alone in 2007.

In a recent letter to President Obama, the group warned that the current situation “promises more innocent Christian blood in Iraq, more turmoil in that country, and more shame for America.”

Lawmakers hope they can steer the attention of the White House to the intensifying violence.

Pope denounces attacks on Christians in Nigeria, Philippines

By AFP

Pope Benedict XVI deplored Sunday the "absurd violence" against Christians after attacks on churches in Nigeria and the Philippines over the Christmas holiday.

"It was with great sadness that I learnt about the attack on a Catholic Church in the Philippines during the celebrations for Christmas and also against Christian churches in Nigeria," the pope.

"The earth is once again stained with blood as we have seen in other parts of the world," Benedict added in his Angelus address at The Vatican, as he offered his condolences to the victims of the "absurd violence".

Christmas and the Iglesia ni Cristo

You might be asking, Do Iglesia ni Cristo members celebrate Christmas? Well, base on my experience, they say they don't but they demand Christmas bonuses from their companies, they visit friends and join Christmas parties, they greet one another Merry Christmas and they even enjoy a Christmas holiday break. And more appalling is what you see below (from Manila Balita):

Photos Taken from Facebook "IGLESIA NI MANALO CHRISTMAS CONTRADICTION"

Here's what we got from their Official Magaine PASUGO about Christmas!

ANG PALAGAY NG IGLESIA NI CRISTO SA PASKO taken from Ang Katotohanan Tungkol sa INK-1914 ni Julian Pinzon 1-PASUGO Disyembre 1956, p. 34: (sinulat ni Benjamin T. Villalba) “It strikes people as odd that members of the Church of Christ (Iglesia ni Cristo) do not celebrate Christmas. (ang Iglesia ni Cristo ay tuwirang hindi nagdiriwang ng Pasko ng kapanganakan ni Cristo).” 2-PASUGO Disyembre 1957, p. 28: (sinulat ni Emeliano I. Agustin) (Patula) “Ang diwa ng Pasko ay kapayapaan; Nang mundong naglunoy sa lusak ng Buhay; Mabuting balita sa kinalulugdan; Pagsilang ni Jesus sa abang sabsaban." Napakagulong talaga ang mga Ministrong ito na inaralan ng Anghel Felix Manalo. Isang taon lamang ang pagitan, ay binago na naman ang kanyang paninindigan tungkol sa Pasko. Kahabag-habag ang anghel nilang ipinaglalaban ng pukpukan. KABUUAN NG PAKSA: •Ayon sa Magasing PASUGO, si Ginoong F. Manalo ay nangaral na hindi siya nagtatangi ng mga tao at hindi sinasarili ang kaligtasan. Ang kanyang turong aral na ito, ay siya rin ang nagpapawalang saysay, sapagkat pinatunayan din ng PASUGO na sinasarili niya ang kaligtasan. •Ipinapangaral ni G. Felix Manalo na ipinagdiriwang ang Paskong kapanganakan ni Cristo, at ipinangaral din na hindi ipinagdiriwang, sapagkat aral daw ng mga Pagano ang pagdiriwang ng Pasko. (Sa gayon ay salu-salungatan ang aral na itinuro). •Ipinangaral din na hindi masamang ipagdiwang ang kapanganakan ninumang tao huwag lamang iuukol sa pagsamba sa Dios. Ngunit ang kanyang kaarawan ay iniuukol sa pagsamba sa Dios at pati ang kaarawan ng kapanganakan ni Erdy Manalo.

At Christmas, Pope urges end to Mideast Christians' pain

File Photo: New York Times

By AFP

VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict XVI urged an end Saturday to conflict in the Middle East and support for the region's Christians, saying those living in Iraq needed comfort from their pain after deadly attacks.

In his traditional Christmas Day address delivered at the Vatican, the pope also called for human rights to be respected in Afghanistan and Pakistan as well as for an end to the turmoil in African troublespots.

And there was a plea for reconciliation on the Korean peninsula along with a rebuke for the Communist rulers in Beijing over what he said were the limitations placed on Christians living on the Chinese mainland.

Fears for the safety of the Middle East's dwindling numbers of Christians were heightened in late October when Islamist militants laid siege to a church in Baghdad, leaving 44 worshippers and two priests dead.

An Al-Qaeda affiliate group has also issued death threats to Iraqi Christians in recent days, warning them against celebrating Christmas.

Iglesia ni Cristo - Cult!

An article from Tom Martin's Reflections saying that the Iglesia ni Cristo of Felix Manalo IS A CULT. Why so? Read his article below or you can read it directly in his blog:

Today, I took a taxi from SM Mall, Davao, Philippines to my home in El Rio. As soon as I got in the taxi the driver said, “Sir, I would like to invite you to my church.” I knew right away he was not Catholic, because Catholic’s do not invite anyone to their church. I ask him what was his church and he said, “The one and only TRUE church, the Iglesia ni Cristo.” I told him, “I think it is great you invite people to your church. I wish Catholics did that, but I am not interested in attending your church. I am a Catholic priest.”

Read More here!

Crowds pack Bethlehem to hear message of peace

BETHLEHEM, Palestinian Territories (AFP) – The Middle East's senior Catholic cleric called for peace and reconciliation in a traditional Christmas Eve midnight mass before thousands in the birthplace of Jesus Christ.

