War Cry 8 June 2019: selected articles

BBC/BBC America

8 June 2019 • WAR CRY • TELEVISION 3 Villanelle (left) and Eve are on a quest to find each other

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HAIRPIN as a murder weapon was enough to make MI5 employee Eve Polastri (Sandra Oh) think that the assassin was a woman. But what she did not suspect was how her world would collide with the international killer’s. In the second series of BBC One spy thriller Killing Eve, which begins tonight (Saturday 8 June), the plot thickens.

The team who were set up to find the killer are learning more about the organisation that has hired her as a hitwoman. And, though Eve was released from the team, she is still on a personal quest to find her.

Eve used to have a fairly mundane existence: a nice home, a loving husband and a desk job with the potential, though not always fulfilled, for excitement. But when she was called in by an MI6 boss, a new chapter of her life opened. Together they identified the assassin who had been behind a spate of killings: Villanelle (Jodie Comer).

Villanelle is flamboyant with her kills, taking pleasure in watching her victims die. She shows no remorse. Instead she shows off a wicked sense of humour.

The young assassin is generously remunerated for her work and uses her earnings to fulfil her desire for a lavish lifestyle, including a fridge full of champagne in a grand Parisian apartment.

While at the outset Killing Eve seemed to be a simple tale of good versus evil, viewers soon discovered

MI5 employee is determined to track down the assassin who wants to kill her, writes Sarah Olowofoyeku

otherwise. Eve and Villanelle have strayed from their mission, risking their jobs and other people’s lives as well as their own.

Eve became intrigued by Villanelle.

She is motivated by something other than the need to arrest her. In turn, Villanelle has taken a twisted liking to Eve and used her assassin skills to track her down.

It was no surprise that the first series ended with a bang. The two women

Ultimately what matters is our choice of what to pursue came face to face. Eve stabbed Villanelle, who then tried to shoot her. When Eve came out from hiding, Villanelle was gone.

Eve and Villanelle take huge risks in their personal and professional lives because they believe that pursuing each other, for whatever reason, is worth it.

Sandra Oh says of her character: ‘Everything is fine about her life, right?

But there is more and she just happens

to be a character who ultimately wants more.’

It’s no crime for anyone to want something more. Ultimately what matters is our choice of what to pursue.

We may chase a dream of a new job, expensive items or a family. We may engage in something out of character that is thrilling but destructive.

People from many walks of life have found that attaining certain goals does not always bring the satisfaction they expected. Instead they have been most gripped by the discovery of God’s love, as revealed in his Son, Jesus.

One early Christian, Paul, who had experienced success, wealth and adventure, knew what this felt like. He wrote: ‘Everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus’ (Philippians 3:8 New Living Translation).

He had come to see that when anyone puts their trust in Jesus, they can receive forgiveness for their wrongdoing, guidance in turning their lives round for the better and the experience of a love that never ends.

Countless people have followed a personal quest to find Jesus and discovered that pursuing him is always worth it.

BBC

Adamant Eve

8 INTERVIEW • WAR CRY • 8 June 2019

Tomorrow (Sunday 9 June) is TM Awareness Day, which aims to highlight the rare neurological condition transverse myelitis. VICTORIA ARLEN tells Sarah Olowofoyeku how her experience of TM and another neurological disorder caused her to be locked inside her own body, and how she overcame the illness

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HE won gold for the US at the London Paralympics and she has been a contestant on the TV show Dancing with the Stars. Sports broadcaster Victoria Arlen is as active as they come, but for four years of her life the 24-year-old was out of the game. When she was just 11 years old, her body began to shut down.

‘I was the last person you would ever think this would happen to,’ she says. ‘I had no health issues growing up and was very active. I’m from a family of athletes, so I grew up playing sports.’

Massachusetts-born Victoria enjoyed ‘One day I woke up with severe pain on her childhood. She was one of a set of my right side.’ triplets and remembers always doing Victoria and her family could not have everything with her brothers. But soon anticipated what was ahead of them. after her tenth birthday, life began to After a series of tests and hospital change for the family. visits, including the early removal of her Victoria explains: ‘My immune system started shutting down. But I would bounce appendix, which did nothing to alleviate the pain she was feeling, Victoria was back. I was the kid who could barely sit admitted to a psychiatric ward. still, so I’d be on the couch for a few days In constant pain, she could not sleep and then right back at it. It wasn’t anything or eat, but the doctors were unable to out of the ordinary, until I was 11.

Courtesy of the Arlen family

Paralympic gold medallist: ‘Doctors cannot explain why I’m still alive’

Victoria Arlen

discover what was wrong physically. They labelled her condition as psychological.

It would be another seven years before Victoria received an accurate diagnosis.

After visiting a specialist doctor in 2013, she finally learnt that her condition had been a result of a rare combination of two neurological disorders, acute disseminated encephalomyelitis and transverse myelitis.

