It’s Friday, December 8th, A.D. 2023. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com)
By Adam McManus
Chinese pastor still in jail
Brother Chang Hao, pastor of a small rural Chinese church in Yunnan, has been ordered by the court to remain in jail since his November 2023 arrest and prepare for his case to go to trial, reports Bitter Winter, a religious liberty magazine. Despite his poor health and the fact that his wife and mother, who are also seriously ill, remain without support, the Communist Party still perceives him to be a threat.
Brother Hao and his family believe he was charged because he led an unauthorized house church and distributed medical masks with Biblical verses during the COVID-19 pandemic. In April 2023, police raided Brother Hao’s church and seized Bibles, Christian books, and the masks that had Bible verses on them.
2 Timothy 3:12 says, “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”
Highlights of fourth GOP presidential debate
Four Republican presidential candidates traded barbs on Wednesday night during a fiery GOP debate as they looked to position themselves as the best alternative to former President Donald Trump in the primary, reports The Hill.com.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie participated in the fourth primary debate in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, which was hosted by NewsNation.
Ramaswamy took a direct shot at Nikki Haley.
RAMASWAMY: “Nikki, you were bankrupt when you left the U.N. After you left the U.N., you became a military contractor. You actually started joining service on the board of Boeing, whose back you scratched for a very long time, and then gave foreign multinational speeches like Hillary Clinton is, and now you’re a multimillionaire. That math does not add up. It adds up to the fact that you are corrupt.”
Chris Christie predicted that Donald Trump will be imminently convicted of a felony.
CHRISTIE: “You’ll all be heading to the polls to vote. And that’s something that Donald Trump will not be able to do. Because he will be convicted of felonies before then and his right to vote will be taken away. You know, you can boo about it all you like and continue deny reality. But if we deny reality as a party, we’re going to have four more years of Joe Biden.”
Nikki Haley addressed America’s relationship with China.
HALEY: “Look at where fentanyl came from. Let’s go to the heart of the matter. It came from China. That’s why we need to end all normal trade relations with China until they stop murdering Americans with fentanyl. But this is where Trump went wrong.
“Trump was good on trade, but that’s all he was with China. Because here he allowed fentanyl to continue to come over, he would give them technology that would build up their military and hurt us. He allowed the Chinese infiltration, for them to buy up farmland, to put money in our universities, and to continue to do things that were harmful for America.”
And Ron DeSantis was asked about Trump’s fitness to serve as president.
REPORTER: “You seem to be saying Donald Trump is no longer mentally fit to be president. Is that what you think?”
DeSANTIS: “Father Time is undefeated. The idea that we’re going to put someone up there that’s almost 80 and there’s going to be no effects from that. We all know that that’s not true. We also need a president that can serve two terms.”
You can watch the whole fourth debate through a special link in our newscast today at www.TheWorldview.com.
Gunman killed three at University of Nevada, Las Vegas
A gunman opened fire on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, on Wednesday before 12 noon, killing three people and wounding a fourth before being shot dead by police, reports NBC News.
Assistant UNLV professor Roberto Lovato explained what he heard.
LOVATO: “We heard the clips of semi-automatic weapons just going for what felt like about 30 seconds. It was a very disturbing thing to hear.”
The gunman began shooting on the fourth floor of Beam Hall, the building that contains the university’s business school. The suspect continued to multiple floors, before police killed him outside the building.
The dead shooter has been identified as Anthony Polito, a 67-year-old career college professor who may have applied for a job at the university but had not been hired, reports CNN.
Las Vegas Police Sheriff Kevin McMahill said, “If it hadn’t been for the heroic actions of one of those police officers who responded, there could have been countless additional lives taken.”
43 state capitols to display Nativity scene
And finally, two non-profits are working together to help private citizen groups set up another record number of Nativity scenes on the grounds of state capitols this Advent season, reports The Christian Post.
Forty-three state capitols are slated to display Nativity scenes this Christmas, according to a press release from the non-profit Thomas More Society, which noted they are assisting the American Nativity Scene committee in the endeavor.
This year’s number matches last year’s record-high tally of state capitol grounds that were adorned with Nativity scenes.
The Chicago-based law firm, Thomas More Society, which has fought many high-profile religious freedom cases, noted that their attorneys have been working pro bono to ensure that anyone who wants to sponsor a Nativity scene at their state capitol is permitted to do so under the First and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
Don’t forget about your ability to set up your own Nativity scene in your front yard to glorify Christ, instead of Santa, in your neighborhood. In fact, I would love to hear about your front yard Nativity display at and any additional verbiage you might include. Please email me at Adam@TheWorldview.com, including your whole name, city, and state.
Matthew 1:18-23 says, “This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph, her husband, was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
“But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.’
“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son, and they will call Him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’).”
Close
And that’s The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Friday, December 8th in the year of our Lord 2023. 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.