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Former Desiring God Writer Paul Maxwell Renounces His Christian Faith

By
Jesse T. Jackson
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paul maxwell
Screen grab from YouTube: @Conversations That Matter

Author, former Desiring God contributor, former Philosophy professor at Moody Bible Institute (2015—2017), and Trinity Evangelical Divinity Ph.D. grad Paul Maxwell announced on Instagram last week that he is “not a Christian anymore.”

Almost in tears, Maxwell shared that he believes the internet has done a lot of damage regarding relationships [connections] with people and that he is ready to connect with people again.

The Trauma of Doctrine: New Calvinism, Religious Abuse, and the Experience of God author told his social media followers that he is ready to not be angry anymore. He said, “I love you guys, and I love all the support and friendships I’ve built here [Instagram]…I think it’s important to say that I’m just not a Christian anymore, and it feels really good. I’m really happy…I’m really happy.”

“I can’t wait to discover what kind of connection I can have with all of you beautiful people as I try to figure out what’s next,” Maxwell said. “I love you guys. I’m in a really good spot. Probably the best spot of my life. I’m so full of joy for the first time. I love my life for the first time…and I love myself for the first time.”

Maxwell said, “I just say, ‘I know that you love me.’ I know, and I receive it as love. I know you care about the eternal state of my soul and you pushed through the social awkwardness of telling me this, because you don’t want me to suffer. And that is a good thing. That’s a loving thing to do. And I hear where you’re coming from, and I respect your perspective.”

Maxwell joins other well-known Christians Jon Steingard from the band Hawk Nelson, I Kissed Dating Goodbye‘s author Joshua Harris, and Hillsong‘s worship musician Marty Sampson who have recently said they renounce or are losing their faith.

In 2019 after Josh Harris and Marty Simpson made the announcement they were no longer Christians, lead singer for Christian Rock band Skillet’s John Cooper asked, “What is happening in Christianity?”

Cooper said that he is shocked by how unashamed these leaders seem to be as they announce they are no longer Christians. He observed that essentially they are saying, “I’ve been living and preaching boldly something for 20 years and led generations of people with my teachings and now I no longer believe it…therefore I’m going to boldly and loudly tell people it was all wrong while I boldly and loudly lead people in to my next truth…Why be so eager to continue leading people when you clearly don’t know where you are headed?”

You can watch Maxwell’s Instagram video here.

Abortion, What Being Pro-Life Means, and the Role of Men: My Interview with Benjamin Watson

By
Randy Alcorn
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communicating with the unchurched

I’ve mentioned a number of times my appreciation and admiration for Benjamin Watson. For the last fifteen years he was one of the most highly respected players in the National Football League, and now that he’s retired, he continues to have a ministry to many inside and outside the NFL.

Last year Ben executive-produced and partially self-financed Divided Hearts of America, a look at the debate around abortion in America. He interviewed a number of people, including Alveda King, niece of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and the presidential candidate and neurosurgeon Ben Carson.

I was honored that he also interviewed me. Ben asked lots of great questions, and we talked about how prolifers can make a difference, what the terms prochoice and prolife mean, and the role of men in abortion. Most of this, understandably, wasn’t used in the documentary, but here is our full conversation.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I believe God has raised Benjamin Watson up to be a spokesman for two causes very close to the heart of God that are also two of the most controversial and important issues in American life—prolife justice and racial justice. I know many excellent spokespersons for each of those causes, but often the two issues are separated instead of seen as inseparable strands in the same seamless garment of God’s justice. Too many proponents of prolife justice ignore racial justice, and too many proponents of racial justice ignore the right to life of unborn children. (Which is ironic, given that black children are aborted at a higher rate than white children in the U.S.) Ben pulls these causes together better than anyone I know.

Now, anytime someone mentions racial justice, some believers immediately get defensive. Please don’t. To believe in racial justice does not mean you agree with the logic of everyone else who advocates it. I am prolife but I don’t agree with the logic or every point made by all prolifers. Likewise, I don’t agree with every point made by all advocates of racial justice, including most advocates of defunding the police. I completely affirm that Black Lives Do Matter, though I don’t agree with the Marxist and anti-nuclear-family worldview of the founders of the organization that’s called Black Lives Matter (see my blog on this). But that doesn’t keep me from being an advocate for racial equality and justice, or for unborn equality and justice.

If you sense God’s leading to become educated about the injustice of abortion and more involved in prolife outreach, I encourage you to start by reading my new book Pro-Choice or Pro-Life? (The PDF is available for free.) Also see my article 50 Ways to Help the Unborn and Their Mothers, and remember that a great place to start is by praying daily for prolife ministries and victimized mothers and babies.

This article originally appeared here.

Let’s Not Go Beyond What the Lord Said

By
Joe McKeever
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communicating with the unchurched

For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy City, and from the things which are written in this book (Revelation 22:18-19). 

Someone says, “I’ve had a revelation from the Lord, something Scripture doesn’t address.”

Run, as fast as you can.

Scripture calls it “adding to the Word,” and it’s clearly verboten throughout the Bible, off limits to all who take seriously their devotion to the Lord and His Word. Deuteronomy 4:2 reads, “You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.” (Need more? Try these: Deuteronomy 12:32; Joshua 1:7; Proverbs 30:6. The Father is consistent on this point.)

Let’s not go beyond what the Lord says through His Word. After all, Scripture teaches that Scripture is sufficient. Some would call that circular reasoning. That’s a possibility, but a better plan is that Scripture is Holy Spirit inspired. God knew what He was doing.

You decide. But as for me, I have no trouble believing God planned this amazing book  which we call The Holy Bible! Holy men of old wrote it (2 Peter 1:21) and the Lord used other holy men (and women) to preserve it intact.

The Bible says about itself: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man (person) of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). It is everything we need to know about God. All we need to know about Jesus, about salvation, about doctrine.

Beware of books that add to the Word of God. The Mormons do that, as do Christian Science practitioners. The Jehovah’s Witnesses simply re-translated the Bible to fit their doctrines. The rest of us try to stay as close to the original as we can (which explains the different translations; we’re trying to get back to the original, not away from it!).

So, our word today is directed to our own people, those who believe God’s Word and have no other holy books. We too should be careful not to add to the Word of God, not to insert some doctrine that Scripture does not teach.

As I see it, the way that plays out will include some or all of the following…

–Jesus is not our Father, and we should not address Him that way in prayer.

The ancient formula of the Trinity went like this: The Father is God, the Son is God, and the Spirit is God. However, the Father is not the Son or the Spirit, just as the Son is not the Father nor the Spirit, and so forth.

–Mary is not the mother of God. Catholics who call her such are pushing a metaphor beyond what it was intended. Nowhere does Scripture call her this. Mary called herself “the handmaiden of the Lord” (Luke 1:38), and that’s honor aplenty. We honor her, but not above what Scripture does.

–We do not need to stand up in church every time the pastor reads the Scripture. (I suspect only some Baptists will get this.) True, they did it a time or two in the Old Testament, for hours even (see I Kings 8:14; Ezra 8:5). But no one is being irreverent by remaining seated when the pastor reads his text. I wish we could stop this foolishness. After all, does he intend us to jump up every time he quotes another passage in the sermon? Should I jump up from the table where I’m sitting every time I read the Word?

–No one is saved by infant baptism. There is not one word of scriptural evidence for this. Those who say baptism corresponds to Old Testament circumcision should be consistent therefore and say only men should be baptized. Those who point out passages where “the household” came to Christ and were all baptized (see Acts 16:33) are arguing from silence since no child is mentioned. Once we establish that baptism stands for the death, burial and resurrection of Christ—and of the believer—it becomes apparent that baptism is: a) for believers only and b) by immersion only.

A lot of people—countless millions, I fear—are going into eternity never having known Christ but with the false security that a little water on their head and a few words from a priest have earned them a mansion in Heaven. Some false prophets will have a lot to account for.

–We do not become angels upon dying. We are different from angels. People who say their loved one became an angel upon their death are betraying a serious ignorance of scripture.

–Nonsigns about the Second Coming are not signs. Jesus told how there would be false messiahs and wars and rumors of war, then He said, “See that you are not troubled. All these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.” And, “All these are the beginning of sorrows” (Matthew 24:4-9). Untold numbers of preachers and teachers have misinterpreted these words and have Jesus saying they are signs, when He clearly says they are not. He is pointing out that we are going to be having these things all the time and they are not signs of the end, so we should not be alarmed.

One could wish that anyone and everyone thinking to become knowledgeable about Bible prophecy would take a small but essential lesson from history: The track record of prophecy experts is lousy. So, approach this with great humility. And beware of being recognized as an authority on prophecy!

To go beyond what God has said and then impose it on others is presumptuous. “Keep back Thy servant from presumptuous sins,” says Psalm 19:13.

Let us not run ahead of God, requiring what He does not, commanding what never entered His mind, placing heavy burdens on people’s backs (Matthew 23:4).

“Father, thank You for Thy Word. Help us to honor Thee by reading it, reverencing it and then obeying it” (John 13:17 and Luke 6:46).

Amen.

This article originally appeared here.

This Is Hate Speech? Church Rally for Biblical Marriage Includes Proud Boys and LGBTQ Protesters

By
Jesse T. Jackson
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communicating with the unchurched

They said it was hate speech. But if this is hate speech, then what can Christians say? Check out what people at the rally sponsored by Rivers of Living Water United Pentecostal Church in Sandy, Oregon, on March 20, 2021, had to say. The “Prayer, Faith & Freedom Rally to Celebrate the Natural Heterosexual Family” involved LGBTQ protesters, the Portland Proud Boys, and a YouTuber who stopped by to interview all who were involved.

