Evangelical Convert: Renée Lin: Protestants Distort Catholic beliefs

“We distort Catholic beliefs when we presented them so that they would be easier to refute. The classic examples of course, are the Protestant arguments against ‘Mary Worship’ or ‘works-righteousness.’ By raging against two Catholic doctrines which do not exist, Protestant apologists are able to turn their readers against a hypothetical evil, rather than addressing and refuting actual Catholic teachings.” –Renèe Lin (Catholic convert, former Evangelical Protestant)

Equally guilty are the Iglesia ni Cristo Church founded by Felix Manalo in the Philippines always presenting distorted Catholic beliefs to its listeners which afterwards they can easily refute.

Simple Quiz: Alin ang TUNAY?

Alin ang TUNAY na RATAN? Yung may tatak o yung wala?

Alin naman ang TUNAY na IGLESIA? Yung may tatak o yung wala?

CNA/EWTN News: Virgin Mary 'crosses the finish line' with Olympic gold runner

London, England, (CNA/EWTN News).- Ethiopian athlete Meseret Defar provided one of the most emotional moments of the London 2012 Summer Olympic Games when she crossed the finish line in the 5000 meter race to win the gold.

She then pulled a picture of the Virgin Mary out from under her jersey, showed it to the cameras and held it up to her face in deep prayer.

An Orthodox Christian, Defar entrusted her race to God with the sign of the cross and reached the finish line in 15:04:24, beating her fellow Ethiopian rival Tirunesh Dibaba, who was the favorite to win.

A teary-eyed Defar proudly showed the picture of the Virgin Mary with the Baby Jesus that she carried with her for the entire race.

Throughout the event, Defar kept pace with three other Ethiopian runners and three from Kenya, until speeding past them on the homestretch to win gold.

The silver medal went to Vivian Cheruiyot of Kenya and the bronze to Dibaba.

Defar is also a two-time world champion in the 3000 meters. In Athens in 2004 she won the gold in the 5000 meters and in Beijing in 2008 she won the bronze.

On June 3, 2006 she broke the world record for the 5000 meters set previously by Turkish runner Elvan Abeylegesse, with a time of 14:24:53.

TIMELINE of the CATHOLIC CHURCH: In response to the Fabricated Mormon-copied Total Apostacy Doctrine of the Iglesia ni Cristo-1914

PASUGO Abril 1966, p. 46: “Ang Iglesia Katolika na sa pasimula ay siyang Iglesia ni Cristo. [The Catholic Church which from the beginning was the Church of Christ.]" (Pasugo is the Iglesia ni Cristo's Official Magazine.  The Iglesia ni Cristo cult was founded by Felix Manalo in the Philippines in 1914 and they are claiming to be the "original" church Christ founded-- without any sense of shame!

The CATHOLIC CHURCH is the CHURCH of CHRIST from the beginning till the end! [Ang Iglesia Katolika ang Iglesia ni Cristo mula sa simula hanggang sa wakas.-CD2000]

SOURCE: For Links/Historical Source please see WIKIPEDIA (Other links are additional from the blog owner)

As the oldest branch of Christianity, along with Eastern Orthodoxy, the history of the Catholic Church plays an integral part of the History of Christianity as a whole. This article covers a period of just under 2,000 years.

Over time, schisms have disrupted the unity of Christianity. The major divisions occurred in c.144 with Marcionism, 318 with Arianism, in 1054 the East–West Schism of the Catholic Church with the Eastern Orthodox churches and in 1517 with the Protestant Reformation. The Catholic Church has been the moving force in some of the major events of world history including the evangelization of Europe and Latin America, the spreading of literacy and the foundation of the universities, hospitals, Western monasticism, the development of art, music, literature, architecture, the scientific method, and trial by jury. Also playing a role in world affairs including, the Inquisition, the Crusades, an analytical philosophical method, and the downfall of communism in Eastern Europe in the late 20th century.

Ministry of Jesus and founding

• c. 4 BC: Nativity of Jesus. According to the Gospel of Luke, his birth occurred in the town of Bethlehem during the reigns of King Herod the Great of Judaea and the Roman Emperor Augustus, and he was the son of the Virgin Mary, who conceived him by the power of the Holy Spirit. Christians see Him as the Divine Son of God incarnate or God the Son.

Although the calculations of Dionysius Exiguus put the birth of Jesus in the year that in consequence is called AD 1, history places his birth more likely some time between 6 and 4 BC.