"During this Christmas season, may the sound of the bells of our churches drown the noise of weapons in our wounded Middle East," Latin Patriarch Fuad Twal told an audience that included Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.

Pilgrims from around the world gathered in St. Catherine's Church on Bethlehem's Manger Square to hear the traditional address in the city where Christians believe Jesus Christ was born.

As peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians remain stalled, Twal offered a vision of a better, more peaceful future.

Iraq town cancels Christmas after Qaeda threats

Debris litters the street outside the Sayidat al-Nejat Catholic Cathedral. The rescue drama on Sunday (Oct. 31) night, two months after US forces formally concluded combat operations in Iraq, ended with two priests among at least 46 slain worshippers. Photograph: AFP

By AFP

KIRKUK - Al-Qaeda threats against Christians have led to Christmas festivities being cancelled in the northern Iraqi oil hub of Kirkuk, its Chaldean Catholic archbishop said on Tuesday.

"The Christians of Kirkuk will not celebrate the feast of Christmas this year, except for masses, which will not be held at night but at 10 am, after myself and 10 other Christian personages received threats from the so-called Islamic State of Iraq," Monsignor Louis Sarko told AFP.

"I fear that Christians will be targeted, which is why all ceremonies have been cancelled."

The Iraqi affiliate of Al-Qaeda, the ISI, claimed responsibility for an October 31 attack on a cathedral in Baghdad in which 44 Christian worshippers, two priests and seven security force personnel were killed.

It said it acted to force the release of people who had allegedly converted to Islam from Christianity and were being detained by the Coptic Church in Egypt. Days later it declared Christians everywhere "legitimate targets."

Wanted: Former Catholics by Catechism on Call

Soruce: Catechism On Call - Did you leave the Church because you disagree with or don’t understand its teaching on abortion, birth control or homosexuality? Did the sexual abuse scandals wear you out? Did you feel that your spiritual needs were unmet by Parish life or the Mass as you experienced it? If you describe yourself as a former Catholic or “recovering Catholic,” you should give the Church a second look.

There are a million reasons that Catholics leave, but more often than not, they’ve left because of poor formation (nobody taught them the faith), scandal (seeing or hearing about a priest, sister or some other Catholic do something that was clearly sinful or just plain hurtful) or because they’re living in a way that separates them from God, and don’t care to have the Church remind them of this reality.

It’s true: there are hypocrites and sinners in the Church, but the head of the Church – Jesus Christ – is not a hypocrite nor a sinner. Sinners have been with the Church from day one, the apostle Judas is certainly proof of that.

Judas was hand-chosen by our Lord, yet still gave into the temptation of evil. This is not new – but the sins of Judas, Parish priests, mothers, next door neighbors or your own sins – do not change the reality that Jesus Christ is God.

Plight of Iraq Christians dire: Holy Land prelate

Latin Patriarch Fuad Twal

By AFP

JERUSALEM - In a sombre pre-Christmas address Tuesday, the Middle East's senior Catholic cleric expressed concern about the plight of Iraqi Christians and the collapse of talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

Jerusalem's Latin Patriarch Fuad Twal offered his solidarity and support to Christians in Iraq after a bloody October hostage-taking at a Baghdad cathedral that killed 44 worshipers, two priests and seven security force personnel.

"We were shocked and troubled by the massacre of Christians in Baghdad in the Church of Perpetual Help," Twal said in his Jerusalem headquarters.

"We condemn this violence. It's a pity to empty Iraq of its Christian citizens... It's a pity for us, for the Muslims themselves, for Iraq, for the Christians themselves.

Vatican City using pirated software?

This popup warning from AVAST definitely alerts the Vatican.
Source: Catholic Answers Forum username markomalley)

Many bloggers and those who are against pirated softwares (like me) are very quick in pointing an accusing finger to Pope Benedict XVI for detecting two usernames under the domain .va which believed to be using a pirated software of an anti-virus AVAST. In a Catholic Answers Forum, one thread concludes that "The Vatican is a software pirate" and there were some individual bloggers who wanted the head of the Pope on a platter and there are those knowledgeable in Info. Tech explaining to us rationally why such things could happen within the Vatican State. We should take note that the Vatican State is a country and all domain coming from within its jurisdiction would fall under the .va domain but not necessarily the Vatican State as responsible.  According to Markomalley, there are possible reasons why those two users could be found under the domain .va. markomalley said:

"It sounds to me like they got the list of IP addresses not from monitoring all the Warez sites, but rather from people going in and getting virus definitions from their location using this license key to validate the download.

• In light of that, it could feasibly be a pretty innocent thing. Not to say that somebody within the .va domain could not have gone to a warez site and downloaded it, but there are a couple of other possibilities that are just as likely (and, in some cases, even more likely):
• - A person could have picked up a CD for 5 euros that had this software on it (I've seen disks for sale with a lot of "freeware" / "shareware" on them in the strangest places)
• - Somebody could have sent their PC or laptop in for repair, tuning, or virus cleaning and the shop could have installed this software on it. There are a million and one little mom and pop computer shops out there -- they could have done that as a "free" service.
  

'Islamization' of Paris a Warning to the West

Sarkozy to call Muslims' blocking streets to pray "unacceptable"
JihadWatch.org

The fact that public thoroughfares are being blocked for Muslim prayer is almost a side issue in this story, which instead takes the opportunity to accuse Sarkozy of a "lurch to the right," fixating on the farthest of far-right politicians it can identify. But this should not be a left-right issue, and it would not be, were a politically fashionable group not at its center.