The day before the rally, Rivers of Living Water United Pentecostal Church’s Facebook page explained the event would also stand against abortion. They assured that they would flag wave to celebrate America’s first amendment freedoms. Their post said, “Because the natural heterosexual family is the design of God for mankind and it is under attack spiritually, politically & socially. Satan wants to destroy the natural family & the unborn. Our government is attacking the very foundation of the natural family & the lives of the unborn. Our culture is falling into absolute disregard for the natural family & the unborn. Our children are being fed gender propaganda that is completely anti-natural family. Our 1st Amendment Freedoms are under attack more and more each day.”

A report by Portland, Oregon’s Willamette Week described the scene driving down Pioneer Boulevard in the town of Sandy that Saturday. There was a church rally celebrating the natural heterosexual family on one side of the street and on the other side a party/peaceful protest called “Have a Gay Day” attended by the town’s LGBTQ community.

Rivers of Living Water United Pentecostal Church’s pastor Russell Collier, who has been a pastor for over 20 years, wore a sweatshirt that read “Living Faith in Jesus.” He held an American flag while he prayed and then spoke about biblical sexuality, abortion, and freedom at the rally. Collier was accompanied by members of the Portland Proud Boys. Although the pastor didn’t invite the Proud Boys, he said he “appreciated their support for our right to freedom of speech.”

Collier shared during his speech that the church invited the LGBTQ community to an open discussion with them a month ago and no one showed up. He said no one came “because they hate the light.”

“I believe that the natural family is under attack,” Collier said. The pastor shared that he had a phone conversation with a current family member who is struggling with homosexuality and told him that his purpose isn’t being gay; “it’s your potential, but it’s not your purpose.” He said the young man’s purpose is to grow up and become a husband and father.

YouTube Journalist Interviewed Both Groups

YouTube journalist Jake Silberman showed up at the rally and asked a woman from the church’s side of the street if she thought that being gay was a choice? “It is a choice. I believe that firmly,” she responded. She told the journalist that she “had some bisexual interactions” at one time in her life. But she said, “I have repented from those sins because I know they’re wrong…If you don’t accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you will go to hell.”

Sliberman asked another church rally attender: “When you see a happy gay couple, do you think that they need to find a straight partner?” The lady paused for a moment, then told the journalist, “I think they need to find Jesus.”

When interviewing one of the protesters supporting the LGBTQ community about what she saw as hate speech, the girl shared that she “was taught that Jesus loves everybody regardless of who you are.” Questioning the church rally across the street standing for heterosexual family, she said, “So when I see Christians out here saying, spouting, like hate messages, like, ‘You’re not natural if you’re gay,’ it’s really hurtful and I just hope that we can teach our youth that, you know, Jesus loves you no matter who you are.”

A young man who is involved with the Students Advocating for Equality (SAFE) interviewed by Silberman called the church’s event a rally that displays hate. The SAFE advocate and LGBTQ supporter said he is there to show “people that aren’t necessarily native to this town, that are going to be passing through, that there’s more support for equality than there is for hate.”

Portland Proud Boys Assisted the Church

Portland Proud Boy’s Vice President ‘Flip’ Todd told Silberman they showed their presence and support because the church “felt that there might be some threat as they tried to express their first amendment rights and that there might be a counter protest.” After the journalist explained that some of the Portland Proud Boys tried to intimidate him, Todd told Silberman, “We hate the media. I can’t stand the media.”

Both Sides Remained Peaceful

Witnessed from the interviews by Silberman and the rally’s video from their Facebook page, the church appears to only speak about their beliefs from the Bible and to those who gathered near their tent. Apart from the Portland Proud Boy’s spouting foul language and hand gestures, everything remained peaceful.

Pastor Collier’s speech at the rally can be watched on Facebook here.

Christian Conference Cuts Antifa Critic From Its Lineup of Speakers

By
Jessica Lea
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andy ngo
Sources: Gage Skidmore/Creative Commons, Facebook.

Andy Ngo, a self-described “independent journalist and photographer who covers antifa and the far-left,” has been disinvited from the annual conference put on by evangelical Christian group Q Ideas. Conference organizers have stated that the reason for their decision was due neither to outside pressure nor to the controversial nature of Ngo’s topic.

“Our decision to not move forward with the conversation we had planned for Unmasked author, Andy Ngo, was made by our team using the same process we’ve implemented dozens of times over the years,” said conference organizers in a statement on their website. “We were not successful in booking an acceptable alternative voice that would present the other side of the conversation—specifically, detailing the tactics and motivations of the alt-right. Based on that factor, we decided we could not host a well-balanced conversation on this topic at this time.”

Ngo writes extensively on antifa, which is short for “anti-fascist,” and has also written a book called, “Unmasked: Inside Antifa’s Radical Plan to Destroy Democracy.” The Q conference organizers told Religion News Service (RNS) they had asked Ngo to give a talk called “What Is Fascism?”

Andy Ngo Responds to Being Disinvited

Q Ideas—not to be confused with the QAnon conspiracy theory—was founded in 2007 by Gabe and Rebekah Lyons “as a platform to help leaders and influencers engage culture from a biblical worldview.” The letter “Q” stands for “questions,” and the annual conference features short talks similar to TED talks. This year’s speaker lineup includes Matt Chandler, David Platt, John Mark Comer, and Danielle Strickland. According to RNS, Ngo was listed as a speaker in a promotional email sent out ahead of the conference. 

In their statement, organizers said that one of the guiding principles of the Q conference is that “no topic is off limits.” The whole purpose is to explore controversial ideas that many people avoid:

We often hear from a spectrum of leaders in our community with their insight or concerns about certain topics or speakers. Both positive and negative reactions are expected when we fulfill our mission of convening difficult conversations and trying to help leaders think well in a polarized culture. There are few places where this is possible anymore which is why we believe we need this time and space now more than ever.

The organizers said that when they were unable to secure a speaker on the alt-right movement as well as on antifa, “We respectfully communicated this programming decision and rationale to Mr. Ngo. Any other assertion is simply untrue.”

Reports have seemed to indicate that Christian rapper Jason “Propaganda” Petty had a hand in the decision to disinvite Ngo. Petty admits to reaching out to Gabe Lyons, whom he described as “my friend,” regarding his concerns about Andy Ngo. The rapper called Ngo a “con-artist” who is “trolling the right wing of our country then hitting them in their wallets” and said there were many “reputable conservative voices” who would have been better choices. He also called Ngo “trash.” Petty denies, however, actually influencing conference leaders’ decision. 

On Twitter, Ngo seemed to imply that Petty was responsible for Q’s decision to disinvite him: “I was uninvited from this conference in a terse email after a friend of one of the organizers urged him to drop me.” 

In a statement to Fox News, Ngo said, “I’m not Christian, but I admire Christianity’s theological pillars of grace and forgiveness. That is something that is prohibited in Antifa’s worldview. Unfortunately, the organizers ultimately decided that their attendees should not hear my message.”

Ngo’s critics claim he has ties to the far right and that he exaggerates the threat that antifa poses to the U.S. For his part, Ngo has accused Petty of far-left sympathies because the rapper collaborated with Robert Evans, whom Ngo called an “antifa extremist.” Evans is a podcast host, author of “A Brief History of Vice: How Bad Behavior Built Civilization,” and a journalist who covers far-right extremist groups. 

UPDATE: Jonathan Falwell Will Be the New Campus Pastor at Liberty

By
Megan Briggs
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communicating with the unchurched

UPDATED April 9, 2021: On April 8, 2021, Liberty University announced that Jonathan Falwell, brother of Jerry Falwell, Jr., will replace David Nasser as campus pastor at the end of the semester. Falwell is currently the senior pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church, which is affiliated with the college.

“This has been one of the most difficult decisions we’ve ever had to make, but we do feel affirmed that God is asking for our obedience to step out of this role in ministry and into a whole new role in ministry elsewhere,” said David Nasser in a video announcement with his wife, Jennifer. “As your campus pastor, I can’t ask you week after week to be obedient and to go wherever (God) leads and then not model that very same thing in our own lives.”

The Nassers are moving to Nashville, Tenn., to lead an “exciting, new” non-profit. They did not identify the non-profit by name, although Liberty’s announcement stated, “David Nasser is moving onto the next opportunities the Lord provided, using his voice on behalf of the most vulnerable, ministering on behalf of orphans and foster children.”

David Nasser has served at Liberty since 2014. University president Jerry Prevo said, “He has done an amazing job with helping our students to develop a closer walk with the Lord. He will be missed.”

The university also noted, “The parting is amicable and on good terms.”

In his announcement, Nasser observed, “We realize that this news is going to be received by a lot of different people in a lot of different ways.” Save71, which describes itself as “a group of Liberty alumni, students and faculty calling for new leadership,” responded to the news by criticizing Nasser and posing a challenge to his replacement. “A good first step for Jonathan would be to apologize for the spiritual abuse that Liberty has endured for years,” said the group in a tweet. “He should make clear that sexual harassment and corruption have no place at Liberty.”

ChurchLeaders original article written on August 28, 2020, below:

Speaking at the first Wednesday night Bible study of Liberty University’s fall semester, David Nasser addressed the controversy surrounding the school’s former president, Jerry Falwell Jr. Nasser apologized to the students for the embarrassment Falwell’s actions have brought to the school, the faculty, and the students. He also said what Falwell needs now is neither extravagant grace nor rigid judgement, but rather the balance of grace and truth that Jesus exemplifies. 

