Greetings in Jesus Name,

We have received the following email from the Lawyers Christian Fellowship in the UK and feel that the issue is of such significance for all Christians in the UK that we are passing it on to you for urgent action. We are asking all those of our Brothers and Sisters to not sit idly by and do nothing. When we do, evil always wins, as history shows us repeatedly.

 

In Russia, the Church had many warnings - both prophetic and social, but they were ignored and that country and many others were plunged into the destructive darkness of communism for decades.

In Germany during the 1920's and 30's, the Church again had many warnings and calls to action, but again they remained silent and millions died at the hand of a madman.

 

In the United States during the 1960's the Church watched without action as atheists had prayer and Bible reading removed from the schools, and the current trend of anti-Christian legislation began in earnest.

 

In countries like Canada and Australia where the Church failed to unite against just a bill as is now beeing put forward in the UK, we have already seen Church leaders prosecuted for preaching the Gospel without compromise.

 

In the United Kingdom anti-Christian propaganda is already commonplace in the media and growing in political circles. At the moment it often subtle and not easily identified. However, this bill, for all its seemingly fine sounding thoughts and motivations is a major step to anti-Christian sentiment turning into full-scale persecution. It cannot be permitted to be brought into law. We still have the opportunity to put an end, for the moment at least, to this bill, and in the Lord's Strength we can. Let us not fail to act.

We are asking to those in the UK to read the following email, take whatever action they can and encourage others to do the same. For our Brothers and Sisters outside of the UK we are asking you to stand with us in prayer that this bill may be defeated and that the Church in the UK will wake up and once again take a lead in bringing the Truth of the Gospel to the forefront of life in this country

 

Thank you,

 

Every blessing in Jesus Name,

 

William Metzger

 

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In 2 weeks time the Racial and Religious Hatred Bill comes before the House of Lords. If the Lords approve the Bill, it will become law and freedom to preach the full Gospel of Jesus Christ may be significantly curbed for years to come. Despite Government reassurances the wording on the face of the Bill may mean that preaching directly from the Bible could become a criminal offence punishable with a jail sentence of up to seven years.

 

Exhaustive information and expert analysis of the Bill has already been completed. The legal, political and Christian scrutiny of, and conclusions about, the Bill can be found in an Action Pack at http://www.religioushatredlaw.info/, at http://www.lawcf.org/lawreform.php (under Incitement to Religious hatred), and at http://www.christianconcernforournation.co.uk/. The LCF has prepared a 19 minute programme which can be viewed on any of the aforementioned sites.

Other excellent resources can be found on the websites of Evangelical Alliance, CARE, Christian Institute and Barnabas Fund.

 

The discussions have been held and the information has been shared. IT IS NOW TIME FOR ACTION.

 

There will not be a second chance. Once this Bill goes through the Lords and is placed on the statute book, objections will be irrelevant - it will simply be up to the judges to apply the law in the courts.

If we want to stand up for freedom to preach the gospel, now is the time to do it. There are 4 primary things which can be done to make a real difference to this situation.

 

1) PRAY. Please pray for God’s guidance and hand to be over this entire situation.

 

2) RALLY. On Tuesday the 11th October 2005, the day the Lords will consider the Bill, there will be a political rally outside the Houses of Parliament. The assembly point will be at the Old Palace Yard opposite the peers’ entrance to Parliament. We hope thousands and thousands of Christians will stand up on this day in unity to oppose the attack on our faith. It will take place between 1pm and 4pm and will be a fully marshalled event for which we already have police permission. The details of the Rally will be posted at http://www.lawcf.org/.

There will also be a prayer rally in preparation for the political rally at the Reformer’s Tree, Hyde Park on Saturday 8th October 2005 at 12noon till 3pm

3) LOBBY. Contact your local MP and/or your local peer. Do it in person if possible. If not, do it by letter, e-mail or fax. Full details on how to find your local MP or peer and how to discuss this issue are found in the Action Pack. If you have contacts in local or national media please use these as well.

4) PETITION. Please sign a petition against the Racial and Religious Hatred Bill which can be found at http://www.christianconcernforournation.co.uk/petition.php. More than 1,500 people have already signed this petition, many Church leaders, therefore representing many thousands of Christians. We would like to get a million signatures.

 

Andrea Minichiello Williams

LCF Public Policy Officer

0771 2591164