Speak against work discrimination

BA worker, magistrate ask churches to speak against work discrimination

Posted: Tuesday, November 20, 2007, 12:20 (GMT)

The British Airways employee disciplined for wearing a silver cross necklace and the Sheffield magistrate who resigned after refusing to place youngsters with same-sex adopting couples called on church leaders last weekend to speak more forcibly against work discrimination.

Nadia Eweida, 56, and 63-year-old Andrew McClintock - whose cases are before the courts - made their appeal at the annual conference of the Christian Peoples Alliance party in London.

With her claim for religious discrimination still before an Employment Tribunal in Reading, Ms Eweida said she would have been dismissed by BA if it were not for the press attention.

Last year she was sent home with no pay after BA said a silver cross the size of a 5p coin contravened internal uniform policy and might offend other British Airways employees.



Despite changing its policy after a national outcry, the company held back Ms Eweida's pay and threatened to send a huge legal bill for costs and damages. BA says its stance is right in law, but it had only changed its internal policy as a result of negative publicity.

Ms Eweida said that now her case was not in the headlines, BA had chosen not to settle her back-pay and had sought to gag her.

She urged church leaders to speak up so other Christians didn't face work-place discrimination: "I have to resort to law to establish Christian liberty in the workplace, but it is vital that church leaders continue to make their voice heard.

"British Airways bends backwards to be politically correct towards other religions. They just forgot there are also Christians working for them. I'm an Anglo-Egyptian Christian and in Egypt, where Christians experience persecution, to wear the Cross is second nature and widely respected.

"BA is sensitive to Muslims, Sikhs, Hindus and those of other faith groups and all I want is the same right to wear the symbol of my faith. "

In his remarks, Andrew McClintock said his case was going to the Court of Appeal and that it was vital for church leaders to highlight that where possible, it was in the interest of a child facing adoption that they should be placed with a mother and father.



He explained to CPA delegates that he had to resign as a JP in the family courts as it would be wrong in conscience to place youngsters with same-sex couples.

"Placing children with gay couples is an experiment in social science because it is not known what kind of impact it may have on them. By legalising homosexual adoption, Labour are not making paramount the best interest of the child," he said.

Mr McClintock has resigned from his role as a JP in the family courts. His stance and that of Ms Eweida won wide applause from party members and the backing of CPA Leader, Cllr Alan Craig, who is an opposition leader on Newham Borough Council.

Saddleback hopes to see 10,000 more lives changed and baptized.

Rick Warren Launches New Plan to Multiply Impact Worldwide

Saddleback Church, one of the largest churches in the nation, has launched a new global vision to multiply impact on the local and international levels.

Wed, Oct. 17, 2007 Posted: 14:59:42 PM EST

---

Saddleback Church, one of the largest churches in the nation, has launched a new global vision to multiply impact on the local and international levels.

Within the next three years, megachurch in the Lake Forest, Calif., aims to launch nine new off-site campuses in addition to its San Clemente campus, which meets every weekend at the local high school, and step up its global P.E.A.C.E. plan. By 2010, Saddleback hopes to see 10,000 more lives changed and baptized.

"One of the most important words in the Christian life [is] 'go,'" said Rick Warren, founding and senior pastor of Saddleback, during his "Multiplying Our Impact" sermon series last month. "The Christian life is a journey and over and over again God says you are to go. We are not a passive faith; you are a 'going' faith."

Thousands of Saddleback congregants and staff have been on the move to open a campus in Corona and Irvine late this year and early 2008. Two pastors have already been picked out of the Saddleback staff to lead the sites, which will have their own live worship music and video feed from the main Lake Forest campus. The campuses will host smaller congregations of 400 to 600 people.

Matt McGill, pastor of regional campuses for Saddleback, calls the expansion "decentralized congregations" rather than the popular term "multi-site" which more churches are venturing into.

"We clearly are looking at this strategy as one church meeting in decentralized locations to be most effective in reaching those communities for Christ," said McGill.

"Our shift to a regional approach is not about making worship more convenient for our members or emptying seats from our Lake Forest campus," he noted. "We’re making this shift to empower our people for evangelism and to reach new communities in the name of Jesus."

The expansion, called the 10x10 vision, also includes 10,000 small groups in homes, work, school and on the Internet and 1 million personal invitations given out by church members.

