Famous Gospel singer’s family robbed and wife raped

Louis Britz, a much-loved gospel singer, and his family endured a terrible attack by burglars early on Tuesday morning. While Britz was tied up and take downstairs, one of the attackers remained behind and raped his wife Hettie. The gang leader later apologised to her for the rape, saying that his gang didn’t “do rape”.

After she was raped, the gang leader apologised to the Hettie for what happened to her "because we don't do rape".

Although traumatized by the incident, Hettie Britz bravely testified how God had not left her alone and that she felt spiritually and emotionally undamaged by the experience.

Hettie went onto say that as a therapist she well understood the trauma involved in this incident but felt God would protect her against future bitterness.

Further hardship for Haiti children

It was a couple of weeks after the earthquake when word began to spread in a small, poor village here.

American missionaries, a local emissary told the people, were offering to take children to an orphanage in the Dominican Republic and give them an education and a better life.

After the earthquake, which destroyed so many schools, the prospect of an escape for even a few of their children seemed like a blessing.

"We were looking to God for something better for our kids," explained Frisner Valmont, 34, a father of three girls.

The fliers that the missionaries from New Life Children's Refuge brought to the village of Calebasse promised a beautiful place for the children to live, with a soccer field, a swimming pool and a short walk to the ocean.

In a place where jobs are few and food is scarce, the hardest part for many families was choosing which of their children to send on the bus that had brought the missionaries to the impoverished precincts of Fermathe, in the mountains south of the capital, Port-au-Prince.

So went some 20 children from Calebasse, driven by their families' desperation, on a bus ride that would be the beginning of a bizarre journey that has landed the 10 missionaries in Haitian jails and has left the children in the stricken country their families wanted them to escape.

Arrested as they tried to leave Haiti with a total of 33 children, the 10 Baptist missionaries from Idaho and elsewhere were charged last week with child kidnapping and child smuggling. They are due back in court this week.

Investigators have said that the group did not have the proper documents to take the children out of Haiti, and the case has heightened concerns over the trafficking of Haitian children.

Though the authorities have not accused the missionaries of transporting the children for work or sex, the case is full of unanswered questions about the group's plans.

(For the full story please go to http://www.washingtonpost.com).

1 500 year-old Jerusalem street discovered

Archaeologists said on Wednesday they have found a 1,500-year-old Jerusalem road that was once a bustling throughfare used by throngs of Christian pilgrims and which is depicted on a famed mosaic map of the Holy Land.

The small segment of road was found in a dig conducted before Jerusalem authorities carry out infrastructure rehabilitation just inside the Old City's Jaffa Gate.
"After removing a number of archaeological strata, at a depth of 4.5 metres (14.80 feet) below today's street level, much to our excitement, we discovered the large flagstones that paved the street," said excavation director Ofer Sion.
The single, central thoroughfare is clearly visible on the Madaba Map, a floor mosaic in the Byzantine church of Saint George in Jordan which is the oldest surviving map of the Holy Land, said Sion, standing on scaffolding above the cracked flagstones.

"In those days, thousands of pilgrims from across the Christian world would be using that road," he said.

Sion recounted that an eminent scholar of the Byzantine period, whom he wouldn't name, was close to tears when he saw the flagstones, which are over one metre- (3.2-foot) long.

But, because it is below a busy street, the dig will have to be covered up again in a few weeks, Sion told journalists.

(For the full story please go to http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp).

Emotional farewell for Ruben Kruger

Family, friends, current and former Boks all gathered together this week to say their farewells to former Rugby World Cup star Ruben Kruger. Kruger died last week because of brain cancer, a condition he had struggled with for the last few years.
Touching tributes were paid to him by both his wife, Lize, and his children Zoe and Isabella.

Lize Kruger said that, "My heart is broken and I wish I could have had you by my side for eternity. Ruben, thank you for everything you did and meant to me and the children. We are so proud of you, not because you are a Springbok rugby player, but because you are a Springbok daddy."

