The latest edition of Trumpet Call is now available for download.
In this edition:
EU Equal Treatment Directive to stop all discussion and expression of faith?For details, click here to download the latest Trumpet Call.
Please give us your comments on any of these articles here.
Thank you for your prayers and campaigning.
Last night Lord Alderdice’s amendment to the Coroners and Justice Bill was withdrawn. The amendment sought to remove the possibility of prosecution for those who help a person to die where that person has an incurable and disabling illness and a coroner has certified that the person has a free and settled wish to die. This would be wrong in principle and open to massive abuse. The amendment was opposed by a majority of those Lords who spoke in the debate. Praise the Lord!.
In giving concluding remarks, Lord Bach said that their ‘firm view remains that the Coroners and Justice Bill has never been, and is not now the appropriate vehicle for change in the criminal law as it applies to assisted suicide.’
Thank you to our friends in ccfon for this update.
Our friends in the charity Care have sent out this bulletin which we would like to draw to your attention:
Having debated assisted suicide at great length in July and rejected it by a majority of 53, it was deemed very unlikely that another assisted suicide amendment would be allowed during the Lords’ consideration of the Coroners and Justice Bill. Lord Alderdice, however, has just been permitted to table an assisted suicide amendment which will probably be addressed on Monday October 26th, or Wednesday 28th.
There is now an urgent need to email peers asking them to vote against Amendment 66 in the name of Lord Alderdice and indeed any other amendments that might be put down that seek to liberalise the law on assisted suicide. Please take action today. To find out what to do click here
Prayer: Please pray that Members of the House of Lords would speak and vote against the assisted suicide amendment and that it would fall.
The aim of the proposed European Commission Directive is to supplement existing equality laws by prohibiting discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief, disability, age and sexual orientation in the provision of goods and services.
Christians do not seek special provisions that would grant Christians “special treatment” and are opposed to discrimination. However, Christians – and followers of all religions and none – have to have the right to express their views, live their religion and express their faith in a responsible manner.
The rights of Freedom of Religion and Freedom of Expression are of fundamental importance for the safe functioning of a democratic society. Indeed, these rights are enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights.
The Directive defines harassment as ‘unwanted conduct … with the purpose or effect of violating the dignity of a person and or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment’. This definition is very broad and entirely subjective.
It is bizarre that the burden of proof is reversed: if a person claims to have been offended by me, I have no legal defence as I cannot prove that the complainant was not offended.
Discrimination under this Directive is not restricted to employment, and will apply in all walks of life, including the media, any discussions and religious services. Different pressure groups can use the provisions of the Directive to stop expression of views they disagree with declaring themselves to be offended.
We expect the Council of Ministers (with representation from all Member States) to vote in November 2009, so there is little time left to act.
We understand that 50,000 Muslims are expected to gather in Washington DC on Friday 25 September, to pray for the White House to be made a ‘Muslim house’.
American Christians are therefore being asked to fast and pray on Friday 25th September, to stand against this spiritual onslaught, and to pray for many Muslims to be brought to Christ.
For further details see: www.thecall.com
We pass this on so that you can join with our American brothers and sisters if you wish.
The Salon movement aims to provide forums around the country for open discussion of important issues – a rare and valuable opportunity to advocate the Christian position in public. Salon meetings are open to anyone. The Manchester Salon will be discussing assisted suicide on Monday 14 September, at 7.15 pm for 7.30 pm, at The Shakespeare public house, 16 Fountain Street, Manchester M2 2AA. The cost is £5 per person to cover the hire of the room. Here are further details.
Hans-Christian Raabe attended the Huddersfield Salon discussion on this subject and found it very worthwhile. Please consider whether you can go to this meeting and support the ‘case for life’.
Recent attacks on the Christian villages of Gojra and Qorian, in Pakistan, have resulted in the deaths of at least seven innocent men, women and children. These were the latest in a series of such attacks over many years, and have attracted international condemnation from religious and political leaders in Pakistan and internationally.
The blasphemy laws currently in force in Pakistan provide extremists and people with private motivations with the means to incite violence against Christians, and occasionally against Muslims, and seem to have played a part in the recent incidents. The police and local judiciary appear unable to protect innocent people from these attacks.
Christian, Muslim and other people around the world therefore want to express their concern to the Government of Pakistan, to press for changes in the blasphemy law in Pakistan, and to seek protection for Christians and others who are suffering from its abuse.
You can help by signing this petition
The petition will be delivered to the Pakistan Government. The more people who sign, the more effective it will be. We invite you to:-
In this way we can show our active support for the Christian community in Pakistan. This Trumpet Call is edited from an open letter circulated by David James, the Bishop of Bradford, which is of all the greater significance because it is also supported by the Muslim Community in this country.
The latest full edition of Trumpet Call is out now, and you can download it here.
We are aware that the succession of events about which we as Christians are concerned, in the life of our nation and around the world, and the associated calls from ourselves and other Christian groups for prayer and action, can become wearing. They need to be tempered with reminders of the securely founded hope that we enjoy, through the strengthening ministry of God the Holy Spirit in our lives, and with encouragement when advances are made and good results achieved.
Sometimes an advance is achieved, for example at one stage of the progress of a Bill through Parliament, only to be overturned subsequently. But that does not mean that all has been lost. There has been a witness for truth and righteousness. We cannot measure the worth of that in Kingdom values. And so as we set out these items for thanksgiving, for intercession and for action, let us remind ourselves that ‘At the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow’, and ‘…overwhelming victory is ours through him who loved us. For…nothing… can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.’
Free expression and exchange of religious and political views is fundamental to our democratic society. The Government is proposing to get rid of a law safeguarding freedom of speech – less than a year after it was passed. The aim appears to be to ban the expression of views – and especially Christian views on sexual ethics – which the state deems unacceptable. If the Law is changed -
The means for effecting this change is Clause 61 of The Coroners and Justice Bill.
Much in the Bill is good, but it is also being used to promote secularist proposals.
Further information is available in this on-line Maranatha Briefing:-
Clause 61 – The Coroners and Justice Bill
These developments are further examples of the huge secular humanist onslaught against Christian values and freedom of Christian expression.
Christians across the UK are joining with social reformers, human rights activists, lawyers and supporters of all political parties to oppose the clause, which has nothing to do with the primary purpose of the Coroners and Justice Bill. This week a coalition of Christian groups, including Maranatha, has been formed to stand against this threatened tyranny. Please pray for us.
You could also do two things:
Write to your Member of Parliament on-line here
or by post to: The House of Commons, Westminster, London SW1A 0AA
and express concern.
Sign the On-line Petition to the Prime Minister or download the paper version
Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states: “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights states: “Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers.”
There is a possibility that the Advertising Standards Agency is going to allow abortion providers to advertise on national television and radio. The objective of the advertisers is clearly to increase the number of abortions and to generate profit from the destruction of life in the womb.
We need to make the ASA aware that large numbers of people would regard this kind of advertising as totally repugnant, offensive and targeted on young people who are emotionally vulnerable.
Such advertising would be unbalanced and therefore very unfair, by permitting propaganda presenting only one viewpoint. Without the alternative and opposite options being presented, it would amount to an attack on the sanctity of human life and set an extremely dangerous precedent (another sign of the culture of death which is being promoted).
Write now to Mr. Chris Smith, Chairman of the Advertising Standards Authority, Mid City Place, 71 High Holborn, London WC1V 6QT Tel: 0207 492 2222 Fax: 0207 242 3696
Send a copy of your letter to your Member of Parliament, c/o House of Commons, Westminster, London SW1A 0AA.
Please sign the online petition
.
