July 01, 1986 by

Cat Stevens Opens First Islamic State School in Britain

Former rock star Cat Stevens. now convened to Islam, has obtained permission to operate the first official Muslim State School in Britain. Formerly subsidized by Stevens's record royalties, the Islamic Primary School in North London will now receive a massive cash subsidy from the government amounting to 85 percent of its total income.

Alter yea's of discussion, the Brent Council, controlled by the Conservative Party, has told Education Secretary Sir Keith Joseph that the school should be given voluntary aid status. The school currently charges 1200 pounds a year for studies. Best known for his top ten rendition of "Morning Has Broken" (a hymn sung by many Christians), Stevens, now known as Yusuf Islam gave up the rock music world nine years ago to become a Muslim. Ironically, the school he founded plays Islamic music alone with no instrumental accompaniment. One parent has commented, "It is odd that a school started by a guitar. player shouldn't include music lessons."

Stevens recently completed an 11. day visit to Turkey and told Turkish reporters. "I was feeling lost. But once tread the Koran I took refuge in the guidance of Allah. This took the place of secular things. All my concepts have changed."

Outside of Christianity, Islam is the fastest growing religious group in Britain today, with more than 500 mosques serving nearly two million followers.

Open Doors News Service

Ed..' Though Christians must rake the Muslim advance in Britain seriously, it must be recognized that much ofthe growth is a result of population shifts from the Middle East and North Africa, nor because of conversions. Yet the Enemy will use whatever means he finds at his disposal ....

Egyptian Christians in Prison

Four Egyptian Christians who convened from Islam and were arrested in January remain in prison just outside Cairo, according to a Missionary News Service source, Miss F,man Musrapha Mohammed Tawfick, a 30 year old government worker, was charged with proselytizing and "dividing national unity" charges which could result in a five year prison sentence.

Eman's brother in law was arrested January 25 while visiting her in the prison. That same night, Eman's two sisters were also arrested. All three were charged with "despising Islam" and face two year prison sentences if found guilty,

Six more Christians have been arrested since then, bringing the total to 10 since the first of the year. In Cairo, police arrested Anwar Teleb lbrahim and his daughter Hala, 24. Both are converts from Islam. Anwar, 56, is the director of a department in the Egyptian tax authority. Hala worked as an editor at the American University in Cairo. Although no formal charges have been filed, they too me accused of "despising Islam."

Meanwhile, in Alexandria, four North African converts from Islam  two Moroccans and two Tunisians were arrested. They were in Egypt for a Campus Crusade for Christ training program. They are being held in prison just south of Cairo.

Observers in Egypt note that if the new draft law on the defamation of Islam is adopted by Parliament, converts to Christianity could face life sentences with hard labor. The final draft has committee approval.

Persons close 10 the scene have suggested concerned people write to the Egyptian Consulate in their country and protest these "violations of human rights."

Missionary News Service

Urbana '87 to Emphasize Global Urban Missions Urbanization of the world will be the emphasis at Urbana '87. according to John Kyle, director of the trienniel student missions convention. Although speakers will still discuss the unreached people group strategy for reaching the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ, that strategy will be explained in light of the influx of people to the cities of the world, he said."Should I not be concerned?" (Jonah 4:11) has been chosen as the theme for this 15th Urbana convention to be held at the University of Illinois Champaign/Urbana December 27 31, 1987.

An advisory committee has met with Kyle during the past several months to develop plans for Urbana '87, They are contacting possible speakers and polling mission agencies to rind out what types of work they are doing in urban areas.

"We want to know the types of people they are recruiting and how many," Kyle explained, "I'd like for Urbana to he a little prophetic, but with reality  We don't want to get ahead of the plans of the mission agencies."

InterVarsity Christian Fellowship News

Change in Sight for World's First Atheistic State?

The mysterious land of Albania is ruled by the world's most Stalinist Communist party and has taken the teaching of Marxist Leninism to its logical conclusion and officially declared God dead. Since 1967, all churches and mosques have been closed for worship. Thousands of Christian and Muslim leaders have been imprisoned or shot. In a population that was 70 percent Muslim with a handful of Protestants, and the rest Orthodox and Catholic, all vestiges of religion have, at least on the surface, been brutally eradicated.

When the new constitution was introduced in 1967, prayer in schools was not the only religious practice to be outlawed overnight All prayer everywhere was banned. Enver Hoxha, general secretary of the Communist Party of Albania, ordered a final attack to wipe out the church and all religious activity. There was to be only one messiah in Albania: Enver 1 loxha.

In a speech February 6, 1968, Hoxha urged Albanian youth to fight "religious superstitions" with all their vigor. A strong anti-religious campaign followed. Churches and mosques everywhere were burned or converted to other uses; priests and bishops were publicly beaten, arrested, and sent to prisons and labor camps. By the end of the year, 2,200 churches, mosques, chapels, and other religious buildings had been vandalized and closed. Even the crosses on grave stones were removed.

A law passed in September 1975 prohibits religious names for the newborn. In June 1977, a new penal code was issued. Clause 55 states: "religious propaganda, and also the production, distribution, or storage of literature of this kind" will be punished with imprisonment for between three and ten years. In a time of was, or if the offenses are serious, imprisonment is for not less than 10 years, and the death penalty can be imposed.

On April 11, 1985, Hoxha died, he was 76. He had ruled the country with an iron fist for forty years the longest lasting non-hereditary leader in the world, He had outdistanced Stalin, Mao, and even Tito.

Hoxha has been succeeded by ltamiz Alma, one of those who launched the earlier repression. A recent Czech Catholic journal reports that Alma has declared that people should not be imprisoned or otherwise punished for praying at home. If this information is correct, it will be an extremely significant development since in the past Albania has severely punished religious worship in private homes.

However, this report is contradicted by the news that Jesuit priest I'jeter Meshkalla, an outspoken critic of the Albanian government's anti religious laws and practices, has been arrested again for conducting religious services.

"According to information from recent Albanian refugees, Father MeshkalIa was arrested while celebrating Christmas Mass in a private home in Carl i Zi, near Shkoder," said a spokesman for the Catholic Information Center in Santa Clam, California. "He has served a total of 34 years in Albanian prisons and labor camps and is 80 years old,"

A spokesman for Open Doors, an evangelical agency that focuses on aid to "the suffering church," "This news proves that the crackdown is still in force, and also that there are house groups meeting for prayer and worship in Albania."

The spokesman continued: "Alia was the man behind the rewriting of the new constitution that introduced the 'world's first atheistic state,' so don't expect too many changes in Albania. But, on the other hand, Albania could go like China after the death of Mao."

Dan Wooding, Open Doors News Service

We might add: or like Iran after she rise of Khomeini or Afghanistan after the Communist invasion (see NM, OctoberDecember 1985, pp. 31 and 32). J,H.

Philippine Bible Society Leader New Ambassador to U.S.

President Corazon Aquino has appointed the president of the Philippine Bible Society, a parties of the American Bible Society, as her country's ambassador to the United States.

Having served his country as a legislator since 1949, Ambassador Emmanuel N. Pelaez has long been aclive in a number of Christian organizations including the Bible Society and Prison Fellowship International, of which he is chairman of the Philippine chapter.