Russia Bans Jehovah’s Witnesses After Religious Right Hailed Putin As Christian Hero

[bruceq]

Russia Bans Jehovah’s Witnesses After Religious Right Hailed Putin As Christian Hero

By Brian Tashman | April 21, 2017 11:27 am

 

For years, American Religious Right activists praised Russian president Vladimir Putin as a champion of Christianity and conservative morality, even as his government was taking steps to curb the rights of religious minorities, including evangelical Christians and groups like Jehovah’s Witnesses. Putin even sponsored militias that targeted Protestants in eastern Ukraine and signed a law banning evangelism by non-Orthodox religions. None of this seemed to matter to the U.S. Religious Right as long as Putin kept up his war against the LGBTQ community. It was Barack Obama, they said, who was truly persecuting Christians by supporting equal rights for LGBTQ people in America and around the world.

Today, Russia moved even further in its crackdown on religious freedom when the nation’s supreme court sided with the government in outlawing the Jehovah’s Witnesses, a long-persecuted group.

As the Washington Post reported, the high court “ruled that the group’s St. Petersburg headquarters and 395 churches could be seized and liquidated. All church activities, including worship and door-to-door evangelizing, were banned. Those who defy the ruling face a fine of several thousand dollars and six to 10 years in prison.” The Russian government argued that the denomination threatened “public order and public security” and was an “extremist” group.

The Post added that Jehovah’s Witnesses have already faced “assault, vandalism, seizures and raids on houses of worship and dozens of arrests,” and some fear that the decision “may make it easier for the Kremlin to go after religious minorities in general.”

Like Jehovah’s Witnesses, many evangelical Christian groups are also viewed by the Russian government, which has increasingly sponsored the Russian Orthodox Church, as cults and extremist organizations. Newsweek adds that the government has targeted not only Jehovah’s Witnesses and evangelical Christians but also Mormons and Seventh-Day Adventists.

Evangelist Franklin Graham is among the American conservatives who have hailed Putin, thanking him for “protecting Russian young people against homosexual propaganda” and “protecting traditional Christianity.”

Graham even picked Moscow as a location for his conference on defending the freedoms of Christians. However, organizers had to cancel once Putin outlawed proselytizing.

We will wait to see if Graham and others will stand up for the long-persecuted Jehovah’s Witnesses.

http://www.rightwingwatch.org/post/russia-bans-jehovahs-witnesses-after-religious-right-hailed-putin-as-christian-hero/

[Bible Speaks]

@bruceq Any Link? Just in case they doubt it? ?‍?

http://www.neonnettle.com/features/872-us-ambassador-north-korea-behind-us-blackouts-with-emp-attack

A US Ambassador and former presidential advisor has claimed that the power outages across the US yesterday were caused by an attack by North Korea and has warned that this first wave was merely a test, and they have the capability to "shut down North America for years", adding that the United States has "no defence against such an attack". 

[bruceq]

http://www.rightwingwatch.org/post/russia-bans-jehovahs-witnesses-after-religious-right-hailed-putin-as-christian-hero/

BTW FRANKLIN GRAHAM IS THE SON OF BILLY GRAHAM AND President and CEO, Billy Graham Evangelistic Association

SO ANYONE KNOW ANY BAPTIST OR OTHER EVANGELICAL BORN-AGAIN CHRISTIANS THEY WOULD LIKE TO SHARE THIS WITH. QUITE REVEALING.

{ALSO THIS IS WHERE MUCH ANTI-CULT INFO COMES FROM AND ANTI-CULT APOSTATES WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT HAPPENED IN RUSSIA AS WELL AS DOCUMENTED IN THAT ONE OF THE BOOKS CONFISCATED DURING A RAID HAD BEEN PLANTED IN A KINGDOM HALL WAS FROM AN ANTI-CULT GROUP THAT WAS IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH.]

AS YOU CAN SEE "BABYLON THE GREAT" IS ALL UNITED AGAINST THE TRUE WORSHIP OF JEHOVAH

 

[Bible Speaks]

North Korea has confirmed it is now fully prepared for WAR with the US with "powerful arms" ready to strike any minute. © press North Korea has finalized its preparations for War as it responded with a warning North Korea has finalized its preparations for war as it responded with a warning of “catastrophic consequences” to any further provocations by the US following the US Navy strike group positioning on the North Korean peninsula.The USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier was diverted to western Pacific from its visit to Australia after tensions mounted over military drills involving American and South Korean forces, something which Pyongyang has interpreted as preparation for invasion.“We will hold the US wholly accountable for the catastrophic consequences to be entailed by its outrageous actions,” North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency quoted a foreign ministry spokesman said. “(North Korea) is ready to react to any mode of war desired by the US.”The guardian reports: The spokesman cited Washington’s refusal to rule out a pre-emptive strike against North Korean missile sites as justification for its nuclear program.“The prevailing grave situation proves once again that (North Korea) was entirely just when it increased in every way its military capabilities for self-defense and pre-emptive attack with a nuclear force as a pivot,” the spokesman said, according to KCNA.“We will take the toughest counteraction against the provocateurs in order to defend ourselves by the powerful force of arms.”Last week’s US strike against a Syrian base is also being seen as a warning to North Korea after Donald Trump said Washington was prepared to act alone if China failed to exert more pressure on its neighbor to halt its missile and nuclear weapons programmes.

North Korea again defied UN resolutions banning it from developing ballistic missile technology with another test-launch on the eve of Trump’s summit with the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, in Florida last week.White House officials have signalled that all options – including pre-emptive strikes – remain on the table in addressing North Korea’s steady advance towards developing long-range missiles capable of carrying a nuclear warhead as far as the US mainland.The nuclear-powered Carl Vinson’s presence in the area coincides with speculation that North Korea could be preparing to conduct its sixth nuclear test to coincide with key dates in the country’s history, including the 105th anniversary of the birth of its founder, Kim Il-sung, on Saturday.China’s foreign ministry, meanwhile, has played down reports that Beijing has deployed 150,000 troops to its border with North Korea.Hua Chunying, a foreign ministry spokesperson, told reporters she was “not aware” of such a mobilisation by the People’s Liberation Army along the 880-mile border. In the past, similar reports had been proven “groundless and false,” Hua claimed.However, with regional tensions building ahead of Saturday’s Kim Il-sung commemorations, Hua said China was “closely following” developments on the Korean peninsula.“We believe that, given the current situation, all relevant parties should exercise restraint and avoid activities that may escalate the tension.”

 

Read more at: http://www.neonnettle.com/news/2058-north-korea-confirms-preparation-for-war-with-us-is-complete

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