If, hypothetically, followers of some other prophet were blocking Paris streets to recite prescribed prayers to their one, true god, Rick, would this behavior be tolerated of the Rickyites for a moment? Possibly once, or twice, but then the novelty would wear off, and it would be time to move along.

But no, to protest conduct on the part of Muslims that would not be tolerated of other groups is to be branded a member of the "far-right," which, as always, is mainstream media-speak for "scares children, barks at other people's dogs, and makes Cratchit work on Christmas."

"Nicolas Sarkozy to target Muslim prayers," by Matthew Campbell for The Australian, December 20 (thanks to Captain Nemo):

Unbowed, Vatican Issued Letter to Chinese Catholic Representatives

Shame on China!

Vatican Note on Assembly of Chinese Catholic Representatives

"Its Unfolding Manifests a Repressive Attitude With Regard to the Exercise of Religious Liberty"

VATICAN CITY, DEC. 17, 2010 (Zenit.org).- Here is the communique issued today by the Vatican press office on the 8th Assembly of Chinese Catholic Representatives, which was held Dec. 7-9 in Beijing.

* * *

1. With profound sorrow, the Holy See laments the fact that from 7 to 9 December 2010 there was held in Beijing the Eighth Assembly of Chinese Catholic Representatives. This was imposed on numerous Bishops, priests, religious and lay faithful. The manner in which it was convoked and its unfolding manifest a repressive attitude with regard to the exercise of religious liberty, which it was hoped had been consigned to the past in present-day China. The persistent desire to control the most intimate area of citizens’ lives, namely their conscience, and to interfere in the internal life of the Catholic Church does no credit to China. On the contrary, it seems to be a sign of fear and weakness rather than of strength; of intransigent intolerance rather than of openness to freedom and to effective respect both of human dignity and of a correct distinction between the civil and religious spheres.

Multitudes of Saints in Revelations 7:9 worshipping the Lamb, I wonder how many were born before 1914?

From 1914 since the supposed "restoration" of Christ's Church in the Philippines through the revered "Last Messenger" Felix Manalo, I am wondering how many souls really went to heaven that they became part of the "multitudes" worshiping God who sits on the throne, the LAMB who was slain and was raised?

Here is what's written in Revelations 7:9-19. Figure it out yourself if how many Iglesia ni Cristo who would be worshiping THE LAMB who sits on the THRONE when they teach that the LAMB was just a man,

Biggest mosque in Europe opens in Netherlands finance by the ruling family of the UAE

While Muslims always boast of their gradual domination in the Western hemisphere, Muslims in the Middle East and other Muslim dominated states PROHIBITS Christians from building their own church without their approval. If Christian churches were ever built, they are NOT ALLOWED to have a bell or a cross built on top of those churches?!.They even persecute its own people just because they are Arab Christians!

Here is an example of Islam's failure to reciprocate.

Western Europe's biggest mosque opens in Netherlands
By AFP

THE HAGUE - Western Europe's biggest mosque opened on Friday in the Dutch city of Rotterdam, five years behind schedule with organisers blaming obstruction from far-right politicians for the delay.

The mosque, which is built with two 50-metre (164-feet) high minarets, can accommodate 3,000 worshippers and will be a centre for charity, mutual understanding and forgiveness, said its chief adminstrator Abdelrazak Boutaher.

JESUS CHRIST FOUNDED ONLY ONE CHURCH

Report shows Christianity is the most persecuted religion in the world

Prayers for Iraqi Christians around the world

The persecution of Christians in the ‘Muslim world’

ChristiansOfIraq and WorldMag

Dec. 15, 2010

The New York Times this week ran a front-page article on Christian persecution in Iraq, noting, “A new wave of Iraqi Christians has fled to northern Iraq or abroad amid a campaign of violence against them and growing fear that the country’s security forces are unable or, more ominously, unwilling to protect them.” The Times goes on to inform us that “more than half of Iraq’s Christian community, estimated to number 800,000 to 1.4 million before the American-led invasion in 2003, have already left the country.”

What is the Obama administration doing to put pressure on the al-Maliki government in Baghdad to stop these murders of Christians? We have heard endlessly of this administration’s “outreach to the Muslim world.” That term—“Muslim world”—may itself be part of the problem. By telling Shia and Sunni Muslims that the Middle East is their world, are we not saying that Middle Eastern Christians and Jews don’t belong there?

The Christian community in Iraq has been there since the beginnings of the Church. Bible readers will recognize Nineveh Province, one of the regions in modern-day Iraq. Didn’t some biblical character named Jonah have a rendezvous with destiny there? The Chaldean Assyrian Christians—note their Bible name—speak Aramaic, which is the language scholars tell us Jesus spoke. Yet these people, too, are being driven away.

'Exodus' of Iraqi Christians after church attack: UNHCR

Photo Source: ChristiansofIraq

By AFP
GENEVA - The UN refugee agency said Friday an "exodus" of thousands of Iraqi Christians was taking place following a deadly church attack in Baghdad carried out by Al-Qaeda militants at the end of October.

