<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/joseph-kennedy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Joe Kennedy</a>, the high school football coach in Washington state who won a landmark <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/supreme-court" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Supreme Court</a> case after losing his job for praying on the field with students, announced on Wednesday that he was stepping away from football to advocate for religious liberty.
Kennedy was placed on administrative leave from Bremerton High School in 2015 after complaints about his on-field prayers, then eventually lost his job. He was later <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/coach-fired-for-praying-at-football-game-reinstated-to-old-role-gets-nearly-2-million-settlement" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reinstated</a> to his position after the Supreme Court <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-supreme-court-affirms-religious-liberty-rules-in-favor-of-public-high-school-football-coach-punished-for-praying-after-games" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ruled this summer</a> that his First Amendment rights had been violated. 
On Wednesday, Kennedy <a href="https://coachjoekennedy.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Kennedy-Resigns-from-Bremerton-High-School-RELEASE.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> he was resigning from his position at Bremerton to care for a sick family member and be a religious liberty advocate. 
“I believe I can best continue to advocate for constitutional freedom and religious liberty by working from outside the school system so that is what I will do,&#8221; Kennedy said in a statement. &#8220;I will continue to work to help people understand and embrace the historic ruling at the heart of our case. As a result of our case, we all have more freedom, not less. That should be celebrated and not disrespected.”  
“As I have demonstrated, we must make a stand for what we believe in,&#8221; he added. &#8220;In my case, I made a stand to take a knee. I encourage all Americans to make their own stand for freedom and our right to express our faith as we see fit. I appreciate the people of Bremerton, the coaches, staff and especially the students and wish them all well. Bremerton will always be home.” 
Kennedy only coached in one game back at Bremerton before announcing his resignation. Bremerton <a href="https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/following-years-of-legal-battles-praying-football-coach-joe-kennedy-resigns-after-1-game#:~:text=BREMERTON%2C%20Wash.&amp;text=Joe%20Kennedy%20strode%20alone%20to,School%2027%2D12%20Friday%20night." target="_blank" rel="noopener">defeated</a> Mount Douglas Secondary School 27-12, after which Kennedy prayed by himself in the middle of the field. According to the Seattle Times, he plans on moving to Florida, where he lived as his legal saga played out.
“The district has received Mr. Kennedy’s resignation and it is pending board approval at tomorrow’s regularly scheduled meeting,” Bremerton spokesperson Karen Bevers <a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/praying-bremerton-football-coach-joe-kennedy-quits-after-one-game/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> the Times. 
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In June, the Supreme Court ruled that Kennedy had been discriminated against because of his faith. 
“Here, a government entity sought to punish an individual for engaging in a brief, quiet, personal religious observance doubly protected by the Free Exercise and Free Speech Clauses of the First Amendment. And the only meaningful justification the government offered for its reprisal rested on a mistaken view that it had a duty to ferret out and suppress,” Justice Neil Gorsuch <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/high-school-football-coach-scores-big-win-supreme-court-post-game-prayer" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a>. “Religious observances even as it allows comparable secular speech. The Constitution neither mandates nor tolerates that kind of discrimination.”
Kennedy, a former Marine, is working on a book and film project about his experience.

Christians Gather At Supreme Court To Pray As Bremerton Case Is Heard

Coach Who Won Landmark SCOTUS Prayer Ruling Steps Away From Football To Advocate For Religious Liberty

Football

Joseph Kennedy

Religion

Religious Liberty

SCOTUS

U.S.

