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Australia’s Bravery Award for Priest Who Saved a Young Man from a Shark
A Catholic priest who helped rescue a surfer being attacked by a five-metre great white shark, says he’s humbled after being awarded a bravery medal by Australia’s governor general.
“It feels like I haven’t done anything extraordinary,” Fr Liam Ryan, a priest in Midland, Perth, told The Catholic Leader.
“I thank God for giving me courage in that moment, and I also remember that I was not alone.”
An experienced surfer, Fr Ryan, who turns 35 this year, was on vacation with a group of surfing mates. They paddled out to catch waves at Bunker Bay, 260 km south of Perth on July 31, 2020.
About 100 metres offshore one of the surfers saw the dorsal fin of a five-metre great white shark close by.
Fr Ryan raised the alarm by screaming for help as the shark mauled fellow surfer, 28-year-old Phil Mummert, just a few metres away.
Fr Ryan did not hesitate in paddling straight towards danger to try and help as the shark sank its jaws deep into Mr Mummert’s upper leg and bit a huge chunk out his surfboard.
The young surfer responded by shoving his damaged board into the shark’s mouth and then fought with his bare hands to fend off the creature.
As the shark circled, one of Fr Ryan’s fellow surfers, Alex Oliver, reached injured Phil Mummert first, pulled him onto the front of his board and started paddling towards the shore.
Despite the shark still being close, Fr Ryan and best mate surfer, Jess Woolhouse reached the injured man on the board and helped him get to shore.
“For me its clear, God wanted us to be there, he wanted Phil to survive the shark attack and strangely designed that a wild animal would bring us to know each other for the rest of our lives,” Fr Ryan said.
“We were nominated for this bravery medal by one of the other surfers who was in the water that day, but he paddled straight in when he saw the attack because he immediately thought of his young son and his family.
“He was in tears on the beach, and in tears when he received the acceptance of our nomination.”
Fr Ryan, Mr Oliver and Mr Woolhouse were each awarded the prestigious Bravery Medal, by Australia’s Governor General, David Hurley.
“No one sets out to be brave. No one really knows how, when presented with a dangerous situation, they will act,” the governor general said, announcing 15 Bravery Medal winners for 2022 .
“In a moment of peril, today’s recipients were selfless and brave. On behalf of all Australians, I offer congratulations and thanks.”
Each of the three surfers have also received a Coastal Bravery Award from Surf Life Saving WA, and according to Fr Ryan the rescue has cemented their friendship for life, together with the man they rescued, Phil Mummert.
“We have a connection that is so unique. When we all sit down together to catch up for a meal I just smile and think ‘God, only in your imagination can this be possible!’” he said.
“A waiter once asked us ‘So how do you all know each other?’ We all just burst out laughing.”
The 2020 shark attack received global media attention, and Fr Ryan’s role as rescuer – “the surfing priest” – was particularly highlighted.
More than just notoriety, Fr Ryan hopes his experience can be useful for others.
“When I visit our schools to talk about vocations or sacraments or whatever, I ask the kids if they have any questions. The first one is always ‘Can you tell us about the shark?’” he said.
“Our God is a God of surprises. This event was a huge surprise for me, and I know that many people are surprised to see a priest who surfs.
“These medals and awards are also a surprise. God is always working to break down barriers and the stereotypes we build up in our hearts.
“If this helps people to see that priests also go on holidays, surf and help people everyday then that’s awesome.
“Will it bring people to encounter the love of Christ, who gave his life because he loves us? I can only hope so!”
Fr Ryan continues to surf – he loves the sport, and he loves the ocean.
“When I see a dolphin or seal out in the water my heart usually skips a beat nowadays, but then the fear passes,” he said.
“We share the ocean with so many other beautiful creatures, that mystery is what has always attracted me to the ocean and surfing.
“I’ve also always believed that the best way to overcome your fears is to face them.
“The ocean still remains a place of peace and rest for me, a place where I encounter God and God’s creation.”
Fr Ryan was ordained in August 2019 after completing studies at Perth’s “Redemptoris Mater” Missionary Seminary for the formation of priests in the Neocatechumenal Way.
He spent two years carrying out mission work in Alotau in Papua New Guinea, and is now a priest at St Brigid’s Church in Midland parish, Perth.
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Ex-Muslim Leads 100,000 to Jesus: ‘There Is Hunger in the Muslim World to Hear About Christ’
Harun Ibrahim was born in Israel to Arab-Muslim parents, studied in a Jewish school, and married a devout Christian woman. After years of examining these religions, he was faced with a choice: Judaism, Christianity, or Islam.
Ibrahim ultimately made a decision to follow Christ, thanks to his praying wife and a timely encounter with a random man on the street.
Ibrahim recalled the conversation during an appearance on The 700 Club. The man told him, “‘Well, you are not going to be in the kingdom of God because Jesus said that no one will come to the Father except through Him.'”
“And I really didn’t like that,” he recounted. “I said, ‘You are rude.'”
The man began to share the Gospel with the young Muslim and challenged him to actually read the Bible.
“He challenged me to read this Bible verse, and it was in the Gospel of John. And I read the Gospel of John seven times in a row. I just like really loved the person called Jesus. I couldn’t resist. I just had to accept him as my redeemer, as my Savior,” he shared.
Ibrahim began to burn with a desire to share the Gospel with Muslims and served many years as a missionary reaching Muslims in the Arab nations. He later started Al Hayat Ministries in 2003 to boldly preach the Gospel and challenge Islam. Since then, the ministry has seen more than 100,000 come to faith in Jesus Christ.
“Our vision extends to equipping believers who come from Muslim backgrounds with the necessary tools and knowledge to fulfill the Great Commission,” reads a statement on their website.