Answering critics of the multi-site approach, which has become the next big thing for effective outreach, McGill said there will always be critics of any new methodology but methodologies must always change in order to be as effective as possible in the generation we live, he commented. But the message in the church, meanwhile, never changes.

"What we have seen is that many churches that see the lostness that surrounds them are willing to embrace new modern methodologies to communicate the unchanging message of the hope of Jesus," said McGill.

How much technology is too much?

McGill has three tests to answer the popularly asked question.

First, the worship test. "When we worship technology – love it and depend on it more than God – we have gone too far."

Second, the fruitfulness test. "Are we seeing changed lives? If there is no life change, and we still stick to the technology, then we have gone too far."

Third, the test of conviction. "Any choice to use technology is a decision that should come from a clear heart, from a place where you believe God is leading."

Global 10x10

Nearly four years after launching a sweeping plan to fight the global ills of the world, Warren introduced P.E.A.C.E. 2.0 – the next phase of the PEACE plan. Some 7,400 Saddleback members have volunteered to take overseas PEACE trips to tackle the five "global goliaths" that are affecting billions of people – spiritual emptiness, self serving leadership, poverty, pandemic diseases, and lack of education and illiteracy. The initiative's main emphasis has been the local church and mobilizing churches worldwide to Plant churches, Equip leaders, Assist the poor, Care for the sick, and Educate the next generation "the way Jesus did," as Warren says.

Now, Warren is building a PEACE Coalition of partners that includes the government and NGOs and businesses in addition to churches. The "P" in PEACE 2.0 now stands for "Promote reconciliation" while churches will continue to focus on planting churches.

By December 2010, Saddleback hopes to have 10,000 more people go on global PEACE trips; 10,000 people per year involved in local PEACE projects; and 10,000 churches in the PEACE Coalition.

Why? Because it's the responsibility of the church to do it, said Warren. And Saddleback wants to be part of God's plan of exposing every tribe, language, people and nation to the gospel.

Lillian Kwon
Christian Post Reporter

5 Kinds of Christians

Understanding the disparity of those who call themselves Christian in America.

A new national survey co-sponsored by Leadership. Fall 2007, Vol. XXVIII
Reported by Helen Lee

Active Christians 19%

• Believe salvation comes through Jesus Christ
• Committed churchgoers
• Bible readers
• Accept leadership positions
• Invest in personal faith development through the church
• Feel obligated to share faith; 79% do so.

Professing Christians 20%

• Believe salvation comes through Jesus Christ
• Focus on personal relationship with God and Jesus
• Similar beliefs to Active Christians, different actions
• Less involved in church, both attending and serving
• Less commitment to Bible reading or sharing faith

Liturgical Christians 16%

• Predominantly Catholic and Lutheran
• Regular churchgoers
• High level of spiritual activity, mostly expressed by serving in church and/or community
• Recognize authority of the church

Private Christians 24%

• Largest and youngest segment
• Believe in God and doing good things
• Own a Bible, but don't read it
• Spiritual interest, but not within church context
• Only about a third attend church at all
• Almost none are church leaders
• 
  

Cultural Christians 21%

• Little outward religious behavior or attitudes
• God aware, but little personal involvement with God
• Do not view Jesus as essential to salvation
• Affirm many ways to God
• Favor universality theology

From Lesbian and Gay Right Activist to Christ

By admin | October 27, 2007

Watched this youtube!

You will be blessed and encouraged by the love, mercy and grace of God in Jesus Christ!

E-C words

Beatrice and David (or rather his dad!) have graciously helped me with some of the words.

