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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 9, 2018)
FAITH Friday, November 9, 2018 East Oregonian Page 7A Woman freed in blasphemy case still in hiding in Pakistan By KATHY GANNON Associated Press ISLAMABAD — A week after Pakistan’s Supreme Court acquitted her of blas- phemy, a Christian woman who had been on death row for eight years was freed from detention Thursday, but her whereabouts are a closely guarded secret fol- lowing demands by extrem- ists that she be hanged in public. The case of Aasia Bibi has become a political mine- field for Prime Minister Imran Khan. He is trying to placate the Muslim extrem- ists who have threatened to topple his government, while keeping the 54-year- old mother of five safe from a lynch mob and also finding a way to allow her to leave Pakistan without bringing rioters into the streets. Bibi has been offered asy- lum by the European Parlia- ment, which championed her case after she was con- victed in 2010 under Paki- stan’s harsh blasphemy law. There has been sharp world- wide criticism of the law, which remains popular in BRIEFLY Nazarene church to serve others HERMISTON — Instead of a regular Sunday morn- ing church service on Nov. 18, Hermiston Church of the Nazarene is going out into the community. Mission To Others is Sun- day, Nov. 18 from 9-11 a.m. Those who participate are invited to return to the church for lunch at 11:30 a.m., 1520 W. Orchard Ave. For more information, including service opportu- nities and work sites, con- tact 541-567-3677, hermis- tonnaz@gmail.com or visit www.hermistonnazarene.org. Hymn Sing also honors veterans HERMISTON — An evening of fellowship will include a special time to honor veterans and the sing- ing of old hymns. The public is invited to the Hymn Sing. The free event is Sunday from 4:30-5:30 p.m. at Victory Baptist Church, 193 E. Main St., Hermiston. The service is informal. For more informa- tion, contact Chris Finley at johnchris_1@msn.com or 541-571-2516. the Muslim majority coun- try and carries the death pen- alty for insulting Islam but also has been used as a way to settle scores and pressure minorities. Bibi was with her fam- ily under heavy security after being transferred to the Pakistani capital overnight from her detention facility in southern Punjab, triggering expectations of an imminent departure from the country. For the moment, Bibi remained in Pakistan, according to two people close to her who spoke on condition of anonymity so as not to endanger her. That was confirmed later Thurs- day by Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry. Following her Oct. 31 acquittal by Pakistan’s Supreme Court, the hard-line Tehreek-e-Labbaik Party forced a nationwide shut- down as its supporters filled the streets for three days to protest the ruling. The rallies only dispersed after Khan’s government promised that a court would review a motion to challenge the acquittal and deny Bibi permission to leave Pakistan. AP Photo, File In this Nov. 20, 2010 file photo, Aasia Bibi, a Pakistani Christian woman, listens to officials at a prison in Sheikhupura near Lahore, Pakistan. Khan, who came to power after elections last summer in part on an Isla- mist agenda, was immedi- ately accused by critics of giving in to the extremists. Bibi’s release, high-se- curity transfer to Islam- abad and her likely depar- ture raised the possibility that Khan’s promises to the Islamists could have been an effort to buy time. The gov- ernment, however, has not openly declared that Bibi was free to leave. By SUMMER BALLENTINE Associated Press JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Thirty-three priests or religious brothers in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Jefferson City, Missouri, have been “credibly accused” and/ or removed from the ministry over sexual abuse of minors, the bishop of the central Missouri diocese said Thursday. Bishop W. Shawn McKnight released a complete list of the names that followed an internal investi- gation begun in February. The list includes 25 priests from the dio- cese, three priests from other areas who previously served in the Jeffer- son City diocese, and five members of a religious order. Fourteen of the 33 men named are dead. Many of them are elderly. The diocese said the most recent case of physical sexual abuse found in the investigation occurred in 1997. He said only one man on the list was criminally convicted. “Although the incidents are in the past, the pain caused is still a present reality for the survivors of abuse and their loved ones,” McK- night said in a statement. He apolo- gized for the actions of the priests and brothers, “and the