n't got all dahere s next! while we're still young... hey!y! whwh!? s great sandndwich... thank! ♪ you didn't have to be so nice ♪ >> the world news land's sacred site. >> wendy: plus a rare sight in the middle east, palestinians and israelis coming together. >> george: and in 1984, the city was the site of the 1984 olympics, and 10 years later, it was the centre of a civil war that killed 100,000 people, today it is a city struggling to rebuild. >> george: hello, everyone, welcome to this week's edition of christian world news. i'm george thomas.

>> wendy: and i'm wendy griffith. bethlehem's church of the israelis and palestinians. upsets jews and christians who say the move mark. landmark, it is about delegitimizing israel. >> reporter: palestinians celebrating the naming of the church of the nativity as a world heritage site, but were even happier that they officially recognized palestine in its decision. >> it is a beginning. we see it as in the correct direction of our rights. >> reporter: that's why israel and evangelical christians are angry. >> the church of nativity is being manipulated by the palestinians, only in order to score some more propaganda points against

israel. >> reporter: foreign ministry mobilization man dugal says palestinians arranged this to falsely blame israel for endangering the church. >> we don't object to the site being included on the world heritage site because the world heritage site list has preservation work and so on and so on. >> unesco's decision follows upon their resolution last year to accept palestine as a member state. >> reporter: last year the u.s. cut $60 million to unesco after it admitted palestinian as a full member. david parsens, with the christian embassy, jerusalem, says palestinians have a built-in majority for what he calls the flat earth society. >> if they proposed the earth was flat, most nations would vote for it. they're anti-israel, and in a lot of u.n. forms, they're

that delegitimize israel and bypass the peace talks. >> reporter: in christian tradition, the church was built over the area of jesus christ's birth. two million tourists investe visited there last year. >> this decision is not going to bring more or less is whether christians, pilgrims in the land, feel safe. and that is a matter of whether the palestinians want to cease terror and violence against israel. >> reporter: the situation could get worse. palestinians have a poor record in taking care of jewish and christian holy sites. experts say the unesco move also sets a precedent for putting other biblical sites under palestinian control. chris mitchell, cbn news, jerusalem. >> wendy: for decades the

world's leaders have been trying to bring peace to the middle east without success. now one group of spiritual leaders believe there is a way to bring people in that troubled region together through the prince of peace. lee webb has our story. >> reporter: most of the attention is focused on the conflict between arabs and many time christians are caught in the middle. a small group of christians there is trying to bridge that gap. leon mosan is pastor of the return to zion messianic center. the physical distance between them is rather short. the cultural and political divide a miles apart. they have one common bond: faith in jesus christ. >> he is the one that brings us together. and he is the one, through

his scripture, that melts all of our differences. so we come to the cross. >> we have god. we have messiah jesus. we have spirit of god. we have power of gospel that can help us. >> reporter: and the help from god these men seek is to understand each other better and bring a greater unity among messianic and palestinian christians. the reverend is behind the effort. his ministry helped bring nashat, leat and others together for a meeting in israel. >> i am very biblical. >> reporter: it also invited them to the u.s. for a second meeting to tell american leaders of their efforts. >> we are cool to be peacemakers. >> reporter: their motivation is found in the second chapter of ephesians, they it reminds the apostle they were once alienated

from christ. but christ believed in bringing jews and gentiles together. for he, himself is our peace, and who has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility. >> we are one body of christ. you are my brother in christ. you are -- it is not just a word. it is reality. you are more dear to those who are culturally related to me. because you are in faith related to me. >> reporter: they don't sugar coat their differences. they've experienced firsthand the turmoil that has gripped the land and divided their people. leon proudly calls himself a zionist. >> were there things you began to understand about the plight of his people that you didn't know before. >> absolutely. >> reporter: what were they? >> i see some strong

complications they go through in a political way. and i didn't know about this before. and it was just built inside of me extra motivation to pray for him. >> pastor leon is doing something very significant. >> reporter: and nashad admits he has gained a greater understanding of his messianic brothers. >> the holocaust is a big, big issue. we always refer to that and go from that. and we have to understand it. it has been a learning experience for me. it is a long journey. it is not a rosy journey. reconciliation is not something that is simple. it's a painful one, and yet if we have the commitment for it, i believe we can achieve a lot. >> it is god who can bring about what has happened in leon's heart and nashad's heart. if he can do it with two

men, he can do it with any number. >> reporter: they hope to maybe even worship together at times. as one of the pastors said, if the gospel doesn't bring reconciliation, there is something wrong with the gospel. lee webb, cbn news. >> wendy: the cultural and political divide between palestinian and messianic jews still very wide. the pressures they feel from non-christians in their communities make it difficult to predict when or even if a full reconciliation is possible in their lifetime. >> george: coming up, searching for forgiveness. how victims of the war in bosnia and finding hope and healing through jesus christ.

