Last
week, Snapchat introduced a new channel in its "Discover" section
called, "Cosmo After Dark." And simply put, it is pornographic.
This is highly concerning, not least because huge numbers of teens use Snapchat to communicate with their friends. According to Cosmopolitan magazine, the new channel "is an X-rated weekly edition that goes live every Friday at 6 p.m. ..."
The worst part? There's no option—for parents or anyone else—to switch it off.
The
World Health Organization wants to wipe trans fats from the face of the
earth. This week the global health institution recommended all countries
ban trans fats within the next five years.
Some
countries, such as the United States, already issued a trans fat ban.
In 2015, the United States government warned the food industry to get
rid of them within three years. That ban takes effect next month.
Trans
fats, also called "hydrogenated" oils, are in processed foods,
especially baked goods. They are an inexpensive way to prolong a
product's shelf life.
However,
trans fats have been shown to cause a number of health issues,
including early death from heart disease. In fact, an estimated half a
million people reportedly died as a result of consuming trans fats.
Aspiring clergy from the north of England are shut out by a biased
Church of England due to their 'broad northern accents', according to
the Bishop of Burnley, the Rt Revd Philip North.
Bishop North told the Daily Telegraph that the priesthood favoured middle-class and well-spoken candidates over working class ones.
The
bishop said that church officials report that candidates with broad
accents were looked upon un-favourably by selection advisers.
The Vatican confirmed Monday that a delegation of six German bishops
and one priest will meet with Vatican officials, including the head of
the CDF, later this week to discuss the issue of the reception of the
Eucharist by non-Catholic spouses of Catholics.
The meeting will take place May 3 with Archbishop Luis Ladaria
Ferrer, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and
Fr. Hermann Geissler, head of the department’s doctrinal section.
The German delegation, which includes Cardinal Reinhard Marx of
Munich and Freising and Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki of Cologne, will
also meet with Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council
for Promoting Christian Unity and Fr. Markus Graulich, under-secretary
of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts.
The Guinness Book of World Records recently identified Masazo Nonakaas of Japan as the oldest living man.
He is over 112 years old. Japan has the highest life expectancy in the
world, and some contribute this longevity to a Japanese concept known as
"Ikigai," roughly translated from two words: "iki" which means "life,"
and "gai" which means "worth." While it's difficult to translate
precisely, it refers to those activities and pursuits that give us a
"reason to live" or "make life worth living". In one recent article,
Ikigai was described as the intersection between "what you love, what
you care about, what the world needs, and what you can get paid for."
Many people believe this Japanese strategy for success and fulfillment
is the new secret to happiness.
It isn't. "Ikigai" isn't new and it isn't even Japanese. The principles described in "Ikigai" are ancient Judeo-Christian values:
Doing What You Love and Care About: We are generally happiest when working within our strengths. A popular assessment tool
acknowledges this fact and helps applicants discover their assets and
interests. Each of us is wired differently with strengths and
weaknesses. We find the greatest joy and achieve the greatest success
when we are allowed to work in disciplines that maximize our strengths. This truth is not new; it was described by the ancient, Biblical writers. According to Scripture, we have been gifted by God with specific talents and interests (1 Peter 4:10), and we find joy when we exercise our gifts (Romans 12:7-11).
Cyber experts have warned that within the next two or three weeks,
the U.S. and other countries may face an even more widespread and
damaging infrastructure cyberattack.
Pentagon spokeswoman Dana
White said in a Pentagon briefing that there has been a "2,000 percent
increase in Russian trolls in the last 24 hours," following the
coordinated military strike against Syria, according to the Christian
Emergency Network (christianemergencynetwork.org).
A California bill with the aim of banning Christian books and
resources which address issues of homosexuality and gender identity
could pass in the California Senate as soon as late May, sources told CBN News.
Assembly
Bill 2943 declares biblical books and Christian conferences dealing
with biblical views on homosexuality or transgenderism as fraudulent,
under the state's consumer fraud statute. Ultimately, penalizing those
who share a traditional view on marriage.
In a time of confusion and postmodern "truth is whatever's true for
you," Christians need clarity on the exclusive message of the gospel.
Watch this informative and inspirational video, second in the free
"Loving Lifestyle Evangelism" YouTube series, to help you and your
church counter this and other errors deceiving multitudes.