Washington

Sometimes I wonder whether social media is making our society worse or if it is just amplifying our existing problems. We see actors, actresses, musicians, and celebrities go from wearing odd outfits to acting in extremes as they show more skin and less clothes. Then the extremes become even more extreme. It’s as if they believe once they’ve embarked on these extreme paths, they’re somehow locked into them. 
You don’t need to be religious to understand the point Venerable Fulton Sheen (1895-1979) <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuCw8UT5y6c" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made about this very topic</a> years ago because his teaching applies across a cultural context today as well. He essentially said that before you sin the first time, God prompts you to refrain. Meanwhile, Satan takes the exact opposite approach. Venerable Sheen says: 
<blockquote>But how does Satan say or talk when we are about to sin? Oh, don’t be silly. We don&#8217;t believe those things anymore. Times have changed. Are you still a virgin? You mean you&#8217;ve never had a smoke of marijuana? Listen, everybody&#8217;s doing it. Don&#8217;t pay attention to those doctors who tell you that it will hurt your brain cells. You&#8217;ve got to live! You have to be yourself. You haven&#8217;t committed adultery? Everybody&#8217;s doing it now. These views of strict morality were all right 100 years ago or 500 years ago, but this is a new world. I’ve got to be me. I’ve got to be free. That&#8217;s the way the devil talks. He&#8217;s on our side. Before we sin, Christ seems to be the accuser. Before we sin, the devil is our defender.</blockquote>
His words are timeless. Satan says, “You’ve got to live!” so that you will say, “I’ve got to be free!” This is the same message we hear today — that life should be about freedom and being the real you. This turns into people embracing and committing sins. But then what happens?
After we sin, the roles reverse. Venerable Sheen explains that God is on our side and tells us that though we have sinned, we can become better. We can change ourselves. God wants us to know we are allowed to transform. Opposite that, the devil becomes the ultimate accuser saying, “You’ve already done the bad thing. What’s the problem? Just keep at it because there’s no redemption. You can’t come back from this.” But the idea that transformation is not possible leads to despair. Venerable Sheen specifically discusses Judas at this point, saying that because he was a traitor, Judas believed he could not transform — and committed suicide. We see this in our own society today when people become gripped by despair, falsely believing they cannot change or transform. People feel hopeless. It’s why suicide rates continue to rise. 
For people who believe provocative behavior is true freedom, they also hear a devilish voice urging them on, telling them there’s nothing left for them anyway. The same thing happens on social media when a 16-year-old sends a tweet that is dug up 10 years later, which is followed by crowds claiming they aren’t fit to be accepted. The message is: You cannot be transformed. Even if they wanted to go to church on Sunday, have faith, and not be the person they once were, they become trapped, thinking they will be accused of being a fraud, of not being serious. 
Sometimes, when you try to change and do better, people will accuse you of being fake. This has even happened to me. I used to be more liberal, even though I was never a Democrat. I just thought feminism was cool, and liberalism sounded fun when I was young. To this day, people still say I am a grifter — that I only became a Republican because there were more opportunities and money with it. People think I can’t change the ideas I had from the time I was 17-years-old to now. That is the society we live in. They tell you that you are stuck permanently as the same individual. 
But you are not stuck. You can wake up, and you can change your mind. You can have sinned yesterday, and you can decide to be a better person today. You may have been a horrible individual, a drug addict, an internet troll, or devoted sinner for ten years straight — but you are allowed to change. You are not stuck with evil and stuck in wickedness. 
The world has become so unforgiving. But don’t believe in false permanence. Be better because you’re allowed to be.

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You’re Not Stuck. You’re Allowed To Be Better.

