Partners 312: Hamas Leader's Son Becomes Christian, Pedophile Priests, Counselor Training, Free Pastors' Conference, In Praise of Women

Hamas Leader's Son Becomes a Christian! This is one of the biggest stories yet in the war of words between Islam and Christianity. This is shaking many in Islam. The son of the Palestinian jihadist group Hamas has just announced that he became a Christian about 4 years ago after reading a Bible a missionary gave him in Jerusalem. Upon reading it, he fell in love with Jesus and realized that Muslims do not have a clue to God's real identity. "“I consider Islam a big lie,” said the son of one of Hamas’ founders. “The people who supposedly represent the religion admired Mohammed more than God, killed innocent people in the name of Islam, beat their wives and don’t have any idea what God is." Read the entire story here.

Deliver Us From Evil by Amy Berg: I watched this award-winning documentary on Netflicks.com where you can download and watch movies instantly. You can also purchase it online. This is not an easy film to watch but one that Catholics, in particular, should watch. This is about a emotionally sick priest who sexually abuses many children and some adults. The priest confesses his crimes on camera many times. The response of the victims is truly gut-wrenching. Bad as that is, the real horror story is the way his bishops conspired to cleverly move him to other unsuspecting parishes where he could stay on the job as a priest. (There is a great lack of priests in the Catholic Church, you know.)

This is an abuse of spiritual authority of the highest rank! I am personally convinced that there is a conspiracy of secrecy among some Catholic bishops about the tens of thousands of children who have been sexually victimized by pedophile or gay priests. A gay priest has even said as much. This is a global phenomena in the Catholic Church but this film deals mainly with America. I love the Catholic Church. I found God there as a young Catholic boy. I later became an altarboy and Catholic seminarian for two years. The nuns and priests I knew nurtured me as a child in my relationship with Jesus very well. But perhaps up to 100,000 Catholic children in America could not say that, because they have allegedly been sexually abused by a priest in the last 50 years or so. This deep-seated evil in the priesthood continues despite the many court cases that have revolved around in the last few years. On August 11, 2008 a priest was arrested for running naked around town. Something is deeply broken in the Roman Catholic Church and some bishops should be in jail for allowing it. I commend this film to the men and women in the Catholic Church who love the Catholic Church--- but who love God and truth even more.

Pastor's Conference, "Stretch Forth" ( Is 54: 1-3): This is the annual, free conference that Pastors Tony and Kathy Peaks put on to refresh local pastors with great preaching/teaching/food/fellowship. Yes-- I did say food! This is held at Open Door church in Suffolk, VA. (816 Kings Fork Road). Call (757)934-2671 or email to info@odcsuffolk.com

Many pastors have gone for years and made some good friends there. Pastors Tony & Kathy have done this for years. I recommend this to any pastor who wants to hang out with other pastors and get refreshed.

Very Helpful Ministry of Comfort Training: I have used Stephen Ministry Training in a church with very good results. It equips ordinay people to give much comfort to others in a crisis or in deep grief. This kind of ministry will be much more needed as America's economy continues to devolve into greater emotional pain for millions of people. Churches would be wise to now to train their members in basic crisis and grief counseling skills. Operation Blessing just held a free class in Virginia beach on this subject for crises. This ministry training can equip your people to bring godly, accountable, structured comfort to those people now and to many more to come later. God will be greatly honored as we love our neighbor this way. http://www.stephenministries.org/

Free Online Audio Bible Overview: An 80-minute panorama of the Bible
in the language of your choice at http://www.menorah.org/godsstory.html
This is a wonderful way to share the story of God's love for people with noon-believers online. Find a Muslim, Hindu or Buddhist online and send them this link. Try www.Skype.com to look up someone to chat with by language or by country.

In Praise of Women: The main thing to know about women is that they are different from men. Thank God! What would this world be like if it were all men--assuming we could reproduce ourselves without women. :> Besides God, our very existence depends on women. No one nurtures like a woman. What would men be like if they were all raised just by men? I don't even like to even think about it. I have rarely seen a man who can give of himself as unselfishly to another as most women can to their children and husbands. Utter, unselfish, all-giving, sacrificial love--that's what I see in most women. I am 61 and I still am still amazed by that level of love in the young mothers I see scrambling to corral and take care of two, three or more little tykes at the park. Where so women get that kind of love? Not from men. Only God has that kind of love in His all-gender personality. How glad I am that God did not stop with Adam but went on to create a new, improved human we call women. The next time you read about someone or some group hurting women, I hope you will pray for those women. Men have been hurting women for thousands of years. Some religions actually make it a duty to hurt women. They deserve better from men, don't you agree? As the song says, "Thank heaven for little girls..."


Grateful to be the father of three girls and grandfather of four more,

Bob Fox
Editor