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A lab technician who worked for Anatomic Gift Foundation, a Maryland company that sold fetal tissue for research, has given an exclusive interview to Life Dynamics Inc. A renegade pro-life group based in Denton, Tex., Life Dynamics obtained through the technician dozens of order forms from researchers requesting fetal parts, price lists for fetal organs and tissues, and donation consent forms from women undergoing abortions. “Kelly” (not her real name) explained that the Planned Parenthood abortion clinic she was on contract with received a service fee from Anatomic Gift Foundation for its tissue “donations”. Perfect specimens were preferred. Only 10% of fetuses were not used because of defects, she said; the rest were “healthy donors”. She says women were sedated before abortions; some screamed that they had changed their mind, but the sedation was increased and the abortions were performed anyway. Eric Harrah, who managed and owned 26 abortion clinics for 11 years, says live births were fairly common in his clinics but doctors tried to conceal them from other staff. Mark Crutcher, president of Life Dynamics, is convinced that research demand for intact late-term fetal organs is the reason abortionists so streneously resist attempts to outlaw partial-birth abortions. He says it’s about making money: The woman is sold the abortion, and then the dead baby is sold, “but you have to take it out whole or you don’t have anything to sell.” – Voice For Life
Trinity Western University is close to completing a $5.8 million fundraising campaign, launched in fall 1998, to attract new students. Located in Langley, B.C., the university has residences for 850 students, a modern library, science labs and a recently completed student centre. The fundraising campaign will be used to increase scholarship funds by $2.1 million, to conduct a feasibility study for the establishment of a school of business ($50,000), to add new computer labs ($400,000), to build two all-weather athletic fields ($1.5 million) and to purchase 57 acres of land ($800,000) for future growth. TWU, founded in 1962, offers 33 undergraduate majors and 12 graduate programs, and has over 2500 students. A privately-funded Christian liberal arts university, it has over 13,000 alumni. – Trinity Western University
Four Amish inmates convicted of vandalizing a neighbour’s farm in Ohio were released early, in part because officials believed jail life was more comfortable than the austere lifestyle of the Amish. Russell West, the jail administrator, said, “I thought we better get them out of here because they were getting used to it. . . . the TV, electric light, telephone and running water – I think they were starting to like it here.” The four young people pleaded guilty to criminal mischief for vandalizing the buildings and equipment of a neighbour, whom they believe told authorities about an underage drinking party. – Evangelical Press News Service
Several relief agencies working in southern Sudan have pulled their personnel and resources out of the area after refusing to sign a cooperation agreement with the relief arm of the Sudan Peoples Liberation Army. The agreement would have placed these agencies’ resources under the control of SPLA, which is currently fighting the predominantly Muslim forces of northern Sudan. The withdrawal of relief aid by these agencies, including Save the Children UK, Care International, Oxfam, World Vision International and Doctors Without Borders, has deprived southern Sudan of $32 million US in relief aid and programs that would have helped over 1.5 million people, according to All Africa News Agency. There are 49 relief agencies still operating in southern Sudan. – EPNS
Southern Baptists in the US reported an increase in membership of 122,440 in 1999, bringing total membership to 15,851,756, slightly below the 1997 total. In 1998, the denomination suffered its first membership loss since 1926. – EPNS
Evangelical Fellowship of Canada has been granted intervenor status in the case between the British Columbia College of Teachers and Trinity Western University. The case hinges on the BCCT’s refusal to approve TWU’s teacher education program. The BCCT requires TWU students to take their final year of training at a secular university, arguing that TWU’s lifestyle standards policy breeds intolerance in students because it bans homosexual sex. The policy also requires TWU students to abstain from pre- and extramarital sex, illegal drugs and alcohol. The Supreme Court of Canada is expected to hear the case this fall. – Evangelical Fellowship of Canada