“This moment we are in is a mess,” David Nasser admitted during his message to the students. “We opened the semester with a series of revelations about Jerry Falwell that can only be described as shameful,” he said, alluding to the sexual misconduct allegations aimed at both Falwell and his wife, Becki, to which the couple has partially admitted. Later in Nasser’s message, he said “It’s ok to call sin sin.” 

David Nasser is the Senior Vice President of Spiritual Development at Liberty. Preaching at Campus Community, a Wednesday night Bible study for Liberty students, Nasser said “neither side” would be content with his comments about Falwell.

He also addressed those viewing who may not be affiliated with Liberty but who tuned in out of curiosity or perhaps for journalistic reasons—people, Nasser explained, who may not share the school’s Christian faith. While he said those people were welcome to watch the message, he also made it clear that the message was intended for Christians, and specifically, the students at Liberty. 

Speaking specifically to those enrolled in the school, Nasser personally apologized to them. “I am sorry. In my opinion, you as a Liberty student, deserve better. The embarrassment that has been brought upon you as a Liberty student, and more importantly brought upon the name of Christ, is wrong. I know that many of you are hurting and that breaks my heart.” 

You Should Be Concerned, David Nasser Tells Students

Additionally, Nasser brought attention to the gravity of the situation with Falwell and how it reflects poorly on the school Jerry Falwell Sr. founded. “If you’re not concerned, you should be concerned….You and your family have worked hard to pay for a Christian education, and this isn’t what you signed up for.” Nasser went on to say, “As our founder often said, ‘If it’s Christian, it ought to be better.’ Certainly better than this.”

Texas Faith Leaders Condemn New Election Bills as Jim Crow Dressed Up in a ‘Tuxedo’

By
Jack Jenkins
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communicating with the unchurched

(RNS) — Faith leaders in Texas condemned a pair of controversial election bills Wednesday (April 7) working their way through the state Legislature, accusing lawmakers of trying to “dress up Jim and Jane Crow in a tuxedo.”

An array of clergy and other religious leaders assembled outside the Capitol in Austin to express opposition to the bills, known as SB 7 and HB 6. They invoked their respective faiths while criticizing provisions of the proposed legislation such as banning drive-thru voting, shortening early voting hours, sending mail voting applications only to voters who request them and requiring disabled voters to prove their disability with documentation from a physician or the federal government.

“We have those in leadership — in Texas government — (people) who have in their ideological DNA the same mindset of those slave masters who denied the humanity of Black people,” said the Rev. Frederick Haynes III, pastor of Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas. “The same mindset of those individuals who upheld Jim and Jane Crow segregation.”

Haynes accused Gov. Greg Abbott and other Republicans of using “election integrity” as an excuse to enact restrictive laws that target Black votes.

Defenders of the bills have balked at such claims, but religious leaders and others such as the Texas Civil Rights Project insist proposed measures could disproportionately impact people of color. For example, SB 7 would bar 24-hour polling locations during early voting, even though most voters who cast late-night ballots in Harris County — which includes Houston — during the last election were Black, Hispanic or Asian, according to the Texas Civil Rights Project.

Activists also contend that proposals such as allowing poll watchers to record at polling places hearkens back to troubling eras of American history when Black voters were barred from the ballot box through various forms of intimidation.

Wednesday’s event was organized through a partnership of Dallas Black Clergy and Texas Impact, an organization representing an array of mainline Protestant, Jewish and Muslim groups in the state.

Faith-based opposition to HB 6 and SB 7 has escalated in recent weeks. Bee Moorhead, executive director of Texas Impact, told Religion News Service hundreds of people have signed a statement from her group. Leaders of Texas Impact have also testified against the proposals, and appear to be planning more actions: After the news conference concluded on Wednesday, clergy entered the Capitol to strategize with lobbyists working to defeat both bills.

Haynes and others issued statements ahead of the news conference condemning provisions of the bills, such as a section that would allow partisan poll watchers to record voters as they receive help filling out their ballots.

“These bills are full of provisions that any reasonable person can see will suppress the votes of minorities and other vulnerable Texans,” Haynes said. “Provisions like allowing partisan poll watchers free license to video-record voters will have a chilling impact on voting and it is disingenuous for legislators to argue otherwise.”

Rabbi Nancy Kasten, who helps lead Dallas-based interfaith group Faith Commons in Dallas, homed in on a part of the bill that, among other things, restricts the number of voting machines at countywide polling places.

“It shows cavalier disrespect for local voters and the officials who serve them for the state to dictate the number of voting machines officials may place at a given polling location. Local voters trust their officials to make efficient, practical decisions, and state officials should do the same,” Kasten said in a statement.

Usama Malik, who serves as a chaplain at Austin-based group Muslim Space, railed against efforts to shorten early voting hours, arguing “local officials should be able to manage elections with attention to the rhythms and requirements of their own communities.”

Haynes noted before he spoke at the news conference that the Rev. Jesse Jackson had texted him to say he “stands in solidarity” with the group and their protest.

The efforts of Dallas Black Clergy and Texas Impact, which sometimes operates under the title Texas Faith for Fair Elections, echo similar campaigns in Georgia, signaling growing faith-based movement against election bills in states across the country.

In Georgia, faith leaders have staged protests against an election bill recently signed into law, and the African Methodist Episcopal Church threatened to boycott locally based businesses such as Coca-Cola and Delta if they did not do more to fight the law. The boycott was put on hold this week until faith leaders can meet with business executives, but religious activists are also planning a related protest of the Masters golf tournament.

Major Texas-based businesses such as Dell and American Airlines have spoken out against the election bills in the Lone Star State as well. Moorhead told RNS members of the business community have reached out to her group in hopes of joining forces to oppose the legislation.

Escalating opposition triggered a sharp rebuke from Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Tuesday, when he disputed negative characterizations of the bills and accused corporations of “meddling in these issues without any understanding.”

But the Rev. Edwin Robinson, the organizer of Dallas Black Clergy, praised the voice of businesses at Wednesday’s event.

“While the lieutenant governor … is telling the business community to stay out of things they know nothing about, it is us — the faith community and our partners — that welcome the business community to take their place in ensuring the rights of their families, employees and consumers,” he said.

This article originally appeared here.

OPINION: If a Dr. Seuss Book Offends Us, Why Not Pluck It Out?

By
Religion News Service
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Seuss
A copy of the book "And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street," by Dr. Seuss, rests in a chair, Monday, March 1, 2021, in Walpole, Mass. Dr. Seuss Enterprises, the business that preserves and protects the author and illustrator's legacy, announced on his birthday, Tuesday, March 2, 2021, that it would cease publication of several children's titles including "And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street" and "If I Ran the Zoo," because of insensitive and racist imagery. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

(RNS) — I think often about the General Confession. It’s in the Anglican Book of Common Prayer, used as part of the Daily Office: the one that goes “we have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts.” I wonder, often, how to wrestle with what that means; the sense that we cannot trust what we want, that — in the Emily Dickinson line infamously used by Woody Allen — “the heart wants what it wants.” Is what we want bad for us?

Or, to quote the Prophet Jeremiah, the heart is deceitful above all things.

Few of us would, of course, deny that we do want things that are bad for us. But the language of indulgence and sin, of desires perverse and unhealthy, is more often found in diet culture (“sinfully” good chocolate; devil’s-food cake; the virtue of abstemious eating and “clean” foods) than in wider conversations about morality. At most, the language of disordered desire is limited in religious contexts to sexual desire — a purity culture no less aestheticized, with white dresses and True Love Waits pledges, than that of wellness.

In the secular context, desire all too often goes uninvestigated. More commonly we hear that our root desires can clue us in to who we “really” are; that any form of restriction or repression, or even internal conflict, is a vestige of oppressive social norms. Americans especially equate what we want, what we enjoy, what we consume with who we are.

Which brings me to Dr. Seuss.

The debate over the supposed cancellation of Dr. Seuss over the past few weeks was the result of the Theodor Geisel estate announcing it would no longer publish several of the author’s minor works on the grounds of racially offensive content, and the subsequent decision of certain third-party sellers, including eBay, to ban those works from their platforms. That decision, and Mr. Potato Head, whose sexuality itself was said to be canceled, has already filled far too many column inches. I’m not here to weigh in on “cancel culture,” nor the attention-economy behemoth it feeds.

But questions of “cancellation” regarding problematic media properties — not problematic individuals — provide us with a way to talk about this very complicated nature of desire.

Sometimes the things we want, even the things we love, are bad for us. Sometimes we are attracted to ideas, or people, or even books, for the wrong reasons. Our own ability to perceive both the good and the bad, in the world and in ourselves, is all too easily warped by our own fallible cognition. A book we loved in childhood — a book we may even still love — might at once offer us solace and reflect, or even reinforce, morally noxious ideas: be they sexist, racist or other forms of evil for which we do not yet have a cultural vocabulary.

In the Christian context, the language of sin (and with it, of course, that of redemption and grace) does much to help us contend with these ambiguities. The vocabulary of fallenness, the idea that we can be simultaneously created in the image and likeness of God, and that our capacity for goodness and truth is warped by a fallen and perverted nature; the idea that we inherit blights on our ability to both know and do the good, and that we cannot reason or will our way out of these — all these are integral to Christian orthodoxy.

Indeed, it is striking that so many conservative Christians recoil in horror at social-justice-tinged language of “privilege,” or systemic racism — even as the Christian tradition demands that we contend daily with ways in which we are touched and shaped by evils we did not choose. We know as Christians that one fix for this is to deny ourselves what the world tells us to want.

Yet capitalist culture all too often valorizes desire, and personal fulfillment, at the expense of mutuality or solidarity. Talking about how a beloved movie or book might be racist, or sexist, or offensive in other ways also offers us the opportunity to think more widely, and more seriously, about questioning and critiquing our desires. Why we enjoy what we enjoy — and what our enjoyment says about us — is a valid question. Investigating our enjoyment (say) of titillating images of beautiful women in sexual peril, or sadistically gory horror movies, is as valid as investigating our enjoyment of books that trade in racial stereotypes.