Candace Owens

Catholicism

Celebrities

Readers Pass

The following is a transcript excerpt from Dr. Jordan B. Peterson’s conversation with Clay Routledge on the role religion plays in society. You can <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/the-jordan-b-peterson-podcast/s4-e54-death-meaning-and-the-power-of-the-invisible-world-clay-routledge-the-jbp-podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">listen to</a> or <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/s4-e54-death-meaning-and-the-power-of-the-invisible-world-clay-routledge-the-jbp-podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">watch</a> the full podcast on DailyWire+.
Start time: 1:24:10
Jordan B. Peterson: More academically oriented thinkers have proposed critiques of religion that reduce it to a single dimension, and then criticize it along that dimension. The atheist types like Richard Dawkins tend to think that belief in God is like belief in a stateable proposition: Is God real, like is a table real? And it is not obvious that that is the proper way to formulate that issue. You can make it absurd almost immediately by reducing it to that sort of representation, but there are a multitude of functions that religious traditions serve. Even people like [Ernest] Becker basically reduced it to a single dimension: It is a defense against death anxiety. Well, it may be that, but it certainly is not only that. It is a very complex issue. But people run into these critiques: Marx&#8217;s critique (religion is the opiate of the masses) or the Freudian critique (God is essentially an infantile projection of the father). Yes, sometimes in some cases and in some ways. But it depends to some degree. 
Maybe you can tell me what you think about this: It seems to me that the core of a culture is something that is essentially religious, by definition. If you look at what unites people across geography and time, there is some central conception of the world as spirit that brings people together implicitly and explicitly. And if you dispense with that, then what? You have demonstrated that you get people adopting rather odd beliefs. So that is a kind of heresy, essentially. There is an automatic tendency to produce heretical religions; that is the consequence. And maybe some of those are political, and they are fragmentary.
Clay Routledge: I agree. That is actually why I started looking at the individual difference level of analysis, not because I was particularly interested in thinking about spirituality or religion — or any of these things as an individual difference. People did this when they talked about the need to belong. You can pretty much get everyone to agree that humans are social and have a fundamental need to belong; that&#8217;s not controversial. So you can use that as an example. Researchers said if that&#8217;s true, then you would expect there to be natural variability. Everyone might have some basic need to belong, but there are going to be some people that are very, very oriented towards belongingness, whereas others aren&#8217;t going to be so much. That individual difference isn&#8217;t a case against the basic need. It&#8217;s saying that the basic need manifests differently across the continuum. And so that&#8217;s pretty much my argument, I think, for religion and spirituality. What you just said, I think it&#8217;s true. If a society abandons religion, they don&#8217;t really become secular; they start investing in all sorts of other things — what we might call a substitution hypothesis — to fill that space of the multiple roles that religion was playing in their society. An important question, you know, which we talked about a little bit, is, just because people are turning to different things to fulfill that function, doesn&#8217;t mean they&#8217;re actually doing a good job of fulfilling it. Just because people are turning to politics as a substitute religion or UFOs or New Age beliefs, doesn&#8217;t mean those things are actually doing a good job of providing meaning.
Jordan B. Peterson: So let me ask you this then. We have kind of come together on a hypothesis that there is some need for union around a centralizing tendency. And that kind of throws us back to the beginning of the discussion because Becker would identify that need for the centralizing tendency as a manifestation of the denial of death. We have elaborated on that, criticized it, and broadened it. We have to unite in personality to some degree, so we are ruled by a body of laws. And it is interesting that it is a body of laws and the laws are what we act out. So as long as we are law abiding, that makes us a certain kind of personality — and I would say a more conscientious personality, probably a more agreeable, emotionally stable personality than we would otherwise be alone. Imagine that for us to live in a group, we have to partake in a central personality and deviate in our individual ways. But partaking of the central personality? Without that, we get fragmentation and inability to make peace, inability to understand each other, inability to cooperate. And that is something like the worship of a central spirit, at least as it is acted out.
To hear the rest of the conversation, continue by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/the-jordan-b-peterson-podcast/s4-e54-death-meaning-and-the-power-of-the-invisible-world-clay-routledge-the-jbp-podcast">listening</a> or <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/s4-e54-death-meaning-and-the-power-of-the-invisible-world-clay-routledge-the-jbp-podcast">watching</a> this episode on <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/watch">DailyWire+</a>.
<a href="https://www.jordanbpeterson.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dr. Jordan B. Peterson</a> is a clinical psychologist and professor emeritus at the University of Toronto. From 1993 to 1998 he served as assistant and then associate professor of psychology at Harvard. He is the international bestselling author of Maps of Meaning, 12 Rules For Life, and Beyond Order. You can now<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/the-jordan-b-peterson-podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> listen to</a> or<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/watch/jordan-peterson" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> watch</a> his popular lectures on DailyWire+.

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Substitutes For Religion Are Meaningless

