TIANANMEN ANNIVERSARY-CHRISTIANITY
Christianity growing in China 25 years after Tiananmen massacre
WASHINGTON (AP) β A China expert says the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre caused many Chinese intellectuals to lose faith in communism and become Christians.
Loyola University of Maryland Professor Carsten Vala says Christianity has become influential among Chinese scholars and other elites 25 years after the crackdown on pro-democracy protesters that left hundreds and perhaps thousands dead.
At a Brookings Institution forum on Christianity in China, Vala and University of California-San Diego Professor Richard Madsen said Chinese officials are now frightened that the faith’s explosive growth threatens their hold on power.
The Rev. Zhang Boli, a former student leader in Tiananmen Square who now pastors a church in Virginia, said Christianity in China has “grown in the midst of persecutions.” And he said, “The stronger the persecution, the purer the church will become.”
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291-a-10-(Professor Carsten Vala, China scholar at Loyola University of Maryland, at Brookings Institution forum)-“Chinese Communist Party”-Professor Carsten Vala, a China scholar at Loyola University of Maryland, says the Tiananmen Square massacre produced conversions. (3 Jun 2014)
< 296-a-12-(The Rev. Zhang Boli, pastor of Harvest Chinese Christian Church in Fairfax, Virginia, with translator, at Brookings Institution forum)-“church will become”-The Rev. Zhang Boli, pastor of Harvest Chinese Christian Church in Fairfax, Virginia, says through a translator that Christianity is growing in China. (3 Jun 2014) < 292-a-14-(Professor Carsten Vala, China scholar at Loyola University of Maryland, at Brookings Institution forum)-“many as 50”-Professor Carsten Vala, a China scholar at Loyola University of Maryland, says Christianity is increasingly influential in Chinese universities. (3 Jun 2014) < 294-a-10-(Professor Carsten Vala, China scholar at Loyola University of Maryland, at Brookings Institution forum)-“lead to democracy”-Professor Carsten Vala, a China scholar at Loyola University of Maryland, says Chinese government officials are alarmed at Christianity’s explosive growth. (3 Jun 2014) < 293-a-13-(Professor Carsten Vala, China scholar at Loyola University of Maryland, at Brookings Institution forum)-“changes in society”-Professor Carsten Vala, a China scholar at Loyola University of Maryland, says dozens of professors at a university in Beijing are Protestant Christians. (3 Jun 2014) < 295-a-19-(Professor Richard Madsen, China scholar at the University of California-San Diego, at Brookings Institution forum)-“they consider worrisome”-Professor Richard Madsen, a China scholar at the University of California-San Diego, says Chinese government officials are wary of Christianity 25 years after the Tiananmen Square massacre. ((note length of cut)) (3 Jun 2014) < COLLEGE SPEECH LAWSUIT Va. Community College System resolves speech suit NORFOLK, Va. (AP) β The Virginia Community College System has agreed to pay $25,000 to resolve a student’s free-speech lawsuit. Thomas Nelson Community College student Christian Parks sued the college system in March. The lawsuit said Parks’ free-speech rights were violated when campus police ordered him to stop preaching in a courtyard at the Hampton school. A proposed final decree was filed last week in federal court. As part of the decree, the college system promised to not place unreasonable limits on student speech. Attorney Travis Barham (BAYR’-um) is with the Alliance Defending Freedom, which represented Parks. Barham told The Virginian-Pilot that the case has resulted in greater freedom of expression for students. The college system’s governing board voted in April to eliminate so-called free speech zones, which confined student expression to designated areas. HONEST COACH Honest track coach costs team state title NORTH ATTLEBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) β The honesty of a Massachusetts high school’s track and field coach has cost his team a state championship. North Attleborough High was declared the winner of the state Division 2 meet Sunday, edging Central Catholic High of Lawrence by one point. But when North Attleborough coach Derek Herber combed through the results Monday, he found a scoring error. His team had been awarded eight points in the 110-meter hurdles, when they should have received two points. Herber told his athletic director, who informed the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association and Central Catholic officials. Minus the six points, North Attleborough finished third. But the school’s athletic director told The Sun Chronicle that the community is more proud of the team now than after they were anointed champions. PRINCIPAL-ARSON CHARGE Ex-principal accused of arson says remarks coerced BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) β The former principal accused of setting fire to his Christian high school in Dickinson, North Dakota, says he was not read his rights prior to interviews with officers, and some of his statements were coerced. The Bismarck Tribune reports that 30-year-old Thomas Sander pleaded not guilty to arson and endangering by fire. His trial is set for July 23. Sander is scheduled to appear in court again on July 1. His attorneys have asked Judge William Herauf to suppress statements made by Sander during two interrogations with Dickinson police. Prosecutors have not yet responded to the motion. Sander is accused of starting a fire that destroyed Trinity High School on March 3 and endangering the life of religion teacher Robert Storey, who lived in an apartment at the school. Sander is free on $50,000 bond but is under the custody of his father and his travel is restricted. SCHOOLS-RELIGION Religion in schools bill passes NC House panel RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) β Legislation designed to make clear how North Carolina students can participate in religious activities in the public schools has cleared a House panel, even as a lawmaker warned that a phrase could lead to lawsuits. The House Education Committee recommended legislation Tuesday passed by the state Senate