tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-76477990525927132852024-03-19T07:49:49.467-05:00Christian Heritage NewsExplicitly Christian News and Commentary Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.comBlogger2743125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-60259779053901525022024-03-19T07:49:00.000-05:002024-03-19T07:49:01.005-05:00Citing 'profound differences,' Pence refuses to endorse Trump for president<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRVu7zsx1LPInHgZlFqiymk5H00jbopiAIoyUE9yzF4vlXle8NHUbDSmfja2TzlH17nXMjkvTLJgwH6m9aqxogzkmIZYandEldoYKxGoe74_SyaKCDg-BYOMyoWX0GxBgxc3B6oQFnpE-axc3XchL6ynL9Egwkl_RH3TibDU-BzeZHcnSH9yxCeB-BrAc/s300/Pence-300x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRVu7zsx1LPInHgZlFqiymk5H00jbopiAIoyUE9yzF4vlXle8NHUbDSmfja2TzlH17nXMjkvTLJgwH6m9aqxogzkmIZYandEldoYKxGoe74_SyaKCDg-BYOMyoWX0GxBgxc3B6oQFnpE-axc3XchL6ynL9Egwkl_RH3TibDU-BzeZHcnSH9yxCeB-BrAc/w400-h400/Pence-300x300.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p><b><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/mike-pence-wont-endorse-trump-for-president.html" target="_blank">By Ryan Foley - Posted at <i>The Christian Post:</i></a></b></p><p><i>Published March 18, 2024</i></p>Former Vice President Mike Pence, who served alongside former President Donald Trump for four years, has declined to endorse his former boss as he looks all but certain to capture the Republican nomination for president in the 2024 presidential election.<br /><br />Pence, who had a falling out with Trump following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot, in which a group of the former president's supporters stormed the United States Capitol as the Congress was about to debate the certification of the votes of the 2020 presidential election, discussed who he planned to vote for in the 2024 presidential election in an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pT0nHQD7IMA">appearance</a> on Fox News’ “The Story” on Friday. Pence <a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/who-are-the-declared-candidates-running-for-president-2024.html?page=15">briefly sought</a> the Republican nomination for president last year before becoming the <a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/mike-pence-suspends-presidential-campaign-amid-flagging-support.html">first major candidate</a> to drop out last October. <br /><br />When host Martha MacCallum asked Pence if he planned to endorse Trump, the former vice president responded, “It should come as no surprise that I will not be endorsing Donald Trump this year.” <div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/mike-pence-wont-endorse-trump-for-president.html" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-17460270410239550622024-03-18T14:05:00.005-05:002024-03-18T14:06:17.368-05:00How a Handful of Billionaires Created the Transgender ‘Movement’<h2 style="text-align: left;"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF_bUxZpF8Z-Ez77ZsoDjvTrvaSyHhyphenhyphenXwgYjHz7NLEBlXoFhHbXwjfBApx4SqK3aZYz8nwPjIM988EB9iLF_Ni9FC8w2WYrLui-hHn2vK5LT60XAfprRAzz-X9yWNNOerr47HPOya2rCA_Dm9uVwQ5AhKna9YIsdg7it4_tAqSAy2ZPkD4r44QqRJDU-M/s1200/Isaiah%205.20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="405" data-original-width="1200" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF_bUxZpF8Z-Ez77ZsoDjvTrvaSyHhyphenhyphenXwgYjHz7NLEBlXoFhHbXwjfBApx4SqK3aZYz8nwPjIM988EB9iLF_Ni9FC8w2WYrLui-hHn2vK5LT60XAfprRAzz-X9yWNNOerr47HPOya2rCA_Dm9uVwQ5AhKna9YIsdg7it4_tAqSAy2ZPkD4r44QqRJDU-M/w640-h216/Isaiah%205.20.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;">An Interview with Jennifer Bilek</h2><p><b><a href="https://europeanconservative.com/articles/interviews/how-a-handful-of-billionaires-created-the-transgender-movement-an-interview-with-jennifer-bilek/" target="_blank">By Jonathon Van Maren - Posted at <i>The European Conservative:</i></a></b></p><p><i>Published March 16, 2024</i></p><h3 style="text-align: left;">The medical-tech sector is trying to confer human rights upon a group who are seeking to disown their humanity.</h3>I first came across investigative journalist Jennifer Bilek’s work in 2020, when her essay “<a href="https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2020/01/the-billionaires-behind-the-lgbt-movement">The Billionaires Behind the LGBT Movement</a>” was published in <i>First Things</i>. It was a stunning piece—there are several journalists committed to exposing the transgender ‘movement’ (or industry, as Bilek calls it), but nobody has peeled away the façade of civil rights, pink-and-blue flags, and ‘trans kids’ like Bilek. If we had a mainstream press truly committed to uncovering and reporting the truth about the forces driving our culture today, her work would be cited by them across the board.<br /><br />Bilek is an artist, activist, and investigative journalist based out of New York City, and her work has been published in <i>Tablet Magazine</i>, <i>The Federalist</i>, <i>The Post Millennial</i>, and elsewhere. Bilek spent her life on the Left, but now she says that she is in the “political wilderness,” reporting on the biggest cultural story of our day while progressives ignore it or cover it up. Bilek also runs the Substack <a href="https://jbilek.substack.com/"><i>Jennifer’s Newsletter</i></a> and the blog <a href="https://www.the11thhourblog.com/about"><i>The 11th Hour</i></a>, where she explains her focus:<br /><blockquote>I write at the intersection of humanity, technology, and runaway capitalism. At this intersection stands transgenderism, what I believe is a glamorous ad campaign generated by elites, invested in tech and pharma, to normalize the changing of human biology.</blockquote>Bilek is doing something that journalists used to do instinctively: following the money. What she has uncovered is a bombshell that reveals the extent to which the transgender phenomenon has been created by super-wealthy LGBT donors who have a dark and sinister agenda. Her journalism supplies the missing pieces needed to complete the picture of how and why the transgender movement so swiftly achieved cultural dominance. Bilek kindly agreed to an interview in which she shared what she has uncovered thus far.<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://europeanconservative.com/articles/interviews/how-a-handful-of-billionaires-created-the-transgender-movement-an-interview-with-jennifer-bilek/" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-2315037338686383782024-03-15T09:04:00.000-05:002024-03-15T09:05:50.961-05:00China most religiously restrictive government globally, Pew says<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4xw-Q-KudKoO6O4Cnz67YuAfnI1VfjhyphenhyphenRWjOnTAlONKB_Tx02DHn8MbaaVUydw6kgzypBd0RTy8PRgs_w3gWNIgpDyq43UWL79Qz-8Kh5KE71jVsp-j0c1cvpcapY0elZg9W9qYbFV7NpFZwnnAAJ5B6xYBPKgQ06w_EPqzXXaol_t-NVetCRtTKy1-Q/s1024/Flag_of_the_People's_Republic_of_China.svg.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4xw-Q-KudKoO6O4Cnz67YuAfnI1VfjhyphenhyphenRWjOnTAlONKB_Tx02DHn8MbaaVUydw6kgzypBd0RTy8PRgs_w3gWNIgpDyq43UWL79Qz-8Kh5KE71jVsp-j0c1cvpcapY0elZg9W9qYbFV7NpFZwnnAAJ5B6xYBPKgQ06w_EPqzXXaol_t-NVetCRtTKy1-Q/w640-h426/Flag_of_the_People's_Republic_of_China.svg.png" width="640" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://www.baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/china-most-religiously-restrictive-government-globally-pew-says/" target="_blank">By Diana Chandler - Posted at <i>Baptist Press:</i></a></b></p><p><i>Published March 13, 2024</i></p>WASHINGTON (BP) – China is the most religiously oppressive government globally, Pew Research Center said in its latest study of 193 countries, citing the banning of religious publications, broadcasting and worship among 20 categories of persecution.<br /><br />China’s government restricted religion locally and/or nationally in 20 key categories, Pew found in its <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2024/03/05/globally-government-restrictions-on-religion-reached-peak-levels-in-2021-while-social-hostilities-went-down/">report</a>. Overall, government religious restrictions peaked in 2021 as global hostilities decreased, Pew said.<br /><br />The March report comes as the U.S. Congress votes on a bill to ban TikTok as a national security threat unless the China-based owner of the platform, ByteDance, divests of its control. Congress is concerned about U.S. users’ personal data being confiscated by the Communist government that widely uses <a href="https://www.baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/walking-worship-new-lifeline-for-chinese-christians/">public surveillance</a> to monitor and police the public.<br /><br />The U.S. House approved on March 13 the bill to ban TikTok, sending it to the Senate. While religious persecution and propaganda are not explicit topics of the bill, the legislation purports that China could weaponize its access to U.S. users’ personal data to create content that influences perspectives on various issues including the 2024 political elections. <div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://www.baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/china-most-religiously-restrictive-government-globally-pew-says/" target="_blank">Read more here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-79299051333775822472024-03-14T09:03:00.001-05:002024-03-14T09:04:48.414-05:00House Passes Bill That Could Ban TikTok in the United States<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmc9AABBkCOKyK1rmfe2IeX0_hd2My3AqwWaTfX5OYnkYRriqCe5Y8XtXhdwp3a0HOA48v_jWdgSNhsC__V8hk0aSCj81QdFjYZLcpdVmpRWZSXaqtR8by0lFSfXMTL3PVQJ6p_ckbtPQ5Efe4VUuGe30udSgpUuceH2F7WB2FB2-_CqT-5Ywba_285HY/s1920/solen-feyissa-Yaw9mfG9QfQ-unsplash.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1920" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmc9AABBkCOKyK1rmfe2IeX0_hd2My3AqwWaTfX5OYnkYRriqCe5Y8XtXhdwp3a0HOA48v_jWdgSNhsC__V8hk0aSCj81QdFjYZLcpdVmpRWZSXaqtR8by0lFSfXMTL3PVQJ6p_ckbtPQ5Efe4VUuGe30udSgpUuceH2F7WB2FB2-_CqT-5Ywba_285HY/w640-h426/solen-feyissa-Yaw9mfG9QfQ-unsplash.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><b><a href="https://www.movieguide.org/news-articles/house-passes-bill-that-could-ban-tiktok-in-united-states.html" target="_blank">Posted at <i>Movieguide:</i></a></b></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Published March 13, 2024</i><br /><br />The House passed a bill Wednesday morning that could effectively ban TikTok in the United States.</div><div><br />The legislation, called the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, demands that TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, divest the platform. If it doesn’t within 180 days, the app would be <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/13/politics/20240313-congress-tiktok-ban-bill-vote-dg/index.html">banned</a> in American app stores.