Capitol Hill Prayer Partners
P.O. Box 5152
Herndon, VA 20172-1970
The Daily Brief Wednesday, March 14, 2013
"The LORD gives strength to his people;
the LORD blesses his people with peace."
(Psalm 29:11)
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The Daily Brief
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1. Argentine Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio named new pope - Fox News
Argentine Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio has been elected by his peers as the new pope, becoming the first pontiff from the Americas. He has chosen to be known as Pope Francis. The 76-year-old has spent nearly his entire career at home in Argentina, overseeing churches and shoe-leather priests. Francis, the archbishop of Buenos Aires, reportedly got the second-most votes from the 115 cardinals after Joseph Ratzinger in the 2005 papal election, and he has long specialized in the kind of pastoral work that some say is an essential skill for the next pope.
- Our Father, we join the world in blessing this new Pope and trust that He be Christ-minded to follow the leading of Jesus in all his practices as the new Pope of Rome. The Pope rules not only the vast host of Catholics in every land, but he rules nations. Not alone is his influence supreme in Catholic countries, but governments professedly Protestant also look to him for help in difficult places. Thus, we pray that God's mighty hand be upon Pope Francis to guide him according to God's perfect will. In the Name of Jesus we pray.
- "And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High God, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him." (Daniel 7:27)
2. World leaders welcome Catholic church's new Argentine Pope Francis
- Fox News
World leaders sent in their congratulations and Catholics around the world were celebrating Wednesday after the Vatican announced the election of Argentine Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio to the papacy -- making him the first pontiff from the Americas. As bells tolled and crowds cheered across Latin America, President Barack Obama offered warm wishes to Pope Francis and said the selection speaks to the strength and vitality of the New World.
"I offer our warm wishes to His Holiness Pope Francis," Obama said. "As a champion of the poor and the most vulnerable among us, he carries forth the message of love and compassion that has inspired the world for more than 2,000 years."
> > > Please note, too, the special press release by the Simon Wiesenthal Center, further below on this Brief.
- Our Father, this Pope may well be the last Pope before the Lord Jesus Christ returns to earth to gather the redeemed souls and take them to heaven with Him. Pope Francis will undoubtedly play a major role in his leadership of the Catholic Church worldwide. His credentials are vast and his place in the world is prominent, so many people will follow him as a man with a strong voice. We ask that he follow the Lord's leading and walk in righteousness so that the people who follow him will be blessed. In Jesus' Name we pray.
- "For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words." (I Thessalonians 4:16-17)
3. Fed 'stress test': banks would lose $460bn if crisis struck again - UK
Telegraph The losses of $462bn for the country's biggest 18 banks were projected by the Federal Reserve's 'stress test', an annual exercise the central bank now conducts to monitor the resilience of the financial system.
- Lord, You have Your own "stress test" in finances and crisis. We pray for revelation for the Godly use of money and for what is needed to be done to avoid this crisis. We also pray that bankers would be honest and fruitful that may have interest to pay and not have losses. May we all have the resilience that comes from repenting, turning to You and having the financial system put in right order. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
- "So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest." (Matthew 25:27)
4. California Seizes Guns as Owners Lose Right to Keep Arms - Bloomberg
. . .California is the only state that tracks and disarms people with legally registered guns who have lost the right to own them, according to Attorney General Kamala Harris. Almost 20,000 gun owners in the state are prohibited from possessing firearms, including convicted felons, those under a domestic violence restraining order or deemed mentally unstable.
- Our Father, we pray that only these classes of people will lose their right to keep arms, but that California citizens who own guns legally to use properly and for self-protection will remain intact and not lose their right to carry and own arms. May the people be protected by the Lord and given divine help when the situation deems it necessary. You will not fail them, Lord. In Jesus' Name we ask this, amen.
- "The Lord is good, a stronghold and refuge in the day of trouble; and He knows them that trust in Him." (Nahum 1:7)
5. AP Exclusive: Applying for health care not easy - Yahoo
Applying for benefits under President Barack Obama's health care overhaul could be as daunting as doing your taxes. The government's draft application is now on the Internet. It runs 15 pages for a three-person family. The online version has 21 steps, some with added questions. At least three major federal agencies, including the IRS, will scrutinize your application.
- Lord God, we pray that Your mercy and Your good judgment will follow along with all the innocent citizens applying for health care benefits. Lead each one who applies to obtain the needed insurance by the Lord's guidance under His easy and smooth control over all the government's draft application. Assign angels to assist all these people and eliminate any trouble or anxiety. This fight is the Lord's and there will be victory for everyone. In Jesus' Name, amen.
- "Thus says the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's." (II Chronicles 10:15)
6. 'Killing Jews Is Worship' Ad Campaign Rolled Out On SF Muni Buses - CBS
A controversy has been re-ignited this week as ten new ads go up on San Francisco Muni buses containing quotes used by terrorists. "Killing Jews is worship that draws us closer to Allah," reads one of the ads, which has people debating the line between free speech and hate speech.