That is not to say, of course, that in cancel culture we’ve found an avenue toward redemption of secular culture. But as a corrective to a culture that makes personal desire paramount no matter how toxic, pointing out which culture touchstones we no longer approve or uphold shouldn’t just be a shibboleth in the culture wars. It should be an act of investigation in which we all take part.

This article by Tara Isabella Burton originally appeared here.

UPDATE: Voddie Baucham’s Quadruple Bypass Surgery Was Successful

By
Jesse T. Jackson
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Voddie Baucham
Screengrab Facebook @Voddie Baucham Ministries

UPDATED April 8, 2021: Tom Ascol let his followers know on Twitter that Voddie Baucham had a successful quadruple bypass surgery on Tuesday.

Ascol thanked everyone for their prayers and shared that he was awake and responsive soon the morning after the surgery. Baucham was released from ICU on Thursday and started some mild physical therapy.

The Founder Ministries President also asked for continued prayers Tweeting, “Please pray for his continued improvement, that his pain would diminish, & that the Lord would continue to strengthen & encourage his wife and children.”

UPDATED April 5, 2021: Founders Ministries President Tom Ascol posted on Facebook that well-known preacher Voddie Baucham is scheduled for open heart surgery today at 2:30 PM EST (April 5, 2021). Surgery was scheduled after Baucham received what he had hoped would be his final test from his successful March 2021 heart surgery, but doctors at the Jacksonville Florida Mayo Clinic discovered another blockage.

Ascol said that Voddie and his wife Bridgett are “full of faith and hope” as they process this new trial and navigate a new set of plans. He and his family were hopeful Baucham would be released to begin a two-week book tour to promote his upcoming book Fault Lines: The Social Justice Movement and Evangelicalism’s Looming Catastrophe Hardcover.

The Christian Post reported that Baucham had to cancel an interview they had scheduled for this week due to the unexpected surgery. They posted what a Voddie Baucham spokesperson said regarding the cancellation:

“While preparing to embark on a two-week book tour for the national launch of Fault Lines, doctors at the Mayo Clinic this week discovered another blockage in Voddie’s heart. It was determined that he must have another procedure this weekend to deal with the blockage. Please pray for Voddie and his doctors as he undergoes this new procedure. We expect to have the next update on his condition early next week.”

In Ascol’s Facebook post, he said he would provide an update after the surgery when he was able.

Please join us in praying for Voddie and his family.

UPDATED March 2, 2021: Dr. Voddie Baucham was released from the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, this past weekend after doctors completed a successful heart surgery.

Speaking from a video posted on Instagram, Baucham said “Things were better than expected, and I’m expected to make a full recovery.”

Saying that he and his wife Bridget are overwhelmed by the outpouring of the love, support, and prayers from people all over the world, Baucham humorously said, “I scared her (Bridget) the other day sitting in the bed just weeping.” Thinking something was wrong, Baucham explained he was reading comments from the GoFundMe campaign “and I had to stop…I was overwhelmed…so thank you, it meant more than you could possibly know.”

“I wanted you to see me with your own eyes to know that things were going well,” Bauchman told his followers, “I just want to say thank you.”

Watch the full video message here.

ChurchLeaders original article written on February 23, 2021 below.

Dr. Voddie Baucham said that he had come “within an hour or so of death,” while traveling to seek treatment in Florida after discovering last week that he was experiencing “full-blown heart failure.” Things were so close for Baucham, he said if he had stuck to his original itinerary for his trip from Lusaka, Zambia to Florida, he would not have made it to the hospital in time.

Baucham shared the update on Instagram on Sunday, informing his followers and prayer supporters that he had safely arrived with his wife, Bridget, at the Mayo Clinic in Florida, and that their lost luggage had been found.

Due to setbacks resulting from his failing heart, and flight cancellations in Dallas, Texas brought on by freezing weather conditions, the doctor at the Mayo Clinic told him he was “in the final stages of a catastrophic event, and within an hour or so of death,” when he arrived this past weekend.

The significance was not lost on Baucham. “It is impossible to deny the hand of our Sovereign God and the way he shepherded us,” the minister said as he recalled the last few days of their journey. The harrowing journey included a missionary doctor in Lusaka identifying the severity of his condition, flight cancellations, itinerary changes, staff at the Mayo Clinic waiting on him to arrive, and a GoFundMe campaign that has raised over $1.3 million dollars for his medical expenses.

Letting his readers know his condition has improved, Baucham said they have “a clear, aggressive, and promising treatment plan,” and that he and his wife are “resting and rejoicing in God’s goodness.”

Baucham has been married for 31 years to Bridget and they have nine children together. He is the the founder of Voddie Baucham Ministries (VBM), popular conference speaker, church planter, and author. He is currently serving as the Dean of Theology at African Christian University in Zambia. 

Baucham’s Instagram post from Sunday reads:

We. Have. Luggage…

@americanair found our @saddlebackbags and delivered them. Praise the Lord for a burden lifted!

On the health front, I am still at the @mayoclinic and receiving care from some of the top doctors in the world in the field of heart failure.

My condition is much improved, and we have a clear, aggressive, and promising treatment plan. Bridget and I continue to marvel at the Lord’s providence and rejoice in his goodness. According to the doctor that brought me in (actually, his wife picked us up and rushed us to the E.D., but that’s another story for another time), I was in the final stages of a catastrophic event, and within an hour or so of death.

When we look back at the amazing work of the missionary doctor in Lusaka who stabilized me (and saved my life), the GoFundMe, canceled flights, weather delays, my vitals during the Joburg to Doha flight, a last-minute itinerary change to Jacksonville, and the fact that Mayo was expecting and waiting for me upon arrival (including the paramedic who checked me in and said, “I’m trying not to go all fan-girl right now,” 😂 it is impossible to deny the hand of our Sovereign God and the way he shepherded us.

There is much more I could say and a great deal more work to be done, but we are resting and rejoicing in God’s goodness. Even in the ‘little’ things… Like finally getting our bags! Especially when we realize that, if we had waited and taken the same journey our bags did (our original itinerary), we would not have made it to Mayo in time.

Killed by Former NFL Player, Slain South Carolina Doctor Wrote of Faith, Life’s Fragility

By
AP News
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communicating with the unchurched

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Robert Lesslie — the South Carolina physician and author who authorities say was killed, along with three family members and a repairman, by former NFL player Phillip Adams — frequently wrote of the fragility of life and a deep-seated Christian faith that guided him personally and professionally.

“I know without a doubt that life is fragile,” the 70-year-old doctor wrote in one of his books, a collection of missives he termed “inspiring true stories” from his medical work. “I have come to understand that humility may be the greatest virtue. And I am convinced we need to take the time to say the things we deeply feel to the people we deeply care about.”

“Life is uncertain. Things happen. Lives are unexpectedly changed or ended. And it happens suddenly,” he wrote in his online blog entry.

Lesslie’s lessons on faith were passed down to his children, as was evident in a statement from his family that law enforcement shared at a news conference on Thursday, a day after the attack. Even in their grief, the family said their “hearts are bent toward forgiveness and peace,” York County Sheriff Kevin Tolson told reporters. He said they were also praying for the family of Adams, a former NFL journeyman who authorities say shot and killed himself early Thursday after officers surrounded his parents’ home.

According to police, Adams went to the home of Robert and Barbara Lesslie on Wednesday and shot and killed them, two of their grandchildren, 9-year-old Adah Lesslie and 5-year-old Noah Lesslie, and James Lewis, a 38-year-old air conditioning technician from Gaston who was doing work there. He also shot Lewis’ colleague, 38-year-old Robert Shook, of Cherryville, North Carolina, who was flown to a Charlotte hospital, where he was in critical condition “fighting hard for his life,” said a cousin, Heather Smith Thompson.

Tolson said investigators hadn’t figured out why Adams carried out the attack: “There’s nothing right now that makes sense to any of us.”

A person briefed on the investigation who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak publicly said Robert Lesslie had treated Adams, who lived with his parents not far from the Lesslies’ home.

Tolson would not confirm that Adams had been the doctor’s patient.

Barbara Lesslie had been heavily involved in fine arts, including theater in Rock Hill, said Gary Simrill, the Republican leader of the South Carolina House and a longtime Rock Hill resident. Having practiced medicine in Rock Hill for more than three decades, her husband had indeed treated many of its citizens. Simrill said that after years in emergency medicine, Robert Lesslie founded two urgent care centers that were the opposite of what many might expect from a quick-service medical practice.

“People developed a great relationship with him because he wasn’t just the doctor that saw you,” Simrill said. “He was the doctor that got to know you.”

Among his patients were Trent Faris, the spokesman for the York County Sheriff’s Office, and Adams’ father, Alonzo Adams.

Tolson said evidence left at the shooting scene led investigators to Adams as a suspect. He said they went to Adams’ parents’ home, evacuated them and then persuade Adams to come out. Eventually, they found him dead of a single gunshot wound to the head in a bedroom, he said.

Adams, 32, played in 78 NFL games over six seasons for six teams. He joined the 49ers in 2010 as a seventh-round draft pick out of South Carolina State, and though he rarely started, he went on to play for New England, Seattle, Oakland and the New York Jets before finishing his career with the Atlanta Falcons in 2015.

As a rookie late in the 2010 season, Adams suffered a severe ankle injury that required surgery that included several screws being inserted into his leg. He never played for the 49ers again, getting released just before the 2011 season began. Later, with the Raiders, he had two concussions over three games in 2012.