<br /><br />CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/13/house-passes-bill-that-could-lead-to-a-tiktok-ban-fight-shifts-to-the-senate.html">reports</a> that it received bipartisan support, passing with a 352-65 vote. <br /><br />Movieguide® <a href="https://www.movieguide.org/news-articles/will-tiktok-be-banned-in-the-united-states.html">reported</a> on the bill:<br /><blockquote>Per <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/technology/4512824-white-house-hails-important-and-welcome-bill-that-could-ban-tiktok/">The Hill</a>, “The ‘Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act’ was unveiled Tuesday by Reps. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), the top lawmakers on the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party.”<br /><br />“It specifically defines ByteDance and TikTok as a foreign adversary controlled application and urges the parent company to divest the platform or face a ban in the U.S., while also creating a broader framework that would allow the president to designate other foreign adversary controlled applications,” The Hill <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/technology/4512824-white-house-hails-important-and-welcome-bill-that-could-ban-tiktok/">noted</a>.</blockquote>It will now go to the Senate, where its future is unclear. <div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://www.movieguide.org/news-articles/house-passes-bill-that-could-ban-tiktok-in-united-states.html" target="_blank">Read more here.</a></b></div></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-75791037858914106732024-03-13T13:58:00.006-05:002024-03-13T13:58:54.003-05:00THE FATHER’S PLEDGE—LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeKpy6vQ1Uc6e4ISV0XZPaWXzH2pzo2w3OjNzafEd4KTKDCc3lHI36UMO324697PatuUjhdCCrZlWUsf4TSCIDjAqgAjdyO_QoWlczj_1J-xSZAKil2dyfbP7z48ZRH_bp9SSskjxSzFXOFMOBtK9PGwqgqbViSejiCJoDTHKjG7oDzV91jEOmiOp0Zuw/s1125/pexels-photo-1340504.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1125" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeKpy6vQ1Uc6e4ISV0XZPaWXzH2pzo2w3OjNzafEd4KTKDCc3lHI36UMO324697PatuUjhdCCrZlWUsf4TSCIDjAqgAjdyO_QoWlczj_1J-xSZAKil2dyfbP7z48ZRH_bp9SSskjxSzFXOFMOBtK9PGwqgqbViSejiCJoDTHKjG7oDzV91jEOmiOp0Zuw/w640-h426/pexels-photo-1340504.webp" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-standing-on-stage-facing-an-american-flag-1340504/">Man Standing On Stage Facing An American Flag · Free Stock Photo (pexels.com)</a></div><br /><div><br /></div><b><a href="https://christiannewsmissouri.com/2024/03/13/the-fathers-pledge-liberty-and-justice-for-all/" target="_blank">By Rev. Daniel Fleischer - Posted at <i>Christian News:</i></a><br /></b><br /><i>I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.</i> This pledge dates to 1892. It was first spoken in a school in October of that year. It was officially recognized by the government in 1942. Its original salute was a straight arm thrust mimicked by Adolph Hitler. For obvious reasons, in 1942 President Franklin Roosevelt signed a law that the Pledge “be rendered by standing with the right hand over the heart.” At the request of President Eisenhower, in 1954 congress added “under God.” <br /><br />Men and women have served in the military to defend the flag, and the principles expressed in the Pledge. Citizens of this country owe those who served, and serve, our highest respect for the service they rendered. We ought to remember with deep appreciation and gratitude. We should not forget those who endured the rigors and dangers of war on land, on the sea, and in the air, countless thousands of whom suffered and still suffer the physical and emotional consequences of war. We honor the countless thousands who gave their life in battle and now lie in military cemeteries in our country and wherever else they lie.<br /><br />With the passing of time, there is reason to wonder if the ideals of the Pledge of Allegiance which those in the past served to defend and for which they died still resonate in our selfish and divided land. In our deteriorating nation and culture is there still the same respect or “allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands?” Are we still “one nation?” “Under God?” If it ever meant anything, what does “under God” mean today? How in our increasingly physically, morally, politically, divided country, how can the claim be made that we are “indivisible?” A nation that some claim to have been “the best nation on earth,” though by no stretch of the imagination was it ever a perfect nation, is plummeting to moral depths that rivals, if not surpasses, Sodom and Gomorrah which reaped the judgment of the same God under whom we claim to live. The “liberty and justice for all” of the Pledge was and is a well-intended grandiose ideal. When did we achieve it, or when will we attain it in a society where sinful philosophies dominate from the highest seats in government to the streets?<br /><br />Under the circumstances that prevail in the land, Christians who speak the truth, and witness to their faith are castigated, on one hand, as unpatriotic or, on the other hand, as super patriotic bigots. But that is the manner of the world in which we live–one that speaks of God but does not listen to Him, or heed His call. Wicked King Ahab and his equally wicked wife, Jezebel, blamed Elijah for the troubles in idolatrous Israel, and asked the prophet, “Is that you, O troubler of Israel?” Elijah countered, “I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father’s house have, in that you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and have followed the Baals” (1 King 18:17-18). Fast forward to a.d. 2024.<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://christiannewsmissouri.com/2024/03/13/the-fathers-pledge-liberty-and-justice-for-all/" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-84974208684272790442024-03-12T07:49:00.006-05:002024-03-14T08:18:15.216-05:00Resources On Theonomy and Reconstructionism at the Heidelblog:<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtIIJq_k3jDInSt0ss8NijVPupP1qGhYunO9ucsM_6NA384BjL7K6a5zXymfosSx-N96YjIK-wKk8PYq-5NszZw4cCX2wqVb9prqNKZpmnOokF0SN6DC8D6mvzhzdiAbzhfZynAuVKEvKfYKfe56GAqoctKU3189ONeWWVlm4XcpbqFp7w3klwSDboB5E/s367/Heidelbrew.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="367" data-original-width="300" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtIIJq_k3jDInSt0ss8NijVPupP1qGhYunO9ucsM_6NA384BjL7K6a5zXymfosSx-N96YjIK-wKk8PYq-5NszZw4cCX2wqVb9prqNKZpmnOokF0SN6DC8D6mvzhzdiAbzhfZynAuVKEvKfYKfe56GAqoctKU3189ONeWWVlm4XcpbqFp7w3klwSDboB5E/w328-h400/Heidelbrew.png" width="328" /></a></div><br /><p><i><b>Editor's Note:</b> I was involved in promoting theonomy and Christian Reconstructionism for approximately a decade. However, the "general equity" of God's Law for the nations as stated in the WCF nagged at my conscience and I repented of my involvement in 2014. You can read about my change of heart here: <a href="https://angelawittmansblog.christian-heritage-news.com/2014/02/a-change-of-heart-regarding-theonomy.html">A Change of Heart Regarding Theonomy (christian-heritage-news.com)</a>.</i></p><p><i>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</i></p><p><b><a href="https://heidelblog.net/theonomy/" target="_blank">Posted at <i>The Heidelblog:</i></a></b></p><b>Introduction</b><br /><br />Two of the more problematic stopping points for pilgrims to Reformed theology are the tollbooths theonomy and Christian Reconstructionism. The latter is a movement dating back to the 1950s and developed by the late R. J. Rushdoony (1916–2001). This movement depends heavily upon an eschatology in which society collapses and rises, like a phoenix out of the ashes to be reconstructed along Christian-theonomic lines. It anticipates a future glorious age, before the return of Christ, in which the most of the world is converted. It combines themes to which many American fundamentalist and evangelical Christians are strongly attracted: a kind of apocalyptic view of the near term, the sense that God is doing something unique in our time and we are part of it, and a vision of culture and society in which Christians are no longer marginal but play significant roles.<br /><br />The other of these movements is theonomy, a theory developed by the late Greg Bahnsen (1948–95) which rejects the traditional Christian distinction between the civil, ceremonial, and moral aspects of the law of God. It rejects the Reformed doctrine that the Israelite theocracy was a unique, temporary divine institution, and that validity of the Israelite civil laws and punishments expired with the unique divine sanction of the Israelite theocracy with the death of Christ. Rather, the theonomists argue for the abiding validity of the civil law in exhaustive detail. In contrast, the Reformed <a href="https://heidelblog.net/2014/03/westminster-confession/">confess</a>:<br /><blockquote>4. To [the people of Israel] also, as a body politic, he gave sundry judicial laws, which expired together with the State of that people; not obliging any other now, further than the general equity thereof may require (<i>Westminster Confession of Faith</i>, 19.4).</blockquote>Both the Reconstructionists and theonomists have offered an idiosyncratic and historically unwarranted definition of “general equity,” which dovetails with and depends upon their equally unhistorical and idiosyncratic rejection of the historic Reformed views of natural law.<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://heidelblog.net/theonomy/" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-4229322264494133532024-03-11T09:41:00.008-05:002024-03-11T09:41:56.964-05:00Confusion Clouds the Status of DOJ investigation Into the SBC<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO7um-690_NimJ_PyUxOwZnx67v5_msNKP9B0c9MQv2rtlewDZAUhaTFEt-COsVFzEWLVupyd4l__oE4s6ZR9-kdC2O_bKlm-oThxn3eBKU5w6KkYRI2bKeWo9TffZSLw02BgwcyDo7vXJJqzAiWM63rRAlziyO46eKo7eJmFJK1gkx0vnC-vdI5UDHJg/s1010/Eph%205%2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="454" data-original-width="1010" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO7um-690_NimJ_PyUxOwZnx67v5_msNKP9B0c9MQv2rtlewDZAUhaTFEt-COsVFzEWLVupyd4l__oE4s6ZR9-kdC2O_bKlm-oThxn3eBKU5w6KkYRI2bKeWo9TffZSLw02BgwcyDo7vXJJqzAiWM63rRAlziyO46eKo7eJmFJK1gkx0vnC-vdI5UDHJg/w640-h288/Eph%205%2011.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://ministrywatch.com/confusion-clouds-the-status-of-doj-investigation-into-the-sbc/" target="_blank"> By Bob Smietana - Posted at <i>MinstryWatch:</i></a></b></p><p><i>Published March 8, 2024</i></p><b>Contradictory statements further strain relationships between abuse survivors and SBC</b><div><br /></div>(RNS) — Last week, lawyers for the Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee say they were contacted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and were told an investigation into the committee’s handling of sexual abuse had been closed.