Christian Heritage News

The Minn. Lt. Gov. advocating for the “Day of Vengeance”  By Jesse Johnson - Posted at The Cripplegate: Published March 31, 3032 Tomorrow in Washington DC, a few miles away from the church I pastor, will be a rally called the “Trans Day of Vengeance.” The event will be led by the “Trans Radical Activist Network,” and has been promoted by political leaders around the country. Supporters of the “Trans Day of Vengeance” say that the Trans Community is under attack, and their protection can only come through retribution. This week has exposed a seething, violent hatred towards those who won’t fly the rainbow flag over their homes, churches, and on their social media accounts. That the Day of Vengeance takes place the week of the Nashville shooting is no coincidence—or if it is, one of the leaders of the trans movement called it “a happy coincidence.” The media has shown its hatred for the church as well—with major outlets even strongly implying (if not outright declaring) that the church i

Screenshot of The Covenant School’s security surveillance video of shooter.  By Shane Vander Hart The six dead at The Covenant School and their families, not the transgender shooter, are the victims of this school shooting in Nashville. I learned during a break at work on Monday about the school shooting at The Covenant School in Nashville —three 9-year-olds and three school staff members dead as a result. I am saddened by the loss of life and horrified by the carnage one can bring upon children. It is simply evil. I typically don't use the names of shooters when I write about mass shootings, but I have to make a brief exception for this article. This school shooting represents the first perpetrated by a woman. The shooter, Audrey Hale, 28, recently identified as a transgender man and adopted the name 'Aiden." News articles have described Hale as "emotionally disturbed," which I have no doubt that is true. The Daily Mail portrayed Hale as a victim because her C

Image Source: Facebook By Michael Gryboski - Posted at The Christian Post: Published March 27, 2023 A female shooter opened fire on the campus of a Christian school in Tennessee on Monday morning, killing at least three children and three adults before being shot dead by police. The Covenant Presbyterian School of Nashville, a private school founded in 2001 by the Covenant Presbyterian Church, which is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church in America, was the target of the shooting. The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department held a press conference Monday afternoon, with spokesperson Don Aaron providing a "police overview" of the events. He said the "police response was swift." Continue here... See also: Christian leaders react to Nashville Christian school shooting | U.S. News (christianpost.com) Churches, pastors respond to Nashville Christian School Shooting | U.S. News (christianpost.com) Kids killed in Nashville shooting were learning 'Amazing Grace&#

Geoffrey R. Kirkland - Christ Fellowship Bible Church  By Pastor Geoffrey R. Kirkland - Posted at Vassal of the King : I often find myself on the street open air preaching the gospel when someone (usually, a professing Christian) will approach me and tell me that I’m doing ‘it’ the wrong way. Then, the usual follow up question that people often ask is: “what kind of results have you seen from this?” Every open air preacher can relate to this fairly typical and common conversation. Does street preaching work? To answer that question, one must ask a more basic and fundamental question, “does preaching work?” If the answer to that question is in the affirmative, then one must also believe that street preaching works. The very fact that many defy street preaching as a valid method of evangelism underscores the man-centered, self-exalting, arminian, and shallow distrust of the Word that exists in our day. In so far as the man standing in the open air lifts up His voice for the glory of Chri

 By Samuel Sey - Posted at Slow to Write: The deadliest country in the world for Christians isn’t Afghanistan or North Korea, it’s Nigeria. Last year, 5,621 Christians were killed worldwide because of their faith—90% of them were northern Nigerians. Mission organizations are reporting that Christian persecution is at its highest in 30 years. And that’s primarily because of what’s been happening in northern Nigeria over the last 24 years. Approximately half of Nigeria’s population are professing Christians, and most of them live in the south. However the other half are Muslims, and most of them live in the north. Northern Nigeria is where Boko Haram, an Islamic terrorist group, have kidnapped thousands of young girls and killed tens of thousands of people over the last decade. But Boko Haram is enabled by northern Nigeria’s Sharia laws. There’s a direct relationship between terrorism and Sharia law in Nigeria. Boko Haram was founded in northern Nigeria in 2002, shortly after 12 norther

 By Michael Gryboski - Posted at The Christian Post: The United States Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from a traveling evangelist who was barred from preaching at the University of Alabama for failing to obtain a permit. In an order released Monday, the Supreme Court declined without comment to hear arguments in the case of Rodney Keister v. Stuart Bell et al. , allowing a lower court ruling against Keister to stand. Erik Jaffe, an attorney for Keister, said in a statement quoted by The Associated Press on Monday that he was disappointed with the high court’s refusal to hear the preacher’s case. “Whether public sidewalks remain traditional public forums with full First Amendment protection for free speech, regardless of their proximity to a university or other restricted-use property, remains an important and unsettled issue, marked by inconsistent and unpredictable decisions,” stated Jaffe. Continue here... 