"Since the Baghdad church attack on 31 October, and subsequent targeted attacks, the Christian communities in Baghdad and Mosul have started a slow but steady exodus," said Melissa Fleming, spokeswoman of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

"At the moment, with this particular group, we have noticed that there is an exodus taking place," she said, adding that "we know thousands have fled."

Some 44 worshipers, two priests and seven security force personnel, were killed during the seizure of the Baghdad cathedral and ensuing shoot-out when it was stormed by troops.

Around 60 other people were wounded in the bloodbath, and the five militants who carried it out were also killed.

The woes of Egypt's Christians this Christmas

Vatican Radio - More than 150 people, many of them minors, remain in jail following the November 24th clashes between Egyptian security forces and Coptic Christians protesting the block on construction of their new church near Giza. Security forces opened fire on the unarmed crowd, killing three people and injuring dozens. A four year old child died after suffocating from tear gas.

Fr. Rafic Greische is the director of communications for the Catholic Church in Egypt. Speaking from Cairo, he told Tracey McClure Copts and Muslims have organized small protests calling for the release of the many children who were among those arrested.

Besides the Giza tensions, Fr. Rafic speaks of growing unease of Egypt’s Christians after the October attack by Islamic extremists on a Syriac Catholic church in Baghdad, Iraq – killing 58 people and wounding scores.

The terrorists were demanding the release of two Christian Egyptian women whom they alleged had converted to Islam. Fr. Rafic suggests the women, married to Coptic priests in Egypt, had left their husbands over domestic troubles and were now too afraid of public reaction to their alleged conversion – or non conversion – to come out of hiding.

RG “There is really a problem for people who want to change their religion – and that is where the Muslim fundamentalists become violent and make demonstrations. They threw the picture of (Coptic) Pope (Shenouda) on the ground and burned it...these things increase the tension in Egypt”

Church spokesman: Islamic fundamentalists want all Christians out of Mideast

CatholicCulture.org - Father Rafic Greische, spokesman of the Catholic Church in Egypt, spoke with Vatican Radio about recent difficulties faced by Egyptian Christians, including the imprisonment of Christians who protested the government’s refusal to permit the construction of a church.

“This is what the Muslim fundamentalists want: they want the Christians to evacuate from the Middle East and leave (the region to them),” he said. “And this is what is happening every day… and the governments do not take serious action to relieve or solve these problems.”

Only 0.3% of the Egypt's 77.6 million people are Catholic, according to Vatican statistics; some 9% are Coptic Orthodox.

New attack against Christians in Iraq. Girl kidnapped from her home in Mosul

Gunmen broke into the house on the evening of December 15 in Mosul and forcibly abducted the student. Patriarch Ignatius III Younan denounces cover-up of the terror targeting Iraqi Christians. (What are you doing Mr. Barak Hussein Obama? -CD2000)

AsiaNews - Mosul (AsiaNews / Agencies) - A new attack on the Christian community in Iraq. On the evening of December 15 armed militants abducted a young Christian female student from her home in Iraq’s northern city of Mosul. The gunmen burst into her home in Mosul’s Karaj neighbourhood overnight and drove her away to an undisclosed location, according to the Ankawa Christian news website. The girl is a student of a local technical institute.

It is the latest in a string of attacks against the country's Christian community, once 100 thousand Christians lived in Mosul, but now only five thousand live in the area, due to growing wave of religious fundamentalism, and attacks against them. The Iraqi government decided only days ago to protect Christian churches with three meter high concrete walls, to avoid tragic incidents like the attack on the Syrian-Catholic Cathedral in Baghdad Oct. 31.

In his homily of 10 December the Syrian Catholic Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III Younan asked the Iraqi government to ensure the safety of all Iraqi citizens, and particularly Christians, "people who are honest, peaceful and helpless."

Life on Hold for Egyptian Christian Arrested for his Faith

Source: Compact Direct News

Reactions can be read at JihadWatch.org

Unresolved charge of ‘defaming religion’ leaves him in perpetual limbo.

CAIRO, Egypt, December 16 (CDN) — An Egyptian who left Islam to become a Christian and consequently lost his wife, children and business is waiting to see if the government will now take away his freedom for “defaming” Islam.

Ashraf Thabet, 45, is charged with defaming a revealed religion, Article 98f of the Egyptian Penal Code. The charges stem from Thabet’s six-year search for spiritual meaning that eventually led him to become a Christian. During his search, he shared his doubts about Islam and told others what he was learning about Jesus Christ.

Local religious authorities, incensed at Thabet’s ideas, notified Egypt’s State Security Intelligence service (SSI), which arrested and charged him with defamation. If found guilty, Thabet would face up to five years in jail. But because prosecutors have made no move to try the case, Thabet lives in limbo and is subject to a regular barrage of death threats from people in his community in Port Said in northeast Egypt.

Grant me Serenity, Lord

"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference."

St. John of Martha, pray for us.

Pope receives the ambassadors of Nepal, Zambia, Andorra, Seychelles and Mali

Circus trapezists perform for Pope Benedict XVI in the general audience

Open letter to Inactive Catholics...

"If you were baptized a Catholic, you’re a Catholic for life – even if you haven’t been to Mass for years, even if you’ve renounced the title and joined another Church. Your baptism infused your soul with Catholic DNA – it defines who and what you are."

