A Christian persecution watchdog group announced that the level of Christian persecution last year was the highest worldwide since the fall of the Soviet Union.
Open Doors USA said that 2014 was far more violent than 2013 and that it was the worst year of persecution since the group started tracking violence against Christians 24 years ago.
“Perhaps most chilling is the fact that all the factors, all of the issues that made this a violent year for Christian persecution are still in place,” said David Curry, president and CEO of Open Doors, at the press conference.
“During the past reporting period we can confirm that 4,344 people were executed or murdered for their faith in Jesus Christ. Over twice that of the previous reporting period.”
The comments from Curry came as Open Doors USA released their annual list of the countries where Christian persecution is the highest.
North Korea maintains the number one spot for the thirteenth year in a row.
Somalia, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Sudan, Iran, Pakistan, Eritrea, and Nigeria round out the top 10.
Africa had the most countries on the list and Islamic terrorism was the driving force in 40 of 50 nations.
A swarm of earthquakes has struck in the Dallas area.
Part of the blame is being thrown toward the Dallas Cowboys.
Seismologists have been placing monitoring stations around the site of the old Texas Stadium, the longtime home of the Dallas Cowboys. The stadium was imploded April 2010.
A fault line ran directly underneath the stadium’s location. Seismologists say it’s possible the implosion caused stress energy in the fault to release causing small shifts.
“If you beat on this and shake it, it’s going to have a tendency to slide. Not the big ones [faults], but all the little ones,” Dr. Len Kubicek, a geology professor at nearby North Lake College told CBS. “It can splinter into several faults and one of these little faults, especially where that stadium was, you do an explosion on top of it and beat it up and down — it has a tendency to move.”
Environmentalists say that it’s more likely wastewater injected during fracking is the cause of the quakes. However, Dr. Kubicek and state officials say there are no fracking wells within the city.
Dr. Kubicek says it’s unlikely there will be a huge quake.
“If you get a lot of small earthquakes you’re probably not going to ever get a big one. Because if you have a big earthquake you have to have a lot of stored energy; and if you keep having little ones you can’t store it.”
Most of us can relate to that warm fuzzy feeling we have about being at home for the holidays. Home is where we are surrounded by those that we love and those who love us. It’s where you’re accepted unconditionally, and celebrated just for being you. It’s a place where the sheer joy of existing is tangible and hangs in the air like the pine scent of a freshly cut Christmas tree. Home is a delightful place, and the atmosphere of home feels like it just reaches around you and gives you a big hug.
Wherever the holiday gathering takes place, there is wonderful smells of delicious foods you only indulge in once a year, prepared lovingly for the expressed delight of those who will savor every morsel. Twinkling lights and red ribbons, pine wreaths and mistletoe, Christmas trees and bright centerpieces adorned with candles – all of these and more add to the magic of being home for the holidays. Continue reading →