Whether he suffered long-lasting concussion-related injuries wasn’t immediately clear. Adams would not have been eligible for testing as part of a broad settlement between the league and its former players over such injuries, because he hadn’t retired by 2014.

Adams’ father told a Charlotte television station that he blamed football for problems his son had, and which might have led him to commit Wednesday’s violence.

“I can say he’s a good kid — he was a good kid, and I think the football messed him up,” Alonzo Adams told WCNC-TV. “He didn’t talk much and he didn’t bother nobody.”

Robert Lesslie reveled in writing about his faith and his work as a physician, penning more than half a dozen books that were collections of what he termed “inspiring true stories” from his work.

In a 2014 interview, he spoke of how he came to write one, “Angels in the ER,” saying he saw value in the stories he had collected through his decades in medicine, focusing on “people who had impacted me through their faith, and the way they had dealt with things that life had sent their way.”

“When I talk about angels, I do believe that God ministers to us in a lot of different ways,” Lesslie said. “I don’t write about wings and halos and that kind of thing, but I do believe that God does speak to us through his spirit – and through other people.”

In a Thursday message to congregants, pastors from the Lesslies’ church, First Associate Reformed Presbyterian Rock Hill, wrote that all four of the Lesslies “are in the presence of Jesus and worshipping Him face to face. One day we will see them again. Therefore, we can grieve as those who have hope.”

The church planned to keep its sanctuary open until 8 p.m. Thursday, for anyone wishing to pray. According to church officials, no funeral arrangements had been finalized.

As he wrote on his blog recently, Lesslie felt comfortable in his faith, imagining Heaven as a place filled with joy, and where he would be reunited with family and his cherished dog, Dox.

“We have no idea what Heaven will look like, only that it will be perfect,” Lesslie wrote. “And because of that I know that one day, when I’ve experienced the presence and joy of that surrounding host of saints, I will find myself walking with Barbara in a field of lush, green grass. … The words of Jesus will echo through that glade — ‘Behold, I make all things new.’”

___

Contributors include Michelle Liu in Rock Hill, South Carolina; AP Pro Football Writers Barry Wilner in New York and Rob Maaddi in Philadelphia; sports writer Josh Dubow in Alameda, California; legal affairs writer Maryclaire Dale in Philadelphia; and Nell Redmond in Rock Hill. Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP.

This article originally appeared here.

‘The Chosen’ Season 2—The Binge-Worthy TV Series Perfect for the Entire Family

By
Bri Lamm
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communicating with the unchurched

Season 2 of The Chosen has finally arrived, and it’s the family-friendly entertainment we’ve all been waiting for.

Last year, at the height of the pandemic and stay at home orders, a friend of mine recommended that we check out The Chosen. It’s the first ever multi-season show about the life and ministry of Jesus Christ through the perspective of those around Him. And boy, did it deliver!

On Easter Sunday, The Chosen released the Season 2 premiere on The Chosen app, which is free to download and free to watch anytime, anywhere on any device.

Season 2 is set to take viewers through the experiences of Jesus being the ultimate founder of “good trouble,” with the trailer showing scenes of Him healing the leper and the sermon on the mount. And like season one, it’s an intimate portrayal of Jesus’ leadership, love, and relationships with His disciples and those he met along the way.

But it’s not just the story that The Chosen is telling on screen that’s making waves. The widespread success of this series is it’s own note-worthy story, and one that only God could be writing, “behind the scenes.”

Launched in 2019, The Chosen is the first media project in history to ever be released globally on it’s own app, which has been downloaded and streamed in over 180 countries worldwide, and translated into over 50 languages.

As of Wednesday, The Chosen had been viewed over 100 million times and was the fourth most-downloaded free entertainment app on Apple’s app store, beating out both Disney+ and Hulu.

The Lord’s favor is ALL over this thing!

Released by streaming platform VidAngel, the series is the largest crowd-funded production in history. Its first season was funded by over 75,000 people who donated $10 million total to see the project come to fruition. Season two saw contributions from 125,000 people to reach the same financial goal, and they’re only just getting started. Creators of the show have seven full seasons of The Chosen mapped out, with season three already 12 percent funded.

This isn’t your average “Jesus Project.” The Chosen has earned a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and 9.8 stars on IMDB. In 2020, The Chosen joined acclaimed productions like Netflix’s The Crown and Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings, earning two Movieguide Award nominations. Actor Jonathan Roumie, who portrays Jesus in the series, took home the Grace Award for a TV Performance.

“Playing the role of Jesus Christ is the preeminent honor, not only of my career, but of my life,” Roumie said. “With this series, we’re afforded the opportunity to take our time with the greatest story ever told…and savor it.”

In a recent interview with Fox News, Roumie emphasized that The Chosen is not a religious project for religious people. Like any binge-worthy show it’s simply filmmakers, storytellers, and actors who are determined to tell a good story. (Or in this case, the greatest story ever told).

“This should be watched for anybody that is fans of historical dramas, anybody that’s a fan of well-researched historical productions,” Roumie said. “And if you like period pieces, if you like, well-made shows, well-written shows, this is going to appeal to so many people. And I think that they can get past the idea of like, ‘Oh, it’s a faith show and it’s not for me.’ You don’t have to [believe in God]. There’s no prerequisite. This is going to appeal to people beyond the faith spectrum. And it has.”

You can catch up on Season One of The Chosen right now on The Chosen app, and follow along with the weekly release of episodes from Season Two.

This article originally appeared here.

Opinion: The Hollowing Out of American Religion

By
Religion News Service
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communicating with the unchurched

(RNS) — Twenty-five years ago, when Trinity College hired me to create a center for the study of religion in public life, nearly 9 in 10 Americans asserted a religious identity. Now, according to Gallup, it’s 7 in 10.

Then, two-thirds of Americans said they belonged to a religious congregation. Now, it’s less than half. As for weekly attendance, Gallup reports it down from 40% to 30%.

Those numerical changes may overstate the actual behavioral trends. The rise of the “nones” — people who say they have no religion — is to some extent the result of a shift in how Americans understand religious identity.

Take someone who told a pollster in 1990, “Well, I haven’t gone to church in 30 years but my parents took me to an Episcopal church so put me down as Episcopalian.” Today such a person is more likely to say, “Well, my parents took me to an Episcopal church, but I haven’t gone to one in 30 years, so put me down as a none.”

Today, in other words, Americans understand religious identity more as how they are currently engaged than as something ascribed to them in childhood. So the rise of the nones has partly to do with non-religious Americans now identifying themselves as such.

Meanwhile, increased social comfort with none status may have enabled greater truth-telling in matters of religious practice.

Exemplifying the well-known phenomenon of people overstating their “good” behavior to pollsters, Gallup for years reported weekly worship attendance in the 40% range, when behavioral studies showed it was actually in the mid-20s. Americans in the 21st century may simply be less reluctant than their forebears to admit that they haven’t gone to church in the past seven days — and that they don’t belong to a congregation, either.

Likewise (for those seeking spiritual silver linings), surveys have shown that most nones profess a belief in God — though usually without having to say what kind of god they believe in. (One of the rare surveys that asked, the 2008 American Religious Identification Survey, found that just 27% of nones believe in a personal God, as compared to 70% of American adults as a whole.)

But whatever mitigations are proposed, there is no doubt that organized religion in America is shrinking rapidly and good reason to think that it will continue to shrink for some time to come. That’s because, while all generational cohorts are less religious than they used to be, the youngest are the least.

Thus (by Gallup’s count), 62% of the generation of students I taught when I first got to Trinity (Gen X) belonged to congregations in 2000, 57% do a decade later, and 50% do now. Among millennials, membership is down to 36% from 50% a decade ago. For both generations, the historic tendency of Americans to lock in their church membership once they get married and start having children has been reversed.

Altogether, according to Gallup, 31% of millennials and 33% of Gen Zs are nones — and that’s at the low end of current surveys. The 2019 Cooperative Election Study puts millennial nones at 43% and Gen Z nones at 47%, with the entire U.S. adult none population at 34%.

It’s a fair bet that by midcentury, just half the American population will identify with a religion, one-third will belong to congregations, and one-sixth will attend worship once a week. The trends could reverse, of course, but as of now the turn away from organized religion is the most consequential demographic shift in our time.

That’s because, in the wake of the civil rights movement, the Republican Party decided to build its future on religion. From Richard Nixon’s Silent Majority to Jerry Falwell’s Moral Majority, the GOP’s Sunbelt strategy became a Bible Belt strategy, which used religion to push the Democrats into the minority.

And a promising strategy it was, so long as the vast majority of Americans remained religiously engaged. Otherwise, however, not so much.

Consider this. Since the 2000 election, those who say they attend worship weekly or more have voted Republican by more than 20-point margins, while those who say they never attend have voted Democratic by similar margins. But whereas in 2000 the Weeklies were more than 40% of the electorate and the Nevers under 15%, in 2020 the Weeklies were down to 24%, the Nevers up to 32%.

Given that smaller proportions of religious voters are coming on line every cycle, you’d expect the GOP to dial back its enthusiasm for restricting abortions, fighting LGBTQ anti-discrimination laws and maximizing the ability of religious institutions and individuals to access public goods while receiving exemptions from generally applicable laws.

But of course, that hasn’t happened. Instead, having abandoned its 20th-century dream of becoming the majority party, the GOP has dialed back its commitment to democracy and gone all-in for gerrymandering congressional districts and suppressing the votes of the (increasingly secular) other side.

As a result, the place of religion in American politics has become more important over the quarter-century that it has been my business, even as Americans themselves have been turning away from organized religion. Anyone who thinks this is a healthy development should think again.