Atheism

DailyWire+

Jordan Peterson

Richard Dawkins

A Christian community in Pakistan found itself under attack on Wednesday as a Muslim mob reportedly vandalized churches, torched homes, and burned Bibles after two Christians were accused of blasphemy. 
At least two churches were vandalized and one was burned in Jaranwala, a largely Christian area in the Faisalabad district in eastern Pakistan, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/pakistan-muslim-attack-churches-blasphemy-christian-faisalabad-bc671037bdd389af6b67e0292cc18582" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Associated Press. In addition to the mob – <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/aug/16/churches-attacked-faisalabad-pakistan-blasphemy-claim" target="_blank" rel="noopener">armed</a> with rocks and sticks – attacking places of worship, at least one home was demolished while several others were vandalized, though some reports say more churches were damaged. Many Christians were forced to flee their homes for safety. 
“We, Bishops, Priests and lay people are deeply pained and distressed at the Jaranwala incident in the Faisalabad District in Pakistan,” Bishop Azad Marshall, the moderator bishop of the Church of Pakistan, <a href="https://twitter.com/BishopAzadM/status/1691729068889354251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted to X</a> Wednesday. “A church building is being burnt as I type this message. Bibles have been desecrated and Christians have been tortured and harrased (sic) having been falsely accused of violating the Holy Quran.”
“We cry out for justice and action from law enforcement and those who dispense justice and the safety of all citizens to intervene immediately and assure us that our lives are valuable in our own homeland that has just celebrated independence and freedom,” Marshall added.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Words fail me as I write this. We, Bishops, Priests and lay people are deeply pained and distressed at the Jaranwala incident in the Faisalabad District in Pakistan. A church building is being burnt as I type this message. Bibles have been desecrated and Christians have been… <a href="https://t.co/xruE83NPXL">pic.twitter.com/xruE83NPXL</a>
&mdash; Bishop Azad Marshall (@BishopAzadM) <a href="https://twitter.com/BishopAzadM/status/1691729068889354251?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 16, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Two Christian members of the community were accused by the mob of blasphemy, alleging that they desecrated a Quran by tearing out pages and writing insulting things in others, according to the AP. Pakistan has notoriously harsh laws relating to blasphemy, and those convicted of it can be sentenced to death. 
The AP notes that even a simple accusation of blasphemy is enough for a mob to lynch and kill the accused, who are often Christians. According to <a href="https://www.opendoorsus.org/en-US/persecution/countries/pakistan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Open Doors</a>, a Christian organization committed to serving persecuted Christians worldwide, roughly 25% of blasphemy accusations are levied against Christians, who make up less than 2% of Pakistan’s population.   
Videos on social media have emerged showing the scenes in Pakistan, with the mob toppling crosses from the tops of churches, throwing furniture from windows, and burning fires in the streets. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Pakistan🚨 Alarming situation in Faisalabad. Christian community under attack over charges of Blasphemy.
Majority muslim mob has already burned 3 churches. Mob is heading to the 4th church in Faisalabad.
Several Christian homes, properties and churches have been burned down.… <a href="https://t.co/qjPjPFKaFf">pic.twitter.com/qjPjPFKaFf</a>
&mdash; Megh Updates 🚨™ (@MeghUpdates) <a href="https://twitter.com/MeghUpdates/status/1691744360906506433?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 16, 2023</a></blockquote>
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France24 news <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230816-mob-burns-pakistani-churches-vandalises-cemetery-over-alleged-blasphemy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that some videos showed mosque loudspeakers encouraging followers to demonstrate: &#8220;Christians have desecrated the Holy Koran. All the clerics, all the Muslims should unite and gather in front of the mosque. Better to die if you don&#8217;t care about Islam,&#8221; a Muslim cleric reportedly said.
&#8220;They broke the windows, doors and took out fridges, sofas, chairs and other household items to pile them up in front of the Church to be burnt. They also burnt and desecrated Bibles, they were ruthless,&#8221; one Christian who fled his home <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230816-mob-burns-pakistani-churches-vandalises-cemetery-over-alleged-blasphemy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> AFP.
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Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, the interim Prime Minister of Pakistan – which is 97% Muslim – posted to X that “Stern action would be taken against those who violate law and target minorities. All law enforcement has been asked to apprehend culprits &amp; bring them to justice.” However, as the AP notes, earlier video shows police officers failing to promptly intervene to stop the attacks. 
The crowd was eventually dispersed by police firing into the air and with assistance from Muslim clerics and Pakistani troops – and the promise to arrest the accused Christians. Police chief Rizwan Khan said that all people involved in the mob would be prosecuted. 
According to Open Doors, the police force in Pakistan “is more interested in appeasing local strongmen than implementing the law and protecting minorities.” The organization notes that Christians often sit in prison for years before the courts determine their fate. 
According to the <a href="https://twitter.com/MeghUpdates/status/1691744360906506433" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2023 Open Doors World Watch List</a>, of the top 50 countries that most severely and frequently persecute Christians, Pakistan ranks number 7, with the most frequent types of persecution being Islamic oppression, ethno-religious hostility, dictatorial paranoia, and organized crime.

TOPSHOT-PAKISTAN-RELIGION-CRIME-CHURCH

Muslim Mob Attacks Christian Churches And Homes In Pakistan Following Blasphemy Allegations

Muslim Mob Attacks Several Christian Churches And Homes In Pakistan Following Blasphemy Allegations