BY BISHOP THOMAS J. TOBIN

Source: lefleurdelystoo blog

Bishop Tobin

My dear Brother or Sister: In the spirit of the Advent and Christmas Season, and as the Diocese of Providence nears the end of its “Year of Evangelization,” I’m writing this letter to inactive Catholics of our Diocese – perhaps you’re in that category – to let you know that we miss you, we love you and we want you to come home to the Church.

The first dilemma I faced in writing this letter was how to describe you – an “inactive Catholic,” a “fallen-away Catholic” or a “former-Catholic.” I chose the first option.

[Find Bishop Tobin on Facebook]

I decided against “fallen-away Catholic” for it suggests someone falling off a fence or out of a tree. The image isn’t helpful.

And there’s really no such thing as a “former Catholic.” If you were baptized a Catholic, you’re a Catholic for life – even if you haven’t been to Mass for years, even if you’ve renounced the title and joined another Church. Your baptism infused your soul with Catholic DNA – it defines who and what you are.

Thus, I’ve chosen the title, “inactive Catholic,” because even though you haven’t been “active” in the Catholic community for awhile, especially by attending Sunday Mass, receiving the sacraments and otherwise participating in the life of the Church, you’re still a Catholic. Sorry . . . you’re stuck with us!

A Saintly Boy Adam in Baghdad Confronted Islamic Terrorists: 'Enough, Enough, Enough'

"Little Adam used his reason. “Enough, enough, enough,” he said, for two hours to the Islamists, before they murdered him. So it was that Adam, the Christian fundamentalist, fell under the “sword” of the Islamic fundamentalists. Nowhere is there a more clear example of Islam, the violent political/religous system vs. Christianity, where all are called to be “as little children” who must try to use reason with Muslim aggressors, than in Adam, a little Catholic boy who, in my humble opinion, will someday be known as St. Adam of Baghdad, the youngest saint of the Catholic Church."  

Adam of Baghdad: “Enough, Enough, Enough”
Posted By Lisa Graas on December 14, 2010
[Read the Complete Article here...].

Proudly Pinoy Church in New Zealand

Coptic Church Ecumenical Day of Prayer and Solidarity for Christians Suffering in Egypt

Our Coptic brothers and sisters are asking for our prayers on December 4, 2010 at 10:30 am. Let us remember those suffering Christians in Egypt, as well as those persecuted Christians in Iraq, in Iran, in Pakistan, in India, in Sudan and elsewhere and remember to pray for the souls of those who went ahead of us.  In particular let us pray for the Church of Christ that we may soon become ONE CHURCH. -Catholic Defender. (visit copticchurch.net)

His Holiness Pope Shenouda III of the Coptic Church

As the world follows the unfortunate events affecting Christians in Egypt and experiences the pain and injustice they face because of their faith, the Coptic Orthodox bishops of the United States, including Their Graces Bishop Serapion, Bishop Youssef, Bishop Macarious, Bishop David, and Bishop Michael have called for a Day of Prayer and Solidarity on Tuesday, December 14, 2010 at 10:30 a.m.

Vatican Scandals, the Wikileaks and the Iglesia ni Cristo

St. Peter's Square seen on top of St. Peter's Cathedral in Vatican overlooking the eternal City of Rome.

I woke up the other day reading a bad news from Maktoob. As I was reading the article I thought this news would definitely be circulated in anti-Catholic blogs. WikiLeaks’ series of controversial “Classified Cables” posted on its website which were illegally obtained from the US cables targeted the Vatican by exposing an alledged mishandling of its banking system. Two days later after this news came out, an Iglesia ni Cristo cult member was found rejoicing over this story and posted it in a forum which has nothing to do with the topic

Unable to confront the intelligence of Catholic Apologists and Defenders of the Catholic Faith here's at Monk's Hobbit blog an Iglesia ni Cristo member by the pseudonym artsee came up with these Wikileaks scandals as his weapaon attacking the Catholic Church.  All he thought is that by these latest scandals, it would make is Iglesia ni Manalo the real church.

Note: Bro. Quirino Sugon cut short this INC member's feasting (read below) when Bro. Quirino told him that there were worse scandals in the church than that.  One commentator said, these scandals are not new to us, we always admit that we have sinners in the Church as well as saints. That's the reason why Jesus left us with the Sacrament of Reconcilliation because he knew very well that some members would commit sin:

Three Nuns leaving the Anglican Church to join the Catholic Church

Aerial view of the Walsingham shrine (Photo: walsinghamvillage.org)
Photo Source: Damian Thompson

Thanks to Fr. John Zuhlsdorf's Blog and to Ordinariate Portal for this Press Release. Here's the statement:

“On 2nd December 2010, Sr. Wendy Renate, Sr. Jane Louise and Sr. Carolyne Joseph left the Priory of Our Lady in Walsingham for a period of discernment with the intention of joining the Ordinariate when established. We ask prayers for ourselves and for the Sisters remaining at the Priory of Our Lady.

Email address: sisterswjc[at]gmail.com”

"Lives of fear for Iraqi Christians" from BBC News

By Jim Muir
BBC News, Baghdad
Reactions can be read at JihadWatch.org

A week after the worst single disaster to afflict Iraq's Christians in modern times, the Catholic cathedral in central Baghdad where the killing took place was back in business.

With its windows still smashed and walls scarred and pocked by blasts and bullets, the building had been quickly cleaned up in time for a service at exactly the same hour as the killers struck a week earlier.

