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Showing posts from March, 2017

The Russian Issue on Which We Should be Focusing: Putin’s War on Christianity

By Veronica Neffinger - Posted at Christian Headlines.com : Russia has been in the news nearly every day lately, mostly for the possibility of the current U.S. presidential administration’s connections to the country and its president Vladimir Putin. However, politics shouldn’t be the only--or even the most prominent--reason Russia is in the news. Christian persecution is increasing in Russia under a set of laws Putin signed last year known as the Yarovaya laws. These laws restrict the freedom of citizens in a number of ways, including specifically restricting Christians’ right to evangelize. Relevant Magazine notes that, although the laws are billed as anti-terrorism measures, in truth they target Christians who wish to evangelize outside of designated religious locations. The laws even prevent Christians from sharing the gospel in their own homes. Read more here.

200 killed in Christian areas of Nasarawa, Nigeria

Morning Star News report - Posted at Baptist Press : KEFFI, Nigeria (BP) -- Armed attacks by Muslim Fulani herdsmen on predominantly Christian communities in Nasarawa state this year have left more than 200 people dead and destroyed homes and farms, sources said. One such attack on a worship service on March 19 in the central Nigerian state's Oshugu village killed two Christians and displaced hundreds from the Loko Development Area of the Nasarawa Local Government Area (LGA), a survivor told Morning Star News. "The attack on our village occurred this morning while we were in the church," the survivor, identified only as Ittah, said on March 19. "Our village head and one other person died, and many were injured. The sad thing is that these Fulanis have been attacking our communities, and no one is doing anything about it." Both Christians killed were members of the local congregation of the Evangelical Church Winning All. A petition to Nigeria's Natio

Don’t Mock Mike Pence For Protecting His Marriage, Commend Him

By Mollie Hemingway - Posted at The Federalist : Liberals were horrified to learn that Mike Pence doesn't dine alone with women who aren't his wife and doesn't drink if she's not around. They shouldn't be. Among the many norms broken by the media in the last year is the relative lack of profiles of the wives of the president and vice president. So it was nice to see a basic profile of Karen Pence, wife of Vice President Mike Pence, in the Washington Post . Even though Mrs. Pence holds political and religious views different from those held by most in the media, the article is mostly respectful of her as a person. A problem arose when the story’s author marketed the piece on social media: This particular tweet was one of many that Parker sent out to promote her story. This one went viral. People of various political stripes all assumed she was mocking the Pences for their marital conduct. On the Left, people found the protective mechanism horrible. Here’

The Benedict Option Can’t Save Your Faith Or Family

By Luma Simms - Posted at The Federalist : “The Benedict Option” rightly tells the reader there is no salvation in politics, our culture has morally collapsed, and Christians have amalgamated their faith with American popular culture. Dreher believes American Christians’ only viable choice is what he has dubbed the “Benedict Option.” He uses the monastic Benedictine spirituality and way of life as a prescriptive template for all Christians. Ultimately, our faith in methods of ‘intentional Christian community,’ and our journey in and out of this pre-Dreher Benedict Option, exhausted our faith and estranged one of our children. I’d been grinding my own wheat flour for two years by the time I read Rod Dreher’s “Crunchy Cons” in 2006. A friend had given it to me because of my, shall we say, “Benedict Option” lifestyle. Winter red wheat berries are the best for bread baking, while the soft white ones produce a fine, velvety pastry flour—a tip for those interested in that route.

Peacemakers & Piecemakers

By John Andrew Reasnor - Posted at Kingdom & Abolition : “Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.” Luke 12:51-53 There is often tension to be found in scripture. The heart of wisdom is simple and beautiful, but sometimes the details get messy and confused. This is exceptionally clear when considering Biblical peace and Biblical division. There’s something to be said about men who are natural peacemakers. That is a very admirable and Christ-like quality. They diligently seek understanding, repentance, forgiveness, and a Biblical true peace. This is not only an admirable quality, it is a necessary one for any Christian, but most n

Identity: Knowing Who We Are in Christ

By Deb Welch - Posted at Out of the Ordinary : The professional women sitting next to our dinner table last week gloried in their roles as nurses as they traded recent stories of pain and recovery from the hospital down the street. Yet I wondered whether they realized that nursing is merely their vocation, not the core of their identity. Likewise, my niece and her closest friends encourage one another as they share the challenges of homeschooling in their common vocations as young moms. But do they understand how fleeting this season of life will seem in a matter of a few years when their raucous, chaotic living rooms morph into much quieter empty nests? Another young woman, whom I have discipled in the past, regularly introduces herself as “an addict” to close acquaintances, even though she has not taken a mood-altering substance in nearly four years. She understands that in her weakness she is still susceptible to temptation. So for her, retaining the “addict” moniker helps to k