- Father God, we live in a country that has been blessed with intelligence without controversy of what is free speech and what is hate speech. Lord God, bring this issue under Your clear-cut judgment against the guilty parties responsible for this anti-Jewish slander and remove these ads from these buses. The enemy has clearly overplayed his hand in this matter, creating a public dialogue to define, and annul, hate speech. We ask for Your good and redemptive purpose to come out of this instance, and we ask You to forgive and to have mercy upon those who are posting these ads, for they know not what they do. We ask this in the mighty Name of Jesus, amen.
- "And the fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries, when they had heard that the Lord fought against the enemies of Israel." (II Chronicles 20:29)
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The Middle East in Focus
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The Middle East in Focus
This week, for all the headlines cited below, please join us in proclaiming THIS DECREE:
"He is able also to save to the uttermost those who come unto God by Him, since He ever lives to make intercession for them." (Hebrews 7:22-25) (Isaiah 48:11)
1. PM: Yielding Temple Mount would be a fatal mistake - Jerusalem Post
Addressing the Knesset plenum at a special session held to honor Jerusalem Day, Netanyahu said that taking the Temple Mount out of Israeli hands, would bring decline, and the rise of radical Islam in the region and in the world. "Only under Israeli control, will this accessibility. . . and freedom of religion continue," he said. "The Temple Mount is in our hands and . . . it shall remain in our hands,"
2. On the Temple Mount, a battle brews over Jewish prayer - Times of Israel
The desire to pray on the Mount, also the site of Islam's third-holiest shrine, has found more acceptance among mainstream rabbis in Israel over the past decade, spreading gradually from a tiny fringe to a broader religious public. The numbers of Jews actually visiting the Mount for religious reasons is still tiny - no more than several thousand a year, according to police estimates - but inching upward. . .
3. Member of EU Syria delegation killed in Damascus suburb - BBC
A member of the European Union's delegation in Syria has been killed in a rocket attack in a Damascus suburb. EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said Ahmad Shihadeh, an EU policy officer, was killed in Darayya, to the south-west of the capital. He lived in the area and was killed while providing humanitarian help to the community, she said in a statement.
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The Persecuted Church
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Today's Focus: The Persecuted Church
"I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand." (John 10:28)
1. Pakistani Mobs Use Blasphemy as Excuse to Persecute Christians
- Fox News
In Pakistan, the mere accusation of blasphemy is enough to spur angry mobs to violence, and human rights advocates say the victims are usually Christians.
Last weekend, some 3,000 Muslims stormed Christian churches, torched hundreds of homes and burned hundreds of Bibles in a Christian neighborhood of Lahore, the country's second largest city. It apparently began as an argument between two men, but once the accusation of blasphemy was invoked, it exploded into violence and mayhem.
2. Five Iranian Christians Given 'Exorbitant' Bail Terms after being Arrested for Faith - Christian Solidarity Worldwide
Five members of the Church of Iran denomination appeared before a judge at the 14th Branch of the Revolutionary Court in Shiraz, Fars Province on 10 March and were handed exorbitant bail terms.
Mohammad Roghangir, Surush Saraie, Eskandar Rezaie, Shahin Lahooti and Massoud Rezaie are charged with disturbing public order, evangelising, action against national security and an internet activity against the system.
Their trial was expected to commence on 10 March; however, during their court appearance, Judge Sadati set bail for Mohammed Roghangir at US$ 200,000, while the others were asked for US$ 80,000 each. No date was set for the continuation of the trial.
3. Boko Haram Suspected of School Shooting in Nigeria - PM News
Gunmen opened fire at Dan Maliki Primary School in the northern Nigerian city of Kano on Tuesday, injuring four teachers before fleeing on a stolen motorcycle, police said.
The school was immediately shut.
There were indications that theft was the motive for the attack at Hausa Quarters, Kumbotso Local Government Area, but Islamist group Boko Haram has razed several schools in the region as part of an insurgency that has killed hundreds since 2009.
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The Madison Report
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The Madison Report
www.MadisonProject.com
THE MADISONIAN
FY 2013 Budget Continuing Resolution
Last week, the House passed the Continuing Resolution (CR) (H.R. 933) for the remainder of the current fiscal year. Despite the fact that it continues to fund Obamacare, all but 16 Republicans voted for the bill. Additionally, the CR also contained other problematic provisions, such as a rider forcing the USPS to continue Saturday delivery and accounting gimmicks to shift $7 billion of the sequester cuts.
Beginning Monday, the battle moves to the Senate. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Barbara Mikulski is planning to tack on 3 full appropriations bills - Agriculture, Homeland Security and Commerce, and Justice and Science - to the CR. This would essentially push through many new Democrat policy positions, particularly as it relates to farming, in a bill that is supposed to maintain the status quo. This strategy is aimed at giving agencies more flexibility in spreading out the spending cuts and wiggling around the sequester. In other words, they want to ensure that not a single office is effected by the sequester.