A Christian girl in Pakistan was burnt alive after refusing to marry a Muslim man and convert to Islam.
Asma Masih, 25, died in hospital on Sunday after turning down repeated proposals from a local Muslim man, according to a local media.
Her father, Yaqoob Masih, said Asma had gone to answer the door while
working as a domestic help in Sialkot, north-eastern Pakistan, when she
was attacked. Yaqoob, who was visiting the house she was working at,
claimed he saw 'Rizwan Gujjar fleeing from the scene while Asma was
engulfed in flames'.
A white van struck multiple people at a major intersection in
Toronto's northern suburbs on Monday and police have taken the driver
into custody, police said on Twitter.
Police in Canada's largest
city initially said eight to 10 people had been injured but later said
it was unclear exactly how many had been hurt or the extent of their
injuries.
It was not immediately clear if the incident was a deliberate act by the driver or a traffic mishap.
On Monday a hospitalized British child at the center of a heated legal
battle was granted Italian citizenship, part of an effort to delay
shutting off his life-support, and to transfer him to a Roman hospital
for additional treatment and medical evaluation.
Two-year-old Alfie Evans suffers from an unidentified degenerative
neurological condition and has been under continuous hospitalization
since December 2016.
On Monday the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) refused to
intervene in what has been a highly sensitive and complicated case,
paving the way for Alder Hey Children's Hospital, where Evans has been
receiving care, to shut off the infant's life support.
Syrian state TV said on Saturday that rebels had agreed to surrender
an enclave northeast of Damascus and go to opposition areas at the
border with Turkey, a withdrawal that would clinch another victory for
President Bashar al-Assad.
There was no immediate comment from the rebels in the eastern Qalamoun pocket of territory northeast of Damascus.
Smoke rises from Yarmouk Palestinian camp in Damascus.
Assad, backed by Russia and Iran, is seeking to recover control of
the last few rebel enclaves near Damascus, building on momentum from the
defeat of the insurgency in the eastern Ghouta, the last major
opposition stronghold near the capital.
The eastern Qalamoun area is 40 km (25 miles) from Damascus and includes several towns an expanse of mountainous territory.
Admittedly, I'm a sucker for a nice lawn. I like the grass to be
thick and green, borders to be edged and no weeds in between. The edges
are easy, but the weeds can seem impossible to control. As many of us
know, without the proper care, these often-unsightly nuisances can
eventually take over. And they have a penchant for coming back, over and
over again. Cutting them down, or even casually plucking them out is
only a temporarily solution. To fully remove a weed, you have to get to
its root.
The Root of Strongholds
The struggles and
strongholds in our lives are much like weeds. They come in all kinds of
appearances. Some initially look nice and flowery, others, however, are
ugly and prickly. Whatever their appearance, they are all enemies and
aim to choke out everything healthy. Their removal is the same, too.
Only casually dealing with a stronghold might mask its symptoms for a
time, but it will come back with a vengeance if the root isn't
destroyed.
As I discuss in my book, Activating the Power of God's Word,
the root of a stronghold is often a lie planted somewhere in the past.
As the lie grows, a "means of relief" eventually presents itself, which
can include money, fame, substances or even unhealthy relationships.
Finally, after falling to these pressures, guilt and shame then kick in,
accompanied by more lies, which eventually lead back to the old,
familiar crutch. And on and on the cycle goes.
Religious leaders in Chicago are fighting to end a lawsuit filed by
an atheist group that would impose upwards of $1 billion in taxes for
churches around the nation.
The lawsuit, Gaylor v. Mnuchin, was filed by the Freedom
From Religion Foundation. The case aims to end the parsonage allowance, a
federal tax provision used by religious establishments such as
churches, mosques, and synagogues, which offers a housing allowance to
help religious leaders live in the communities they serve.
Utah is encouraging its citizens to better prepare for marriage by
discounting the cost of marriage licenses for couples who complete
marriage preparation classes.
The law, signed March 20 by Utah Governor Gary Herbert, will discount
marriage licenses by $20 for couples who complete at least three hours
of premarital counseling or six hours of premarital classes at least 14
days before applying for a marriage license. These services may be
provided by either religious or secular organizations.
Lisa Bevere says men and women don't have to fight or be at odds with
one another. She says both sexes are currently fighting to dominate the
other—when what the Bible prescribes is actually dominion. Find out what
she means in this video.
