» Continued from Part 2

=== Other News
21. Cannibalism Alleged in Disappearance
22. Guru shrugs off sex allegations (Sai Baba)
23. Purging of 'demons' nets millions (UCKG)
24. Yogic flyers crash out of British politics
25. Yogic fliers come down to earth
26. The faithful stand watch over Temple
27. Religious Theme Park to Open near Orlando, Fla.

=== Noted
28. Power in the pulpit (T.D. Jakes)
29. Garden of Eden in Turkey, says Bible scholar
30. The Rastafarians are receiving


=== Other News

21. Cannibalism Alleged in Disappearance
Washington Post, Jan. 12, 2001
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
GREAT FALLS, Mont., Jan. 11 -- A portly, bearded short-order cook with a quarter-century history of molesting children was arraigned here today for snatching a young boy whose body, prosecutors said, was cut into pieces, cooked into stew and spaghetti sauce and fed to the man's unwitting friends and neighbors.

Nathaniel Bar-Jonah, 43, stood impassively in a closed-circuit video hookup from the Cascade County Jail and pleaded not guilty to the charges of deliberate homicide and kidnapping stemming from the death of 10-year-old Zachary Ramsay, who disappeared five years ago.
(...)

Investigators here suspect that Zachary isn't the only victim. Detectives discovered 21 bone fragments buried under Bar-Jonah's garage; DNA testing showed they belong to another child. In addition, police in Massachusetts are trying to link a list of suspected victims found in Bar-Jonah's home with missing children in that state. Together, the findings have raised fears of another serial sex killer like Jeffrey Dahmer, who cannibalized 17 young men in Milwaukee before he was arrested in 1991.
(...)

The accused killer was known then by his birth name, David Brown, but began calling himself Nathaniel Benjamin Levi Bar-Jonah in the late 1980s after converting to Judaism.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


22. Guru shrugs off sex allegations
Toronto Star, Jan. 14, 2001 (Column)
http://www.thestar.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
In the Oct. 28 issue of the London Telegraph's Sunday magazine, a major feature article described one of the greatest scandals to befall a guru or religious leader in our time.

Titled ``Divine Downfall,'' the six-page exposé by British investigative journalist Mick Brown makes the case that the man millions around the world hold to be God incarnate, a healer and ``miracle worker'' on a par with Krishna or Christ, has systematically and for decades sexually abused large numbers of teenage boys.

Sri Sathya Sai Baba - who has only once left his southern India ashram in Puttaparthi, close to Bangalore (for a visit to Uganda), yet has followers numbering anywhere from 10 million to 50 million, depending on the source - is also accused of financial wrongs and ``B-grade conjuring tricks.''

But those charges have been around for years. What is new is the huge controversy now coming to a head over a document released on the Internet, called ``The Findings.''
(...)

Significantly, the harrowing stories in ``The Findings'' produced a flood of similar accounts from every corner of the Internet. Gradually, the stage was set for one of the most amazing battles ever spawned in cyberspace.

Browsing the Net recently, I found everything from Web sites with specious, unconvincing arguments - for example, that the whole affair was initiated by the omnipotent, omniscient guru as a kind of ``divine game'' to test the disciples' faith - to a host of critical chatrooms, columns and letters.

Sai Baba has been ``India's most famous and powerful holy man'' for nearly 60 years.

His official biographer says in a four-volume work that the ``saint'' was born sinless ``of immaculate conception,'' like the Virgin Mary, in Puttaparthi in 1926.

At 13, he announced he was the reincarnation of a revered southern saint, Shirdi Sai Baba, who died in 1918.
(...)

Nothing I have found yet on the Web or elsewhere directly meets the current charges. Instead, the pro-Baba arguments seem to consist of various ways of saying that God is God and doesn't really have to explain. His ways are far beyond anything we mere humans can understand.

Sai Baba is reported to have said recently to his devotees: ``Never try to understand me.''

Perhaps he eventually will be cleared of the accusations levelled against him. He may be a pure healer and a promoter of universal love.

But if this quote is accurate, he embodies the kind of guruship to be avoided at all cost.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


23. Purging of 'demons' nets millions
The Daily Telegraph, Jan. 14, 2001
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
The Christian fundamentalist church which offered to exorcise Anna Climbie days before she died has made tens of millions of pounds by offering to rid devotees of demons across the world.

The ''deliverance'' ceremonies are just one of a number of services provided by the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God to adherents, who are expected to hand over 10 per cent of their income in cash or by credit card.

The movement promises panaceas for most afflictions, from curses, witchcraft and hauntings to anxiety, depression and alcohol addiction. On its website, it claims that Jacques Cousteau, the French underwater explorer, discovered the location of hell. Visitors are offered the opportunity to hear the ''screams of hell'' on a cassette tape, which is available for £1.99.
(...)

