The Jim Bakker Show

ISIS Destroys Ancient Temple

Islamic terrorist group ISIS has destroyed an ancient temple in the city of Palmyra, Syria in what the United Nations is calling a war crime.

The Temple of Baalshamin was destroyed on the heels of the terrorists killing Khaled al-Asssad. The 82-year-old al-Asssad was an expert on Syrian antiquities and refused to tell the terrorists the locations of items they wanted to find. Assad ran the antiquities department of Palmyra for 50 years.

Syria’s head of antiquities told the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights the terrorists blew up the temple on Sunday causing “much damage.”

“[ISIS] destroyed an incredibly important architectural structure,” Maamoun Abdulkarim said. “It is the first structure in the Palmyra complex to be destroyed, although they recently destroyed two Islamic shrines nearby.”

“They said they would destroy the statues but not the structures themselves inside Palmyra. They lied.”

The United Nations was swift to condemn the action.

“The systematic destruction of cultural symbols embodying Syrian cultural diversity reveals the true intent of such attacks, which is to deprive the Syrian people of its knowledge, its identity and history. One week after the killing of Professor Khaled al-Assaad, the archaeologist who had looked after Palmyra’s ruins for four decades, this destruction is a new war crime and an immense loss for the Syrian people and for humanity,” Unesco Director-General Irina Bokova said in a statement.

“The art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, is a symbol of the complexity and wealth of the Syrian identity and history. Extremists seek to destroy this diversity and richness, and I call on the international community to stand united against this persistent cultural cleansing. Daesh (ISIS) is killing people and destroying sites, but cannot silence history and will ultimately fail to erase this great culture from the memory of the world. Despite the obstacles and fanaticism, human creativity will prevail, buildings and sites will be rehabilitated, and some will be rebuilt,” Bokova continued.

“Such acts are war crimes and their perpetrators must be accountable for their actions. UNESCO stands by all Syrian people in their efforts to safeguard their heritage, a heritage for all humanity.”

Florida Murder Investigated as “Ritualistic Killing” Connected to Witchcraft

An elderly mother and her two sons were found dead in their Florida Panhandle home last week and now police say it’s looking like they were killed as part of a witchcraft ritual.

At a news conference, Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan told reporters they are suspecting witchcraft because of the positioning of the victim’s bodies.

“Initial research has led us to believe it was a ritualistic killing,” Morgan said. “The method of the murder — positioning of bodies — and our person of interest has some ties to a faith or religion that is indicative of that. The time of the death on Tuesday also coincides with what’s referred to as a blue moon, which occurs every three years.”

The sheriff described the scene as “very complex.”

“There are different factions of (witchcraft). While it doesn’t bother me to release that particular thing, I most assuredly do not want to defame or demean any particular practice,” Morgan said.

One of the victims was an employee of the Department of Homeland Security. Morgan said there was no sign of forced entry or robbery at the home.

Colorado Theater Shooter Guilty Of Murder

A Colorado jury has found James Holmes guilty of murder in the deaths of 12 people at an Aurora, Colorado theater.

In addition to the 12 people killed, 70 others were injured in the attack on the opening night of the movie “The Dark Knight Rises.” Holmes had entered the theater in black body armor with his hair colored red in an apparent reference to the Joker, Batman’s arch-nemesis.

The jury rejected the claims of Holmes’ defense team that he has been overtaken by his schizophrenia and that he had no control over his actions that night.

However, prosecutors showed a very detailed plan for the attack that included the booby-trapping of his apartment with explosive devices in an apparently attempt to take out law enforcement after his assault on the theater. The prosecutors claim the plans showed that while Holmes may indeed be mentally ill, he was fully aware of his actions the night of the attack.

Holmes showed no response as the jury found him guilty on all 165 charges against him.

The jury will now take a week off before coming back to determine if Holmes will spend life in prison or be sentenced to the death penalty.

Tennessee Pastor Forgives Man Who Murdered His Father

A Tennessee pastor is showing the true meaning of forgiveness and grace by forgiving the man who murdered his father 30 years ago.

Ron Hammer gunned down Wayne Robinson outside a Tennessee grocery store in 1986. On Sunday, Hammer joined pastor Philip Robinson via Skype to talk about his conversion to Christ. Hammer told New Vision Life Baptist Church that the forgiveness of Pastor Robinson “changed his life.”

“I gave my life to Christ in October of 1996, but I’ve never really received the full blessings that Christ wanted me to have until one day He whispered and told me, ‘Well, you haven’t confessed to the Robinson family.’ And I sat and wrote a letter to Mrs. Robinson (pastor’s mother) and it was 20 years after the crime had taken place. And I told [her] how I had taken your father’s life and how it was an accident and that I never meant to hurt anyone,” said Hammer to Robinson before his congregation on Sunday

Hammer had denied being the gunman for years.

Originally Robinson admitted he had trouble forgiving Hammer.

“I wanted them to pay the full price for their crime,” said Robinson. “A great deal of my life was hanging on their conviction. It felt that way. I figured they would do it again.”

When Hammer reached out 13 years later, Robinson found a path to forgiveness, sending a letter to Hammer that was life changing.

“That letter from you, Phillip, truly touched me,” Hammer told the pastor in front of his congregation. “The words of wisdom and what God had planted in your heart to tell me changed my life that day. I’m so blessed by the forgiveness that you have given me.”

Robinson and his mother even testified in favor of Hammer at a parole hearing that resulted in his release from prison in March.

Grand Jury Formally Indicts Baltimore Officers

A grand jury in Baltimore has indicted six officers on charges connected to the Freddie Gray situation that led to massive rioting.

Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced the grand jury’s decision to bring charges against all the officers during a Thursday press conference. The indictments were similar to charges Mosby announced earlier this month but a few changed due to what she called “new information in the case.”

“These past two weeks, my team has been presenting evidence to a grand jury that just today returned indictments against all six officers,” Mosby told reporters. “As our investigation has continued, additional information has been discovered, and as is often the case during an ongoing investigation, charges can and should be revised based upon the evidence.”

The officers will be formally charged on July 2nd.

The Washington Post reports that Gray had an extensive criminal record “and had a handful of convictions, mostly on charges of selling or possessing heroin or marijuana. His longest stint behind bars was about two years.”

Gray’s death sparked nationwide protests and calls for the officers to be charged with murder.

American Blogger Killed In Bangladesh For Criticizing Islam

An American blogger who was critical of Islam was killed by Muslims who attacked in a “knife-wielding mob.”

Avijit Roy, who was an atheist, was attacked for promoting secularism and pointing out the violence and brutality of Islamic extremism.

“Avijit Roy has been killed the way other free thinker writers were killed in Bangladesh. No freethinker is safe in Bangladesh,” blogger Taslima Nasreen, who left Bangladesh in the mid-1990s after receiving death threats from extremists, told the Christian Post about the killing.

“Islamic terrorists can do whatever they like. They can kill people with no qualms whatsoever.”

BBC News reported that Bangladeshi officials for their role in the murder are now investigating a local Islamist group.

This is not the first time Islamists have attacked bloggers for being critical of Islam. In 2013, one atheist blogger was brutally killed and a second survived a severe beating at the hands of Muslim mob.

Pastor’s Son Arrested In Family’s Death

The family of Redeemer Episcopal Church in Houston were still reeling from the news their pastor and his family had been murdered when they suffered a second blow.

The son of Pastor Israel Ahimbisbwe has been arrested in the murder of his father, mother and brother.

Houston police say that 19-year-old Isaac Tiharihondi has been charged with two counts of capital murder and was being held in custody in Mississippi where he fled after the killings. He covered the bodies with blankets and towels in the back bathroom of the apartment where the victims were found Monday.

A member of the church told a local TV station that she had lunch with the accused killer after police say he committed the crime.

“It’s devastating. It’s sad. It’s unexplainable,” Nancy Taylor, who attends Church of the Redeemer, told KHOU. “We had lunch, we sat, we chatted, we talked, we laughed. It was just a real enjoyable experience and time together. … Good kid, polite, nice, respectful, grateful.”

“While I am relieved authorities have found Isaac, I am heartbroken that he has been charged with capital murder. This only adds to the tragedy of their deaths and raises more questions than it answers,” Rt. Rev. C. Andrew Doyle, Episcopal Bishop of Texas said in a statement.

Nigerian Pastor Butchered By Extremists

Muslim extremists murdered a popular Nigerian pastor who is being remembered as a “dedicated servant to the poor.”

Pastor Joshua Adah, who founded and operated a school giving free education to over 400 children in Bantaje, was slaughtered by a group of Muslim herdsmen who may be connected to the terrorist group Boko Haram.

The attackers reportedly seized Adah after his car broke down while on the way back to the mission from an outreach event.

“The pastor’s car broke down at Chediya on his return from Koji. He then phoned his mechanic at Jalingo to help him fix the car. When the mechanic arrived, the two men agreed to hire a vehicle nearby Dan Anacha, which would tow the car to Jalingo,” a police spokesman said. “The mechanic upon returning to scene could not find the pastor. … After a thorough search, his body was found in the area.”

A supporter of Pastor Adah said after finding Christ in 2000 he experienced a radical life transformation.

“Not too long after he got born again, he left the comfort and ‘luxury’ of city life for a remote village on a hill without light nor potable drinking water, not even a well in sight,” the supporter explained. “He was there with his humble wife and kids to answer the call of God at this time when larger cities meant greener pastures, fatter offerings and sizeable tithes to others doing ministry. He continued to preach the Gospel and hold campaigns, not in the urban areas but mostly in rural areas.

“I don’t know why God allowed Boko Haram to cut his life short. Even when it became dangerous, he refused to get out but kept preaching Christ in villages where many will not go,” she added .

Ugandian Imam Beats Daughter To Death For Conversion

A 15-year-old girl who converted to Christianity has been beaten to death by her father, a Muslim Imam.

In addition to the killing of Namugonya Jamirah, Imam Abudalah Ali beat his 12-year-old daughter Saidah so severely that she has been hospitalized for two weeks. The young girl was horrified when she found out that her sister did not survive their father’s attack upon them.

“Saidah needs prayers, trauma counseling and medication for the left side of her hip that was injured by the father,” a hospital source told Morning Star News.

The girls were beaten after accepting Christ at the end of a five-day evangelistic event in Kaliro District.

“Their father got the information that his daughters have converted, and he organized a small group of fellow Muslims, about 17 people, to go and attack the Christians,” a source said. “He found the campaign had finished but went back to his home and waited for the daughters. When they went back home, the father picked up the club and started beating them badly till one called Jamirah died.”

The father had been working to have local Muslims kill the 12-year-old before she was taken from the country for her own safety.

Local Muslim officials said that the father claimed the older girl died in a motorcycle accident and they are not pursing murder charges.

“The police were later bribed and accepted the words of Ali, and he was released on bail,” one source said. “When he came home he went to the [local] chairman and said that he had disowned Saidah, and that if she tries to go back that she will be killed just like her sister, and that he is leaving Saidah in the hands of born-again Christians.”

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