THIRD CURFEW AMID KASHMIR TENSION

A curfew has been imposed in parts of Indian-administered Kashmir for a third consecutive day after violence in the Muslim-majority Kashmir valley.

More than 20 people were killed when security forces opened fire on protesters on Monday and Tuesday.

Tension is also high in the mainly Hindu region of Jammu. Two people were killed in communal clashes on Tuesday.

Police have been given orders to shoot demonstrators who defy a curfew in the town of Kishtwar, in Jammu.

At least four districts in the valley region - Baramulla, Bandipora, Pulwama and Shopian - remain under curfew for a third consecutive day, a BBC correspondent in Srinagar says.

Kashmir's summer capital, Srinagar, and five other districts were hit by violence on Tuesday.

Anger and shock

Our correspondent says people in many parts of Srinagar came out of their homes before midnight on Tuesday and chanted pro-freedom slogans.

Many of them assembled in mosques where they turned on loudspeakers to relay the slogans.

This followed reports that the police had ransacked some homes in the city, and more than 30 people were injured when paramilitary forces fired at protesters in the valley.

The BBC's Altaf Hussain says there is anger and shock among people in the valley region over what they describe an excessive use of force by the police to break up protest demonstrations
Protests and counter-protests have been taking place for weeks both in the Kashmir valley around Jammu, further south.

The demonstrations in the valley are some of the biggest since a separatist rebellion against Indian rule broke out nearly 20 years ago.

Tensions are rising and threaten peace hopes after years of relative calm. Correspondents say Kashmir is now dangerously polarised by a dispute which began over the control of a small piece of land.

Violent demonstrations began two months ago in the state when a decision to transfer a small area of land to the trust which runs a Hindu shrine provoked an angry Muslim reaction.

When the land transfer was abandoned, groups from the state's Hindu minority began furious protests of their own.

POPE PILGRIMS SEEK AUSTRALIA HOME

About 20 Catholic pilgrims, in Australia since the July visit of Pope Benedict XVI, have applied for asylum, a refugee support group said.

Experts say more visitors are expected to seek asylum as their visas, many of them valid for three months, expire.

Applicants were mainly from African countries, including Zimbabwe, and Pakistan, said Asylum Seekers Centre director Tamara Domicelj.

More than 100,000 pilgrims attended World Youth Day led by the Pope.
"At this stage we've had about 20 people present to us as identified pilgrims indicating they're needing to seek protection in Australia," Ms Domicelj told reporters.

"It might well be that at the end of those three months we see a spike in applications for protection," Ms Domicelj said.

Citing individuals from Cameroon, Burundi, Kenya and elsewhere, Ms Domicelj told Reuters: "We are seeing utter destitution, we see malnutrition, we are seeing depression, we see homelessness. People are coming to us from a place of crisis."

More expected

Rights watchdog Amnesty International said more pilgrims are likely to seek asylum once special three-month visitor visas expired. An estimated 3,000 were still in the country.

"There are still a number of people in the community who came out during World Youth Day. There is certainly an expectation that some will decide to seek asylum rather that return," Amnesty International refugee co-ordinator Graham Thom said.

The new Australian government led by Kevin Rudd overturned his predecessor John Howard's stringent immigration policies last month. Mandatory detention in special immigration jails forced many asylum seekers into years behind razor wire awaiting refugee visas.

Detention is now only allowed for people who pose a risk to the community.

A spokesman for the Department of Immigration could not confirm whether any World Youth Day visitors were seeking asylum but said most pilgrims had been given three-month visas.

He said all applications for asylum from the pilgrims would be treated on merit.

MILLIONS JOIN ANTI-TERRORISM CALL

Millions of people in Pakistan have signed up to a campaign started by a man from Warwickshire to make a pledge against terrorism, he has said.

Writer Waseem Mahmood, from Stratford-upon-Avon, said he set up the campaign after hearing his children say young Muslims were misinterpreting Islam.

The project, called the Yeh Hum Naheen Foundation, meaning "this is not us", is funded by donations and UN grants.

It has been publicised across Pakistan by billboards and a pop song.

A total of 6,000 volunteers have been employed to help collect signatures from across the country, asking people to sign to say they do not support terrorism.

'Very moving'

A group of Pakistan's most popular singers released a song encouraging people to sign the petition, and other personalities, including soap stars, also joined the campaign.