The church, a registered charity, yesterday issued a lengthy explanation of its role to its members, stressing that it had had little contact with Anna and her great- aunt Marie Therese Kouao, although the couple had made three visits.
(...)

The Protestant evangelical movement was founded in Brazil in 1977 by Edir Macedo, a shop assistant, and rapidly spread to 85 other countries including Britain, where it claims to have 4,500 regular members.

It has attracted worldwide controversy and its founder has been investigated for alleged tax fraud and links with the cocaine industry. According to reports, the movement has 200,000 members, more than 2,000 churches and a daily income of more than £1 million.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


24. Yogic flyers crash out of British politics
The Independent (England), Jan. 11, 2001
http://beta.yellowbrix.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
The Natural Law Party promised world peace through transcendental meditation and an end to poverty by applying the Constitution of the Universe. It even sent a squadron of 7,000 yogic flyers to end the conflict in Kosovo. But now, after years of campaigning and tens of thousands of pounds of lost deposits, the party has decided to disband. The Yogi has finally landed.

Doubtless triggering waves of relief at Labour's Millbank headquarters and Conservative Central Office, Britain's most idiosyncratic party confirmed yesterday that it will not be contesting the next general election or indeed any election.

Perhaps unusually for an organisation that believes in mind-to-mind communication, the party blamed its decision on a failure to get its message across to the public.
(...)

Without a hint of irony, she added: ''We put it down to a simple lack of understanding of our policies in the general public.'' Given that those policies centred on the theory of the ''Unified Field of Natural Law - the unified field of intelligence underlying all forms and activities in the entire universe,'' it is perhaps unsurprising that they have proved a little baffling to most

In response to what it called widespread dissatisfaction with the existing political parties, the Natural Law Party of Great Britain, to give it its full title, was formed on 15 March 1992. It claimed its technique of yogic flying had been ''validated by more than 500 scientific research studies conducted at 215 independent universities and research institutions in 27 countries during the past 30 years''.

Based on the teachings of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, it promised to bring ''innovative, scientifically proven solutions to the nation's problems'' and fielded candidates for 310 seats in the 1992 general election.

Unfortunately, the great British public didn't seem particularly ready for the yogic revolution and the NLP received just 0.4 per cent of the vote in the constituencies it contested.

Despite its poor start, the party decided to contest as many subsequent elections as it could, reaching a polling high in the European elections of 1999, when it attracted 400,000 votes across the continent. In local elections last year, John Collins, its candidate in the ward of Birch Green in West Lancashire, received 269 votes, well ahead of the Conservative candidate and second only to Labour. ''It won't be long until the Natural Law Party has district councillors in Britain,'' Mr Collins said at the time.
(...)

The party even attracted a superstar millionaire backer when George Harrison, the former Beatle, donated part of his fortune to its upkeep.
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25. Yogic fliers come down to earth
The Daily Telegraph (England), Jan. 13, 2001
http://beta.yellowbrix.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
The Natural Law Party, best known for transcendental meditation and yogic flying, has bumped back to earth by deciding not to put up any candidates for the next general election.
(...)

However the party has not abandoned its hope that, by mustering sufficient yogic fliers in tune with the ancient knowledge of Vedic Science, the climate of worldwide politics can be changed.

Yesterday its leader, Dr Geoffrey Clements, said: ''Our impression, having been in two general elections and two European elections, is that the electoral system is stacked against new parties.
(...)

The party had previously promised to create a crime-free Britain in which everyone could enjoy happiness and prosperity. Broadly Euro-sceptic, it believes that a harmonious European Union is only possible if none of its sovereign states is forced to accept its edicts.

Its approach to national security is equally pragmatic. In July 1997 it called on Nato to instruct each member state to train 7,000 military personnel in yogic flying ''to prevent the birth of an enemy''.
(...)

''We are not closing the party down,'' stressed Dr Clements. It would comment on a range of issues in the election campaign.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


26. The faithful stand watch over Temple
Indianapolis Star, Jan. 14, 2001
http://www.starnews.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
INDIANAPOLIS BAPTIST TEMPLE, Ind. -- This Calvinist sleepover is in its 60th day, and the usual is happening.
(...)

The holdout at this 50-year-old Southside church is in a long line of anti-government standoffs -- and is unlike nearly all of them.

Waco. Ruby Ridge. Montana Freemen. The Republic of Texas. Each of these confrontations was a siege, differing only in degree of anger, in dosage of testosterone.

Here, the atmosphere is summer camp, albeit the Bible variety.

Religious liberty, the future of man, God's judgment. These are weighty and dire issues to the 100 or more church members and supporters who have been staying at the church this past week.

