70 years ago: Allied occupying authorities in Japan abolish State Shinto

On December 15, 1945, Assistant Adjutant General Colonel H.W. Allen, on behalf of Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers in Japan General Douglas MacArthur, issued the Shinto Directive, abolishing state support for the Shinto religion, the faith that had provided the religious underpinning for Japanese militarism and imperialism.

Notable passages of the Shinto Directive include:

It is hereby directed that:

a. The sponsorhsip, support, perpetuation, control and dissemination of Shinto by the Japanese national, prefectural, and local governments, or by public officials, subordinates, and employees acting in their official capacity are prohibited and will cease immediately.

b. All financial support from public funds and all official affiliation with Shinto and Shinto shrines are prohibited and will cease immediately...

...c. All propagation and dissemination of militaristic and ultranationalistic ideology in Shinto doctrines, practices, rites, ceremonies, or observances, as well as in the doctrines, practices, rites, ceremonies, and observances of any other religion, faith, sect, creed, or philosophy, are prohibited and will cease immediately...

...f. All public educational institutions whose primary function is either the investigation and dissemination of Shinto or the training of a Shinto priesthood will be abolished and their physical properties diverted to other uses. Their present functions, duties and administrative obligations will not be assumed by any other governmental or tax-supported agency...

...h. The dissemination of Shinto doctrines in any form and by any means in any educational institution supported wholly or in part by public funds is prohibited and will cease immediately...

...j. The use in offcial writings of the terms "Greater East Asia War" (Dai Toa Senso), The Whole World Under One Roof (Hakko Ichi-u), and all other terms whose connotation in Japanese is inextricably connected with State Shinto, militarism, and ultra-nationalism is prohibited and will cease immediately.

k. God-shelves (Kamidana) and all othe physical symbols of State Shinto in any office, school, institution, organization, or structure supported wholly or in part by public funds are prohibited and will be removed immediately...

...m. No official of the national, prefectural, or local government, acting in his public capacity, will visit any shrine to report his assumption of office, to report on conditions of government or to participate as a representative of government in any capacity or observance.

2 a. The purpose of this directive is to separate religion from the state, to prevent misuse of religion for political ends, and to put all religions, faiths, and creeds upon exactly the same basis, entitled to precisely the same opportunites and protection. It forbids affiliation with the government and the propagation and dissemination of militaristic and ultra-nationalistic ideology not only to Shinto but to the followers of all religions, faiths, sects, creeds, or philosophies...

...c. The term State Shinto within the meaning of this directive will refer to that branch of Shinto (Kokka Shinto or Jinja Shinto) which by official acts of the Japanese Government has been differentiated from the religion of Sect Shinto (Shuha Shinto or Kyoha Shinto) and has been classified as a non-religious cult commonly known as State Shinto, National Shinto, or Shrine Shinto.

d. The term Sect Shinto (Shuha Shinto or Kyoha Shinto) will refer to that branch of Shinto (composed of 13 recognized sects) which by popular belief, legal commentary, and the official acts of the Japanese Government has been recognized to be a religion.

e...(1) Sect Shinto will enjoy the same protection as any other religion.

(2) Shrine Shinto, after having been divorced from the state and divested of its militaristic and ultra-nationalistic elements, will be recognized as a religion if its adherents so desire and will be granted the same protection as any other religion in so far as it may in fact be the philosophy or religion of Japanese individuals.

...f. Militaristic and ultra-nationalistic ideology, as used in this directive, embraces those teachings, beliefs, and theories which advocate or justify a mission on the part of Japan to extend its rule over other nations and peoples by reason of:

(1) The doctrine that the Emperor of Japan is superior to the heads of other states because of ancestry, descent, or special origin.

(2) The doctrine that the people of Japan are superior to the people of other lands because of ancestry, descent, or special origin.

(3) The doctrine that the islands of Japan are superior to other lands because of divine or special origin.

(4) Any other doctrine which tends to delude the Japanese people into embarking upon wars of aggression or to glorify the use of force as an instrument for the settlements of disputes with other peoples.

The first dramatic result of the Shinto Directive was that Emperor Hirohito issued the Humanity Declaration on January 1, 1946, denying that he was a living god.

A more recent example of the effects of the Shinto Directive occurred on February 18, 2002, when U.S. President George W. Bush and his wife Laura visited the Meiji Shrine in Tokyo (and the allegedly "Christian" Mr. Bush committed an act of worship, angering Christians in Japan and South Korea. As reported by The Japan Times, February 19, 2002:

U.S. President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, on Monday visited Meiji Shrine, a major venue for Shinto worshippers in Tokyo.

Bush and the first lady paid their respects by bowing in front of the main shrine hall before signing a registry book, including a brief comment on their visit.

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi did not accompany Bush to the shrine, apparently to avoid a stir over the constitutional separation of state and religion.

However, Koizumi later joined Bush on the grounds of the shrine to watch a display of “yabusame,” or traditional mounted archery.

The shrine in Shibuya Ward is dedicated to Emperor Meiji (1852-1912) and his consort, Empress Shoken (1850-1914). The emperor was famous for transforming Japan from an isolated and feudal country into a modern world power during his reign. Bush’s visit was said to symbolize Japan’s need to take bold reform steps.

Originally built in 1920, the shrine was destroyed by a U.S. air raid on April 14, 1945. It was rebuilt in 1958.

The visit was arranged at the request of Bush, who reportedly hoped to get a sense of the country’s traditional culture...

...When former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan visited the shrine on their visits to Japan, the prime ministers at the time also declined to accompany them.

Koizumi angered Japan’s neighbors in August when he visited Yasukuni Shrine, which is dedicated to Japan’s war dead, including Class-A Japanese war criminals. He did not specify at that time whether he was visiting in a private or official capacity.

It's hard to imagine in 2015 that an American governing authority would officially prohibit a religion of militarism and imperial conquest.

Santeria priest charged in Connecticut with snatching bodies from Massachusetts mausoleum

Lets hear it, let's really hear it, for diversity! As reported by Jesse Leavenworth and Kristin Stoller in the Hartford Courant, December 5, 2015:

HARTFORD — A man who was arrested after skeletal remains of five bodies were found in his apartment said he was using the bones in his religion, police said Saturday.

The tenant of the apartment where the remains were seized, Amador Medina, 32, told investigators that he had the bones for use in Santeria, an Afro-Cuban religion that originated in West Africa, Deputy Chief Brian Foley said. At least one of the skeletons was clothed, apparently in the garments the body was buried in, Foley said.

Taken from Hope Cemetery in Worcester, Mass., the remains were recovered in Medina's Preston Street apartment on Friday afternoon. Medina was arrested in Hartford and charged as a fugitive from justice in Massachusetts, police said. He was cooperative and showed officers where the skeletal remains were located, police said. He said he used the bones in ceremonies and for healing, Foley said.

The Worcester Telegram & Gazette reported late Saturday that a Massachusetts arrest warrant for Medina includes five counts of disinterment of bodies. Police said the bodies of three adults and two young children were taken from caskets in a mausoleum at Hope Cemetery. and the theft was discovered about two months ago, the newspaper reported.

Inscribed with the name, "Houghton," the mausoleum was secured by two wooden doors and a wrought iron gate with a heavy gauge chain and lock, the paper reported. The chain had been cut, police said. The last time a person was interred in the mausoleum was about 70 years ago, according to the Telegram.

Santeria ("The Way of the Saints") developed in Cuba among slaves and spread throughout Latin America and the United States. The religion combines aspects of Catholicism and deities worshiped in West Africa.

Some believers practice animal sacrifice. News reports from around the country about decapitated goats, chickens and other animals have been linked to rituals of Santeria.

As reported by Nick Kotsopoulos of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette, December 6, 2015:

WORCESTER - A Hartford man has been arrested in connection with the theft of five sets of skeletal remains from a mausoleum in Hope Cemetery that were found in his home Friday afternoon.

Amador Medina, 32, of 245 Preston St. in Hartford was arrested by Hartford police at his home and charged with being a fugitive from justice in Massachusetts.

He was arrested in connection with a warrant for his arrest issued by Worcester police. In that warrant Mr. Medina is charged with five counts of disinterment of bodies, conspiracy to commit a crime (disinterment of bodies), and accessory before the fact (breaking and entering with intent to commit a felony).

Mr. Medina is to be arraigned in Hartford on Monday.

Worcester police, meanwhile, confirmed Saturday night that a mausoleum at Hope Cemetery was broken into nearly two months ago and that skeletal remains were found to be missing from damaged caskets inside.

A member of the state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner and a forensic anthropologist were called to analyze the scene, and it was determined that five sets of skeletal remains had been stolen from the mausoleum - those of three adults and two young children, according to police.

The break into the mausoleum was discovered on the morning of Oct. 9 by a woman who was walking in the cemetery, police said.

When she noticed that the mausoleum had been broken into she notified cemetery employees, who then reported it to the police.