Road Map To The Russian Connection

By Micah Morrison - Posted at Judicial Watch : The headlines out of Monday’s House Intelligence Committee hearing on the Russian connection confirmed what has been widely reported: the FBI is investigating Team Trump’s alleged involvement with Russian government entities during the 2016 election and Mr. Trump’s charge that Barack Obama wiretapped him during the campaign is baseless. Every high-profile congressional hearing is largely kabuki theater and this one was no different: the party out of power sees abuses everywhere and the party in power plays defense, but careful observers often can glean indications of what is happening behind the scenes. That’s the case with Monday’s session. The money quote comes from FBI Director James Comey. The FBI’s Counterintelligence Division, Mr. Comey said, is “investigating the nature of any links between individuals associated with the Trump campaign and the Russian government, and whether there was any coordination between the campaign and

Things May Get Messy

By Rich Holdeman - Posted at Gentle Reformation : Next week on March 29 and 30 Rosaria Butterfield is coming to speak to the Christian community in Bloomington, IN ( more information here ). Rosaria is a gracious and engaging believer who has written two very helpful books on the power of the gospel to transform our lives. In Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert , she tells the story of her own, dramatic conversion to Christ. In Openness Unhindered , she explores the need for every person to find his or her true identity in Christ. In the process of telling some of her own story, she makes it clear that the gospel has the power to seriously disrupt our lives in ways that are not always neat and tidy. Calling her own conversion story a “train wreck” she has a lot to teach the church about what it means to work with people whose lives are being made new by Christ. When she walked away from her former life as a tenured English professor at Syracuse University, all she had left

UNCONSCIOUS PRIVILEGE?

By Persis - Posted at Tried By Fire : The following quotes are from Heal Us, Emmanuel: A Call for Racial Reconciliation, Representation, and Unity in the Church , which contains contributions from various pastors in the PCA. I started reading this in earnest over the weekend and could not put it down. I don't agree with everything, but there is much that I do. Regardless, this book is thought-provoking and uncovers assumptions and unconscious privilege that the Christian majority culture (white culture) may be bringing to the table. There is more that I could write particularly in how those assumptions trickle down in application for women, but it will have to wait. My day job is calling me. You may disagree completely that there is any privilege whatsoever in play. Fair enough. My intent is not to point the finger but to encourage you to listen to a side you may not have considered before. Above all, my motive is for the peace and healing of the Bride of Christ. Read more h

Rouzer Files Bill to Eliminate the U.S. Department of Education

By Shane Vander Hart - Posted at Truth in American Education : Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY) is not the only one in Congress who wants to see the U.S. Department of Education eliminated . I’m sure there are several legislators who would love to see that happen. One of his colleagues joined him in filing a bill to do just that. Congressman David Rouzer (R-NC) last Friday introduced H.R. 1510 , the States’ Education Reclamation Act, to eliminate the Department in order to increase teachers’ pay. The bill proposes to reallocate the Department’s billions in funding to be proportionally distributed to the respective states to be used for any education purpose as they see fit, such as teacher pay raises, new school construction, investment in technology and more. Taxpayer dollars provided to the U.S. Department of Education from each state would be returned to the states in the form of grants. “Given the challenges and special needs that all teachers and school administrators co

Understanding the Heinousness of Homosexuality from the Confession of Sam Allberry

Posted at Pastor Mathis - A Protestant in post-Christian America : Multiple Choice: Which quote would you rather your pastor announce at church? A. “I am same-sex attracted and have been my entire life. By that I mean that I have sexual, romantic and deep emotional attractions…” B. “I am sexually attracted to other women besides my wife. By that I mean that I have sexual, romantic and deep emotional attractions…” C. “I am sexually attracted to children and have been my entire life. By that I mean that I have sexual, romantic and deep emotional attractions…” Likely many readers would pick option “D,” the ubiquitous “none of the above.” But there are some who consider choice A as tolerable or acceptable or even laudable. Choice A is the opening words of pastor Sam Allberry’s two minute speech that was passed around on Facebook. Sam struggles with homosexuality, yet he is celibate. Sam is not an obscure pastor in a small town. He an editor at The Gospel Coalition (TGC). His two

