A selection of the week's happenings for your prayers.
Society & Politics
- Christian asylum-seeker released: The Pakistani believer, living in Bristol, was unexpectedly detained and facing deportation, even though return to Pakistan would have put his life in danger. He has since been released by the Home Office. Read more here.
- Sarah Kuteh loses appeal: Judges at the Court of Appeal have ruled this week that the former nurse was fairly dismissed for sharing her Christian faith with a patient. Read more here. In better news, Aberdeen’s pro-life student group has been reinstated to the university students’ union after a 13-month battle. Read more here.
- Four-year-old gender transition affirmed: A court has ruled that a four-year-old child should be allowed to live as the opposite gender, even though social workers expressed concerns that the boy’s foster parents were manipulating their children. Read more here. Meanwhile, parental protests over pro-LGBTQ+ teaching in primary schools in Birmingham are showing no signs of abating, and MPs are becoming embroiled in the row. Read more here.
Church Issues
- Bishops meet with opposition over transgender guidance: The House of Bishops has met formally with representatives of some 3,000 conservative Anglicans who signed an open letter protesting the CofE’s recent guidance for celebrating transgenderism. Read more here.
- Design chosen for Wall of Answered Prayer: The Christian monument to God’s faithfulness and the value of prayer will be built on the edge of Birmingham and visible to major transport routes in the area. The winning design resembles a Mobius strip, with no apparent beginning or end. Read more here.
World Scene
- Germany defines BDS as anti-Semitic: Germany has become the first major European nation to institutionally reject the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement as anti-Semitic. The motion also calls on the Government to refrain from supporting groups that ‘question Israel’s right to exist’. Read more here.
- Thousands respond to the Gospel in Singapore: Over 5,000 responded publicly to Gospel messages at Celebration of Hope events last weekend in Singapore. Read more here.
Israel & Middle East
- ‘Deal of the Century’ to be unveiled, 25-26 June: The first part of the Trump administration’s proposed Middle East peace deal will be unveiled at an economic workshop in Bahrain later next month. Saudi Arabia and the UAE will be present, but so far the Palestinians have refused to attend. Read more here and here.
- Christian TV network in Jerusalem burnt down: The Daystar TV Network studio – the only Christian network to broadcast full-time in the Holy Land – was burnt down last weekend in an arson attack. Read more here.
- Iran quadruples uranium enrichment: Iran has resumed its uranium enrichment and declared that weapons-grade enrichment will resume in July. Read more here. The Pentagon has reportedly presented plans to the White House to send up to 10,000 more US troops to the Middle East to improve defences against the Iranian threat. Saudi Arabia has called two urgent Arab summits at the end of May to the same end.
Events
- JustOne Belfast: Saturday 2 June, CS Lewis Square, Belfast. Bring friends to hear the Gospel preached at this one-day event. Find out more on the JustOne website.
Recommended Sources
At Prophecy Today UK we are aware that the world is moving very quickly and it is difficult to keep up with all the latest developments – especially when the material circulated by our mainstream media is increasingly far from reality and definitely not devoted to a biblical perspective!
Though we are not a news service, we want to help keep you informed by passing on updates and reports as we are led. This will be a selective, not an exhaustive, round-up, which we hope will be helpful for your prayers. Click here to browse our News archive.
We recommend the following news services for regular updates from a Christian perspective:
- Christian Concern (UK)
- Christian Institute (UK)
- JNN News (Barry and Batya Segal, Israel)
- Worthy News (Israel)
- Family Watch International
- Barnabas Fund
- Kehila News (Israel)
For regular news briefings about Israel, the Jewish News Syndicate is also recommended.