The mausoleum, which had the name "Houghton" inscribed on its front, was secured by two wooden doors and a wrought iron gate that had been secured with a heavy guage chain and lock, according to police.

Upon arriving at the scene, police officers noticed that the chain had been cut. The cut marks also had a rust buildup, indicating the incident may have occurred prior to the discovery, police said.

After breaking into the mausoleum, police said the suspect placed the chain and lock back in place in an attempt to avoid discovery.

The exact time of the incident is not known.

Upon entering the mausoleum, police officers found that several crypts had been forced open and that several bodies had been disinterred.

Officers also observed damage to the crypt's panels as well as damage to the caskets and that the skeletal remains were missing from the damaged caskets.

Based on those findings, the Police Department's Detective Bureau was called and took charge of the investigation. The Worcester Police Crime Scene Unit processed the mausoleum for potential evidence.

Police said an extensive investigation was done in an attempt to locate the missing human remains. Also, investigators attempted to locate family members, but were unsuccessful.

It is believed that the last time a person was interred in the mausoleum was approximately 71 years ago, police said.

Hartford police said patrol units came to Mr. Medina's apartment Friday afternoon after receiving a tip that he had stored human remains there.

They said when police made contact with Mr. Medina, they were allowed inside his apartment.

Hartford police detectives obtained and executed a search warrant for Mr. Medina's apartment, where the remains were subsequently located and secured as evidence.

They said Mr. Medina was "cooperative and forthcoming" and showed the officers where the remains were located.

Soon after the skeletal remains were discovered, Hartford police contacted Worcester police detectives. They informed Worcester police of their discovery and that they had made contact with Mr. Medina.

Worcester police said investigators will coordinate with Connecticut officials with regard to recovering the remains. Investigators will also be working on rendition proceedings for Mr. Medina.

According to the Hartford Courant, Mr. Medina told Hartford police he was using the bones in ceremonies for healing for Santeria.

Santeria (The way of the Saints) incorporates elements of several faiths including Catholicism and deities worshiped in West Africa. Some who practice the religion use animal sacrifices.

This investigation is ongoing, police said.

As reported by Monica Madeja of NBC Connecticut, December 8, 2015:

A 32-year-old Santeria priest accused of stealing five skeletons from a Massachusetts mausoleum appeared in court Tuesday, where a judge set his bail at $100,000.

Amador Medina, of Hartford, Connecticut, appeared in a Worcester courtroom Tuesday morning on charges of breaking into and stealing the remains of five family members laid to rest in a mausoleum at Hope Cemetery.

Investigators said the skeletons belonged to three adults and two children in the Houghton family and were believed to have been interred in the early 1900s. The crime was discovered Oct. 9, when a visitor to the cemetery noticed open crypts.

Medina is a priest who practices Santeria, an Afro-Cuban religion derived from the beliefs and customs of the Yoruba people that incorporates elements of the Catholic faith. Investigators said Medina wanted the bones for medicinal reasons, and that older bones are preferred.

Police allege they found the remains in two garbage bags on the porch of Medina's apartment.

Authorities said Tuesday that Medina claimed to have bought the bones from someone else.

"The defendant had stated that he had purchased these remains from another individual, but he was aware that they did come from the mausoleum and he did not have permission to have those remains," Assistant District Attorney Joe Simmons said.

Medina was scheduled to start a new job today, according to his attorney. That attorney argued that because of his work history and minimal criminal record, bail should be set between $1,000 and $2,000.

Instead, the judge lowered the prosecution's suggestion of $200,000, setting cash bail at $100,000.

Medina is set to appear again in court next month.

Roman Catholic Archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis resigns after covering up for pedophile priest

But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Matthew 18:6 (also Mark 9:42 and Luke 17:2)

Here's another story I missed when it was published earlier this year; there are so many, it's hard to keep up with them all. As reported by Associated Press, June 15, 2015:

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis has started making good on his promise to not let even the most senior churchmen get away with sex abuse or cover-up.

On Monday, he accepted the resignation of the embattled archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis and his deputy bishop after prosecutors there charged the archdiocese with having failed to protect children from unspeakable harm from a pedophile priest who was later convicted of molesting two boys.

Separately, the Vatican indicted its own former ambassador to the Dominican Republic with sexually abusing minors in the Caribbean country — the highest-ranking Vatican official ever to stand trial for a sex crime.

The developments came days after Francis approved the creation of a new tribunal inside the Vatican to specifically hear cases of bishops accused of failing to protect minors, answering years of criticism that top-ranked churchmen have long been immune to punishment for ignoring or covering up for priests who rape and molest children.

It’s not clear if the tribunal — once it becomes functioning — would handle the case of Archbishop John Nienstedt and Auxiliary Bishop Lee Anthony Piche of St. Paul and Minneapolis, since they are now no longer in office.

They quit under the code of canon law that allows bishops to resign before they retire because of illness or some other “grave” reason that makes them unfit for office.

Earlier this month, prosecutors charged the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis as a corporation of having “turned a blind eye” to repeated reports of inappropriate behavior by a priest who was later convicted of molesting two boys. No individual was named in the complaint.

The charges came two years after diocesan canon lawyer-turned-whistleblower Jennifer Haselberger alleged widespread cover-up of clergy sex misconduct in the archdiocese, saying archbishops and their top staff lied to the public and ignored the U.S. bishops’ pledge to have no tolerance of priests who abuse.

Haselberger, who was Nienstedt’s archivist, accused the church of using a chaotic system of record-keeping that helped conceal the backgrounds of guilty priests who remained on assignment.

She said she repeatedly warned Nienstedt and his aides about the risk of keeping accused priests in ministry, but they took action only in one case. As a result of raising alarms, she said she was eventually shut out of meetings about priest misconduct, and later resigned.

Nienstedt had refused to resign after Haselberger’s accusations, and later after announcing that allegations had been made against him of inappropriate sexual behavior. He denied misconduct and the archdiocese hired a firm to investigate. No results were ever announced and recently Nienstedt hired his own attorney to look at the matter again.

In a statement Monday, Nienstedt said he was stepping down to give the archdiocese a new beginning. But he insisted he was leaving “with a clear conscience knowing that my team and I have put in place solid protocols to ensure the protection of minors and vulnerable adults.”

In a statement, Piche said: “The people of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis need healing and hope. I was getting in the way of that, and so I had to resign.”

With Monday’s resignations, there have been 18 bishops who have resigned after being publicly criticized for covering up for abusers, according to Anne Barrett Doyle of the online resource BishopAccountability.org.

In April, Francis accepted the resignation of U.S. bishop Robert Finn, who had been convicted in a U.S. court of failing to report a suspected child abuser.

Francis has pledged that not even high-ranking churchmen — “daddy’s boys” he called them — will get away with abuse or cover-up.

“All bishops must carry out their pastoral ministry with utmost care in order to help foster the protection of minors, and they will be held accountable,” Francis declared in July during a Mass with survivors of abuse at the Vatican.

The criminal charges against the archdiocese stem from its handling of Curtis Wehmeyer, a former priest at Church of the Blessed Sacrament in St. Paul, who is serving a five-year prison sentence for molesting two boys and faces prosecution involving a third boy in Wisconsin.

Prosecutors say church leaders failed to respond to “numerous and repeated reports of troubling conduct” by Wehmeyer from the time he entered seminary until he was removed from the priesthood in 2015. The criminal complaint says many people — including parishioners, fellow priests and parish staff — reported issues with Wehmeyer, and many of those claims were discounted.

The resignations came on the same day that the Vatican announced it was putting its former ambassador to the Dominican Republic, Jozef Wesolowski, on trial in a Vatican court on charges he sexually abused boys in the Caribbean country and possessed child pornography. Wesolowski, who has already been defrocked after being convicted in a canon law court, now faces possible jail time if convicted by the criminal tribunal of the Vatican City State.

The case has been highly sensitive, given that the Polish-born Wesolowski was an ambassador of the Holy See — a direct representative of the pope and not just one of the world’s 440,000 priests — and had been ordained both a priest and a bishop by St. John Paul II.

Former megachurch pastor sentenced to 40 years in prison in Texas for sexually assaulting girl

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Matthew 7:21-23

But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Matthew 18:6 (also Mark 9:42 and Luke 17:2)

I missed this story a few months ago; file under "Yet another one!" As reported by Mitch Mitchell of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, October 13, 2015 (bold in original, typos in original corrected by blogger):

FORT WORTH — Geronimo Aguilar, a former minister praised for his good work in his churches, was sentenced Tuesday to 40 years in prison for sexually assaulting a teenage girl in the 1990s in Tarrant County.

Aguilar, 45, who has been in jail since his conviction in June, faced a life sentence on two counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child — a girl who was 13 when he started having sex with her in October 1996.

Aguilar was not convicted of sexually assaulting the girl’s younger sister, as was previously reported. An aggravated sexual assault charge is still pending in that case, prosecutors said.

Aguilar had asked state District Judge Louis Sturns to sentence him. Sturns ordered a pre-sentencing report and heard 1 1/2 days of testimony this week from people who know Aguilar.