Image Source:  Concordia Seminary, St. Louis   Posted at Christian News: Concordia Seminary, St. Louis has just announced the lineup for its “Multiethnic Symposium” to be held May 2-3, 2023 under the theme “Hope for the Church, Hope for the Future”. The announcement begins: “Generation is an important word in Scripture. Since the beginning, God has been creating and gathering for Himself a people whom He loves. From generation to generation, His faithfulness and love endures forever (Ps. 100:5 ESV). From one generation to another, God calls parents to share His story of salvation with their children.” [ https://www.csl.edu/resources/continuing-education/multiethnic-symposium/ ] Yet, Concordia Seminary has chosen, as one of the officiating clergy for the main Chapel Service at the Symposium, one who publicly supports the destruction of the next generation through the scourge of abortion: Rev. ST Williams, who is on the ordained roster of the LCMS. He’s listed as President of the LCMS “B

 By Dale Chamberlain - Posted at Ministry Watch: Jerry Falwell Jr. is suing Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, claiming his former employer has withheld $8.5 million in retirement benefits that were previously promised to him. The son of the school’s founder and conservative activist Jerry Falwell Sr., Falwell has been credited with bringing Liberty University back from the brink of financial collapse while serving as its president from 2007 to 2020. However, Falwell’s tenure at the school ended amid scandal and controversy in 2020 after Falwell posted an image to social media of himself alongside a woman with their pants unbuttoned and unzipped. The image was meant to be taken in jest, but many nevertheless found it troubling. Continue here...

 By Clint Archer - Posted at The Cripplegate: The animal rights group, PETA, has traditionally found the line between person and pet to be blurrier than it is to most of us, but they do a bit better on the distinction between animal and machine. When news of a Google engineer kicking a 4-legged robot went viral, the Twittersphere lit up with ethical questions about robot cruelty. PETA was trolled approached for comment by a CNN reporter. Their response was unsatisfyingly sane: “PETA deals with actual animal abuse every day, so we won’t lose sleep over this incident.” One who has lost sleep over the fears of self-aware AI turning against humanity, is Elon Musk, an early investor in OpenAI. When he was asked what he thought about kicking robots, he responded wryly, “It’s probably not wise. Their memory is very good.” What makes the artificial intelligence industry so intriguing (and alarming) is how similar to humans these computer programs can seem. A staple sci-fi trope is a chilling d

Ryan and Annabel Koher and their two sons.  (Source: christianpost.com)  Posted at The Christian Post: An American missionary pilot and two other men who were jailed in Mozambique for more than four months on suspicion of supporting insurgents in the war-torn nation have been released from prison. Ryan Koher and two South Africans, W.J. du Plessis and Eric Dry, left prison late Tuesday afternoon, according to the U.S.-based ministry Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF). Koher is said to be “doing well” following his release and has spoken multiple times with his wife, Annabel, and his two sons since his release, a spokesperson told The Christian Post. All three men are required to remain in Mozambique and the case is still ongoing. Saying the organization is “grateful to the courts in Mozambique for this decision,” MAF is “continuing to learn more about next steps in the case from our legal counsel,” the spokesperson added. Continue here... See also: Missionary pilot Ryan Koher remains in

Image Source:  Band of Brothers (miniseries) - Wikipedia  By Kyle Borg - Posted at Gentle Reformation: The St. Crispin’s Day speech given by Henry V in Shakespeare’s historical play is well remembered. The French vastly outnumbered the English, and the King had one chance to persuade his men to do what none of them wanted — “to make us fight cheerfully.” And on the muddy fields of Agincourt the King roused and commanded his men for the fight: From this day to the ending of the world, But we in it shall be remember’d; We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; For he to-day that sheds his blood with me Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile. The imagery of the band of brothers has been used for wartime propaganda. In popular culture it's most recognizable by Stephen Ambrose’s record of Easy Company of the 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment assigned to the 101st Airborne Division in World War II. Those who have battled in blood together share a close kinship and l

 By John Stonestreet and Timothy D. Padgett: Apparently, the U.K. has decided to shift its loyalties from courageously defying tyranny in the 20th century to embracing it in the 21st. Last week, a “conservative”-led British Parliament made George Orwell’s fictional accounts of “thought crime” a reality . After establishing censorship zones around abortion clinics in England and Wales, the MPs voted 299-116 to continue criminalizing even silent prayer in the vicinity of such clinics. As a lawyer for the U.K.’s Alliance Defending Freedom put it , Today’s vote marks a watershed moment for fundamental rights and freedoms in our country. Parliament had an opportunity to reject the criminalisation of free thought, which is an absolute right, and embrace individual liberty for all. Instead, Parliament chose to endorse censorship and criminalise peaceful activities such as silent prayer and consensual conversation. Continue here... 

