War on Christianity > Finland tries again to close Bibles with respect to homosexuality

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It has been obvious for several decades now that the LGBTQ lobby would challenge the Bible in courts around the world in an effort to prevent people from sharing God's view of homosexuality and other abominations. Abomination is what God calls it in both the Old Testament and the New. 

So far, no one has been able to shut the Bible up. But in Finland, they are trying again.

Christian MP back in court to face 'hate speech' charges

for quoting the Bible

By Anugrah Kumar, Christian Post Contributor

Päivi Räsänen holds a bible as she arrives with her husband, Niilo Rasanen, to attend a court session at the Helsinki District Court in Helsinki, Finland, on January 24, 2022. | Antti Aimo-Koivisto/Lehtukuva/AFP via Getty Images

Finnish Member of Parliament Päivi Räsänen, acquitted more than a year ago after being prosecuted for voicing her traditional Christian beliefs about marriage and sexuality, is back in court, facing charges of "hate speech."

Räsänen, a parliamentarian with over 25 years of service, and Bishop Juhana Pohjola arrived at the Helsinki Court of Appeal this week to face the prosecution's appeal of their acquittal, said the human rights group ADF International, which is supporting the case.

"Everyone should be able to share their beliefs without fearing censorship by state authorities. With God's help, I will remain steadfast," Räsänen told her supporters.

The prosecution kicked off the proceedings with arguments against the defendants, focusing on a booklet written by Räsänen nearly two decades ago and stating that the content was "insulting" and violated "sexual rights."

The prosecutor argued that the use of the word "sin" in Räsänen's booklet was "degrading" and that her interpretation of Bible verses was "criminal."

"The point isn't whether it is true or not but that it is insulting," 

the prosecutor stated, according to ADF International.  

"We can limit freedom of expression in the outward expression of religion," the prosecution added. "You can cite the Bible, but it is Räsänen's interpretation and opinion about the Bible verses that are criminal."

Last year, the Helsinki District Court cleared both Räsänen and Bishop Pohjola of the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland of similar charges. The prosecution appealed this decision, arguing that the court had "misinterpreted" Räsänen's tweet and reached an incorrect conclusion.

Paul Coleman, Executive Director of ADF International, was present in court to support the defendants.

"Criminalizing speech through so-called 'hate-speech' laws shuts down important public debates and endangers democracy," he said.

Räsänen is facing multiple charges related to the content of the 2004 booklet, her participation in a radio debate in 2019 and a tweet containing Bible verses directed at her church leadership.

War crimes and crimes against humanity????

Bishop Pohjola is also facing trial for publishing Räsänen's pamphlet, Male and Female He Created Them: Homosexual relationships challenge the Christian concept of humanity, nearly 20 years ago. The charges against both defendants fall under the "war crimes and crimes against humanity" section in Finnish law, adding another layer of gravity to the case.

The case originated when Räsänen questioned her church's sponsorship of the LGBT event Pride 2019 in a tweet. Following this, she was subjected to 13 hours of police interrogations over several months.

During these interrogations, Räsänen was repeatedly asked to explain her understanding of the Bible. The extent and nature of these interrogations raised concerns about the state's role in matters of personal belief and religious expression.

In March 2022, a three-judge panel on the Helsinki District Court determined in a unanimous ruling that the government should not be interpreting "biblical concepts" and that the speech in question was not "hate speech." The court ordered the prosecution to pay the legal costs for the trial. Räsänen could have faced two years in prison and a fine if convicted.

Räsänen has been a member of the Finnish parliament since 1995. She was reelected in April 2023. She has also served as the chair of the Christian Democrats from 2004 to 2015 and was the Minister of the Interior from 2011 to 2015. As Minister of the Interior, Räsänen was responsible for church affairs in Finland.

"Cases like Päivi's create a culture of fear and censorship and are becoming increasingly common worldwide," Coleman said.

Räsänen insists that she has no ill will toward the LGBT community and claims those accusing her of hate speech are the ones dabbling in hatred.

"We all are sinners and we need Jesus. But now, I think there is a heavy hatred against Christian values in our society," Räsänen earlier told The Christian Post. "If you speak about gender issues — that there are two genders or that marriage belongs to one woman and one man — it arouses hatred against you in our society."

Islam - Current Day > Mozambique Horror Story; Sunnis Use Teens in Suicide Attack; Al-Aqsa Preacher Teaching Madness

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Mozambique: Islamic extremists behead pastor, force wife

to carry his severed remains

By Anugrah Kumar, 

Christian Post Contributor| 

Sunday, December 19, 2021

A volunteer claps as he sings with children during activities directed toward the healing for displaced children that witnessed atrocities in northern Mozambique, at a displacement settlement in Metuge on May 21, 2021. Conflict in the northern Mozambique province of Cabo Delgado that began in 2017 has now forced nearly some 700,000 people from their homes. Around 43 percent the 700,000 people displaced by the violence are children, according to the U.N. | JOHN WESSELS/AFP via Getty Images

Suspected ISIS-linked extremists beheaded a pastor, handed his severed head to his wife and forced her to carry the head to the police station in the southern African country of Mozambique, according to reports.

The jihadist militants decapitated the pastor, a resident of Nova Zambezia area in the northern province of Cabo Delgado, last Wednesday, the U.S.-based persecution watchdog International Christian Concern said.

The killing was also reported by the Daily Mail, but the pastor’s name has not been disclosed.

Zimbabwe Daily also reported on the murder, saying the pastor’s wife told police that “suspected Islamic State-linked insurgents intercepted the pastor in a field, decapitated him and then handed over his head to her and ordered her to inform the authorities.”

Earlier this month, the U.K.-based watchdog organization Human Rights Watch reported that an armed group in Cabo Delgado province called Al Sunnah wa Jama’ah, also known as Al-Shabab, had forced kidnapped women and girls to “marry” their fighters.

Other women and girls held captive had been sold to foreign fighters for between $600 and $1,800, according to the report. Some abducted foreign women and girls had been released after their families paid a ransom.

Last November, ISIS-linked militants beheaded over 50 people, including women and children, and abducted others in raids in the Miudumbe and Macomia districts of the Cabo Delgado province.

The day after the pastor's murder, Mozambique’s President Filipe Nyusi claimed that the number of jihadist attacks had decreased this year after Rwanda and neighboring countries helped tackle the radical Islamic jihadist insurgency.