last year making clear that students have the right to pray, share religious viewpoints and distribute religious literature in schools, with reasonable restrictions. The bill says school coaches involved in extracurricular activities can be present for voluntary student prayers and may adopt “a respectful posture” during it. The bill doesn’t define the phrase. The panel rejected an amendment by Rep. Rick Glazier to remove the “posture” language. He says similar words have been struck down by federal courts. The bill goes Wednesday to the full House. ATTORNEY COMPLAINT-JEWISH HOLIDAY Lawyer claims judicial bias over Jewish holiday LAS VEGAS (AP) β A Las Vegas attorney is calling a Nevada judge biased because she wouldn’t suspend a medical malpractice and wrongful death trial for two days to accommodate his Jewish religious holiday observance. Attorney Jacob Hafter tells the Las Vegas Review-Journal that Clark County District Court Judge Valorie Vega wouldn’t allow him to let him take Wednesday and Thursday off while he marks Shavuot (shah-vuh-AHT’). Attorneys for the plaintiffs in the case argued that the trial had been scheduled for months, and Vega denied Hafter’s request. Shavuot is a high holy day marking the giving of the Torah to the nation of Israel. Hafter is an orthodox Jew who is also running for Clark County District Court judge. He says he also petitioned the state Supreme Court, but received no response. US-HITLER-QUOTE-BILLBOARD Ministry to remove billboard with Hitler quote AUBURN, Ala. (AP) β The founder of a children’s ministry in Alabama says a billboard featuring a quote from Adolf Hitler has been covered and will be removed. The Ledger-Enquirer of Columbus, Georgia, reports that the billboard at the Village Mall in Auburn, Alabama, features five smiling children beneath a quote from Hitler in a 1935 speech on the Nazi youth movement: “He alone, who owns the youth, gains the future.” It was displayed on the sign with a Bible verse from Proverbs: “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” The billboard was installed Friday and immediately sparked comments on social media. It was covered by midday Tuesday. Lamar Advertising officials say the billboard was rented by Opelika, Alabama-based Life Savers Ministries. Live Savers Ministries founder James Anderegg told the newspaper, “We are pulling the billboard and certainly never intended to cause confusion.” He added that in hindsight, it would have been better to quote Herbert Hoover who said, “Children are our most valuable resource.” PRIEST-NUN SLAYING Priest convicted of killing nun moved to hospital COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) β An attorney for a Roman Catholic priest convicted of killing a nun in 1980 says the man has a terminal illness and was moved to an Ohio hospital. Toledo attorney Richard Kerger says the Rev. Gerald Robinson was flown Saturday to a Columbus hospital to be evaluated for heart problems. The 76-year-old Robinson was then moved to a prison hospital after doctors told the family he was terminal. Kerger says he was told Robinson was moved to hospice care. A state prisons spokesman wouldn’t comment on Robinson’s condition but confirmed the prison hospital in Columbus has a hospice unit. Robinson was serving a life sentence at the Southeastern Correctional Institution near Lancaster. He was convicted in 2006 of killing Sister Margaret Ann Pahl during Easter weekend in 1980. VATICAN-JESUIT KIDNAPPED Jesuit director kidnapped in Afghanistan VATICAN CITY (AP) β The Jesuit religious order says the head of its refugee program in Afghanistan has been kidnapped. The Jesuit Refugee Service said its Afghanistan country director, the Rev. Alexis Prem Kumar, was abducted by a group of men in western Afghanistan on Monday. In a statement Tuesday, the service said the 47-year-old Indian national was taken from a school for returned refugees that he was visiting in Sohadat village, some 15 miles from Herat. Deputy provincial police chief Mohammad Nadir Fahimi said six gunmen abducted Kumar and may have taken him to the Gulran district. He said authorities are working with district elders to try to mediate his release. Provincial Gov. Fazelullah Wahidi said: “We are trying to get him to safety.” NIGERIA-VIOLENCE Report: 10 generals guilty of arming Boko Haram KADUNA, Nigeria (AP) β A leading Nigerian newspaper reports that 10 generals and five other senior military officers were found guilty in courts-martial of providing arms and information to Boko Haram extremists. The Defense Ministry last week denied that senior military officers are being investigated for sabotaging a year-old offensive to curb an Islamic uprising that has killed thousands. Boko Haram on April 15 abducted more than 300 schoolgirls, spurring international outrage. Some 272 remain captive. Leadership newspaper quoted military officers saying the 15 are among many more being tried at divisional level. The rulings are referred to defense headquarters in Abuja, the capital. The officers spoke to the newspaper on condition of anonymity because they are not allowed to give information to reporters. IRELAND-CHILDREN’S MASS GRAVE Irish church under fire over children’s mass grave DUBLIN (AP) β The Catholic Church in Ireland is facing fresh accusations of child neglect after a researcher found records for 796 young children believed to be buried in a mass grave beside a former orphanage for the children of unwed mothers. The researcher, Catherine Corless, says her discovery of child death records at the home run by Catholic nuns in County Galway suggests that a former septic tank filled with bones is the final resting place for most, if not all, of the children. Church leaders in Galway, western Ireland, said they had no idea so many children who died at the orphanage had been buried there, and said they would support local efforts to mark the spot with a plaque listing all 796 children. County Galway death records showed that the children, mostly babies and toddlers, died often of sickness or disease in the orphanage during the 35 years it operated from 1926 to 1961. The building, which had previously been a workhouse for homeless adults, was torn down decades ago to make way for new houses.