Zoe and Isabella also managed to speak and thanked Kruger for being their daddy. "We love you so much. We wish that we could have prevented you from dying, but we know that you are in heaven and are not sick anymore. Thank you for playing with us; you always had time for us and carried us both in your big hands. We saw that Daddy was sad towards the end. Maybe Daddy knew that he would not see us grow up. Don't worry, we know we will see Daddy again in heaven and we must first finish our work here on Earth."

Another touching tribute was paid by Morne du Plessis who spoke of the immense respect that Kruger was held in not only by the South African rugby community, but throughout the world. Du Plessis quoted General George Patton (a World War II veteran): "It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived."

Fellow former Bok Andre Venter spoke of how the last time he visited Kruger, that Kruger insisted on praying for him (Venter suffers from transverse myelitis, which has resulted in him being wheelchair bound).

"Ruben prayed for me," Venter said, as he visibly struggled to contain his emotions. "That moment summed up his life; no matter what the situation, he put his fellow men first. That makes Ruben not just a rugby legend, but a legend in life. If there is a rugby team in heaven, I want to be on Ruben's team."

Ruben Kruger was renowned not only as a Springbok but also as a Christian of deep and abiding faith.

Obama adviser challenges Pope

Harry Knox, who serves on President Barack Obama’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, is standing by a statement he made last March that Pope Benedict XVI is “hurting people in the name of Jesus.”

At the National Press Club on Tuesday, CNSNews.com asked Knox, “You put out a statement saying Pope Benedict XVI was—quote—‘hurting people in the name of Jesus’ because he did not support promoting the use of condoms as a means to control the spread of HIV. And I was wondering, do you still believe the pope’s position on condoms is ‘hurting people in the name of Jesus’?”

Knox answered, “I—I do.”

In a follow-up question, CNSNews.com asked Knox: “So, even in light of—Edward Green, a Harvard researcher in AIDS prevention said the pope was correct in that condom use aggravates HIV, the spread of it, in Africa. So, in light of that statement, do you still hold to that position?

Knox answered, “He is simply incorrect in his assertion. All the other evidence of science shows otherwise.”

On March 17, 2009, Pope Benedict flew to Africa to visit Cameroon and Angola. During the flight, he answered several questions from reporters, including one concerning AIDS in Africa: Given that the Catholic Church’s position in fighting AIDS “is often considered unrealistic and ineffective,” would the pope “address this theme during the journey?”

Pope Benedict gave a lengthy response, detailing many of the Church’s humanitarian efforts to help people with AIDS in Africa. “I would say that this problem of AIDS cannot be overcome merely with money, necessary though it is,” he said. “If there is no human dimension, if Africans do not help [by responsible behavior], the problem cannot be overcome by the distribution of prophylactics: on the contrary, they increase it.”

In response to the pope’s remarks, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) issued a statement. It quoted Harry Knox as follows: “The Pope’s statement that condoms don't help control the spread of HIV, but rather condoms increase infection rates, is hurting people in the name of Jesus.”

“On a continent where millions of people are infected with HIV, it is morally reprehensible to spread such blatant falsehoods,” said Knox in the statement. “The Pope’s rejection of scientifically proven prevention methods is forcing Catholics in Africa to choose between their faith and the health of their entire community. Jesus was about helping the marginalized and downtrodden, not harming them further.”

Senior Harvard AIDS Prevention Researcher Edward Green, who describes himself as a liberal, says that science backs the pope’s message.

“We just cannot find an association between more condom use and lower HIV-reduction rates” in Africa, Green told the Catholic News Agency in March 2009. The news agency further reported: “According to Green, the Catholic Church should continue to ‘do what it is already doing,’ avoid ‘arguing about the diameter of viruses’ and cite scientific evidence in connection with scripture and moral theology.”

(For the full story please go to http://cnsnews.com/news/article/60893).

UK Christians rejoice in their victory over the equality bill

Some Christians say their prayers have been answered after the House of Lords on Monday defeated changes to a law that would have required church groups to hire homosexuals or others whose manner of life is inconsistent with their teaching.

Peers voted 216 to 178 in favor of Lady O’Cathain’s amendment to retain an exemption for religious groups to equality employment laws.

Reacting to the result, Lady O’Cathain said Tuesday: “I know that very many Christians were praying that justice would prevail as the House of Lords voted on this important issue. Many also wrote wise, sensitive letters to peers, seeking to persuade them of our case.