The oil-rich Cabo Delgado province, a coastal region on the Indian Ocean, has suffered an emergence of a jihadi movement that has displaced thousands and killed hundreds since 2017. In 2018, the terror group pledged its allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. In 2019, the Islamic State confirmed the group as an affiliate and has claimed responsibility for some attacks.

The Al-Shabab group in the majority-Christian country of Mozambique is not believed to have any connection with the deadly Somalia-based terror group with the same name.

According to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), the Cabo Delgado province had suffered from at least 776 “organized violence events” since 2017, and as of January 2021, 2,578 “fatalities from organized violence” and 1,305 “fatalities from civilian targeting.” 

The United Nations estimates more than 745,000 people are internally displaced in Mozambique due to Islamic extremism since 2017.

Mozambique also ranks as the 45th worst country for Christian persecution on Open Doors USA’s 2021 World Watch List. This 2021 report is the first time the country has been listed on Open Doors’ annual list.

Extremist attacks have killed many Christians, and terrorists have burned churches and schools in the country.

Iraq: Sunni Muslims send two teenagers to carry out

jihad suicide attacks in area of Shi’ite shrines

DEC 18, 2021 12:00 PM

BY ROBERT SPENCER

“Indeed, Allah has bought from the believers their lives and their wealth, because the garden will be theirs, they will fight in the way of Allah and will kill and be killed.” (Qur’an 9:111)

Shafaq News/ A security source reported that ISIS had sent two teenagers to carry out a suicide attack in Al-Kadhimiyah, north of Baghdad.

The source told Shafaq News Agency that the responsible forces in Al-Kadhimiyah hung posters indicating that two suicide bombers were sent by ISIS to carry out a suicide attack in the area.

The source added that the two suicide bombers were delivered to Aden Square a few days ago, and their ages range between 16-17 years…

Al-Kadhimiyah includes the shrines of the two imams, Moussa al-Kadhim and Muhammad al-Jawad…

Al-Aqsa preacher blames Israeli gov’t, media and homosexuality

for spread of Omicron

December 24, 2021

Al-Aqsa preacher blames Israeli gov’t, media and homosexuality for spread of Omicron. 

The Al Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, in Jerusalem. (Shutterstock)

 

The prominent Islamic leader blamed the media and government that “allow and encourage homosexuality” for the spread of COVID-19. 

By World Israel News Staff

Islamic preacher Issam Amira has provided an unusual explanation to the spread of COVID-19 in Israel, Hebrew language Channel 12 reported.

In a sermon given at the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem last week, Amira told his followers that the Indian and Omicron variants that were unknown before have spread in Israel and across the world due to the Israeli government and media that allow and promote homosexuality.

According to Amira, the “heretic” media and government that “allow and encourage homosexuality” are behind the spread of COVID. The Omicron variant “did not spread until the government and media announced it,” he argued.

The Right-wing NGO Im Tirzu called Amira’s statements dangerous, telling Channel 12 that “Sheikh Issam Amira is a dangerous person who should be behind bars. His incitement endangers the LGBTQ community and the Jewish people as a whole.”

Controversial statements from religious leaders blaming the LGBTQ community for the spread of COVID are nothing new. Last year, an Orthodox church leader in Ukraine blamed the COVID-19 pandemic on same-sex marriage, shortly before contracting the virus himself.

Amira himself was arrested and banned from the al-Aqsa Mosque for six months after praising the murder and beheading of a middle school history teacher in France by a Muslim fanatic.

Note, this is not just a lunatic Muslim, this is one of the highest ranking Muslims in the middle east. A teacher at the third holiest site in Islam. And, this is the madness they spread.

Jordan Peterson is Completely Misrepresented by Left-Leaning Journalists

Well written and very intelligent article. Below you will find a video of Peterson's explanation of Peter Pan that is absolutely brilliant and gives us a glimpse of why this man has become so astonishingly popular.

What the left gets wrong about Jordan Peterson

J Oliver Conroy

One might think that by now progressives would figure out that

vilifying Peterson almost always redounds to his advantage.

One would be wrong.

‘Immersing oneself in the Peterson fandom sphere is a perspective-changing experience.’ Illustration: Rob Dobi for the Guardian

Perhaps you’ve heard of Jordan Peterson, the Canadian psychologist, self-help guru, and social media star who is also, if some media accounts are to be believed, a dangerous stalking horse for far-right ideas?

“In reality, Peterson’s ideas are a mixed bag,” the journalist Cathy Young wrote in a balanced recent Los Angeles Times piece. “He says some sensible and insightful things, and he says some things that rightly draw criticism. But you wouldn’t know this from reading Peterson’s critics, who generally cast him as a far-right boogeyman riding the wave of a misogynistic backlash.”

The current media narrative about Peterson is often lazy, as Young notes. But worse, this narrative doesn’t take account of, let alone try to explain, the appeal Peterson’s message holds for his millions of fans – most of whom are more interested in his affirmative spiritual message than his pugilistic views on gender and political correctness.

True, Peterson’s own followers sometimes feed the perception he is leading a reactionary counterrevolution. They upload YouTube clips highlighting Peterson’s apparent triumphs over leftist foes – “Jordan Peterson Leaves Feminist Speechless”, “Jordan Peterson on Homosexuals Raising Children”, “Transgender Professor INSULTS Jordan Peterson, Gets OWNED”.

But these (fan-edited) videos give the false impression that most of Peterson’s fans are attracted to his attacks on political correctness. They’re not. If anything, Peterson’s penchant for polarizing political claims distracts from his core message. In his lectures – freewheeling mixtures of self-help counsel, pop philosophy and Jungian theory – Peterson emphasizes self-worth, responsibility, and a Christian-ish notion of man as fallen but redeemable.

Cathy Newman’s combative interview with Jordan Peterson has been watched millions of times on YouTube. Photograph: Channel 4 grab

In fact, immersing oneself in the Peterson fandom sphere is a perspective-changing experience. For every rant about “social justice warriors”, there are a dozen completely apolitical posts: geeky discussions of Peterson’s lectures about mythology, personal testimonies to the effectiveness of his self-help advice.

Peterson’s advice appears to have helped thousands of people. (Peterson has estimated he’s received more than 35,000 letters of appreciation.) Fans say his message – which starts with seemingly banal directives to “clean your room” and “stand up straight with your shoulders back” – has motivated them in battles against addiction to drugs, alcohol, video games, or pornography; helped them form positive relationships, or exit toxic ones; become better spouses or parents; take charge of their physical health; and rekindle relationships with estranged family members.