>> wendy: welcome back. just 16 years ago, sniper fire echoed through the streets of bosnia. serbs, croads and muslims

were killing each other over ethnic and religious differs. >> george: today the still very divided. now bosnian evangelicals are trying to bridge the fault lines. he calls this the one place where all bosnians can find forgiveness. >> the church is a prototype of something special god is doing in bosnia. >> george: it was in this exact spot back in 1984 that sarajevo held the opening ceremonies to the olympic games. today it is filled with thousands of people, victims of the bosnian war. and in reality, this is what the tiny evangelical church has to deal with, trying to bring healing and reconciliation to a nation that is bitterly divided by the acts of war. >> the politicians are trying to bring us together, the world is trying to bring us together, humanitarian groups are trying to bring us together. but it is only in the church where real fellowship, real

community, and real reconciliation is possible. >> george: his church sits in the heart of bosnia's capital city, sarajevo. on any given sunday morning, you will find croads, serbs, and former muslims worship under one roof. >> amen. >> george: during a recent service, that unanimity was on dramatic display when a muslim converted to christianity, and a couple from serb and crowad backgrounds publicly declared their faith in jesus christ by getting baptized. >> this is my way of showing the world that i belong to jesus christ. >> we are from different backgrounds, but it is god who unites us.

>> george: unity is what this country desperately needs to move forward. 16 years later, remains of those killed during bosnia's brutal war are still being recovered. these images still haunt them all these years later as reminders of hatred that are everywhere, and the legacy of crimes committed still hang heavy over the nation. >> i remember during the height of the war, there were less than 2 20 evangelical believers left in the country, but during those hard times, god still poured his spirit on us. >> george: the church has grown since then, but still represents only a tiny portion of the population. >> this is a very small number, and that's because it is not easy to share the message of christ. >> george: the majority of bosnians are orthodox, catholic, or muslim. evangelical christians are viewed with suspicious. bernard pastors the only

congregation in this country that has an official building designated as an evangelical church. >> people in the community didn't like it when the church was being built. we got routine threats. there were all kinds of graffitis scrawled on the church wall. >> george: he was one who thought the evangelical christians were weird and potentially dangerous. that changed when this former drug addict got an invitation to attend a christian camp. >> there was something about these people that i found attractive. i saw them worshipping god and they were happy. i gave my heart to th the lord and was eventually set free from drugs. >> george: he is a young pastor working in the north. he says overcoming the wounds of the past is difficult. >> i live in a city where the majority of the muslims were tortured and put in concentration camps by so-called ethnic christians.

so we have to share the word of jesus christ to a community that has a hard time trusting evangelicals. >> george: you just have to spend a few president clinton's o -- few minutes on the streets to remember. bosnia is worried that unchecked and unresolved ethnic tensions could spark another war. something christians here are praying will never happen. >> we have to pray and work harder to show people that reconciliation is a powerful message that comes from god. reconciliation first through god and through jesus christ, and then reconciliation with one another. i pray 2 chronicles 14 every day. we have to humble ourselves, deny our pride, deny our ethnic religious difference, and go to god, and he will heal us. i want our country to be filled with the word and the

knowledge of god. i am praying that bosnia will know a good god who loves him, a god who does not see the difference between ethnic groups, but a god who sent his only god to the world to die for their sins. this is my hope and prayer. >> wendy: that's beautiful, george. >> george: sometimes it is difficult to remember a story like that because of the incredible hatred that people have, and then you see the power of the gospel. women who were slaughtered, muslim, christian, croad, and jesus comes in and brings restoration. >> wendy: amazing story. thank you. up next, hear how muslims are crossing over to christianity in the land downwnnder. rigight after this.