Those of us who oppose the radical left's agenda too often respond by
attacking singular issues, without regard for the greater battle being
waged. If there's one consistent beat to which the radical left marches,
it is the demonization of Western civilization.
Non-leftists have
failed to produce an antidote to this far more poisonous message.
Schools have been brainwashing impressionable minds for decades yet,
suddenly, we're shocked at the lack of knowledge our young people have
about this nation, its founding, its laws and the tremendous strides it
has made for humanity.
One of the things Jesus did was take all emotional upheaval and
wounds in your place. His unfailing love and perfect work empowers your
freedom. You must not and cannot get trapped in condemnation and
self-righteousness. Having a strong understanding of God's grace and
goodness will empower your recovery.
Part of maturing in the new
nature is accessing new ways of thinking. The Word of God becomes the
road map to proper thinking and therefore opens the gateways to kingdom
living. Once you think differently, you live differently. Renewing the
mind is not a single-step process but a journey of continual change,
growth and renewal.
Here is a list of 10 types of damaged souls,
their symptoms and Scripture passages to renew your mind and put you on
the path toward proper thinking.
Conflicted soul: Unable to make rational decisions, tossed to and fro, highly unstable and overly emotional
The airstrikes carried out by the United States, the United Kingdom
and France against Syria on Friday constituted “unjust” and “brutal”
aggression, the patriarchs of the major Christian Churches in Syria have
said in a joint statement.
President Donald Trump ordered the airstrikes along with the U.K. and
France in a joint show of military force following the suspected use of
chemical warfare by the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. A
total of 105 missiles targeted chemical weapons facilities in the
country late Friday night.
Double the population of the USA and the UK will be without
electricity by 2030 unless governments invest more in renewable energy, a
new report is warning.
'Faster progress is needed,' the report by
Christian charity Tearfund stresses, as it calls for three-quarters of
energy investment to be made in renewable sources.
Amid attacks on the seal of confession in Australia, Archbishop
Anthony Fisher of Sydney has said priests will suffer punishment before
betraying their sacred obligations.
Confession “is threatened today both by neglect and attack. But
priests, we know, will suffer punishment, even martyrdom, rather than
break the seal of Confession,” Archbishop Fisher said April 1 during his homily for Easter Sunday at St. Mary's Cathedral in Sydney.
“For Confession is a privileged encounter between penitent and God;
here the Christian enters the silence and secrecy of the Tomb, to be
re-Eastered; and no earthly authority may enter there.”
During Mark Zuckerberg’s testimony before the United States Senate on Tuesday, Sen. Ted Cruz grilled the Facebook founder about the social media
giant’s alleged pattern of discrimination against conservative voices.
Cruz
began by asking whether Facebook considers itself a neutral forum, to
which Zuckerberg said Facebook views itself as “a platform for all
ideas." Cruz followed up by noting that online services are not held liable for their content so long as they are a “neutral public forum.”
He then asked again whether Facebook considers itself a neutral public forum, or if it engages in political speech.
Zuckerberg answered that Facebook’s “goal” was “certainly not to
engage in political speech.” Pressing further, Cruz told him that “a
great many Americans” were “deeply concerned” that Facebook was engaged
in a “pervasive pattern of bias and political censorship."
He cited several examples of Facebook suppressing conservative views
from its trending news stories, such as stories on the Conservative
Political Action Conference, the Lois Lerner IRS scandal, and others. He
also highlighted Facebook shutting down a Chick-Fil-A Appreciation Day
page, blocking more than two dozen Catholic pages, and classifying
conservative video bloggers Diamond and Silk as “unsafe for the
community.”
Children who are born with the use of intensive IVF treatment could
have a greater risk of developing heart disease later in life compared
to those conceived naturally, according to scientists who will make
presentations at a U.K.-based group's conference this week.
The
issue will be discussed at the annual conference of ISMAAR, which
promotes education, training and research into mild approaches in
assisted reproduction, to be held Thursday and Friday in London, Daily Mail reported, quoting the group's president, Prof. Geeta Nargund.
Fertility clinics administer high doses of powerful drugs to
stimulate egg production, which could cause higher blood pressure and
stiffness and thickness of arteries, according to some scientists.
The United Kingdom has about 66,000 IVF children, many of whom are suspected to be born through the "high stimulation" approach.
