It’s Thursday, October 12th, A.D. 2023. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com)
By Jonathan Clark
Five Jews arrested last week for harassing Christians
Last week, police in Israel arrested five people for harassing Christians in Jerusalem’s Old City.
The individuals face charges of assault for spitting at Christians and their religious sites.
Police denounced the assaults, but Itamar Ben Gvir, Israel’s Minister of National Security, said spitting on Christians is not a criminal case and has defended it before.
Attacks on Christians in Israel used to be sporadic. However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made alliances with ultra-Orthodox political parties last December. Since then, Christians in Israel have faced cases of harassment almost every week.
Israel formed emergency government
Speaking of Israel, the country formed an emergency government yesterday after Hamas carried out a massive surprise attack from Gaza over the weekend.
The conflict has left about 2,000 people dead, thousands more injured, and over a quarter million people displaced.
At least 22 U.S. citizens have died in Israel, while other Americans are among the hostages taken by Hamas.
Church of England eager to bless sexual perversion
On Monday, the Church of England’s House of Bishops agreed, in principle, that prayers asking for God’s blessing for homosexual couples should be commended for use.
The House also agreed to move forward with authorizing special services for blessing people living sexually perverted lifestyles.
Pastor Canon John Dunnett leads the Church of England Evangelical Council. He said the latest decision is “deeply concerning. The House of Bishops seems intent on pushing full steam ahead toward something that is contrary to both Scripture and the historic and apostolic teaching of the Church of England.”
Isaiah 8:20 says, “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.”
First publicly funded religious charter school in America
In the United States, an Oklahoma state board approved a religious charter school on Monday.
St. Isidore of Seville Virtual Charter School is set to become the first publicly-funded religious charter school in the nation.
The approval comes despite opposition from Oklahoma’s attorney general as well as a lawsuit from organizations like Americans United for the Separation of Church and State.
Oklahoma’s Department of Education has filed to dismiss the lawsuit. Ryan Walters heads the department and has said that denying the charter school’s application would be religious discrimination.
Abortions dropped by 31% in North Carolina
New data from the Guttmacher Institute found abortions dropped 31% in North Carolina after the state implemented a 12-week abortion ban in July.
Guttmacher noted that North Carolina had the largest decline in facility-based abortions provided in one month compared to any other state.
Previous analysis has found abortions often increase in surrounding states when such a ban is implemented. However, as abortions dropped in North Carolina, there was not a corresponding increase in abortions in South Carolina, Virginia, the District of Columbia, or Maryland.
Steve Scalise almost the new House Speaker
Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives voted yesterday to select Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana as the next Speaker of the House.
This comes after the House voted to remove Republican Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California from the position.
Yesterday’s final vote came out 113 for Scalise and 99 for Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio. Scalise must now win a floor vote where Jordan said he will support him. Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, who led the removal of McCarthy, said he will support Scalise. However, Scalise still lacks the 217 votes necessary to win in what could be a protracted floor battle.
Council of Chalcedon reaffirmed divine and human natures of Christ in A.D. 451
And finally, this week is the anniversary of the second ecumenical council of the early church, known as the Council of Chalcedon.
Over five hundred church leaders attended the council in what is modern-day Turkey. The council officially opened on October 8, 451 A.D., but began in earnest on October 12.
The early church held its first ecumenical council, the Council of Nicaea, over 100 years earlier to settle disputes over the nature of Christ. Later at the council of Chalcedon, pastors reaffirmed the divine and human natures of Christ.
The Creed of Chalcedon opens with these words, “We, then, following the holy fathers, all with one consent, teach men to confess one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the same perfect in Godhead and also perfect in manhood; truly God and truly man.”
John 1:1, 14 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. . . . And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
Close
And that’s The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Thursday, October 12th 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.