In pronouncing sentence, Sturns called Aguilar’s flawed character — his constant quest for sex contrasted with his ability to be a good minister — a tragedy of “epic proportions.”

Aguilar has been credited with establishing a large church in one of the worst neighborhoods on the south side of Richmond, Va.

“I don’t have any doubt that your ministry did good things,” Sturns said. “The state attorney general, the governor, the police chief, fire officials, an impressive number of people felt strongly about your ministry. That you were able to establish a ministry like that in such a short period of time is amazing.”

But that made what Sturns characterized as Aguilar’s “campaign of destruction” all the more devastating.

“You had an opportunity to do things that very few people could do,” Sturns said. “The fact that you had such great gifts and were not able to use them properly is what makes this case one of my most difficult.”

A troubled family

Witnesses called by Aguilar’s attorneys this week said they did not recognize the man who seduced, coerced and sexually assaulted teenage and pre-teen girls and also had sex with married women who were members of his church. The defense witnesses said they knew a minister who clothed the naked, fed the hungry and housed the homeless.

Aguilar grew up in a troubled family, relatives said. Faye Zucker, his mother’s cousin, testified that Aguilar was 8 or 9 when his stepfather fatally shot his mother in the head five times.

Years later, when Aguilar met his biological father, Phil Aguilar, who founded a motorcycle-themed church in California called Set Free Ministries, their relationship had problems, his uncle, Mel Aguilar, testified.

“My nephew needed a better representative. His dad didn’t dad him,” Mel Aguilar said, looking directly at Aguilar’s father, who was sitting in the gallery. “Your father should have helped you. You should have been there.”

Mel Aguilar said his brother had an affair with his wife, and he and his wife eventually divorced because of her affairs.

“My wife had six affairs, but you know what, I forgave her for every one of them,” Mel Aguilar said. “I forgive my brother. I still love my brother. I forgive my ex-wife. I still love my ex-wife. There is still love there. There is still use.”

Mel Aguilar told Sturns that his nephew needed restoration, that he understood the gravity of the crimes he had committed and that he could still do good for the community. After visiting Aguilar in jail, Mel Aguilar said, he met men who credited his nephew with changing their lives and bringing them to Christ.

After leaving Fort Worth in 2003, Aguilar and his wife moved to Richmond, where he started the Richmond Outreach Center (The ROC) in a warehouse with only a few members. It grew to have several thousand members. The ROC had a salon, a gym, a laundromat, a clothing pantry where the church almost gave clothes away, among other programs, Mel Aguilar said.

“There’s going to be a penalty, I understand that. But we need to start restoring this man. He did the best he could with what he had where he was at,” Mel Aguilar said. “Christians are the only people who shoot their wounded.”

But Nickols asked Mel Aguilar how many young girls had to be victimized before the judge could begin to think about restoration for them and their families, and punishment for the crimes that were committed.

“I think you can agree with me that the best way to restore these families is to put the person who harmed them in a place where he can no longer harm anyone else?” Nickols asked Mel Aguilar.

Mel Aguilar said he did not know if he could agree with that.

In an interview outside the courtroom, Phil Aguilar, who did not testify, said he appreciated what his younger brother said.

“He's been with me through the good, bad and ugly, even though I did him wrong,” Phil Aguilar said. “He's my youngest brother, and I really love him for saying that and it proves how much a man of God he really is.”

Phil Aguilar said he was not always the best father, but said he loves his son.

“I’m a slow learner and a late bloomer,” he said. “God always saves the best wine for last.”

Ruined lives

The sisters at the center of the case testified in June that they grew up with Aguilar in communal homes owned by Phil Aguilar’s Set Free Church in Anaheim, Calif.

Geronimo Aguilar married his wife, Samantha, there in 1995 when she was 17. They soon moved to Fort Worth to the New Beginnings International Church, where he was music minister, according to testimony. The family of the two sisters followed the Aguilars to Fort Worth.

In December 2007, the older sister, then 30, told authorities in Anaheim and Fort Worth that Aguilar had repeatedly sexually assaulted her, beginning in October 1996, when she was 13, and continuing until she was nearly 15. The encounters occurred at their communal home, in motels, in the church van, in the church bathroom and in public restrooms, she told police.

The younger sister told police that she had sex with Aguilar beginning when she was 11. She said the abuse happened in the home and while she cleaned at the church.

He was indicted by a Tarrant County grand jury in 2014.

On Monday, the sisters testified that their lives have been in shambles since they became involved with Aguilar while living in the house with him and their parents.

“It’s ruined so many relationships in my life,” the younger sister testified. “He was part of my family and they loved him, and when that happened I felt like they hated me. It’s like I ruined their big dreams of being a part of a ministry like Set Free.

“My sister and I hated each other. We went years without talking to each other as adults. It created this competition between us.”

Aguilar’s 15-year-old daughter, now attending school in Tarrant County, said the family moved back to Texas from Virginia to be closer to Aguilar and to visit him in jail. He is and has been a good father, his daughter said. Aguilar made time for her and her two sisters, even though he was a busy man, taking them to the mall, movies and shopping, the daughter said.

The world and the media talk differently about her father now, she testified through tears.

“That’s all I’ve seen written” she said. “That basically they just think he is this monster.”

Charges, sentences

Geronimo Aguilar was convicted in June of two counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child, three counts of sexual assault of a child under 17 and two counts of indecency with a child.

State District Judge Louis Sturns sentenced Aguilar to 40 years each on the aggravated sexual assault counts, 20 years each on the three counts of sexual assault and 20 years each on the two counts of indecency.

Sturns gave Aguilar, who has been in jail since his conviction in June, credit for time served and ruled that the sentences will run concurrently.

Aguilar will have to serve at least half of his 40-year sentence before he becomes eligible for parole, said prosecutor Elizabeth Kamber.

For earlier articles on this case, see:

Witnesses say mother knew minister was having sex with young daughters

Minister’s wife testifies she knew about her husband’s affairs

Ex-Fort Worth minister admits affairs, denies having sex with minors

Jury convicts ex-minister of sexually assaulting young sisters

It seems as though the acorn hasn't fallen far from the tree. Set Free Christian Fellowship, led by Phil Aguilar, was one of the subjects of Ronald Enroth's book Churches that Abuse (1992).

70 years ago: John D. Rockefeller, Jr. gives $1 million to Friends of the World Council of Churches

On December 4, 1945, Friends of the World Council of Churches, Inc. received a gift of $1 million from John D. Rockefeller, Jr. to help finance "religious reconstruction" in Europe. The World Council of Churches is the organization of mainline Protestant churches that has been at the forefront of apostasy prior to the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. The best comment on the WCC that I've ever seen is from Malcolm Muggeridge, when he said that the World Council of Churches was like a row of drunks holding one another up lest alone they each fall into the gutter.

I knew that the WCC had been founded on August 23, 1948 (with the International Council of Christian Churches, led by Carl McIntire, founded a week earlier in opposition to the WCC), but until recently I didn't know that there had been an organization called Friends of the World Council of Churches, founded more than five years earlier. This organization was incorporated on January 27, 1943 and dissolved on February 13, 2013, with headquarters in Room 1062, 475 Riverside Drive in New York City (go here and here for official information).

According to Susan Bradford in A Church of Community Organizers: How the United Church of Christ was transformed into a political machine for the Left, published in Organization Trends, June 2014:

Two years after the Federal Council was established in the United States, representatives from Protestant denominations and missionary societies, principally from North America and Northern Europe, convened at the United Free Church in Edinburgh, Scotland, for the World Missionary Conference, which was chaired and organized by John Mott, a Methodist layman and community organizer who would later become a close friend and confidante of John D. Rockefeller Jr., a leading champion of the ecumenical movement. After Mott was appointed the first honorary president of the World Council of Churches, Rockefeller, a philanthropist and heir to the Standard Oil fortune, donated $1 million to the Friends of the World Council of Churches, which then established a Commission on International Relations whose stated purpose was to “stimulate the churches of all nations to a more vigorous expression of the demand of the Christian conscience in relation to the political policies of governments.”

Mott laid down “marching orders” intended for “members of every Protestant church around the world in an effort to expand Christianity.” He later won the Nobel Peace Prize for establishing Protestant student organizations. He was the world’s first community organizer, a tradition Obama would follow decades later. Mott also courted the financial elite and enlisted them to invest in the ecumenical movement.

As an “apostle of unity,” Mott convinced progressive Protestant denominations to set aside doctrinal differences in the interests of advancing “a vision of worldwide Christianity based on concepts they believed Christians around the world could agree on and work together to implement.” The movement was modeled after the streamlined and efficient organizational structure of Rockefeller’s Standard Oil, which was ruthless in its efforts to secure monopolies for its businesses and drive competition out of its markets.