IGLESIA NI CRISTO: EXAMINED by CATHOLIC ETERNAL TRUTH

Source: Bro. Isahel N. Alfonso's Catholic Eternal Truth - Iglesia ni Cristo is an indigenous cult founded on July 27, 1914 in the Philippines, this religious cult was founded by Felix Manalo y Sagun born May 10, 1886 in Barrio Calzada Taguig Rizal. He was born from of Catholic parents and was baptized in a Catholic Church.

Felix Manalo did not understand the Catholic faith, from then on he keep on hopping from one church to another, later on he become a Colorumism, Methodist, Presbyterian, Alliance of Christian Missionaries and lastly Adventist.

Discontented by what he learned from these churches he later on founded his own Church and named it Iglesia ni Cristo. In 1919 Felix Manalo went to America to study theology at Pacific School of Religion however his name does not appear in the list of student who enrolled in the said University, it is also odd that a messenger of God an angel (according to their doctrine) got his theology from a protestant university not from God himself.

In 1920 Felix Manalo’s moral integrity was questioned both in public and in court, a certain member of INC named Rosita Trillanes made a letter that exposed the abuses of Felix Manalo to her and other women. Here is the letter of Rosita Trillanes made public in the Official Gazette of July 1942;

“Brother: Because of my love for the Church and for your welfare, I wrote you to confess what really happened to me and those things that I witnesses and knew during my two years stay in the central. I am a maiden who became a member of the Church of Chris in Batangas. My parents and brothers hated and disowned me. In my belief that I will find protection, I agreed that I be brought to our central office by Brother Jacinto Tories. When I was already there, I experienced the most bitter and painful thing in the life of a maiden like me when Manalo, whom I considered as a father, abused me. At first, he courted me but when I refuse to accede to his wishes he struck and beat me which rendered me unconscious; and when I was already unconscious he raped me. There I suffered much because of the ill treatment, beating and threat that I received whenever I protested against his lewd designs. I also witnessed many who have been raped by Felix Manalo; others are maidens; others are wives of members while the other one is a wife of a minister. Manalo himself told me about the others who were his victims when he was persuading me to accede to his wishes. He told me about fifty women whom he took advantage of. I could not reveal their names to cover their dishonor, but they frequently went to the central office. In my presence he attempted to violate a maiden who was pregnant and who happened to live in the central office also at the special insistence of Manalo. Probably the reason why Liloy resigned was because of Manalo attempted to rape Amanda. All those who have been his victims were afraid to speak because they were threatened that they will be killed if they speak, like he did with Basiha Santos of Paco who pointed Manalo as the father of her two children. This was current in Paco.

The Mega Mosques Boom

"The mosques are our barracks, the domes our helmets, the minarets our bayonets and the faithful our soldiers." - Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan

AINA - Murfreesboro, a city in the heart of Tennessee, and, Marseille, France's second-largest city and its largest city on the Mediterranean coast, have few things in common. The two cities are separated by nearly 5,000 miles, and by equally wide divisions of language and culture. And yet Murfreesboro and Marseille are connected by a common challenge. Both cities have struggled against the creeping rise of the mega mosques.

The mega mosque in Marseille has been the subject of an extended legal fight going back a decade. The one in Murfreesboro had a briefer history of being on the wrong side of the law. But in both cases elected officials did their best to aid the mega mosques while ignoring local residents and the law.

The mega mosque business is booming around the world. The Marseille mega mosque has a proposed capacity of 7,000 seats which would make it the largest mosque in France, overshadowing the Ervy mosque which has a mere 5,000 seats. Both of these French mega mosques would have been dwarfed by a proposed London mega mosque with 12,000 seats and usability targets as high as 40,000. If the London mosque is ever built, it will dominate the Mosque of Rome, currently the most mega of all the mega mosques of Western Europe.

The Ground Zero Mosque, located near the site of the most brutal Muslim atrocity inflicted on the West in centuries, had a more modest 2,000 seating capacity plan, but would be vertically taller than most of the mega-mosques with a proposed 100,000 square feet of space. This would make it larger than the Marseille mega mosque, the Murfreesboro mega mosque and the London mega mosque. But despite their differences in size, all four mega mosque projects have followed the same pattern of lawsuits, public protests, exposures of shady mosque backers and public officials eager to look the other way.