Mr Mahmood, who has family links to Pakistan, said out of the country's population of 162 million people, a total of 50 million had already signed the petition.

He said: "It is very moving to see them. It gets me there.
"I didn't expect that much support here (Pakistan).

"I knew we would get a few million people here, but 50 million - it's almost as if we've given them something they were waiting for."

Mr Mahmood said he hoped it would make a difference to British Muslims too.

"As we know the 7/7 bombers all had links back here (Pakistan).

"A lot of young Muslims are coming back here and I think we need to address the cause of terrorism - and the root cause is here."

VANDALISED CHURCH PARTLY RESTORED

A medieval church in Leicester which was vandalised two months ago has been cleaned up.

Vandals broke into St Margaret's Church on 15 June, damaging wooden altars and panelling, art deco paintings, a stained-glass window and candlesticks.

The 13th Century church has since been cleaned and will now feature in a series of guided walks through the city's historic sites.

Canon Barry Naylor said the superficial damage had been repaired.

"We have worked really hard to get the church cleaned up and to ensure that church life and worship would continue and not be disrupted by this incident.

"All the superficial damage has been sorted out, and the main structure of the church, along with much of its beauty and splendour, is still here for visitors to enjoy," he said.

'Encouraging' recovery

He added that the broken stained glass window, a smashed glass panel covering medieval stonework and some painted plaster panels still needed to be restored.

The organ is being repaired at a cost of around £9,000.

St Margaret's Church will be one of the main attractions on a series of tours to highlight Leicester's medieval heritage.

Visitors will be shown around the church on 25 August, as part of the Castle Park Heritage and Arts Festival.

Leicester City Council's cabinet member for culture and leisure Andy Connelly said: "It is very encouraging to see that this church has recovered from the vandalism it has suffered."

AUTHOR'S NOVEL INVITATION TO HOME

A 93-year-old woman who has had her first novel published has bought a house in Devon so she can help friends stay out of nursing homes.

Lorna Page has moved from Surrey to the five-bedroom house in Weare Giffard, near Torrington. She has one friend staying with her already.

Her son, Robin, and his wife are also sharing the home and providing support.

The author said she wanted to buy other properties so more people could live with her in dignity.

She hopes the book's royalties will pay enough so her friends do not have to move into nursing homes, something she dreads.

'Not living'

She said: "It's pathetic. It seems to me that in those places people just spend their time alone in one room and people come in and give them food.

"Either that or they just go down to a room and sit at the edge of it. They don't seem to talk to each other at all, they're just sort of there. That's not living."

Mrs Page wrote her book, A Dangerous Weakness, three years ago.

She did not get it published until her daughter-in-law found the manuscript, read it, and convinced her to send it to a publisher.

TH CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER DAY SAINTS

In the spring of 1820, Joseph Smith Jr. retired to the woods near his home in Palmyra, New York, and offered a simple prayer to our Father in Heaven. This humble prayer set into motion a series of events that brought forth The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from its obscure beginnings in upstate New York to a worldwide church. The introductory resources assembled here tell this story.

The Restoration of Truth
God is your loving Heavenly Father
God is your Father in Heaven (Matthew 6:9). We call God Heavenly Father because He is the Father of our spirits and we are created in His image ( Genesis 1:27).

God has a body that looks like yours, though His body is immortal, perfected, and has a glory beyond description. He knows you personally and loves you more than you can comprehend. To help you find happiness in this life and guide you to return to live with Him, Heavenly Father provided a plan called the gospel? of Jesus Christ, a guide based on the life and teachings of His Son, Jesus Christ.

From the beginning, Heavenly Father has called prophets? to testify, record His word, and provide His plan for His children on the earth. The teachings of prophets are found in sacred? books called scriptures? ( Amos 3:7).

Your Heavenly Father knows you and loves you and wants to help you return to Him. Your life on Earth is part of His plan for you to gain a body, learn, grow, and find joy. Sometimes life is hard, lonely, or frightening, but your Heavenly Father is always there. He sorrows when you suffer and rejoices when you do what is right. He wants to communicate with you as you sincerely pray to Him, and He stands ready to give you comfort, peace, and guidance in your life.

Jesus Christ taught that you must know the only true God to have eternal life ( John 17:3). As His child, you must know who He is and what He is like to find greater peace and joy, both in this life and in the life to come.