The ecumenical movement that endeavored to unite the churches under a central authority developed in concert with the movement to unite the nations under global structures like the League of Nations and its successor organization, the United Nations. “The League of Churches was to become a union of all churches on faith and order as the final purpose of the League of Nations,” remarked Willem Adolph Visser T. Hooft, a Dutch theologian who was later appointed Secretary General of the World Council of Churches. “The dream dreamt by so many philosophers, the dream of international order, based on law and justice, seemed at last to become a political reality.”

The Federal Council of Churches was established in 1908. For further reading on the origins of the modern ecumenical movement, see my posts:

100 years ago: The modern ecumenical movement begins with the World Missionary Conference

Edinburgh 2010: The ecumenical movement observes its 100th anniversary

50 years ago: Second Vatican Council concludes

On December 8, 1965, Pope Paul VI adjourned the fourth session of the Second Vatican Council, concluding the ecumenical council that had been convoked by his predecessor, Pope John XXIII, and opened on October 11, 1962. I don't feel like repeating comments that I've already made, so I recommend that readers see my previous posts:

50 years ago: Second Vatican Council opens

50 years ago: Pope Paul VI promulgates Second Vatican Council's Declaration on the Relation of the Church to Non-Christian Religions (Nostra Aetate)

Go here to see the full text of the Vatican II documents.

50 years ago: The Joint Catholic-Orthodox Declaration

On December 7, 1965, the joint Catholic-Orthodox declaration, approved by Pope Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras I of Constantinople, was read simultaneously at a public meeting of the ecumenical council in Rome and at a special ceremony in Istanbul. The declaration concerned mutual excommunications between the churches that had occurred at the time of the Great Schism in 1054.

The text of the declaration includes the following:

2. Among the obstacles along the road of the development of these fraternal relations of confidence and esteem, there is the memory of the decisions, actions and painful incidents which in 1054 resulted in the sentence of excommunication leveled against the Patriarch Michael Cerularius and two other persons by the legate of the Roman See under the leadership of Cardinal Humbertus, legates who then became the object of a similar sentence pronounced by the patriarch and the Synod of Constantinople...

...4. Since they are certain that they express the common desire for justice and the unanimous sentiment of charity which moves the faithful, and since they recall the command of the Lord: "If you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brethren has something against you, leave your gift before the altar and go first be reconciled to your brother" (Matt. 5:23-24), Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras I with his synod, in common agreement, declare that:

A. They regret the offensive words, the reproaches without foundation, and the reprehensible gestures which, on both sides, have marked or accompanied the sad events of this period.

B. They likewise regret and remove both from memory and from the midst of the Church the sentences of excommunication which followed these events, the memory of which has influenced actions up to our day and has hindered closer relations in charity; and they commit these excommunications to oblivion.

C. Finally, they deplore the preceding and later vexing events which, under the influence of various factors—among which, lack of understanding and mutual trust—eventually led to the effective rupture of ecclesiastical communion.

5. Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras I with his synod realize that this gesture of justice and mutual pardon is not sufficient to end both old and more recent differences between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church.

Through the action of the Holy Spirit those differences will be overcome through cleansing of hearts, through regret for historical wrongs, and through an efficacious determination to arrive at a common understanding and expression of the faith of the Apostles and its demands...

The Joint Catholic-Orthodox declaration was another milestone on the road to the one-world church and religion of the end times just prior to the return of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Hindus in India challenge the history of the Taj Mahal as a Muslim site

Strange revisionist ideas can be found anywhere, as reported from New Delhi by Andrew Marszal of the London Daily Telegraph, December 1, 2015:

India’s government has been dragged into a bizarre row over whether the Taj Mahal, widely seen as a masterpiece of Muslim architecture, should be converted into a Hindu temple.

A legal case, first brought by six lawyers in Agra in April, claims that the monument famously built by a seventeenth-century Mughal emperor as a tomb for his beloved wife was originally an ancient shrine to the Hindu god Shiva.

The petition, which was accepted by the Agra Court, names a Hindu deity as its main plaintiff.

It calls for ownership of the monument to be transferred to Hindus for worship and, most controversially, for Muslim religious activity to be blocked and graves to be removed.

Currently, only Muslims are allowed to worship at the site, offering Friday prayers at a mosque attached to the Taj Mahal.

Questioned in parliament on Monday, Dr Mahesh Sharma, India’s culture minister, said he was aware of the suit, but that “the government has not found any evidence which can suggest that Taj Mahal was a Hindu temple of Shiva”.

However, experts warned this alone will not be enough to quash the suit, which has inflamed tensions in India at a time when growing religious intolerance is already a daily talking point.

“What the culture minister has said will be the government’s official stand on it, but the court has yet to decide,” said Dr Bhuvan Vikrama, of the Archaeological Survey of India, which manages the mausoleum.

Theories over the Taj Mahal’s supposed Hindu heritage have abounded for decades, albeit well outside the historical mainstream.

In his 1989 book Taj Mahal: The True Story, revisionist historian PN Oak claimed the monument was built in 1155, decades before the Muslim invasion of India. He said its name is a corrupt form of the sanskrit term “Tejo Mahalay”, signifying a Shiva Temple.

However, Oak is the author of many outlandish and discredited theories, including bizarre claims that the Hindus once conquered Italy, and even that Westminster Abbey was once also a Shiva temple.

That, though, has not stopped his writings being widely circulated online.

As British historian William Dalrymple noted, Hindu supremacists "have found it hard to believe that such a masterpiece was built by the same Muslims they despised”.

Today, the same claims have been taken up by some members of the ruling BJP, the Hindu nationalist party led by prime minister Narenda Modi.

Lakshmikant Bajpayee, the BJP president of Uttar Pradesh state, where the monument is located, said in December that the Taj Mahal was an ancient temple that was sold by Hindu king Jai Singh to Shah Jahan, the Mughal emperor widely believed to have built it.

"I am not saying this in air but there are documents to prove this," he said.

Likewise, the Agra court case was filed by lawyer Hari Shankar Jain, who claims to be a sympathiser of the RSS, a Hindu nationalist organisation with close ideological links to Mr Modi's BJP.

While government ministers have now been forced to pour cold water on the claims, some in the tourism industry surrounding the Taj Mahal believe the damage is already being done.

Speaking at the Agra district court in May, a collection of tourist bodies warned: “The Taj Mahal is a major tourist attraction and a symbol of national pride not only for Agra but also for the entire country.

“Making the Taj Mahal controversial would affect not only the source of attraction for the world but also tourism in the country.”

Vatican astronomer's views seem to be based more on science fiction than on the Bible

On September 18, 2015, Pope Francis--a Jesuit--named American Jesuit Brother Guy Consolmagno to be the new director of the Vatican Observatory, replacing yet another Jesuit, Father Jose Funes of Argentina. As reported by Carol Glatz of Catholic News Service, September 18, 2015:

...Brother Consolmagno is a planetary scientist who has studied meteorites and asteroids as an astronomer with the Vatican Observatory since 1993.

He had been serving as president of the Vatican Observatory Foundation, coordinator of public relations and curator of the Vatican meteorite collection in Castel Gandolfo, one of the largest in the world.

A graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Brother Consolmagno was a post-doctorate lecturer at Harvard College Observatory and at M.I.T. before serving in the U.S. Peace Corps in Kenya where he taught physics and astronomy. He entered the Jesuit order in 1989 when he was in his late 30s.

His research focuses on meteorites, asteroids and the origin and evolution of small bodies in the solar system.

He was honored for his work by the International Astronomical Union in 2000 with the naming of an asteroid after him, the "4597 Consolmagno," a small, 12-mile-wide rock orbiting near the sun.

Author of numerous books on science and faith, he received the prestigious Carl Sagan Medal in 2014 for his ability to communicate accurately and clearly the discoveries of planetary science to the general public.

The same day the Vatican announced Brother Consolmagno's appointment, Pope Francis met with the observatory staff and guests taking part in a special symposium sponsored by the papal astronomers...

...Pope Francis encouraged continued and deeper dialogue between science and religion, underlining the special role scientific research can have in promoting interreligious dialogue, "which is more urgent than ever today..."

As reported by Dennis Sadowski of Catholic News Service, September 19, 2015:

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Jesuit Brother Guy Consolmagno, the new president of the Vatican Observatory Foundation, has no doubt that life exists elsewhere in the universe and that when humanity discovers it, the news will come as no big surprise.

He suggested that the likely discovery -- whether next month or a millennium from now -- will be received much the way that news of planets orbiting far off stars has filtered in since the 1990s.

"The general public is going to be, 'Oh, I knew that. I knew it was going to be there,'" Brother Consolmagno told Catholic News Service prior to a presentation at a NASA/Library of Congress symposium on preparing for the discovery of life in the universe Sept. 18-19.

A planetary scientist who has studied meteorites and asteroids as an astronomer with the Vatican Observatory since 1993, Brother Consolmagno said he hopes the questions about life on other planets will focus more on how humanity sees itself.

"When we say human, human as compared to what?" he asked.

While the discovery of life elsewhere will not prove nor disprove the existence of God, Brother Consolmagno expects that it will open the door to ponder what form salvation history may take in other intelligent societies.