The Cologne mega mosque in Germany has also followed the same pattern and is set to become the biggest mosque in Germany. But big is never big enough. The Stockholm mega mosque was finished in the year 2000 and has a capacity of 2,000, but a decade later there was already a proposal to replace it with an even larger mega mosque. At its current size the Stockholm mega mosque had already managed to feature sermons in support of Islamic terrorism and serve as a recruitment center for Al-Qaeda. At several times the size the situation could only get worse.

In yet another common pattern of mega mosques, the Stockholm mega mosque was funded primarily by Sheikh Zayed, the ruler of the United Arab Emirates. The Cologne mega mosque was primarily funded by Turkey's Islamist government. The Marseille mega mosque is being funded by a number of foreign Muslim governments.

Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan has said, "The mosques are our barracks, the domes our helmets, the minarets our bayonets and the faithful our soldiers." The foreign funding of mega mosques has raised the question of whether Muslim governments aren't constructing their own barracks and armies in the middle of European cities.

In some cases the militarization of the mega mosque is so overt that it might as well be a bayonet. One of the most blatant examples may be the Copenhagen mega mosque with a capacity of 3,000 which is being financed by Iran. Iran has already constructed another mega mosque in Helsinki and has similar plans all across Europe and the world.

The Copenhagen mega mosque's Imam is Mohammed Mahdi Khademi who ran the ideology department of the Revolutionary Guard militia, an arm of the theocratic regime, which was designated a foreign terrorist organization by the United States. It would be hard to imagine a more explicit example of mega mosque militarization than a regime that sponsors acts of worldwide terror funding a mega mosque headed by the former Islamist political commissar of its terrorist wing.

Not to be left out the Sunnis are getting their own Copenhagen mega mosque funded by Saudi Arabia. This will involve an architectural "mountain" across from the University of Copenhagen topped by two minarets, transforming the Sunni-Shiite rivalry into a competition to create the biggest Islamist eyesores in a city generally known for a quieter brand of architecture.

It's not only in the West that the mega mosques are rising. In Moscow, Muslims have taken over entire streets to call for the construction of new mosques. And the Saudis have already offered to cover the cost.

In China, Saudi money has been transforming mosque designs from the Chinese pagoda to the dome and minaret favored by their new patrons. The more traditional Chinese look of the Great Mosque of Xi'an is making way for the Xiguan Mosque, a monstrous 3,000 capacity mega mosque which looks as if a chunk of Saudi Arabia had been dropped into the middle of Lanzhou.

In Argentina, a year after the bombing of the Jewish center by Muslim terrorists, President Carlos Menem, who has been accused of complicity in the attack, allotted 7.5 acres of public land to build the King Fahd Islamic Cultural Center, the largest mosque in Latin America. It overshadows the Caracas mega mosque in Venezuela which has a capacity of 3,500. Both mega mosques were built by the Saudi royal family.

For now the Islamic Center of America, located in sunny Dearborn, Michigan where Christians can expect to be stoned if they get too close, is the largest mega mosque in the United States. The Shiite mega mosque was already the target of a Sunni Islamic terrorist plot. Nearby is the Sunni Dearborn Mosque which claims the same capacity in an extension of the Sunni-Shiite rivalry. But so long as there's oil money fueling the projects then the mega mosques will keep on growing.

From Markham in Canada down to New York City, and from the West Midlands in the United Kingdom to Sydney, Australia; cities around the world are facing the same threats to their communities. For Muslim states the mega mosque is a tool of power giving them the ability to centralize control of overseas Muslims with a single facility in a single city. For non-Muslim countries, the mega mosque is a center of subversion and terrorism.

As the mega mosque projects grow explosively across the country and the world, so does the resistance to the long shadows that they cast.

AINA: Aleppo's Christians Arm Against Islamists

Gate of the Greek Catholic Church in Aleppo

By Hugh Macleod and Annasofie Flamand

ALEPPO, Syria and BEIRUT, Lebanon (AINA) -- As evidence mounts that foreign Islamists are fighting alongside Syria's increasingly radicalized rebels, Christians in Aleppo and elsewhere are taking up arms, often supplied by the regime.

"We saw what happened to the Christians in Iraq," Abu George, a Christian resident of Aleppo's Aziza district told GlobalPost. "What is going on in Aleppo is not a popular revolution for democracy and freedom. The fighters of the so-called Free Syrian Army are radical Sunnis who want to establish an Islamic state."

