Nineteen European countries violate religious liberty, says the 1998 report of the Helsinki International Federation for Human Rights. Religious liberty is in greater danger in Europe than during the communist era because many governments in both Western and Eastern Europe are supporting traditional religions at the expense of minorities, the report says. Violations of religious liberty are cited in Albania, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Moldavia, Norway, Romania, Russia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Yugoslavia.

The report cites many Western European countries, Adventist Press Service said. It noted a 1997 Austrian law that prohibits giving official recognition to any religion other than the 12 that already exist. In Greece, where 97% of citizens are considered to be members of the Orthodox Church, Protestants, Catholics, and other minorities are victims of discrimination, the Helsinki report says. Other nations of the European Union are in the process of preparing laws to reinforce the status of traditional religions while limiting smaller groups.

Recent investigations have been carried out by the French, Belgian, and German parliaments into the activities of minority religions under the guise of investigating "dangerous sects" and "psycho-groups." These governments have often prominently listed such groups as Jehovah's Witnesses, Hasidic Jews, charismatic Roman Catholics, evangelical Protestants and the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) to "warn" the public against them. Additionally, pan-European institutions such as the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe are considering issuing reports on "sects" that call for national "advice and information centers" to control "sects" and disseminate information on these "harmful" or "dangerous" groups.

For most in Britain, Christmas is still Christmas. But in Birmingham, the nation's second biggest city, they celebrated "Winterval." Birmingham City Council's decision to rename the festive season has enraged church leaders and mystified the non-politically correct majority in the rest of the country. John Barton, the archdeacon of Ashton, said: "It is a totally unnecessary example of political correctness to avoid sensitivities people simply do not have."

Fewer than one person in six [in Britain] recognizes that the millennium marks the 2,000th anniversary of Christ's birth, according to a new survey. When asked what the year 2000 commemorates, 37 percent said they did not know, 18 percent mentioned the coming of the new century, 17 percent said it marked the year 2000 and just 12 percent recognized any link with the birth of Christ.

Anthony King, Professor of Government at Essex University, said: "According to Gallup most people see the occasion as little more than an opportunity to dance, drink champagne, stay up late with friends or travel abroad."

"Britain is pagan," evangelist Luis Palau said. "Its people are beautiful, wonderful heathens. They take it in good humor when I say that, but the nation needs a real touch from Heaven." People are cynical, and church attendance is down as a result, he said. "Evangelism is hard. The British always seem to question God's goodness and power."

The Argentine-born evangelist recently completed a three-week trip to seven cities in England. "I keep telling the British that I'm here to pay my debt. They brought the Gospel to Argentina, and now we're having to bring it to England," he said during a radio interview.

Christianity is having "a minimal influence on the thoughts, words, and deeds of people under the age 40," according to pollster George Barna. His examination of 100 indicators of attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors showed that Christians are very similar to non-Christians in their everyday behavior.

"Non-Christians expect Christians to differ in the religious realm," Barna said. However, "there are few instances of visible differences outside of the religious domain." He concluded that Christians are losing their impact despite the fact that 90% of Americans have a positive view of the Christian faith and 84% believe themselves to be Christians.

His study also found contradictions between the way pastors characterize their church and the way it actually operates. For example, nine out of ten pastors describe their churches as "evangelistic," but less than one in three church attendees has shared his faith in Christ with a non-Christian within the last 12 months.

Three of five senior pastors describe their churches as "seeker sensitive," yet only one in four offers a service or meeting designed with the needs of non-believers in mind. The consistent complaint of visitors who never return to Protestant churches is that they found the experience "irrelevant to my life."

Muslims in Europe don't respond positively to Christianity because they see the corrupt state of Western society, Christians there say. Muslims are appalled by the crime, prostitution, and pornography prevalent in the West, and are often not impressed by the Christian church, which is largely divided and ineffectual, according to Operation Mobilization workers in Italy.

Muslims can't make sense out of the chaos of Western society, and Christians are often not committed enough to help them, Christian worker Monika Maggio said.