It’s Thursday, January 11th, A.D. 2024. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com)

By Jonathan Clark

Vietnam imprisoned or put on home detention 258 people

International Christian Concern reports that Vietnamese Christians feature prominently in a recent report from Defend the Defenders.

The report found that Vietnam has imprisoned or put on home detention 258 prisoners of conscience. Each of them faced harassment, arrest, and imprisonment for exercising free speech and religion. The targets for persecution include religious leaders. 

One example is Mr. Trần Văn Bang. The Christian leader is serving four years in prison. He has opposed communism in Vietnam and openly shared his faith in Christ.

Vietnam is ranked 25th on the Open Doors’ World Watch List of nations where it is most difficult to be a Christian.

Jesus said in Matthew 10:32, “Whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in Heaven.”

Christians are leaving India for United Kingdom

The Guardian reports that churches in the United Kingdom are getting a boost from Christians migrating from India. 

Over the last decade, Christian identification has fallen from nearly 60% of the U.K. population to under 50%. Meanwhile, the number of Indian Christians in the country has surged from 135,000 to over 225,000. 

Local pastors report Indian families also have large numbers of children who tend to show more interest in religion than British young people.

Biden rolls back conscience protections

Yesterday, the Biden administration continued to role back conscience protections for Americans.

Under the Obama administration, the Department of Health and Human Services issued a mandate forcing employers to pay for abortifacients in their health insurance plans. However, religious organizations were able to get exemptions after challenging the mandate in court. And the Trump administration expanded these exemptions to businesses. 

The latest rule from Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra claims to balance respect for religious beliefs and a so-called “right” to contraception. 

Tom McClusky with CatholicVote commented, “Is this a win for religious freedom? I’d say it could have been much worse. The onslaught of public protest prevented HHS from sending us back to 2011. But the rule definitely leaves Americans at the mercy of Becerra’s whims – and whether he feels that the protections we do have are even worth enforcing.”

U.S. House approves $1.6 trillion spending deal

U.S. Congressional leaders agreed to a $1.6 trillion spending deal Sunday ahead of a potential government shutdown later this month.

The agreement includes nearly $900 billion in defense spending and over $700 billion in non-defense discretionary spending. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and Democrat Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer negotiated the deal.

The agreement accelerates $20 billion in cuts to funding for the Internal Revenue Service and rescinds $6 billion in unspent pandemic aid. 

However, conservatives with the House Freedom Caucus  criticized the deal for too much spending, calling it a “total failure.”

20% of office space is vacant

Moody’s Analytics reports 20% of office space in big U.S. cities was unleased at the end of last year.

It’s the highest number on record for commercial buildings.

Working from home has become more common since the COVID-19 pandemic. However, Moody’s also noted the 1970s and 1980s saw overbuilding in the commercial space.

Texas had the top three cities for office vacancy rates: Houston, Dallas, and Austin.

Scientists confirm destruction of Biblical city of Gath

And finally, scientists from several universities in Israel believe they have confirmed the destruction of a Biblical city as described in Second Kings.

Chapter 12:17 says, “Then Hazael king of Syria went up, and fought against Gath, and took it: and Hazael set his face to go up to Jerusalem.”

Researchers identified the city of Tell es-Safi as the Biblical city of Gath occupied by the Philistines. In fact, Goliath, the giant, was from Gath.  Previously, scientists believed bricks from a wall in the ancient city were kiln-fired before construction. But, thanks to the technology of thermal demagnetization, researchers discovered the bricks were most likely burned in a destructive event, aligning with the Biblical account. 

Professor Aren Maeir at Bar-Ilan University said, “Our findings are important for determining the intensity of the fire and the scope of destruction in Gath — the largest and most powerful city in the land at the time — and also for understanding construction practices in the region.”

Close

And that’s The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Thursday, January 11th in the year of our Lord 2024. 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.