While the 30-year-old shopkeeper said he had not received any direct threats from Syria's Sunni Muslim rebels, he fears a repeat of Iraq's sectarian bloodletting.

Since the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, the UN Human Rights Council estimates around half of Iraq's 1.4 million Christians have fled the country, driven out by nearly a decade of church bombings, kidnappings and sectarian murder.

Blessed Pope John Paul II in Guinness Book of Records!

When was the Church first called "Catholic"?

(Source: School of Faith) When did the term “Catholic” come into play? How did we become “Catholic” from our Jewish roots?

The first recorded use of the word “catholic” (from the Greek word for “universal”) in reference to the Church is found in the writings of St. Ignatius of Antioch, a bishop and disciple of St. John who was martyred by the Emperor Trajan in 107. Shortly before his martyrdom, he wrote several letters to various Church communities. These letters have been preserved by the Church ever since. One such letter was the Letter to the Smyrneans, where he wrote in chapter 8:

"See that you all follow the bishop, even as Jesus Christ does the Father, and the presbytery as you would the apostles; and reverence the deacons, as being the institution of God. Let no man do anything connected with the Church without the bishop. Let that be deemed a proper Eucharist, which is [administered] either by the bishop, or by one to whom he has entrusted it. Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude [of the people] also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church.”

Interestingly, Antioch is also the place where the followers of Christ were called “Christians” for the first time (Acts 11:26).

As for the second question, really the goal of all of salvation history, from the time of the fall and surely from the scattering of the nations at Babel, has been to reunite the divided, sinful family of man into the Family of God, the Church. The Church indeed is universal, as it’s the means of salvation for the whole world, Jew and Gentile alike. Surely the Jewish people played a unique role as God’s chosen people, from whom would come Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. In a real sense the Church became “Catholic” at Pentecost, when God reversed the scattering of peoples at Babel (see Catechism, no. 830).

The covenants made to the patriarchs, to Moses, and to King David all find their fulfillment in the salvation Christ brings to the world. As was promised way back in Genesis, through Abraham and his descendants all the families of the earth will find blessing (Gen. 12:3). This blessing is universal. This blessing is Catholic.

Also published at No Place Like Home, the official blog of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas. http://archkckblog.wordpress.com

CATHOLIC CHURCH: LEADING US TO THE FULLNESS OF TRUTH!

We LOVE Soccer!

Leonel Messi

Ricardo Kaka

PAANO MALALAMAN ANG PEKE SA TUNAY? Ikaw ba'y BIKTIMA?

Minsan akong dumaan sa may Baclaran at Divisoria. Napansin ko na ang dami-daming mga naggagandahang mga gadgets , mobile phones, damit, sunglasses, bags, accesories -- LAHAT ay kuha sa pangalang BRANDED-- Kapangalan ng mga SIKAT at BRANDED na bagay at ang mga ito ay ibinebenta lamang sa mas murang halaga kumpara sa mga department stores.

Ang bansag natin dito ay "MADE IN CHINA" kung PEKE!

Kung papansinin niyo ang mga PEKENG mga produkto, halos sila'y NAGKUKUMPULAN sa mga LIBLIB at TAGONG lugar na dinarayo naman ng mga tumatangkilik nito. At HINDI sila nag-a-advertise ng kanilang mga PEKENG produkto sapagkat ALAM ng gumawa na PEKE nga ang kanilang gawa.

At kapag ginawa niya iyon ay MAPUPUNA sila ng mga taong NAKAKAKILATIS ng TUNAY sa PEKE at MALALANTAD ang kanilang masamang gawain. Ang mga NAMEMEKE lamang ang NAKAKAALAM kung paano nila ginagawa ang PAMEMEKE at PAMBOBOLA sa mga namimiling WALANG MUWANG sa katotohanan.

Hindi naman natin minamaliit ang mga kababayan nating "bagong salta" sa kabihasnan (o "promdi" kung tawagin ng mga taga-kanayunan), sila ang mga kauna-unahang mga BIKTIMA ng mga PAMEMEKE at PAMBOBOLA. 

Iglesia ni Cristo Established by Felix Manalo-- owned ONLY by the Manalos!

Extracted from Philippine Embassy, USA (emphasis mine)

Established by “Ka” (Brother) Felix Y. Manalo in Sta. Ana, Manila, on July 14, 1914, INC has grown to become one of the country’s biggest religious denominations.