As the cathedral was being readied for its first service since the attack, a senior Iraqi cleric in London, Archbishop Athanasios Dawood, called on Iraqi Christians to flee the country because it was so dangerous.

"If we stay, they will kill us," he told the BBC after addressing a congregation of Iraqi Orthodox Christians at a service in London.

"Which is better, to flee or to stay? To be killed or to be alive? But when I say 'leave', my heart is injured inside."

But in Baghdad itself, both Church leaders and Christian politicians seemed unanimous in urging their communities to stay.

We are the Christians of Iraq مَنْ نكونُ نحنُ مسيحيو العراق؟

Adam, the Little Christian Boy Who Confronted Islamic Terrorists

Pray for us, Martyrs for the Church!

Ancient Nestorian Church Monastery Discovered in UAE

Believed to be Nestorian ancient (1,400 years) monastery was discovered in the Arab Peninsula (United Arab Emirates) and will be open for public on Saturday. Nestorius (Nestorian Schism condemned by the Church during the First Council of Ephesus in 431 AD and Council of Chalcedon ) promulgated another Christology (away from the Orthodoxy) prominent in the the Arabian Peninsula that probably influenced Islam's prophet Mohammad 's concept of "Christology" denying the deity of Jesus in Arabia. The said ancient monastery is believed to be abandoned in the year 750AD during the Islamic expansion (persecuting non-Muslims) in the whole of the Arabian Peninsula. - Catholic Defender

By AFP

A general view of the United Arab Emirates' only discovered Christian monastery on November 29, 2009, in Sir Bani Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. Photograph: MARTIN PFEIFER/ TDIC/AFP

DUBAI - A 1,400-year-old monastery that is the only known pre-Islamic Christian site in the United Arab Emirates has opened to visitors, The National newspaper reported on Sunday.

The monastery on Sir Bani Yas island in Abu Dhabi emirate is "believed to be the only permanent settlement ever established on the island" and "the only pre-Islamic Christian site known in the UAE," it said.

It is believed to have been built around 600 AD by a community of 30-40 monks and was discovered in 1992, said the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Development Company which is developing the island.

Dr Joseph Elders, the chief archaeologist for the Church of England, is leading the team excavating the site, the company said in a statement.

"Twenty years ago, we had no idea that Christians came this far south and east" in the Gulf region, The National quoted Elders as saying. "We don't have many monasteries from this period."

The people who lived at the monastery probably belonged to the "Nestorian Church, or Church of the East," it said, adding that the settlement was abandoned after about 750 AD.

It opened to the public on Saturday.

Be Patient

"Like children pining for Christmas morning, we know what it means to wait for what we desire. Whether it is the safe arrival of loved ones from afar or a recovery from cancer, we wait in prayer and patience, hope and trust. Angelus Sibelius advises, "If in your heart you make a manger for his birth, then God will once again become a child on earth."

— from Catholic Update

Chinese bishops deported to attend Patriotic Assembly

by W. Zhicheng - Z. Yuan

The gathering, incompatible with the faith of Catholics, aims to elect the Presidents of the Patriotic Association and the Council of Bishops. Some bishops have gone into hiding to avoid having to participate, while others have been taken against their will. The bishop of Hengshui, seized and torn from the safe cover of the faithful, dragged to Beijing.

[Read also The return of the Cultural Revolution: Chinese bishops imprisoned or hunted like criminals]

Beijing (AsiaNews) - AsiaNews sources say that some bishops and priests of the official Church have been forcibly deported to the capital to ensure their participation at the Assembly of representatives of Chinese Catholics, which the pope considers incompatible with Catholic faith.

The Assembly opened today in Beijing on a low profileand is being shrouded in secrecy: it is impossible to contact anyone and not even Xinhua is reporting on the event. The meeting should lead to the election of the national president of the Patriotic Association and president of the council of Chinese bishops, two bodies that are unacceptable to the Catholic Church because they aim to build a separate Church, detached from the pope. "It's just an election of a new round of leadership," said Liu Bainian, vice president and chairman of the PA Assembly. In fact, the gathering is the "sovereign body" of the official Chinese church in which bishops are a minority among Catholics and government representatives. Ecclesial decisions are made on the basis of rigged elections. Ahead of today's meeting, Liu Bainian had sent all participants clear indications of what to do and what to vote.

Pope : an appeal against intolerance, violence and suffering in the world

Benedict XVI recalls the "continuous attacks" against Christians and Muslims in Iraq, clashes in Egypt with "casualties" and victims of traffickers and criminals, like the Eritreans seized in the Sinai desert. He asks us to hear God's voice that resonates today "in the desert of the world."

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Benedict XVI at the Angelus today called on the faithful "to hear God's voice, echoing in the wilderness of the world through the Holy Scriptures, especially when preached with the power of the Holy Spirit." And speaking after the Angelus he recalled the dramatic situations of violence, intolerance and suffering in Iraq, in Egypt and the victims of traffickers and criminals in the Sinai Desert.

The Pope recalled the figure of St. John the Baptist, " who, according to a famous prophecy of Isaiah (cf. 40.3), withdrew into the wilderness of Judea and through his preaching, called the people to repent in order to be ready for the imminent coming of the Messiah. St. Gregory the Great says that the Baptist preaches the true faith and good works ... so that the penetrating power of grace, the light of truth shine, the pathways to God straightened and honest thoughts are born in souls after listening to the Word that leads to all good".