In Locked In, a book she has written about her story, Victoria calls the next chapter of her life ‘hell’. In

God was and is my anchor

Victoria, one of a set of triplets, had a happy childhood

the psychiatric ward, none of her family were allowed to stay with her and she describes how the nurses and doctors on the ward severely

8 June 2019 • WAR CRY • INTERVIEW 9 PA

Victoria stands on the podium with Britain’s Ellie Simmonds (left) and Germany’s Tanja Groepper after winning gold at the 2012 Paralympics mistreated her, in particular one nurse she calls ‘F’. She writes: ‘In the mornings, “F” puts me in a cold shower and taunts me when my upper body strength gives out and I fall.’

Despite all that happened to her, Victoria never doubted or questioned God. ‘He was and is my anchor,’ she tells me.

And, though she had grown up attending church with her family, she says that she did not ‘really learn what faith was about’ until she had nothing left except the ability ‘to talk to God’.

Not long after first being admitted, Victoria felt she had run out of emotional and physical strength. She was fearful and ready to give in. After saying what she thought were her final prayers, she sensed that she was comforted by God’s love.

In her book, she writes: ‘He is holding me, and I know that whatever happens it’s going to be okay.’ Then her mother entered her room, with two paramedics who were there to take her out of the terrible conditions in which she had been living.

However, her ordeal was not At 15 years of age, Victoria was completely yet over. In August 2006 she was paralysed and unable to speak

struck down with a ‘crushing headache’ and was rushed into an ambulance before she lost consciousness. Everything went dark.

Victoria remained in that darkness for more than two years. She has no recollection of what took place during that

Being locked-in was horrible. There is nothing worse time – her body had shut down. It was not until 2009 that she regained awareness of her situation and realised that she was ‘locked in’.

Locked-in syndrome is a rare condition in which a person is conscious and aware but completely paralysed and unable to speak. Victoria was surrounded by family, but she could not communicate with them.

Turn to page 10

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10 INTERVIEW • WAR CRY • 8 June 2019

From page 9 She was just 14 years old.

‘It was horrible,’ she says. ‘You can’t understand it until you’ve been there.

There’s nothing worse.’

She was in that state for a year.

As well as being locked in, Victoria was experiencing seizures that caused her body intense pain. Doctors had no idea what was going on and were not hopeful that they would find answers or that Victoria would ever recover. Some specialists were still calling her crazy. She was still being abused by medical staff and could not express what was being done to her.

But her family, and especially her mother, refused to give up on her.

‘My family has been my strength,’ she says. ‘They helped me and showed me what fighting and not giving up is all about.

I get my fight from them.’

And it was one moment with her mother that marked the start of what would become the fight of their lives.

After being prescribed with a sleeping medication, Victoria’s seizures had become less frequent.

then sentences.

She had to relearn basic, simple tasks, but was determined and made amazing progress. Even after missing four years of school, she worked hard and was able to graduate at the same time as her triplet brothers.

But having been in a vegetative state for so long, Victoria was told by doctors that she would never ‘We had basically gotten on top of the walk again. seizures,’ Victoria explains, ‘and I realised Victoria was an active child who loved to swim Sport became I had control of my eyes. I made eye one way in contact with my mum and she could see I way to get out of my wheelchair, to relieve which Victoria found not only her physical was focusing on something. She told me some of the nerve pain I was feeling and to abilities again, but also a restored sense to blink if I could hear her, and so I did. find freedom.’ of self.

That was the start of my recovery.’

But before Victoria knew it, swimming ‘I used to swim before I got sick,’ she Over the next few months, Victoria became more than therapy or a way of says. ‘After being back in the world it was began to regain what she had lost. Slowly reconnecting with her brothers. She began part of my recovery and therapy. It was a she started to form sounds, then words, training intensively to compete at an international level. In 2012, the 17-year-old Victoria, her parents, older brother and triplet brother after her win at the London Paralympics

Swimming was a way to get out of my wheelchair and find freedom

8 June 2019 • WAR CRY • INTERVIEW 11 Courtesy of the Arlen family

Victoria has become a sports presenter

I was told I would never walk again was swimming for Team USA at London’s Paralympics.

‘It was amazing,’ she enthuses. ‘Two years prior, I was waking up from a vegetative state and now I was on the world stage winning a gold medal with all my family around me. It was truly a blessing from God. ‘Doctors still don’t know why I’m alive and why I’m talking,’ she says. ‘I’m called a miracle and I say it was Jesus.’

Victoria believes that God healed her.

She says that the strength he gave her played an important part in her recovery.

y the time of her Paralympic win, B Victoria had not only faced physical challenges but had also been challenged

on her eligibility as a Paralympian.

Though she was unable to walk, the International Paralympic Committee initially deemed that her impairment was not severe enough for her to qualify for the Paralympics. Only a successful appeal against the decision meant she could compete in London.