The church has millions [how many millions???] of members in its more than 5,400 congregations in the Philippines and in 90 countries worldwide [composed of Overseas Filipino Workers]...

"...When Ka Felix Manalo passed away on April 12, 1963, his post was taken over by his son, Ka Eraño G. Manalo. Upon Ka Eraño’s demise on August 31, 2009, his eldest son, Bro. Eduardo “Ka Ed” V. Manalo succeeded him to become INC’s current Executive Minister." [Angelo is next in line when Ka Eduardo dies...]

Iglesia ni Cristo (1914): 98 Years of Unbiblical Pagan Celebration

Since July 27 is NOT found in the Bible (like they use to demonize December 25 as Christ's birth commemoration), does it mean the Iglesia in Cristo 1914 (INC of Manalo) celebration is all PAGAN too?

The INC Church of Manalo has celebrated its 98th Year FOUNDING anniversary last Friday when Felix Manalo, it's founder registered HIS CHURCH in 1914.

The same OUTCOME research of Mr. Damon L. Woods, a visiting professor at UCLA who earned PhD in Southeast Asian History said in his book The Philippines: A Global Studies Handbook, p. 125-127, (emphasis mine):

One of the new religious groups, started by a Filipino who broke away from American missionary authority, was the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC), the Church of Christ. It remains a dominant institution in the Philippines today, its churches and chapels with their easily recognizable architecture scattered throughout the archipelago. It was founded by Felix Manalo, who after being raised in a devout Roman Catholic home and having some contact with millenarian groups at Mount Banahaw, declared himself to be a Protestant at the age of sixteen. He first joined the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1904 and then the Presbyterian Church the following year, attending classes for a short time at the Ellinwood Bible School. IN 1908, he joined the Disciples of Christ and served as an evangelist for a year before leaving, having been accused of domestic violence. IN 1912, he joined the Sevent Day Adventists, but was supended a year later for alledged adultery. Manalo decided to start his own church and on July 27, 1914, he incorporated Iglesia ni Cristo. Beginning in Manila, the movement spread out into the provinces. By the beginning of World War II, there were churches of this new group in almost every province on Luzon and in the eastern part of the Visayas.

The doctrines of the church begin with the belief that Felix Manalo was the fulfillment of Revelation 7:1-3, which speaks of the angel from the east. Because Manalo had visited the United States in 1919 and then returned from the east to the Philippines, he proclaimed in 1921 that he was that angel. In addition, the church founded in Jerusalem by Jesus of Nazareth became apostate and did not exist from 70 CE to 1914, but was reborn with the appearance of the angel from the east. In contrast to its Protestant roots, the movement is not Trinitarian and holds the Jesus was not divine.

The movement’s phenomenal growth has been tied to various factors, beginning with the charismatic leadership of its founder, who dominated the church for forty-nine years. Not only an eloquent speaker, he was a master organizer who had absolute control. Only Manalo had authority to interpret the Bible, and he prepared the sermon outlines for his ministers. The indigenous nature of the church also made it popular.

Founded by a Filipino for Filipinos, Filipinos alone have been responsible for its activities, including the construction of its many buildings. The use of Tagalog and other local dialects, rather than English, in the services, hymns, prayers, and sermons is also important. The INC has has provided a sense of community for many. Congregations are close-knit, self-contained, and separatist in nature. Members help each other find work, and the church makes loans to those starting businesses. Members are well-trained in the tenets of their faith and, in contrast to other Filipinos, are able to defend their doctrines by quoting the Bible verses. On the other hand, the fear of excommunication keeps members from straying. One can be cast out of the church for excessive drinking or gambling, disagreement with the policies of the church, apostasy, marriage to someone outside the church, and adultery.

In brief:

• When Felix Manalo was 16, he had associated himself with cults in Mt. Banahaw and declared himself a Protestant at a young age.

• In 1904 he joined the Methodist Episcopal Church.

• In 1907 he joined the Presbyterian Church.

• In 1908 he joined the the Disciples of Christ where he was accused of domestic violence (see below), and so he left.

• In 1910 he joined the Christian Mission where he was particularly attracted to Baptism by immersion. He married Tomasa Sereneo of Paco.