The West's response to atrocities in Syria came under the spotlight
on Monday as horrific images purported to show a chemical weapons attack
on a rebel-held town on Saturday.
If the death toll is confirmed
it would be the worst chemical attack in Syria since more than 80 died
in Khan Sheikhoun in early April last year.
Jaish al-Islam, the last remaining rebel group in Eastern Ghouta, has
agreed to leave its base in Douma for an opposition-held area in
northern Syria, after the chemical attack killed dozens of civilians.
US President Donald Trump warned there would be a 'big price to pay'
for the attack in Douma, in the Eastern Ghouta region, near the capital
Damascus, branding Syria's President Bashar al-Assad an 'animal'.
A Pakistani Christian doctor whose selfie with Pope Francis went viral is to train to be a priest.
Daniel
Bashir, a 26-year-old medicin Karachi, told AFP that he took the selfie
with the pope during a youth conference at the Vatican last month.
He presented Francis with an ajrak shawl, a traditional garment from
Sindh province, and the two posed for the picture in which the pontiff
can be seen with the gift draped around his shoulders and grinning
broadly.
Bishops in both the US and Mexico have criticized the Trump
administration’s plan to send National Guard troops to the southern
border of the United States.
“The new measures on the border US-MX. Once again a senseless action
and a disgrace on the administration,” tweeted Archbishop Gustavo
García-Siller of San Antonio April 5.
“These measures manifest repression, [sic] fear, a perception that
everyone is an enemy, and a very clear message: we don’t care about
anybody else. This is not the American Spirit.”
A grassroots movement of frustrated public school parents who want to
end the sexualization of their children during class time has turned
their frustration to action with a “Sex Ed Sit Out” protest on April 23.
The protest, launched by a few moms on social media who were troubled
by the graphic nature of current sex education resources in schools,
has grown into a global movement with protests being held in multiple
U.S. cities and also Australia and the UK.
Parents are demanding to know why their children are being taught how
to have anal and oral sex, masturbate one another, and question one’s
gender. Caryl Ayala, a former public school teacher and organizer of the
Austin, Texas, protest, said, “We are uniting with parents across the
globe to demand that our rights as parents be respected regarding the
teaching of sexuality and sexual orientation. Hands off our kids!”
One of Pope Francis' most high-profile critics, Cardinal Raymond
Burke, has accused him of 'increasing the confusion' in the Catholic
Church following the pope's reported denial of the existence of hell.
Speaking yesterday to the Italian Catholic news agency La Nuova Bussola Quotidiana in an interview translated for Lifesite News,
Burke labelled the Vatican response to the furore following the report
atheist journalist Eugenio Scalfari 'highly inadequate'. It had said the
pope was misquoted.
The Chinese government has reportedly banned the sale of Bibles at
online bookstores across the country to comply with a "white paper" that
is dictating compliance with the "core values of socialism."
In all settings, both secular and religious, charismatic and
non-charismatic, leaders can be abusive, taking advantage of their
people and using them for all kinds of fleshly purposes, from financial
gain to sex to control. But we charismatics can be especially prone to
abusive leadership. After all, we do believe in "the anointing," and we
don't want to "touch God's anointed," to sin against the man of God who
is backed by the Spirit of God. And so abusive leaders can more easily
take advantage of us.
In Psalm 105:15, God says, "Do not touch not
My anointed ones, and do no harm to My prophets." Have you ever heard a
pastor quote this verse, threatening you with divine judgment if you
dared to differ with his authority? Has a self-proclaimed prophet warned
you of the dire consequences of rejecting his words, using this very
text? In reality, the verse has little (or nothing) to do with church
leadership.
A proposed policy in Ireland that would ban Catholic schools from
prioritizing Catholic students on wait lists is being criticized as
discriminatory, since it would not apply to other religious schools.
Faith in Our Schools, a newly-formed Irish group, says the proposal
“openly discriminates against the conscience and educational rights of
Catholic parents” and the “religious, autonomy, and associational rights
of Catholic faith schools,” according to the Irish Times.
In Ireland, the Catholic Church runs more than 90 percent of schools, which also receive government funds.
TruNews was notified Monday morning by YouTube's cybercensors that
the Christian news service was permanently banned from posting content
on the social media site. The social media tech giant terminated
TruNews' account.
