Russia urges global struggle against Afghan heroin
Russian President Dmitri Medvedev says the international community must accept responsibility for the fight against illicit drugs from Afghanistan. He told an anti-drug conference in Moscow that worldwide Afghan heroine has killed nearly one-million people under the age of 35 in the past eight years. Speaking at an international anti-drug forum in Moscow, President Medvedev issued a call for a common global fight against narcotics, saying the entire world is threatened by drug-producing countries, especially those that make hard drugs - narcotics that are more addictive and damaging. He said Afghanistan does not have the resources for a breakthrough in the fight. He said ongoing efforts by various international organizations, including the United Nations, NATO and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, are not enough. Mr. Medvedev said, standing up to the evil of narcotics on a global scale requires a struggle not only against drug trafficking, but also the social problems created by that evil. Pray: that the world governments would work together to find ways to successfully defeat this menace. (Ps.34:16)
Vatican says Christians in Middle East are ignored
A working paper released during Pope Benedict XVI's pilgrimage to Cyprus to prepare for a crisis summit of Middle Eastern bishops in Rome in October also cites the ‘extremist current’ unleashed by the rise of ‘political Islam’ as a threat to Christians. In his final Mass in Cyprus on Sunday, the pontiff said he was praying that the October meeting will focus the attention of the international community ‘on the plight of those Christians in the Middle East who suffer for their beliefs.’ He appealed for an ‘urgent and concerted international effort to resolve the ongoing tensions in the Middle East, especially in the Holy Land, before such conflicts lead to greater bloodshed.’ Pray: for the Holy Spirit to give peace to those suffering for their faith in the Middle East. (2Th.1:5)
Vatican says Christians in Middle East are ignored
A working paper released during Pope Benedict XVI's pilgrimage to Cyprus to prepare for a crisis summit of Middle Eastern bishops in Rome in October also cites the ‘extremist current’ unleashed by the rise of ‘political Islam’ as a threat to Christians. In his final Mass in Cyprus on Sunday, the pontiff said he was praying that the October meeting will focus the attention of the international community ‘on the plight of those Christians in the Middle East who suffer for their beliefs.’ He appealed for an ‘urgent and concerted international effort to resolve the ongoing tensions in the Middle East, especially in the Holy Land, before such conflicts lead to greater bloodshed.’ Pray: for the Holy Spirit to give peace to those suffering for their faith in the Middle East. (2Th.1:5)
Edinburgh 2010’s call for co-operation
Around 1,000 Christians from across the denominations and traditions heard the call from the Archbishop of York to the ‘be, see, think and do mission’ on Sunday night as they came together for the close of Edinburgh 2010. Christians were gathered for the conference in the Scottish capital for most of last week. The occasion celebrated the 100th anniversary of the historic World Missionary Conference held in Edinburgh in 1910 and the subsequent birth of the world church. In an honest closing address, the Archbishop of York, Dr. John Sentamu, said that' too much of what the church did today amounted to nothing more than ‘re-arranging the furniture.’ ‘re-organizing the structures; arguing over words and phrases, while humanity as a whole plunges suicidally into obscurity and meaningless despair. And so often the Church’s activities and energies appear to be totally irrelevant to the needs of the world today,’ he said. (See Prayer Alert 2310) Pray: for the Holy Spirit to empower and lead the Church in its mission to reach the world in a meaningful way. (Ac.9:31)
