The Romanian government has been successful in their attempts to take back a High School in Sepsiszentgyörgy, owned by the Hungarian-speaking Reformed Church, which is a partner of the Church of Scotland.

Convener of the Church of Scotland’s Church and Society Council the Rev. Sally Foster-Fulton and the Rev. Dr. Alan Falconer, Convener of the Church of Scotland’s Ecumenical Relations Committee, sent a message of support to Bishop Dr Géza Pap of the Transylvanian Reformed Church District.

Mrs Foster-Fulton said: “We are distressed and concerned to learn of the decisions of the Romanian courts with regard to the ownership of Székely Mikó Reformed High School in Sepsiszentgyörgy.

“We share the pain and fear expressed by the resolution of the Transylvanian Reformed Church District’s General Assembly, in that the rule of law, protection of minorities and the upholding of human rights appear to be in jeopardy as a result of this action.

“What is most concerning is that this action appears to be targeting a minority, as the Transylvanian Reformed Church is Hungarian-speaking, and has a different culture, ethnicity and tradition from the majority of Romanians.”

The history of Church property in Romania was very difficult in the 20th Century, as after the war the Communist regime nationalised religious land and buildings. Church property was eventually restored to its original owners in 1999. This recent move is a very disappointing reversal.

+ Church of Scotland, 121 George Street, Edinburgh EH2 4YN, Scotland, 0131-225-5722

+ Romanian Reformed Church, 410210 Nagyvárad(Oradea), Kálvin János utca 1. Szám, Romania, 259-453-286, partium@rdsor.ro

[2] National Religious Broadcasters Drafts Free Speech Charter for New Media Giants

The National Religious Broadcasters (NRB), America’s preeminent association of Christian broadcasters and communicators, will be unveiling a solution to the current and potential clash between free speech on the Internet and the free market power of new media giants like Apple, Google and Facebook to block viewpoints with which they don’t agree.

At 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 12, NRB will present its first-of-its-kind Free Speech Charter for the Internet, detailing what new media companies can do to respect free speech and how and why they should do it in accord with historic free speech principles.

The charter is a follow-up to last year’s release of True Liberty in a New Media Age, a groundbreaking report that documented examples of some censorious policies and practices of new media giants, including Apple’s infamous removal of the Manhattan Declaration and Exodus International apps from its iTunes App Store. Both faith-based apps were labeled by protesters as “anti-gay” and potentially “harmful” or “hateful,” though their creators and supporters have insisted otherwise.

“The free speech liberty of citizens who use the Internet is nearing a crisis point,” says Craig Parshall, Senior Vice President & General Counsel at NRB and Director of the John Milton Project for Religious Free Speech.

“If the standards we propose here are voluntarily adopted at this critical time, we believe that a truly free marketplace of ideas will flourish on the Internet, and in turn, generations to come will be the beneficiaries of expressive liberty in our digital age. If not, however, then we foresee a tyranny over ideas developing over web-based platforms, and a whole class of citizens of faith and others being shut out of this new electronic town square,” he adds.

Following the unveiling of the Free Speech Charter for the Internet, a panel of experts will examine the document and further discuss the issue. Mr. Parshall will be moderating the panel discussion, which will feature the following participants:

— Steven Waldman, Founder of BeliefNet.com and Senior Media Policy Scholar at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism;

— Adam Thierer, Senior Research Fellow at George Mason University’s Mercatus Center;

— Colby May, Senior Counsel at the Washington, DC, office of the American Center for Law & Justice; and

— Brian Walsh, Director of the American Religious Freedom Project at the Ethics and Public Policy Center.

Also offering remarks will be Dr. Frank Wright, NRB’s President & CEO, who describes the conflict between the free speech rights of citizen Internet users and the free market rights of new media companies as “one of the most important communications issues of our time.”

“This Free Speech Charter is a first-of-its kind manifesto, proposing a unique solution to the current clash,” he adds. The panel discussion will be followed by a Q&A session led by Aaron Mercer, NRB’s Vice President of Government Relations. Members of the press and other attendees are strongly encouraged to RSVP to Erin Kube at ekube@nrb.org. The event will be held in the First Amendment Lounge at the National Press Club in Washington, DC.

[Editor’s Note: The Christian Observer is unable to post a list of headlines from Presbyterians Week each week on the Christian Observer’s Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/christian.observer) because Facebook will quickly remove the “offending” post.]

+ National Religious Broadcasters, 9510 Technology Drive, Manassas, Virginia 20110, 703-330-7000, Fax: 703-330-7100, info@nrb.org

[3] Free Presbyterian Church in Ulster Elects New Moderator

A 10 September 2012 News Letter article titled “Free Presbyterian Church in Ulster Elects New Moderator” reports that in a 7 September 2012 meeting of the Ulster Presbytery of the Free Presbyterian Church in Ulster (FPCU), the Rev. John Greer was chosen to be the new FPCU moderator.