SEVENTH DAY ADVENTIST

As a Christian church, Seventh-day Adventists are a faith community rooted in the beliefs described by the Holy Scriptures. Adventists describe these beliefs in the following ways:

God's greatest desire is for you to see a clear picture of His character. When you see Him clearly, you will find His love irresistible.

For many, "seeing God clearly" requires that they see God's face. However, how He looks is not the issue. Seeing and understanding His character is what's most important. The more clearly we understand Him, the more we will find His love irresistible. As we begin to experience His love, our own lives will begin to make more sense.

God most clearly reveals His character in three great events. The first is His creation of man and woman--and His giving them the freedom of choice. He created humans with the ability to choose to love Him or to hate Him! The death of Jesus Christ, God's only Son, on the cross as our substitute is the second great event. In that act He paid the penalty we deserve for our hateful choices toward God and His ways. Jesus' death guarantees forgiveness for those choices and allows us to spend eternity with Him. The third event confirms the first two and fills every heart with hope: Christ's tomb is empty! He is alive, living to fill us with His love!

Jesus' disciple John wrote that if everyone wrote all the stories they knew about Jesus, the whole world could not contain them. Our knowledge of God helps us understand His love, character, and grace. Experiencing that love begins a lifelong adventure in growth and service. This knowledge and experience powers our mission to tell the world about His love and His offer of salvation.

Scripture is a road map. The Bible is God's voice, speaking His love personally to you today.

The Bible speaks the Creator's directions to us, like a detailed road map that clearly shows the exit ramp directly into heaven. It is also much like an owner's manual for a life ready to be lived on the cutting edge of liberty.

Sometimes His voice speaks through stories, such as those of David and Goliath, Ruth and Boaz, Naaman's little servant girl, Christ on the cross, and fisherman Peter learning how to tend sheep. Some of these stories teach us how to handle the troubles we face each day. Others fill us with hope and peace. Each of them is like a personal letter from God to you.

Portions of Scripture are direct instructions and laws from God such as the Ten Commandments, recorded in Exodus 20. These tell us more about God and His expectations for us. When people asked Jesus to summarize these commands, He focused on the way God's love affects the way we live. "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, and soul," He said. "And love your neighbor as you love yourself."

On other pages the Bible gives God's practical advice and encouragement through parables, lists, promises, and warnings. Amazingly, though many different writers throughout thousands of years wrote the Bible, each page describes the same God in ways we can understand and apply in our lives today. This book is always His voice talking personally to anyone who is willing to read and hear.

God loves us even when we choose to reject His love. In those times He allows us to walk away into the life of our own choices. Yet He is still there, always ready to redeem us from the results of our decisions.

Jesus is the one who never changes in a universe that always does. Jesus is Creator, Sustainer, Saviour, Friend, God's Son, and God Himself!

Everything in this world is always changing, even our desires, interests, skills, and body shapes. But Jesus? He's consistent. He's always the same. Sure, He's always surprising us and touching our lives in thousands of new and different ways, but His character is unchanging. He's God's Son, the Creator, our Saviour, and Friend.

Jesus has promised to be all of that, and more, for each of us. We can trust His promises because He is God. When the words of Colossians say "in Him all things hold together" (1:17, NIV) that includes everything in our lives. He keeps us whole when the enemy is trying to make us fall apart.

Seventh-day Adventists believe that Jesus is one of the three persons, called the Trinity, who make up our one God. The Bible describes Jesus, the Father, and the Holy Spirit as each being committed to our growth as Christians and to our salvation as their children. They made this salvation possible when Jesus came to Bethlehem as a human baby. He lived a life perfectly in accord with God's will and then died innocently for all of our sins. He was placed in a borrowed tomb, but He came back to life three days later. Now he is in heaven interceding with the Father for us, preparing for our deliverance from sin and death.

When everything may be falling apart, when you feel totally alone in the universe, Jesus is right there in the center of it all, offering personal peace and hope. Allow Him into your life. He immediately begins "remodeling" who you are and how you live. Jesus, in fact, is busily transforming His followers into accurate representatives of God's character.

Look to Jesus, and you'll be looking into the understanding and loving face of God.

God's vision for you is life as He lives it! God loves you, and wants to give you the highest quality of life imaginable.

No, not a second-rate existence somewhere on earth, but the highest quality of life imaginable, here and in eternity with Him! That's what God wants us to have. The best!

