Report From Washington - January 13, 2102

Obama attack on religious freedom rebuffed by High Court / Former congressman jailed for Sudan contacts / New York Times op-ed says Boko Haram "not a problem" / More die in Boko Haram attacks in Nigeria / Wealthiest Christian in Egypt charged with blasphemy / Pakistan Muslim men attack children at a church

RECEIVE UPDATES MONDAY INSTEAD OF FRIDAY? - I have received several requests that updates be e-mailed on Monday morning and contain previews of events upcoming on Capitol Hill rather than a late Friday delivery. I want to know your preference. Please click here to state your preference

THE PRESIDENCY

HIGH COURT DEFEAT FOR OBAMA - From his first day in office Barack Obama has been working against religious liberty. His Justice Department has attacked churches on numerous fronts. In a unanimous nine to zero decision the Supreme Court told Obama and his Justice Department that his administration could not take over the internal employment practices of church organizations. In a lawsuit against a Lutheran school, the Obama Administration contended employees of churches were no different than employees of a convenience store and thus subject to all government regulations. Read more

CONGRESS

CONGRESS IN RECESS - Congress is in recess and there will be no votes prior to January 17th. The full 2012 House calendar prepared by the office of Majority Leader Cantor can be viewed here.

CONGRESSMAN JAILED - Former Congressman Mark Siljander (R-MI), with whom I and others traveled on a fact finding mission to the Sudan in October, 2006, has been sentenced to one year in jail. He had accepted funds from a group associated with terror organizations and acted for them as a lobbyist to end sanctions on the Sudan. I have known Mark for decades and it is known to me that he was not aware of the terror association. Rather, he was blinded by the belief that Christianity and Islam are somehow comparable and he was easily manipulated by Islamic handlers assigned to him. Read more 

RELIGION AND CULTURE

BOKO HARAM NOT A PROBLEM - The Boko Haram has killed thousands of Christians in the last year in the name of Islam, yet a liberal New York professor says that in Nigeria the Boko Haram "is not a problem." In New York Times Op-ed Jean Herskovits, a professor of history at the State University of New York, says that those bombing churches and killing Christians are merely criminal gangs misusing the good name of the terror group. She further claims that the Boko Haram, which is an offshoot of Al-qaeda, was a "peaceable" Muslim organization founded in 2002 that did not turn to any form of violence until its leader was killed in 2009 by security forces. Although willing to print her articles, the New York Times fails to mention that Herskovits has served in lucrative positions associated with Nigerian Islamic billionaire T.Y Danjuma. Read more

MORE FROM THE RELIGIOUS FREEDOM COALITION

NEW CHAIRMAN'S REPORT - Now available, the Chairman's Report for January 5, 2012. IN THIS ISSUE: Obama's worldwide war on religious freedom / We spill blood, China gets the oil / The White House "holiday" card featured a dog / Obama and Congress share blame for lack of certainty / New war between Egypt and Israel? / Cry for Nigeria - More Churches bombed / No Christmas for Asia Bibi / Pastor attacked with acid in his church

LEARN MORE ABOUT SHARIA LAW - One of the best locations on the Internet to learn about Islamic Sharia law and its effect on the West is www.shariafreeusa.org. FACEBOOK FAN? Sharia Free USA now has a Facebook page with more than 1,500 followers. Join with us at Facebook today!

INTERNATIONAL

BLASPHEMY COMES TO EGYPT - It is common in many majority Muslim nations for Christians to be unfairly accused of blasphemy and jailed. Many Christians including Asia Bibi are rotting in Pakistani jails because of blasphemy charges, but this had not been the case in Egypt until the "Arab Spring." An Egyptian liberal secular leader, Naguib Sawiris, also one of Egypt's richest men, is to be put on trial for insulting religion over cartoons he Twitted showing Mickey and Minnie Mouse in Muslim clothing. Sawiris is one of the very few Christians in Egypt with money; most are poor and repressed. Read more

MORE DEAD IN NIGERIA -On January 6th gunmen of the Boko Haram attacked Christ Apostolic Church in Yola, Adamawa State capital, killing 12 worshipers. Christians fled their homes in the night to seek refuge at the General Jalo Army Barracks. On January 7th two Christian college students were murdered in Maiduguri. On the 8th two more Christians were murdered in the same town. On the 10th three Christians were hacked to death in Dalman. Also on the 10th seven Christians were killed including a seven year old boy in Potiskum. On the 11th four Christians were killed when their bus was machine gunned by Boko Haram gunmen in the same town. Meanwhile an op-ed in the New York Times stated that the Boko Haram in Nigeria "was not a problem."

CHILDREN ATTACKED AT CHURCH SERVICE - Men praying in a mosque stopped and attacked children at the Philadelphia Pentecostal Church in New Mianwali Colony, Pakistan because they could hear them singing carols. The children were preparing for the Sunday service. Four men, one of them with an axe, barged into the church, slapped the children, wrecked the furniture and kicked the altar. Read more

CHRISTIAN INTERNET STORE

VISIT OUR INTERNET STORE- We have lots of great gifts at our Internet store. Not only are there books and CD's, but everything from candy to jewelry and all of it has a Christian theme. Unlike Amazon and other major Internet stores we do not sell porn and satanic materials right beside Christian books. Our store has tens of thousands of items. Please take a look. The store is located at www.rfcstore.com