Read the Full Article at Union of Catholic Asian News
A priest has blamed poverty for a growth in sects and cults that use the Christian faith and symbols. (more…)
Read the Full Article at www.marconews.com
Shared by Kerygma
The fish symbol references an acrostic, consisting of the initial letters of five Greek words which formed the word for “fish” in the Greek: ICTYS, pronounced ICHTHYS. It contained the Greek letters Iota, Chi, Theta, Upsilon and Sigma. To the early Christian community, this signified, “Iesous Christos, Theou Yios, Soter,” or in the English translation of the Greek, “Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior.”
The use of the fish symbol in pagan art was of ancient origin. Many of the mystery cults, such as the cult of Isis, had previously employed its usage. Clement of Alexandria (150 A.D.) is the first early Christian church father to have specifically mentioned the fish symbol as pertaining to Christian usage (The Pedagogue 3:11). He did not give an explanation for its use, which seems to imply that the Christian community he was writing for understood the meaning of the symbol.
Read the Full Article at Baptist Press (BPNews)
Students in Quebec, Canada are being required to take a new Ethics and Religious Culture class that teaches that “all religions — including pagan animism and cults — are equally ‘true.’”
Read the Full Article at Breaking Religious News latest RSS headlines - Big News Network.com
The Church of Scientology, a controversial self-styled religion with many well-known Hollywood adherents, will be tried in Paris on charges of organised fraud, France-Info radio has reported.
Read the Full Article at www.renewamerica.us
Shared by Kerygma
Probably the most well-known pseudo-Christian cults are Jehovah’s Witnesses (JWs), The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormonism) and Christian Science, but there are a whole host of other pseudo-Christian cults. Some members of these cults may find my assertion humorous. Others may even be angry. Sorry about that, however, as a Christian I’m not called to be nice; I’m called to speak the truth in love and to “earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3).Here’s the truth. JWs, Mormons and Christian Scientists claim to be Christians yet they deny fundamental Christian doctrine and manipulate the Scriptures to fit in with their own beliefs.
By Marsha West
Countless people are caught up in cults and cult-like groups. To avoid being one of them it couldn’t hurt to become familiar with the nature of a cult and their schemes. Granted, there are no easy answers to the question, “What exactly is a cult?” But there are some cold hard facts about the cults that most people are unaware of.
Read the Full Article at News2
Seven Christian students in Quebec have been handed suspensions in the last few days – and could face expulsions – for refusing to participate in a new mandatory Ethics and Religious Culture course that, according to a critic, is a “superficial mishmash of trendy theoretical platitudes” with the goal of convincing children that “all religions – including pagan animism and cults – are equally ‘true.’” –
WND reports Canada’s National Post has reported on the developing confrontation between educators who have ordered students to take the course and students and their parents who object to what they see as a virtual indoctrination into a social and moral relativism.
While seven students already have been targeted for punishment,
hundreds more are demanding to be relieved of the obligation to attend
the classes, and several parents have begun legal actions over the
course.
Read the Full Article at News2
A former Jehovah Witness has written a book called The Spanking Room: A Child’s Eye View of the Jehovah Witnesses. –
One News Now reports He notes that a youngster would be beaten for the slightest infraction.
"Not just fidgeting or making noise during the meeting, but not paying
attention, not looking up at the speaker and pretending to hear every
word they said for two hours straight was the reason to be dragged out
and disciplined," he adds.
Coburn left Jehovah Witnesses at age 17 and converted to Christianity.
He claims his purpose in writing the book was to help others who grew
up in the same Kingdom Hall atmosphere.
Read the Full Article at News2
The leader of an apocalyptic sect who is accused of sex crimes against underage female followers has been arrested for failing to appear at a court hearing. –
Fox News reports State District Judge Gerald
Baca had asked Wayne Bent, leader of The Lord Our Righteousness Church,
to attend a hearing after Bent promised to stop cooperating with court
proceedings. Baca issued a bench warrant when Bent did not show up.
Read the Full Article at News2
“Joel Mark Rownak and Lisa Monette Rownak agreed in their 2005 divorce to raise their children ‘in the Protestant faith.’ The decree bars them from promoting another religion without the other’s consent. In May 2007, Benton County Circuit Judge John R. Scott found Joel Rownak in contempt of that decree based on evidence that Rownak had ‘candidly acknowledged’ promoting the Mormon faith to his sons.” –
Richard Abanes at Crosswalk reports In a remarkable decision an Arkansas appeals court ruled that the Mormon Church is outside of the Protestant faith. The decision came in a divorce decree contempt case by the Arkansas Court of Appeals on October 8. According to an October 9 Arkansas Democrat Gazette piece,
Interestingly, Mr. Rownak, who is a Mormon testified that the Mormon faith is outside of the Protestant faith. The court, based on Mr. Rownak’s testimony and “evidence to that effect from the [Mormon] church’s Web site”
ruled that the Mormon faith was indeed outside of the Protestant faith
and therefore found Mr. Rownak in contempt of the divorce decree.