It’s Tuesday, February 7th, 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
Western countries guilty of violating religious liberty 168 times
The Family Research Council reports that Christians in Western countries faced 168 incidents of religious freedom violations between 2020 and 2023.
Examples of persecution include arrests and fines for public preaching and praying, punishments for publicly expressing Biblical beliefs, and fines or imprisonment for pastors that did not comply with COVID-19 restrictions.
Tony Perkins with the Family Research Council said, “It is shocking to see Western countries — the same ones we think of as free and open societies — take authoritarian measures against Christians simply trying to live out their faith. Hostility toward Bible-believing Christians is clearly and steadily rising in the West.”
Pro-lifer Nayib Bukele expected to win in El Salvador
Nayib Bukele is expecting a landslide victory in his re-election bid for President of El Salvador.
Preliminary results from Sunday’s election show Bukele winning with 83% of the vote. His nearest rival got 7% of the vote.
He faces criticism for his consecutive second term, which is banned in the country’s constitution. However, favorable judges, voted in under his administration, approved the second term.
Bukele is known for cracking down on gang members in El Salvador, dropping the homicide rate, and making the cryptocurrency Bitcoin legal tender. He also opposes the murder of unborn babies and faux homosexual marriage.
Biden selectively punishes church vandalism
The U.S. Department of Justice announced sentencing last week for a man who attempted to burn down the building of Community Church of Chesterland, Ohio.
The arsonist was angered by the church’s plans to host two drag events.
It’s a rare case of the Biden administration prosecuting vandalism of religious buildings.
Most other cases involve attacks on the buildings of pro-life churches and organizations. There have been nearly 400 cases since the leak of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022.
Tom McClusky with CatholicVote said, “The response from the Biden administration has been the equivalent of a shrug and a yawn.”
Ecclesiastes 8:11 says, “Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil.”
Murders decreased by 12% in America
Vox reports that violent crime and homicide dropped significantly last year from a recent peak in 2020.
Murders decreased by 12% in cities in 2023, according to the FBI.
Some major cities were exceptions with none greater than Washington, D.C. The nation’s capital had its deadliest year in over two decades in 2023. Violent crime rose by 40%. D.C. also saw its greatest shortage of police in five decades.
However, Jeff Asher, a crime data analyst, noted that 2023 overall saw “one of the lowest rates of violent crime in the United States in more than 50 years.”
Country musician Toby Keith died of cancer
Country musician Toby Keith Covel died on February 5th at the age of 62 after losing his battle with stomach cancer, reports NBC News. The entertainer revealed his diagnosis in a June 2022 Instagram post, noting he “spent the last 6 months receiving chemo, radiation and surgery.”
He became known for his 2011 hit song, “Red Solo Cup,” which advocated drunkenness and debauchery.
KEITH: “Red Solo cup, I fill you up/Let’s have a party, let’s have a party/I love you, red Solo cup/Proceed to party, proceed to party”
In the video, Focus on the Family notes that Keith wanders around a house party in which everyone’s drinking from red Solo cups. Virtually every woman in the video, it seems, is wearing a bikini or short shorts. By song’s end, Keith has not only enumerated the joys of drinking from said cups, but also how women holding them are easier to hit on.”
Proverbs 20:1 says, “Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler, and whoever is led astray by it is not wise.”
Toby Keith charted 61 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, including 20 number one hits and 22 additional top 10 hits like “As Good As I Once Was” in 2011 and “Should’ve Been A Cowboy” in 1993. All told, he released 19 studio albums, 2 Christmas albums, and 5 compilation albums, totaling worldwide sales of over 40 million albums.
On March 24, 2001, Keith’s father, H.K. Covel, was killed in a car accident. That event and the September 11 attacks in 2001 prompted Keith to write the song “Courtesy of the Red, White, & Blue,” a song about his father’s patriotism and faith in the United States, originally intended only for live shows.
KEITH: “My daddy served in the Army
Where he lost his right eye but he flew a flag out in our yard
Until the day that he died
He wanted my mother, my brother, my sister and me
To grow up and live happy
In the land of the free
“Now this nation that I love has fallen under attack
A mighty sucker punch came flyin’ in from somewhere in the back
Soon as we could see clearly
Through our big black eye
Man, we lit up your world
Like the fourth of July
“Hey Uncle Sam, put your name at the top of his list
And the Statue of Liberty started shakin’ her fist
And the eagle will fly …
It’ll feels like the whole wide world is raining down on you
Brought to you courtesy of the red, white, and blue.”
Toby Keith performed at President Donald Trump’s inauguration.
Plants can talk with each other
And finally, scientists believe that plants can actually communicate with each other.
Scientists have caught this phenomenon of God’s creation on camera for the first time.
Business Insider reports, “When healthy plants received warning messages from damaged plants, they lit up like a light bulb, which the scientists recorded using a special microscope that detects certain chemicals as light. … It’s like how your nose can detect invisible scents in the air, which your brain reads as information about the environment. … Plants, it turns out, are doing the same thing, sending mists of particles into the air to warn their neighbors of trouble.”
Speaking of God’s creation, Revelation 4:11 says, “Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and by Your will they existed and were created.”
Close
And that’s The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Tuesday, February 7th 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.