Rev. Jacques Mourad’s Escape from ISIS

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A Syrian priest held hostage for months by the ISIS terrorist group is certain his life was saved due to his interfaith work, despite being threatened with beheading by jihadists if he did not renounce Christianity.

CHR Comment: Mourad, a Syrian Catholic priest, was captured at the Mar Moussa monastery along with a fellow worker, driven to Raqqa, held prisoner in a bathroom, and urged to convert to Islam or die. He credits his efforts at dialogue with Muslims and compassionate attitude toward them as reasons why he was not executed. While a captive, he met c. 250 members of his parish who were likewise held as prisoners. After ministering to fellow captives for some time, he determined it was best for him to escape.

Source: Priest who survived ISIS: “My interfaith work saved my life’’ – The Washington Post

Los Angeles Churches Make Worship…Hip?

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Joe Jonas, Viola Davis and Justin Bieber are among those attending services in Los Angeles that offer texted prayers, neon lights and other 2015 accouterments.

CHR Comment: Mosaic Church and Reality LA deliver non-denominational Christian messages in Southern California style, attracting large gatherings of disciples in their 20s and 30s. Current music, casual dress, immediate relevance, and biblically based messages are key elements that attract worshipers.

Source: Los Angeles Churches Make Worship…Hip?

U.S. pastors seek political office in 2016

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One Sunday two years ago, Pastor Rob McCoy, who believes in banning abortion and gay marriage and putting prayer back in schools, stood at the pulpit of his California mega church and announced he was endorsing a political candidate: himself.

CHR Comment: The American Renewal Project, organized by David Lane, seeks to have 1,000 conservative, evangelical pastors run for local political offices. The goal is to support a local, grass roots effort to change the cultural and political direction of the United States toward more conservative, traditional, and Christian values. However, the movement may face the risk of having churches lose their tax exempt status, according to reporter Michelle Conlin.

Source: For God and country: more U.S. pastors seek political office in 2016 | Reuters

Chocolatiers Work on a 220 Pound Chocolate Nativity Scene

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Renowned Italian chocolatiers have taken on the challenge to create a 220 pound chocolate crèche for a charity procession taking place in Genoa.

CHR Comment: Many Italians take their food and their faith seriously, but with a smile! The video shows the chocolatiers creating this beautiful nativity to celebrate Jesus’ birth. Merry Christmas indeed.

Source: Chocolatiers Work on a 220 Pound Chocolate Nativity Scene – NBC News

Why Chicago Pastors Reject Mayor Emanuel’s ‘Olive Branch of Peace’

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Several Chicago pastors held a press conference this morning, demanding that footage depicting another white police officer shooting an unarmed black teenager be released to the public.

CHR Comment: Three pastors are circulating a petition to remove Mayor Emanuel from office due to the handling of an investigation into a police shooting. While the pastors express concern for social justice, the mayor is likely concerned to keep civil order in a tense situation.

Source: Why Chicago pastors reject Mayor Emanuel’s ‘olive branch of peace’ – CSMonitor.com

Unmarried Couples Today Need No Nups Agreements

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Couples who won’t say ‘I do’ to marriage need to say ‘I will’ to financial planning, or they could find themselves in legal, and financial, trouble.

CHR Comment: Financial issues naturally arise when there is no legal basis for two persons living together. Marriage and sex are automatically about family and property rights. As long as those rights are unclear, individuals and households are at risk. A good illustration of why the Bible teaches marriage as the blessed estate.

Source: Forget prenups: Unmarried couples today need ‘no nups’

A Pastor and an Imam Bridge a Religious Divide

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They were once bitter foes. But two Nigerians, a Christian and an Muslim, are now preaching unity.

CHR Comment: Terrorism has been most deadly in Nigeria in 2015 due to the activities of Boko Haram, which persecutes Christians but also Muslims and other religious persons that disagree with them. The pastor and Imam pictured here run a mediation center together in an effort to foster peace and understanding in their nation.

Source: A pastor and an imam ‘programmed to hate one another’ bridge a religious divide | Public Radio International

Vatican Says Catholics Should Not Try to Convert Jews

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Catholics should not try to convert Jews and should work with them to fight anti-Semitism, the Vatican said on Thursday in a major document drawing the Church further away from the strained relations of the past.

CHR Comment: On the fiftieth anniversary of the papal document Nostra Aetate, which helped initiate Jewish-Catholic dialogues, this announcement is not too surprising. Catholic theologians hold that Jews and Christians worship the same God. They also teach that one does not have to be a Christian to receive salvation (doctrine of anonymous Christians).

Source: Vatican says Catholics should not try to convert Jews, should fight anti-semitism | Reuters

Atheist Anti-Church Billboards: Are They Effective?

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Billboards placed by an atheist group in different parts of the US are drawing strong reaction from both atheists and Christians alike.

CHR Comment: American Atheists is the group that pays for the billboards. They target Christmas as the most widely celebrated holiday by the majority religious group: Christianity. Their goal is to separate belief in charity and morality from religion.

Source: Atheist anti-church billboards land: Are they effective?

Religion in the American Culture Wars

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Muslims, like Catholics and Mormons, fall victim to our persistent fear of those who worship differently.

CHR Comment: Professor Stephen Prothero of Boston University gives his views on the role that religion has played in American life and politics. He mentions the suspicions Protestants had about Roman Catholics and Mormons as a lens through which to see how conservative Christians are speaking about Islam today.

Source: Trump’s religious bigotry is as American as apple pie: Column