Christianity

Christians

Pakistan

World

Republican lawmakers slammed the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/in-global-freedom-of-speech-win-court-clears-finnish-official-of-hate-speech-for-sharing-faith-based-views-on-marriage-sexuality" target="_blank" rel="noopener">prosecution of a Finnish politician</a> who is facing punishment for expressing her <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/christianity" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Christian</a> views on marriage and sexuality, saying that the prosecution was indicative of an “open war on Christianity.”
The representatives sent a <a href="https://adfinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Signed_Finland_Letter_August_2023.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">letter</a> to Douglas Hickey, America’s ambassador to Finland, and Rashad Hussain, the ambassador for the U.S. Office of Religious Freedom, in defense of Parliamentarian Päivi Räsänen. Räsänen is <a href="https://adfinternational.org/paivi-us-legislator-support-letter/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">facing a trial</a> before a Finish appeals court after she was previously acquitted by a lower court of charges including “agitation against a minority group” related to her faith-based views on marriage and sexuality, including a 2019 tweet that called homosexuality a “sin.”
“Finnish Christians once again stand trial for simply being Christians. For more than four years, a rogue Finnish prosecutor has unjustly targeted Member of Finnish Parliament Päivi Räsänen and Bishop Juhana Pohjola for tweeting a Bible verse critical of her own church and publishing a twenty-year old booklet on marriage,” a letter from 16 House Republicans read.
Signers included Reps. Chip Roy (Texas), Michael Cloud (Texas), Mike Johnson (Louisiana), Andrew Clyde (Georgia), Jim Banks (Indiana), Jeff Duncan (South Carolina), Mary Miller (Illinois), Doug Lamborn (Colorado), Debbie Lesko (Arizona), Michael Guest (Mississippi), Andy Ogles (Tennessee), Ralph Norman (South Carolina), Anna Paulina Luna (Florida), Randy Weber (Texas), Keith Self (Texas) and Alex X. Mooney (West Virginia).
“This case will have worldwide ramifications. For years, we and many others have raised the alarm that the West was experiencing a hostile takeover by radical secularists — guided by open hostility and rancid antagonism toward Christianity — and that one-day people of faith would face trial for merely living out their beliefs,” the letter continued.
Räsänen&#8217;s legal defense is being supported by the Global Religious Freedom at Alliance Defending Freedom International. Her second trial will be before the Finnish Court of Appeal after she was unanimously acquitted by the District Court of Helsinki in March 2022.
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&#8220;The state is attempting to criminalize the peaceful expression of my Christian faith. By continuing its campaign to censor these beliefs, the prosecution is setting a dangerous precedent of intolerance. I hope for another acquittal at the Court of Appeal. The state of free speech in Finland hangs in the balance,” Räsänen said in a statement.
Multiple Republican senators, including Marco Rubio of Florida and Josh Hawley of Missouri, have previously expressed their support for Räsänen’s right to express her faith.

Paivi-reporters-2

Republican Lawmakers Slam Prosecution Of Finnish Politician Over Religious Beliefs

Finland

Hate Speech

House Republicans

Daily Wire Editor Emeritus <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/author/ben-shapiro" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ben Shapiro</a> discussed biblical justice and masculinity with Dr. Voddie Baucham, a Christian pastor and author, on the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-140-voddie-baucham" target="_blank" rel="noopener">latest episode</a> of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/show/sunday-special" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“The Sunday Special.”</a> 
Baucham, the dean of theology at African Christian University in Lusaka, Zambia, spoke with Shapiro on the biblical view of social justice and how woke ideology has taken over some Christian churches. 
“When you have weak and faulty worldviews and then seductive language, and then you have leaders with unclear voices, you end up in the mess we’re in,” Baucham told Shapiro, pointing out that many Christians did not use critical thinking when discussing terms such as “social justice.” 
As Baucham explained, Christians believe in God’s justice, which is “the righteous and equal application of God’s law, but not equal outcomes.” In 2021, Baucham wrote a book dealing with the subject called “Fault Lines: The Social Justice Movement and Evangelicalism&#8217;s Looming Catastrophe.”
Baucham was raised by a single Buddhist mother in South Central Los Angeles and had tendencies toward black nationalism before he converted to Christianity, which he said completely changed his worldview. He said he was converted after coming to realize that he was a sinner and needed redemption after a man came up to him and shared the gospel. 
Shapiro and Baucham also discussed the crisis of masculinity across the United States, with many young men seeming to struggle to find purpose. 
“We have to call men back to this understanding of manhood that is outside of themselves. And you being a man is not just about who you think you are or even who you want to be. It’s about you pointing back to the one who made you. It’s about you pointing back to the purpose for which [God] made you,” Baucham said. 
He added that the result of the war on marriage and traditional roles left women unprotected because it left men unchecked. 
Baucham explained that young men need mentors to help point them to the “God who made them, and to point them to Christ who wants to redeem that manhood. Christ who is the ultimate picture of manhood.” 
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After visiting Zambia for many years, Baucham moved there in 2015 to help form African Christian University, which focuses on training students with a Christian worldview and the humanities.
Shapiro asked Baucham about how he responded to people who object to belief in the Bible and God on an intellectual level. Baucham said he would challenge their presuppositions, saying they also needed faith to get where they were.
Their &#8220;presuppositions have been tried before and they’ve led to catastrophe. My [worldview] is based on presuppositions as well, but my presuppositions have led to Western civilization,” Baucham said.
Shapiro’s full conversation with Baucham can be <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-140-voddie-baucham" target="_blank" rel="noopener">watched</a> here.

