Protecting Christians in Iraq

CBNNews.com - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom says Iraq should be among those countries the U.S. State Department targets for abuses of religious freedom.
They are calling on the U.S. State Department to do more to protect Christians in Iraq. The Commission noted ongoing severe persecution of religious minorities and the failure of the Iraqi government to respond.
A spokesperson for the U.S. State Department told us "the U.S. government takes religious freedom very seriously…. we believe the Iraqi government has expressed a commitment to protect its religious minorities… and has threatened severe punishment for those who harm them."
U.S. Congressman Frank Wolf of Virginia lays the blame on the Bush Administration.

Documentary Series Looks at Jesus' Nazareth

CBNNews.com - Many tourists are going to Israel during this Christmas season to celebrate the birth of Christ.
Bethlehem is the city of Christ's birth, but Nazareth was the hometown of his parents, Mary and Joseph.
The Israeli city is now the location of a new video series titled the "Nazareth Jesus Knew."
The series is hosted by entertainer Pat Boone in the United States and actor/host Gary Bayer from the city where God chose to reveal himself to the virgin Mary.
"In this place, he chose to speak to Mary and say, 'You will give birth to the son of God,'" Bayer said.
"In this place, Mary and Joseph and the little boy Jesus returned after the exile in Egypt. And now, in this place Jesus was coming to announce his ministry and to proclaim his lordship," he continued.
The producers of the documentary series want viewers to experience what life was like for Jesus and others in Nazareth more than 2,000 years ago.
It was filmed on location at Nazareth village, a recreated first century village.
"It's a combination of being a working village, like we would know here in the United States like a Jamestown or that kind of a thing," Bayer told CBN News.
"But they have actually found historical pieces from the time of Jesus. They found a wine press from. It's very possible that Jesus as a boy-and he spent 80% of his life there," he explained. "He could very well have been jumping up and down in this wine press that they have found."
Bayer says the contextual setting is an important part of the production. But the producers hope to draw people into a better understanding of God's word through fresh reenactments and teachings.
"What they have done is they have created 12 half-hour pieces," he said. "They are a combination of parables. Jesus' parables as well as events in his life that we know, like when he announced who he was to the world in the synagogue."
"It will enrich their understanding and deepen their understanding of what Jesus said, not only in the parables, but in the events like dropping the paralytic," Bayer explained.
"When the four friends brought the paralytic that was on the mat and lowered him through the roof. I'm thinking tiles, remove a few tiles you know. It was a major deal -- the commitment. They so believed that Jesus would heal their friend," he said.
"And the amazing thing is that the room was so packed it meant that they couldn't get in, which means the power of God had to be working in such a powerful way that nobody wanted to give up their seat," Bayer said.
The series producers are hoping the public will be glued to their seats for the six-hour series. Broadcast negotiations are currently under way and producers are aiming for a 2009 release.

Singers Putting Christ in Christmas in Nepal

CBNNews.com - A singer from India is organizing concerts to introduce un-churched youth to the meaning of Christmas.
This year, Bonny Andrews and his team of music artists are performing in Delhi, India; Berlin, Germany and for the first time in Katmandu located in the Hindu nation of Nepal.
The Persecuted Church in Nepal
This December believers decided to go public with the Christmas message -- even though the holiday is new to Nepal.
"Christmas?," one passerby asked. "I don't really know, but I've heard of it."
"It's the New Year," said another. "I know only a little about it."
"I don't know," one man explained. "I don't know. What is Christmas?"
If the Nepalese know anything about Christmas, they usually think of it as just another festival.
But Andrews is determined to let Nepal know that Christmas has everything to do with Jesus. His strategy: organize a public concert with popular singers.
"The target audience we're looking for this show is basically people that will never come in for a church service," Andrews said.
"Never walk in for a prayer meeting. Never walk in to anything that is spiritual, but would love to come for a concert. And we want to get them into a concert. Get them into the groove of the music. And also share the love of Jesus," he continued.
Event Draws Thousands, Broadcast on National TV
The first-time event, called Gloria Dei, drew thousands to a large park in downtown Katmandu. It marked another first as well.
" first time in the history of Nepal Christmas is considered as a national holiday," said Pastor Vijay Karmacharya.
"For that very reason we Christians in the valley like to come together and celebrate that occasion," he said.
Nepalese television broadcast the concert live throughout the country. Viewers heard not just music, but personal testimonies of what Jesus means to these Christian artists.