Ecuador Raises Alert as Tungurahua Volcano Spews Ash Plume More Than 7km High

“Ecuador has declared an amber alert after the Tungurahua volcano started spewing ash again.

A plume more than 7km (4.3 miles) high could be seen emerging from the volcano in central Ecuador.

The authorities evacuated residents living near the volcano’s rim and ordered local schools to close.

The Tungurahua has erupted periodically over the past 12 years, but this is its first significant activity this year.”  Read more.

Ethiopian Muslims Beat Christian Evangelist to Death, Assault His Pregnant Wife

By Jennifer LeClaire – “Four Ethiopian Muslims beat a Christian evangelist to death and assaulted his pregnant wife last week in Worabe, an area of Ethiopia that is 97 percent Muslim.

In a premeditated operation, the alleged murderers lured evangelist Abraham Abera from his Kale Hiwot Church at 9:30 p.m. by urging him to visit a sick friend. Abera left with the men, only to be beaten with rods. When his wife, Birtukan, saw the attack she ran into the fray to try to help her husband. That’s when they turned and attacked her.

According to a report from International Christian Concern (ICC), Abera died at the scene of the crime. Birtukan was left for dead with a severe head injury.” Read more.

60+ Churches Burned in Nigerian Muslim Stronghold

By Ethan Cole – “More than 60 churches were burned and thousands of Christian-owned homes destroyed in Nigeria’s predominantly Muslim north after the recent election of incumbent Christian president Goodluck Jonathan, according to the Christian persecution watchdog group Open Doors.

Riots broke out Monday after the preliminary results of Saturday’s vote were announced. Jonathan, who was sworn in as president in May 2010, was announced president over his Muslim opponent Muhammadu Buhari.” Read more.

Dearborn’s First Amendment Barbecue

By Henry Payne – “By burning the First Amendment, Dearborn mayor John O’Reilly Jr. and his Wayne County cronies have managed to make nutty pastor Terry Jones a free speech hero, united the left-wing ACLU and right-wing Thomas More Law Center, stereotyped Muslims as intolerant zealots, and put Dearborn on the map as a bastion of small-town ayatollahs.

With friends like Mayor O’Reilly, who needs enemies?

O’Reilly’s outrageous action against the Quran-burning quack — resulting in a Wayne County jury’s conviction of Jones for planning a demonstration in front to the Dearborn Islamic Center on Good Friday — has made Dearborn the laughingstock of First Amendment constitutionalists everywhere.

‘We were arrested for something we had not done,’ said Jones, who has retained the conservative More Center in a lawsuit against the City of Dearborn.

‘This should have never come to this point to begin with,’ said Rana Elmir of the ACLU of Michigan. ‘The judge should have dismissed the case. It’s a complete abuse of the court process, and all those involved should be ashamed.’

‘(District Judge Mark Somers) should have thrown this case out of court immediately,’ agreed Wayne State Constitutional scholar Robert Sedler. ‘And (Wayne County prosecutor) Kym Worthy should know the law. People have a right to use the public street to express their views.’

Alas, Judge Somers only threw gasoline on O’Reilly’s fire by ordering Jones to stay away from the mosque for three years.”  Read more.

Update: Falling Away From The Faith – Church in Utah Gives Away Free Copies of Qur’an, Calls it ‘Truth’

1 Timothy 4:1-2, “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron …”

Update: The pastor of the Wasatch Presbyterian Church responds to my assertion that their action is an example of ‘departing from the faith’.  See comments …

By Kristen Moulton – “Leaders of a Presbyterian congregation in Salt Lake City have an answer to the Florida pastor with a penchant for burning the Quran.

Wasatch Presbyterian Church is giving Islam’s holy book away for free.

‘Sometimes, it’s hard to know how to push back against the lunatic fringe,’ said Russell Fericks, a member of the session, or governing board, of the 350-member church on the city’s east side.

So when the new pastor, the Rev. Scott Dalgarno, asked the board last week to join him in opening their wallets, the reaction was swift.

The leaders put up $600 before the meeting was over and ordered dozens of copies of an Oxford Press edition of the Quran several days ago. The books will be available as early as Monday at King’s English Bookshop, each with a bookmark bearing these words: ‘This book was donated by the leaders of Wasatch Presbyterian Church, who are not afraid of truth wherever it can be found.'”  Read more.