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Voddie Baucham Discusses Biblical Justice, Masculinity On Latest ‘Sunday Special’

Ben Shapiro

Masculinity

Social Justice

Sunday Special

The Daily Wire

A liberal college town announced that it would pay $300,000 to a group of Christians in Idaho who were arrested for holding an outdoor church service without wearing masks during the pandemic.
The city of Moscow, Idaho — home to the University of Idaho — <a href="https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/idaho-city-announces-300k-payment-to-people-who-were-arrested-during-religious-gathering/article_9c06f542-2736-11ee-bcdc-cf88632217a8.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> the settlement in the churchgoers&#8217; civil lawsuit last week.
Three churchgoers with Christ Church sued the city after they were arrested in September 2020 at an outdoor &#8220;psalm sing&#8221; with their church outside Moscow City Hall. The singing protest lasted about 20 minutes. Gabriel Rench and Sean and Rachel Bohnet filed the suit in March 2021, alleging that their First and Fourth Amendments rights were violated.
Footage of the arrests went viral on social media and showed police officers taking Rench&#8217;s hymnal away from him before handcuffing him and taking him and the two other people to the county jail. The three were detained at the jail for several hours.
Then-president Donald Trump <a href="https://religionnews.com/2020/10/07/hymn-singers-arrested-idaho-trump-tweet-democrats-doug-wilson-christ-church/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">condemned</a> the arrests at the time, tweeting that Democrats want to shut churches down &#8220;permanently.&#8221;
The three were charged with violating the city&#8217;s public health emergency ordinance, but a judge dismissed the city&#8217;s case against them.
A federal judge later denied the city&#8217;s request to dismiss the lawsuit from the three people arrested, noting that the city&#8217;s pandemic ordinance had an exception for activities protected by the Idaho and U.S. constitutions, such as religious services. The judge said the three never should have been arrested in the first place.
&#8220;Somehow, every single City official involved overlooked the exclusionary language [of constitutionally protected behavior] in the Ordinance,&#8221; the judge wrote.
Rench was a candidate for Latah County Commission when he was arrested.
&#8220;It&#8217;s actually the city of Moscow that was defying the law,&#8221; Rench said, according to Fox News. &#8220;I was obeying the law. The political system doesn&#8217;t want to give away their power, and they think if they admit they&#8217;re wrong, they look at that as like they&#8217;re losing their political power.&#8221;
He said he believes the government has started to target Christians more.
&#8220;I think it&#8217;s no secret that portions of our government and political groups are now starting to target Christians in a way that has never really happened in America or Canada,&#8221; Rench told Fox News.
&#8220;I&#8217;m in a conservative state, but I live in a liberal town, and the liberals had no problem arresting me for practicing my religious rights and my Constitutional rights,&#8221; he said.
Christ Church is a congregation of about 1,000 people and part of the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches.
The city said its liability insurance provider &#8220;determined that a financial settlement in the case was the best course of action to dispose of the suit and avoid a protracted litigation proceeding.&#8221;
Under the terms of the settlement agreement, the liability insurance provider &#8220;will pay a total settlement amount of $300,000 and all claims against the City and the named City employees will be dismissed with prejudice along with a release of all liability,&#8221; the city <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/christians-arrested-maskless-outdoor-church-service-get-payout-liberal-college-town" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a press release.
The city also said the settlement &#8220;provides closure of a matter related to the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic and the City’s efforts to protect the public during an exceptionally trying time.&#8221;

TOPSHOT-FRANCE-HEALTH-VIRUS-CHINA

Christians Arrested For Maskless Outdoor Church Service To Get $300,000 From Liberal College Town

COVID

Health

Lockdowns

Pandemic

&#8220;One Tree Hill&#8221; actress <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/one-tree-hill-alums-claim-careers-were-threatened-if-they-didnt-do-sexy-maxim-shoot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bethany Joy Lenz</a> recently came clean about her past, saying that the had spent a decade of her life in a cult – and another ten years after that recovering from the experience.
Lenz, who has recently appeared in several Hallmark Channel movies, made the admission Monday alongside fellow &#8220;One Tree Hill&#8221; alums Sophia Bush and Hilarie Burton Morgan on their &#8220;Drama Queens&#8221; podcast.
&#8220;I would love to write about my experience, you know, I was in a cult for 10 years. That would be a really valuable experience to write about, and the recovery — 10 years of recovery after that,&#8221; she said. &#8220;So, there’s a lot to tell.&#8221;
The &#8220;Five Star Christmas&#8221; actress said that she had started to write down some of her experiences, but hadn&#8217;t really been able to put it all together. &#8220;ADHD has made it really difficult over the years,&#8221; she added, saying that if she could ever &#8220;really commit to putting it all together, I would love to write about my experience.&#8221;
She went on to say that the other people she would be writing about could also complicate the process, noting that she wanted to get things exactly right but she also had to be sure to stay within legal boundaries.
&#8220;The pressure of getting it right and everything having to be exactly real and all the people that are involved, and also I don’t know how much I can say because there are still people and legal things in place that make it more complicated for the timing of that,&#8221; she said.
Lenz and her costars recently came forward with <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/e-suspends-royals-showrunner-mark-schwahn-amidst-paul-bois" target="_blank" rel="noopener">accusations</a> against &#8220;One Tree Hill&#8221; show runner Mark Schwahn, saying that he threatened Bush and Burton Morgan with loss of their jobs if they refused to do a sexy photo shoot for Maxim. Lenz said that Schwahn informed her she was &#8220;too fat&#8221; for the shoot.
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Hilarie Burton Morgan, Sophia Bush Allege ‘One Tree Hill’ Showrunner Told Them to do ‘Maxim’ Shoot or “Lose Their Jobs” <a href="https://t.co/yKdOZA1obt">https://t.co/yKdOZA1obt</a>
&mdash; The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) <a href="https://twitter.com/THR/status/1598059770434420742?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 30, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Los Angeles Premiere Of Netflix’s New Film “Blonde”