Mr. Greer is the minister of the Ballymena, Northern Ireland FPCU, and beginning in 1983 spent seventeen years in the U.S. establishing and serving as a minister in the Free Presbyterian Church of North America.

Mr. Greer is only the second FPCU moderator to be elected after the retirement of FPCU founder the Rev. Dr. Ian Paisley.

+ News Letter, Ground floor, Metro Building, 6-9 Donegall Square South, Belfast, BT1 5JA, Northern Ireland, 028 3839 5577, newsdesk@newsletter.co.uk

+ Free Presbyterian Church in Ulster, info@freepres.org

+ Free Presbyterian Church of North America, Contact Page

[4] Reformed Church of Zambia Celebrates 75^th Anniversary

A 10 September 2012 AllAfrica.com article by Stanslous Ngosa titled “Zambia: Reformed Church of Zambia Toasts 75 Years” reports that Reformed Church of Zambia (RCZ) on 9 September 2012 in Kitwe, Zambia celebrated the denomination’s 75^th anniversary.

RCZ Acturious the Rev. John Phiri called on the churches of Zambia to partner in prayer against the increasing cases of gender-based violence and fatal road accidents plaguing the country. Mr. Phiri called for the RCZ to work against vices saying: “As the Church, we should not be seen to be sleeping, we should be vigilant against these evil practices, let us rise and watch our lives against the devil.” Phiri additionally expressed sadness at headlines about headlines concerning pastors defiling young children and using illicit drugs, and said that the church should continue being the light and salt of society.

+ AllAfrica.com, 920 M Street Southeast, Washington DC 20003, 202- 546-0777, Fax: 202-546-0676

+ Reformed Church of Zambia

[5] Presbyterian Church in Ghana Leadership Condemned for Partisan Political Machinations

A 10 September 2012 GhanaWeb article by Cletus Abaare titled “Presby Church Boils” reports that members of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG) are threatening demonstrations against the denominational leadership for what is perceived as the PCG’s actions on behalf of the New Patriotic Party in the upcoming general election.

An 11 September 2012 MyJoyOnline.com article Jerry Tsatro Mordy titled “Twum Boafo Resigns from Presby Church” reports that the Executive Secretary of the Ghana Free Zones Board, Kwadwo Twum Boafo, has announced his resignation from the PCG because of what Boafo terms “a widely held perception among sections of the Ghanaian public that a section of the leadership of the [PCG] is taking sides in our politics.”

+ GhanaWeb, Poederooienstraat 66, 1106 CK Amsterdam, Netherlands, 31-207700126, Fax: 1-815-6429100, akoto@ghanaweb.com

+ MyJoyOnline.com, 3rd Floor Trust Towers, Farrar Avenue, Accra, Ghana, 233-21-226151, Fax: 233-21-233697, info@myjoyonline.com

+ Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Post Office Box GP 1800, Accra, Ghana, 233-21-662511, Fax: 233-21-665594, pcghg@yahoo.com

[6] Headlines from The Christian Institute

Headlines of the past week from The Christian Institute:

— United Kingdom Lawyer: Christians Should Leave Faith at Home or Resign

— Scottish Government Includes Homosexual Marriage Bill in Agenda

— Muslim Man in Great Britain says Sharia Lets Him Have Two Wives

+ The Christian Institute, Wilberforce House, 4 Park Road, Gosforth Business Park, Newcastle upon Tyne NE12 8DG, England, 44-0-191-281-5664, Fax: 44-0-191-281-4272, info@christian.org.uk

[7] Articles from LifesiteNews.com

Articles from the past week from LifesiteNews.com:

— Ghanaian Police Arrest Abortionist for Allegedly Sexually Molesting ‘Thousands’ of Clients

— Canadian Medical Association Calls for Spanking to Be Banned: Say Allowing It Is Just ‘an Excuse for Poor Parenting’

— Case against Gideon Bibles in Schools to Be Heard by Ontario Human Rights Tribunal

— Abortionists Don’t Need a Doctor’s License: Bill Rammed through California Senate

— British Colombia, Canada Dance Studio Teaches Pole Dancing to Children as Young as Five

— Eugenics Silently Returns to Germany

+ LifeSiteNews.com, Incorporated, 4 Family Life Lane, Front Royal, Virginia 22630, 888-678-6008, Contact Page

[8] Raging Heathen and Vain Imagining

Articles from the past week regarding kings and rulers setting themselves against the LORD and against his anointed:

— Christians ‘Must Choose Between Job or Their Faith’: Government Lawyers Claim At European Court