AP

CHARLIE KIRK’S ASSASSINATION – THEY EXPECTED RIOTS, INSTEAD GOD’S NAME GLORIFIED.

Charlie Kirk was assassinated on September 10, while speaking at an open-air event at Utah Valley University, by a gunman positioned on a nearby rooftop. When evil struck down Kirk, many expected the burning of buildings, riots and violence. Instead? Churches overflowed. Atheists bought Bibles. Young people who hadn’t prayed in years fell to their knees. 100,000 gathered for his memorial, where the name of Jesus was lifted high in speech and song. Pete Hegseth, the US Secretary for war, speaking at Charlie Kirk’s Memorial Service, said: “….he (Charlie Kirk) was a true believer. Only Christ is King, our Lord and Saviour…Our sins are washed away by the blood of Jesus. Charlie stressed that people were in need of the Gospel.”
After the assassination, Turning Point USA (the organization that Charlie founded in 2012) received more than 32,000 inquiries in 48 hours to start new campus chapters. Charlie’s death has spurred a new sense of resolve to uphold truth.  
[Source: Various News Outlets]

FIVE SOUTH SUDANESE CHRISTIANS ARRESTED IN SUDAN
(Morning Star News) – Police in North Khartoum, Sudan on Aug. 16 disrupted a funeral prayer meeting to arrest five South Sudanese Christians. Pastor Peter Perpeny of the Presbyterian Church of Sudan and the four other Christians were arrested from the El-Haj Yousif area of East Nile District in North Khartoum. 
Church leaders in Sudan said many Christians are living in fear of being arrested any moment, as police are reportedly going door to door detaining South Sudanese and Ethiopians nationals. “In fact, there is a growing fear among the South Sudanese Christians in Sudan (North), so they remain indoors in order to avoid being arrested,” said the area church leader whose name is withheld for security reasons. The arrested Christians were taken to Omdurman Prison. Police have told one female detainee she must pay 600,000 Sudanese Pounds ($995 USD) or risk remaining in jail for six months, a “fine” that is an attempted bribe.
The area where they were arrested has been a stronghold of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which has been battling the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) since April 15, 2023. Both the SAF and the RSF are Islamist forces, and both have attacked places of worship.  Churches are shelled, looted and occupied by the warring parties.  Christians are killed and sexually assaulted and Christian homes and businesses attacked. The Christian population of Sudan is estimated at 2 million, or 4.5 percent of the total population of more than 43 million. Sudan was ranked No. 5 among the 50 countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian in Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List.

INDIA’S HARSHEST ANTI-CONVERSION LAW APPROVED
(Morning Star News) – In Uttarakhand state, the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government managed to introduce the Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Bill, 2025 on Wednesday (Aug. 20). The amendment expands penalties from the current maximum of 10 years in prison, with the most stringent punishment of 20 years to life imprisonment and a fine of at least 1 million Indian Rupees applying to conversions using force, threat, inducement, trafficking or promise of marriage.  Among the provisions causing concern are measures that criminalize “propaganda on social or digital media”, with the government stating that “acts like promoting or inciting conversion through social media, messaging app or any online medium” will now be forbidden and punishable. “When laws criminalize social media discussions about faith, they threaten every citizen’s fundamental right to religious expression in the digital age,” said Rev. Vijayesh Lal, general secretary of the Evangelical Fellowship of India. “These provisions, with penalties up to life imprisonment, represent some of India’s harshest anti-conversion measures and could turn ordinary conversations about belief into criminal acts.”
Rohit Singh, an attorney in Uttarakhand state, told Morning Star News. “Many pastors have removed their sermons and social media posts from online platforms. Some pastors are thinking of leaving the state. Online donations have almost stopped to churches and Christian organizations as no one wants to get in trouble. I think our rights have ended in India now.” The legislation introduces sweeping enforcement measures that civil liberties advocates say violate basic constitutional rights. Notably, the anti-conversion amendment faced no legislative opposition despite recent expressions of concern from leaders in the Indian National Congress party about attacks on Christians. Hence the amended law is likely to go into effect soon. The Times of India editorial board described the amendments as “draconian” and “poorly designed legislation” that “demands a thorough review, or reversal,” noting it will create a system where “anyone can be arrested on mere suspicion of ‘intent’” and “the accused’s property can be seized.”
The hostile stance of the Narendra Modi government’s Hindu nationalist agenda has emboldened attacks on Christians across India since 2014. “Whatever happens to our community and our churches, here in Uttarakhand or anywhere in India, everything is in God’s hands,” Singh said. Open Doors ranks India 11th on its 2025 World Watch List of countries where Christians face the most severe persecution. India stood at 31st place in 2013 but has steadily fallen in the rankings since Modi came to power as prime minister.