• In 1911 he joined the Seventh Day Adventists founded by Helen G. White which influenced his theology much. The same year he married Honorata de Guzman of Sta. Cruz. According to Mr. Damon he was suspended by the Adventist Church for alledged adultery

• From 1912 he was an atheist and agnostic, an unbeliever in God or a supreme being.

• In 1913 he began studying all religious articles he took from former churches he belonged.

• In 1914 he founded a church and registered his it the Iglesia ni Kristo

• In 1921 sensing a threat of schism within his church through a scandal of immorality by Felix Manalo, he declared himself "Angel from the East" or "Huling Sugo".

• In 1922 his fear of schism happened. He was accused of immorality published in newspapers, that resulted in a schism led by Teofilo Ora where Eliseo Soriano, founder of Ang Dating Daan was once a member.

• In 1963, April 12, 2:35 A.M. he died, his stomach burst like Judas Iscariot's death.

Among the teachings of other protestant churches that Felix Manalo COPIED in his INC Church are the following:

1. Denial of the Blessed Trinity heavily influenced by Anabaptists and Restorationists
2. Denial of the Divinity of Christ
3. Oneness (God the Father)
4. Pope as the Anti-Christ witten in Revelations
5. Catholics are damned to eternal damnation
6. State of Dead people "dead know nothing" (Ecclesiastes 9:5), therefor reject the Doctrine of Purgatory 
7. Baptism by Immersion

According to Manalo, since 70 AD to 1914 AD Christ was a FAILURE saving NO-ONE except when in 1914 when Felix Manalo "re-establish" what JESUS' FAILED to do.  Obviously FYM DECEIVED million Filipinos of which we- members of the CHURCH OF CHRIST founded by JESUS has the mandate and responsibility to SAVE them from Felix LIES.  While they are counting their FOUNDATION ANNIVERSARY, let's recommend them to our prayers that one day they will see the TRUE LIGHT coming from the TRUE JESUS who founded the TRUE CHURCH-- the ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC, APOSTOLIC CHURCH of CHRIST!

CNA: Former atheist poet reveals details of her Catholic conversion

By David Kerr

Poet Sally Read

Rome, Italy, Jul 27, 2012 (CNA/EWTN News).- “Until two years ago, I was a really committed atheist and I really hated the Catholic Church,” said poet Sally Read, as she explained how all that dramatically changed during nine months in 2010.

“The whole process took from March to December, and I was received into the Catholic Church at the Vatican in December, so it was a bit of a lightning flash,” she told CNA on July 24.

A 41-year-old Englishwoman, Sally Read is regarded as a rising star within the world of poetry. Her publisher describes the former psychiatric nurse as “one of a new generation of younger poets shaping the future of British poetry.”

Asia News: A Muslim convert talks about Christ

by Bernardo Cervellera

By coming out openly on TV, with the danger of recognition and persecution for 'apostasy,' Mohammed Christophe reasserted the importance of conversion and baptism. In Muslim nations, various bishops and priests refuse to baptise Muslims who want to become Christian. Yet, conversion means a revolution in the relationship with God, the father, and Jesus, who gave his life, for one gives up everything putting one's life at risk.

Rome (AsiaNews) - A few days ago, the website of Notre Dame de Kabylie posted a tape in which a former Muslim, Mohammed Christophe Bilek, talked about his conversion to Christianity. The original broadcast, which focused on the persecution of Christians, first appeared in 'Dieu Merci' (Thank God), a show that deals with religion on Direct 8, a French TV channel.

Mohammed Christophe Bilek was born in Algeria in 1950 and has lived in France since 1961. He is the author of two books: Un algérien pas très catholique (A not very Catholic Algerian), published by Cerf (1999) and Saint Augustin raconté à ma fille (Saint Augustine as told to my daughter), published by Éditions Qabel (2011). In the 1990s, he founded the Notre Dame de Kabylie (in French), a website devoted to evangelisation among Muslims and Muslim-Christian dialogue.

In the video, Bilek highlights the risk Muslim converts face when accused of apostasy, an offence that can be punished by death. Nevertheless, he insists on the importance of baptism, the encounter with Jesus Christ and affiliation with the Church.

His views go against those of priests and bishops in Muslim countries, who prefer to dissuade or even deny baptism to Muslims who want to convert out of fear for the consequences they and Christian communities might face.

Is baptising banned?

