It’s Wednesday, April 27th, 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
Religious Freedom Commission: Afghanistan is a problem
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom released their 2022 Annual Report this week.
The report recommends the U.S. State Department list 15 nations as Countries of Particular Concern for religious liberty violations. Several of the countries are already on the list including Myanmar, China, Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, and Russia.
For the first time in two decades, the Commission is recommending that Afghanistan be designated a Country of Particular Concern. Christians in the Central Asian nation have faced severe persecution since the Taliban took over last year. The report also recommends that Nigeria and India be put on the list.
1 Corinthians 1:26 says, “And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.”
Russia destroyed Ukrainian Christian training center
Mission Eurasia reports that Russia destroyed their training center in Ukraine last month.
The non-profit trains church leaders throughout the former Soviet Union and has been helping Ukrainian refugees since Russia invaded the country.
The ministry wrote on Facebook, “After our building was destroyed in tank crossfire, Russian troops threw any remaining stockpiles of Bibles and Christian books from our warehouse at the back of the building on the ground and burned them.”
Mission Eurasia President Sergey Rakhuba told The Christian Post they are reprinting hundreds of copies of Scripture and continuing to provide food and medical aid to refugees.
Isaiah 40:8 reminds us, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.”
Russia cuts gas to Poland and Bulgaria
Gazprom, a Russian energy company, cut off natural gas to Poland and Bulgaria yesterday.
Russia demanded “unfriendly countries” pay for gas in Rubles, but Poland and Bulgaria refused.
Germany and Poland sending tanks to Ukraine
Meanwhile, Germany and Poland announced this week that they will send tanks to Ukraine.
And Israel promised to send helmets and bullet proof vests for Ukrainian medical teams in a reverse of their previous policy.
South Carolina and Arizona: Churches are essential
More U.S. states are implementing bills that say the church is essential in response to discriminatory COVID-19 restrictions.
On Monday, South Carolina Republican Governor Henry McMaster signed a bill that allows churches to remain open during a state of emergency on equal or better terms as other organizations and businesses.
Also this week, Arizona Republican Governor Doug Ducey signed a similar bill into law.
Fifth Circuit Court dismisses lawsuit against Texas Heartbeat law
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed yet another lawsuit from abortionists against the Texas Heartbeat Act.
The anti-abortion law went into effect last September. A report from the Texas health department found the law is preventing as many as 90 abortions every day.
Kim Schwartz of Texas Right to Life told Life News, “The Fifth Circuit’s instruction to dismiss the challenge to the Texas Heartbeat Act’s enforcement mechanism confirms what Texas Right to Life has known since the beginning: the abortion industry’s legal attacks are meritless.”
Leftist Presbyterian Church (USA) lost 50,000 more members
The largest Presbyterian denomination in the U.S. released their annual statistics this week.
The Presbyterian Church (USA) reports it lost over 50,000 members as well as over 100 congregations and four regional bodies known as presbyteries.
The PCUSA has been shrinking for at least a decade. At the same time, the mainline denomination has been dropping biblical stances on marriage and sexuality.
Gov. DeSantis penalized Disney for promoting perversion to children
And finally, Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill last week to revoke the private government status of Disney’s properties in Florida.
The entertainment company will likely face new tax implications.
DeSantis signed the law after Disney opposed a bill that stopped the promotion of sexually perverted lifestyles to kindergarteners to third graders in public school.
Evangelist Franklin Graham praised DeSantis and called out Disney in a Facebook post. He said, “The morals of the corporate leadership of Disney today are in the gutter, and they want to redefine family counter to God’s original design and flaunt sin. . . . Thank God for Governor Ron DeSantis who is willing to take a bold stand.”
Christians plan to boycott Disney’s new Toy Story movie called Lightyear.
Proverbs 20:26 says, “A wise king sifts out the wicked, and brings the threshing wheel over them.”
Close
And that’s The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Wednesday, April 27th, 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.