Religion Today Summaries - April 3, 2012

• One in Five British Abortion Clinics Breaking the Law
• Police Raid Christian Bookstore in Shanxi Province, China
• Study: Abstinence Education Reduces Teen Sexual Activity
• Game Show Will Test Bible Knowledge

One in Five British Abortion Clinics Breaking the Law

According to a government investigation, as many as 20 percent of Britain's abortion clinics may be guilty of breaking the law, Baptist Press reports. A series of unannounced raids found that more than 50 of 250 private and National Health Service clinics were in violation of the law; many clinics were failing to provide appropriate counseling, and doctors were found to be falsifying and signing consent forms before actually assessing women and their situations. "I was appalled," said Health Secretary Andrew Lansley. "Because if it happens, it is pretty much people engaging in a culture of both ignoring the law and trying to give themselves the right to say that although Parliament may have said this, we believe in abortion on demand." The government raids followed a hidden-camera investigation by The Daily Telegraph that showed doctors indicating willingness to abort unborn children based on their sex and to provide false information on written forms to hide the reason for the abortions.

Police Raid Christian Bookstore in Shanxi Province, China

Police and government officials launched a surprise raid on a lawfully operating Christian bookstore in China's Shanxi province last week, confiscating all the store's stock and taking its managers in for police questioning, China Aid reports. The Grace Like Rain bookstore, which sells Christian books, arts-and-crafts materials and audio-visual products, has been in business for four years and has all the relevant licenses and permissions to operate. The total value of the confiscated items -- including personal items like bank books, cell phones and computers -- was about 300,000 yuan (US$47,680). According to one of the store managers, Huizi, none of the officials showed any identification during the entire raid, and they threatened, insulted and verbally abused her. During the police interrogation, she was physically punished and suffered injuries. She said although the experience was frightening and stressful, she was greatly comforted by the prayers and concern of Christians around her as well as "God's miraculous protection."

Study: Abstinence Education Reduces Teen Sexual Activity

According to a new study, ninth-graders who complete the eight-lesson abstinence-education course known as Sexual Risk Avoidance are one-and-a-half times more likely to delay having sex during their teen years, OneNewsNow.com reports. The study comes at a "crucial" time when several states are revisiting their sex-education laws, says Valerie Huber of the National Abstinence Education Association. "I am really hopeful that policy-makers ... at the federal level, the state level and in communities across the country will take the results of this study very seriously when they're deciding what kind of sex-education programs to implement," Huber said. Those who oppose abstinence-centered education "can no longer say it does not work," she said.

Game Show Will Test Bible Knowledge

The Game Show Network has signed on comedian Jeff Foxworthy to host a new game show, "The American Bible Challenge," which will test contestants' knowledge of the Bible, the Christian Post reports. Contestants will share their life stories, and each team will compete for a faith-based organization. Questions will be designed to "acknowledge and celebrate the Bible's continuing importance in contemporary life and culture," according to a news release. "I am excited to be hosting a show about the bestselling book of all time," said Foxworthy, who has also hosted the Fox quiz show "Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?" He added, "It will be interesting to find out what people really know, and an opportunity to present the Bible in a fun and entertaining way."

Publication date: April 3, 2012