In their messages of appreciation, Jordan Peterson’s fans sometimes border on religious testimony.

In a post on Quora, a commenter describes a harrowing period in which his six-year-old almost died of auto-immune disease. During “those dark days”, Peterson’s lectures were “something to anchor me” when “my emotions were in turmoil”, the person writes. “The man is a gift from God. He will undoubtedly go down in history as one of the great thinkers and possibly a person that changed our culture in a significant way.”

It seems questionable that Peterson will go down in history as a great thinker. And, as with all gurus, he ought to be treated with instinctive skepticism. But that skepticism should extend to how he has been presented by the media.

 Anyone who investigates Peterson’s work knows that his

harshest rebukes aren’t addressed to women, but men

One might think that by now progressives would figure out that vilifying Peterson almost always redounds to his advantage. One would be wrong. By repeatedly trying to put words in Peterson’s mouth during a 29-minute interview this January, Cathy Newman, a British journalist, came across as misreading his ideas.

During a recent panel debate in Toronto, on political correctness, the preacher and academic Michael Eric Dyson’s ad-hominem attacks against Peterson, whom he called a “mean mad white man”, only turned audience sentiment against Dyson.

None of this is to say Peterson’s more inflammatory statements shouldn’t be contested or scrutinized.

In a recent New York Times profile, Peterson appeared to suggest that “incels” – aggrieved young men who describe themselves as “involuntarily celibate” – should be assigned mates to prevent them from taking out their rage on society.

“He was angry at God because women were rejecting him,” Peterson was quoted as saying of the 25-year-old man who went on a killing spree in Toronto in April. “The cure for that is enforced monogamy. That’s actually why monogamy emerges.”

‘None of this is to say Peterson’s statements shouldn’t be contested.’

Photograph: Carlos Osorio/Toronto Star via Getty Images

The article continues: “Peterson does not pause when he says this. Enforced monogamy is, to him, simply a rational solution. Otherwise women will all only go for the most high-status men, he explains, and that couldn’t make either gender happy in the end.”

Besides failing to clearly condemn incels, Peterson’s quote made it seem as if he believes women should be required to sacrifice themselves against their will to fix male violence. He doesn’t. He’s said that by “enforced monogamy” he merely meant encouraging monogamy through social norms. Peterson, of course, is a public figure commanding a vast following, and he should expect to be held accountable for what he says. It is impossible to defend his wild regressive flourishes – like his suggestion, in a recent Financial Times profile, that women would be happier under traditional gender roles.

But anyone who makes even a cursory investigation of Peterson’s work knows that his harshest rebukes aren’t addressed to women, but men, whom he urges to reject self-pity and embrace self-improvement. These aren’t messages tailored to resentful, women-hating “incels” and men’s rights activists; they’re the opposite.

Despite the notion, popular on the left, that Peterson functions as a pipeline to the “alt-right”, it seems as likely, as Peterson himself has claimed, that he saves more directionless young men from far-right radicalization than the other way around. And, if nothing else, the Peterson phenomenon may leave at least one lasting achievement: it has gotten men to open up about mental health.

Although Peterson’s fans are probably more diverse in their ethnicities, genders, and walks of life than described, critics nonetheless like to highlight his following among young white males. It only requires a little empathy to see why such men – grappling with addiction, unemployment, depression, and a feeling of uselessness and failure – desperately crave the paternal encouragement and affirmation Peterson provides.

I had heard that Peterson’s online fandom was a swamp of reactionism, but it turned out to be less striking for its politics than its relative lack thereof. 

One of the recurring themes of Peterson’s lectures is that life is painful; only by accepting that pain – “shouldering the heaviest burden you can bear” – can one begin to transcend it. It is a seemingly simple message that turns out to have enormous emotional resonance. (Quotations have been lightly edited for clarity.)

In a Reddit thread called “I think Dr Peterson saved my life”, a 24-year-old Polish man describes how Peterson’s lectures pulled him out of self-imposed isolation and the brink of suicide:

I hope that thanks to [Peterson’s advice], in a year or two I will be a different person, both mentally and physically. Someone who is finally happy, who finally lives and not just barely exists. […] So … thank you, Dr Peterson. Perhaps you have saved another soul.

In another Reddit thread, called “There are people who are 20+ years [old] that have never had a friend”, commenters discuss loneliness. One commenter describes growing up in an impoverished and abusive household:

I didn’t have friends until I was about 17. […] I was the smelly kid at school because I couldn’t shower, had no way to wash my clothes, and I wore the same clothes every day every year for a really long time. […] I’ve been working on social skills for years and years. Finally I “broke through” with the help of Jordan Peterson.

When news consumers get around to reading or watching Peterson’s work for themselves, they often find his ideas far less radical than characterized – and feel betrayed by the media and cultural elite’s representation of Peterson.

The notion that there is nothing redeemable in Peterson’s message – and the accompanying assumption that any fan of his is beneath contempt – is not only wrong, but represents a rather bleak, zero-sum vision of politics.

The left’s most profound message used to be that all human beings deserve dignity and worth, and those who need help should receive it, regardless of their race or gender or class or other characteristic.

If that axiom still holds true – these days I’m not always sure – then it applies to many of Peterson’s fans.

J Oliver Conroy is a writer and journalist based in New York

Muck-Raker's Pathetic Attack on Hillsong Church

Inside Justin Bieber's Hillsong Church: Child abuse cover-up claims, rinsing its followers for money and facing 'cult' accusations

The Despacito singer may have denied cancelling his remaining Purpose World Tour dates in connection with his 'spiritual awakening' - but here's a look inside Bieber's religion of choice

BY EMMELINE SAUNDERS
Emmeline Saunders is a self-professed muck-raker in the UK and I would bet has never set foot in a Hillsong Church, if she's ever set foot in a church at all. It's a pity the Daily Mirror has reduced itself to this level of 'journalism'.

Celebrities have always raised eyebrows over their religion of choice – for Tom Cruise and John Travolta it's Scientology, while the likes of Madonna and Ashton Kutcher were proud followers of Kabbalah for a long time.

And now it's Justin Bieber's turn to spark controversy with his reported closeness to Hillsong Church, a global strand of Christianity that looks to recruit followers with music, dancing and community care projects.

Egad! Not music, dancing and community projects! 

But Hillsong has also faced accusations that it acts as a cult, as well as allegedly having attempted to cover up the child abuse allegations levelled against its founder's father.