<br /><br />News about the status of the investigation eventually leaked, and on Wednesday (March 6), the interim head of the Executive Committee <a href="https://ministrywatch.com/case-closed/">confirmed</a> the investigation was concluded “with no future action to be taken.”<br /><br />That news came as a surprise to abuse survivors and advocates such as Megan Lively and Tiffany Thigpen. They reached out to Department of Justice investigators, who they say told them the investigation was ongoing. Both said they were told the lead DOJ investigator had no more questions for the Executive Committee but that the investigation remains open.<br /><br />“The lead investigator from the DOJ concerning this investigation was as surprised as we were by these reports. She answered both Megan and I immediately when we called (separately) and said the investigation is very much open and active,” Thigpen told Religion News Service in a text message.<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://ministrywatch.com/confusion-clouds-the-status-of-doj-investigation-into-the-sbc/" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-1070353479179348712024-03-08T08:03:00.006-06:002024-03-08T08:03:39.851-06:00Denison Forum: Joe Biden delivers “feisty” State of the Union address<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0lqeAurjAyEKH0OtxOIOJP6xvn79nLPRodM7Wkxy6CpPmeMJfoF1XGDHrfgA7dxDjqGLE26ZDb35WYubIX99-lEIWsQWdUJUWMIXxp-zMyyeTI22CZTPztWrPZLlwkwWBGMdCy2y2kPYzRXUESlnUNWHME2uliX38_TILjz-7TQx2EUBBv1ueKj5SCqo/s1536/Feisty%20Joe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1536" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0lqeAurjAyEKH0OtxOIOJP6xvn79nLPRodM7Wkxy6CpPmeMJfoF1XGDHrfgA7dxDjqGLE26ZDb35WYubIX99-lEIWsQWdUJUWMIXxp-zMyyeTI22CZTPztWrPZLlwkwWBGMdCy2y2kPYzRXUESlnUNWHME2uliX38_TILjz-7TQx2EUBBv1ueKj5SCqo/w640-h426/Feisty%20Joe.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://www.denisonforum.org/daily-article/joe-biden-feisty-state-of-the-union/" target="_blank">By Ryan Denison, PHD - Posted at <i>Denison Forum:</i></a></b></p>President Biden delivered his <a href="https://www.denisonforum.org/daily-article/is-it-true-that-the-state-of-the-union-is-strong/">State of the Union address</a> Thursday night, speaking for sixty-eight minutes and repeatedly interacting with the gathered members of Congress in a way that’s been described as somewhere between “<a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/state-union-biden-sharpen-contrast-with-trump-2024-03-07/">fiery</a>” and “<a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/4517144-biden-state-of-the-union-address-live-updates/">feisty</a>.” Given the repeated mentions—and examples—of the president’s cognitive decline over the course of his time in office, I was left both impressed and a bit surprised by the consistency with which he delivered the speech.<br /><br />In the moments leading up to the address, journalists repeatedly noted that Biden’s delivery was going to be just as important as what he said. But the content still matters. To that end, the president addressed:<div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Threats to freedom and democracy, both internationally and at home</li><li>Access to IVF and abortion, with the promise to restore Roe v. Wade as the law of the land if the American people send him a Congress that will pass the legislation</li><li>Working to put a ceiling on drug prices and medical care</li><li>Economic issues like the housing market, inflation, and tax hikes on big corporations and the wealthy</li><li>Education-related topics like universal preschool and raises for public school teachers</li><li>Issues at the border, with much of the blame pointed at Republicans who failed to pass the legislation put forth earlier this year</li><li>The war in Israel, which included a clear message of the evils perpetrated by Hamas and the responsibility they bear for the war’s continuation, as well as a call for Israel to do more to protect civilians in Gaza</li></ul>Overall, it was a lengthy speech in which Biden covered a number of issues—though to <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/07/politics/fact-check-joe-biden-state-of-the-union/index.html">varying degrees of truthfulness</a>—that will continue to play a pivotal role in the buildup to this November’s election. And while he rarely mentioned former president and presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump by name, typically referring to him as “my predecessor,” it was clear that Biden’s primary goal was to draw a clear distinction between his policies and those of the Republicans.<br /><br />To that end, his speech was quite successful, which is good because—as is the case with most State of the Union addresses—many of the promises he made and goals he outlined are not within his power to keep.</div><div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://www.denisonforum.org/daily-article/joe-biden-feisty-state-of-the-union/" target="_blank">Read more here.</a></b></div><div><br /></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>CH News Editor's Note:</b></div><div>Please remember to read <b><i><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%202&version=KJV" target="_blank">Psalm 2</a></i></b> often as the rhetoric heats up this election year. </div><div>Thank you, Angela Wittman</div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-71203678598558293032024-03-06T14:50:00.011-06:002024-03-16T09:11:22.619-05:00ChinaAid: PASTOR JOHN CAO RELEASED FROM PRISON AFTER SEVEN YEARS<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7q5CthuQZKp_GrvEq0O872Dlxb-CgNSLEnV7mxWAu7mdBkHjxCyBr36WUJtTlf_M1SIzQp6lv_Gzaa3RnJFj0j9bSQs5fA9TXivVvEe-68jmjVPzoedAMj_IZOD2xhvHAolmJqHjIUW9OvLX0yLs9UIoHyd8Why-5n4-hqh1uCL7t7u04RSitwH0SaYw/s171/download.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="102" data-original-width="171" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7q5CthuQZKp_GrvEq0O872Dlxb-CgNSLEnV7mxWAu7mdBkHjxCyBr36WUJtTlf_M1SIzQp6lv_Gzaa3RnJFj0j9bSQs5fA9TXivVvEe-68jmjVPzoedAMj_IZOD2xhvHAolmJqHjIUW9OvLX0yLs9UIoHyd8Why-5n4-hqh1uCL7t7u04RSitwH0SaYw/w640-h382/download.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://chinaaid.org/"><b>ChinaAid: Walking With The Persecuted Faithfull</b></a></div><p></p><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>(Kunming, Yunnan – March 5, 2024) Pastor John Cao has been released from prison in Kunming in Yunnan province on March 3rd after finishing his seven year sentence.</div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXt9A_Ztb5cZoJgjOsww75JcOIkhbJ5bwa7qpVac3KLG76AjWr3U3N8YVuzh17MWWlOW6SZqkbVudTADLQSeAik0f5ze4D4JOpIVc6Shjl_eeuKg9CS93gsyIIrZ6XZGsnJ7pgLMfUxYsRUeJeEDoxbWtcWAbVhV8XuwRp1nFqcK3FBS82DwOSCt-pL1Y/s170/John-Cao-released.jpeg.webp" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="170" data-original-width="109" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXt9A_Ztb5cZoJgjOsww75JcOIkhbJ5bwa7qpVac3KLG76AjWr3U3N8YVuzh17MWWlOW6SZqkbVudTADLQSeAik0f5ze4D4JOpIVc6Shjl_eeuKg9CS93gsyIIrZ6XZGsnJ7pgLMfUxYsRUeJeEDoxbWtcWAbVhV8XuwRp1nFqcK3FBS82DwOSCt-pL1Y/s16000/John-Cao-released.jpeg.webp" title="John Cao after finishing his prison sentence. (Credit: ChinaAid)" /></a></div>Pastor John Cao is a permanent resident of North Carolina and married to an American citizen, Jamie Powell. He served as a missionary in Myanmar’s Wa State, transforming the lives of more than 2,000 impoverished minority children by building 16 schools and working to fight poverty in the region. Chinese officials knew that he repeatedly crossed the border between China and Myanmar because of his work and allowed him to do so for three years.<p></p><b><a href="https://chinaaid.org/uncensored-news/pastor-john-cao-released-from-prison-after-seven-years/" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>See also:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="https://chinaaid.org/news/featured/pastor-john-caos-first-testimony-after-release/"><b>Pastor John Cao's First Testimony after release - ChinaAid</b></a></li></ul></div><br /><div><br /></div></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-75009263891041922432024-03-05T08:32:00.002-06:002024-03-05T08:32:23.911-06:00We Are What We Worship<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikC8qF85ebmrTT-8j40S0rp67t3zVdD9P5QhCqRNCkruOGWH509bmlcZPByexHG5NijLmhtEb6i5a9bxS1CBjfG_8hyeWr_ljSEHEYZIUOB0yDqD8TaSo8WEqXaJ6jo3YwR914nEhQawAUWYrq9FH_0J2Fb-oHoDhEjicjyh-XbII0aeFgl1FTlXW3H5I/s480/narcissus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="355" data-original-width="480" height="474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikC8qF85ebmrTT-8j40S0rp67t3zVdD9P5QhCqRNCkruOGWH509bmlcZPByexHG5NijLmhtEb6i5a9bxS1CBjfG_8hyeWr_ljSEHEYZIUOB0yDqD8TaSo8WEqXaJ6jo3YwR914nEhQawAUWYrq9FH_0J2Fb-oHoDhEjicjyh-XbII0aeFgl1FTlXW3H5I/w640-h474/narcissus.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://billmuehlenberg.com/2024/03/04/we-are-what-we-worship/" target="_blank"> By Bill Muehlenberg - Posted at <i>Culture Watch:</i></a></b></p><p><i>Published March 4, 2024</i></p><b>The sexual revolution and cult of self are dead-ends:</b><br /><br />John Calvin once said that the human heart is an idol-making factory. If we do not worship the God who created us, we will worship anyone or anything else. And we inevitably become like these objects of worship. We love our sins and we love our idols, and we move further and further away from who we were meant to be.<br /><br />Back in 2008 the American New Testament scholar Greg Beale released a volume on idolatry called <i>We Become What We Worship</i> (IVP). In it he said this: “All of us are imitators, and there is no neutrality. We should disabuse ourselves of the notion that we can be spiritually neutral. We are either being conformed to an idol of the world or to God.” And this is serious business, given how often we find in Scripture idols and idolatry related to the demonic.<br /><br />The truth is, if we get God wrong, we get everything else wrong. Our understanding of who we are and why we are here gets fully distorted and twisted if the one true God is not our focus and our sole object of worship. Being image-bearers of God, our proper sense of identity and self-worth is fully bound up in him. When we worship false gods of any sort, our identity gets radically warped and disfigured.<div><b><a href="https://billmuehlenberg.com/2024/03/04/we-are-what-we-worship/" target="_blank"><br /></a></b></div><div><b><a href="https://billmuehlenberg.com/2024/03/04/we-are-what-we-worship/" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-68152665203471612642024-03-04T07:30:00.007-06:002024-03-04T07:30:46.475-06:00Politicians Are Not Jesus<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwGKhCkqNOG6bkKNbcdjYj7gAmIjG4ji2ZncbUHX14s1li6RkX2ivx2Vv-fGNmw428L_50eH44r-3zcrI-Z52AaSYdvuAq-IWIURUnuoFLdGo9uYg6f1lXyGA3EVyjh1vofUq1wvCuaiu5i_F_r_3UQOmJ_ocb-8Ky_LV0UQHRDeFDqchgB0vcZoTuMN0/s1080/Voted-sticker-1080x675.