This is why He provides church families where we can belong. This is why He gives each of us special gifts and talents, so we can live life fully. Amazingly, this is why He's concerned about what you're doing, when you're doing it, and how you relate to Him. God doesn't want anything to get in the way of our friendship. He especially doesn't want us to get involved in anything damaging or hurtful. He's like a loving father or a good big brother. He's someone who loves you so much that He's always looking out for you.

When God designed you, He included special talents and skills that will help you become a uniquely valuable individual. These may be your ability to teach, your love for others, or your leadership skills. Still, whatever special gifts you have received, God has also provided all of the energy and wisdom necessary for you to use them well.

By the way, how God feels about death is part of the quality life He offers. For followers of Christ, death holds no fear. Remember, Jesus defeated death on Calvary and has given us freedom from death. Cemeteries, then, are filled with followers of God who are in the "peaceful pause before the resurrection." Yes, they are dead, but that death holds no power over their future. Jesus is coming to take them (and those of us who are still living) HOME! Death is almost like a wintery promise of spring.

The Seventh-day Adventist faith in today and in the future comes from seeing this life "overflowing" with hope!

Because love is the key aspect of His character, God is also deeply into gratitude. Before we even finish saying thank you, He's already busy sending more blessings.

In the heart of God is a place you can experience as home. God loves you, and wants to spend time with you personally, one on one, as two close friends.

Because you and God are friends, you will spend time together as friends do. Each morning you'll share a hello and a hug and discuss how you can face the day's events together. Throughout the day you'll talk with Him about how you feel. You'll laugh with Him at funny things and ache with Him over sadness and hurts. It's pleasant being God's friend, able to snuggle comfortably into the safety of your relationship. You can always trust Him to treat you well, because He loves you.

The seventh day (Saturday) is an extra-special part of the relationship. The Bible, from Genesis through Revelation, describes the seventh day as the one day God has set aside for focused fellowship with His people. God has named that day "Sabbath" and asked us to spend it with Him. "Remember the sabbath day," He says, "to keep it holy." The Sabbath is a whole day to deepen our friendship with the Creator of the universe! A day when we're together, Jesus with us and us with Jesus.

There's another great truth about friendship with God. It doesn't end in a cemetery, for God is planning a homecoming better than anything we can dream. A homecoming filled with angels, trumpets, Jesus, and resurrections! He's promised to bring His followers, those who have accepted the offer of His life-changing love, from this earth to His home, a place He calls heaven. A place where our friendship can go on growing forever, endlessly, joyfully!

God keeps a family album-and your picture is in it. God loves you and has a plan for your life.
God's love is about you. Personally.

God made you and has a very special plan for your life. It's a plan that will fill you with hope, love, peace, and activity. In fact, when Christ paid the penalty for sin on the cross, that gave Him the right to claim you as His own. As a result, you can experience His love and priceless salvation freely and fully without limit.

By the way, pictures of everyone fill that album: Nepalese, Brazilians, Nigerians, Yupiks, Germans, people of every nation, culture, background, gender, hair color, and foot size. In God's eyes all are equally "children of the King"!

Salvation? God cleans away all our sins and replaces them with His goodness. We don't have to be "good" for Him to accept us. Nevertheless, we must accept His promise and allow Him to clean out everything the enemy has left in us. Then we begin to experience the transforming power of His love. It's like a giant war: one side pulling us toward empty pleasure and destruction, and God urging us to accept His offer of peace and purpose.

Remember, Jesus has already won the war. He is victorious! We celebrate His victory in our lives when we participate in the Lord's Supper. This meal includes three symbols:

Foot washing (which symbolizes our commitment to love others as Jesus loves us),
bread ("This bread is my flesh," Jesus said, "which I will give for the life of the world," John 6:51, NIV), and
wine or grape juice ("Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life." John 6:54, NIV)
To help us understand how God can transform us into His children, Jesus modeled the process of baptism for us. Baptism symbolized dying to self and coming alive in Jesus. Seventh-day Adventists practice full immersion baptism because by being fully buried beneath the water we symbolize that God's grace fully fills us with His new life for the future. Through baptism we are truly born again in Jesus.

Eternal life, peace, purpose, forgiveness, transforming grace, hope: Everything He promises is ours, because He's offering it and He's shown we can trust Him to do exactly as He promises. Accept His gifts, and you immediately become an active part of His family, and He joyfully becomes part of yours.