YouTube slapped TruNews with "three strikes"
based on newscasts recorded and posted online more than four years ago.
One of the TruNews episodes that also offended YouTube's censors was
Rick Wiles' 2017 movie review of The Promise: The Truth About the Armenian Genocide.
TruNews founder and anchorman Wiles blasted YouTube's censors as the "new Nazi tech tyrants."
Four members of a Christian family who were visiting family in
Quetta, the provincial capital of Baluchistan, were shot dead on Easter
Monday. One of the victims was a woman. One young Christian girl was
also injured in the attack and has been admitted to the intensive care
unit of Civil Hospital Quetta as she fights for her life.
The
attack happened at around 7 p.m. (3 p.m. GMT) when two men on a
motorbike opened fire on a rickshaw containing the Christian revelers on
Shah Zaman Road. The deceased family were all going out for a meal with
other family members and had only traveled to Quetta to share Easter
with them.
The Church of England is poised to consider the baptism of animals for the first time, it was announced yesterday Easter Sunday.
The
ruling General Synod, which is next scheduled to meet in July, will
consider an advisory report compiled by a panel of bishops and others
entitled All of God's Creation.
Synod members will be
asked to consider the implications of introducing a liturgy for pets 'in
the light of an emerging consensus about the value of the environment
and an increasing consciousness of animal sentience and awareness', the
report says.
Speaking at a press conference to highlight the report's main
findings, Rt Revd James Graham, the committee chair, said: 'The kingdom
of God is about renewing all of creation, including the created order.
It would be possible, therefore, to envisage a situation where dogs and
cats and other pets could be ceremonially sprinkled with water to
symbolise their full inclusion in the renewal of all things.'
Hell does not exist, Pope Francis has been quoted as saying. If he
did say this or something like it, perhaps as part of his wider mission
to refashion the Catholic Church as more merciful than perhaps it has
seemed in the past, there might be another way to interpret it, one more
relatable to the direct experience of ordinary people out there.
The
experience of people such as myself , people who have battled and
(mostly) conquered some pretty serious and rooted personality flaws over
many decades, is that hell does indeed exist. I'll leave questions
around the afterlife to the theologians. For quotidian toilers such as
me, it definitely exists in the here and now. And one message of Easter,
the redemption of the Resurrection, is that it can be conquered,
defeated, overcome – in the here and now.
Easter is a message of triumph over hell.
What the pope said was radical because hell and heaven have been, and
are, seen as future consequences for our present actions. You will go
to hell for this – but only when you die. It doesn't take me to point
out how this can be abused by the unscrupulous to justify sin without
apparent consequence, how it can be abused by authority, by parents,
organisations both religious and secular.
Any priest will tell you that Easter Sunday Mass is one of the most
highly attended of the year, alongside Christmas Mass and, at least in
the United States, Mass on Ash Wednesday. But Easter Sunday Mass, while
popular, is not the only important or beautiful liturgy celebrated
during the days of Holy Week and the Easter Triduum.
In fact, the liturgies of Holy Week are designed to foster in
Catholics an intimate and historical connection to the Church, and to
death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Timothy O’Malley, director of the Notre Dame Center for Liturgy, gave
CNA insight into the symbolism and foundations to the Chrism Mass, Mass
of the Lord’s Supper, Tenebrae, Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion, and
Easter Vigil.
As Catholics around the world are buying Easter candy and dyeing
boiled eggs, two priests have offered suggestions for getting the most
out of Holy Week.
“The most important, I believe, is to take advantage of the
opportunities of prayer, especially attending each of the Triduum
liturgies,” said Fr. Gary Benz of the Diocese of Bismarck, N.D.
“I’m not sure if a lot of Catholics have ever attended all three
liturgies – Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday Vigil – and
experienced the whole paschal mystery in the passion, death and
resurrection,” Fr. Benz told CNA.
You have to run over the devil before he runs over you. You are
standing on a battlefield (perhaps a different one than you were last
year at this time). You may be standing in the middle of an army or you
may be standing all alone. Are you just going to stand there, waiting to
see what will happen? Or are you going to do something that will allow
you to get and keep the upper hand?
Pope Francis has defrocked nine monks of a monastery in Ukraine for
performing exorcism prayers without authorization and for spreading
messages from a nun who claimed God had spoken directly to her,
according to reports.