‘One Tree Hill’ Star Admits She Spent 10 Years In A Cult — And Another 10 In Recovery

'One Tree Hill' Star Admits She Spent 10 Years In A Cult — And Another 10 In Recovery

Hollywood

Television

An archbishop in the Church of England said the opening of the “Lord’s Prayer” is considered “problematic” to some people because the 2,000-year-old prayer starts by addressing God as “Our Father.”
Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell told the General Synod, the legislating and ruling body of the Church of England, that referring to God as “father” might be offensive to some people because of the negative connotations of patriarchy. 
“I know the word ‘father’ is problematic for those whose experience of earthly fathers has been destructive and abusive, and for all of us who have labored rather too much from an oppressively patriarchal grip on life,” Cottrell <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/07/lords-prayer-our-father-opening-may-be-problematic-archbishop-of-york-stephen-cottrell" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>, according to The Guardian.
Cottrell was referring to the prayer that Jesus Christ taught his disciples in Matthew 6:9–13 and Luke 11:2–4.
Conservatives within the church took issue with Cottrell’s words, while liberals supported the sentiments expressed by the archbishop. 
“Is the archbishop of York saying Jesus was wrong, or that Jesus was not pastorally aware? It seems to be emblematic of the approach of some church leaders to take their cues from culture rather than scripture,” said Dr. Chris Sugden, a church official and chair of Anglican Mainstream, a conservative organization within the church. 
Calvin Robinson, a conservative commentator and deacon in the Free Church of England, <a href="https://twitter.com/calvinrobinson/status/1677402650185195521" target="_blank" rel="noopener">also critiqued</a> Cottrell’s comments.
“We call it the &#8216;Lord’s Prayer&#8217; because it is the prayer the Lord gave us. He taught us to pray it. We call God &#8216;Our Father&#8217; because that is how he instructed us to address him. Is the Archbishop saying Christ was wrong? That God made a mistake?” Robinson said on Twitter. 
<a href="https://onelink.to/dwapp" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" aria-describedby="sk-tooltip-9096" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://onelink.to/dwapp&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1688831213092000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1PLjNvPE9xhE43TkDJzri8">CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP</a>
Currently, the Church of England <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/church-england-explores-gender-neutral-god-rcna69851#:~:text=“Christians%20have%20recognized%20since%20ancient,spokesperson%20for%20the%20Church%20said.&amp;text=The%20Church%20of%20England%20will,plans%20to%20abolish%20current%20services." target="_blank" rel="noopener">is looking</a> at using “gender-neutral” pronouns for God, instead of the masculine pronouns used in the Bible. 
“Christians have recognized since ancient times that God is neither male nor female,” a spokesperson for the church said in February. “Yet the variety of ways of addressing and describing God found in scripture has not always been reflected in our worship.”
The Bible refers to God using masculine pronouns throughout both the Old and New Testaments. Jesus, who <a href="https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/how-can-jesus-be-god-and-man" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Christians believe</a> to be fully human and fully God, came to Earth in bodily form as a man, and Christians believe that he still has a physical body.