By Philip Jenkins: The Myth of Pedophile Priests

Source: By Fr. Dwight Longenecker Patheos Blog

As more pedophile priest scandals blow up across Europe we should be ashamed of the offenders and those who sheltered them and oppressed the victims. The guilty should be weeded out, removed from office and handed over to the civil authorities where they are guilty of crimes. Systems to avoid abuse must be established and rigorously maintained, and victims should be justly compensated for their suffering.

However, Penn State professor Philip Jenkins (who is not a Catholic) has written the most objective book on the subject, and he summarizes his arguments in this excellent article. In light of his work, we should remember some basic facts and principles:

• Priestly celibacy is not the issue – married men are more likely to abuse children than unmarried

• Most child abuse takes place within the home.

• All religious groups have pedophile scandals, and the Catholics (while the largest religious group) are at the bottom of the list statistically.

• Child abuse is prevalent in all areas of society: schools, youth organizations, sports, etc.

• Statistically, of all the professions, Christian clergy are least likely to offend. Doctors, Farmers and Teachers are the professions most likely to abuse children–not clergy.

• Among clergy offenders Catholic priests are least likely to offend.

• Catholic cases of pedophilia make more headlines because of anti Catholic prejudice and because the Catholic Church is bigger and more lucractive to sue.

• Pedophilia and Euphebophilia are different problems. The former is sexual attraction to pre-pubescent children. The latter is attraction to teenagers. Most cases branded ‘pedophila’ are actually ‘euphebophila.’

• Most of the cases of euphebophilia are homosexual in nature, however the politically correct do not want this problem to be associated with homosexuality.

• The number of Catholic priests guilty of pedophilia is very small.

• What we now call ‘cover up’ was often done in a different cultural context, when the problem was not fully understood and when all establishment organizations hushed scandals. They did so for what seemed good reasons at the time: protection of the victims and their families, opportunity for rehabilitation of the offender, the avoidance of scandal to others. It is unfair to judge events thirty years ago by today’s standards.

• When lawsuits are looming people smell money. We must be wary of false accusations.

• The accused must be entitled to a fair hearing. The church should insist on hard proof of the abuse, and for the sake of justice, ensure that the innocent are not prosecuted.

• When guilt is established the offender must be punished, not sheltered.

• Distinctions must be made between types of abuse. Some offenses are worse than others. Verbal abuse or corporal punishment during a time when that was acceptable, while lamentable, is not the same as sexual abuse or extreme physical abuse.

• Sexual abuse of an adult, or a sexually experienced older teenager is wrong, and damaging, and should be punished, but it is not the same as the sexual abuse of a younger, innocent child.

• Number of offenses must be considered. One lapse is not of the same seriousness as repeated, persistent and premeditated offenses.

I am in no way wishing to be soft of pedophiles and those who covered for them, however justice and truth demand an objective analysis of the facts.

The Myth of Pedophile Priests

By Philip Jenkins

Source: Zenit.org

Every day, the news media have a new horror story to report, under some sensational headline: Newsweek, typically, is devoting its current front cover to "Sex, Shame and the Catholic Church: 80 Priests Accused of Child Abuse in Boston." Though the sex abuse cases have deep roots, the most recent scandals were detonated by the affair of Boston priest John J. Geoghan.

Though his superiors had known for years of Geoghan´s pedophile activities, he kept being transferred from parish to parish, regardless of the safety of the children in his care. The stigma of the Geoghan affair could last for decades, and some Catholics are declaring in their outrage that they can never trust their church again.

No one can deny that Boston church authorities committed dreadful errors, but at the same time, the story is not quite the simple tale of good and evil that it sometime appears. Hard though it may be to believe right now, the "pedophile priest" scandal is nothing like as sinister as it has been painted -- or at least, it should not be used to launch blanket accusations against the Catholic Church as a whole.

Nag-iisa lamang ang Iglesia ni Cristo

Banal na sambahan ng Iglesia ni Cristo sa Vailankanni, Sumatra, Indonesia. Ito ay ang Annai Velankanni o Our Lady of Good Health (Source: Elisasjourney)

Ito ang TUNAY na IGLESIA NI CRISTO!

May mga nagsusulputan pong mga ibang iglesia at nagpapakilalang mga "Iglesia ni Cristo" raw sila o "Church of Christ", ano pa man ang wikang gamit sa pagpaparehistro, mapa-Ingles o Tagalog o ibang wika, hindi po sila maaaring Iglesia ni Cristo sapagkat IISA lamang po ang itinatag ni Cristo na Iglesiang para sa kanya.