Guerrilla, Gorilla, And The Idiot Greek Chorus

By Dr. R. Scott Clark - Posted at The Heidelblog : Eleven years ago the film Idiocracy was released. I have only seen portions. I am not a great fan of the comedy of errors. It is difficult for me to watch Seinfeld because of the George Costanza character. Jason Alexander did a brilliant job in making Costanza almost utterly disagreeable. Nevertheless, evidence seems to be mounting that Idiocracy was prophetic and that perhaps I should make myself watch it. Apparently it has not taken 5 centuries for the Idiocrats to assume power. I call the grammar and writing column “Grammar Guerrilla” in part because guerrilla (or guerilla) is a homonym for gorilla (i.e., they sound similar when pronounced) but the two words, obviously signify very different things. A grammar gorilla would be a silly thing indeed. A grammar guerilla, however, could be a very useful thing indeed. A guerilla is an irregular (not in a standing army) paramilitary resistance fighter: The Heidelblog is conducting

Court Drops Charges of Kidnapping, ‘Human Sacrifice’ against Evangelist in Uganda

CHURCH MEMBERS WHO PRAYED FOR HASSAN MUWANGUZI IN EASTERN UGANDA. (MORNING STAR NEWS) Posted at Morning Star News : NAIROBI, Kenya (Morning Star News) – A judge in Uganda last week dropped charges aimed at stirring up Islamist opposition against an evangelist who provides refuge to converts from Islam, sources said. A court in Tirinyi, Kibuku District on March 13 dropped the charges of kidnapping and “human sacrifice” against Hassan Muwanguzi after the complainant and his attorney twice failed to show up in court, Muwanguzi’s attorney told Morning Star News. Muwanguzi and his attorney appeared at a court hearing on March 10 at which the judge asked whether the complainant or his lawyer were present. They were not. “The case was adjourned to March 13, and still the complainant failed to appear in court again when the charges were read against Muwanguzi,” the attorney said. Read more here. HT: Voice of the Persecuted

Seeking the Approval of Men

By Venkatesh Gopalakrishnan - Posted at Gentle Reformation : Venkatesh Gopalakrishnan is a church planting pastor in Bangalore, India with the Reformed Presbyterian Church. “Do not wait for any man to approve your ministry!” thundered a young preacher from the pulpit of a church in Bangalore. He went on to declare, alluding to Galatians 1:10, “If you seek the approval of any man, you cannot please God!” The young preacher wanted his hearers to stop giving excuses and enter the ministries to which God was calling them. Sitting in the pew, I could not but help thinking that what I just heard was so contrary to what I had been taught. Concluding that the preacher’s view was rather idiosyncratic, I ignored the his advice and tried to meditate on the more edifying aspects of the sermon. However, just a few days after this incident I heard another friend make a very similar remark, albeit in a slightly different context. This friend was arguing with me that a pastor ought not to rec

We Have Not Even Heard That There Is a Holy Spirit

By Tim Challies - Posted at Challies.com : It’s a funny little story that could only have happened during the church’s earliest days. Paul has been on one of his missionary journeys and, while traveling through Asia Minor, stumbles upon a little group of believers. But there’s something unusual about them, something missing. Here’s how Luke describes it: And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John’s baptism.” And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Hol

Malaysian pastor's abduction now at 1-month point

By Angela Lu/WORLD News Service - Posted at Baptist Press : Raymond Koh - Photo courtesy of World Watch Monitor. ASHEVILLE, N.C. (BP) -- Today (March 13) marks one month since the disappearance of Malaysian pastor Raymond Koh, whom family and friends believe was kidnapped because of his interaction with Muslim Malays. Police have arrested a suspect in the kidnapping but have not released any information about Koh's possible whereabouts. On Sunday, March 5, hundreds of Christians around Malaysia held candlelight prayer vigils in solidarity with Koh's family. Holding candles and signs reading, "Where is Pastor Raymond?" and "Let Raymond go," the people prayed for the pastor's safe return. "We pray for his safe and quick release," his wife Susannah Lieu Sow Yoke said as she broke into tears. "At this time we look to God and [hope that] he'll be safe and we'll meet him again." Read more here.