Falling Away from the Faith: Over 50 US Churches to Hold Qur’an Readings – “Now we go from a church buying and donating dozens of Qur’ans to a bookstore, to churches now holding Qur’an readings? This is idolatry. This is spiritual fornication. This is wrong on many levels. If your church is among those holding these readings I encourage you to protest and demand that it be cancelled, and if they refuse, find another church to attend.” Read more.

More Severe Weather Forecast For Southern US States – Very Large hail and Damaging Winds

“(CNN) — A rare and dangerous outbreak of severe thunderstorms and possible tornadoes could erupt Tuesday afternoon across parts of the South, from northeast Texas to the Mississippi River, the National Weather Service said Tuesday.

Locations including northeast Texas, far southeast Oklahoma, extreme northwestern Louisiana and the southern half of Arkansas are at high risk for severe thunderstorms late Tuesday afternoon and into Tuesday night, according to the Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma.

‘Dangerous tornado and severe thunderstorm outbreak expected late this afternoon into tonight from northeast Texas … to the Mississippi River,’ forecasters said.

Typically, only a handful of days per year reach high-risk criteria, said CNN meteorologist Dave Hennen.

‘Very large hail and damaging winds’ can also be expected, forecasters said.”  Read more.

NASA Issues Warning of Solar Superstorm in 2012

By Terrence Aym – “Could a superstorm generated by the sun destroy civilization as we know it in 2012?

No less than NASA thinks it’s a distinct possibility. In a remarkable move the normally conservative US space agency has taken the extraordinary step of warning the world.

The headlines reverberating around the world speak volumes: ‘Leaks discovered in Earth’s magnetic field,’ Solar storms to wreak havoc,’ ‘The end of life as we know it,’ ‘Magnetic shift to cause global superstorms.’

Can such things really happen?  NASA and the European Space Agency say yes…

Among all the countries with exposure to the solar devastation, the United States is the most susceptible.”  Read more.

Guantanamo Files: 35 Radicals Trained for Terrorism at British Mosques

By Tim Shipman and Daniel Martin – “Britain’s mosques became an international haven for extremists who enjoyed state benefits while being trained for terrorism, leaked documents show.

The WikiLeaks files, written by U.S. military chiefs, reveal that at least 35 Guantanamo terrorists were radicalised in London mosques before being sent to fight against the West.

This is believed to be more than any other Western country.

Of these, just 17 were British nationals or had been granted asylum, while 18 had travelled from abroad – cementing Britain’s reputation as a global training camp for terrorists.

U.S. intelligence officers describe Finsbury Park mosque, in North London, as a ‘haven for Islamic extremists from Morocco and Algeria’ and ‘an attack planning and propaganda production base’.”  Read more.

Britain on Drought Alert as UK as Dry as the Sahara Desert

By Ruth Doherty – “Britain is on drought alert after experts say some parts of the UK have been as dry as the Sahara Desert at this time of year.

Hosepipe bans are ‘inevitable’, they say, as water shortages are a ‘real and stark danger’ this summer.

The past two months have seen the opposite of the typical spring showers, with virtually no rain at all, making it the driest spring for nearly a century.

And, with no immediate sign of heavy rainfall on the way, experts say the next few weeks will be critical for water companies, farmers and wildlife.

Reservoir levels in parts of the country are already well below average, and some suppliers are resorting to pumping river water to keep them topped up.”  Read more.

Experts: Drought Could Continue in Southern U.S. for Several Months, Intensify

By ANGELA K. BROWN – “FORT WORTH, Texas — The extreme drought that has gripped parts of nine states — most of them in the South — is expected to drag on for several months or intensify, posing a risk for more wildfires, agriculture problems and water restrictions, national weather experts said Monday.

Portions of Texas and a small part of eastern Louisiana are the only parts of the nation that rank in the National Weather Service’s worst drought condition category, said Victor Murphy, the climate service program manager for the southern region, based in Fort Worth. The ‘exceptional’ drought level happens once every 50 to 100 years, he said.

Much of the rest of Texas and Louisiana are in extreme drought conditions — the worst in 20 to 50 years — as are parts of Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Florida and tiny portions of Colorado and Kansas. Other areas of those states are experiencing severe and moderate drought conditions, along with parts of Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina.”  Read more.