US skips UN to aid Christians persecuted by ISIS
The Trump administration says the US Agency for International Development (USAID) will now give aid directly to persecuted Christians in the Middle East. “We will no longer rely on the United Nations alone to assist persecuted Christians and minorities in the wake of genocide and the atrocities of terrorist groups,” announced Vice President Mike Pence. Instead, USAID will work with faith-based and private organizations. Religious freedom experts—including former representative Frank Wolf and Center for Religious Freedom director Nina Shea—welcomed the news, as did some Arab Christian leaders. However, others worry it may spark even more extremist anger.
Pregnancy centers’ speech gets day in court
The US Supreme Court will decide whether crisis pregnancy centers in California have to post notices with contact information for free or low-cost abortion providers and contraception. Pro-life groups argue the notices violate the First Amendment by forcing them to communicate a message that violates their beliefs. But the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld the Golden State’s 2015 law, said that informing clients of “family-planning services” does not constitute an endorsement. Similar local ordinances in Maryland, New York, and Texas have been thrown out in the past, while Hawaii has a similar law and Connecticut is considering one. The Supreme Court will assess the case on the basis of free speech, not religious freedom.
Saudi Arabia: Arab Christians watch prince’s game of thrones
Blamed by religious freedom experts for funding Islamist extremism with oil profits, Saudi Arabia has promised to reverse course. Four months after crown prince Mohammad bin Salman was announced as successor to his father’s throne, he said the conservative Muslim nation would become “a country of moderate Islam that is open to all religions and to the world.” So far the bark has bite: Religious police have been stripped of the power to arrest, a committee has been appointed to purge radical texts, and thousands of alleged extremists have been removed from government posts. However, bin Salman also arrested 11 fellow princes and scores of wealthy Saudis, leaving Christians wary of his true intentions.
Nepal: New law makes Christians miss Hindu kingdom
Ten years ago, Hindu-majority Nepal declared itself a secular state. Two years ago, a new constitution was approved that proclaimed “no one shall attempt to change or convert someone from one religion to another.” In October, Nepal outlawed religious conversion and blasphemy. The new law stems from concerns raised last year when courts dropped charges against Christians accused of evangelizing students after a devastating earthquake in Kathmandu. The law’s punishment—up to five years in prison and $500—is worse than living under the official Hindu kingdom years ago, according to some local Christian leaders.
Zimbabwe: Evangelicals welcome Mugabe removal
Christian leaders in Zimbabwe called for prayer—and a transitional government—after 93-year-old President Robert Mugabe was placed under house arrest by the military in November. “We see the current arrangement as an opportunity for the birth of a new nation,” wrote the nation’s top evangelical, Catholic, charismatic, and ecumenical Protestant leaders. The military arrested Mugabe after he fired his vice president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, in order to smooth the way for Mugabe’s wife, Grace, to succeed him. The takeover was mostly peaceful and welcomed by most of the population, perhaps because Mugabe’s tight-fisted, often cruel, 37-year reign was anything but democratic. Mugabe resigned days after the military intervention, while one of his prominent critics, pastor Evan Mawarire, was acquitted of subversion.
Moody and Fuller close extension campuses
In the face of dropping enrollment, Moody Bible Institute said it would shut down its undergraduate campus in Spokane, Washington, and its distance learning site in Pasadena, California. The school will also cut its Chicago staff by about 10 percent and transition its seminary programs from 16-week to 8-week courses. Meanwhile, Fuller Theological Seminary will close three of its eight satellite campuses. Its regional campus enrollment declined by 30 percent over the past four years even as its online enrollment grew by over 50 percent. That signals a larger trend—the Association of Theological Schools said that extension enrollment has dipped by about 26 percent at its 270 institutions over the past 10 years, while online enrollment has more than doubled.