Meanwhile, Senator Ted Cruz has taken up the defund Obamacare mantle started by reps. Jim Bridenstine (OK) and Tim Huelskamp (KS) in the House. He has introduced an amendment to the CR defunding Obamacare. Joined by Senators Lee and Rubio, Cruz is threatening to object to any consideration of the bill unless Harry Reid agrees to call for a vote on the amendment. Mitch McConnell said last week that he supports the defund effort, but he has not said whether he will coalesce a filibuster against the bill if and when it ultimately fails to defund Obamacare. In addition to promoting the amendment, senators must commit to blocking any unanimous consent agreements on the bill unless the amendment goes through.
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Simon Wiesenthal Center Welcomes New Pope
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Simon Wiesenthal Center Breaking News on New Pope:
"...every reason to be confident," Rabbi Marvin Hier
The Simon Wiesenthal Center congratulates Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio on the election by his fellow Cardinals as the new Supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church, spiritual leader to 1.2 billion Catholics.
"We have every reason to be confident Pope Francis I will be a staunch defender of the historic Nostra Aetate, the declaration on the relation of the Church with Non-Christian Religions of the Second Vatican Council, which forever changed the relationship of the Catholic Church and the Jewish people," said Rabbi Marvin Hier, SWC Dean and Founder.
"This is not only an important occasion for the people of Latin America but for Jews as well. We have learned from our office in Buenos Aires that as Cardinal Bergoglio he was outspoken in the attack against the Jewish Community Center by agents of Iran in 1994. Additionally, he attended services on Rosh Hashanah in the B'nei Tikva synagogue in 2007 and again in the Emanu-El Synagogue on Chanukah in 2012. This past November he presided over a Kristallnachtc ommemoration his own cathedral in Buenos Aires," Hier concluded.
The Simon Wiesenthal Center is one of the largest international Jewish human rights organizations with over 400,000 member families in the United States. It is an NGO at international agencies including the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the OAS, the Council of Europe and the Latin American Parliament (Parlatino).
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The Good News Corner
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The Good News Corner:
A Miracle Report!
RITA AT UN: I'LL WHISTLE MY PRAYER TO IRAN
WASHINGTON - The State of Israel on Tuesday night [March 5] presented its Persian weapon at the United Nations General Assembly building: Iranian-born singer Rita. Under the banner, "Tunes for Peace," the Israeli singer performed at the UN headquarters in New York in the presence of the UN secretary-general, the General Assembly president, ambassadors, diplomats, and Jewish community leaders. An Iranian television crew was also spotted in the auditorium.
The General Assembly hall was packed. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed Rita and the audience cheered, whistled, and danced in the aisles. The Israeli singer rocked the house with songs in Hebrew, Farsi and English, with the word "peace" appearing numerous times in all three languages.
Rita, who will celebrate her 51st birthday in late March, was born in Tehran and immigrated to Israel with her family at the age of eight. "During this period I could not imagine what fate and God had planned for me when I started working on 'My Joys' album. Not only is our country in such a tense period with the Iranian regime (and I stress 'the Iranian regime' and not the Iranian people), I was amazed by the extent to which people embraced this album in Israel. "Due to the album's success in Iran itself, the international media are excited too and refer to it as a place of hope and connection, amazingly without any cynicism.
"I am proud of being Jewish and Israeli. I am about to reveal a piece of the ancient, rich and beautiful culture of Persia. The concert combined both languages intertwined simply and beautifully, just like the prayer in my heart that we, the common people, will be able to make an impact eventually. "There is a story about a boy who walked into a synagogue and didn't know how to pray like everyone else, so he just whistled with all his might. I have no knowledge of the language of politics, but I will be there, whistle my prayer and hope that it reaches as far as Iran."
Source: (By Yitzhak Benhorin, Or Barnea contributing, Ynetnews, March 6, 2013) [Reported by BFP: Bridges for Peace]
- Praise God that the UN was able to hear the voice of an Iranian born, Jewish Israeli. Pray that her music gave those at the UN and Iran a better understanding of Israel.
- "And He said to me, Son of man, this is the place of My throne and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever." (Ezekiel 43:7)
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Pray for the Harvest!
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Pray for the Harvest!
"Do you not say, 'Four months more and then the harvest'? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest." (John 4:35)
Every day, in every nation on earth, tens of thousands of men and women are making decisions for Christ. Now, you can monitor this amazing fact online by literally "watching" as these souls are born again into the Kingdom.
Of course, the identities of those who are coming to the Lord are never revealed, but our God knows who they are!
Join us as we monitor these "names" daily, praying over each one to be mentored and to grow in his or her faith . . . even in these perilous times. You may visit either or both of the sites below, to pray for fields that are ripe for harvest.
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Worship With Us Today!
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Worship With Us Today!
Victory In Jesus
Nashville Gospel Singers
I heard an old, old story
How a Saviour came from glory
How he gave his life on Calvary
To save a wretch like me