It is also accused of pushing its congregations to donate cash and of using Bible verses selectively to set its own agenda.

So what is Hillsong Church? How is Bieber involved? And why do so many of its detractors believe it's a modern-day cult?

Justin Bieber has been involved in the Hillsong Church for years (Image: Splash News)

He recently cancelled the rest of his Purpose world tour, reportedly after a 'spiritual awakening' thanks to Hillsong (Image: Splash News)

Hillsong and child abuse

Brian Houston, who founded the Pentecostal Christian movement in Australia, (that's not really accurate) stood down his own father, William 'Frank' Houston, as a preacher in 1999 after hearing an allegation that Frank had sexually abused a seven-year-old boy.

In a letter sent to church leaders in 2001, Brian claimed that there was no reason for the information to be spread any further afield, prompting claims of an attempted cover-up when the letter was leaked.

"Sadly there are always one or two people with their own agendas who will try and get mileage from other people's pain," Brian's missive told ministers.

Frank would go on to leave Hillsong and died of a stroke in 2004. Fresh allegations that he'd molested six other children in New Zealand in previous decades continued to dog the organisation.

An investigation by Australia's Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse found none of the allegations against Frank Houston were ever reported to police.

The commission's report found Frank had sexually abused the seven-year-old boy, and had later admitted it to an assembly of church executives.

The real story - Frank confessed to sexually abusing a boy in New Zealand, some 30 years earlier. He never confessed to, nor was he ever accused of molesting children in Australia. Should Brian have reported his father? Would you? He certainly should have encouraged his father to report himself and suffer the consequences in New Zealand. Whether he did or not, who knows.

But having followed the Royal Commission with some interest, I can tell you two observations that almost always happened in instances of child sex abuse in institutions: 

1. They were almost never reported to police before the 21st century.

2. Firing his father immediately upon his confession was the strongest action taken by the leader of any institution that I have read about from the Commission's hearings. 

Hillsong 'using selective Bible verses' to encourage hefty donations

Justin and Hillsong super-pastor Carl Lentz are close friends (Image: Splash News)

Those who have been to Hillsong services report that leaders are swift to imply followers must give as much money as they can to the church.

Obviously, she hasn't been to a Hillsong service so she has to use other people's impressions.

In Hillsong's own FAQs, there are six different ways to donate money listed - including using the church's own app to transfer money immediately. There are also calls on its website to set up a direct deposit or have an online account so cash can be sent electronically.

This is true of any modern church anywhere in the world. It is convenient and why wouldn't they?

As with many other churches, Hillsong followers will find empty envelopes left on their chairs ahead of services to be filled with money or standing order forms, which are collected up by staff. Collection buckets are also sent around the church during a service, with the congregation urged to dig deep.

Hillsong also uses Bible verses, such as Proverbs, to encourage its followers to donate generously. "The godly love to give," its own site quotes.

The movement is big on "the Biblical principle of tithing", which requests that believers donate the first ten per cent of their income to the church.

Many church denominations are. I think it is becoming less emphasized in recent years in many evangelical churches, but many still think it is important and with lots of scripture to base that opinion on.

"Tithes and Offerings received at Hillsong fund the vision and activities of our church," says Hillsong.

The 2016 Hillsong Church annual report found donations made up over half of its revenue - with another 19% stemming from the dozens of Christian rock albums it produces.

In most churches, donations make up virtually all the revenue.

Hillsong and homosexuality

Hillsong does not believe in homosexuality, in line with the Old Testament, (and the New Testament) nor does it agree with equal (read, gay) marriage. When a director of one of its church's choir was found to be in a committed gay relationship, Hillsong's founder issued a statement clarifying that the news came as "a complete surprise".  ???

In a blog post, Brian Houston told his followers: "Hillsong Church welcomes ALL people but does not affirm all lifestyles."

"Put clearly, we do not affirm a gay lifestyle and because of this we do not knowingly have actively gay people in positions of leadership, either paid or unpaid."

Justin Bieber was accused of homophobia in 2016 after reportedly turning down a role in Uber Girl, reportedly because his character would have a sex scene with another man, the film's co-writer Pete O'Neill claimed.

However, Bieber's rep said at the time there was "no truth" to his being offered the role in the first place.

Again, the muckraker resorts to rumors here. But why does not wanting to engage in a sex scene with a man make someone homophobic? Personally, I can't think of anything more disgusting than kissing or having sex with another man, but it is not out of fear (phobia), it's out of disgust.

Speaking in tongues

The act of speaking in tongues - or in a language that needs a special person to interpret - has long been associated with the Pentecostal churches.

"We believe that in order to live the holy and fruitful lives that God intends for us, we need to be baptised in water and be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit," the church states on its site.

"The Holy Spirit enables us to use spiritual gifts, including speaking in tongues."

I have been baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit and I do not speak in tongues and never have. My wife has the gift of tongues, which the Apostle Paul wished everyone would have.

But many Christians believe it amounts to 'false worship' and 'showmanship', including members of a Facebook group who claim to be former followers of Hillsong.

Very conservative Christians believe tongues is not a valid 'gift' for today and there are certainly churches and occasions where tongues is used inappropriately. But all spiritual gifts are valid today, not just tongues.

One member, who said they had been involved in Hillsong for a few years in their early twenties, said church elders believed those who had been 'saved' would be given the gift of speaking in tongues.

They also claimed to have been disturbed by one pastor's 'healing' service.

"A visiting pastor performed a 'healing' show, calling out people wanting healing to the stage," they recalled.

"Some people went up and were 'healed'. This didn't sit right with me because there was a wheelchair bound person in the room who was ignored. Was this beyond God's power? Could God only heal afflictions that have no visible sign of it actually being healed? How must that wheelchair bound person have felt? I imagine he'd be thinking 'my faith must not be good enough yet'."

Did the wheelchair bound person go forward? Did they want to go forward? There is an element of 'coming to God' that is often, though not always, part of healing. Jesus said to the woman who touched His garment, "Your faith has healed you!"

Bieber spent six weeks in 2014 living with Pastor Carl - one of the church's lead pastors who is frequently compared to a rock star thanks to his charismatic brand of teaching - and grew close to the minister's family.

According to GQ, the troubled pop star moved into Carl's home after a period of car-crash media stories and reputational crisis. While he was there the two "worked through some stuff" and Bieber cried that he "wanted to know Jesus" before begging on his knees to be baptised.

