JUDGE SAYS PRAYER BAN OK : OFFICIALS PROHIBITED IN PROMOTING , ENDORSING RELIGION IN SANTA ROSA COUNTY SCHOOL IN UNITED STATES

A federal judge on Friday approved a consent decree that calls for Santa Rosa County School District officials to stop promoting their religious beliefs in schools.

School officials now are prohibited from promoting or endorsing prayers during school functions and from organizing school functions at religious venues. The consent decree must be distributed to all employees.
"The court has ensured that decisions about religion will be left in the hands of families and faith communities and not public school officials," said Benjamin Stevenson, an American Civil Liberties Union of Florida attorney based in Pensacola.
The ACLU and ACLU of Florida sued the district in August on behalf of two unnamed Pace High School students. The students claimed school officials regularly promoted religion and led prayers at school events.
District officials admitted the allegations. Board members signed a consent decree in March that listed steps the district will take to end the violations.
School Board Chairman Ed Gray said they intend to abide by the judge's order.
"We think we can still have an open door for all groups to use the schools. The law provides for that," he said. "But, we will make sure we do not infringe upon the religious rights of any student."
Religious freedom is best promoted when the government stays out of religion, Stevenson said.
"Now, students and their families can feel comfortable holding and expressing their own religious beliefs, knowing that school officials will no longer impose their particular religious beliefs on students at school," he said. "This is a truly victorious day for the Constitution and for religious freedom in Florida."
The Rev. Matt Cotten, minister of education and outreach at Pine Terrace Baptist Church in Milton, said he is not surprised a judge would sign the order.
"The representation for the county failed to defend our rights well," he said. "The wording is sufficiently convoluted to distract from the intent of the Constitution while appearing not to infringe upon our rights."
Today, Cotten plans to have the OK2Pray.org Rally for Education at Milton High School.
"I believe in everyone's right to worship, pray, not worship or not pray," he said. "I stand, and will continue to stand, for freedom."
The rally can be on Milton High's grounds because it is not sponsored by the school or school system representatives and is on a Saturday, district officials said.

MUSLIM APPOINTED BBC HEAD OF RELIGION AND ETHICS : PRAY FOR UK

Maybe you have already heard the news about how the BBC has appointed a Muslim as the head of Religion and Ethics, and if not, let me tell you about it. According to the news services, Aaqil Ahmed's appointment is controversial because it steps away from the Christian roots of England.
Andrea Minichiello Williams, a barrister with the UK based Christian Concern for our Nation (http://www.ccfon.org/), said, “Until now, our public national broadcaster has been charged with reflecting our country’s Christian heritage and ethos. Aaqil Ahmed’s appointment is controversial because his background and previous work at Channel 4 has revealed a noticeable bias towards Islam and multiculturalism.”

According to The Daily Telegraph, senior bishops wrote to the BBC’s Director General Mark Thompson when it was envisaged that Mr. Ahmed might be appointed, to question the BBC’s commitment to Britain's Christian audience. The Archbishop of Canterbury had also raised concerns with Mr. Thompson that the “Christian voice is being sidelined” after Mr. Ahmed was first connected to the role.
Ms. Williams went on to say, “The appointment could be seen as the inevitable result of our multicultural society, in which all religions are viewed as of equal value. This is the secularist point of view—that religion should be confined to the home and the church and excluded from the public square and the workplace. A cursory survey of the Christian Legal Centre’s website (www.christianlegalcentre.com) will reveal the increasing intolerance of this ideology as far as Christians are concerned.

CHINA'S FIRST SEX PARK STIRS UP ROW

BEIJING: Plans to establish China’s first sex themed park is causing a lot of controversy with a section saying it would harm children. The park with naked human sculptures and giant replica of human genitals is due to open in October in Chongqing, the booming city on the Yangtze River.

Promoters of the park named Love Land say it would serve the purpose of sex education and encourage healthy discussion on sex in a society, which frowns on any talk on the subject. It will also help adults "enjoy a harmonious sex life," the local media quoted park manager Lu Xiaoqing, as saying.

"Sex is a taboo subject in China but people really need to have more access to information about it," Lu said. "We are building the park for the good of the public," he said. Love Land, which is based the sex park in the South Korean island of Jeju, has drawn a barrage of criticism over the internet with hundreds of people saying China is not the place for “vulgar exhibition” of what is essentially a private matter.

The local media has also been publishing comments from the local people opposing the opening of the park. "I would be embarrassed looking at sex sculptures and pictures with other people around me,” Zhao Fang, a woman school teacher in Beijing told TNN. But she conceded that it might draw teenagers, who may be curious to know sex is practiced in foreign countries. Local authorities in Chongqing gave permission for establishing the park hoping it would draw a lot of tourists.

But the rising wave of criticism might force them to place restrictions on at least some of the exhibits in the part, a government official said. The park will have an exhibition showing different facets of sex as practiced in different countries and lessons on how the subject has been treated through history. It will contain details on the use of condoms and other measures to prevent AIDS.

ICPF OBSERVING JULY 12 AS STUDENT SUNDAY ACROSS INDIA : PRAY FOR THE STUDENTS AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE....

Student Sunday, July 12, 2009

Loving greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus whose we are and whom we serve!
Pastor, we salute you and honestly appreciate your commitment to Lord’s work and praise God, our Father, for having chosen you to do His work. We also remember your cooperation with ICPF (Inter Collegiate Prayer Fellowship) ministry in the past.

ICPF, as you know, with its one target of evangelizing the postmatric and college going youth of our generation, has already impacted thousands of young men and women across the length and breadth of our country to follow Lord Jesus and be His witnesses wherever God places them.

Ministering in Nineteen states in India, ICPF has at present 100 full time staff workers and associate staffs, in addition to staffs in our musical teams.

Apart from direct evangelization, Programmes aimed at educating the public and creating awareness of the social evils and drug menace among the youth are the main concerns of ICPF ministry.

We need roughly about 10 lakhs of rupees every month to cover our expenses. So far, God had been graciously raising people to support this ministry. Most of our supporters are young men and women who have been benefited by ICPF in their personal lives.

As a Pastor, we are sure, you will appreciate how committed youths are our real hope of the future assistance of our churches. So we look forward to your more active contribution towards this ministry in the coming days. Kindly set apart this day for the students and youths in your church and try to give them ample time to share their testimony or from the word of God.
· You can encourage your congregation and decide to send a fixed monthly contribution to the ministry.
· Your church can support one staff worker (RS 6000/- per month)
· You can set apart this day in a year as a student / youth Sunday and invite ICPF team to minister in your church.
This year, ICPF has decided to set apart July 12th as ‘Students’ Sunday’. Kindly pray for the student ministries especially ICPF on that day.
We would appreciate if you could collect an offering on the occasion and send it to the ICPF Central Office or hand it over to the ICPF Senior Forum (CGPF) Secretary or Staff in your area.

As the ministry is expanding and as we aim to cover more states in the coming years, we will need more financial support and we look forward to ministers like you to help our cause. Co-operation from your church, I am sure, will help us to achieve our goals faster.
A giving church is also the growing church. So let us both grow together and glorify our Master’s name in our motherland.
God bless you and your congregation.

Yours faithfully,
Prof. Mathew P Thomas