Mandeans

The NY Times has an article about the Mandeans of Iraq that I blogged about a while back. Apparently they are wishing to come to America so they can set up communities here to prevent them from dying out. The article also points out that their religion prevents them from carrying weapons, even for self-defence, so they have been "easy targets" over the years, which has helped their existence!

Religious minorities suffer in Iraq mess

The recent suicide bombings againgst the Yazidi secti in Iraq have brought to the fore the insecurity of many minority religious groups in the country. These minority religions make up less than 3% of the total population, and this figure is dwindling as many of them leave the country, hoping to avoid being targeted or simply get caught up in intra-Islam fighting.

One of the more interesting minority groups which are fleeing the country is the Sabean Mandaeans, a group that follows the teachings of John the Baptist. Their number has gone from 25,000 in 2003 to 5,000 in 2007. For more information on this group, check out their Wikipedia article.

Source - http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-iraq-religious-minorities,0,3688910.story

Worst weather ever

The United Nations weather agency has proclaimed early 2007 as a period of record-breaking for extreme weather. Global land surface temperatures in January and April were the warmest since records were taken in 1880. The world has also seen severe monsoon floods (Asia), heavier-than-usual rains (globally), extreme heatwaves (Europe) and unexpected snowfall in South Africa and South America (!). The United Nations cannot predict if the rest of 2007 will be any better.

Source - http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=topNews&storyid=2007-08-07T145756Z_01_L07363268_RTRUKOC_0_US-WEATHER-UN-EXTREME.xml

The two-horned wild beast lives on

With the ascension of Gordon Brown to the position of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, many people were assuming that Britain's close relationship with the United States would be ending, with a left-winger and socialist leaning leader taking the reigns. Could it really be that the dual Anglo-American world power was not the two-horned wild beast after all?

It doesn't look like it, with Gordon Brown giving his assurance that the US is Britain's "most important bilateral relationship" and that he himself is an "Atlanticist and a great admirer of the American spirit". He also said that he wants to "do more to strenghten even further our relationship with the US."

So it seems that the two-horned wild beast keeps its two horns.

Source - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/6920877.stm

Queen of Sheba's temple attacked

The recent terrorist attack in Yemen that killed nine people took place at the Queen of Sheba Temple in the northeast of the country. The temple was built around 3000 years ago. I am not sure of the extent of the damage to the temple yet, but it sure is horrifying news to anyone with an appreciation of Judeo-Christian history. To tie this in with the Scriptures, I've thought I would highlight the following verse:

"The queen of the south will be raised up in the judgment with the men of this generation and will condemn them; because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Sol´o·mon, but, look! something more than ol´o·mon is here." - Luke 11:31 (NWT)

So here is to seeing the Queen of Sheba in the Paradise!

Vatican vs China

The Pope has written a letter to China's governing authorities asking them to respect religious freedom in their country and to investigate re-starting diplomatic ties that were severed in the 1950s.

The Roman Catholic Church doesn't officiacially operate in China, but people who share the faith come under the organisation called the 'Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association' which numbers around four million and appoints its own Bishops. There is estimated to be millions more followers that operate underground and owe allegiance to the Roman Pope.
Source - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6261260.stm

World Watch

Here are some of the latest international developments that are of interest:

The latest African Union (AU) summit is discussing the possibility of a "United States of Africa" as a way of improving their status in the world. Source - BBC
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6258072.stm)

Al Qaeda has been alleged to have attempted three attacks in Britain. The first two targeted London and failed, but the third one consisted of a car explosion at Scotland's busiest airpot. Five people have been arrested over the attacks so far. Source - Reuters (http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=topNews&storyid=2007-07-01T203538Z_01_L29197797_RTRUKOC_0_US-BRITAIN-BOMB.xml)

Terrorism to continue

ASIO (Australia's version of the CIA) Director-General warns that terrorism is "likely to be a destabilising force for the next generation" and "there is no guarantee we will be successful in preventing further mass casualty attacks or stopping its growth."

The globe continues to degrade into a mess of war and terror, and even those who would save us admit they have no power to guarantee it. Which reminds me of a scripture:

"Do not put your trust in nobles, nor in the son of earthling man, to whom no salvation belongs... Happy is the one who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in Jehovah his God, the Maker of heaven and earth."-Ps 146:3-6 (NWT)

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/06/20/1957247.htm