61) ministry SHI GONG

62) dynamic DONG LI or huo2 li4 or shen1 qi4

63) assurance of salvation JIU SHU DE PING JU or que1 bao3 de2 jiu4

64) potential qian3 nen2 or qian3 li4 潜能

65) conclusions zong3 jie2 总结

implications HAN YI 含义 ying2 xiang3

66) politics zhen4 zhi4 政治

67) apologetics BIAN HU 辩护 hu4 jiao4

68) Canonization of the Bible shen4 jing4 de1 bian zhi4

69) Church growth jiao4 hui4 de zhen1 zhang3 教会成长

70) secularism SHI SHU LUN 世俗论

71) postmodernism HOU XIAN DAI ZHU YI 后现代主义

72) technology ZHI SHU 技术

73) liberalism ZI YOU ZHU YI 自由主义

74) cost of discipleship

75) conviction XIN NIAN 信念

76) condemnation ZE BEI 责备

77) guilt conscience ZUI ZHUANG LIANG XIN 罪状良心

78) godly sorrow SHEN SHENG AI TONG 神圣哀痛

79) worldly sorrow SHI JIAN DE AI TONG 世间的哀痛

80) fear of God DUI SHANG DI DE JINGWEI 对上帝的敬畏

WHAT ARE U INVESTING IN?

Native American tribe to honour Goh Tong for his help

Monday October 29, 2007

The Star Malaysia

A number of customs that are only extended to our own people have been and will be bestowed on Goh Tong to mark his passing... MICHAEL THOMAS

GENTING HIGHLANDS: The late Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong’s legacy does not only live on in Genting, but halfway round the world in the Native American tribe of the Mashantucket Pequot.

Unknown to most Malaysians, in 1991 the late Goh Tong helped the tribe – that was struggling to grow cabbage – by investing in their idea of building a casino, the Foxwoods Resort & Casino, which has now become the largest casino in the world.

The chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, a sovereign nation within the US located in the state of Connecticut, Michael Thomas said the tribe owed a great deal to Lim for his vision and his confidence in them.

“When we wanted to start the casino, we approached 23 lending institutions who all turned us down because there was no guarantee we would pay back the loans,” he said.

As a result of a meeting with the business partner of Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, Nicky Brown, Thomas and his tribe were introduced to the late Goh Tong who turned out to be the only one who would help them.

“He heard about our situation and actually came to our place to meet our people and see for himself what we were about and what our values were,” he said after meeting with Lim’s family for over two hours at the wake yesterday.

“Within 48 hours of meeting us, he agreed to give his support in the form of a US$$60mil (RM200mil) investment,” he said, adding that Americans widely credited the Pequot tribe for opening the doors for hundreds of other Native American tribes to open their own gaming centres.

Thomas said the success of the Pequot tribe, together with another Native American tribe, now created USS$2.7bil (RM9.02bil) in revenue for the Connecticut state government from “taxes” levied from their slot machines.

Thomas, who led a nine-man delegation from the US, arrived yesterday without some of his luggage as it had been delayed, apologised for his informal dress and said that he would be dressed in traditional attire when giving a eulogy at Goh Tong’s funeral today.

“A number of customs that are only extended to our own people have been and will be bestowed on Goh Tong to mark his passing,” he said.

Thomas said this included all buildings in the nation flying their flag at half-mast for a week, while a sacred stone called Wampum which is sourced from a clam called the Quohog would be given to the family.

“The stone is valuable because it is usually only given to our leaders,” he said.

Thomas said it was important for the world to know that it was the faith Goh Tong had in them that allowed them to succeed beyond their wildest dreams.

Pequot tribe vice-chairman Kenneth Reels said Goh Tong’s help allowed their nation to be self-sufficient while creating some 10,000 jobs there.

“As a nation, if you have to be dependent on somebody else then you are not exercising sovereignty to the fullest.

“He has enabled us to do that. We are here today because we feel it is appropriate to pay our respects to someone who gave respect to us.”

“He is part of our history and we have a family relationship that we will cherish forever. His family is part of ours as ours is part of theirs.”

What are u thinking?!

"Think about the things that are good and worthy of praise. Think about the things that are true and honorable and right and pure and beautiful and respected." (Philippians 4:8)


Change the thoughts, and you change the person. If today's thoughts are tomorrow's actions, what happens when we fill our minds with thoughts of God's love? Will standing beneath the downpour of his grace change the way we feel about others?


Paul says absolutely! It's not enough to keep the bad stuff out. We've got to let the good stuff in. It's not enough to keep not list of wrongs. We have to cultivate a list of blessings. "Think about the things that are good and worthy of praise. Think about the things that are true and honorable and right and pure and beautiful and respected." Thinking conveys the idea of pondering -- studying and focusing, allowing what is viewed to have an impact on us.


Rather than store up the sour, store the sweet!

Max Lucado
From: A Love Worth Giving