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwGKhCkqNOG6bkKNbcdjYj7gAmIjG4ji2ZncbUHX14s1li6RkX2ivx2Vv-fGNmw428L_50eH44r-3zcrI-Z52AaSYdvuAq-IWIURUnuoFLdGo9uYg6f1lXyGA3EVyjh1vofUq1wvCuaiu5i_F_r_3UQOmJ_ocb-8Ky_LV0UQHRDeFDqchgB0vcZoTuMN0/w640-h400/Voted-sticker-1080x675.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://justinpoythress.com/politicians-are-not-jesus/" target="_blank">By Justin Poythress - Posted at <i>Time and Chance</i>:</a></b></p><p><i>Published February 29, 2024</i></p>Rumblings about a second American Civil War have grown louder. People confine themselves to dark allusions, for fear of naming it into existence. Yet one can hardly fail to notice the widening political chasm. Crossing the aisle today looks like a tightrope across Niagra. People mourn the loss of brotherhood and civility, but then paint their political opponents as swamp goblins. In such a world, how should Christians approach this election season?<br /><br />I am saddened by the number of pastors and church leaders I hear summoning their followers to greater political zeal. I don’t know a single person who needs to be convinced about the importance of politics, or the perks of power. People need Jesus. We need to see the root of the issue. We need to see that our world is torn by sin—anger, greed, pride, lust, and envy. And then we need to see those sins in ourselves. In your heart and mine. No politician is going to fix that.<br /><br />Jesus didn’t come to change the world from the top down. When he is facing his sham trial and execution, Jesus says, “My kingdom is not of this world” (<a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/John%2018.36">Jn 18:36</a>). Christians believe that God changes people (and the world) from the inside out, through giving people a new Spirit. Good systems, leaders, and laws do matter. The Bible tells us to pray for these things, so that we can live peaceably (<a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/1%20Tim%202.2">I Tim 2:2</a>). No one is itching to live under Nazi Germany or the communist Khmer Rouge. But Christians can sail with a ballast that the rest of the world lacks.<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://justinpoythress.com/politicians-are-not-jesus/" target="_blank">Read more here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-66689256398634659542024-03-01T07:44:00.001-06:002024-03-01T07:45:39.771-06:00Airman who torched himself outside Israeli Embassy grew up on controversial religious compound<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh76c-ZS47SIB-ZloFZfOu38jHUqhyphenhyphenk-g2HwmfEKHr-W0SmUudwC-hR8J9e5XMTiSYH7dq0wOxvh63axa7ATt85cWau6O14a1-SZd0j05V-hAEgd0_bY3lobMTxywWbVDBpTeXSHT02yKKW2SzpHrAGsZrnnic3xsHJK-m8TIkj8hU0nd4t3MlwZuwUlBI/s700/152075_w_700_424.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="424" data-original-width="700" height="388" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh76c-ZS47SIB-ZloFZfOu38jHUqhyphenhyphenk-g2HwmfEKHr-W0SmUudwC-hR8J9e5XMTiSYH7dq0wOxvh63axa7ATt85cWau6O14a1-SZd0j05V-hAEgd0_bY3lobMTxywWbVDBpTeXSHT02yKKW2SzpHrAGsZrnnic3xsHJK-m8TIkj8hU0nd4t3MlwZuwUlBI/w640-h388/152075_w_700_424.webp" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Embassy_of_Israel_in_Washington,_D.C.jpg" target="_blank">The Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C. | Wikimedia Commons/APK </a></div><p><b><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/airman-who-torched-himself-grew-up-on-religious-compound-report.html" target="_blank"> By Samantha Kamman - Posted at <i>The Christian Post:</i></a></b></p><p><i>Published February 28, 2024</i></p>The U.S. airman who set himself on fire outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington was reportedly raised in a religious compound that has weathered accusations of abuse and creating an environment of control, allegations that the group has publicly denied. <br /><br />Twenty-five-year-old Aaron Bushnell was an active-duty Air Force member when he doused himself in liquid and <a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/us-airman-lights-self-on-fire-outside-israeli-embassy.html">lit his body on fire</a>, shouting "Free Palestine" as he burned on Sunday. <br /><br />Bushnell posted a video of his self-immolation to Twitch, which has since been removed. <br /><br />As <a href="https://archive.is/SUJAe">The Washington Post</a> reported this week, Bushnell was raised in a religious group called the Community of Jesus, according to Susan Wilkins, a former member from 1970 to 2005. Wilkins said she knew Bushnell and his family when they lived on the Orleans, Massachusetts-based compound, a claim the outlet reported others have corroborated. She said that she had heard from others since her departure that Bushnell had also left the compound.<br /><br />She also claimed that Community of Jesus members often join the military, which she described as moving from "one high-control group to another high-control group."<br /><br />Bonnie Zampino, a former member of the group in the 1980s, told the outlet that many who leave become involved in social justice causes. <br /><br />"A lot of us that got out are very much into social justice, trying to defend those who don't or can't defend themselves because that is what we went through," Zampino said. <div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/airman-who-torched-himself-grew-up-on-religious-compound-report.html" target="_blank">Read more here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-63881951601213139792024-02-29T07:25:00.010-06:002024-02-29T07:35:55.395-06:00Do You Want to Make America Great Again?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV0AzBuHu75_e034fhLxQNto_MWn4zVK06Hv32VPbmKllLhAZkynKH1hPP0A1oBw-iZ_qna7xWXSFBlfrZSHZaVjY9pOXV9JgZVnaHQfin6Uvu-2DbslprKhE6lTEeEpnGqPEnrJDDm0v8C_o86-1dj7cp9CgrTJQTIxU6rwh3NJr44AmE75-CdoYJMvI/s1024/christian%20heritage%20header.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="429" data-original-width="1024" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV0AzBuHu75_e034fhLxQNto_MWn4zVK06Hv32VPbmKllLhAZkynKH1hPP0A1oBw-iZ_qna7xWXSFBlfrZSHZaVjY9pOXV9JgZVnaHQfin6Uvu-2DbslprKhE6lTEeEpnGqPEnrJDDm0v8C_o86-1dj7cp9CgrTJQTIxU6rwh3NJr44AmE75-CdoYJMvI/w640-h268/christian%20heritage%20header.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://benjaminglaser.substack.com/p/do-you-want-to-make-america-great" target="_blank">By Pastor Benjamin Glaser - Posted at <i>Thoughts From Parson Farms:</i></a></b></p><b>Returning to the True Founding For Hope in 2024</b><br /><br />Good Morning,<br /><br />“They do not know, nor do they understand; they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are unstable”<br /><br />So says Asaph in Psalm 82:5.<br /><br />In this portion of God’s word we hear the psalmist make plain something central to the problem of all nations which stake a claim in Christ’s world and attempt to disabuse themselves of His rule as King. They are blind, dumb, and ignorant and guaranteed to fail. The history of the earth is filled with the ruins of empires aplenty. We live in a time when our own country seems daily to be tottering on the precipice of its own destruction (or has already begun its slide into the abyss) and when we start to try and diagnose what the problem is it all comes to back to a simple question that Pilate asked two-thousand years ago, whose truth and what truth? In our prayer and worship help today we are going to work through a bit of thinking about why the true ailment of America is not a political one, but a theological and spiritual disease of mind and body. Let’s get back into the word to open it up.<br /><br />Simply put the foundation of any civil order must be the protection of the physical rights of men to be allowed to do that which is good. (Rom. 13:3). We use the word physical here because the State has no right over the spiritual. That is not its role in the Creator’s creation. To be certain that does not mean the State has nothing to say to the religious for false teaching is in its essence rebellion against the King of Kings, and ruler of all. It’s no different from what we would otherwise call treason. We say all this to explain that when we consider afresh the reason why the United States is in the shape it is in we need first to ask upon what pillars were our nation founded? For sure our revolution was not in type or kind the same as the French Revolution which followed. Our Founding Fathers did not seek to outwardly and openly denounce the Divine in favor of the god of Reason. But we must be honest in recognizing that they didn’t exactly promote the Christian God as the head of the nation either.<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://benjaminglaser.substack.com/p/do-you-want-to-make-america-great" target="_blank">Read more here.</a></b></div><div><br /></div><div>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><b>Image Information: </b></div><div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/en:Jean_Leon_Gerome_Ferris">Jean Leon Gerome Ferris</a>: <a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q111829953">The Mayflower Compact, 1620</a> </b></div><div><i>(Cropped)</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Passengers of the Mayflower signing the "Mayflower Compact" including Carver, Winston, Alden, Myles Standish, Howland, Bradford, Allerton, and Fuller. 1 photomechanical print : halftone, color (postcard made from painting). Postcard published by The Foundation Press, Inc., 1932. Reproduction of oil painting from series: The Pageant of a Nation. </i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div>Source:<i> </i><a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Mayflower_Compact_1620_cph.3g07155.jpg">File:The Mayflower Compact 1620 cph.3g07155.jpg - Wikipedia</a></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-28005738983533575172024-02-28T08:43:00.001-06:002024-02-28T08:43:15.239-06:00Tennessee passes bill allowing officials not to perform same-sex marriages<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3M6s6JVcWc9u05lsWm7w6dQ4wwQSBmTdfsdW4nW1bch2D3oeWlIsdRkPyA1zTU0mKv7_P41eGpcw9nyv0HsfEwQOtmrgunT1kP6XLPSv2BpOfYsMvSNAWeuWvJCxuAFG8eqg0Bct_dbEbRIwZhO2-I4DyWI7LktXlk2bsa99fAWE1ut4EWRUqbAvveh8/s1010/Eph%205%2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="454" data-original-width="1010" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3M6s6JVcWc9u05lsWm7w6dQ4wwQSBmTdfsdW4nW1bch2D3oeWlIsdRkPyA1zTU0mKv7_P41eGpcw9nyv0HsfEwQOtmrgunT1kP6XLPSv2BpOfYsMvSNAWeuWvJCxuAFG8eqg0Bct_dbEbRIwZhO2-I4DyWI7LktXlk2bsa99fAWE1ut4EWRUqbAvveh8/w640-h288/Eph%205%2011.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/tennessee-allows-officials-not-to-perform-same-sex-marriages.html" target="_blank"> By Ryan Foley - Posted at<i> The Christian Post:</i></a></b></p><p><i>Published February 27, 2024</i></p>A new Tennessee law will allow public officials to refuse to perform same-sex marriages if their religious beliefs make them unable to do so in good conscience. <br /><br />Tennessee's Republican Gov. Bill Lee signed into law House Bill 878 last Wednesday.