It’s Thursday, September 22nd, A.D. 2022. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com)
By Jonathan Clark
March for the Martyrs in Washington, D.C. this Saturday
People across the U.S. will gather for the third annual March for the Martyrs in Washington, D.C. on Saturday.
The march through the streets of Washington will conclude with a Night of Prayer for the Persecuted.
An estimated 360 million Christians live in places where they experience high levels of persecution.
Gia Chacon, the founder of For the Martyrs, told The Christian Post the consistent need expressed by persecuted Christians around the world is this: “they will almost always say please continue to pray for us.”
1 Corinthians 12:26 says, “If one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.”
Putin ordered 300,000 Russian reservists to battle
Yesterday, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a mobilization of up to 300,000 reservists for the country’s war in Ukraine. It’s Russia’s first such call-up of reservists since World War II.
The mobilization follows military setbacks in Ukraine. Russian officials arrested hundreds of people across dozens of its cities who protested the military call-up.
Putin threatened West with nukes
In addition, Putin vowed to use “all means” to defend the regions, reports The Daily Mail.
Listen.
PUTIN: (in Russian) “If the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, we will use all available means to protect Russia and our people – this is not a bluff.”
He went on to say, “I shall stress – by all means available to us. Those trying to blackmail us with nuclear weapons should know that the tables can turn on them.”
March for Life in Poland, Switzerland, and Pennsylvania
Thousands of people marched for life over the last week in Europe and the U.S.
In Poland, 10,000 people joined the 17th annual National March for Life and Family in Warsaw on Sunday. Polish President Andrzej Duda made a video appearance, praising the pro-family ideals of the march.
In Switzerland, 1,000 people joined the Swiss March For Life in Zurich last Saturday. Police protected the demonstrators from far-left extremists who have attacked the march in previous years.
And, here in the U.S., 5,000 people joined the Pennsylvania March for Life on Monday. It’s the first statewide march for life since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade on June 24th.
California and New York most hostile to religious liberty
First Liberty Institute recently released their 2022 Religious Liberty in the States report.
The report ranks states based on 11 religious liberty safeguards in state law. The safeguards cover issues like immunization, abortion, marriage, and general conscience protections.
The top two states, which did the best job of protecting religious liberty, were Mississippi followed by Illinois, surprisingly. Ranked at the bottom were California and New York.
Most states ranked below 50% in terms of meeting the 11 legal safeguards.
Today’s Congressmen are old
Business Insider reports America’s government is getting older much faster than it ever has before.
The median age of Congress in the early 1800s was 44. Now, it’s over 60. And the percentage of Congress over the age of 70 has skyrocketed since the 1990s from under 10% to over 20% now.
Meanwhile, the age of the federal judiciary has also aged significantly since the 1800s. However, Donald Trump’s appointments during his presidency did lower the median age of the federal judiciary by two years.
Fed Reserve raised interest rates again
The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point yesterday.
The Fed hopes to slow record inflation in a move that could also slow U.S. economic growth. The benchmark rates now sits at 3% to 3.25% and will likely increase to 4.4% by the end of the year.
Christian school enrollment up
A new report by DickersonBakker found Christian school enrollment has increased since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
About 80% of Christian school leaders say their enrollment has increased in the last two years with 43% saying it has increased substantially.
The report found the top challenge Christian school leaders face is having enough classroom and facility space.
Why Giving is Good
And finally, the Barna Group released data from their new report entitled Why Giving is Good.
Practicing Christians (at 65%) were much more likely than the general U.S. adult population (at 46%) to say they have been the recipient of someone else’s extraordinary generosity.
The report also found givers (at 54%) were more likely than non-givers (at 36%) to say they have received generosity in the past.
Proverbs 11:24-25 says, “There is one who scatters, yet increases more; and there is one who withholds more than is right, but it leads to poverty. The generous soul will be made rich, and he who waters will also be watered himself.”
Close
And that’s The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Thursday, September 22nd, in the year of our Lord 2022. Subscribe by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I’m Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.