The longtime Vatican astronomer addresses the same question and a series of others that cross the threshold between science and religion in a new book, "Would You Baptize an Extraterrestrial? ... and Other Strange Questions From the Inbox at the Vatican Observatory," set to be published in October. Co-written by Jesuit Father Paul Mueller, another Vatican Observatory astronomer, the book uses a series of easy-to-read conversations between the two in an effort to explain how the church supports science and provide insight into how religion works...

...In his presentation Sept. 19 bearing the same title as his new book, Brother Consolmagno suggested the idea of discovering extraterrestrial life may be so appealing to humanity, with all its pain, injustice and disease, that there is hope that "any race advanced enough to cross the stars to visit us must also be advanced enough to show us how to overcome all those human ills. They look to the aliens to be saviors of mankind."

Other symposium participants from around the world involved in searching for life on other planets addressed topics such as how society should cope with the discovery, astrobiology and theology, the moral status of non-human organisms and moving beyond preconceptions of what life is.

An avid reader of science fiction, Brother Consolmagno will receive the Carl Sagan Medal from the Division of Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society in November. The award is being given for his work in communicating planetary science to the general public.

As reported by Wisconsin Public Radio, September 22, 2015:

Consolmagno, who is a graduate of MIT and has been working at the observatory since 1993, has spoken out frequently on the possibility of extraterrestrial life and doesn’t believe that being human is a prerequisite for believing in God.

According to Consolmagno, the "image" of God as described in the Bible is an idea, not a literal physical likeness.

"An entity is aware of itself, aware of other entities and able to make choices maybe to love or not love, to interact or not interact. That’s the essence of what the image and likeness of God is about. It has nothing to do with how many tentacles you have," he said.

As Consolmagno has said before, "Any entity -- no matter how many tentacles it has -- has a soul."

To those who wonder if this is out of step with Roman Catholic theology, Consolmagno points to the fact that the faith is already filled with supernatural intelligent beings: Angels. In addition to not being human, he said angels are also "intelligent beings free to choose or not choose creations of the Creator."

Consolmagno admits that his fascination with these topics is driven not only by his love of science, but also by his love of science fiction. He was initially attracted to MIT for his doctoral work because of their large science fiction library. He said he enjoys the large questions being asked in both science and religion, and sees the challenges presented by both as a good thing.

"A religion that doesn’t challenge you is not much of a religion and, frankly, a science that doesn’t challenge you is not much of a science," he said.

One "extraterrestrial" whom Brother Consolmagno is probably not expecting to see is the Lord Jesus Christ, who will be coming back to Earth from Heaven (Zechariah 14:2-5; Matthew 24:30; Mark 13:26; Luke 21:27; Acts 1:11) to rule as King.

The perceptive reader will notice that Brother Consolmagno's choice for Massachusetts Institute of Technology as a place to pursue his doctorate was initiated not by a desire for greater knowledge of God's creation, but by MIT's large library of science fiction, and it's science fiction, not the Bible, from which he derives his beliefs about intelligent life on other worlds. As for angels, scripture says:

Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation? Hebrews 1:14 (NIV)

Never trust a Jesuit.

HT: Dracul Van Helsing

Opposing idolatry in India can get you killed

Thus saith the Lord, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them.
For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe.
They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not.
They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.
Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee, O Lord; thou art great, and thy name is great in might.
Who would not fear thee, O King of nations? for to thee doth it appertain: forasmuch as among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none like unto thee.
But they are altogether brutish and foolish: the stock is a doctrine of vanities.
Silver spread into plates is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the workman, and of the hands of the founder: blue and purple is their clothing: they are all the work of cunning men.
But the Lord is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation.
Thus shall ye say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens.
He hath made the earth by his power, he hath established the world by his wisdom, and hath stretched out the heavens by his discretion.
When he uttereth his voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens, and he causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth; he maketh lightnings with rain, and bringeth forth the wind out of his treasures.
Every man is brutish in his knowledge: every founder is confounded by the graven image: for his molten image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them.
They are vanity, and the work of errors: in the time of their visitation they shall perish. Jeremiah 10:2-15

Here's an example from India of secular multiculturalism's difficulty in handling militant religious opposition--Trudeaupians and other residents of Western "democracies," please note--as reported by Katy Daigle of Associated Press, August 31 2015:

NEW DELHI — Following a knock at his front door, an Indian scholar greeted two unidentified visitors and was shot in the head and the chest, becoming the third critic of religious superstition to be killed in the country in three years.

The attack on Malleshappa M. Kalburgi sent a chill through Indian civil society, stoking worries about religious extremism and intolerance and prompting an outpouring of condemnation as the 77-year-old author and academic was cremated Monday in his hometown of Dharwad, in the southern Indian state of Karnataka.

“This incident should not have happened. It is highly condemnable,” Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah told reporters.

Authorities are searching for two men who according to Kalburgi’s daughter arrived on a motorcycle at their home Sunday, knocked on the door and fired two shots that killed her father, Inspector S.S. Hiremath said. He declined to give further details about the attack.

Police are investigating whether Kalburgi’s murder is connected to death threats he received last year from angry right-wing Hindu groups after he criticized idol worship and superstitious beliefs by Hindus. He was provided police security after the threats but it was removed about two weeks ago at the scholar’s request, police said.

The attack was widely condemned.

“Everyone has the right to express his opinion,” actor and director Girish Karnad said. “If this grows in Karnataka, we are in trouble.”

Columnist Nitin Pai, who founded a think-tank in the southern city of Bangalore, said on Twitter that he was “Shocked at the murder of M.M. Kalburgi. Disgusted that his killers have apologists among us.”

India has long held secularism to be a keystone of its constitution — and a necessity for keeping the peace among its cacophony of cultures defined by caste, clan, tribe or religion, including Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism and Buddhism.

Earlier this year, unknown attackers gunned down another anti-superstition crusader, Indian writer and communist politician Govind Pansare, as he and his wife were taking a walk in western Maharashtra state.

In another daytime attack in 2013, two assailants gunned down Narendra Dabholkar, a 68-year-old doctor-turned-activist, while he was out for a walk in the Maharashtra city of Pune, near Mumbai.

Police have arrested two suspects in Dabholkar’s murder. He had received years of death threats and demands that he stop giving lectures in villages across Maharashtra state promoting rationalist thought and discouraging superstitions, religious extremism, black magic and animal or human sacrifice.

Maharashtra’s government later passed long-stalled legislation that Dabholkar had worked on banning religious exploitation and fraudulent medical workers.

Activists have said the legislation does not go far enough since it only allows complaints from victims and their families, not from third parties, which they say limits the law’s effectiveness because most victims are invested in superstitious beliefs and are not likely to complain.

Just the title of this atheist's book is enough to reveal him as a fool

The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Psalms 14:1a (also Psalms 53:1a)

Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge. Proverbs 14:7

The story is told of a man preaching on Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park in London, England, who in his sermon said that anyone who didn't believe in God was a fool. A man in the crowd of listeners shouted out, "I'm an atheist. If you can't prove that I'm a fool, I'll publish it in the papers and we'll run you out of town!"

"You really don't believe in God?"

"You bet I don't! I've been fighting against God all my life!"

"Tell me," replied the preacher, "if a man who spends his life fighting against someone who doesn't exist isn't a fool, then who is?" A commonly-repeated anecdote, cited in Cosmos, Creator and Human Destiny by Dave Hunt (2010).

Proof of the truth of the above anecdote is provided by the title of a book scheduled for release on December 1, 2015: Fighting God: An Atheist Manifesto for a Religious World. The author is David Silverman, president of American Atheists. According to Goodreads:

Fighting God is a firebrand manifesto from one of the most recognizable faces of atheism. In his book, Silverman-a walking, talking atheist billboard known for his appearances on Fox News-discusses the effectiveness, ethics and impact of the in-your-face-atheist who refuses to be silent.

Silverman argues that religion is more than just wrong: it is malevolent and does not deserve our respect. It is our duty to be outspoken and do what we can to bring religion down. Examining the mentality, methods and issues facing the firebrand atheist, Silverman presents an overwhelming argument for firebrand atheism and reveals:

- All religion is cafeteria religion and almost all agnostics are atheists.
- American society grants religion a privileged status, despite the intentions of the Founding Fathers.
- Christian politicians have adversely (and un-Constitutionally) affected our society with regard to science, health, women's rights, and gay rights.
- The notion of "atheist Jews" is a lie forced on us by religion.
- It is not "Islamophobia" to observe dangerous teachings and disproportionate violence in Islam.
- Atheists are slowly but surely winning the battle.

Fighting God is a provocative, unapologetic book that takes religion to task and will give inspiration to non-believers and serve as the ultimate answer to apologists.

Following the advice of Proberbs 14:7, I won't bother reading the book--I suspect it will consist of the same tired old arguments that we've heard so often before--but I credit Mr. Silverman with noticing the "dangerous teachings and disproportionate violence in Islam," in contrast to many professing atheists who lump all religions together.