incomplete transparency we have lived under by not making all their names public.” McKnight said another 18 alle- AP Photo/Summer Ballentine Bishop W. Shawn McKnight, of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Jef- ferson City, Mo., speaks at a news conference on Thursday. gations have been made since August, and internal investigations into some of those claims are ongo- ing. He encouraged any additional victims to come forward. McKnight said the diocese has spent $2.3 million on survivors of abuse since July 2003 and $2.1 mil- lion on the care of “credibly accused diocesan priests.” David Clohessy, St. Louis direc- tor of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, called the list “irresponsibly and painfully short on details.” McKnight “should reveal where each of these men worked, when they were accused, when those alle- gations were deemed credible, why the years of secrecy, and where the men are now,” Clohessy said in a statement. McKnight told reporters that he was not “trying to hide something” by declining to say where the men had served. He said many of them had served in a variety of places. He said it would be misleading to report only where allegations were made and also said some victims asked him not to reveal that kind of information. The internal investigation is unrelated to an investigation announced in August by Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley, SUNDAYS LCMC WORSHIP Morning Celebration - 10am Morning Kids Place - 10am Evening - 6pm Adult - Study Youth - Small Group Kids - Rangers & Girl’s Ministries Sunday worship at 11:00 AM Pastor Michael Smith COMMUNITY THURSDAYS WEEKLY Groups For All Ages AN ASSEMBLY OF GOD CHURCH 1911 SE Court Ave. 541.276.6417 • pendletonfi rst.com FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH -Presbyterian Church (USA)- 201 SW Dorion Ave. Pendleton Service of Worship - 10:00 am Children’s Sunday School - 10:20 am Fellowship - 11:00 am www.pendletonpresbyterian.com Open Hearted... Open Minded 420 Locust St. • Boardman, OR 210 NW 9th, Pendleton ELCA 10:00 am Sunday Worship 11am Fellowship & Adult Class 9am Sunday School on 1290 KUMA noon each Sunday Celebration of of Worship Celebration Worship Sundays 10:00 am Youth: 0-6th grade Midweek Service Midweek Service We off er: Sunday School • Sign Language Interpreters • Nursery • Transportation • & more! Pastor Dan Satterwhite 541.377.4252 417 NW 21st St. • Pendleton, OR 97801 www.facebook.com/ PendletonLighthouseChurch Wednesdays 6:00 pm Youth: 0-6th grade Overcomer’s Outreach Jr./Sr. High Faith Center Church Pastor Sharon Miller 108 S. Main • 541-276-9569 Pastor Jeff Geesey ’ 541-278-8082 www.livingwordcc.com Pastor Sharon Miller Worshipping God Loving People Worship Service: 10:30am pendletonfaithcenter.church Please come visit with us at The Baha’i Center: 1015 SE Court Place To share your worship times call 541-278-2678 ~Come and be at Peace ~ Sunday Service: 10am & 6pm Tuesday Kingdom Seekers: 7pm Wednesday Bible Study: 7pm and unity come hard when ye fi x your gaze on otherness.” – Abdu’l Baha (541) 276-9360 or visit us at www.pendletonbahais.com www.facebook.com/pendletonoregonbahais/ Join us Sundays 9:30 am Sunday Worship 555 SW 11th, Hermiston 567-9497 Nursery provided for all services Sunday School - 9:30 AM Worship - 10:45 AM 6:00 pm Wed Prayer & Worship - 7:00 PM “Proclaiming God’s word, growing in God’s grace” BAHA’I FAITH IN PENDLETON “See ye no strangers, rather see all men as friends, for love Sunday Devotions @ 11:00am Sunday: “Pure Prayer” (no talk, just prayer) @ 6:30pm Wednesday: “Discover the Baha’i Faith” @ 6:30pm Thursday: Seminars on World Religions @ 7pm P eace L utheran C hurch Grace Baptist Church in which the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, the Diocese of Jef- ferson City, the Diocese of Spring- field-Cape Girardeau and the Arch- diocese of St. Louis all agreed to open their records. Hawley’s announcement came amid renewed concern about sex- ual abuse by priests that followed the release of a scathing report in Pennsylvania citing abuse of more than 1,000 children by hundreds of priests since the 1940s, along with cover-up by church leaders. Mary Compton, a spokeswoman for Hawley, said that an investiga- tion is “active and ongoing,” but offered no timetable for when it will be completed. “We are working as quickly as possible to carefully and thoroughly review all evidence obtained by our office,” Compton said in a state- ment. “The Pennsylvania Grand Jury completed its work in two years. Our Office believes Missou- rians deserve answers as soon as feasible.” Hawley on Tuesday defeated incumbent Democrat Claire McCaskill in the race for U.S. Sen- ate. Gov. Mike Parson will name a replacement. Jack Smith, spokesman for the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, said the diocese also plans to release a list of names but will wait until the Attorney General’s investigation is complete. EVERYONE INVITED! 