"We give thanks to God for the outcome, and we continue to pray for our Government, as Scripture exhorts us to do, that God would bless their counsels."
The Christian Institute’s Mike Judge commented, “The prayers of thousands of Christians and letter writing to peers was key to protecting our freedom."
"Surely churches should be free to employ people whose conduct is consistent with church teaching. Surely that’s not asking too much," Judge added. "It's called freedom of association, and it’s a key liberty in any democratic society. The fact that the Government couldn’t see this will concern many Christians.”

The government attempted to restrict the exemption for religious organizations solely to ministers and other positions that wholly or mainly “exist to promote or represent the religion or to explain the doctrines of the religion.”

Christians argued that if the Equality Bill was passed without Lady O’Cathain’s amendment, which leaves the current law unchanged, it would impose considerable restrictions on who religious organizations could employ and put them in the difficult position of having to appoint someone who did not conform to their ethos and beliefs.

Last week, bishops in the Church of England argued that the bill would leave religious organizations “more vulnerable to legal challenge.”

Dr. Don Horrocks, head of public affairs for the Evangelical Alliance, said the government's amendments to change the current law "would have left churches and organizations unsure whether they could prefer practicing Christians for the majority of their roles."

"Now, they can continue to appoint people who are committed to the ethos of the organizations they are supposed to represent," Horrocks said. "It's a victory for common sense. I hope the government will accept this and not prolong the issue by asking the House of Commons to challenge the Lords' vote."

Andrea Minichiello Williams, director of Christian Concern For Our Nation, also praised Monday's vote. “This is a great day for religious liberty in the United Kingdom. We are thankful that the law has not been changed and the freedom of churches to control their own affairs has not been restricted any further.

“The results show what can happen when Christians pray and take action. Let us be encouraged that even in an increasingly secular society, the voice of the Church can still be heard.”

(For the full story please go to http://www.christianpost.com).

Exciting Find of Jesus Era House

Recently, archeologists unveiled what they said were the remains of the first dwelling in Nazareth that can be dated back to the time of Jesus -- a find that could shed new light on what the hamlet was like during the period the New Testament says Jesus lived there as a boy.

The dwelling and older discoveries of nearby tombs in burial caves suggest that Nazareth was an out-of-the-way hamlet of around 50 houses on a patch of about four acres (1.6 hectares). It was evidently populated by Jews of modest means who kept camouflaged grottos to hide from Roman invaders, said archaeologist Yardena Alexandre, excavations director at the Israel Antiquities Authority.

Based on clay and chalk shards found at the site, the dwelling appeared to house a "simple Jewish family," Alexandre added, as workers at the site carefully chipped away at mud with small pickaxes to reveal stone walls.

Nazareth holds a cherished place in Christianity. It is believed to be the town where Christian tradition says Jesus grew up and where an angel told Mary she would bear the child of God.

"This may well have been a place that Jesus and his contemporaries were familiar with," Alexandre said. A young Jesus may have played around the house with his cousins and friends, she said. "It's a logical suggestion."

Alexandre's team found remains of a wall, a hideout, a courtyard and a water system that appeared to collect water from the roof and supply it to the home. The discovery was made when builders dug up the courtyard of a former convent to make room for a new Christian center, just yards (meters) away from the Basilica.

It is not clear how big the dwelling is -- Alexandre's team have uncovered about 900 square feet (85 square meters) of the house, but it may have been for an extended family and could be much larger, she said.

Alexandre said her team also found a camouflaged entry way into a grotto, which she believes was used by Jews at the time to hide from Roman soldiers who were battling Jewish rebels at the time for control of the area.

The grotto would have hid around six people for a few hours, she said.

However, Roman soldiers did not end up battling Nazareth's Jews because the hamlet had little strategic value at the time. The Roman army was more interested in larger towns and strategic hilltop communities, she said.

Alexandre said similar camouflaged grottos were found in other ancient Jewish communities of the lower Galilee such as the nearby Biblical village of Cana, which did witness battle between Jews and Romans.

For the full article, please go to http://cnsnews.com).