International House of Prayer has key roles in Perry's rally

One day from kickoff, critics are increasingly piling on Texas Gov. Rick Perry for a big NFL stadium prayer rally set for Saturday in Houston.</p><p>And to think that much of the planning for an event that has stirred so much national controversy came out of what used to be an old strip center on Red Bridge Road in south Kansas City.</p><p>The rally is called &#x201C;The Response.&#x201D; A spin through its website indicates heavy influence by the International House of Prayer, which draws thousands of young people from all over the world to Kansas City.</p><p>At least four IHOP leaders play key roles, including Luis Cataldo, an intercessory missionary, who is listed on the website as the director of Perry&#x2019;s event. Cataldo&#x2019;s wife, Jill, is listed as the program director.</p><p>More than 50 religious and community leaders in Houston this week signed a statement drafted by the Anti-Defamation League taking Perry to task for his involvement in the event. Critics say it is &#x201C;exclusively Christian,&#x201D; blurs church/state separation and features a lineup of conservative speakers known for stances against gay marriage and abortion rights.</p><p>Two ADL leaders wrote in the Houston Chronicle that if Perry wants to pray in private or in church, that&#x2019;s fine, but &#x201C;he shouldn&#x2019;t be asking his constituents to pray along with him in a country that upholds their rights not to pray his way, or not to pray at all.&#x201D;</p><p>&#x201C;Secular nonsense,&#x201D; supporters of the rally reply. They argue that the event is needed because the country&#x2019;s economic woes, terrorism, cultural challenges and natural disasters are at historic crisis levels and that Jesus is needed for guidance.</p><p>Honorary chairman James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, said on his website that the rally is an opportunity for the country to gather and pray for a hurting nation: &#x201C;We believe that America is in crisis &#x2014; not just politically, financially or morally, but because our nation has not honored God in its successes or humbly called on Him in its struggles.&#x201D;</p><p>In his video invitation, Perry, standing in front of an American flag, says: &#x201C;There is hope for America. It lies in heaven, and we will find it on our knees.&#x201D;</p><p>IHOP leaders did not comment for this story.</p><p>But Eric Bearse, spokesman for the event and a former Perry speechwriter, said Luis Cataldo has been particularly instrumental in planning the event.</p><p>Mike Bickle, head of IHOP, whose brand of Christianity relies heavily on the Book of Revelation and a sense of urgency that the Rapture is near, is pictured on the website as a national endorser.</p><p>Another IHOP leader, David Sliker, is in charge of national student mobilization for the event.</p><p>Media reports in Texas say IHOP leader Lou Engle also is involved. Engle, who has been putting on stadium prayer rallies since 2000, was criticized last year for attending a rally in Uganda when the country was considering the death penalty for homosexuals.</p><p>Engle later said he was unaware of the legislation and would not support it.</p><p>Engle, who lives in south Kansas City, declined to comment for this story.</p><p>&#x201C;The Response&#x201D; is seen by some as a national debut for Perry, but political scientists say the connection to the far Christian right could hurt the Republican if, as expected, he enters the field for president.</p><p>Dobson has long been a fierce opponent of gay marriage. Another key player, Donald Wildmon, founder of the American Family Association, has warned of Jewish control of pop culture.</p><p>Burdett Loomis, a political science professor at the University of Kansas, said this week that a serious candidate at some point must appeal to the mainstream and that the stadium rally could be a &#x201C;couple of steps too far to the right.&#x201D;</p><p>A U.S. district judge recently ruled against the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation, which had filed a lawsuit challenging the governor&#x2019;s right to promote the event.</p><p>Signers of this week&#x2019;s statement from the ADL include Jewish, Islamic, Episcopal and Baptist faith leaders.</p><p>It reads in part: &#x201C;Governor Perry has a constitutional duty to treat all Texans equally, regardless of race, religion or ethnicity. His official involvement with The Response, at minimum, violates the spirit of that duty.&#x201D;</p><p>Perry has countered that the event is no different from President Barack Obama participating in a National Day of Prayer.</p><p> &#x201C;This is truly about coming together as a state and lifting up this nation in prayer and having a day of prayer and fasting,&#x201D; Perry said.</p><p>Loomis wonders if Perry planned the event before getting serious about a presidential run. Earlier this week, Perry appeared to downplay his role at the event.</p><p>&#x201C;I may be ushering for all I know,&#x201D; the governor said.</p><p>Perry invited the 49 other governors. Reportedly, only one accepted &#x2014; Sam Brownback of Kansas. Brownback&#x2019;s office said only that the governor is on vacation.</p><p>Since 2000, IHOP has drawn thousands of young people from all over the world to its missions base and university on Red Bridge Road. The place is known for its 24/7 prayer room. </p><p>IHOP is planning a $150 million world headquarters at a site along U.S. 71 in Grandview.</p><p>Not all its followers are young. Barb Van Duine, a senior citizen, moved from Wisconsin so she could attend the prayer center regularly.</p><p>One morning this week outside the prayer center, she praised organizers of the Texas rally for getting Bickle and other IHOP leaders.</p><p>&#x201C;They are the best at stirring a crowd,&#x201D; she said.</p><p>As of this week, about 8,000 people had registered to attend the rally in 70,000-plus-seat Reliant Stadium. Organizers are hoping for a late surge.

When is the Rapture? - Apocalypse 2011 | Apocalypse 2011

The Date of the Rapture is…

Many believe that the date of the Rapture is October 21 2011.  Harold Camping from Family Radio in Oakland who was famously known for his incorrect prediction of the May 21 Rapture , has once again predicted the End of the World.  If October 21 is when the Rapture will come, the End Times are already among us, as many have pointed out by citing current News stories that show signs of the Apocalypse.

We are currently living during the End of Days, because the End of the World will come on October 21, 2011.  Many will be saved by Jesus in the Rapture, while others are destroyed with the world by God.  The October 21 Rapture will bring peace to those who truly believe in Jesus, and have awaited his Second Coming.  Jesus will Rapture them up into Heaven in a single instant, in what will be the most glorious moment ever experienced.

Those who are not saved during the October 21 Rapture will surely feel no pain, as the World comes to the End.  God will destroy his original creation, as well as all that is left, after saving his people on Judgement Day in the Rapture.  The End of the World will come just after Rapture, as God will want the lost souls to know that He truly does exist, and that their fate is worse off because they were not saved.  This short period between the Rapture and the End of the World is known as the Apocalypse.  Are you ready for October 21, 2011 ?

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