The nine, who were from St. Theodore
Studite's Monastery in the village of Kolodiivka in Ternopil region,
refused to be corrected and "did not accept the admonitions of the
Church authorities and refused to listen to them … (and) continued to
violate the rules of the monks," the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
said in a statement, according to The Daily Mail.
On Monday Pope Francis sent his prayers and condolences for victims
of an alleged terrorist attack in southern France, and for those
affected by a fire inside a shopping mall in Russia which has killed at
least 64 people.
A fire broke out on the top floor of the Winter Cherry shopping and
entertainment complex in Kemerovo, Russia on Sunday afternoon, engulfing
the building and collapsing the roofs of two cinemas, Russia’s
Investigative Committee stated.
With the arrival of Palm Sunday, Catholics across the globe will soon
be handed leaves as they walk into church. Some might fold them into
elaborate little crosses. Kids will poke each other with them. But it's
safe to say most won't know where they came from.
The feast commemorates Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem the
week before his passion and crucifixion. The Gospels attest that as
Jesus entered the city, crowds lay down palm branches and cloaks as he
rode into Jerusalem on a donkey.
For centuries, Christians have commemorated the feast day that begins
Holy Week by waving branches of either palm or another local tree, as
well as with liturgical processions and other celebrations.
In the U.S. alone, nearly 18,000 Catholic parishes will celebrate
Palm Sunday by blessing and distributing palm branches to the faithful.
That makes millions of palm leaves each year – and that doesn’t include
all of the Protestant churches that observe the tradition.
At the end of a week-long meeting held at the Vatican, young people
from around the world have urged the Church to be more authentic, modern
and creative in the way it interacts with young people, and in
addressing controversial contemporary issues.
“We want to say, especially to the hierarchy of the Church, that they
should be a transparent, welcoming, honest, inviting, communicative,
accessible, joyful and interactive community,” the youth delegates said
in the final document of this week's pre-synod meeting in Rome.
“A credible Church,” they said, “is one which is not afraid to allow itself be seen as vulnerable.”
Continuing his custom of saying Holy Thursday Mass outside a sacred
place, Pope Francis this year will visit one of Rome’s most well-known
prisons, the Regina Coeli, located in the historic Trastevere
neighborhood.
The Pope will celebrate the Mass of the Lord’s Supper March 29.
During the ceremony he will wash the feet of 12 inmates. He will also
meet with prisoners and visit sick inmates in the prison’s infirmary.
Meet Elina Berglund: a nuclear physicist who will be known as the
woman who developed the first natural cycle fertility app to have been
internationally certified as an effective means of avoiding pregnancy.
“It feels incredibly exciting that there is now an approved
alternative to conventional pregnancy prevention methods, and that it’s
possible to replace medication with technology,” Berglund told Business Insider.
The app, called Natural Cycles,
was founded in Switzerland by Elina Berglund and her husband Raoul
Scherwizl. They created the app as a way to go “beyond contraception,”
and to “get to know your body and unique cycles,” according to their
website.
Let me share with you some of the characteristics of men that I have
seen who have their sword facing the enemy, alert like Gideon's men at
the water (Judg. 7).
1) Commit to Be Clean
A
man aiming his sword will one day in his life make a commitment to be
clean. While speaking at singles and youth conferences, I often have
young men and women come to the altar to commit their sexuality to
Christ.
The Bible says, "For as [a man] thinketh (yes, I like the
word thinketh) in his heart so is he" (Proverbs 23:7a, KJV). As a
psychologist, I know we are today the sum of our commitments and the
discipline to keep them. As a man, if I commit to something, I will
attract the people and things I need to fulfill that commitment.
Marjorie Dannenfelser, Tony Perkins, Todd Starnes, Larry Elder, and
Dennis Prager participate in a panel session on online censorship at
Proclaim 18, the National Religious Broadcasters' (NRB) International
Christian Media Convention in Nashville, Tennessee, on March 2, 2018.
Leading tech companies like Facebook, Google and Twitter are
censoring the online posts of Christians and conservatives — and if this
trend continues, it won't be long before free speech in America is
gone, conservative leaders have warned.
During a session on public
policy and online censorship at Proclaim
18, the National Religious Broadcasters' (NRB) International Christian
Media Convention, U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn shared how, last year,
Twitter blocked a campaign video in which she discussed her efforts to
stop Planned Parenthood's "sale of baby body parts."