Four Characteristics of a False Convert

By Jordan Standridge - Posted at The Cripplegate : Over the years I’ve seen that one of the most powerful moments in a new believer’s life is the realization that there is such a thing as a false convert. The sudden realization that salvation is not dependent on a prayer, a baptism or family history propels true believers to a whole other dimension in their walk with Christ. They begin to examine themselves properly ( 2 Cor 13:5 ), they become more evangelistic, they care more about theology and they appreciate being at church so much more. Understanding the fact that false converts are a reality is so important for those who call themselves Christians. As we saw last week , there are few things more disappointing than when someone from our church walks away from the Lord. Especially when you’ve spent countless hours not only teaching and discipling that person, but you have shared a myriad of hours of ministry with him. Maybe at some point in the grieving process, you will wonder

China’s New Policy Expected to Lead to More Religious Persecution

Posted at Morning Star News : Authorities in China in altercation with woman defending her church building. (China Aid) ‘Sinicization’ a catalyst for attacking faith communities. March 13, 2017 (Morning Star News) – China Aid’s 2016 Annual Persecution Report details a seismic shift in the Chinese government’s approach to religious policy that is expected to lead to further persecution. The report’s core subject tracks a deviation in the Chinese government’s ideological approach to religious management. During the National Conference of Religious Work held in April 2016, Chinese President Xi Jinping emphasized the importance of religions “persistently following the path of Sinicization,” and subordinate government departments adopted the policy as a catalyst for many persecution attempts. Previously, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) focused its efforts on encouraging religions and socialism to mutually adapt, a policy introduced by former President Jiang Zemin. Despite China’

How Jesus Called Out False Teachers and Deadly Doctrine

By Tim Challies - Posted at Challies.com : It’s a good time to be a false teacher and to espouse deadly doctrine. It seems that today’s most brazen heretic will be granted a hearing and, in all likelihood, a book deal. Novelty is appealing, orthodoxy boring. It’s the ones who sound the warning and issue the challenge that bear the risk—the risk of being labelled “haters.” There’s more patience for those who smilingly subvert the truth than for those who boldly defend it. Conviction is a sign of arrogance, while humility is expressed in uncertainty. Love, it seems, requires us to bear patiently with any amount of error. And this kind of love, we are told, is modeled after Jesus. Jesus did not judge, Jesus welcomed all opinions, Jesus would have accepted different kinds of teachings—so long as those teachings contained love and hints of truth. A quick scan of the gospels, however, shows that this impression is a far cry from the Jesus of the Bible. It shows that society has reimag

CIA "Weapons" Let Hackers Use Your Computer, Phone, & TV to Spy on You

By    C. Mitchell Shaw - Posted at The New American: With the WikiLeaks disclosures Tuesday about the hacking capabilities of the CIA, it is now known that the agency can hack at least on par with the NSA and with even less accountability. One element of that is the ability to remotely access devices — such as computers, mobile devices, and televisions — to watch and listen to targets. Of course, since the CIA has lost control over its hacking tools, others now have that same ability. As The New American reported Wednesday: On Tuesday, WikiLeaks released the first part of a “new series of leaks on the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency” that shows the CIA has been secretly building an arsenal of hacking tools and an army of hackers to rival — if not exceed — the hacking capabilities of the NSA. The leaked documents also show that the CIA — in a move reminiscent of the Keystone Kops — “lost control of the majority of its hacking arsenal,” allowing it to fall into the hands of hac

Lou Engle and Esther

Posted at Design of Providence : Recently I saw Lou Engle's Twitter account posting tidbits on Esther. Soon after, people began using the #IAmEsther hashtag. I went to Lou Engle's website, and found an article that explained this new movement coming from his group. The article is entitled For Such a Time as This ; the title is taken from Esther 4:14b, in which Mordecai says to Esther, "And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?" As I looked into it, I realized it was mishandling of scripture which may cause confusion, heartache, and exhaustion among its adherents, and so I felt compelled to write a response. As I've done in the past, any direct quotations from the article will be colored purple for visual organization. I'll be quoting the article in full, albeit in chunks, but feel free to click on the link and read through the whole thing first. The Story of Esther Before we jump into the article, I think it's import

Sola Scriptura Protects Christian Liberty

By Dr. R. Scott Clark - Posted at The Heidelblog : In April 1521, when Martin Luther stood before the powers of this world at the Diet of Worms, he did so on the basis of the sole, unique, and final authority of God’s Word. Luther confessed that his conscience was bound by the Word of God. Popes and councils have erred and have contradicted each other. So they have. We call Luther’s principle, Sola Scriptura , by Scripture alone. This principle does not mean what it has often been made to say by American evangelicals, i.e., “No creed but Christ,” or “We read Scripture as if no one else has ever read it before,” or “I and my Bible are the sole authority.” The first is contradictory on its face because it is a very short, very inadequate creed. It also contradicts Scripture, since Scripture itself contains creedal statements, e.g., Deuteronomy 6:4 and 1 Timothy 3:16 (not to mention the several “faithful sayings” of the pastoral epistles). The second contradicts Scripture itself, si