As for the idea that "atheists are slowly but surely winning the battle," that's true if you're looking at rulings from courts and "human rights" tribunals, but it's not true when it comes to winning hearts and minds and converts. As Vox Day, author of
The Irrational Atheist: Dissecting the Unholy Trinity of Dawkins, Harris, And Hitchens (2008), has pointed out in his blog (click the label "atheism" for various posts), the New Atheists' moment has come and gone.

While American Atheists--founded and led for many years by the late Madalyn Murray O'Hair--is the first such organization that comes to mind, it seems that it doesn't speak for all atheists in the United States, according to Howard Thompson in the old but still relevant article WHO SPEAKS FOR ATHEISM? The Problem of American Atheists, Inc. Mrs. Murray's son Bill, the subject of the court case Murray vs. Curlett, one of the cases which resulted in the 1963 ruling by the Supreme Court of the United States banning mandatory prayer in schools, became a Christian in 1979, and is now chairman of Religious Freedom Coalition. I heard Mr. Murray in a radio interview in 1988, and he said that American Atheists had never had more than 2,500 active members at any time. Despite Mr. Silverman's confidence, I doubt that AA has many members today; in a quick search on their website, I couldn't find anywhere where they mentioned how many members they have.

Female "pastor" among seven charged in beating death of teenager at New York charismaniac church

As reported by Reuters, November 24, 2015:

ALBANY, N.Y. - Seven people who prosecutors say were involved in the beating death of a teenager during a counseling session at an upstate New York church were indicted on second-degree murder charges on Tuesday by a grand jury.

Lucas Leonard, 19, was beaten to death in October over 10 hours during a counseling session at the Word of Life Church in Chadwicks, New York, about 50 miles (80 km) east of Syracuse, prosecutors said.

His brother, Christopher, 17, received blunt force injuries when he was repeatedly struck during the same session, which was initiated because Lucas Leonard wanted to leave the congregation, prosecutors said.

The grand jury's indictment charged the brothers' father, Bruce Leonard, 65, with 13 criminal counts including second-degree murder, kidnapping and gang assault.

Charges of second-degree murder, kidnapping and gang assault were also brought against church pastor Tiffanie Irwin, 29; Traci Irwin, David Morey, 26, Linda Morey, 54, and Joseph Irwin, 26, who were all congregants at the church; and Sarah Ferguson, 33, the half-sister of Lucas and Christopher, the court document showed.

At least some of the Irwins are related to each other.

Tiffanie Irwin and Traci Irwin originally were not charged in the incident, while the other five were initially charged with first-degree manslaughter in Lucas Leonard's death.

An eighth person, church deacon Daniel Irwin, 24, was indicted on charges of second-degree manslaughter, kidnapping and gang assault.

The brothers' mother, Deborah Leonard, 59, was not named in the grand jury indictment but will appear in Oneida County Court on Dec. 2 to face separate charges of first-degree assault against Lucas and second-degree assault in Christopher's beating, according to her lawyer Devin Garramone.

Deborah Leonard was initially charged with manslaughter, but Garramone said that charge was dropped.

Attorneys for the other people charged in the case could not be reached for comment.

Christopher Leonard, during a preliminary hearing last month, testified that he and his brother were beaten with an electric extension cord fashioned into a whip.

He said Tiffanie Irwin organized the counseling session.

Christopher said he attempted to resuscitate his brother before the boys were loaded into two separate vans. Lucas was transported to St. Luke's hospital in Utica, New York, where he was pronounced dead, prosecutors said.

Most of those indicted in the case remain in jail on bail of tens of thousands of dollars each, while David and Linda Morey have been released on bail of $50,000 each, according to jail records.

Unfortunately, this is the sort of incident that's all too familiar to those who have been keeping up on things over the years. The perceptive reader will notice that the "church" is now led by a woman, contrary to the clear instructions of Scripture.

For further reading, see:

Parents Accused of Killing Son at Upstate New York Church October 13, 2015

Glimpses Inside Secretive Sect After Killing at Upstate New York Church October 14, 2015

Plan to Defect Cited in Fatal Beating at New York Church October 15, 2015

Brother Who Survived Beating at New York Church Is to Testify Against Relative October 19, 2015

Word of Life Church’s Path From Bible Group to Lethal Sect October 22, 2015

Charismaniac cult church builds replica of Temple of Solomon in Brazil

And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,
And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves. Matthew 21:12-13

The Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) is a charismaniac, prosperity gospel-proclaiming church based in Sao Paulo that has been accused of being a cult and a criminal organization. It hardly need to be said that reader shouldn't accept the Wikipedia entry as accurate or authoritative, but the references cited at the bottom are useful.

For information about the UCKG from the organization itself, check out their various sites:

United States

United Kingdom

South Africa

(in Portuguese)

The UCKG has built a replica of the Temple of Solomon in Sao Paulo that serves not only as a place of worship, but as the UCKG's headquarters. The building officially opened on July 31, 2014. As reported by Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz in Breaking Israel News, October 18, 2015:

In Sao Paulo, Brazil, there is a remarkable sight: a full-size replica of Solomon’s Temple. Actually, the Templo de Salomão built by the Universal Church Kingdom of God is much larger – it is four times the size of the original, but precise in every other detail. It is impressive, giving a taste of the glory of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. The structure is a magnet for attention, though, admittedly, not all of it is positive.

Bishop Edir Macedo of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) was inspired to begin this massive undertaking after he visited Israel, where he decided to bring a piece of the Holy Land to his congregation in Brazil. It took four years and a daunting $300 million, but he was finally successful in his vision of building a replica of Solomon’s Temple.

Architect and project designer Rogério Silva de Araújo explained that the measurements were taken directly from the Bible. “A cubit was the distance between the elbow and the fingertips—which corresponded to 18 inches or 52.4 centimeters,” he explained. “Based on this piece of information, it was possible to calculate that the house king Solomon built for the Lord was approximately 31.44 meters long, 10.48 meters wide and 15.72 meters high. Also in Haggai 2:9, it says, ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater.’ ”

The UCKG Temple is indeed larger, measuring 126 meters long, 104 meters wide and 55 meters high – the height of an 18 story building. The floor and the walls are covered in $8 million worth of Jerusalem stone brought from Israel and, as in the original Temple, the main doors are made of wood and lined with copper.

Stepping inside the main sanctuary, which has seating for 10,000 worshippers, is said to be a powerful experience, but the most impressive part of the temple is its large central altar. It features an exact replica of the Ark of the Covenant covered in gold leaf. Behind the Ark is the temple’s baptistery, creating a dramatic visual effect.

Miguel Peres, a representative of the church, explained to Breaking Israel News why the project was begun. “We wanted to help people turn to Israel, support its existence and give them an opportunity to touch Jerusalem stones, which for them is a big deal,” he said. “Many Brazilians will never get a chance to go to Jerusalem, so why not bring a piece of Jerusalem to Brazil?”

“We also wanted to rescue the value of the original faith which has been lost along the years. At the courtyard of the Temple we built a replica of the Mishkan (The Tabernacle), ” he continued “Men were taught through the Mishkan how to approach God Almighty through faith and not religion.”

The project has attracted much attention, but the Temple was not built as a tourist attraction. Success is measured in different terms and Peres seems to feel it has measured up to all expectations.

“More than twenty thousand people flock to the Temple every day in its daily services and the things that are happening here are unbelievable,” he told Breaking Israel News. “More than 5 million people have visited the Temple since its opening.”

Though it is clear that it is not a place of Jewish worship, Peres feels it has also helped the Jewish people. “Thanks to our efforts, many people worldwide are now aware that there was a Temple that once stood in Jerusalem and that it needs to be rebuilt,” he said. “We are helping by spreading the story of the Temple. The Temple must be rebuilt in Jerusalem; this is a prophecy and a fact.”

Rabbi Chaim Richman, the International Director of the Temple Institute, which is dedicated to the rebuilding of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, feels differently. He came out strongly against the Templo de Salomão even before it was built.

“This is taking the promise of redemption for all mankind and using it for something altogether different,” he argued. “This is a total bastardization of the sanctity of the Holy Temple.”

He claimed it was expropriating another religion’s symbol or holy site, comparing it to replacing the famous statue of “The Redeemer” in Rio De Janeiro with a Muslim minaret. “Jews have always suffered from this,” he declared, noting that the holiest site in Judaism, the Temple Mount, has been expropriated by the Muslims, with ongoing dire consequences. In strong terms, he refers to the Temple of Solomon in Brazil as a “theological obscenity” and a “stain on the honor of the God of Israel”.

Peres, however, defended the construction of the church. “More than a Jewish symbol, it is a Biblical symbol. The Bible is the Light to all people on Earth,” Peres explained. “At no point did we try to steal the symbol of the Jewish people, but we brought to life a symbol of Faith that once moved a nation to seek God sincerely and wholeheartedly.”