>> wendy: australia is becoming a popular destination for muslims, east. the land down under say they're troubled about the growing muslim population. >> george: but the country's christians, well,

they see it as an opportunity to win them to christ. gary lane has more from sydney. >> reporter: 40 years ago, you would rarely see muslims on the streets of sydney or melbourne. only about 20,000 lived in australia at the time. but that has changed in the years since as muslims from neighboring indonesia and the middle east sought refuge and opportunity down under. >> there may be as many as half a million muslims residing in australia. they have little chance or opportunity to hear the gospel, but that is starting to change. >> reporter: al-haad television is an arabic television channel, broadcasting christian programming in australia and other parts of the muslim world. it was launched by this man, former muslim, michael l.mosri. he started the channel with his only limited finances, and persevered, despite fierce opposition from the

muslim community. he said they air christian programs in a way that muslims understand. >> it is so unfortunate for muslims that we expose religions. >> reporter: you're not afraid anymore? >> no. because the lord will protect. i believe in a special mission like that, the lord will provide extra protection. he died for them. they deserve the message of salvation. who is going to give them the message? >> reporter: and australian muslims are not only hearing the good news on the television airwaves, former muslims attend worship in arabic at this church. ali basni has pastored here for two years. it is called al-abhore, which means cross over. some come here secretly because they fear being

discovered by muslim family members. several attendees have received death threats for leaving the religion. >> because the religion with the koran encouraged you to hurt people -- they think they are doing something good for the lord if i kill you, to allah. >> reporter: the pastor says he has received many death threats since becoming a christian, but he won't stop preaching the gospel. a muslim friend who converted to christianity introduced him to the bible and jesus. >> i like the civility of jesus christ. the way they present him from the bible, how he shares with people, heals them, feed them. i said, mom, i'm a new man. and she said, if there is a god able to change ali, i

want to believe in him. all of my family become christian except my dad. >> reporter: they are now serving in the australian church. his brother is an active leader, and his sister leads worship. aalana migrated to egypt after converting and accepting christ. she explains why she left her country. >> the national police coming to take me away. they could kill me, torture me and my sister. they could do terrible things. >> reporter: and she also experienced the rejection of a loved one and societal condemnation. >> i feel like i lost my identity. i don't know who i am anymore. >> reporter: alana says she was strengthened by a scripture verse that lifted her spirits. >> come to me, the heavy burdened, and i will give you rest. the only way god can reveal to me or i can receive his peace and joy is only through jesus. >> reporter: former muslim

alia came to know christ after she married a christian. her parents didn't want her to marry a christian, but they changed their minds after she was healed from lymphoma because of the prayers of christians. >> i was healed from cancer, and god made my parents change their mind so that i could marry my husband and i could live the christian life that i wanted to live. >> reporter: and despite ongoing pressure from australia's islamic community, these former muslims continue to share their testimony with muslim immigrants and others. and if you turn on your television here, you're likely to see al-hiad tv. they say god's word will continue to penetrate hearts everyone, and especially down under. gary lane, cbn news, sydney. >> george: you can find daily stories about the work of the church around the

world at our website,

the bible says christians are to go to the entire world and preach the gospel. well, one 84-year-old new heart. >> wendy: she has been ministering on the streets of manhattan, rain, snow, you name it, for decades. i recently met up with her in new york's time square. time square is famous for beneath irma, who has dedicated her life to pointing people to the true life of the world. i understand you've been telling people about jesus for over 40 years. why did you decide to do that? >> god has chosen me to do this. >> reporter: although she has been a new yorker since 1964, the brazilian native

still struggles with her english. but that hasn't stopped her year after year to hand out tracks and pray and be a witness for christ. >> reporter: it seems like an unlikely place to evangelize with so many people here to take the in the sights and the shows, but she says it is the best place. the hardest time is the winter, she says. >> when it is cold, it makes me cold. i have to go home. so you read the bible, you believe in jesus. >> wendy: both young and old stop to talk to irma, who draws people in with her twinkling eyes and spirit. and always prays for those who ask. >> in the mighty name of jesus, i come before you with the lord. >> wendy: irma says time square has changed dramatically since she

started her missionary work. much of the tawdry area has changed. he credits the power of prayer from believers like herself to help turn things around. she says there is no time forest. but she says there is much work to be done and many souls still to be won. >> see you in heaven. >> george: see you in heaven. i hope that inspires all of our viewers around the world. 84. >> wendy: 84. until next week, from all of us here at christian world news, good-bye and god bless you.

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