News of a religious police force to uphold Muslim morals in a nation now controlled by Islam's Muslim Brotherhood is the latest harbinger of Egypt's transformation into an intolerant Islamic state.
Known as the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, its officers will share the same name as the notorious religious police now operating in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the dreaded "mutawaah".
"We have absolutely no relationship with the ‘morality’ committees in Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Somalia or Nigeria," said Committee founder Hisham el-Ashri. "We will only offer advice to those who want to listen; we shall have no business with people who refuse to listen to us."
Mideast Christian News - the First Professional News Agency to Cover All Christian Minorities in the Middle East
Mideast Christian News (MCN), the first professional and independent News Agency specialized in covering Christian minorities in the Middle East, was launched officially on January 7, 2013.
The local media hides and distorts reality, while international Media fails to report regularly, as they are focusing on the regional conflicts. Hence the severe need for professional coverage especially in the New Islamic Era that's starting in the region. MCN's aim is to fill this gap.
Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the archbishop of Buenos Aires, was elected as pope Wednesday (March 13), choosing Pope Francis as his name and becoming the first non-European pope in the modern era. Latin America now is home to about 40 percent of the world's Catholics.
Francis has taken stands with the Argentinian government in support of traditional marriage and the sanctity of life, CNN reported. He succeeds Pope Benedict XVI, who abdicated in February after an eight-year pontificate.
Scouts Could Face 'Flood of Litigation' if Policy Changes
Altering the Boy Scouts of America's longstanding national membership policy to allow homosexuals would undermine a Supreme Court decision in the organization's favor and expose the Scouts to a "flood of litigation," Alliance Defending Freedom has warned in a letter to Scout leadership.
In 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Boy Scouts' policy of accepting for membership only those who adhere to the values in the Scout Oath and Law, which includes a promise to be "morally straight."
"BSA's consistent adherence to its values as embodied in the Scout Oath and Law were important factors that led to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in BSA's favor when its membership policy was challenged as a violation of a state public accommodations law," ADF said.
North Korea Threatens US With Preemptive Nuclear Strike
North Korea threatened the United States on Thursday with a preemptive nuclear strike, raising the level of rhetoric just before the U.N. Security Council approved new sanctions against the reclusive country.
North Korea has accused the United States of using military drills in South Korea as a launch pad for a nuclear war and has scrapped the armistice with Washington that ended hostilities in the 1950-53 Korean War. North Korea, which has one major ally, neighboring China, threatens the United States and its "puppet," South Korea, on an almost daily basis.
Ministry Preparations Underway for 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi
Excitement is mounting in the Olympic host city of Sochi, Russia, where a countdown clock displays the number of days until the opening ceremonies of the 22nd Winter Olympic Games slated for February 2014. Online ticket sales for sporting events as well as the opening festivities are brisk, according to several news reports.
Staff members and volunteers from Baptist conventions in Oklahoma and Georgia recently spent a week with IMB missionaries in the host city to plan for the Engage Sochi emphasis. Engage Sochi is an IMB initiative that mobilizes Southern Baptists to reach the people of Sochi by sharing the gospel and planting churches.