Questions arose again before Victoria was due to take part in another competition. The IPC ruled that she was not eligible to swim. No longer able to compete, she tried to work out what she could do next. She eventually entered sports broadcasting and became the youngest presenter on ESPN. It was a dream come true.

But still she was keen to reach another goal – one that she felt would be the completion of her miracle.

‘I was told I would never walk again, that I would be paralysed for the rest of my life,’ says Victoria. ‘I was also told I would never amount to anything or be a functioning member of society. I challenged that.

‘My family had made a promise to me that they would do everything they could to help me get back everything that was taken from me. We didn’t know what that would be like,’ she admits, ‘but we explored the possibility of walking, and then we discovered a programme called Project Walk. We ended up opening our own franchise in Boston.’

About a decade after Victoria had first been taken to hospital, she started to walk again. Through the Boston branch of Project Walk, she has helped other people learn to walk.

After helping so many others, Victoria stood on her own two feet in front of millions to dance on national TV. She writes in her book: ‘Dancing with the Stars, aside from all of the glitz and glamour, is one of the biggest healing experiences for me. Each time I set foot on the dancefloor, I am reminded of what I can do, and I find a greater purpose for all the pain that I have endured.’

ents Victoria stands tall with her par

And it is this perspective that has enabled Victoria to achieve so much for herself and then inspire others. In 2017, she launched Victoria’s Victory Foundation, which provides financial assistance and support for people with mobility challenges. It aims to give them hope as they face the daily obstacles and isolation of living with special needs.

‘Extraordinary challenges lead to an extraordinary victory,’ she says. ‘Even when you’ve hit rock bottom you have to keep trusting God and know that your story doesn’t end in defeat.’ l Locked In is published

by Authentic Media

12 INNER LIFE • WAR CRY • 8 June 2019

Prayerlink THE War Cry invites readers to send in requests for prayer, including the first names of individuals and details of their ­circumstances. Send your requests to Prayerlink, War Cry, 101 Newington Causeway, Lon­don SE1 6BN. Mark your envelope ‘Confidential’.

Becoming a Christian There is no set formula to becoming a Christian, but many people have found saying this prayer to be a helpful first step to a relationship with God Lord Jesus Christ, I am truly sorry for the things I have done wrong in my life. Please forgive me. I now turn from everything that I know is wrong.

Thank you that you died on the cross for me so that I could be forgiven and set free.

Thank you that you offer me forgiveness and the gift of your Holy Spirit.

Please come into my life by your Holy Spirit to be with me for ever.

Thank you, Lord Jesus.

Amen

Nigel Bovey gives chapter and verse on each book in the Scriptures

Song of Songs LSO known as the Song of Solomon, A traditionally this book is ascribed to King Solomon. Scholars disagree

over whether the book is a historical or allegorical account. As the book does not mention ‘God’, some question its meaning and purpose.

At its heart is a love story. It is presented as a series of exchanges between a young couple, with occasional comments from young women of Jerusalem, perhaps the woman’s handmaidens.

The man is King Solomon. Although not named, the vineyard-owning woman is referred to as the ‘Shulammite’ (6:13).

Shulam is thought to be the village of Shunem, which was the home of Abishag, a young companion of Solomon’s father King David (1 Kings 1:3). Some commentators suggest she could be the protagonist here.

The language the couple use is intimate and sensual. They extol each other’s physical appearance. He loves the way she looks, especially admiring her hair, eyes, lips, teeth, neck and breasts (4:1–7; 7:1–5). She reciprocates. She loves his physique and admires his

Key verse ‘Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot sweep it away’ (Song of Songs 8:7 New International Version)

physical strength (5:10–16).

Their love is all-consuming. They love each other’s scent (1:13). Their love takes their breath away. It is as ‘strong as death’ and ‘burns like blazing fire’ (8:6). They cannot bear to be apart.

Some suggest it is an allegory of how God loves his people The couple revel in the experience of knowing not only what love is but also that they are loved (2:16).

They have eyes only for each other. To her, he is ‘outstanding among ten thousand’ (5:10). To him, she is ‘my dove, my perfect one’, who is ‘unique’ (6:9), despite the fact that Solomon already has many other wives and concubines (6:8). Arguably, it is only now that Solomon has discovered true love.

Commentators offer a number of suggestions as to why this book is in the Bible.

Some suggest that it is to be read as an allegory of how God loves his people. Some interpret it as a picture of how Christ the bridegroom loves his bride, the Church.

It is worth noting that the book’s inclusion strongly indicates that, contrary to some schools of thought, physical attraction and sexual attraction are not sinful.

Rather they are precious gifts from God.

Extract from Why Jesus? by Nicky Gumbel published by Alpha International, 2011. Used by kind permission of Alpha International

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