Chinese house church leader Li Dexian was arrested April 11 for the 13th time and sentenced to 15 days in jail for illegal preaching. Friends and relatives were denied visitation requests. He was reportedly put in chains and kept in solitary confinement. He could face up to three years of forced labour. In October 1999, police destroyed the primitive shelter he used as a sanctuary in the village of Hua Du, and he and his wife were arrested and later released. However, on a weekly basis, police held him for a day or longer in order to keep him from preaching in Hua Du. In 1995, Dexian was beaten by police, leaving him with broken ribs and internal bleeding. The Chinese government’s Religious Affairs Bureau now estimates that there are 25 million Protestant Christians in China; it previously claimed there were only 15 million, but secret government documents admit the number could be as high as 35 million. Groups ouside China say there could be 60 million or more. House church leaders say the government is stepping up surveillance and infiltration of church groups that are not officially registered with the government. – EPNS
Artwork dealing with the themes of advent and incarnation is being sought by the Mennonite Heritage Centre Gallery in Winnipeg. Artists from across Canada are asked to submit slides or photos of their artwork – paintings, drawings, prints, collages or three-dimensional pieces – by Sept. 10. The style can range from realism to abstraction. A jury will select artworks for display by the end of September. Accepted artwork must be at the gallery by mid-October, ready for display. For more information, contact Ray Dirks, MHC Gallery, 600 Shaftesbury Blvd., Winnipeg, Man. R3P 0M4; phone (204) 888-6781; e-mail rdirks@mennonitechurch.ca. – Mennonite Heritage Centre Gallery
Of the 27,000 students in 179 seminaries across the US, many are training for the ministry after leaving their secular careers. These students are older and more mature, but many of them are unprepared academically. Some students cannot write a simple essay, and seminaries are having to provide remedial reading courses. Also, many of these mature students have no background in biblical studies, languages or liberal arts. – Sightings
Three University of British Columbia students charged with destroying a pro-life display on campus will not be prosecuted through the legal system. Although the incident was caught on video, Crown Counsel said that trying the case was “not in the public’s interest”. In making its decision, the Crown considered the context of the incident: The victims had been in a long “debate” with their attackers; the attackers had no previous criminal record and would likely receive a light sentence; and the university was a more appropriate forum for discipline. – Voice For Life, Lifesite Daily News
Five communities in Jordan are currently benefiting from a Mennonite Central Committee revolving loans program. Over $146,000 is in circulation. This past year alone, over 100 loans have been given for agriculture, low income housing and businesses. In the past three years, only one small loan has been written off – because the recipient died. MCC first began giving out grants and loans in Jordan about 10 years ago. Over the past few years, the number of communities receiving grants and loans was reduced in order to concentrate the impact. – Mennonite Central Committee
Orie O. Miller, long-time director of Mennonite Central Committee, first proposed the idea of a liaison office at the United Nations in the early 1960s. In 1991, John Rempel, pastor of Manhattan Mennonite Fellowship, began serving as MCC liaison to the United Nations from his church’s office. He increasingly became involved in advocacy work on issues like banning land mines and ending sanctions against Iraq. In 1995, his position was increased to half-time, and the office expanded to two people when MCC and the church agreed to co-sponsor a one-year internship through Mennonite Voluntary Service. In 1999, MCC decided to expand the liaison position to full-time and to relocate the office across the street from the United Nations. The new office space was dedicated April 8, 2000. – MCC
Mennonite Central Committee and Mennonite World Conference are considering a closer relationship. In 1997, the two agencies committed themselves to an exchange of participant observers between their executive committees and to a “journey of mutual exploration”. MWC is a fellowship of 84 Mennonite and Brethren in Christ churches in over 50 countries. It held its first world conference in 1925. Founded in 1920, MCC is the service, relief and development agency of 17 Mennonite and Brethren in Christ churches in North America. Currently, it has over 900 workers in 50 countries and offers programs in agriculture/forestry, community development, education, health, social service and economic/technical assistance. MCC is considering ways to become more international in its structures. – MCC