Ibrahim serves as the Director of Al Hayat Ministries, and recently told the Keeping It Real Israel podcast that they have reached millions of people with the Gospel in a short time.
“Just an example that [in] 2023 we received 109 million viewer reactions or responses and thousands of people accepting Christ,” he shared. “This means that there is hunger in the Muslim world to hear about Christ.”
Ibrahim explained that what makes his programming unique is that he is speaking to Muslims in the culture and language they understand.
“When Christian TV was first brought into the Arab world, it was programs that were made by Christians for Christians in the Christian language in the hopes that Muslims would watch the shows,” he told the 700 Club. ” When I started to produce TV programs, I was not happy to see that the whole year could be, maybe, 15 to 20 Muslims accepting Christ.”
His unique approach is giving many more people the opportunity to meet Jesus.
“I think that media, TV, internet are here to help us fulfill the Great Commission, and the Muslim world was [once] isolated. It was closed, and now through the satellite channels, internet, [and] social media, we can reach the Muslims.
“Many of them are finding the truth,” Ibrahim continued. “I do believe that a great revival is very soon to come to every single Muslim country.”
For many Muslims, accepting Christ means being rejected by family and potentially endangering their lives.
“Islam is a religion that does not allow people to change it, and if you reject Islam, you will be punished. You will be given three days as a chance to get back. If not, then you can be persecuted,” he told CBN News in 2020.
“In many of the countries, they don’t kill them, but in some of the countries, they do. Many people would lose their jobs, their families, their children, their wives, and then their families. Unfortunately, we can say that in some cases, they lose their lives,” Ibrahim explained.
He encouraged Christians who have a desire to reach Muslims to begin praying first.
“When you start praying for the Muslim world, God will guide you [in] what to do,” he explained.
Sources:CBN News
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Massive 2,000-Year-Old Discovery Brings the World of Jesus to Life
A massive crane lifted a 25-ton Jewish ritual bath from an excavation site in Israel, preserving a remarkably intact structure that had survived roughly 2,000 years.
The bath, unearthed in Kiryat Gat about 35 miles southwest of Jerusalem, dates to the Second Temple period, placing it in the world of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Its discovery also revealed something archaeologists had not previously known: A Jewish settlement once stood there.
The Israel Antiquities Authority announced the bath’s removal in September, explaining that the operation would protect it during construction of a new neighborhood.
For author Dinesh D’Souza, the discovery offers a vivid connection to the people and practices surrounding the Biblical accounts.
“It gives you a vivid picture. In some ways, it brings the Bible to life, both the Old Testament and the New, because this mikveh reflects the times right around the time of Jesus,” D’Souza told Fox News Digital.
A mikveh is a bath used for Jewish ritual purification. Alongside the structure, archaeologists uncovered stone measuring vessels, which were widely used during the Second Temple period because Jewish law did not consider them susceptible to ritual impurity.
Together, those discoveries provide evidence of the ancient community’s religious life.
D’Souza, whose new book, “The Stones Cry Out,” and documentary of the same name explore Biblical archaeology, said such finds help establish the historical world described in Scripture.
“This is confirming, describing, illuminating the world of the Bible,” he said. “That’s one of the things that biblical archaeology can do. It can authenticate the historicity of the Bible—not the theology, not the miracles, but the historicity of it.”
The ancient bath’s journey will eventually bring it back to the community where it was found. Rather than remaining removed from its original setting, it will become part of the neighborhood taking shape around it.
“When construction is completed, the mikveh will be returned to the site, and integrated into an open public space that will stand at the heart of the new neighborhood,” the IAA said.
Sources: Breaking Christian News
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ജോര്ജ് പീറ്റര് സംഗീതസന്ധ്യ ഡാളസില് ഒക്ടോബര് 17-ന്
ഡാളസ്: വൈ.എം.ഇ.എഫ് ഡാളസിന്റെ ആഭിമുഖ്യത്തില് ‘ജോര്ജ് പീറ്റര് സംഗീതസന്ധ്യ’ ഒക്ടോബര് 17 ശനിയാഴ്ച വൈകിട്ട് 5:30-ന് നടക്കും. കരോള്ട്ടണിലെ ബിലീവേഴ്സ് ബൈബിള് ചാപ്പലാണ് വേദി.
ക്രൈസ്തവ കൈരളിക്ക് നൂറിലേറെ ഗാനങ്ങള് സമ്മാനിച്ച ഭക്തകവി ഇവാഞ്ചലിസ്റ്റ് ജോര്ജ് പീറ്റര് ചിറ്റൂര് രചിച്ച തിരഞ്ഞെടുത്ത ഗാനങ്ങളും അവയുടെ പശ്ചാത്തല അനുഭവങ്ങളും സംഗീതസന്ധ്യയില് അവതരിപ്പിക്കും. ‘യേശു എനിക്കെത്ര നല്ലവനാം’, ‘എനിക്കൊത്താശ വരും പര്വതം’, ‘കര്ത്താവിലെന്നും എന്റെ ആശ്രയം’, ‘വിശ്വാസ ജീവിതപ്പടകില്’, ‘എന്നെ കരുതുവാന് കാക്കുവാന്’ തുടങ്ങിയ ഗാനങ്ങളിലൂടെ ശ്രദ്ധേയനായ ഗാനരചയിതാവാണ് ജോര്ജ് പീറ്റര് ചിറ്റൂര്.
ഗായകന് ബിനോയ് ചാക്കോയും സംഘവും ഡാളസ് മലയാളികള്ക്കായി സംഗീതസന്ധ്യ ഒരുക്കും.
വേദിയുടെ വിലാസം: Believers’ Bible Chapel, 2116 Old Denton Rd, Carrollton, TX 75006.
Sources:nerkazhcha
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