PCUSA Decline; Sudan retracts claim Ibrahim to be released; Illegal immigrant children...more

Sharp Increase in Illegal Immigrant Children at Border Causes Crisis
An overwhelming number of children are being apprehended while attempting to illegally cross the the U.S.-Mexico border during recent months. The crisis, which has strained federal resources, has prompted lawmakers from around the U.S. to demand more funding to "accommodate" the children crossers. Opponents, however, claim that increased funding will not fix the real problem--they believe that the Obama Administration's failure to secure the border is ultimately what caused the spike in child victimization.

According to the San Antonio Express-News, more than 60,000 unaccompanied children are expected to illegally cross into the United States this year--that figure is substantially up from 2011, when only about 6,500 minors crossed. The Rio Grande Valley (RVG) Border Patrol Sector alone now apprehends about 1,000 illegal aliens per day, many of whom are children without parents.

The sharp influx of youth traveling into the U.S. has strained federal resources and left authorities without a plan-of-action moving forward...

PCUSA Decline in Churches, Members Continued in 2013
The Presbyterian Church (USA) continued its years-long trend of losing congregations and members in 2013, according to statistics released by the mainline Protestant denomination last week.

According to the data compiled by the PCUSA's Office of the General Assembly, by the end of 2013 membership was approximately 1.76 million, compared to approximately 1.84 million by the end of 2012.

Additionally, the number of PCUSA congregations decreased during 2013. There were 10,038 churches in 2013, versus 10,262 in 2012.

Of the 224 churches no longer with PCUSA, 148 of them were dismissed to other denominations while the remaining number were dissolved...

Sudanese Officials Retract Claims that Meriam Ibrahim to Be Released
Sudanese authorities are retracting reports that a Christian woman who denied the Muslim faith would be released from prison for two years. Meriam Ibrahim was sentenced to receive 100 lashes and death by hanging following the birth of her baby while in custody.

Ibrahim gave birth to a daughter May 27 in the prison’s hospital wing.

According to The Guardian Abdullah Alazreg, an under-secretary at the foreign ministry said on Saturday Ibrahim "will be freed within days in line with legal procedure that will be taken by the judiciary and the ministry of justice.”

In a statement released by the ministry, however, officials claim Alazreg’s comment was taken out of context and "that the defense team of the concerned citizen has appealed the verdict... and if the appeals court rules in her favor, she will be released.”... Taqiyya

Pregnant Pakistani Woman Stoned to Death by Family for Choosing Own Husband