Muslims Terrorizing Sweden, 1 died

Islamization is one of the many problems Europe and the Americas is facing today. The pandemic threat of Islamic terrorism is a fact we all have to face. Muslims' failure to assimilate in our free society damages our own system because they use our democracy and our freedom to demand for their rights but are not ready to reciprocate either. They brag about Muslim converts but killed those who leave Islam. Now they want our cities under their spell. May God protect our cities. -Catholic Defender

One dead after suicide bombing in Stockholm
Source: The Local Sweden's News in English

Two nearly simultaneous explosions rocked central Stockholm on Saturday evening, killing one person and injuring two others in what is believed to be a suicide attack.

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The fatal blast occurred just minutes after a car exploded on another nearby street sending two people to hospital.

Roughly ten minutes before the explosions, Swedish news agency TT received an email telling Muslims in Sweden and Europe it was "time to take action".

Sveriges Television (SVT) reported that both explosions, which occurred about 200 metres from one another, were part of a suicide attack in the Swedish capital.

In Iran, a Christian pastor faces death sentence

Comments from Zolardrew: Iran is waging a war against Christians. This is not good. The Middle Ages are coming back. Bring back the Crusaders!

Photo Source: allvoices.com

(CNN) -- A Christan pastor in Iran has been sentenced to death for allegedly renouncing his Muslim religion and another faces a possible indictment on the same charge of apostasy, according to a prominent activist group working for human rights in Iran.

Youcef Nadarkhani, a 32-year-old member of the Church of Iran ministry and pastor of an approximately 400-person congregation in the northern city of Rasht, faces death, according to the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran.

In the southern city of Shiraz, another Christian pastor, Behrouz Sadegh-Khanjani, 35, is facing a possible indictment for apostasy.

"This is part of a greater trend of persecution against Christians," said Firouz Sadegh-Khanjani, brother of Behrouz and member of the Church of Iran's Executive Council.

Christians are feeling the heat in other parts of the Muslim world as well.

The Baghdad Assyrian Church Massacre: Waiting for Godot!

(AINA) -- When the Church of Our Lady of Salvation in Baghdad was seized by terrorists on October 31, 2010, Al-Qaida's Iraqi affiliate, the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), claimed responsibility and defined churches as "The dirty place belonging to the infidels that Iraqi Christians have long used as a base to fight Islam."

The well-organized attack on civilian parishioners and priests resulted in a terrifying hostage takeover. As the drama unfolded, it became one of the bloodiest massacres against the Assyrians since the beginning of the 2003 Iraq War. Three priests and 58 non-combative parishioners were murdered and dozens of terrorized men, women and children wounded, leaving a nation forever emotionally bewildered and scarred. Amnesty International called the barbaric attack a "war crime" while worldwide, Assyrians view this massacre as yet another attempt to uproot their existence from the Middle East.

In a press release, ISI stated: "All Christian centers, organizations and institutions, leaders and followers, are legitimate targets for the mujahedeen (holy warriors) wherever they can be found."

However, the selection of Christian Assyrians as "legitimate targets" by fundamentalists is not a new phenomenon. One can find similar events throughout the course of history.

But why do they want to target the Christian Assyrians?

Islamization of the West Prided by Muslims

Indeed the world has changed for the past 20 years.

Today, our Banking system have changed, our Aviation security proceedures have changed; our Passports and visas are strictly scrutinized; We distrust each other between THEM and US; All because of ISLAMIZATION and the pandemic GLOBAL threat of ISLAMIC TERRORISM living within our civilized cities, enjoying our liberty, our democracy, demanding their rights while they DO NOT reciprocate it.

Muslims around the world may brag about their growing population in Europe however they simply cannot distinguish who is a real Muslim; the one who prays regularly but do not integrate to Western culture or the one who seldom prays but live humanly or someone who prays hard and terrorize many?

This video below shows how Muslims living in the West unites silently for ISLAMIZATION. They want their presence to be felt. God bless Europe and the Americas!

Where We Got the Bible: Our Debt to the Catholic Church

Photo Source: Catholic Gift Store

by The Right Rev. HENRY G. GRAHAM,

Author of "Hindrances to Conversion," etc.

Twenty-second Printing

Nihil Obstat et Imprimatur JOANNES RITCHIE, Vic. Gen.
Glasguae.

Dedicated to all lovers of the written word.

'In which are certain things hard to be understood, which the unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, to their own destruction.' 2 Peter iii. 16

'I would not believe the Gospel unless moved thereto by the authority of the Church.' - St. Augustine (Contra Epis. Manich., Fund., n. 6.)

CONTENTS

Preface
IntroductionChapter I.     Some Errors Removed
Chapter II.    The Making of the Old Testament
Chapter III.   The Church Precedes the New Testament
Chapter IV.   Catholic Church Compiles the New Testament
Chapter V.    Deficiencies of the Protestant Bible
Chapter VI.   The Originals and their Disappearance
Chapter VII.  Variations in the text Fatal to the Protestant Theory
Chapter VIII. Our Debt to the Monks
Chapter IX.    Bible Reading in the 'Dark Ages'
Chapter X.     Where then are all the Mediaeval Bibles?
Chapter XI.    Abundance of Vernacular Scriptures before Wycliff
Chapter XII.   Why Wycliff was Condemned
Chapter XIII.  Tyndale's Condemnation Vindicated by Posterity
Chapter XIV.  A Deluge of Erroneous Versions
Chapter XV.   The Catholic Bible (Douay)
Chapter XVI.  Envoi

Read MORE...