He's since attended Hillsong services and conferences - and was even suspected of cancelling the rest of his Purpose world tour in July 2017 so he could found his own branch of the church.

The change in Bieber has been astounding and it has everything to do with Hillsong Church and Pastor Lentz. yet, the muckraker can only see something sinister in this instead of celebrating a man getting free, apparently, of drugs and alcohol.

Pandering to celebrities

Justin's ex Selena Gomez walking to a Hillsong service in New York (Image: Splash News)

Kendall Jenner was spotted leaving a Hillsong service (Image: Splash News)

It's not just Bieber who's known to follow Hillsong - his friends Kendall Jenner, Hailey Baldwin and ex-girlfriend Selena Gomez have also been linked to the religious movement.

While it attracts a cool, millennial-focused crowd, Hillsong believes all souls need to 'know Jesus' - but celebrities appear to have a special place in its pecking order.

"People say we cater to celebrities and I say, yes, we do," Pastor Carl told GQ.

"Celebrities deserve a relationship with God. Celebrities deserve a place to pray."

Is Hillsong a cult?

The church elders have batted away accusations that the movement is a cult - certainly, its followers seem to have made up their own minds about it.

But many of the movement's detractors claim Hillsong's focus on charismatic preachers, music and song-based performances, and its push for funds and donations give the church a sinister spin.

I think the only sinister spin comes from the unfortunate writer of this article. It seems obvious that she had a sinister attitude and has looked far and wide to find some reason for it. But the reason doesn't lie in Hillsong; it lies in Emmeline Saunders own heart. It is truly in need of a makover.

However, Bobbie Houston, who helped husband Brian found Hillsong, has previously denied any cult claims, insisting followers simply wish to worship their god.

Hillsong has produced some of the best contemporary worship music ever written. It has been leading many a Christian into deeper worship of Jesus Christ for about 25 years. No church is perfect! That will have to wait for the Lord's return. But this criticism is quite simply small-minded and naive. 

State in Malaysia Approves Public Canings for Breaking Sharia Law

Another in a series of posts documenting the 'progressiveness' of Islam. Sin is progressive, we see that in those addicted to pornography - it often progresses to child porn, and, in time, tends toward younger and younger children and more and more violent assaults. 

Islam progresses as its numbers rise. The greater the percentage of Muslims in a particular area or country, the more Islam moves toward Sharia and its legalism and barbarism. 

© Beawiharta / Reuters

A state in Malaysia governed by a conservative Islamist party has amended its laws to allow public canings for crimes against sharia law. Critics have called the move unconstitutional, with one politician saying it indicates a “bleak future” for the country.

The amendment was passed by the assembly of Kelantan to more closely align the state’s policies with Islamic criminal law, Kelantan deputy chief minister Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah said, as quoted by Bernama state news agency.

“Caning can now be carried out inside or outside of prison, depending on the court’s decision,” Mohd Amar said.

“This is in line with the religion, which requires that sentencing must be done in public,” he said.

He declined to say exactly what offenses would be punishable by caning, although Reuters reported that the amendment applies to sharia crimes.

Ti Lian Ker, a member of the Malaysian Chinese Association, which is part of the ruling coalition, says public canings are unconstitutional under federal criminal law.

“This is a rewriting of our legal system and spells a bleak future for the nation,” he said in a statement, as quoted by Reuters.

While Islamic law is observed in all of the other Malaysian states, its application is restricted to family issues such as divorce and inheritance, as well as sharia crimes involving Muslims, including the consumption of alcohol and adultery. Criminal cases are handled by federal law.

The decision of the Kelantan state assembly comes as no surprise, as the state has also been pushing to adopt a strict Islamic penal code called ‘hudud,’ which would allow adultery to be punished by stoning and thievery by amputation.

The state, which is governed by PAS, a conservative Islamist party, has also banned nightclubs and cinemas.

Last year, PAS introduced a bill that would expand the powers of sharia courts and incorporate hudud into the country’s existing legal system. The proposed legislation is expected to be debated in parliament later this month.

Ethnic Malay Muslims make up more than 60 percent of the country’s 32 million people. Similar calls to implement stricter sharia law have made waves in recent years, prompting concern from members of the country’s Chinese and Indian populations, as well as other ethnic minorities.

The Wednesday amendment comes just one month after Malaysia's Health Ministry made headlines for holding a contest soliciting videos which explained the consequences of homosexuality and "gender confusion," promising a cash award of up to US$1,000. 

Homosexuality is forbidden in Malaysia. Those violating the law face flogging and up to 20 years in jail.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian state of Kelantan isn't the only government in the region to advocate for caning, or against homosexuality.

In May, two gay men were publicly caned in Indonesia’s most conservative province, Aceh, which has the authority to enforce sharia law alongside the national criminal code. 

No, Christianity Should Not ‘Welcome’ or ‘Include’ Your Sinful Lifestyle

Brilliant response to gay Christian who attacks blogger

for not welcoming practicing gays into the church

Matt Walsh is a blogger, writer, speaker, and professional truth sayer.

I got this email a few days ago insisting Christians need to be more “inclusive” of open homosexuals. It’s a popular notion these days, so I thought I’d share this with you and respond here publicly:

Matt, you put yourself on a pedestal as this “great Christian” but you do more harm to the religion than anyone else. As a gay man I can say I’m happy to see how finally a lot of Christians and different churches are realizing that Christianity has to be INCLUSIVE of the LGBTQ community and other lifestyles. Not judging of them. Gays and trans people have felt alienated by Christianity and now progressive Christians have finally started to pull the religion into the 21st century and reach out to all of us. Jesus preached tolerance for all people and lifestyles not HATE. The prodigal son was WELCOMED back not told to go away! You are still trying to make divisions and tell some of us Christians we are not Christians just because we live differently. You are a truly sh*tty person and you come off as a bad writer and an uneducated idiot. Just stop talking. You make Jesus mad every time you write your garbage.

-A gay man who loves Jesus


Hi. Thanks for writing. A few points.

First, as I’m constantly reminded, the sins of homosexuality and fornication have existed since Biblical times. Still, it was prohibited in the Old and New Testaments (Genesis 19:1-13, Leviticus 18:22, Romans 1:26-27, 1 Corinthians 6:9) and by every Christian church for the first 20 centuries of Christianity’s existence. Since you are a self-identified Christian who thinks the moral teachings of the Bible should now be suddenly updated, I have to ask: What changed?