This "Temple," of course, is a counterfeit. There will be a real Third Temple built; it will be in Jerusalem, and Jews will gather there to worship, not in Sao Paulo, as suggested by this anti-Zionist site. The Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement has been preparing for many years to rebuild the Temple. Another organization, the Temple Institute, has been busy for many years making vessels and garments for worship when the Temple is rebuilt. Tommy Ice and Randall Price's book Ready to Rebuild (1992) and the companion video with Jimmy DeYoung aren't current, but are still relevant for those interested in a sound Christian perspective on this topic.

1,500-year-old church mosaic discovered in Israel

Workers of the Israel Antiquities Authority conserving the mosaic. (Photo: Nikki Davidov/ Israel Antiquities Authority)

Detail of the mosaic. (Photo: Nikki Davidov/ Israel Antiquities Authority)

As reported by Jonathan Benedek of Breaking Israel News, October 1, 2015:

Approximately two years ago, an extremely unique 1,500 year old mosaic that comprised part of the floor of an abandoned church during the Byzantine era, was discovered in archaeological excavations conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority, together with the help of local schoolchildren and employees from the Qiryat Gat Industrial Park.

“There are very few mosaics with such architectural depictions on mosaic floors,” said Israel Antiquities Authority archaeologist, Dr. Rina Avner to Tazpit News Agency. “This is the first such example of depictions of main churches in various cities on the Nile.”

The mosaic depicted a number of churches and other buildings in the form of an ancient map. A Greek inscription on the mosaic indicates that the mosaic is a small map of the Egyptian settlement of Chortaso, which according to Christian tradition is the burial location of the Biblical prophet Habakkuk.

The mosaic will be on display for the public beginning October 1 in the Kiryat Gat Industrial Park throughout the Sukkot holiday festival.

“What was discovered in Qiryat Gat is an earlier mosaic than ones discovered in Trans-Jordan with depictions of buildings that were probably basilica Churches, and inscriptions that identify them with cities along the Nile,” added Dr. Avner.
The discovery of the mosaic in Qiryat Gat apparently demonstrates that there was aesthetic influence from Israel to communities in Trans-Jordan. “The mosaic sits well with the family of the seventh century Trans-Jordanian mosaics,” Dr. Avner told Tazpit.

“But this mosaic (in Qiryat Gat) is dated earlier to the first quarter of the sixth century, (earlier than the ones in TransJordan) which indicates that there was probably an artistic influence in this pattern coming from Israel and crossing the Jordan River to later churches there.”

Dr. Avner suggested to Tazpit that there may have been some kind of relationship between the church’s congregation and the Christian communities in Egypt. “There was some kind of relationship, but I don’t know whether it’s identification, or whether it’s simply holding common beliefs or traditions,” Avner said. “I don’t know if there will ever be a clear answer.”

Sa’ar Ganor, another archaeologist from the Israel Antiquities Authority who was working with Dr. Avner on the excavation, made a statement regarding the unique usage of a number of different colors in the mosaic. “The artist utilized tesserae of seventeen different colors in preparing the mosaic,” said Ganor. “The investment in the raw materials and their quality are the best ever discovered in Israel.”

Avner told Tazpit that she was not only amazed “at the number of colors, but the application of the colors in various technological methods that give the illusion of light and day in such a persuasive way.”

Avner also referred to the impressive attribution of shade and color to the many tinier details in the mosaic. “You see the usage of very tiny stones of various colors, as well as the usage of light and shades in the different shapes of the stones,” commented Avner. “The expressions of the different animals on the mosaic was also impressive.”

Dr. Avner also had time to reflect on the excavation process of the mosaic. “I think what’s unique about this project is that it was not only initiated by archaeologist Sa’ar Ganor but also the whole community of Qiryat Gat as the mosaic was excavated with the help of the workers from Intel and other hi-tech firms in Qiryat Gat,” said Avner.

“It was also special working with the third generation in the field,” added Avner. “It was a social project, rather than simply being a clear-cut scientific endeavor.”

New archaeological discoveries are still being reported under the Western Wall in Jerusalem

As reported by Noam Matas in Breaking Israel News, November 11, 2015 (bold in original):

The Kotel (Western Wall) is arguably the most important archaeological site in Israel. As the focal point of Israeli archaeology, there are new discoveries found periodically. However, the latest finds have been particularly exciting to archaeologists and tourists alike.

The Channel from the City of David to the Temple Mount

The most important archeological discovery in the Old City of Jerusalem is the ancient Second Temple Period water system, linking the City of David to the Western Wall. It is amazing to consider that this tunnel would have existed at the time of the second temple. This was the main water drainage tunnel that flowed through the Shiloah Pool and outside the city. Ronny Reich and Eli Shukron are the archaeologists leading this massive effort of unearthing these ancient structures and discovering the meaning and importance to the people of Israel during the Second Temple period.

Among the discoveries, Mr. Reich and Mr. Shukron uncovered many coins- including a shekel coin from the city of Tyre- and a miniature golden bell usually owned by people of importance, as described in Exodus 29:31, “They made pomegranates of blue and purple and scarlet material and twisted linen on the hem of the robe. They also made bells of pure gold, and put the bells between the pomegranates all around on the hem of the robe.” Another treasure found in the tunnels was a seal with the Aramaic words “Daka Le’Ya”, meaning “Pure for God”, possibly used to approve the purity of a sacrifice at the Second Temple.

The 14th Century Grand Hall

Another significant find has recently been uncovered under the Kotel. Archaeological excavations have revealed a 14th century grand hall in the tunnels under the Muslim Quarter. The Western Wall Heritage Foundation has transformed the hall into an educational center focusing on the genealogy of the Jewish nation and the connection to Jerusalem. The Israel Antiquities Authority worked closely alongside the excavation to oversee the project, which was funded entirely by Zvi Hirsch Bogolyubov, a Jewish billionaire from Ukraine.

Ancient Bronze Coins

For hundreds of years it was widely accepted that King Herod the Great was responsible for the construction of Jerusalem’s Western Wall. However, due to recent discoveries this notion is now being refuted. While excavations were carried out underneath the Western Wall’s foundation stones, ancient bronze coins were found. Archaeologists were thrown for a loop when they examined the coins and found the stamp of Valerius Gratus, a Roman governor who served 20 years after Herod’s death. This places construction of the wall around 17 A.D. and indicated that Herod was not responsible for its completion. This finding substantiates the writings of venerated Roman historian, Josephus Flavius, who stated that construction of the wall was completed by Herod’s great-grandson, King Agrippa II.

With so many years of important history behind it, it is not surprising that new discoveries are being made under the Kotel even to this day. As the excavations continue, there is no doubt new significant findings are yet to be uncovered.

10 years ago: The death of Peter Drucker

On November 11, 2005, Austrian-born American management guru Peter Drucker died, eight days before his 96th birthday. Mr. Drucker, known as the "father of modern management," was known for the concept of "management by objectives," popularized in his book The Practice of Management (1954). Mr. Drucker promoted the idea of society as a three-legged stool, with the legs being the state, the private sector, and the non-profit sector--of which the most important is the state. Mr. Drucker, although not a Christian, has had a tremendous influence upon evangelical Christianity in the late 20th-early 21st century; Rick Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life and pastor of Saddleback Church in southern California, has publicly acknowledged his debt to Peter Drucker. Much of modern evangelicalism today is based not on the Bible, but on Peter Drucker's theory of Total Quality Management.

For an example of a church that has implemented Peter Drucker's principles, see my post:

The Rock Church in San Diego (Carrie Prejean's church): First Church of Christ, Druckerist

There are excellent articles regarding Peter Drucker'e influence on evangelicalism. For example, go to Kjos Ministries and search "Drucker." Roger Oakland's book Faith Undone (2009) also contains useful information on Mr. Drucker.

I particularly recommend the following:

Peter Drucker: Early Futurist

Peter Drucker & Confucianism

Peter Drucker's Influence

Bob Buford's tributes to Peter Drucker

Peter Drucker's Mega-Church Legacy

Peter Drucker's Existential Purpose

Peter Drucker's Theology of Works

PSEUDO-MISSION: Rick Warren's 3-legged Church

Global Health Leadership & Management

Dumping Mr. Edsel

What is Your LifeTime Value?

The Tyranny of 3-Legged Branding

NEW EVANGELICALISM: The New World Order

Bob Buford, Peter Drucker, and the Emerging Church

The Three Legged Stool Plan

Seeker Friendly to Contemplative Spirituality

40 years ago: United Nations passes resolution equating Zionism with racism

In the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: Genesis 15:18

For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land...
...And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God. Ezekiel 36:24, 28

On November 10, 1975, the United Nations General Assembly voted 72-35 with 32 abstentions in favour of Resolution 3379, to "determine that Zionism is a form of racism and racial discrimination." Go here to see the full text of the resolution and how each nation voted.

Resolution 3379 was repealed on December 16, 1991 by Resolution 46/86, which was passed by a vote of 111-25 with 13 abstentions.

