It’s Tuesday, March 16th, A.D. 2021. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com)
By Kevin Swanson
Jailed Canadian pastor was quarantined for 2 weeks
That pastor at GraceLife Church in Edmonton, Alberta Canada who was imprisoned for holding in-person church services against COVID lockdown orders was quarantined for two weeks, with only two 15-minute breaks, reports The Edmonton Journal.
That’s according to Pastor James Coates’ wife, Erin, in comments made to Faith Wire. He was moved into the general population last Thursday. But sadly, Erin still has not visited her husband since his arrest exactly a month ago, today.
The judge in the case has ruled that the defendant’s “beliefs and convictions do not overcome. . . valid and enforceable laws.” The judge also noted that “Pastor Coates maintained a strong and literal interpretation of holy scriptures.”
126 people killed in Myanmar during protests
The official number of total fatalities in the Myanmar uprising, following the election, now stands at 126, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.
That includes another 50 fatalities over the weekend in stepped-up violence at the hands of the military junta. Live ammunition was used to disperse protesters in 14 cities or loyalties around the country.
Chinese Communists jailed every Hong Kong democracy activist
In another Asian story, Hong Kong Watch reports that “every prominent Hong Kong pro-democracy activist is now in jail, exile, or on trial awaiting sentencing.”
As of March 5th, the Chinese Communist government has given the committee, which selects Hong Kong’s Chief Executive, the power to nominate all candidates to the Legislative Council and directly elect some members to the legislature.
Lord Patten of Barnes, the last British governor of Hong Kong, said, “China’s communist parliament has taken the biggest step so far to obliterate Hong Kong’s freedoms and aspirations for greater democracy under the rule of law. Breaking all its promises, not least those made by Deng Xiaoping, the Chinese Communist Party has ordained that in order to be a Chinese patriot you must swear allegiance to the Communist Party. This completely destroys the pledge of one-country, two-systems. The Chinese Communist Party has shown the world once again that it cannot be trusted. It is a continuing and brutal danger to all who believe in free and open societies.”
Proverbs 29:2 says, “When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan.”
Most of 270 Nigerian girls kidnapped were Christian
Of the 270 Nigerian girls kidnapped by Boko Haram, the Muslim terrorist group, most were Christians, reports BBC News.
“They sang hymns in front of their guards, quietly at first, then more boldly. They wrote down their favorite Bible verses and prayers in their diaries.” More than 100 of the girls have yet to return home.
Vatican says no to homosexual unions
The Vatican has issued a two-page document approved by the titular head, Pope Francis, indicating that the Catholic Church will NOT approve homosexual unions, reports LifeSiteNews.com.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that “basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity, tradition has always declared that ‘homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered’. They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.”
Handgun sales up 60%
Fox Business reports that U.S. imports of handguns and long guns are up 60% in 2020, year over year.
Altogether 23 million guns traded hands in 2020. That’s up from an average of 10 million a year in the 2000s and 14 million a year in the 2010s.
Gas prices up 28%, food commodities up 50%, lumber up 180%
Following trillions of dollars of quantitative easing and debt spending, inflation is kicking in now in the U.S.
Gas prices are up 28% over the average price of $2.17 a gallon last year. Rabobank reports prices for agricultural commodities like wheat, corn, soy, and sugar are up 50 percent since the middle of 2020. And WoodworkingNetwork.com reports that lumber prices have increased more than 180% since last spring. Of course, the skyrocketing lumber price has a domino effect on real estate prices.
The bottom line is this. Prices are up and the median household income is down roughly 4% over last year. That’s $66,039, down from $68,703.
Depressing Billie Eilish wins Album of the Year
And finally, pop star Billie Eilish, a young singer known for her lyrics on hopelessness, suicide, jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge, self-mutilation, Lucifer, and cannibalism, received the coveted album of the year award at the 2021 Grammys over the weekend.
However, dramatically fewer people are paying much attention to the pop culture awards ceremonies anymore. The Golden Globe Awards, which aired on NBC last month, saw a 60% ratings drop from the previous year. And the Grammys saw another 9% drop this year to only 17.1 million viewers. Whereas 13% of Americans tuned into the Grammys in 1980 — now it’s only 5%.
To a hopeless world, Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.” (John 11:25)
Close
And that’s The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Tuesday, March 16th, in the year of our Lord 2021. 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.