What was revealed in the last few years that proved the prophets, the apostles and all Christian denominations until recently wrong? What new piece of information did humanity obtain? What great revelation occurred? You think a 2,000-year-old faith that professes timeless Truths should “keep up” with the whims of modernity, but why? What do we know in our time that the Church didn’t know — that God Himself didn’t know — up to now? Be very careful in how you answer that question.

Second, I have never referred to myself as a “great Christian” — or a “great” anything for that matter — so I’m not sure why you put “great Christian” in quotes. I consider myself a greatly flawed Christian, even a “sh*tty” one, as you so helpfully and compassionately noted.

Photo credit: Shutterstock

See, you need to stop reading with your emotions and read with your brain, man. Your emotions tell you that anyone who advocates virtue is automatically claiming to be virtuous, because it’s easier to dismiss a point based on the perceived motivations behind it rather than consider the point on its own merits. It’s like I’m saying two plus two equals four, and you’re countering that I’m not such a brilliant mathematician. Well, right, but I never said I was a brilliant mathematician. I just said two plus two equals four, because it does, and because even a stupid man can see that.

It’s difficult to have grown-up conversations these days, because people like yourself see every mention of moral truth as either a personal attack or a statement of superiority. This is the real damage you cause in the Faith. It’s not that you’re sinful — we all are, to be sure — it’s that you want to be coddled. You want to shut down professions of Truth that are inconvenient or uncomfortable. You want to modify Christian teachings not because you tried them and found them wrong, but because, to paraphrase Chesterton, you found them difficult and don’t want to try them.

I have many sins, but I will not tell you they are not sins. I come to Christ a sick and broken man looking for healing. You apparently come a sick and broken man looking to be assured you were never sick and broken to begin with. That is the only real difference between us. Or I should say, it’s the only real difference between Christians and “progressive Christians.” Both groups are sinful, both groups are weak, both groups need Christ desperately, but one wants — though they may so often fail — to go Christ’s way, and the other wants Christ to go theirs.

Third, I’m tired of hearing this “inclusive” stuff. Yes of course the Faith is made for people like you. It’s made for all people. It’s not a cult or a club. There’s no entrance exam or membership fee. Christianity is for everyone. If that’s what you mean by “inclusive,” fine, but a better word would be “universal.” In any case, that isn’t what you mean, is it?

When you ask for an “inclusive” Christianity, you ask for a Christianity that, rather than calling you to serve it, bends down and serves you. You’re asking to be “included” in the Faith on your own terms. That’s just not how this works, brother. As Christians, we have no authority to “include” you in that way. You must include yourself.

We go out into the world and proclaim the Gospel. We offer an invitation. We extend a greeting. We fight to win souls. But the souls must come of their own accord and must accept the Truth of Christ willingly and in its fullness. You must enter into the Truth. You must be the one who accepts it. You must be the one who “includes” the Truth in your life. Your lifestyle must change to accommodate the Truth, not the other way around.

By the way, Jesus never uttered the word “lifestyle,” much less did He preach that they all ought to be tolerated. Recently, we’ve started referring to sins as “lifestyles” and pretending that this rhetorical maneuver somehow changes the morality of the issue. It doesn’t. A sin is still a sin, and He instructs us all to “go and sin no more” (John 8:11), which often means dramatically altering our lifestyles.

Indeed, when people came to follow Him in Scripture, He told them to first leave their earthly pleasures behind and then continue along the road (Luke 18:22). He made it very clear that there is in fact a correct lifestyle, a correct way to live, and that way is narrow. Matthew 7:13 tells us the broad and “inclusive” road is the one that leads to damnation. You must choose, then, to walk through the right path, the narrow path, but it will be difficult and demanding, and it will not and cannot be widened to include you.

We all struggle with sin. But struggle is the keyword. Struggle. Fight back. Plead with God in agony to help you defeat these demons. Go to Christ begging that He help you overcome your temptations and live with chastity and temperance. Don’t demand that your sin be allowed to accompany you into Heaven. It can’t. We can accompany our sins into Hell, or ditch the whole ugly package on the side of the road and come Home.

In “The Great Divorce,” C.S. Lewis said, “If we insist on keeping Hell, we shall not see Heaven: if we accept Heaven, we shall not be able to retain even the smallest and most intimate souvenirs of Hell.”

That’s our choice, in a nutshell.

Yes, as you mention, the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11) was welcomed back by his father. But have you read the entire parable? The son realizes the error of his ways, makes the journey back home, and when he arrives he pleads for forgiveness. “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” Wow, that’s, like, a pretty intense declaration. Notice he didn’t waltz back to his dad’s place and casually brag that he blew his fortune on hookers and booze but he’s not sorry and intends to get right back to it first thing tomorrow. If he had, I think the story would have ended differently.

We see the same sort of thing play out in the passage about the two criminals crucified next to Christ (Luke 23:39-43). One of the criminals is unrepentant and demands that Jesus rescue him from his fate and allow him to continue on sinning. The other realizes he deserves his punishment and, in those final moments before death, professes his faith in Christ and repents of his sin. Christ assures the repentant man he will be with Him in paradise. Our Lord very noticeably does not make this guarantee to the other. A really bad sign for that dude, to say the least.

But for the penitent criminal, imagine the joy. What a beautiful thing, what a privilege it must have been to die next to Christ, to be forgiven everything he’d ever done and welcomed into eternal salvation. Now, that is inclusive. And that is an opportunity open to all of us.

It’s so simple, really. The message is so hopeful and good and joyous, which is why I resent attempts to dilute it into oblivion. All we have to do is follow Christ, spread the Gospel, fight against our sins, and repent for the times when we fail in that fight. That’s all. That’s the “how to” of Christianity. It seems you want to remove, well, all of those ingredients and still call yourself a Christian. You might as well remove all the yeast and flour from a mixture and call the goop of water, butter, and salt that remains “bread.”

I’m reminded of a great moment from a fantastic book called “The Power and the Glory,” set during the persecutions in 1930s Mexico. The protagonist, a sinful, degenerate, alcoholic priest with an illegitimate daughter, is facing execution for his faith. Hours before they march him to death by firing squad, he’s in his cell reflecting on his life and praying for forgiveness:

He felt only an immense disappointment because he had to go to God empty-handed, with nothing done at all. It seemed to him at that moment that it would have been quite easy to have been a saint. It would only have needed a little self-restraint and a little courage. He felt like someone who has missed happiness by seconds at an appointed place. He knew now that there was only one thing that counted — to be a saint.