Yet there's a casualness here, a sense of normalcy, a lack of the ''do-or-die'' imperative that has characterized other confrontations.

Perhaps it is the agreement that was forged early between the two sides.

U.S. Marshal Frank Anderson would prefer that the church members simply leave and hand over their keys. The Pastors Greg Dixon, father and son who share the same name and leadership roles, would prefer that the federal government admit that churches shouldn't be forced to collect taxes for the IRS and rescind its foreclosure order.

Neither is likely to happen, so Anderson and the Dixons have come to the next-best terms -- a nonviolent seizure of the church.

If the event seems long delayed, there are several possible reasons, even if federal officials won't discuss them.

On Nov. 15, the day after the holdout began, the court-appointed receiver withdrew, leaving the government with no one to take over the building and sell it. Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal Gary Tingle said this week that the appointment of a new receiver was in the works.

Another reason could be the church's appeal to the Supreme Court. The court on Friday was scheduled to consider the church's request for a hearing, and church members were confident Anderson would wait until the court announced its decision.

Finally, there are the not-so-simple logistics of seizing a sprawling building with dozens of rooms and cubbyholes.

New supporters arrive daily. Others leave.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


27. Religious Theme Park to Open near Orlando, Fla.
Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News, Jan. 11, 2001
http://www.hotel-online.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
Jan. 11--Central Florida, world famous home of dazzling theme parks and an emerging center of evangelical Christianity, is about to see the two combined for prayer and profit.

Get ready for ''The Holy Land Experience.''

The $16 million, ''living Bible museum'' -- the most ambitious religious tourist attraction in the nation -- opens Feb. 5, five miles east of Universal Orlando, on Interstate 4. Developers promise a multisensory experience in which paying customers ''will leave the 21st century behind and embark on a journey that is unequaled anywhere.''

Built by Orlando-based ministry Zion's Hope, Holy Land is being unveiled to the media today, but the park already is stirring controversy in religious circles.

While local Christian leaders are hailing the new attraction, some religion experts warn that park developers may be in for a bumpy ride if their combination of entertainment and evangelism sparks too much debate and ridicule.

They fear the park's combination of religion and tourism could trivialize Christianity.

For their part, Jewish leaders are concerned about the purpose of the park and the way in which Jews of the first century may be portrayed.
(...)

Although there won't be any thrill rides at Holy Land, other familiar theme park features -- from costumed and animatronic characters to a special-effects film -- are deployed to persuade visitors to part with the admission fee of $17 for adults and $12 for children.

On holidays such as Easter, an actor portraying Jesus will carry a cross along the Via Dolorosa, and John the Baptist will preach. There will be a year-round Nativity scene with live camels and other animals, as well as what is billed as the world's largest scale model of first-century Jerusalem. At the high-tech end of the spectrum is an inspirational film with computer-driven special effects called ''The Seed of Promise'' and a multisensory show called ''Wilderness Tabernacle.''

Like other area attractions, there will be gift shops, featuring products imported from the Mideast, and a restaurant, the Oasis Palms Café, with American and Middle Eastern menu items such as the ''Thirsty Camel Cooler'' and the ''Goliath Burger.''
(...)

But the park's medium will be its message; no tracts will be handed out at the park, and evangelists will not buttonhole visitors. Although Zion's Hope ministry was founded to convert Jews to Christianity, Rosenthal said Holy Land does not intend to single out Jews, or to lure them to the park under false pretenses.
(...)

Still other religious experts are concerned about Holy Land's potential to trivialize faith.

Quentin Schultz, an author and professor of communication at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich., said an attraction such as Holy Land ''makes religion more superficial and transitory.''

When people visit a tourist attraction, he said, they bring with them ''a tourist mind-set, which is: spend money and have a good time.''

The Rev. Robert Parham, executive director of the Nashville, Tenn.-based Baptist Center for Ethics, agreed.

''We have to be very careful about money transactions within religion,'' he said. ''The Christian faith historically has had more than its share of religious hucksters, so it's incumbent upon people of faith to look at Christian tourism with a skeptical eye. People of faith must ask: 'Does it pass the test of good religion and good entertainment?' ''
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


=== Noted

28. Power in the pulpit
Bishop T.D. Jakes provides spiritual nourishment through many media
Detroit News, Jan. 13, 2001
http://www.detnews.com/2
[Story no longer online? Read this]
(...) ''Very seldom do you hear pastors deal with rape, sexual molestation, failure in relationships and what makes women the way they are,'' she explains. ''He talks about the pains and hurts and disappointments from the past that may be holding you back. He goes to the very core of situations.''

With an appeal that cuts across racial, class and political lines, the charismatic Jakes, 43, has been called the Oprah Winfrey of popular preachers and even ''the black Billy Graham.''