This article originally appeared here.

Tony Perkins Urges Christians to Pray That D.C. Experiences “Chaos, Conflict, and Gridlock”

By
Jesse T. Jackson
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communicating with the unchurched

Pray that Washington D.C. experiences “chaos, conflict, and gridlock” under President Joe Biden’s administration, advocates Tony Perkins, the president of the Family Research Council and former chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (June 2019-2020). Perkins gave his message to Andrew Wommack, Richard Harris, and the viewers of the Truth and Liberty live cast this past Monday. 

Tony Perkins’ Perspective on D.C.

Harris asked Perkins if the Truth and Liberty viewers could do anything to help West Virginia‘s and Arizona’s senators stand their ground against congress removing the filibuster. “This is out of our hands at this point,” Perkins said. “We just need to continue to pray…pray that the Lord would prohibit them from doing this.”

The conservative Christian leader told those watching that “we need God to move on our behalf. We need to repent as a nation of the stuff that’s being pushed through [congress]. Just look what the Biden administration has pushed through…the whole transgender agenda…the issue of abortion.” He called those things President Biden has done “atrocious” and said, “I pray for God’s blessing on Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as they yield themselves to Him.”

Perkins also said, though, that if the president and vice president of the United States choose not to turn to their hearts toward God and “refuse the truth and go against the truth” that he prays that they would be “confused.” He also prays that Washington D.C would experience “conflict” and “gridlock.”

Critics of Perkins’ call to prayer cited 1 Timothy 2:1-4: “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.”

From this Scripture, it was unclear to many on Twitter how Perkins’ directions honored God. In an article on ChurchLeaders.com, Daniel Henderson, the founder and director of Strategic Renewal, listed six key ways to pray for those in authority. Not surprisingly, “chaos, conflict, and gridlock” are not on his list. Rather, Henderson says to pray for authorities to have wisdom and discernment, and to be instruments of God.

The Focus of the Live Cast With Tony Perkins

The live cast focused on the Democrats in the senate hoping to eliminate the filibuster and on President Biden’s administration’s political agenda that includes their transgender legislations. Perkins has said these initiatives “are literally from the pit of hell.”

Urging Wommack and Harris to stand for truth, Perkins told them, “We have to be committed to stand for truth in the face of an aggressive cancel culture. We just have to get beyond the fear of a social media post that’s negative.”

Explaining to everyone watching that Christians need to deny themselves and take up their cross, he said, “We need to get beyond the fact that we might lose a few friends temporarily, but we need to stand and speak truth…speak it in love…and speak it out of a redemptive heart…the purpose for speaking truth is so that people might come to know the truth and be made free through the author of truth–Jesus Christ. We can’t shrink back in silence because then people won’t hear the truth. They won’t be challenged with the truth. But we have to be willing to deny ourselves, to take up our cross and follow Christ.”

You can watch the entire video here.

5 Ways to Engage Families at a VBS Family Night

By
Danielle Bell
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communicating with the unchurched

Vacation Bible School is one of the most exciting weeks of the year. Whether in the day, night, or on consecutive weekends, the impact VBS makes can leave a lasting legacy. One way to ensure the message of VBS goes well beyond the walls of the church is to make sure to engage families in a VBS family night. A VBS family night is usually held the last day of your VBS. It’s a great way to engage family members in all that kids have learned and experienced.

5 Interactive Ideas to Implement Into Your VBS Family Night 

1. Create an Experience at Your VBS Family Night.

There is nothing worse than kids coming home after an amazing event and parents just getting the “Jesus answer” for questions regarding the day. As children’s ministry leaders, we put so much thought and prayer into every element of VBS and we want to make sure that the life-changing message makes it into the home of each child. So instead of just having parents and families be recipients and spectators during VBS family night, be sure to help them experience VBS.

    • Sing the songs of the week and challenge parents and grandparents to do the motions alongside their children. Kids love to see their adults having fun in a child-like way.  
    • Recap the lessons of the week and invite families to actively take part in the storytelling. Give parents permission to be silly and act like kids. 
    • Do a family craft together. Nothing takes the message home like a project families work on together and then display in their home.  

2. Have Families Serve Together at VBS Family Night.

VBS doesn’t end on your church’s sidewalk. One way to make sure that VBS has a community impact is to invite families to serve those in your area. Instead of a typical VBS family night, involve your families in these service ideas.

    • Do yard work or other needed tasks for area widows.
    • Collect and pack school supply bags for children in foster care.
    • Clean up a city park.
    • Pack galloon zip lock baggies for the homeless in your area and invite families to drive around and hand them to those in need. 
    • Write and deliver notes of thanks and goodies to your city’s civil servants.

3. Lead Families in Meaningful Discussions.

Jesus modeled asking questions better than anyone. This is a great tool in an intergenerational service to help parents discover where their kids are spiritually and the struggles they may be having. Give families some key discussion questions and time during the event to talk. Busy families can gain much by simply sitting and discussing truth together. Follow these guidelines.

    • Make sure questions are open-ended and are not concluded with a simple yes/no.
    • Invite parents/grandparents to take part and openly share with their kids. Adult transparency can have a great impact on kids.
    • Give signals to provide all members of the families equal time to share. 

4. Pray Together as Families.

VBS family night is a great, safe place to model prayer for families. Here’s what we’ve done in our church that you can do.

    • Set up prayer experiences for families to work through together.
    • Give prayer prompts for families.
    • Invite families to share prayer requests and pray for each other.
    • Challenge families to prayer walk the neighborhood around the church. 

5. Invite Families to Come Back to Church.

Continue the impact of VBS by inviting families to church and to Jesus. Chances are those who would never darken the doors of a church would send their kids to a VBS. And they just might attend a VBS family night!  

    • Challenge families to get involved in the church by coming on Sunday morning, joining a life group, or attending a next steps class.
    • You could even create a new Bible study group for those who found your church during VBS.

Whatever you do, don’t forget the gospel. Don’t prepare and plan for the whole year for VBS and never give people a chance to respond to the gospel. Whether you have an invitation or a special area where church staff can answer questions, don’t forget that the gospel is the reason we do VBS. 

Vacation Bible school season is right around the corner and with it come great possibilities and responsibilities. What will you include in a VBS family night to engage families? 

Released From Prison, Algerian Christian Slimane Bouhafs Persecuted in Tunisia

By
Morning Star News
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communicating with the unchurched

TIZI-OUZOU, Algeria (Morning Star News) – After Slimane Bouhafs was released from prison in 2018, having served nearly two years for violating Algeria’s blasphemy laws, further persecution drove him to Tunisia.

Threats on his life continue there, and he is stuck in legal limbo – missing his daughter’s wedding on Friday (April 2).

“My daughter who gave so much to me, who has always supported me, she is getting married without me being able to be by her side,” Bouhafs said in tears on Thursday (April 1). “It is a very great pain that I am suffering.”

Initially sentenced to five years in prison in 2016 for messages he posted on Facebook favoring Christianity over Islam, Bouhafs benefited from advocacy efforts that drew international attention, and he received a partial presidential pardon in 2017 that resulted in his release on April 1, 2018. Like many Christians branded as blasphemers of Islam, his troubles did not end with his release.

“Hateful people still wanted my life,” Bouhafs, 54, told Morning Star News. “Once I found two tires on our car gutted with a knife. I was getting threatening phone calls. I registered the numbers and filed a complaint, but the prosecutor did not care; no follow-up.”

After his release, the government cut off disability benefits he had received due to a condition that caused him to stop working as a security guard in 1999, he said. Before that, he had worked as a policeman until 1994.

“For 19 years I usually received my due [benefits], but since my release, nothing,” he told Morning Star News. “The Algerian Islamist state stole part of my life and even my salary. I was left without a penny.”

Fearful for himself and his family, he decided to seek asylum in Tunisia, as obtaining a visa for Europe or North America was impossible, he said. Bouhafs arrived in Tunisia in October 2018 – where he has been threatened repeatedly by phone and on social media, he said.

“Once, three people on a motorbike accosted me in the middle of the street, in front of a multitude of people coming and going,” Bouhafs said. “They asked for my papers with threats. I gave them my papers and told them I was a refugee. After taking a look, they handed them to me. It was then that they insulted me and threatened me without anyone intervening.”

One of the men had an Algerian accent, he said.

“I went straight to the police station to file a complaint. Unfortunately, there at the police station I was more mistreated,” Bouhafs told Morning Star News. “After finding articles on Google and finding out that I am a Christian and had been in jail accused of undermining Islam, the agents stood up against me, and they also insulted and mistreated me. I could only leave the premises forgetting the complaint.”

He began filing for asylum with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in November 2018, but his case was held up by several administrative delays, he said.

“During that period, I was very ill to the point where I was admitted to the hospital for 11 days,” he said. “I was experiencing indescribable anguish and stress. I only thought of one solution, suicide. I was given treatment which allowed me to resume.”

Occasionally he was able to receive visits from family members, he said, but the coronavirus pandemic has closed the borders, and he is now isolated.

Following publication of his case in an Algerian newspaper in June 2020, administrative processes improved, and he was able to obtain a refugee card in October, he said. Bouhafs said he did not understand why the UNHCR has not found a host country and authorized his departure.

“Honestly, I do not understand why they do not let me go, why I do not have my ticket, when countries have agreed to receive me. I find that unfair and humiliating,” Bouhaf said. “I ask that the authorities concerned act quickly, without further delay, to allow me to reach a country of asylum, and that my family can join me.”