Marriage Unravels With Barely a Whimper of Protest

By Larry Hoop - Posted at  byFaith Online : As we agree that widespread divorce is destructive, we can also point out that the culture’s answer, cohabitation, offers no solution to that problem. If anything, living together before marriage makes the problem worse. On June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court handed down its decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, and same-sex marriage became the law of the land. Various Christian leaders described themselves as grieved, troubled, and sobered by the decision. They characterized it as a tragic error and an assault on marriage. Properly so, for in a 28-page opinion, a bare majority of five justices to four overturned the millennia-old understanding that marriage is between one man and one woman. Yet one could argue that another trend in our culture has done more to undermine the institution of marriage, with far less vocal protest from the Church: the practice of premarital cohabitation. Consider, for example, that Gallup estimates that in

Warnings about heresy is not the same thing as being a “hater”

By Mike Ratliff - Posted at Possessing the Treasure : 25 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. Judges 21:25 (NASB) We live in an evil time. There are large numbers of “Christian” leaders who claim to be ministers of God, but prove by their words and actions to have thrown off the authority of God. They do what is right in their own eyes while claiming that they are only following the leading of the Holy Spirit. The fact that what they say or do is unbiblical seems to trouble very few. When some point out the truth to them, they claim that God has lead them to do what they do so it must be okay and those who protest are just legalistic. The following is the introduction to the book of Judges from the 1560 Edition of the Geneva Bible. The Argument  Albeit there is nothing that more provoketh God’s wrath, than man’s ingratitude, yet is there nothing so displeasant and heinous that can turn back God’s love from his Church. For no

A Culture of Counterfeit Christians

By Marsha West - Posted at Berean Research: Have you ever run over a dead skunk in the road? I have, during a heat wave. The smell got into my tires and permeated our garage for days! I’ll go out on a limb and say that no one takes pleasure in the highly offensive smell of skunk spray, dead or alive. My point in bringing this up is that to God the stench of sin is far worse than skunk. For an example of just how much the Lord hates sin, grab a cup of coffee and read First and Second Kings. But given our penchant for wanting everything now, here’s a snippet from 1 Kings 16 to illustrate how God dealt with one of Israel’s most ruthless kings: Since I exalted you out of the dust and made you leader over my people Israel, and you have walked in the way of Jeroboam and have made my people Israel to sin, provoking me to anger with their sins, behold, I will utterly sweep away Baasha and his house, and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. Anyone b

Is Common Core Off President Trump’s Education Agenda?

By Shane Vander Hart - Posted at Truth in American Education: President Donald Trump mentioned education briefly during his first address to Congress and his remarks did not include mention of Common Core or shrinking the federal role in education. He said: Education is the civil rights issue of our time. I am calling upon members of both parties to pass an education bill that funds school choice for disadvantaged youth, including millions of African American and Latino children. These families should be free to choose the public, private, charter, magnet, religious, or home school that is right for them. Joining us tonight in the gallery is a remarkable woman, Denisha Merriweather. As a young girl, Denisha struggled in school and failed third grade twice. But then she was able to enroll in a private center for learning — a great learning center — with the help of a tax credit and a scholarship program. Today, she is the first in her family to graduate, not just from h

Do Jane Austen’s Novels Reveal Her View of Slavery?

By Collins Hemingway - Posted at Regina Jeffers's Blog : This post originally appeared on Austen Authors, but I thought many of you would also find it interesting. In Part I of this series, Collins Hemingway also speaks of England efforts to abolish the slave trade. You may read it HERE .  My last blog explored the effort in England to abolish the slave trade—the buying and selling of human flesh—which was accomplished in 1807—as well as the effort to eliminate slavery itself throughout all British possessions, which was not accomplished until 1840. Slave owners were helped through their “difficult” six-year period of adjustment, 1834-1840, with payments of twenty million pounds as recompense for the loss of their “property.” Before England ended the slave trade in 1807, the selling price for a healthy adult male was about fifty pounds; women and children were less. Four in ten slaves died—one for every two tons of sugar produced. It was less expensive to buy a new slave tha