The U.S. bishops have voiced their strong support for a bill
protecting individuals and institutions from discrimination by the
federal government based on their beliefs about marriage, regardless of
what those beliefs are.
"We welcome and applaud the recent reintroduction of the First
Amendment Defense Act (FADA),” wrote Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of
Louisville and Bishop James Conley of Lincoln in a March 14 statement.
Archbishop Kurtz chairs the US bishops' Committee for Religious Liberty,
while Bishop Conley is chairman of the Subcommittee for the Promotion
and Defense of Marriage.
While the intellectual formation of pastors is dominated by
philosophy and theology, their pastoral duties also require something
beyond the intellectual and spiritual aspects – a business component.
The Pastoral Leadership Institute has developed a curriculum to train
priests in business and an administration skills, enabling pastors to
better understand the financial properties of a parish.
Are you in a Christian cult? A cult-like church? Is your church leadership manipulating and controlling you?
It's
hard to believe these things happen—but they do. And many times you
feel like you must be crazy or that the enemy is just making false
accusations. I came out of a cultish church.
I'm offering you seven signs and personal examples of Christian cults and cult-like churches.
Want more on this topic? This book really helped me understand what I
was dealing with and brought a lot of healing. Check it out here: goo.gl/MxswDA
What is it that draws people to you? Dr. Steve Greene offers advice to
Christian marketers on how to win consumers' trust and leave people with
the answers they seek. Don't miss it.
A host of ABC News' The View, Joy Behar, has reportedly apologized for comments she made against Vice President Mike Pence's Christian faith.
Los Angeles Times reporter
Daniel Miller tweeted Thursday that during a shareholders meeting,
Disney CEO Bob Iger "says Joy Behar apologized for things she has said
about Christians and the Trump administration. Iger agrees that was
appropriate."
Entertainment reporter Joe Flint of The Wall Street Journal tweeted
Thursday, "Disney CEO Bob Iger says he took exception with Joy Behar's
remarks about Christianity and VP Mike Pence. Says Behar apologized to
Pence."
Rwandan police have arrested six Christian pastors on grounds that
they are planning to defy a recent order that closed more than 700
churches that allegedly don't meet safety and cleanliness standards.
AFP reports
that authorities in the African country announced Tuesday that they had
arrested six "masterminds" plotting to defy the government's shutdown of 714 churches and one mosque that were deemed unsafe, unclean and noisey in the capital city of Kigali.
The
government accuses the religious leaders, all Pentecostals, of holding
meetings where they discussed resistance of the order, which was issued
last week.
Pentecostals worship at a church in Nigeria.
"After the suspension of churches that did not meet
required standards, some church leaders began illegal meetings intended
to defy and obstruct the directive," Rwanda National Police spokesperson
Theos Badege told the international news agency. "Police began
investigations to find the masterminds behind this illegal act."
Five Christians were attacked by a mob of 20 as they tried to build a
wall around their church in Pakistan on Sunday, according to the
persecution website World Watch Monitor.
'Our
church elder, George Masih, who is 70, was overseeing masons and
labourers who were constructing the wall. We were praying [inside the
church] when we heard shouting and yelling, and, when we rushed outside,
we saw about 20 men, armed with clubs and axes, [who] were beating
Masih and others,' said the pastor of the Pakistan Gospel Assemblies
church in Yousufwala village, on the outskirts of the Punjabi city of
Sahiwal.
George Masih (left) and his son Babar were taken to hospital after the attack.
The dispute is thought to centre around the use of the land, which
was originally set apart for communal purposes though the pastor said
they had obtained permission to build the church on the land three years
ago.
A 1,200-page dossier compiled by a male escort identifying 40 priests
and seminarians engaged in homosexual activity in Italy has been sent
to the Vatican by the archdiocese of Naples.
In a statement on the
diocesan website and reported by AP, Cardinal Cresenzio Sepe stressed
that none of the identified priests worked in Naples, but said he
forwarded the file to the Vatican because 'there remains the gravity of
the cases for which those who have erred must pay the price, and be
helped to repent for the harm done'.
The dossier, which contains WhatsApp chats and other evidence, was
compiled by a gay escort, Francesco Mangiacapra. He has told Italian
media that he outed the priests because he could no longer stand their
hypocrisy.