On ISAIAH 9:6 twisted by an Iglesia ni Cristo blogger

Now someone has joined the the anti-Catholic bashing group from the Iglesia ni Cristo cult founded by Felix Manalo Ysagun and incorporated it in July 27, 1914 who introduced himself as Engr. Renante Nate. Just like readme Conrad J. Obligacion, this newbie INC blogger is a trying hard historian and theologian. Of course, we can never be too sure of his opinion since he DOES NOT HAVE any official INC teaching to back up his opinion.

Thanks to Manila Balita introducing us another "notorious" INC Defender like Conrad J. Obligacion who owns resbak.com and readmeinc.blogspot.com.

Posted in Thursday, November 5, 2009, Article Title: ON ISAIAH 9:6, he said that the title given to Jesus as Emmanuel or Immanuel (God with us) is Theophory.

What is Theopory? According to Wikipedia, Theopory "refers to the practice of embedding the name of a god or a deity in, usually, a proper name."

Such that Isaiah 9:6 which says:

For a child is born to us, a son is given us; upon his shoulder dominion rests. They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero, Father-Forever, Prince of Peace.

Kasagutan kay Ahmed Deedat

Maraming artikulong paninira sa Kristianismo at sa Iglesia Katolika ang nalimbag ni Ahmed Deedat, isang iskolar daw ng Islam na tumutuligsa sa mga katuruan ng Kristianismo.

Bagamat matalas ang wikang ginagamit ni Ahmed Deedat ng walang kaabog-abog. Narito ang mga artikulong maaaring basahin upang maliwanagan sa mga kasinungalingan ni Ahmed Deedat.

• Ahmed Deedat sa Tumbukin Natin ni Cenon Bibe
• Answering Deedat 
• Response to Ahmed Deedat by Dar Al-Masih
• A Refutation of Ahmed Deedat's Crucifixion or Cruci-Fiction? by jaymann777

India: Darjeeling’s ‘miracle’ draws thousands

By Julian S Das, Sonada
UCANews

Photo of the "bleeding crucifix" in Sonada

A bishop in eastern India says the “first miracle” in his diocese has strengthened his people’s faith and attracted people of other religions.

“Our people are overjoyed at the first public miracle,” Bishop Stephen Lepcha of Darjeeling told ucanews.com on Nov. 26. “This has strengthened the faith of the people,” he added.

The bishop said the “miracle” occurred Nov. 20 when a priest and two couples preached a retreat for some novices of Claritian congregation at Dirnberger Niketan, Sonada, in West Bengal state.

A crucifix began to bleed when a woman preacher, a recent convert from Islam, prayed in her room in the morning. “Soon other crucifixes, rosaries and a big statue of Mary in the house began to bleed,” the prelate narrated.

Bishop Lepcha said he visited the place the next day and saw the crucifix and the Marian statue. He also met Mary, the Muslim who became a Catholic on Aug. 7.

The prelate quoted the woman from Kerala, southern India, as saying the Blessed Virgin had separate messages for the bishop, priests and people.

Somali Teenage Girl Shot to Death for Embracing Christ

Nurta Mohamed Farah, 17, had fled parents who tortured her.

NAIROBI, Kenya, December 3 (CDN) — A 17-year-old girl in Somalia who converted to Christianity from Islam was shot to death last week in an apparent “honor killing,” area sources said.

Nurta Mohamed Farah, who had fled her village of Bardher, Gedo Region to Galgadud Region to live with relatives after her parents tortured her for leaving Islam, died on Nov. 25. Area sources said they strongly suspected that the two unidentified men in Galgadud Region who shot her in the chest and head with a pistol were relatives or acting on their behest.

“Reports reached the relatives in Galgadud that Nurta Farah had converted to Christianity,” one source said. “The suspicion that the family is responsible is a solid one. The sister was killed in Abudwaq, a district in Galgadud Region, and the place where the incident took place is about 200 meters from where the sister was staying with relatives.”

Marian Apparition in US Declared Worthy of Belief

Photo Source: datelinezero.com



Our Lady Appeared in 1859 to Belgian Immigrant in Wisconsin

GREEN BAY, Wisconsin, DEC. 8, 2010 (Zenit.org).- On today's feast of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of the United States, apparitions of Our Lady in Wisconsin have been given official diocesan approval.

Reading from his decree at a special Mass today at the Champion, Wisconsin, shrine, Bishop David Ricken of Green Bay stated, "I declare with moral certainty and in accord with the norms of the Church that the events, apparitions and locutions given to Adele Brise in October of 1859 do exhibit the substance of supernatural character, and I do hereby approve these apparitions as worthy of belief -- although not obligatory -- by the Christian faithful."

Today’s declaration makes Our Lady of Good Help at Champion the first and only site in the United States of an approved apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Dazzling

The apparitions -- there were three -- occurred in 1859. Our Lady spoke with Adele Brise (1831-1896), a young immigrant from Belgium.