Ang sabi po ng nagtatag sa Mateo 16:18:

"Ikaw ay Pedro at sa ibabaw ng batong ito itatayo ko ang aking iglesia at ang pintuan ng Hades ay hindi magsisipanaig sa kaniya."

Sa mga pahayag ng nagtatag na si Cristo, malinaw at tahasan niyang sinabing HINDI ITO MATATALIKOD dahil hindi magsisipanaig ang kapangyarihan ng Hades dito.

Samakatuwid ang lahat ng mga nagsusulputang mga Iglesia rin daw sila ay hindi mga tunay kundi mga huwad o peke.

Narito ang ilang sa mga nagsisulputang parang mga kabute na nagpapanggap na Iglesia ni Cristo:

• The Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints (Mormonism) itinatag noong 1820 ni Joseph Smith  at sinabi niyang siya ay "Huling Propeta" ng Dios.
• Iglesia ni Cristo (INC o INK) itinatag ni Felix Y. Manalo noong 1913 at nirehistro sa Pilipinas noong 1914. Ipinangaral ni F. Manalo na siya'y "Huling Sugo" noon lamang 1922.
• Kabanalbanalang Iglesia ng Dios kay Kristo Hesus itinatag ni Teofilo D. Ora noong 1922 na dating kaanib ng INC ni F. Manalo.
• Iglesia ng Diyos kay Kristo Hesus, Haligi at Suhay ng Katotohanan itinatag ni Nicolas Perez na dating mga kaanib ng INC tatag ni F. Manalo at dati ring kaanib ng iglesiang tatag ni T. Ora. Nirehistro niya ang kanyang iglesia noong 1936
• Iglesia ng Diyos kay Kristo Hesus, Haligi at Saligan ng Katotohanan na tatag naman ni Eliseo Soriano ng "Ang Dating Daan"
• Ang mga Kaanib sa Iglesia ng Dios kay Kristo Hesus, Haligi at Saligan ng Katotohanan sa Bansang Pilipinas, Incorporated tatag ni Eliseo Soriano noong 1979
• Bayan ng Katotohanan Incorporated tatag ulit ni Eliseo Soriano noong 1993
• Iglesia ni YHWH at ni YHWSA HMSYH, Inc. tatag ulit ni Eliseo Soriano noong 1994
• Members Church of God International o ang mas kilala sa pangalang "Ang Dating Daan" ay kay Eliseo Soriano rin, itinatag noong Enero 13, 2004

Ngunit ang Iglesiang tatag ni Cristo ay nanatiling NAG-IISA at tumatawid na po ito sa IKATLONG SIGLO!  At ang mga TUMALIKOD ay siyang mga nagsipagtatag ng kanilang mga iglesia gamit ang pangalan ni Cristo o ang Dios na ngayon ay UMAANGKING sila raw ang orig.

Ang IGLESIA po ni CRISTO ay maaring tawagin sa ano mang sinasalita ng tao, mapa-Tagalog, Ilocano, Bisaya, Ingles, Intsik, Koreano, Arabic, Pranses, Niponggo, etc, ng wala pong pagbabago sa kanyng pagkakakilanlan.

Hindi po mahirap ang pagkakakilanlan nito dahil laganap po ang Iglesia ni Cristo sa buong mundo. Ang kanyang pagpapakilala ay may KRUS sa kanyang mga bahay sambahan (maliban sa Gitnang Silangan na kinokontrol ng mga Muslim).

IGLESIA KATOLIKA - tangi at nag-iisang IGLESIA NI CRISTO at kailanman ay HINDI mananaig ang kapangyarihan ng Hades sa kanya.

Christian Convert Beheaded on Egyptian TV

GodReports have this terrible story.

Video footage of a convert from Islam to Christianity being murdered by Muslims has been shown on Egyptian TV, according to the Barnabas Fund.

The graphic incident, which is reported to have taken place in Tunisia, was aired on a program called Egypt Today.

The footage shows a young man being held down by masked men with a knife to his throat. One man chants a number of Muslim prayers in Arabic, mostly condemning Christianity. The man holding the knife to the Christian convert’s throat begins to cut, slowly severing the head amid cries of “Allahu Akbar” (“god is great”).

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Please say a prayer for this man, his family and all the Christians in danger because of their belief in Christ.