<br /><br />The Republican-controlled Tennessee Senate approved the bill in a <a href="https://legiscan.com/TN/rollcall/HB0878/id/1382801">27-5 vote</a> earlier this month after the House of Representatives passed the legislation in a <a href="https://legiscan.com/TN/rollcall/HB0878/id/1269368">74-22 vote</a> last year.<br /><br />While the vote fell along party lines, one House Democrat joined all House Republicans in supporting the legislation. <br /><br />The bill's text declares, "A person shall not be required to solemnize a marriage if the person has an objection to solemnizing the marriage based on the person's conscience or religious beliefs." The legislation amends <a href="https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/2021/title-36/chapter-3/part-3/section-36-3-301/">Tennessee Code Annotated Section 36-3-301</a>, which outlines the requirements for solemnizing a marriage in the state. <div><b><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/tennessee-allows-officials-not-to-perform-same-sex-marriages.html" target="_blank"><br /></a></b></div><div><b><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/tennessee-allows-officials-not-to-perform-same-sex-marriages.html" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-84783097244649111472024-02-27T07:39:00.000-06:002024-02-27T07:40:04.666-06:00Prepping for the Impending Apocalypse<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhranNV1TIempq1Avn4DIEEWGfuMecrcQYd4ES5XukojZrGkJ_fhpu0Rj2ay96K70N3aV3wMbJaBAYl9YEedXnCwHh8CY20xKN2KMYYP_3-cLAALNP4ET-1DsVLMTLn87pv4MBBs0tp_UfaPNrWMOXEb3WVH0KCVhX08kXQsfGYLDtkb-CF2cCtdf9OWlg/s970/broken_trees_5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="425" data-original-width="970" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhranNV1TIempq1Avn4DIEEWGfuMecrcQYd4ES5XukojZrGkJ_fhpu0Rj2ay96K70N3aV3wMbJaBAYl9YEedXnCwHh8CY20xKN2KMYYP_3-cLAALNP4ET-1DsVLMTLn87pv4MBBs0tp_UfaPNrWMOXEb3WVH0KCVhX08kXQsfGYLDtkb-CF2cCtdf9OWlg/w640-h280/broken_trees_5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><b><a href="Stanley Kubrick made the movie Dr. Strangelove as a joke in 1964. His dark comedy took aim at the fragile egos of politicians in the U.S. and U.S.S.R. that threatened to push our world over the precipice of a nuclear winter during the Cold War. Though Soviet hostilities have dissipated, the joke still isn’t as funny as one would wish because an apocalypse still feels closer than one would hope. Climate disasters, AI ascendency, a global pandemic, and roving bands of violent ideologues have moved beyond the bounds of science fiction. The breakdown of civility and human decency serves as supporting evidence for the four out of ten Americans who now believe we’re living in the end times. The church must disciple Christians to prepare in the right way for the right thing. Jesus tells his followers to prepare for his return at the end like we would for a wedding party. (Mt 25:1-13) A soul filled with God’s presence is better preparation than a pantry filled with canned veggies. Prepper Movement The prepper movement didn’t emerge overnight. For a long time, I dismissed apocalypse preppers as fringe fanatics who’d lost their way while wading through the sewers of the dark web. But a movement that used to merit an eye-roll now swims in the mainstream. Its adherents have no shortage of valid reasons for concern. What we do with our worries is the question. The market for doomsday bunkers has expanded beyond eccentric billionaires. You, too, can provide peace of mind for your family by securing a luxury survival condo. This accommodation comes with a lower price point than a private bunker and the added benefit of the company of other foresighted individuals (weapons and dry food arsenal not included). How well and how long such accommodations would serve if the power grid were knocked out is a hazy question, but you’ll at least have purchased a mental fortress to assuage your current anxiety. A pastor friend of mine told me about a church that took him on a tour of their facilities. It concluded in their steel-reinforced war room, stocked with guns, food, and video cameras. What is a healthy level of preparation? No one wants to land in a crisis they could have prevented, but equally important is the message Christians send about the hope and confidence that Jesus promises." target="_blank"> By Justin Poythress - Posted at <i>Reformation21:</i></a></b></p><p><i>Published February 20, 2024</i></p>Stanley Kubrick made the movie Dr. Strangelove as a joke in 1964. His dark comedy took aim at the fragile egos of politicians in the U.S. and U.S.S.R. that threatened to push our world over the precipice of a nuclear winter during the Cold War. Though Soviet hostilities have dissipated, the joke still isn’t as funny as one would wish because an apocalypse still feels closer than one would hope.<br /><br />Climate disasters, AI ascendency, a global pandemic, and roving bands of violent ideologues have moved beyond the bounds of science fiction. The breakdown of civility and human decency serves as supporting evidence for the <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2022/12/08/about-four-in-ten-u-s-adults-believe-humanity-is-living-in-the-end-times/">four out of ten Americans</a> who now believe we’re living in the end times.<br /><br />The church must disciple Christians to prepare in the right way for the right thing. Jesus tells his followers to prepare for his return at the end like we would for a wedding party. (<a href="https://biblia.com/bible/kjv1900/Matt%2025.1-13">Mt 25:1-13</a>) A soul filled with God’s presence is better preparation than a pantry filled with canned veggies.<br /><b><br />Prepper Movement</b><br /><br />The prepper movement didn’t emerge overnight. For a long time, I dismissed apocalypse preppers as fringe fanatics who’d lost their way while wading through the sewers of the dark web. But a movement that used to merit an eye-roll now swims in the mainstream. Its adherents have no shortage of valid reasons for concern. What we do with our worries is the question.<br /><br />The market for doomsday bunkers has expanded beyond eccentric billionaires. You, too, can provide peace of mind for your family by securing a luxury <a href="https://survivalcondo.com/">survival condo</a>. This accommodation comes with a lower price point than a private bunker and the added benefit of the company of other foresighted individuals (weapons and dry food arsenal not included). How well and how long such accommodations would serve if the power grid were knocked out is a hazy question, but you’ll at least have purchased a mental fortress to assuage your current anxiety.<br /><br />A pastor friend of mine told me about a church that took him on a tour of their facilities. It concluded in their steel-reinforced war room, stocked with guns, food, and video cameras.<br /><br />What is a healthy level of preparation? No one wants to land in a crisis they could have prevented, but equally important is the message Christians send about the hope and confidence that Jesus promises.<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://www.reformation21.org/blog/prepping-for-the-impending-apocalypse" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-62719551303121090042024-02-26T07:38:00.001-06:002024-02-26T07:41:22.117-06:00Justice Alito sounds alarm after Christians denied jury duty in state court<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEpVi4rz3Vcipf0ftf64avtafPzCkDOc-w1wMyqBy6eiPUho2AGZXRfHC2T0IcO3j06Saw36_OAAdV3CkQdizflVti1BNxHKK8pHS4J0VdVXLEGIT1NAI6FLtxIru5lIr8te6ltYUWniVwGNEbcQGbkGm-r3i4gJgbGLnK-3Oe2pobBQypV3i1YIFidFk/s640/SupremeCourtFront640.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="376" data-original-width="640" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEpVi4rz3Vcipf0ftf64avtafPzCkDOc-w1wMyqBy6eiPUho2AGZXRfHC2T0IcO3j06Saw36_OAAdV3CkQdizflVti1BNxHKK8pHS4J0VdVXLEGIT1NAI6FLtxIru5lIr8te6ltYUWniVwGNEbcQGbkGm-r3i4gJgbGLnK-3Oe2pobBQypV3i1YIFidFk/w640-h376/SupremeCourtFront640.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://www.baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/justice-alito-sounds-alarm-after-christians-denied-jury-duty-in-state-court/" target="_blank"> By Diana Chandler - Posted at <i>Baptist Press:</i></a></b></p><p><i>Published February 23, 2024</i></p>WASHINGTON (BP) – The barring of two Christians from jury duty in a trial involving a lesbian is evidence that Christians with a biblical worldview are increasingly seen as bigots, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito said after Missouri asked the High Court to review the ruling.<br /><br />Such treatment of Christians is what he warned of in his dissent in the Obergefell v. Hodges legalization of same-sex marriage in 2015, Alito said in “reluctantly” concurring with the court’s decision not to hear Missouri’s appeal Feb. 20.<br /><blockquote>“In this case, the court below reasoned that a person who still holds traditional religious views on questions of sexual morality is presumptively unfit to serve on a jury in a case involving a party who is a lesbian” Alito wrote. “That holding exemplifies the danger that I anticipated in Obergefell v. Hodges, … namely, that Americans who do not hide their adherence to traditional religious beliefs about homosexual conduct will be ‘labeled as bigots and treated as such’ by the government.”</blockquote>While the High Court indicated in the Obergefell v. Hodges ruling that it should not be used to discriminate against those holding biblical views of marriage, Alito said he’s “afraid that this admonition is not being heeded by our society.”<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://www.baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/justice-alito-sounds-alarm-after-christians-denied-jury-duty-in-state-court/" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-45895905661223935282024-02-23T07:32:00.002-06:002024-02-23T09:44:08.856-06:00Alexei Navalny: “The fact is that I am a Christian”<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsD9nGsBetpgXGm1NSLG4s1cakjM5TFMWMmVllyWTg9HYX9jMPmh1ye7FUAJwJaT2lqngwAdKyhmgsNiQ0HVkG2a4Fn5OFsDtBZC2_ydzE059gZ9G5UbfWV9oyqww7_9SMv9IqW5caxC4U41SRPS_qv5hT_OgswwBcSeLT-T7iSq8btXw2_M7VdMhUTsU/s1394/Alexei-Navalny.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1394" height="470" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsD9nGsBetpgXGm1NSLG4s1cakjM5TFMWMmVllyWTg9HYX9jMPmh1ye7FUAJwJaT2lqngwAdKyhmgsNiQ0HVkG2a4Fn5OFsDtBZC2_ydzE059gZ9G5UbfWV9oyqww7_9SMv9IqW5caxC4U41SRPS_qv5hT_OgswwBcSeLT-T7iSq8btXw2_M7VdMhUTsU/w640-h470/Alexei-Navalny.