Powerful. The man knows he has failed God so many times in his life, he lacked even the little restraint and courage that was required to follow Christ perfectly, yet because he believed, because he repented, because in these final moments he hungers for the Lord’s embrace, he will enter Paradise all the same.

Inclusive? Sure. I’d call that inclusive.

The point is, Christianity includes us, Christ includes us, but He will not include our sin. We have to choose to shed our sin, pick up our cross, and follow Him. That’s what it means to “be included.” You say that’s what you want, but do you? Do you want to leave your earthly pleasures behind, cut off whatever parts of your life are causing you to sin (Matthew 5:30), and die with Christ? I can’t answer that question for you. I have a hard enough time answering it affirmatively myself every day.

Christianity is truly a simple formula, but a painful one. If we will not include the pain and sacrifice in our lives, we will not include the Faith.

Fourth, Christians churches in America were never guilty of “alienating” unrepentant sinners like the “LGBTQ community.” They are so attached to their sin that they literally define themselves by it. They look for ”community” not with the Body of Christ, but with those who share their urges and fetishes. They elect to reject the difficult aspects of the Faith. They alienate themselves.

There are many accounts in Scripture where Jesus delivers a controversial message that is hard for people to accept, and many of his followers abandon Him altogether because of it. You’ll notice that Jesus never backtracks and apologizes. He never chases them down as they walk away and explains that He didn’t really mean all that stuff and really they were just taking it out of context.

In John 6, after Christ proclaims Himself the bread of life, many of his disciples are upset and threaten to leave. He does not beg them to turn around. He just continues right along speaking the Truth. He does not change His Word to cater to those who choose not to accept it. They are alienated by their sin, not by Him.

With that said, I do think many churches are guilty of alienating a certain group. As others have pointed out, the minority that rightly feels disaffected are those striving to live the Christian life. While western Christendom has worked so hard to shelter and welcome people who do not even desire to follow His Word and who, in fact, wish to subvert and change it for their own purposes, the ones really left out in the cold are those who try to be virtuous, chaste and faithful.

The Christians who would now be called “extremist” or “fundamentalist” or “conservative,” who stand against the cultural tide, who resist the temptation to succumb to the heretical fashions of the day — these are the Christians we need to include more. They have accepted the Faith for what it is, they are trying, though imperfectly, to walk through the narrow gate, but what do they find? Churches that treat them like nuisances. Church services designed to appeal to the secular crowd at the expense of giving the faithful the sacred and invigorating experience they deeply crave. Christian leaders who provide no leadership. A faith muted and watered down for the benefit of those who wish to destroy it.

These believers are trying their best to keep their hearts pure in a society that heaps mockery and scorn upon such efforts. They despair sometimes wondering how they’ll ever manage to raise their children to love Jesus in a country where even His supposed followers celebrate sin and bestow blessings on the worst kinds of evil. They’ve watched their nation discard virtue and truth and God. They feel isolated. They feel betrayed. They are beaten and exhausted in their fight against sin because they feel like they are fighting alone. They feel like Christ on Calvary shouting,  ”My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Of course, God has not forsaken them. But many Christians have. Many churches have. Many pastors have. Many Christian leaders have. They need to be equipped, encouraged and inspired in their mission to defeat sin, follow the Word and walk the narrow path to salvation, but these Christians are frequently left wondering where to turn.

Certainly the culture is no help. The education system is usually just another obstacle. The government, the media, even sometimes their own families are against their quest for holiness. So they run to their churches and their ministers and their fellow Christians and often they are greeted with secularized gospels and “progressive” gospels and “prosperity” gospels and gay gospels when all they want is the Gospel, in all its truth and fury.

John Chrysostom said the Holy Scripture should be “engraved upon our hearts.” There are some Christians who wish to adhere to it with that level of severity. They are the minority that all churches should be bending over backwards to embrace. They are the ones who need to be included again. They are the life of the Faith in this country.

Frankly, the church has not failed if it makes open homosexuals or anyone else feel uncomfortable in their sin. That is a success. That is the church doing what it’s supposed to do.  But it has failed if it makes the faithful and the sincere feel unwelcome. This is the real problem, the real crisis.

I’ll pray Christian churches in this country always “include” the Truth, not liberal sexual dogmas or any other form of blasphemy.

As for you, I’ll pray you leave your sin behind and come to Christ remorseful and empty handed, ready to be His servant.

As for me, please pray I do the same.

God Bless.

American Churches Too Political for Their Own Good

The politicization of the pulpit in American evangelical churches has turned some away from the church and led many astray. Jesus was a-political, as were all the Apostles. I believe He expects preachers to preach the Gospel, to be concerned with the spiritual, to get people ready for Eternity, rather than trying to create the Kingdom of Heaven in America. American Christian's obsession with politics has done immeasurable harm to the Kingdom of Heaven, and has created what I believe to be the great falling away from God, even while they sit in their pews.

Bully pulpit: Clergy illegally preach for, against

Clinton & Trump

© Enny Nuraheni / Reuters

The separation of church and state is supposedly one of the cornerstones of the First Amendment. Yet nearly a third of black Protestants have heard pastors preaching in favor of Hillary Clinton, while the same number heard remarks against Donald Trump.

A new survey from the Pew Research Center shows that worshippers are hearing political speech from the pulpit ‒ something that has been illegal for more than 60 years. Of the 40 percent of Americans who attended religious services within the last few months (through the beginning of July), nearly two-thirds (64 percent) reported that religious leaders had spoken out on at least one political topic, such as religious liberty, homosexuality, abortion, immigration, environmental issues and economic inequality. Almost half (46 percent) said their clergy members had discussed multiple issues from the dais.

 Nearly two-thirds of recent churchgoers say their clergy have spoken out about at least one social or political issue

Nearly half (49 percent) of recent service attendees said their clergy rarely or never speak about social and political issues from the pulpit.

While only 14 percent of recent churchgoers said their clergy had spoken directly for or against a specific presidential candidate, religious endorsements or denouncements from the pulpit vary by sect ‒ and by race. In general, leaders are slightly more likely to speak out against a particular candidate (11 percent) than for one (9 percent).


Black Protestants are more likely to have heard clergy endorsing or denouncing a presidential candidate than any other group. Nearly three in ten have heard their pastor speaking in favor of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, while the same proportion (29 percent) have heard remarks against Republican nominee Donald Trump. Only 7 percent of black pastors appear to have denounced Clinton.