541-481-6132 PENDLETON LIGHTHOUSE CHURCH 401 Northgate, Pendleton The two women later said Bibi had insulted the Prophet Muhammad, and she was charged with blas- phemy. She was put on trial, convicted and sentenced to death in 2010. While her conviction was appealed, her case gained worldwide attention and focused international criti- cism on the blasphemy law. In announcing her acquit- tal last week, a three-judge panel of the Supreme Court upheld the law itself but said prosecutors had failed to prove Bibi had violated it. European Parliament President Antonio Tajani invited Bibi and her fam- ily to Europe. In a letter, a copy of which was seen by the AP, Tajani told Bibi’s husband Ashiq Masih that the parliament is “extremely concerned for your safety as well as your family’s, due to the violence by extremist elements in Pakistan.” The letter added to expec- tations that she and her fam- ily would leave for Europe, though their destination has not been confirmed. Spain and France have offered her asylum. Missouri diocese abuse inquiry names 33 priests, brothers Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Celebrate Recovery - 6pm Celebration Place - Kids - 6pm The Landing - Teens - 6pm Tehreek-e-Labbaik, in a video message that was cir- culated widely Thursday, said it received government assurances following Bibi’s relocation to Islamabad that she wouldn’t leave the coun- try until the review petition was heard. Khan, a former cricket star and playboy who has embraced religious con- servatism before he ran for prime minister, is hamstrung by contradictions within his own government, according to Zahid Hussain, who has written two books on the rise of militancy in Pakistan. “There are some within the party, senior members of the party, who are pamper- ing religious extremists for the sake of votes, and some believe in the same kind of world view,” Hussain said in an interview with The Asso- ciated Press. Bibi’s ordeal began on a blistering hot day in 2009 when she went to fetch water for herself and fellow farmworkers. An argument took place after two women refused to drink from the same container as Bibi, who is Roman Catholic. St. Johns Episcopal Church The Salvation Army Center for Worship & Service Join Us Join On Our Journey With Jesus. Sunday Worship Service Scripture, Tradition and Reason 5:30 Family Fellowship Meal • 6:00 Bible Study 9:30 - Sunday School 10:30 - Worship Service Wednesday Bible Study Family service 9am Sunday COME AS YOU ARE N.E. Gladys Ave & 7th, Hermiston PH: 567-6672 We are an all inclusive Church who welcomes all. 150 SE Emigrant (541) 276-3369 Redeemer Episcopal Church 241 SE Second St. Pendleton (541)276-3809 www.pendletonepiscopal.org Sunday Holy Communion 9:00 a.m. Wednesday Holy Communion Noon Weekly Adults Spiritual Life Group All Are Welcome OPEN HEARTS – OPEN DOOR www.graceandmercylutheran.org Sunday Worship 8:45 a.m. Sunday School 10:00 a.m. (Nursery Provided) Fellowship, Refreshments & Sunday School Check Out our Facebook Page or Website for More Information 541-289-4535 Tom Inch, Pastor Grace and Mercy Lutheran Church, ELCA (First United Methodist Church) 191 E. Gladys Ave. / P.O. Box 1108 Hermiston, Oregon 97838 Seventh-Day Adventist Church Saturday Services Pendleton 1401 SW Goodwin Place 276-0882 Sabbath School 9:20 am Worship Service 10:45 am in Mission for Christ LCMC Sunday Worship.........9:00 AM Bible Study......10:00 AM Red Lion Hotel ( Oregon Trail Room ) www.faithpendleton.org Come meet Jesus at Sunday School: 9:30am Worship: 10:40am Offi ce 541-276-5358 M-Thr, 8:30-12:30 www.fccpendleton.org Pendleton 352 SE 2nd Street, Pendleton OR Sunday Worship 9am • 541-276-2616 Worship Broadcast on KUMA 1290 @ 11am Worship Livestream at www.facebook.com/FUMCPendleton/ Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors Rev. Dr. Jim Pierce, pastor FAITH LUTHERAN CHURCH PENDLETON BAPTIST CHURCH Behind These Stone Walls Beat the Hearts of Some of the Warmest Most Sincere, Most Caring People in Pendleton. We Invite You to Come Get Acquainted! First United Methodist Church 3202 SW Nye Ave Pendleton, OR 541-276-7590 Sunday Morning Worship 11:00 AM Sunday Bible Classes 9:45 AM Sunday Youth Group 6:00 PM Mon. Community Women’s Study 9:30 AM & 6 PM Awana Kids Club (K-6th grade) Wed Men’s Study 6 PM MOPS meeting the 1st Thur of the Month 6 PM 1909 SW Athens Ave., Pendleton Come join us for Worship at 10:45am on Sunday 541-966-8912
