Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Dying for Democracy

I have been hearing about the protests in Iran concerning their elections. it appears they have been fixed and people are not happy about it. They are activcely protesting and and people are dying. They are dying for democracy.

Here is the text posted on YouTube with the Video

Iranian girl , Neda and her father attend a peaceful rally in Tehran before things took a tragic turn.

The girl, known as Neda and thought to be 16, has become both a martyr and rallying cry for those opposed to the Iranian hardline government.

"Neda, your death will not be in vain," reads one message on Twitter, where her name is being used as a call sign for anti-government bloggers and is one of the site's most mentioned words.

The deaths follow threats from Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Friday that fresh opposition unrest would be met with "blood, violence and chaos".

Iranian state television is reporting that 10 people were killed and more than 100 wounded in yesterday's violence in Tehran.
Foreign media are banned from reporting on non-official events in Iran, where the state censors and regulates the information seen by its citizens and those abroad.

But a video clip showing a girl known as Neda, who is thought to have been no older than 16, bleeding to death while frantic attempts are made to save her life has been broadcast across the globe via the internet.

Reports from the country say the teenager had been watching Saturday's protests with her father when she was shot by Iran's militia.

A message posted with the original footage on YouTube alleges she was intentionally shot in the chest.

"I am a doctor, so I rushed to try to save her," the video's poster said.

"But the impact of the gunshot was so fierce that the bullet had blasted inside the victim's chest, and she died in less than two minutes.

"The protests were going on about 1 kilometre away in the main street and some of the protesting crowd were running from tear gas used among them, towards Salehi St.

"The film is shot by my friend who was standing beside me. Please let the world know."

Neda, whose name means "voice" in Farsi, has been hailed as a martyr by those outraged at the brutality of the Iranian government's response to the election protests.

Clashes broke out soon after the presidential election on June 12, which many supporters of Iranian opposition parties claim was rigged to re-elect the hardline Islamist government.

The story of Neda's death has resonated with protesters across the world.

In America, pictures of her face have appeared on posters at protests against the Iranian government, hailing her as a martyr, US media reports.

Anti-government bloggers using Twitter to thwart the authorities' attempts to stop them communicating have started using her name as a call sign, making it one of the most mentioned words on the site.

""The film is shot by my friend who was standing beside me. Please let the world know."

Neda, whose name means "voice" in Farsi, has been hailed as a martyr by those outraged at the brutality of the Iranian government's response to the election protests.

Clashes broke out soon after the presidential election on June 12, which many supporters of Iranian opposition parties claim was rigged to re-elect the hardline Islamist government.

The story of Neda's death has resonated with protesters across the world.

In America, pictures of her face have appeared on posters at protests against the Iranian government, hailing her as a martyr, US media reports.

Anti-government bloggers using Twitter to thwart the authorities' attempts to stop them communicating have started using her name as a call sign, making it one of the most mentioned words on the site.




Terminology Tuesday: Theodicy - Apologetics 315

There is a great series of 10 posts coming out every Tuesday over at Apologetics 315. Each post will define a different term from Apologetics jargon. This week's term is "Theodicy" and it's the first term defined. Check it out. I can't wait to see what next week's term will be! I'm looking forward to expanding my vocabulary


Terminology Tuesday: Theodicy - Apologetics 315

Is It Gospel? - Hazakim's "Genesis 32"


I love this song....let me just get that out first. The important thing to understand that the duo, two brothers, making up the group Hazakim refer to their music as "Hip Hop Hopologetics". They use hip hop music to praise God and teach apologetics. I enjoy the way they put their music together and the messages they convey. They have a new album coming out today.

For this post, I wanted to write about their song titled "Genesis 32". I love the song because these guys know how to make the Bible come alive. The song repeats the story about what happened when Jacob returned to Canaan after self-imposed exile to avoid the wrath of his twin brother Esau because Jacob tricked Esau out of his birthright and deceived their father and stole the blessing of the Firstborn son. And you thought your family was a soap opera, right? They the "D" in dysfunction. Anyway when Jacob is most anxious about what is going to happen when he meets his brother again, Jacob experiences a theophany. He talks to and interacts with a supernatural being. Scholars debate if this was God like one of the three men who met up with Abraham in Genesis 18, or if it was merely an angel. Jacob wrestled all night with being and would not let go until he was blessed. It was at this point that Jacob's name was changed to "Israel". The experience so profoundly changed Jacob that he named the place "Peniel" meaning "Face of God" because in Genesis 32:30

So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared."


The song recounts it better than I can. The only better way to understand what happened is to read the full about for yourself in Genesis!


Here is the song...take a listen.
Hazakim - Genesis ...


This song is most definitely gospel