Faith in Numbers: Trump Held Steady Among Believers at the Ballot – Why He Really Lost in 2020

By
The Conversation
-
communicating with the unchurched

(THE CONVERSATION) For all the predictions and talk of a slump in support among evangelicals, it appears Donald Trump’s election loss was not at the hands of religious voters.

As an analyst of religious data, I’ve been crunching data released in March 2021 that breaks down the 2020 U.S. presidential election results by faith. And by and large there was very little notable change in the vote choice of religious groups between 2016 and 2020 – in fact, for most faiths, support for Trump ticked up slightly. Instead, it was among those who do not identify with any religion that Trump saw a noticeable drop.

Despite exit poll data initially pointing toward a drop in white evangelical support for Trump in 2020, the latest data shows this not to be the case. The data is based on the Cooperative Election Study, which has become the gold standard for assessing vote choice because of its sample size and its ability to accurately represent the voting population of the United States.

In fact, with 80% of white evangelicals backing Trump in 2020, support actually ticked up from the 78% who voted for him four years earlier. Trump also saw two-point increases in the vote of nonwhite evangelicals, white Catholics, Black Protestants and Jews compared with four years ago.

These differences are not statistically significant, and as such it would be wrong to say it definitively shows Trump gained among religious groups. But it indicates that among the largest religious groups in the U.S., voting patterns in the November 2020 vote seemed to hold largely steady with four years earlier. Trump did not manage to win significantly larger shares, nor was winner Joe Biden able to peel away religious voters from the Trump coalition.

Losing the Nonreligious

However, there are some interesting and statistically significant trends when you break down the data further. Nonwhite Catholics shifted four points toward Donald Trump. This fits with what we saw in places like the heavily Hispanic and Catholic Miami-Dade County, Florida, where Trump’s overall vote share improved from 35% to 46% between 2016 and 2020.

Trump also managed to pick up 15 percentage points among the Mormon vote. On first glance this would appear a large jump. But it makes sense when you factor in that around 15% of the Mormon vote in 2016 went to Utah native and fellow Mormon Evan McMullin, who ran in that year’s election as a third-party candidate. Without McMullin in 2020, Trump picked up Mormon voters – as did Joe Biden, who did slightly better than Hillary Clinton had among Mormons.

There is also some weak evidence that the Republican candidate picked up some support among smaller religious groups in the U.S., like Hindus and Buddhists. Trump increased his share among these two groups by four percentage points each. But it is important to note that these two groups combined constitute only about 1.5% of the American population. As such, a four-point increase translates to only a very small fraction of the overall popular vote.

What is clear is that Trump lost a good amount of ground among the religious unaffiliated. Trump’s share of the atheist vote declined from 14% in 2016 to just 11% in 2020; the decline among agnostics was slightly larger, from 23% to 18%.

Additionally, those who identify as “nothing in particular” – a group that represents 21% of the overall U.S. population – were not as supportive of Trump in his reelection bid. His vote share among this group dropped by three percentage points, while Biden’s rose by over seven points, with the Democrat managing to win over many of the “nothing in particulars” who had backed third-party candidates in the 2016 election.

Looked at broadly, Trump did slightly better among Christians and other smaller religious groups in the U.S. but lost ground among the religiously unaffiliated. What these results cannot account for, however, is record turnout. There were nearly 22 million more votes cast in 2020 than in 2016. So while vote shares may not have changed that much, the number of votes cast helped swing the election for the Democratic candidate. A more detailed breakdown of voter turnout is due to be released in July 2021 by the team that administers the Cooperative Election Study; that will bring the picture of religion and the 2020 vote into clearer focus.

This article written by Ryan Burge originally appeared here.

Beth Moore Apologizes for Her Role in Elevating Complementarian Theology That Limits Women

By
Religion News Service
-
communicating with the unchurched

(RNS) — First she shook the evangelical world by leaving the Southern Baptist Convention. Now Beth Moore, arguably the evangelical world’s most famous Bible teacher, has begged forgiveness for supporting the theology of male headship rooted in many evangelical cultures.

In a Twitter thread Wednesday (April 7), Moore took aim at complementarianism, the 20th century theological framework that argues men and women were created for different roles and that effectively champions male headship and female submission.

For some evangelicals, complementarianism is a line in the sand. Those who question it are seen as undermining belief in the Bible. Moore said that was wrong.

“Let me be blunt,” Moore tweeted. “When you functionally treat complementarianism—a doctrine of MAN—as if it belongs among the matters of 1st importance, yea, as a litmus test for where one stands on inerrancy & authority of Scripture, you are the ones who have misused Scripture. You went too far.”

She also apologized for her past view on the matter.

“I beg your forgiveness where I was complicit,” she said on social media. “I could not see it for what it was until 2016. I plead your forgiveness for how I just submitted to it and supported it and taught it.”

In an email to Religion News Service, Moore didn’t go quite so far as to say she has entirely abandoned complementarianism. But she no longer sees it as essential.

“I’m not going to be pushed into either category right now because that’s not my point,” Moore wrote in response to a question about whether she was still a complementarian, or its counterpart, an egalitarian. “My point is that it has taken on the importance of a first tier doctrine.”

But apologizing for her role in supporting and elevating the importance of that theology, which she had submitted to, is a major step for Moore.

Some female historians said Moore’s tweets were a decisive shift. Beth Allison Barr, a Baylor University historian and author of “The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth,” likened Moore to the biblical Joshua commanding the people to shout so the walls of Jericho fall down.

“She just shouted,” said Barr of Moore. “This is going to be the beginning of the end of complementarianism.”

Since 2016, Moore has taken to Twitter to criticize male evangelical leaders without challenging the view that women cannot be ordained or preach from the pulpit. She often referred to herself as a “soft complementarian.”

Her shift in tone Wednesday drew predictable denunciations.

The Rev. Tom Buck of First Baptist Church in Lindale, Texas, an outspoken critic of SBC leaders, tweeted that a “plain reading” of a passage from the New Testament Book of 1 Timothy bars women from teaching or preaching the Bible to men in the church.

He was referring to a passage from the Apostle Paul’s letter to Timothy in which he said: “A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet.”

Bible scholars point to other New Testament letters attributed to Paul that convey different attitudes. Paul also allowed his contemporary Phoebe, a female deacon, to read aloud to a house church. Paul thought highly enough of Junia, a woman, and her co-laborer Andronicus, that he commended them both as “noted among the apostles.”

But over the past 20 years, Southern Baptists, along with other mostly white evangelical denominations, launched an industry of books, devotional literature, conferences and seminary programs celebrating “the dignity” of traditional gender roles in which wives submit to their husbands in the home and only men can preach in the church. Many have suggested that as Jesus is subordinate to God the Father, so women must be subordinate to men — a heresy for most Christians who view the three members of the Trinity as equal.

“This whole complementrian ideology is a historical construction,” said Kristin Du Mez, a Calvin University historian and author of “Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation.” “All the packaging that comes with it — what it means to be a man, what it means to be a woman — that’s a historical and cultural creation, even as it’s packaged and sold as timeless, inerrant and biblical.”

Moore’s outsize role — she has filled arenas and concert venues for her Bible teaching conferences and sold millions of devotional books, becoming better known than any of her male counterparts — has always raised tensions around complementarianism.

In 2019 she even joked about preaching in church on Mother’s Day. Los Angeles megachurch pastor John MacArthur responded that Moore should “go home.”

For Moore, much of her reappraisal of the role of women in the church arose with the election of Donald Trump in 2016 and the pre-election debate over the now-infamous “Access Hollywood” tape, in which Trump boasted about groping women’s genitals. The ongoing sex abuse scandal in the Protestant churches and the subsequent #MeToo movement also contributed to it. Moore has acknowledged she too was sexually abused.

On Wednesday, Bible teachers in her mold, such as Jacki C. King, congratulated Moore for her words.

“I am so deeply grieved and sorry for the hurt and deep losses you have taken from your own,” tweeted King, who is also a Southern Baptist pastor’s wife. “It is the deepest sting and betrayal. Thank you for paving a way, for being faithful, for your example. I think and pray for you so often. Thank you sister.”

UPDATE: John MacArthur Denies Grace Community Church Ever Had a COVID-19 Outbreak

By
Jesse T. Jackson
-
communicating with the unchurched

UPDATE 4-8-2021: Grace Community Church’s lead teaching Pastor John MacArthur submitted a statement to the Superior Court of the State of California County of Los Angeles on April 2, 2021 in which he defended Grace Community Church (GCC) from allegations regarding the church ever having a COVID-19 outbreak that resulted in some congregants dying.

These allegations specifically came from a report written by investigative journalist Julie Roys, the founder of the Christian media outlet The Roys Report.

Responding to Roys’ report, MacArthur said, “I have never heard or seen any evidence indicating that any of the people on that list believe they were infected with COVID-19 in some gathering at Grace Community Church. A prayer-request list compiled by laypeople and distributed to members of an adult Sunday school class is not proof that staff people or other officials at Grace Community Church knew this information.”

Not denying that GCC congregants have tested positive for COVID-19, MacArthur explained that there is “no reason to believe that any of these people who tested positive had been attending our Sunday services.”

The pastor shared in his statement that the handful of congregants who were hospitalized and/or died from COVID-19 from within GCC’s 6,000-plus attendees “did not get infected at Grace Community Church, because they were not attending services.” MacArthur pointed out these people had prior medical conditions and were following strict protocols to avoid getting sick by staying home.

MacArthur called Roys’ accusation that GCC pressured staff and congregants “not to report cases to the County Department of Public Health” a claim that is “entirely false.” He said Roys hasn’t produced “any corroborating evidence” that would prove truth to that statement. He also said that she twisted the words of one of GCC’s leaders for a large adult Sunday school class “to create a false impression.”