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><b><a href="https://www.denisonforum.org/daily-article/alexei-navalny-the-fact-is-that-i-am-a-christian/" target="_blank">By Ryan Denison, PHD - Posted at <i>The Denison Forum:</i></a></b></p>In the aftermath of <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/alexei-navalnys-death-what-do-we-know-2024-02-18/">Alexei Navalny’s death</a> last Friday, much of the focus has—understandably—been on his attempts to combat corruption in the Russian government and on the role Vladimir Putin likely played in his demise. Yet, as <a href="https://www.denisonforum.org/biblical-living/podcast/courage-losing-our-religion-russell-moore/">Russell Moore</a> recently described, Navalny’s final years were <a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2024/february-web-only/alexei-navalny-russell-moore-putin-russia-moral-courage.html">defined as much by his Christian faith</a> as by his politics or his time in prison. And that faith, in turn, motivated a great deal of how he chose to approach the persecution that ended his life at the age of forty-seven.<br /><br />You see, Navalny <a href="https://cne.news/article/4127-how-the-christian-faith-became-navalny-s-support-in-prison">came to faith</a> late in his life. And while he hasn’t gone into detail on that process, the general belief is that it happened in the aftermath of Putin’s previous attempt to kill him in 2020.<br /><br />As he told a court the following year, “The fact is that <a href="https://www.rightsinrussia.org/navalny-2/">I am a Christian</a>, which usually rather sets me up as an example for constant ridicule in the Anti-Corruption Foundation, because mostly our people are atheists and I was once quite a militant atheist myself.”<br /><br />He then went on to explain how his faith gave clarity and focus to his life as his circumstances became progressively grim.<br /><br />As Moore <a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2024/february-web-only/alexei-navalny-russell-moore-putin-russia-moral-courage.html">concludes</a>, “This was the root, I believe, of Navalny’s moral courage, his willingness to stand alone, his willingness to die.”<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://www.denisonforum.org/daily-article/alexei-navalny-the-fact-is-that-i-am-a-christian/" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>See also:</b></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="https://cne.news/article/4127-how-the-christian-faith-became-navalny-s-support-in-prison"><b>How the Christian faith became Navalny's support in prison (cne.news)</b></a></li></ul></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-80225318134354105732024-02-22T13:31:00.002-06:002024-02-22T13:31:53.991-06:00FRC Publishes New Edition of Hostility Against Churches Report Indicating a Doubling of Attacks<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp2mMfFiaQfUaH_GDcdFA8ppKWzzpDeyFPTCdA18lnbf1RFHXA7PPQTXNWr-aOVR09me212rY1gvFzkcn2Hb7EUzG4aaFymGIHjVJshB-1Ab7r-sd5JShq99X4wjzFcfZ_CSLpE3i6nUi6Lk-2UYWxh2ldu1tRAoALD44PHKgIf9ubJGJ0qOU6zGeN0Ps/s485/church_clipart_white.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="485" data-original-width="445" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp2mMfFiaQfUaH_GDcdFA8ppKWzzpDeyFPTCdA18lnbf1RFHXA7PPQTXNWr-aOVR09me212rY1gvFzkcn2Hb7EUzG4aaFymGIHjVJshB-1Ab7r-sd5JShq99X4wjzFcfZ_CSLpE3i6nUi6Lk-2UYWxh2ldu1tRAoALD44PHKgIf9ubJGJ0qOU6zGeN0Ps/w589-h640/church_clipart_white.gif" width="589" /></a></div><br /><div>WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Family Research Council (FRC) today released the newest edition of its <a href="https://www.frc.org/HostilityAgainstChurches">Hostility Against Churches</a> report, updated to include hostility incidents from calendar year 2023. The report's findings suggest that the rise in hostility against U.S. churches that were identified in FRC's inaugural December 2022 report has neither slowed nor plateaued; rather, it has accelerated rapidly. FRC identified 436 hostility incidents in 2023--more than double the number identified in 2022 and more than eight times the number identified in 2018, the first year for which FRC collected data.</div><br />Notable findings in this report include, but are not limited to:<br /><br />- Over the past six years (2018-2023), FRC has identified 915 acts of hostility against U.S. churches. The types of acts identified included vandalism, arson, gun-related incidents, bomb threats, and more.<br /><br />- In 2023, at least 436 acts of hostility against churches occurred in the United States, more than double the number identified in 2022.<br /><br />- In 2023, acts of hostility against churches took place in 48 states and the District of Columbia, with more occurring in states with larger populations. California had the most incidents, with 33. Texas had 28 incidents. Hawaii and Wyoming had none.<br /><br />- Criminal acts of vandalism and destruction of church property may be symptomatic of a collapse in societal reverence and respect for houses of worship and religion.<br /><br />Tony Perkins, FRC president and former chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, commented on the report:<br /><br />"There is a common connection between the growing religious persecution abroad and the rapidly increasing hostility toward churches here at home: our government's policies. The indifference abroad to the fundamental freedom of religion is rivaled only by the increasing antagonism toward the moral absolutes taught by Bible-believing churches here in the U.S., which is fomenting this environment of hostility toward churches."<br /><br />Arielle Del Turco, Director of the Center for Religious Liberty at FRC and author of the report, commented:<br /><br />"Although the motivations for many of these acts of hostility remain unknown, the effect is unmistakable: religious intimidation. They send the message that churches are not wanted in the community or respected in general. Our culture is demonstrating a growing disdain for Christianity and core Christian beliefs, and acts of hostility against churches could be a physical manifestation of that. Regardless of the motivations of these crimes, everyone should treat churches and all houses of worship with respect and affirm the importance of religious freedom for all Americans."<br /><br />To access the full publication, please visit: <a href="http://frc.org/HostilityAgainstChurches">http://frc.org/HostilityAgainstChurches</a>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-82727817945339531942024-02-21T13:42:00.007-06:002024-02-21T13:42:51.549-06:00SBC disfellowships 4 more churches, including 2 that support women pastors<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizcVmpWzbfIdB1Jwj2MHYhHmJa3z16xLsRufnECBXtLo7qMive8SNQ1UVWAPy3ndzzLsIlQtrJLwVcO61gGpu0DJQ8lgAwy5wRWXKZpdgQx-K_uu92VMV11W872-TZasaRfKXrO5H-pAZOMrnfQ6o_p43w5p5s6dgT6HcFXbTmVR74deNFPoqI0zHdDjQ/s699/152014_w_700_432.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="432" data-original-width="699" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizcVmpWzbfIdB1Jwj2MHYhHmJa3z16xLsRufnECBXtLo7qMive8SNQ1UVWAPy3ndzzLsIlQtrJLwVcO61gGpu0DJQ8lgAwy5wRWXKZpdgQx-K_uu92VMV11W872-TZasaRfKXrO5H-pAZOMrnfQ6o_p43w5p5s6dgT6HcFXbTmVR74deNFPoqI0zHdDjQ/w640-h396/152014_w_700_432.webp" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Katie McKown was hired as senior pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Paducah, Ky., in February 2023. </div><div><div style="text-align: center;">YouTube/Kyle Lake Center (The Christian Post)</div><p><b><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/sbc-disfellowships-church-with-woman-pastor-3-others.html" target="_blank"> By Leonardo Blair - Posted at <i>The Christian Post:</i></a></b></p>The Southern Baptist Convention has disfellowshiped four more churches deemed not to be in friendly cooperation with the denomination's regulations, including one for having a female senior pastor and another that allows women in church leadership.<br /><br />The two other churches were ousted for issues related to sexual abuse and the retention of a "biblically disqualified" pastor.<br /><br />Acting on the recommendations of the SBC Credentials Committee, the Executive Committee of the nation's largest Protestant denomination voted in Nashville on Tuesday to remove Immanuel Baptist Church in Paducah, Kentucky, from fellowship, reports the SBC's official news service <a href="https://www.kentuckytoday.com/baptist_life/executive-committee-deems-four-churches-not-in-friendly-cooperation/article_0dabc468-d054-11ee-a041-1faf9927e359.html">Baptist Press</a>.<br /><br />The church, which hired Rev. Katie McKown as its senior pastor in 2023, was deemed to have a "faith and practice that does not closely identify with the Convention’s adopted statement of faith, as demonstrated by the church having a female lead pastor functioning in the office of pastor."<br /><br />New Hope Baptist Church in Gastonia, North Carolina, was formally disfellowshipped over a "lack of reported financial participation for at least the last five (5) years and its lack of intent to cooperate to resolve a question of faith and practice." <br /><br />Although the church doesn't list any females as part of its <a href="https://nhbc-gastonia.org/staff">pastoral staff</a>, New Hope's <a href="https://nhbc-gastonia.org/beliefs">website</a> states, "We believe in equality in ministry and we do not discriminate between genders."<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/sbc-disfellowships-church-with-woman-pastor-3-others.html" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-20709273446060180242024-02-20T10:20:00.003-06:002024-02-20T10:22:27.103-06:00Breakpoint: Money Cannot Fix China’s Population Decline<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh74rky7NoisBk6_6nyZ864Y9gccZ7CZ7l75ZZpl6IIMOnZhEJrt80Hd3c8rwFFlmPRL4XpHJ5I6fPhc6HK06eADxj-dxvh101afbYmFWXzEGxJGKyeyIGXc1HPLwPHkfU7aO8xvQYB1K6tICKkW2ZfKDIyHZmytYx4J5p8P9mjhh0F3id8v5Q2FOa097A/s181/christians%20in%20china.