Religion Today Daily Headlines - January 30, 2013

Religion Today Daily Headlines - January 30, 2013

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.

In today's edition:

  • Baptist Leaders Predict 'Mass Exodus' From Boy Scouts Over Gay Member Decision
  • Pastor Saeed's Lawyer Will Appeal Eight-Year Prison Sentence
  • Vandals Desecrate Pro-Life Memorial Site Dedicated to Babies Killed by Abortion

 

Baptist Leaders Predict 'Mass Exodus' From Boy Scouts Over Gay Member Decision

The Southern Baptist Convention expressed extreme disappointment to news that the Boy Scouts of America will likely end a longtime ban on gay members, with SBC officials predicting a mass exodus out of Scouting by Baptist churches, the Christian Post reports. A vote on the matter by the BSA is planned during an executive meeting the first week of February. Dr. Richard Land, head of SBC's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, said: "This is a catastrophic decision for the Boy Scouts of America. In order to placate their East and West Coast appendages, they are tearing out the heart of their Midwest and Southern support. This decision will lead to a mass exodus of traditional, orthodox Christianity from the Boy Scouts." Albert Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, told USA Today the policy change would be "nothing less than disastrous" for the Boy Scouts. And the SBC's president, Fred Luter, a former Cub Scout and Boy Scout, also expressed disappointment. "If this is what the leadership is doing, then I think it will be a sad day in the life of the Boy Scouts of America. ... To now see this organization that I thought stood on biblical principles about to give in to the politically correct thing is very disappointing."

Pastor Saeed's Lawyer Will Appeal Eight-Year Prison Sentence

Naghmeh Abedini, the wife of Iranian-American pastor Saeed Abedini, who has been sentenced to eight years in an Iranian prison for his Christian activities, revealed that there will be an appeal against the sentence, ASSIST News Service reports. "Saeed's lawyer will appeal the court ruling within the given 20 days," she said. "We hope that the high court will overturn the verdict." During the hearing, Abedini's charges were announced as "creating house churches aimed to undermine national security and conspiring to commit crime." His wife earlier stated that when he became a Christian, "the Islamic regime considered him a criminal in his own country."

Vandals Desecrate Pro-Life Memorial Site Dedicated to Babies Killed by Abortion

Vandals in Waco, Texas, on Saturday desecrated a memorial site dedicated to unborn babies killed by abortion, the Christian Newswire reports. Rachel's Park Memorial, which features 4,000 white crosses symbolizing the number of babies aborted each day in the U.S., has been vandalized before, but this attack was by far the most devastating. Approximately 600 crosses were knocked down or destroyed, and the picket fence enclosing the park was also damaged. It remains unknown who is responsible for the damage, but the vandal left pieces of the underside of a vehicle littered throughout the park as well as automotive tires and traces of motor oil, and an employee from a neighboring business reported the incident to police on the morning of its discovery. "It appears the animosity against the pre-born knows no bounds," said the Rev. Rusty Lee Thomas, founder and director of Rachel's Park Memorial. "Not only are we content as a nation to stand back and allow the pre-born to die through the sin and crime of abortion, but now there are those among us who seek to destroy the very memory of these children as well. We pray the Lord will take this desecration and lead justice to victory and those responsible for this evil act will repent, find forgiveness in Christ, and make restitution."

Publication date: January 30, 2013

Religion Today Daily Headlines - January 30, 2013