His popular weekly TV program, Potter's House, airs on Trinity Broadcasting Network and Black Entertainment Television in the United States (including Metro Detroit), as well as in Europe and South Africa.

What's more, his swelling mountain of videos, CDs, cassettes and books -- including 10 that landed on the national Christian best-sellers' list -- reaches millions.
(...)

''He mixes real life with the Bible and takes on the hard issues. It's where the rubber hits the road, not one of those pie-in-the-sky type sermons,'' Robinson says. ''He doesn't just tell you to trust God, he tells you why things happen and how to overcome them.

Indeed, Jakes' growing influence extends beyond the pulpit to the highest levels of American politics: He appeared on a Larry King Live TV panel with Jerry Falwell, Chuck Colson and Pat Robertson to discuss President Clinton's morality; and his burgeoning Dallas-based outreach ministry has been endorsed by President-elect George Bush.

Jakes also welcomed Vice-president Al Gore to Potter's House, his 26,000-member, multiracial megachurch, during a campaign stop in Dallas last fall. NFL star Deion Sanders is among Jakes' ardent followers and even calls him ''Daddy.''
The church, boasting a cavernous new 8,200-seat sanctuary the size of two football fields, is ultra high-tech, with pews equipped with outlets for laptop computers, live broadcasts to home viewers and satellite links to more than 500 prisons.
(...)

Describing his philosophy in the introduction to his latest book, Jakes writes: ''I believe that there are three bags God wants us to carry: faith in Him, for the hard times; family, for the fulfillment of intimate and interpersonal needs; and finances, through which one acquires the luxury of options ... .
''If you can carry these three and not destroy one in the pursuit of another, nothing is impossible to achieve.''
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


29. Garden of Eden in Turkey, says Bible scholar
National Post (Canada), Jan. 11, 2001
http://www.nationalpost.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
A California-based Biblical scholar, who recently found what may be the remains of Sodom and Gomorrah at the bottom of the Dead Sea, claims to have used satellite photographs from the U.S. space agency to locate the Garden of Eden -- in eastern Turkey.

Michael Sanders, director of expeditions for the Mysteries of the Bible Research Foundation in Irvine, Calif., said careful study of satellite photographs taken by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration proves the Bible's description of the Garden of Eden is completely, and literally, accurate.
(...)

For years, Biblical scholars have debated the exact location and even the existence of Eden, a garden paradise from which Adam and Eve were expelled for eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge.
(...)

But Mr. Sanders now argues the Garden of Eden can be discovered through a simple and literal interpretation of the Bible story.

''It is obvious from the Biblical account, when you read about a river rising out of Eden, that rivers don't rise in the desert,'' he said.

''With the satellite image, it is just remarkable that there are actually four rivers in this region in Turkey.''

By his reckoning, they are the Murat River, which runs through Samsun on the coast of the Black Sea, the Tigris, the Euphrates and the north fork of the Euphrates.

He said his discovery dovetails with other recent Biblical studies that suggest many Biblical events, from the Garden of Eden to the Great Flood and the construction of the Tower of Babel, took place in Turkey, rather than in Mesopotamia, which today is part of Iraq.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


30. The Rastafarians are receiving
Associated Press, Jan. 14, 2001
http://www.freep.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
BULL BAY, Jamaica -- These may not be the Rastafarians you've imagined.

Isolated in their hilltop redoubt 10 miles up a nearly impassable road from Kingston, the capital, the hundreds of Bobo Ashanti Rastas living in a compound called the Black Ethiopian International Congress are some of the most adamant believers in their creed. And they're happy to share their time and views with visitors.
(...)

It's unclear how the people got here, for few will discuss their past. But they seem to share a strong alienation from Jamaica and modern life, and a black nationalist streak runs strong. They see Jamaica as a temporary haven until -- one day -- they return to Africa.
(...)

Many Rastas advocate a return to Africa -- a particularly fervent desire among the Bobo Ashantis, who believe their founder, Prince Emmanuel I, was the black incarnation of Jesus Christ.

The people here have a deep belief that ships will eventually materialize -- perhaps sent by some world leader, perhaps by God -- to carry them back to Africa.

Until then they maintain a frugal lifestyle supported by the fruit of the compound's garden, various contributions, the production of handmade wooden brooms -- and other mysterious sources.

Their views might surprise visitors reared on idealistic songs like ''One Love'' by Bob Marley, the Jamaican whose intoxicating music helped make Rastafarianism famous around the world.

''Nation mixing with nation ...that's bad,'' Warren opines. ''We want a pure black race, we want a pure China race, a pure Indian, a pure white. Ethiopian got to go back to Ethiopia, Chinaman got to go back to China, European got to go back to Europe and India for the Indians. Then there will be peace in the whole world.''
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