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="181" data-original-width="160" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh74rky7NoisBk6_6nyZ864Y9gccZ7CZ7l75ZZpl6IIMOnZhEJrt80Hd3c8rwFFlmPRL4XpHJ5I6fPhc6HK06eADxj-dxvh101afbYmFWXzEGxJGKyeyIGXc1HPLwPHkfU7aO8xvQYB1K6tICKkW2ZfKDIyHZmytYx4J5p8P9mjhh0F3id8v5Q2FOa097A/w283-h320/christians%20in%20china.jpg" width="283" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://breakpoint.org/money-cannot-fix-chinas-population-decline/" target="_blank">By John Stonestreet and Jared Hayden</a></b></p><b>Population rates struggle where marriage and family are not viewed as a key foundation to livelihood. </b><div><br /></div><div>Last year, the population of the nation of China <a href="https://wng.org/opinions/demographic-free-fall-1706527092">dropped</a> by at least two million people. That number is over double the nation’s population decline in 2022. For context, this is like the U.S. losing the entire population of the state of Nebraska or the city of Houston, Texas in a single year. <br /><br />What continues to drive China’s drastic decline in population is a drop in births. In the last five years, the number of births there has dropped by almost half, <a href="https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202401/1305550.shtml">according</a> to China’s National Bureau of Statistics. In 2017, China reported 17 million births. In 2023, it reported only 9 million, a number that fails to replace the 11 million people who died. <br /><br />In 2016, China revoked its infamous one-child policy. In recent years, local governments and corporations have made concentrated <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-population-demographics-birthrate-fertility-subsidies-incentives-ivf-betrothal-gift-2023-10#:~:text=An%20aging%20population%20will%20have,have%20up%20to%20three%20kids.">efforts</a> to encourage and even incentivize citizens to have more kids. In Hangzhou, the local government offered $2,800 for those who had a third child in 2023. In Wenzhou, parents were offered over $400 for every child they have. Some companies are offering cash bonuses for the first five years of a child’s life. Yet, despite these efforts, China’s population continues to decline. <br /><br />To be clear, though its situation may be the most dramatic, China is <a href="https://www.nationalreview.com/magazine/2024/03/natalism-is-not-enough/">not</a> the only country facing population decline. Countries across the developed world, from Europe to East Asia, have birth rates well below the replacement rate. And, like China, several of them are attempting to incentivize citizens to have more children.</div><div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://breakpoint.org/money-cannot-fix-chinas-population-decline/" target="_blank">Read more here.</a></b><br /> <p><br /></p></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-48057618818979886052024-02-19T11:43:00.006-06:002024-02-19T11:43:45.441-06:00George Washington - 1st President of the United States (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUGdC8yNYM-pK9tj1Gew-HnBx7bba5k89F6MVjM4Aau8-BBfrLGsuuA_ilRFAbPqLrDfhLuITpcxKmA5DOEK_NuZ8XcgZe0Qvu_9bU-IIGjirZmXD1FJ58FO0KtjBBIbLtTRiGyaEZjn3ia8ni_1v_MTomvj8iAOVG1qfUGeV9xL2x_liGzmMSh7ghB8/s640/01_george_washington.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUGdC8yNYM-pK9tj1Gew-HnBx7bba5k89F6MVjM4Aau8-BBfrLGsuuA_ilRFAbPqLrDfhLuITpcxKmA5DOEK_NuZ8XcgZe0Qvu_9bU-IIGjirZmXD1FJ58FO0KtjBBIbLtTRiGyaEZjn3ia8ni_1v_MTomvj8iAOVG1qfUGeV9xL2x_liGzmMSh7ghB8/w640-h640/01_george_washington.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/george-washington/" target="_blank"><b>George Washington - The White Hous</b>e</a></div><p> <b><a href="https://mercyadamswrites.blogspot.com/2023/02/george-washington-1st-president-of.html" target="_blank">By Mercy Adams - Posted at <i>Mercy Adams Writes:</i></a></b></p><p><i>Published February 22, 2023</i></p><i><b>Was Christianity an influence in the life of our first president? Please examine the facts and decide for yourself. ~ Mercy Adams</b></i><br /><br />"There was a long tradition of service to the church in the Washington family. George Washington’s great-great-grandfather, Lawrence Washington, was an Anglican minister in England, while his great-grandfather, John Washington, and his father, Augustine Washington, were vestrymen for their parishes in Virginia. Both John Washington and his son, Lawrence Washington (who was George Washington’s grandfather) left statements of their belief in the basic tenets of the Christian faith in their wills.<br /><br />"In addition, within their home, George Washington’s parents had both a Bible and several theological books, which are believed to have been used in educating their children. His mother, <a href="https://www.mountvernon.org/digital-encyclopedia/article/mary-ball-washington/">Mary Ball Washington</a>, was remembered by her grandchildren as a devout woman, who liked to visit a quiet spot outside, where she instructed the young people about “the Great Creator of all things, his goodness, his mercy to all who love and obey him.” Another grandchild recalled sitting with her on Sunday evenings as she read to him from the family Bible and he looked through the illustrations. There is no reason to think that she raised her children any differently.<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXhfc7ZfPPq_majS6JB0OuU_M2voZB-9lQOhBh28sQza3iD99Cw0wd1u58tafVb0UWsEvuMyNMGY20UihvC-siaSs9AJ1KQm3DY7ew_w4SCogodEbedTIjsqqYJAygaV8NeQiHhD2vCjyoJNWW4uBnG2c6LjFlDgR0hRTJzeZ-2eXxlEsMXDiYbFnmQII/s639/gw_christ_church_loc_3g10298v-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="440" data-original-width="639" height="440" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXhfc7ZfPPq_majS6JB0OuU_M2voZB-9lQOhBh28sQza3iD99Cw0wd1u58tafVb0UWsEvuMyNMGY20UihvC-siaSs9AJ1KQm3DY7ew_w4SCogodEbedTIjsqqYJAygaV8NeQiHhD2vCjyoJNWW4uBnG2c6LjFlDgR0hRTJzeZ-2eXxlEsMXDiYbFnmQII/w640-h440/gw_christ_church_loc_3g10298v-2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />"The Washingtons attended services about once a month at two churches near Mount Vernon. During the <a href="https://www.mountvernon.org/george-washington/the-revolutionary-war/">Revolutionary War</a>, Washington regularly attended services held by military chaplains and local civilian congregations. Often, when he was traveling, Washington would stop for services at whatever church was nearby, regardless of its denomination. Over the course of his life, he is known to have attended services at churches associated with the following Christian groups: Presbyterians, Quakers, Roman Catholics, Congregationalists, Baptists, and Dutch Reformed.<br /><br />You may learn more about George Washington's religious beliefs here: <a href="https://www.mountvernon.org/george-washington/religion/george-washington-and-religion/">George Washington and Religion · George Washington's Mount Vernon</a> and at: <a href="https://www.mountvernon.org/george-washington/religion/8-facts-about-george-washington-and-religion/">8 Facts about George Washington and Religion · George Washington's Mount Vernon</a>.<div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>See also:</b></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="https://mercyadamswrites.blogspot.com/2023/02/examining-religious-habits-of.html"><b>Examining the Religious Habits of the Washington Family (mercyadamswrites.blogspot.com)</b></a></li><li><a href="https://mercyadamswrites.blogspot.com/2023/03/the-father-of-america-first-american.html"><b>George Washington: 'The Father Of America - The First American' (mercyadamswrites.blogspot.com)</b></a></li></ul></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-20154614608988059202024-02-16T10:25:00.011-06:002024-02-16T10:35:44.977-06:00PCA No Mas: Saint Louis Congregation departs PCA for CREC<p><b><a href="https://rfbwcf.substack.com/p/pca-no-mas-saint-louis-congregation" target="_blank"> By Ryan Biese - Posted at <i>Mid the Pines:</i></a></b></p><b>A congregation with a history of Federal Vision theology and paedocommunion has voted to leave the PCA for the CREC. We wish them well, but we wish they would've held fast to the Westminster Standards.</b><div><b><br /></b></div>In last week’s episode we considered the dangers inherent in Federal Vision’s distortions of the Scripture and Historical Theology. As with most heresies, the influence and pervasiveness of these errors are sometimes difficult to spot and even harder to root out when identified.
<p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OawRD0ayknU?si=Qzr-NLPzQt-6rYQV" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p>In this week’s episode we consider the departure of the Providence Reformed Presbyterian Church (PRC) in Saint Louis. Two of the congregation’s ministers signed the <a href="https://heidelblog.net/a-joint-federal-vision-profession-2007/">2007 Federal Vision Statement</a>, but none were convicted by Missouri Presbytery.<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://rfbwcf.substack.com/p/pca-no-mas-saint-louis-congregation" target="_blank">Learn more here.</a></b></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Direct Link to Video: </b></div><div><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OawRD0ayknU"><b>25. PCA No Mas: St. Louis Congregation Leaves PCA for CREC (youtube.com)</b></a></div><div><br /></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-14615351631339867102024-02-15T13:34:00.003-06:002024-02-15T13:34:30.670-06:00Review: The Case for Christian Nationalism By Stephen Wolfe<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia2voAHtBJZVnbYEQ7rF19Z6pBC65_jkNlus6dDzYJcpsZUfF7nsqYFbmeUid36BB3TpcNAXap_-Kb9z_P2RVztVr58qKKkzndVmWCMOSu8_3nmkZq4eG62BDCvJEjbcx_0hNozgYhlMe_iXajn_NVimRuYdg9gNzcYGxE7HbPZJfhHeSk3w_HtXTw9Gc/s466/61Rb4Q35USL._SY466_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="466" data-original-width="311" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia2voAHtBJZVnbYEQ7rF19Z6pBC65_jkNlus6dDzYJcpsZUfF7nsqYFbmeUid36BB3TpcNAXap_-Kb9z_P2RVztVr58qKKkzndVmWCMOSu8_3nmkZq4eG62BDCvJEjbcx_0hNozgYhlMe_iXajn_NVimRuYdg9gNzcYGxE7HbPZJfhHeSk3w_HtXTw9Gc/w428-h640/61Rb4Q35USL._SY466_.jpg" width="428" /></a></div><p><br /></p><p><b><a href="https://heidelblog.net/2024/02/review-the-case-for-christian-nationalism-by-stephen-wolfe/" target="_blank"> By Pastor Shane Lems - Posted at <i>The Heidelblog:</i></a></b></p>The rise of Donald Trump, the renewed call for a “Christian America,” the novel promotion of Christian nationalism—these three things are recent realities in the American political and religious scenes. Indeed, they are <i>related</i> realities. Furthermore, these three realities are not helping unify Christians in America and are causing unbelievers to further oppose the Christian faith and church. Love him or hate him, most Christians know about Donald Trump. Most are also aware of the term, “Christian America”—but what about <i>Christian nationalism</i>? This term’s usage has been on the rise in the last ten years, but not every Christian knows what it means. Christians who do know what Christian nationalism means might even argue about its definition. One of the lengthier books written recently in favor of this movement is <i>The Case for Christian Nationalism</i> by Stephen Wolfe.<br /><br />Just shy of five hundred pages, <i>The Case for Christian Nationalism</i> <i>(TCCN)</i> gives definitions for various aspects of Christian nationalism and detailed arguments in support of it. <i>TCCN </i>is neither a simple primer on Christian nationalism, nor is it aimed at intermediate readers. Rather, it is intended for advanced readers who want a comprehensive and intricate layout of the various particulars of Christian nationalism. Wolfe weaves theology, philosophy, logic, history, and political theory together to present an elaborate case for his version of Christian nationalism.