NewsWatch informs you about current events so that you can pray effectively .

Your prayer today has the power to impact the headlines of tomorrow .

Celebrities set for pilgrimage on BBC TV show Ex- ’ Men Behaving Badly ’ star Neil Morrissey and Paul Daniels ’ widow Debbie McGee have signed up to “ live as pilgrims ” for a new BBC show . The Pilgrimage , a three-part series , will track famous faces – some religious and others atheists – as they swap the comforts and trappings of fame for 15 days to take part in Spain ’ s Camino de Santiago .

“ Living as simple pilgrims ”, they will stay in traditional hostels and “ carry everything they need on their backs ” while embarking on their “ own spiritual journey ” on BBC2 . Comedian Ed Byrne , ex-Gogglebox star the Rev Kate Bottley , M People singer Heather Small , journalist Raphael Rowe and JJ Chalmers , a former Royal Marines Commando who was wounded in Afghanistan , are also taking part in the medieval pilgrim route .

The series will combine “ religious and spiritual debate ” with “ personal stories of selfdiscovery ,” the BBC said , with the physical challenge proving too much for some .

Source : premier . org . uk

Individuals to self-identify their gender under new Government plans Research by Premier set out to find the bishop that ’ s the most active on Twitter . The investigation revealed that Rt Rev Sarah Mullally , Bishop of Crediton , tweets more often than any other bishop with an average 165 tweets sent every month .

When Premier told Bishop Sarah she came out on top , she was shocked . She said : “ I ’ m very surprised ; I have to say I don ’ t use Twitter that much compared to the vast population that ’ s out there . Maybe that says something about the other bishops than me . We ’ re called to proclaim the gospel in every generation and that means we need to know how to speak to people today .”

Source : premier . org . uk

Twins born at 24 weeks after mum told survival was ‘ unlikely ’ Twins born just after the abortion limit of 24 weeks have overcome all medical forecasts and are now doing well . Mum Caroline Wirt said doctors thought it was “ very unlikely ” that both the twins would survive . At 23 weeks into her pregnancy , her waters broke and she was rushed to the neonatal intensive care unit at Royal Sussex County Hospital .

Caroline had suffered an inflammatory response to an infection and was forced to give birth by emergency caesarean section . Sapphire and Ruby were born at 24 weeks . Ruby weighed 1lb 5oz at birth , her sister 1lb 2oz . It is currently legal in Great Britain to abort children up to 24 weeks , or up to birth if it is believed that the baby will be born with a disability .

Source : christian . org . uk

Nepal now hosts over 1 million believers and 8,000 churches More and more people in Nepal are turning to Christianity ever since the predominantly Hindu nation in South Asia went secular in 2008 . Nepal has over one million Christian converts at present , with the number still rising , the Nikkei Asian Review reported , adding that the country also hosts more than 8,000 Christian churches .

In particular , Christianity has found a growing appeal among Nepal ’ s hill tribe minority groups , such as the Kirats and the Dalits , or those belonging to the lowest “ untouchables ” caste . Data from the Federation of National Christians in Nepal ( FNCN ) estimate that 60 percent of all Nepali Christians are Dalits , the caste that makes up the country ’ s population of 30 million .

Source : christiantoday . com

Iranian youth coming to Christ in large numbers Christianity has been growing at an exponential rate in the last couple of decades in Iran , causing the Islamic government a great deal of concern . In a most recent expression of their distress , one of the high profile Islamic seminary officials , Ayatollah Alavi Boroujerdi , stated “ accurate reports indicate that the youth are becoming Christians in Qom and attending house churches ”.

Qom , arguably the most Islamic city in Iran , is a socially and religiously conflicted city where house churches are hunted down and conversion to Christianity is viewed as an action against national security .

This high rate of conversion of Iranian youth to Christianity is in spite of rigorous Islamic indoctrination of the youth in their families and educational system . The Islamic government of Iran dedicates massive budgets to the support of Islamic organizations that promote Islam among the youth within and without Iran ’ s borders . Such efforts to attract Iranian youth is much more noticeable in Islamic cities such as Mashhad and Qom . Regardless of such efforts , Iranian youth seem to become increasingly distant from Islam , which is a cause of great concern for the Iranian Islamic government .

Source : mohabatnews . com

28 Revival Times October 2017