CHRISTIAN IN UGANDA SLAIN DAY AFTER CONVERTING
Morning Star – Wasike Kairoki, a 19 year old high school student in Mbale city Uganda – born into a Muslim family -, had put his faith in Christ after attending an open-air evangelistic event on Aug. 31, conducted by Pastor David Wabomba of Bible Evangelism Ministries. “I spent a few hours guiding Wasike on the way of salvation and inviting him to church the following Sunday,” Pastor Wabomba told Morning Star News. “Wasike was very happy before we parted ways. His Muslim brother Akram found out that Wasike had become a Christian, and when Wasike returned home that evening, he informed Pastor Wabomba that his brother angrily told him that he must understand that in their home they do not accept the practice of two religions and that he should denounce Christianity immediately.
While Wasike and his brother Kairoki were on their way to school the next day, just before arriving Kairoki removed a knife from his bag and stabbed Wasike in the chest and again near ribs on his left side. Wasike’s cries drew the attention of three students who found him screaming and calling for help. The three students immediately called for motorcycle transport that rushed him to a hospital. “Why should my brother stab me – I have done nothing wrong to him. It is only changing my faith and joining the Christian faith,” the bleeding Wasike said before succumbing to his injuries.  Pastor Wabomba conducted the funeral service on Sept. 8. He told Morning Star News that the family and clan members refused to touch the body, saying Wasike had become an infidel.

SLAVERY IN AFRICA INCREASING TO ALARMING LEVELS
Most western Christians have no idea that slavery still exists and is in fact growing – especially in Islamic nations like Sudan, Pakistan, and Eritrea. The nation of Eritrea, for instance, has more slaves per capita than any other nation in the world and the international community fails them by not publicly demanding the end to the practice. Eritrea falls under the judicial bodies of the African Union and the United Nations, yet neither body has made any attempt to stop the clear violations against international law. Currently, one out of every nine people in Eritrea is a slave. It is not called slavery. It is called conscription. Every adult between the age of 18-40 is required to serve in the military, but many are not sent to military training, but instead are sent to work in factories, fields, and mines. The workers are not paid or paid very little, and their service is often indefinite.
Eritrea is not alone. One report from 2021 estimates that more than 50 million people are living in “modern slavery,” an increase of 10 million over 2016 when the problem was last measured. This means that the number of slaves is increasing every year, not decreasing. One of the reasons for the increase is Islam. In the Muslim nation of Mauritania for instance, there is an estimated 149,000 slaves, 85,000 in Morocco, 174,000 in Sudan, 84,000 in Algeria, 98,000 in Somalia,  27,000 in Tunisia and a whopping 1.6 million in Nigeria, which incidentally, also has the highest persecution of Christians by Muslims. Islam is resurrecting the practice of slavery, especially in places like Africa.  Sharia Law is directly derived from the Quran and the teachings of Prophet Muhammad, who owned slaves, and it is recently being seen with more favour in places like the UK, US, and EU.

[From an article by Dr. Eugene Bach. Source: Back to Jerusalem.  BTJ has as its goal of evangelizing the unreached peoples from the eastern provinces of China, westwards towards Jerusalem, and to highlight nations and religions which persecute and discriminate against Christians.]

THE HMONG PEOPLE OF VIETNAM
Decades ago, Christian radio began broadcasting in Hmong language to one particular group in Vietnam. For years the broadcasters received no feedback from listeners and wondered whether their ministry had been fruitful. Then one day a group of Hmong believers, having walked for three days through mountains and villages, arrived at the studio with a list of thousands of names of those who had accepted Christ. Today the Hmong people have 84,000 Facebook followers who join Far Eastern Broadcasting Corporation’s daily live-stream programmes . Mobile apps deliver gospel content to smart phones, while shortwave signals reach mountain villages beyond the internet’s reach. At the Hmong Bible Institute, a new generation of leaders is being equipped to carry forward this legacy of faith. [Source: FEBC]

CHRISTIAN AID REACHES VICTIMS OF AFGHANI EARTHQUAKE
On 31 August 2025, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.0 struck eastern Afghanistan, killing more than 2,200 people. In addition to the deaths, many have been left injured, and over 6,700 homes were either destroyed or damaged. Christian Aid**, one of the first organizations to respond to the disaster, has launched an appeal in aid of the victims. Christian Today reports several countries have pledged to help, in addition to the aid being supplied by the United nations and the World Health organization. Christian Aid has already released £50,000 (more than Au$100,000) to its regional partner, working in Afghanistan. Christian Aid’s support is being used to provide drinking water, food, shelter and other essentials. Special care is also being taken of women and girls who are especially vulnerable. Afghanistan has already been facing a drought, which, combined with aid cuts, has led to food shortages in the country.  According to the organisation around half of Afghanistan’s population can survive only due to humanitarian assistance. [Source: Christian Today **Christian Aid is a UK based Christian charity with the purpose of showing Christ’s love in eradicating extreme poverty by tackling its root causes.]

– compiled by Guido Kettniss