<div><b><br /></b></div><b>An Overview</b><br /><br />Wolfe notes that he is writing from a Reformed Christian point of view which ought to be assumed throughout the book (16). <i>TCCN,</i> however, does not make its case directly from Scripture or Reformed theology since Wolfe does not claim to be a biblical scholar or a theologian (16). In other words, although he does not cite Scripture frequently in this book, the conclusions are based on his understanding of theology and Scripture as applied to politics, culture, laws, and society.<br /><br />Here is Wolfe’s own definition of Christian nationalism: “[Christian nationalism] is a totality of national action, consisting of civil laws and social customs, conducted by a Christian nation as a Christian nation, in order to procure for itself both earthly and heavenly good in Christ” (9). In other words, Christian nationalism means the laws and customs of a nation should be Christian laws and customs. Additionally, all the actions of a nation should be Christian actions leading to earthly good and heavenly good.<br /><br />His main purpose for writing the book is to prove that Christian nationalism is the ideal arrangement for Christians and something worth pursuing with resolve (9). His goal is to justify the institutionalization of Christianity and give reasons for Christians to “act in confidence for that institutionalization” (5). In his view, “there are two options: Christian nationalism or pagan nationalism” (381). He does not believe there is a third option for civil governments.<div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://heidelblog.net/2024/02/review-the-case-for-christian-nationalism-by-stephen-wolfe/" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-44368729514833991552024-02-14T08:54:00.005-06:002024-02-14T14:37:23.780-06:00'Well done, good and faithful servant'<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9FBC7qyxk7MR9RmxNlhXMPq-wUOW16R0lcFv1C-Uu7m1Nz52DjK0Ocj1fn6sRUel1f4RfogKaxI1ckOrGqwU6Bte7TL2AUkqWwvVBb4Nvyp9uAsmGP2iTSfsoES3aVLSpM1X9X7G8ikUnD0fHFJHsO3ljwmpmg5K_5ph0hLo9-rhmTg8Q5o1rTMf-q7Y/s620/5843124705_7b9115e1bf_c-e1706810343500.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="413" data-original-width="620" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9FBC7qyxk7MR9RmxNlhXMPq-wUOW16R0lcFv1C-Uu7m1Nz52DjK0Ocj1fn6sRUel1f4RfogKaxI1ckOrGqwU6Bte7TL2AUkqWwvVBb4Nvyp9uAsmGP2iTSfsoES3aVLSpM1X9X7G8ikUnD0fHFJHsO3ljwmpmg5K_5ph0hLo9-rhmTg8Q5o1rTMf-q7Y/w640-h426/5843124705_7b9115e1bf_c-e1706810343500.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><b><a href="https://byfaithonline.com/obituary-joel-belz-world/" target="_blank">By Lauren Dunn, Kim Henderson and Lynde Langdon - Posted at <i>byFaith Magazine:</i></a></b></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Published February 4, 2024</i></div><blockquote>Belz never appeared to despair over moral decline in the West and in the United States, in particular, but held on to his faith in a personal, loving, and sovereign God.</blockquote><div>Joel Belz, founder of WORLD News Group, died on February 4 at his home in Asheville, N.C., from complications of Parkinson’s disease. He was 82.<br /><div><b><br /></b>Those who knew Belz esteemed him as an exemplary son, brother, husband, father, grandfather, elder, teacher, journalist, and publisher. He saw himself as nothing more than a great sinner who had received great mercy.<br /><br />“Just as it is for every sinner, mine is a story of what God has done for me—not what I have done for Him,” <a href="https://wng.org/articles/what-god-has-done-for-me-1618208220">Belz wrote</a> in 2021 in his WORLD Magazine column.<br /><br />Belz was <a href="https://digitalcollections-baylor.quartexcollections.com/documents/detail/1553755">born in Marshalltown</a>, Iowa, in 1941, the <a href="https://digitalcollections-baylor.quartexcollections.com/documents/detail/1553755?item=1553771">second</a> of eight children of <a href="https://www.citizen-times.com/obituaries/act105439">Max and Jean Belz</a>. His parents prioritized Christian education for their children.<br /><br />“Daily reading and Bible classes were assumed,” Belz wrote of his childhood. “We took notes on the sermons we heard. And we memorized Scripture—so that all these years later, 20 or more entire Psalms are still stashed away in my increasingly Parkinson’s-wobbly memory.”<br /><br />Belz’s father was a third-generation grain, lumber, and coal dealer in central Iowa, though he later attended seminary and became a Presbyterian pastor. As a child, Belz joined his dad at annual meetings of the Bible Presbyterian Church, the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, and the Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod. Belz <a href="https://wng.org/articles/a-world-of-good-1635984009">attended Cono Christian School</a>, which his father <a href="https://theaquilareport.com/jean-belz-matriarch-of-the-belz-family-of-walker-iowa-dies-of-a-stroke-at-age-91/">helped found</a>, and later graduated from Covenant College with a degree in English. He earned a master’s degree in mass communications and journalism from the University of Iowa. In between, he did research and traveled internationally for the Arthur S. DeMoss Foundation.<br /><br />Belz taught logic and English at Covenant College briefly before helping to found Lookout Mountain Christian School across the border in Tennessee, which still operates today as Chattanooga Christian School. For decades, Belz served as a board member of Covenant College. Niel Nielson spent 10 years at Covenant as president and worked closely with Belz. Nielson said Belz, as much as anyone in his life, exemplified a key aspect of Reformed heritage: the interwoven strands of doctrine, piety, and witness.<br /><br />“It’s tempting for those three strands to become unraveled. Some people seem to be all about doctrine, or all about the spiritual life, or all about cultural engagement,” Nielsen said. “Belz held those together. So for the church, the denomination, and especially the Covenant community, he represented the best of Reformed faith and life and faithfulness.”<br /><br />In 1975, Belz married Carol Esther Jackson, and the couple raised five daughters. In 1977, Belz moved his family to Asheville to work for The Presbyterian Journal, a publication for theologically conservative Presbyterians where he later became interim editor.</div></div><div><b><a href="https://byfaithonline.com/obituary-joel-belz-world/" target="_blank"><br /></a></b></div><div><b><a href="https://byfaithonline.com/obituary-joel-belz-world/" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>See also:</b></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/14/business/media/joel-belz-dead.html?fbclid=IwAR34lu4--MifKQGNC6f2EsUx9nx82AlRGUBhid6Q1aaE5LlFq100wijyH5U"><b>Joel Belz, Trailblazer in Christian Journalism, Is Dead at 82 - The New York Times (nytimes.com)</b></a></li></ul></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7647799052592713285.post-79480324485761396902024-02-13T08:32:00.004-06:002024-02-13T14:58:52.634-06:00Christian Post: Lakewood Church shooter was mentally troubled, consistently identified as female, police say<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlYVvW5LBSGudYYUp3chjKIYVQZFRRSBSVIffp4rSNurheIaYtwmgIOKtEJG59D7n9DMalAQ2yZ9XmrUGufiRIT7zf2XNH6FUZdp0EGDmn6UljmguQk8KPiX95frYiX7l3VAZp1bsA9pC15eqlvTrs2FNQDzwfcuuG7XehMwDoa722tfS4HcdUOKbgGf8/s1240/lakeland%20shooter.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="725" data-original-width="1240" height="374" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlYVvW5LBSGudYYUp3chjKIYVQZFRRSBSVIffp4rSNurheIaYtwmgIOKtEJG59D7n9DMalAQ2yZ9XmrUGufiRIT7zf2XNH6FUZdp0EGDmn6UljmguQk8KPiX95frYiX7l3VAZp1bsA9pC15eqlvTrs2FNQDzwfcuuG7XehMwDoa722tfS4HcdUOKbgGf8/w640-h374/lakeland%20shooter.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Image Source: <i><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/lakewood-church-shooter-consistently-identified-as-female-police.html" target="_blank">The Christian Post</a></i></div><p><b><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/lakewood-church-shooter-consistently-identified-as-female-police.html" target="_blank">By Leonardo Blair - Posted at <i>The Christian Post:</i></a></b></p><p><i>Published February 12, 2024</i></p>Despite reportedly using multiple aliases, including the male name Jeffrey Escalante, Genesse Ivonne Moreno, a mentally troubled individual who was shot dead by off-duty law enforcement officers after opening fire at Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church on Sunday, has consistently identified as female, a Houston Police Department officer said Monday. <br /><br />"Our shooter is identified by a driver's license as Genesee Moreno 36 years old, Hispanic female. There are some discrepancies," HPD's Commander of Homicide Christopher Hassig said at a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBqupjz8CwI">press conference</a>. "We do have reports she used multiple aliases, including Jeffrey Escalante. So she has utilized both male and female names but through all of our investigation to this point, talking with individuals, interviews, documents, Houston Police Department reports, she has been identified this entire time as female."<br /><br />The clarification from HPD comes as some <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/lakewood-church-shooting-suspect-identified-transgender-woman-long-criminal-record">media reports</a> have identified Moreno as a transgender woman who was born a male. Police say the shooter had at least six prior arrests since 2005, including unlawful carrying of a weapon, which Moreno pleaded guilty to; evading arrest; and assault on a public official. <div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/lakewood-church-shooter-consistently-identified-as-female-police.html" target="_blank">Continue here.</a></b></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>See also:</b></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="https://www.christian-heritage-news.com/2024/02/shooting-at-joel-osteens-lakewood.html"><b>Shooting at Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church Injures 2; Shooter Killed, Young Boy Critical (christian-heritage-news.com)</b></a></li><li><a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/genesse-moreno-son-lakewood-shooting-18665349.php"><b>Lakewood Church shooting victim not enrolled in school (houstonchronicle.com)</b></a></li><li><a href="https://www.khou.com/article/news/crime/lakewood-church-houston-shooter/285-dc80c9f7-4728-4016-bb34-574582f50f4b"><b>Who is the Lakewood Church shooter, Genesse Moreno? | khou.com</b></a></li><li><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/texas-neighbors-said-tried-sound-alarm-houston-church-shooter-months-rcna138516"><b>Texas neighbors said they tried to sound the alarm about Houston church shooter for months (nbcnews.com)</b></a></li></ul></div>Angela Wittmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04025738299107632514noreply@blogger.com0