100 years ago: The death of Edith Cavell

On October 12, 1915, Edith Cavell, 49, a British nurse and devout Anglican, was shot by a German firing squad in Belgium. She worked in Belgium, which fell under German military occupation in November 1914, in the early months of World War I. She treated both Allied and German soldiers, but sheltered British and French soldiers and helped them and young Belgian men to escape to neutral Netherlands.

On August 3, 1915, Miss Cavell was arrested and charged with harbouring Allied soldiers. She admitted doing so, and was sentenced to death for treason under the German Military Code. Her last words reportedly included, "Patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone," and "...tell my loved ones later on that my soul, as I believe, is safe, and that I am glad to die for my country."

It's obvious from the circumstances surrounding Edith Cavell's arrest and execution that she didn't subscribe to the namby-pamby, pansy-wansy extremist view of Romans 13:1-7 that so characterizes 21st century North American evangelicalism--especially the idea that the mere fact that certain people are in positions of authority means that God put them there, and Christians are automatically required to obey them. Miss Cavell refused to obey the German military authorities in Belgium; this was a "government" of an illegally occupying army and not a legitimate government, and she owed them no obedience. For the Germans to charge and convict her of treason was absurd, since she was a British subject who owed no loyalty whatever to Germany, and especially to a military "government" that had no right to be there.

Edith Cavell's name is still known today, in no small part because of a prominent mountain named in her honour in Jasper National Park. This blogger spent several summers in a cabin at Lake Edith many years ago, and used to look at that mountain every day, or at least on those rare days when it wasn't covered by clouds.

The God whom Edith Cavell worshipped has lost none of His power, nor has His word, which should be an encouragement to us. It was the strength provided by almighty God that enabled Edith Cavell to act as she did and to graciously accept the consequences. The compromising spirit of 21st century evangelicalism doesn't produce Christian heroism like that.

Muslims haven't always been hostile toward Jews in Jerusalem

And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: Genesis 12:3a

Expressions of hostility and acts of discrimination by Muslims against Jews in Jerusalem aren't as traditional as it may appear to those of us in the 21st century. From the column Then and Now in Jerusalem by Geoffrey Clarfield and Salim Mansur in the Toronto newspaper National Post, October 27, 2015:

...The Palestinian leadership has incited publicly their people to “spill blood.” Mahmoud Abbas, the president of Palestinian Authority, declared on television, “We welcome every drop of blood spilled in Jerusalem. This is pure blood, clean blood, blood on its way to Allah.” Such chilling incitement to kill reaches back to the years immediately after the First World War, when the Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin Al-Husseini, appointed by the British, made a career out of calling for jihad against the Jews culminating in his embrace of Hitler.

When Abbas calls to “spill blood,” or Jamal Zahalka, an Israeli Arab member of the Knesset, declares, “I will personally expel every Jew who comes to the Temple Mount in a provocative manner,” they are following the odious footsteps of Haj Amin Al-Husseini. Their anti-Jew hatred not surprisingly is encouraged by King Abdullah II, the West’s favourite royal pretender whose family the British imported from Hejaz in Arabia and enthroned as unelected rulers over the largely Palestinian people and country of Jordan, illegally carved out of the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine in the early 1920s. Abdullah shamelessly announced recently that only Muslims should be allowed on the grounds of the Temple Mount.

There is, however, another history of Muslim rulers over Jerusalem. It is contrary to Al-Husseini’s jihad against the Jews that became embedded in the politics espoused by Palestinians over the past century. Though this history has been deliberately obscured by advocates of political Islam or Islamism in recent years, it is all the more necessary today to hold Palestinians accountable for shredding their own Muslim tradition that holds the promise of religious coexistence and mutual respect among Christians, Jews and Muslims.

When the first Arab armies conquered Palestine, or the land of Israel, in 637, Jews stood witness. Muslim and non-Muslim sources recount the surrender of Jerusalem by the Byzantine Patriarch Sophronious to Umar, the second of the righteous Caliph of Muslims and a close companion of Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam. There were Jews in the company of Umar when he visited the Temple Mount and ordered the removal of filth accumulated on the site.

Jews were granted permission by Umar to live in Jerusalem and pray on the Temple Mount. They were allowed to build a synagogue there. Even after the completion of the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque by the Umayyad caliphs based in Damascus, the 10th century Jewish writer Solomon ben Jeroham (a Karaite) recorded that Jews prayed on the Temple Mount.

Umar’s conduct on taking control of Jerusalem from the Byzantines set the righteous precedent for Muslims to follow. When Muslim rulers behaved differently their conduct spoke ill of them, as happened with the Fatimid ruler Caliph Hakim in Cairo. Hakim turned malevolent against Christian and Jews, and destroyed the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem in 1009 (for which Jews were falsely blamed and victimized by a recurrent wave of anti-Semitism in Europe).

There were the Crusades, and Jews were massacred in Jerusalem by the Crusaders. But Christian rulers of the Crusader Kingdom during the 12th century became mindful of the local traditions and Jews were allowed to pray on the Temple Mount. After Saladin reconquered Jerusalem in 1187, he restored Jewish rights following Umar’s precedent.

When Ottoman Turks took control of Jerusalem in the 16th century they imposed a ban on Jews worshipping on the Temple Mount. However, they strictly enforced the right of Jews to pray at the Western Wall of the Temple, what is now known as the “Wailing Wall.” Access to the Temple Mount for non-Muslims (including Jews) was relaxed at the request of the British at the end of the Crimean war in 1856. Some six decades later General Allenby, at the head of the British army, triumphantly entered Jerusalem in November 1917, and Britain’s rule over Palestine under the League of Nation’s Mandate inaugurated a new era for Jews in their ancestral homeland after nearly 2,000 years.

For Muslims, Jerusalem is the third holiest city after Mecca and Medina. But for Jews, Jerusalem is the first and only holy city, since it was made the capital of ancient Israel by King David. Yet contrary to public opinion (in and outside of the Muslim world) Muslim authorities have generally tolerated Jews praying on the Temple Mount. The theological and historical evidence over time support this simple fact. The Muslim connection to Jerusalem rests upon the reference made in the Quran of the Prophet’s night journey “from the Sacred Mosque to the distant Mosque whose precincts We have blessed, that We may show him some of Our Signs” (17:11). Muhammad’s miraculous heavenly journey from King David’s city, referred in Arabic simply as al Quds (the Holiness), confirmed his lineage in the fraternity of prophets reaching back through Moses and Abraham to Adam.

Muhammad had prayed at first by turning his face in the direction (qiblah) of Jerusalem. After his flight to Medina from Mecca he received guidance, as the Quran states, to “turn towards the Holy Mosque” (2:144) in prayer. Since then Muslims have followed their prophet. From an Islamic point of view, it might be said, the revelation instructing the Prophet to pray in the direction of Mecca was a sign for him and his followers not to contest Jews with unlawful claims or deny their rights in Jerusalem.

Until 1967 no scholar in or outside of the Muslim world doubted that underneath the Temple Mount could be found the site and remains of the Jewish Temple of Solomon, Ezra and Nehemiah, and of Herod the Great within whose Temple Jesus of Nazareth prayed and preached. Even Haj Amin al-Husseini published in 1925 a brochure, titled “Brief Guide to Al-Haram Al-Sharif, Jerusalem” (the Arabic expression for the Temple Mount), in which is stated, “The site is one of the oldest in the world. Its sanctity dates from the earliest times. Its identity with the site of Solomon’s Temple is beyond dispute...”

"Urine trouble": accusation of peeing in public leads to more serious charges

...and be sure your sin will find you out. Numbers 32:23b

As reported by Mary Ellen MacIntyre of the Halifax Chronicle-Herald, October 26, 2015:

If there’s a lesson to learn, it’s this: peeing in public never ends well.

Three Quebec men now face numerous fraud-related charges all because one of them decided urinating in public was a wise choice.

Early Saturday morning, Halifax Regional Police received a call about an indecent act performed at the intersection of Robie Street and Quinpool Road. The caller said the man jumped back into the vehicle and was travelling outbound on Quinpool Road.

Officers found the vehicle at a Needs Convenience Store on Herring Cove Road.

All three men were subsequently arrested — two for breach of court orders and a third for obstructing a police officer. They were arrested and vehicle was seized.

Things get even more complicated when officers searched a Lier Ridge home the trio had rented two weeks before and found materials used to produce fraudulent credit cards.

The following charges have been laid against Kevin Clairsant-Letourneau, 20, of Montreal; Marvin Pierre Coriolan, 22, of Terrebonne and Karim Agba, 23, of Montreal: fraud over $5,000, conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, possession of two stolen credit cards, instrument for use in forging a credit card and possession of property obtained by crime.

In addition, Clairsant-Letourneau faces a charge of obstructing a police officer and Coriolan is charged with three counts of breach of probation. Agba faces four counts of breach of probation.

They spent the rest of the weekend in jail and are scheduled to appear in Halifax provincial court today to answer to the charges.