“Relevance” Leads Back To Rome

By Dr. R. Scott Clark - Posted at The Heidelblog : In the Western church calendar Lent began yesterday on “Ash Wednesday.” Lent did not exist in any form in church law until 325 where the word appears in Canon 5 of the canons of Nicea. Even then there is no detailed prescription in the canon itself. The 4th century was, in many ways, transformative for the theology, piety, and practice of the church and not always for her benefit. We know that very early on there was deep concern (e.g., the Quartodeciman controversy) over the correct time to observe Easter but beyond that the church calendar was sparse. By the time of the Reformation, however, the church calendar (or the liturgical year) became so extensive that there was something to be observed (e,g., feast days) virtually every day of the year. The origins of Ash Wednesday itself can be no earlier than the early medieval period. Once Lent entered Christian practice, it began on a Sunday. It was only moved to what became “Ash Wed

What hath Geneva to do with Canterbury?

Posted at Ancient Reformed Worship : Why are Presbyterians worshiping like Anglicans? Why do some PCA churches have Ash Wednesday services? Why are they preaching the lectionary and following the church calendar? An Episcoterian (the term used for Presbyterians who ape the Anglicans) is a relatively modern phenomenon. In the late nineteenth century, the mainline Presbyterian Church started down the Canterbury trail. But in more recent years, many conservative and confessional Presbyterian churches have followed suit. Perhaps this fascination with Anglicanism has something to do with the love affair that some Presbyterian churches are having with N. T. Wright. Whatever factors have given rise to Episcoterian worship, one thing is clear, Presbyterians are abandoning their liturgical heritage. Historically, the Reformed church has argued that in matters of worship, Geneva and Canterbury are incompatible. In Presbyterian theology, the church’s authority is not legislative but minist

Abortion Rites by Kendra (Wilcox) Thomas

How Feminist Spirituality is Re-framing the Abortion Debate CONTENTS Foreword 9  Preface 11   Part I: Feminist Spirituality  1. The Seduction of Eve  Prelude  The Goddess Butcher  Do-it-Yourself Spirituality Kits  Eve: Mother of All Living  Father of Lies 2. The Rise of Women  Heroine of Disobedience  Biting the Apple  Women’s Liberation?  3. Ritualized Sex  God’s Love for Women  “Lady of the Beasts”  Carnal Knowledge  Altar of the Goddess  Part II: Abortion Rites  4. Whetting the Knife  The Power of a Priestess  Circle of Life  Nothing New Under the Sun  God Hates Abortion  5. Goddess of Blood Sacrifice  Invoking the Goddess  The Holy Abortionist  Spiritism  Abortion Rituals  Manasseh’s Example  6. The New Morality  Filling the Moral Void  Reframing the Debate  A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing: Naomi’s “Acts of Redemption”  National Coalition of Abortion Providers (Oops, I meant Providers)  Abortion Leaders: Waiting to Exhale  Planned Parenthood’s Religious Right  Lying Prophetesses  7. A C

Why You Must Question the Cultural Orthodoxy

By Rev. Bill Johnson - Posted at Concordia Technology Solutions : Within any culture there’s a certain orthodox set of ideas that aren’t allowed to be challenged or compromised except at great peril.  Some of those are held in common across most, if not all, cultures, such as the idea that killing without justification is wrong.  Others of them are unique to a particular culture, place and time.  In ancient Rome, for example, one of the guiding principles was that of polytheism.  It was perfectly acceptable for someone to worship whatever god they chose to follow, as long as they didn’t make any claims to be the only god.  Obviously Judaism and early Christianity ran afoul of this principle, and as a result they found themselves on the margins of Roman society pretty quickly.  In the western world today, we also have a set of guiding principles. They’re unspoken, having been taught to us through the media, entertainment and even some educational venues for years. Everyone is

Why I Won’t Be Seeing (or Reviewing) The Shack Movie

By Tim Challies - Posted at Challies.com : The day The Shack sold its hundred thousandth copy, it became likely there would be a movie adaption. The day it sold its millionth, it became practically guaranteed. And, sure enough, it comes to theaters March 3, starring Sam Worthington, Octavia Spencer, and Tim McGraw. For some time, I have been considering whether I should see and review it. I am quite sure that watching and reviewing The Shack would prove to be a wise business decision. I could get to an early screening, write up a review, and see a nice bump in my site’s traffic. Pageviews are the currency of the Internet and as a blogger I am supposed to base my decisions on what will maximize them. Even better, watching and reviewing The Shack could be genuinely helpful to others. That is especially true if the movie proves to be as deeply flawed as the book. A review might serve to equip people to watch it with discernment or even to avoid watching it altogether. However, I am