By Diana Chandler - Posted at Baptist Press: LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (BP) — Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee are the latest states to pass new legislation protecting minors from transgender surgery and hormonal treatment. The three states join Utah and South Dakota bringing to five the number of states that prohibit gender-changing medical treatment on children. Similar bills are progressing in 22 states, according to tracking sites. While a 2021 law in Arkansas is enjoined in federal court, the Arkansas legislature sent a new bill March 8 to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders to strengthen legal protections for minors. The Arkansas bill would extend to 18 years past adulthood the amount of time minors who received such treatment can bring legal action against their doctors, a move experts say would adversely impact a physician’s ability to obtain malpractice insurance. The bill, as passed, does not apply to children born “with a medically verifiable disorder of sex development,” a stipulation

 By Steve Rabey - Posted at Ministry Watch: Brad Heinrichs, who quoted scripture as he sold more than 100 investors—including his own parents—into an $82 million Ponzi scheme, was sentenced to a decade of supervised probation and house arrest, not the 69 years in prison he could have received for seven fraud counts. Why so light a sentence for someone who was the front person for a massive scam? Heinrichs’ attorney presented evidence that Heinrichs, who had sold the fake investments since 2005, was unaware he was involved in fraud, and when he realized it in 2014, he informed an investor and an accountant, helping bring the complex scheme to an end. Stephen Hatch, the alleged mastermind of the fraud, was sentenced in 2017. He is “a con man who will spend the next five years behind bars for tricking Arizona families into investing in his Ponzi scheme,” said the Arizona attorney general. Heinrichs’ attorney convinced the jury that Hatch had become a mentor to Heinrichs, a 2003 Point Lo

   By Al Baker - Posted at  Forget None of His Benefits: “. . . how great is the darkness!” -Matthew 6:23 The Satanic Temple in Boston is sponsoring  SatanCon, 2023 , April 28-30, and the theme is  Hexennacht in Boston , which in German means “Witches Night,”, the ancient pagan holiday of May Eve.[1] On the agenda for  SatanCon, 2023  are panel discussions on paganism, a satanic wedding, satanic rituals, and a satanic marketplace where people can presumably buy fetishes, as well as lectures on “Reclaiming the Trans Body” and “Satanism and Self-Pleasure.” The temple leaders hope in due time to gain access to after school programs in public schools with “After School Satan Clubs”, patterning them after Christian Good News Clubs. The event has sold out and promises “a weekend of blasphemy and remembrance in Boston.” On another note, on March 4 and June 3, St. James Church (Anglican), Piccadilly, in London will host PREACH, a drag queen celebration of “artistry and ingenuity in every walk

By  Jessica Eturralde  - Posted at Ministry Watch : Kanakuk abuse survivors testified at a hearing last month on new legislation that would modify the legal process for reporting child sexual abuse. On February 13, survivors and family members of victims of sexual abuse at Kanakuk Kamps , a popular evangelical camp outside Branson, Missouri, testified before the Missouri House Judiciary Committee in support of a new bill regarding the statute of limitations for sexual abuse. The bill, H.B. 367 , proposed by local state Rep. Brian Seitz, offers an extension of the civil statute of limitations. As a result, victims may file civil actions any time before the victim turns 55. Furthermore, the bill would allow survivors to revive cases that authorities dismissed before the bill’s passing due to statute of limitation issues. Continue here... See also: Kanakuk: An Evangelical Empire With a History of Sexual Abuse (factsaboutkanakuk.com) Child sex abuse survivors from Kanakuk, other organizat

 By Tom Strode - Posted at Baptist Press: WASHINGTON (BP) – A proposed regulation regarding conscience protections actually would result in fewer safeguards for the right of Americans to act according to their beliefs, a Southern Baptist entity has told the Biden administration. The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) filed public comments Monday (March 6) with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) about its proposed revision of a Trump-era rule issued to protect conscience rights. The proposal would reduce the enforcement of such rights and of the federal laws on which they are based, the ERLC told HHS. “Though this regulation is touted as a move towards ‘balance,’ it does not balance so much as tilt the scales toward the preferred position of the Biden administration — expanding access to abortion and gender-affirming care at the expense of conscience rights,” said Hannah Daniel, the ERLC’s policy manager, in written comments for Baptist Press. “Southern Bap

