Iraqi Nun Martyred in Baghdad

CHALDEAN NEWS AGENCY, Aug. 25 — Pointing to the many Christian martyrs of the ancient Chaldean Church in Iraq — which in union with Rome — the Chaldean News Agency (www.chaldeansonline.net) announced the death of Sister Cecilia Hanna, 82.

The news agency said Sister Cecilia “was killed savagely in a disgusting crime where her head was severed from the rest of her body, not because this old and kind human being did something wrong, but because being a Christian in a land roaming with Muslim fanatics is becoming a dangerous venture and a provocative act to those who have twisted the teachings of their religion.”

A member of the Order of the Heart of Jesus, Sister Cecilia joined the order in her early teens. She worked in Baghdad until her death on Aug. 15, the 98th anniversary of the establishment of her order.

The Chaldean News Agency called “once again upon the Iraqi government to follow through its investigation with the Arab Muslim suspect that has been arrested to find his accomplices and to make public the results of that investigation” and “upon the Iraqi authorities to take the necessary measures to control the rising tide of Muslim fanaticism in Iraq.”

Own a Bible, Pay a Fine

KESTON NEWS SERVICE, Aug. 22 — Leaders of a Protestant ministry in the Central Asian state Uzbekistan were raided by police on Aug. 9, according to Keston News Service, and informed that Bibles are illegal.

Some 13 members of that evangelical group were saddled with fines and saw their pamphlets and at least one Bible seized. Later, government spokesmen backtracked, saying the Bibles are legal, but that the church group was not, since it had not complied with the country's rigorous policy of registering and monitoring religious sects.

According to the news service, which monitors religious freedom in communist and post-communist countries: “It is all but impossible for communities to register, and many Protestant leaders have been subjected to fines.”

Uzbekistan is a majority Muslim country and former Soviet republic that is still ruled autocratically by former communist officials. However, it is cooperating with the U.S. war on terror.

Australians Speak Up for ‘the Force’

BBC, Aug. 27 — Despite the dwindling quality of the films that preach its gospel, some 70,000 Australians have declared themselves worship-pers of “the Force,” the Jedi creed laid out in the Star Wars movies.

The most recent census in that country shows that one in 270 respondents — or 0.37% of Australians — “believe in ‘the Force,’ an energy field that gives Jedi Knights like Luke Skywalker their power in the films,” according to the British Broadcasting Corp.

Some observers have noted that an e-mail campaign conducted by Star Wars fans encouraged movie buffs to choose this option on the census, which might account for many of the responses.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics declined to add “the Force” to the list of officially acknowledged faiths, categorizing its followers’ beliefs simply as “not defined.” In the United Kingdom, “Jedi Knight” is now listed among other religions by census officials.