Three-in-ten black Protestant churchgoers have heard their clergy support Clinton, one-in-five have heard opposition to Trump

That same group is more likely to have heard their clergy advocating for voting in a primary or caucus ‒ 50 percent of black Protestants compared to 32 percent overall ‒ or in the general election for president, by 59 percent to 40 percent.

Four-in-ten churchgoers say clergy have encouraged congregation to vote in November

This last form of political preaching from the pulpit is allowed under the Johnson Amendment, a 1954 law that prohibits churches and other non-profit organizations from endorsing or opposing political candidates, or risk losing their tax-exempt status. They are, however, allowed to promote political engagement and speak of issues in general terms. The law was proposed by then-Senator Lyndon B. Johnson (D-Texas), which critics contend was his way of stifling nonprofits that backed his opponent. Groups like the Alliance Defending Freedom, which started the Pulpit Freedom Sunday or defiance movement, say the Johnson Amendment violates their freedom of speech.




Americans hear mostly conservative tone from pulpit about religious liberty and abortion, more liberal take on immigration and the environment

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is tasked with enforcing that law, but has been hesitant to do so. Part of the problem is a lack of resources to go after offenders, thanks to consistent underfunding by Congress. On top of that, the agency is still dealing with the fallout of a scandal targeting the tax-exempt status of conservative nonprofits.

In February, Trump promised to overturn the Johnson Amendment if elected.

“I think maybe that will be my greatest contribution to Christianity ‒ and other religions ‒ is to allow you, when you talk religious liberty, to go and speak openly, and if you like somebody or want somebody to represent you, you should have the right to do it,” Trump told a group of about 1,000 evangelical leaders in June. “People walking down the street have more power than you, because they can say whatever they want.”

It’s a vow he reiterated in his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in July, and is now part of the GOP platform.

“They have so much to contribute to our politics, yet our laws prevent you from speaking your minds from your own pulpits,” Trump said. “I am going to work very hard to repeal that language and protect free speech for all Americans.”


Members of evangelical churches are far more likely to lean towards or identify with the Republican Party, according to a survey of US religious groups and Americans’ political leanings that Pew published in February.

The Pew survey on politics in the pulpit was conducted between June 5 and July 7 among 4,602 adults nationwide.

Old Albania - Sworn Virgins, A Completely Different Take on Gender Fluidity

The last bastion of 'sworn virgins': Albania

Briseida Mema and Nicolas Gaudichet


Shkurtan Hasanpapaj, 84, is one of Albania's last "sworn virgins", women who become honorary men, taking on the role of the man in their community

At the age of 16, living in a remote village in northern Albania, Shkurta Hasanpapaj faced being forced into marriage.

There was just one way out, and the young woman grasped it: she took the ancient, gender-bending oath to become a "sworn virgin".

At a stroke, her life changed. She renounced sex, married life and parenthood. But in return, she won the right to live as a man and lead her family in a fiercely patriarchal society.

Nearly seven decades later, Hasanpapaj prefers to go by the male form of her name, Shkurtan.

"I chose to be with the men," she said, as short white hair poked from beneath a cap.

"Those who like me call me Shkurtan, those who want to offend me use Shkurta."

Seeing out the end of her life in a hospice in the northwestern city of Shkodra, Hasanpapaj is among the last of the sworn virgins -- a social status once common in Albania and its neighbours in the Balkans.

Today experts estimate that fewer than 10 remain.

The exceptional life of the sworn virgin is rooted in the Kanun of Leke Dukagjini, a mediaeval code of conduct that was passed down orally among the clans of the craggy peaks and verdant valleys of northern Albania.

The Kanun, which also lays out the rules for the nation's notorious blood feuds, allows two ways to become a "virgjinesha", as sworn virgins are called in Albanian.

One possibility is when all males in the family are dead or gone, and a girl takes the oath in order to take over male duties and rights.

The other is to invoke it to peacefully avoid an arranged marriage. Without the oath, blood can be shed.

Refusing a proposal is seen as a major affront that can ignite a feud between the families of the would-be bride and suitor that can span generations.

You don't have to "serve food with your head bowed" 

Sworn virgins win the right to hold a job, smoke, knock back shots of fiery raki liquor at the bar, wear trousers and even make family decisions.

You don't have to "serve food with your head bowed" and "disappear without looking at the guests", said 62-year-old Djana Rakipi, who also goes by Lali.

She was born in the remote Tropoja region in northern Albania, but now lives on the coast in Durres.

Dressed in a tie and military beret -- Rakipi chainsmokes, has a crushing handshake and takes clear pleasure when the guard at the local port calls her "boss".

Rakipi said that, for her, the oath was a form of liberty. The alternative path laid out for women in the Kanun is one of subservience, hard domestic labour and total lack of control.

"It was difficult for women to be part of life," said Rakipi. "Being free was taboo."


- 'They mixed with men' -

For Hasanpapaj the pressure to change came early. She and her twin sister, born in 1932, were seen as a catastrophe by their parents who had already had three sons die. Her sister was named Sose -- "That's enough" in Albanian.

Her sister was named Sose -- "That's enough" in Albanian

During the post-World War II communist regime of Enver Hoxha, Hasanpapaj was a leader of the local branch of the communist party and headed up "a brigade of about 50 farmers".

"I was tough," she said.

Rakipi also feels nostalgia for the communist regime "that always recognised me as a man", worked as a soldier training students to assemble a Kalashnikov rifle. She later became a police officer.

Much like Hasanpapaj, Rakipi says "she doesn't give a damn" about not having kids and brushed off the matters of sex and relationships.

"I am in love with nature, the sun. I paint," Rakipi said. "What better love is there than that?"

"Two men (or) two women getting married,

that is the end of the world,"

Both these sworn virgins firmly reject homosexuality. With Rakipi saying it is "not moral".

"Two men and two women getting married, that is the end of the world," she added.

For British anthropologist Antonia Young, author of a book on sworn virgins, sexuality had nothing to do with the custom.

The "virgjinesha" gained the privilege of being admitted into a male-only world, although their gender was never changed on their birth certificates.

"They were definitely within the masculine world. They mixed with men, they socialised with men, they drank with them, particularly in cafes," she said.

For any women today who may be tempted to taking the oath of becoming a sworn virgin, much of the significance of the act will be lost as so much has changed in Albanian society, said Young.

"It won't be the same -- it won't be for the benefit of the family or the community," she said. "It would just be for individual choice."