 By Clint Archer - Posted at The Cripplegate: AI is here. We knew it was coming, but it feels too soon. Like when your little boy’s voice breaks and you suddenly realize he needs deodorant and a shave. We all expected Artificial Intelligence to cross the fiction-fact barrier. Just as with submarines, video chatrooms, and talking watches, sci-fi has a way of infiltrating reality. Technology that was only yesterday confined to computer labs, and doubtlessly military compounds, is today available to the public. Now, anyone can sign up for a free account with Open AI, and get artificial intelligence through ChatGPT on their phone. What is ChatGPT, you ask? Let’s pose that question to ChatGPT: “I am ChatGPT, a large language model developed by OpenAI. I have been trained on a vast corpus of text data to understand and generate human-like language. As a language model, my main function is to generate text in response to user input, whether it be to answer questions, provide information, or e

Yousef Nadarkhani.  (Present Truth Ministries photo - Morning Star News)  Posted at Morning Star News: Pastor initially sentenced to death freed in annual tradition. Published March 5, 2023 ( Morning Star News ) – Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani, once sentenced to death in Iran for apostasy, was the third Christian convert recently released from prison as part of the government’s annual amnesty marking the anniversary of the 1979 revolution. Originally sentenced to death in 2010 for leaving Islam, Nadarkhani was freed on Feb. 26, following the pardon and release earlier in the month of Hadi Rahimi and Zaman Fadaei, religious freedom advocates said. While welcoming the releases, they noted that those released had already served significant portions of their sentences in cases marred by legal irregularities even by Iranian standards. “Their pardon hardly addresses the injustice of the original sentencing and suffering that the men and their families endured,” said a specialist on Iran with Midd

 By Dr. R. Scott Clark - Posted at The Heidelblog: Josh Butler, a fellow at the newly launched Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics and author of a forthcoming book, Beautiful Union (Multnomah, 2023), has written a provocative essay, “ Sex Won’t Save You (But It Points To The One Who Will) .” He raises some interesting questions: what is the function of natural revelation and what are its limits? How does Paul employ the union of husband and wife in Ephesians 5:31–32 , and are evangelicals re-sacralizing nature (i.e., is marriage a sacrament or is the act of sex, within marriage, a sacrament)? He begins by arresting our attention: “I used to look to sex for salvation.” Our culture, he writes, “looks to sex for salvation too” but idolizing sex, he writes, “results in slavery.” “Sex,” he argues, “wasn’t designed to be your salvation but to point you to the One who is” (italics original). He argues “[s]ex is an icon of Christ and the church” and it is “an icon of salvation.” To illustr

By Jeffrey Stivason - Posted at Place for Truth: In Edith Wharton’s, The Age of Innocence , Newland Archer, the young man set in the ways of old New York, has a conversation with Countess Ellen Olenska, who has recently returned from Europe after leaving her wealthy husband for his many affairs. Olenska doesn’t fit into old New York for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is, she is unfamiliar with the customs of her new environment. At one point, early in the novel, Archer and Ellen have a conversation. Archer speaks according to the form and fashion of the day while Ellen is free and full of candor. At one point, Ellen does not understand why her house, situated on a respectable street, is not good enough, to which Archer replies, “It’s not fashionable.” This produces a striking and revealing reply from Ellen, “Fashionable! Do you all think so much of that? Why not make one’s own fashions? But I suppose I’ve lived too independently; at any rate, I want to do what you all do

By Michael Gryboski - Posted at The Christian Post: A Christian college in Missouri is asking the United States Supreme Court to halt a Biden administration directive that requires schools to allow male students to be housed in women-only dormitories or use the girls' showers. College of the Ozarks filed a petition for a writ of certiorari on Monday asking the high court to block a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development directive forcing the academic institution to open up gender-specific campus dorms to those of the opposite sex. “The Directive requires the College to reverse its housing policies for 1,300 students,” read the petition, in part. “And, unless the Directive is enjoined, it makes the College cease statements of its policies, preventing it from following through on ongoing plans and communications for student housing consistent with its religious beliefs.” “This jeopardizes the College’s ability to function, causes emotional harm to students who rely on the