GCC and MacArthur have remained open since initially suspending in-person services for less than a month during the height of the pandemic, in which they reopened their doors for indoor worship that resulted in a near capacity crowd during July. The majority were not wearing masks or practicing social distancing.

“Grace Community Church regards the wearing of masks in worship first of all as a matter of conscience,” MacArthur said and explained to the court that GCC’s biblical stance on masks. He said, “Since we are forbidden by the teaching of Christ not to make extrabiblical religious rules that bind men’s consciences (Matthew 23:1-7; 15:1-9), we neither mandate nor forbid the wearing of masks in worship.”

The Roys Report rebutted Pastor MacArthur’s court statement and says they do have “evidence that at least one of the GCC congregants who died was attending GCC.” Roys also shared that she believes that GCC was aware of a COVID-19 outbreak within their church and shows evidence in her report. She also uses Phil Johnson’s Twitter post, who is the executive director of Grace to You and an Elder at GCC, saying he had the virus in December 2020.

Read the full statement here.

ChurchLeaders’ original article written on November 17, 2020 below.

Grace Community Church’s COVID-19 Outbreak Restrictions Lifted

11-17-2020: Sun Valley, California’s Grace Community Church announced on Friday November 13, 2020, that they received a notice from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health saying they had been cleared of a COVID-19 outbreak linked to their church. Grace Community Church’s website states:

We are glad to announce that we received a notice from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health on Thursday, November 12, saying that we have been cleared of COVID-19 outbreak. After a thorough investigation, Public Health officials have decided to rescind all outbreak related requirements and restrictions on Grace Community Church.

A health investigation took place after Grace Community Church reported that four people had tested positive for the COVID-19 virus back in mid-October. ChurchLeaders reached out to the Los Angeles County’s Public Health Department on October 23, 2020 and confirmed they were investigating the reported outbreak at Grace Community Church responding with the following:

Public Health can confirm it is currently investigating an outbreak at Grace Community Church and will list the church on our outbreak dashboard today showing 3 confirmed cases. As with all investigations of outbreaks, Public Health will work closely with the church to support outbreak management strategies that can limit transmission of COVID-19.

Strip Clubs Can Open, But Churches Can’t?

John MacArthur and Grace Community Church have been defying state and county government COVID-19 orders since July, 2020 by holding in-person worship services, and they have had numerous trips to the Los Angeles Superior Court attempting to fight for their constitutional right to gather indoors. California’s current orders call for halting indoor church services, indoor dining, and indoor gym workouts. Represented by attorney Charles S. LiMarandi, Grace Community Church returned to court this past Friday November 13, 2020 and was told by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mitchell L. Beckloff that he will allow pretrial discovery and the calling of witnesses in the contempt hearing scheduled for January 15, 2021. The hearing will deal with whether or not fines should be imposed on Grace Community Church and Pastor John MacArthur for holding indoor worship services despite being issued a preliminary injunction on September 10, 2020. Attorney LiMarandi stated that the pretrial discovery that is being allowed by Judge Beckloff is necessary because the county has displayed more hostility with its COVID-19 orders toward churches than other places of businesses, saying that “tattoo parlors and nail salons have received greater consideration than have churches.” LiMarandi followed that up by saying, “You can’t pray to almighty God, but you can watch nude dancing.” The above is a reference to San Diego Superior Court Judge Joel R. Wohlfeil who ordered California to refrain from enforcing COVID-19 restrictions on strip clubs. The court will also hear a separate lawsuit filed by Grace Community Church against the county for recently revoking the use of a county-owned parking lot they have leased since 1975.

Rare Conjoined Twins Born to Alabama Pastor and Wife — ‘We Love Them So Much’

By
AP News
-
communicating with the unchurched

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — As expectant mom Stephanie Castle awaited her eight-week ultrasound, the technician casually asked her how she was doing.

Stephanie, pregnant with what the Birmingham couple thought would be their fourth child, replied, “I had a dream last night that I was having conjoined twins, so as long as that isn’t the case, I’ll be OK.”

“We were both like, ‘Really? Wow. Let’s hope that won’t be the case,’’ said Stephanie’s husband, Dwight, pastor of missions at Redeemer Community Church in Avondale. “About five minutes later, we learned there were two heartbeats and that kind of began the journey. We were shocked, to put it lightly.”

Not long after, the couple learned not only were they having twins, but indeed they are conjoined. The baby girls, Susannah Jane and Elizabeth Florence, are connected at their chest, down to their belly buttons.

Conjoined twins are extraordinarily rare. According to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, which has successfully separated 25 pairs of conjoined twins since 1957, conjoined twins occur once in every 50,000 to 60,000 births. About 70% of conjoined twins are female, and most are stillborn.

The Castles, who have three other children under the age of 7, will leave Birmingham in two weeks to head to Philadelphia to prepare for their birth of their daughters. The past months have been a roller-coaster of emotions, best and worst-case scenarios, prayers, fears, tears, and hope.

“I think in a lot of ways, God has sort of been preparing us for this for a while,’’ Dwight said. “We’ve grown certainly in awareness of how challenging it’s going to be and knowing we probably don’t know the half of it. But we have an increasing faith in the Lord that He is so clearly over this and providing for us.”

The Crestwood couple found out in September that they were expecting. They already have two sons, ages 6 and 3, and a 2-year-old daughter. “We were on the fence about whether to go for a fourth child. We had a lot of different things we had walked through in the prior years that had been difficult with our family growth and planning,” Dwight said. “We had a miscarriage. We had some infertility. We were foster parents, and we had some hard, difficult foster situations. But we said, ‘Ok, let’s try for four,’ and then we found out we had five. That was very overwhelming.”

It was early November when the Castles had that prognostic ultrasound. Within a couple of minutes, the tech summoned the doctor, ’‘which is never a great sign,’’ Dwight said.

The doctor explained to them that the babies were in the same amniotic sac which is a very rare type of twins and fraught with potential complications for the pregnancy. Conjoined twins were a very unlikely, but possible outcome. It was more likely that they could lose one or both of the babies in a variety of ways. “We left that appointment reeling with a lot to consider,’′ he said.

One month later, they had their first appointment with maternal fetal specialists at UAB and it was then confirmed the twins were indeed conjoined. Susannah and Elizabeth have separate heads, separate brains and separate limbs. The big question was if they had separate hearts because that would determine whether or not there was a path toward separation.

“The good news is they do. They’re extremely close They’re literally touching each other,’′ Dwight said. “They share the lining around the heart – the pericardium – but that’s not preventative for separation.”

The girls also share a liver and probably a portion of their small intestines. The liver is the only organ in the human body that regenerates so doctors will basically split the liver in two, with a half going to each girl.

There was a concern at one point that Elizabeth had major heart disease or defect, which would have significantly complicated the separation possibility. “That was a huge question mark,’′ Dwight said.

The Castles were sent to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, which is one of the leading hospitals in the world for dealing with conjoined twins. They went three weeks ago for a consultation and learned that Elizabeth doesn’t have a heart defect. It’s basically not formed in a way that is normal for most, but it is fully functional.

“It’s an anatomical anomaly – they had to go look in a 1970s textbook to identify what this was because he’s only seen one other time in his career and that was 30 or 40 years ago,’′ Dwight said. “That was a huge answer to prayer for us and they gave us the news that they believed they were separable and would like to do that.”

BREAKING: Police Block Access to GraceLife Church, Fencing Off Property So No One Can Enter

By
Jesse T. Jackson
-
communicating with the unchurched

Just two weeks after GraceLife Church’s Pastor James Coates was released from serving 35 days in prison for not adhering to COVID-19 restrictions and just two weeks back in the pulpit, a convoy of about a dozen Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) vehicles assisted in erecting fencing around the property of GraceLife Church early Wednesday morning.

The Edmonton Journal reported that Alberta Health Services (AHS) released a statement saying it has “physically closed GraceLife Church (GLC) and has prevented access to the building until GLC can demonstrate the ability to comply with Alberta’s Chief Medical Officer of Health’s (CMOH) restrictions.”

AHS announced on Tuesday they were going back to step 1 of their public health restriction framework to slow the continuing spread of the COVID-19 virus. Premier Jason Kenny said, “The only responsible choice to save lives and to protect our health-care system is to take action.”

The heightened restrictions will still allow for area churches to meet as long as they adhere to only 15% capacity, mandatory face coverings, and social distancing.

In their statement, AHS said they have “attempted to work collaboratively with GLC to address the ongoing public health concerns at the site,” but that the church “has decided not to follow these mandatory restrictions, nor have they attempted to work with AHS to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission.” Those actions led to authorities taking drastic measures to ensure at least the GLC building would not as a facility to spread the virus.

Kenney shared his fears of Alberta becoming the home to a dominant COVID-19 strain within the next week.

Eza Levant from Canada’s Rebel News posted a video on Twitter and said, “I count thirteen vehicles as part of this police raid on a church. They’re erecting steel fences around it like China does when they uncover an illegal ‘house church.’ Except this is in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The same church whose pastor was thrown in prison for 35 days.”

Pastor James Coates’ wife Erin posted on her Instagram page a photo of the fence around GLC’s building saying, “They are putting up a private screen on the inside fence. I’ve heard there is a tactical and de-escalation team behind the building because AHS thinks this will cause anger and uproar with our people. Oh @albertahealthservices have you not learned who we are by now? Our pastor walked himself to the RCMP headquarters and turned himself in. We have openly and privately prayed for you and our government. We’ve honoured and respected the RCMP every step of the way. Why create a narrative to make us look evil? Anyone who shows up on our property taking their moment of fame with MSM and is not inline with how our elders conduct themselves is not a representative of GLC.”

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