A Coptic Christian pharmacist plagued by mental illness over the past 10 years suddenly converted to Islam March 12, shortly after his release from an Egyptian hospital. His Christian family has rejected this claim. They say Dr. Hanna Kamal Hanna Morgan, 37, who has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, is not mentally competent to make such a decision. After his release from hospital Feb. 1, Morgan disappeared for 48 hours; the family was not notified of his expected release. State security officials in El-Fayoum then informed the family that Morgan had converted to Islam. His whereabouts are being kept secret; his wife, who is a medical doctor, has not been allowed to see him. After signing an official declaration of conversion to Islam, Morgan was given new identity papers listing his religion as Islam. The names of his two daughters were also listed on the paper as Muslims. The family fears local authorities could take custody of the girls. Morgan’s is the third documented case of “suspicious” conversions to Islam in El-Fayoum in the past 14 months – all three are individuals with a history of mental illness. An estimated 15,000 Egyptian Copts convert to Islam annually, usually for financial or employment reasons, or to achieve a desired marriage or divorce. – Compass Direct
$11.4 million in Canadian food assistance is going to Ethiopia and North Korea in May. Canadian Foodgrains Bank expects to ship 27,525 tonnes of Canadian wheat to northern and southern Ethiopia, where millions face starvation. Of that shipment, CFGB is providing 13,595 tonnes, Canadian International Development Agency is providing 9,000 tonnes and other nongovernmental agencies working in Ethiopia are providing 4,900 tonnes. CFGB is also shipping 12,500 tonnes of wheat to North Korea, where many suffer from significant food shortages caused by natural disasters and a crumbling economic system. – Canadian Foodgrains Bank
Wheaton (Ill.) College’s image as the Crusaders could change if its president has his way. President Duane Litfin has embarked on a campaign to change the College’s mascot of an armoured knight on horseback wielding a lance and shield. Some opposed to the image of a crusader – a reminder of the Crusades during the Middle Ages – feel that this image could hinder the overall mission of the College. Wheaton College is an evangelical school in west-suburban Chicago. – Sightings
Two of every three people experiencing hunger in the world live in Asia and the Pacific. According to a report by Bread for the World, 791 million people in poor nations and 31 million people in the US face hunger as a fact of life. In recent years, the proportion of hungry people compared to the overall global population has been cut in half, and the number of hungry people worldwide has declined 17%. The report also notes that people in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia face chronic hunger, and nutritional problems in the former Soviet Union are on the rise. – World Pulse
Over 1.5 million women in the US are victims of violent crime each year. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, more than two-thirds of violent crimes are committed by an intimate (spouse, ex-spouse, boyfriend), a relative (parent, sibling, in-law) or an acquaintance. Women are 10 times more likely than men to be victims of a violent crime committed by an intimate. Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury for women ages 15 to 44 in the US, yet only one in 10 accused offenders in family violence cases is ever prosecuted. – MCC Washington Memo
- Annual global military expenditures are $780 billion US.
- To provide immunization programs for all the world’s children would cost $2.5 billion US.
- To provide education for every child in the world would cost $6 billion US.
- To provide basic health and nutrition for everyone would cost $13 billion US.
- 1,300,000,000 people in the world live on less than $1 a day.
- 130 million children do not have basic health care.
- More than half of the world’s governments spend more on the military than they do on health care.
- Over the past five years, 75% of US arms sales have been to countries in which citizens had no right to choose their own government.
- The amount of power in nuclear weapons today is over 700 times the amount was used in World Wars I and II and the Vietnam War combined.
- The top three exports in the world are oil, arms and illegal drugs.
- 40% of children in the world have stunted growth due to malnutrition caused by poverty.
- In the 20th century, there have been over 250 wars and over 110,000,000 war-related deaths.
- The net wealth of the 10 richest people in the world is 1.5 times the total national income of the 54 poorest countries.
- In 1995, world military expenditures were over $1.4 million per minute, while 750 million people went hungry every day.
- The top 200 corporations in the world have almost twice as much economic clout as 80% of humanity.
- 1 billion people do not have basic health care.
- Since 1945, the US has spent $5.8 trillion on nuclear weapons. This is equivalent to $1,000 US for every man, woman and child living on the earth today.
– Conscience Canada, End the Arms Race News
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Last modified May 26, 2000.
© 2000 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
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