Installation Of The 77th Dean Of York

Anglican Leader Says Opening Of Lord’s Prayer Is ‘Problematic’ For Some

Anglican Leader Says Opening Of Lord's Prayer Is 'Problematic' For Some

England

Jesus Christ

Authorities in China have doubled the fines for a Christian pastor and his wife who lead a house church in the communist nation, according to a <a href="https://chinaaid.org/uncensored-news/stories-by-issue/religious-freedom/fine-doubles-for-xunsiding-church-couple/">report</a> from ChinaAid, a Christian nonprofit focusing on persecution in China. 
Pastor Yang Xibo and his wife Wang Xiaofei run the Xunsiding Church in Xiamen, in southeast China. Xunsiding is a house church, which is an “underground” church that is not sanctioned by the Three-Self Church — the supervisory organization of state-controlled protestant churches in China. The pastor and his wife face a fine of 400,000 yuan, or roughly $55,100, according to the watchdog. 
&#8220;Thank God for allowing us to have a part in His affliction, and especially thankful that on Earth we have no property for the court-enforced implementation, which is definitely a great grace of God,&#8221; Pastor Yang Xibo and his wife posted to social media in response to the hefty fine. 
Xunsiding is the <a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/chinese-authorities-double-fines-for-pastor-and-wife.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">largest</a> house church in Xiamen, and it was initially fined 25,000 yuan, or roughly $3,400, in May 2019. In the wake of the fine, the Chinese government sent police to “surround” the venue, according to ChinaAid. The police reportedly “besieged” the church venue for a month and surveilled congregants “constantly.” 
“As a result, the church changed meeting spaces frequently only to be met with more raids and bans,” ChinaAid wrote in its report. “During raids, authorities demolished private property and forced members to send their children to public schools.”
Pastor Yang and his wife began fighting to overturn the fine in 2021, but all appeals have been rejected by Communist Party bureaucracies in the country, the watchdog reports. In a May update on Pastor Yang’s situation, ChinaAid <a href="https://chinaaid.org/uncensored-news/featured/voices-from-china/xunsiding-church-pastor-and-his-wife-forced-to-pay-25000/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that an administrative lawsuit ordered the couple to pay $25,000. They are accused of “organizing illegal gatherings.”
On June 28, the total number of fines topped $50,000, according to the group. Yang and his wife said on social media that they would not pay the fine. 
House churches in China are popular because churches that are sanctioned by the Three-Self Church are censored and controlled by the state, <a href="https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/what-christianity-in-china-is-really-like/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to The Gospel Coalition. The underground churches — not affiliated with the Three-Self Church — are considered illegal and are often in undisclosed or always-changing locations.
The persecution of Christians in China has been a major problem for years. Open Doors USA, a Christian organization committed to serving persecuted Christians, releases a “World Watch List” annually, outlining the top 50 countries where the persecution of Christians is highest. 
According to the 2023 World Watch List, China <a href="https://www.opendoorsus.org/en-US/persecution/countries/">ranks 16th</a> for Christian <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/persecution-of-christians-rising-in-at-least-18-countries-of-particular-concern-report-finds">persecution</a>. Surveillance is a significant issue, allowing the state to monitor and close down churches, according to the organization. A source told Open Doors that pastors and Christian leaders “are simply snatched away, only to appear months later in a kind of house arrest, where they get re-educated.”
Prior to the National Party Congress in October, the Communist Party increased its persecution of Christians through charges of “fraud” against church leaders, according to The Christian Post.

Holy Bible

Chinese Government Doubles Fine For Pastor Who Runs House Church, Watchdog Says

China

Christian

Church

Communist China

VATICAN CITY &#8211; Pope Francis has elevated a longtime friend and collaborator who once wrote a book about kissing to a key role inside the Vatican, <a href="https://twitter.com/ProtecttheFaith/status/1675106888428429312?s=20">sparking</a> controversy on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/BreeADail/posts/pfbid02iQvfjCCpjstEdNNHcWQW16fjooFXPuRHM9k1nSm2JBe8oUYCNAahM7VhGsj2zcCJl">social media</a>. 
Francis made the announcement on Friday that Archbishop Víctor Manuel Fernández of La Plata, Argentina, would serve as the new Prefect of the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF). Fernandez will officially take the position in mid-September.
Considered one of the top religious positions at the Vatican, the prefect is responsible for preserving Catholic doctrine in line with 2,000 years of history and tradition as well as evaluating disciplinary action against clergy through Canon Law (the law of the Catholic Church). 
Fernandez, 60, succeeds Cardinal Luis Francisco Ladaria Ferrer, SJ, who has held the position since 2017. The late Pope Benedict XVI also served as prefect from 1981 to 2005.
Archbishop Fernandez is known to be a close collaborator of Pope Francis and supported the drafting of some of the Pope&#8217;s most well-known written works, including Laudato Si (his book on care of the poor, the environment and ecology), and — most notably — Amoris Laetitia (On Pastoral Care of Families). 
Issued in 2016, Amoris Laetitia was Pope Francis’ document following the conclusion of his “Synod on the Family” — a series of meetings of the world’s bishops addressing modern challenges within families. His document <a href="https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-devil-in-footnote-351/">included footnotes</a>, however, that addressed providing the Sacraments to couples living in “irregular” unions, outside the bonds of Holy Matrimony, opening the way to divorced and remarried couples, along with others in “irregular” unions. This resulted in outcry from conservatives within the Church, who pointed to doctrine on the indissolubility of the Sacrament of Marriage between one woman and one man.
<a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/34915/these-four-cardinals-asked-pope-francis-to-clarify-amoris-laetitia">Four leading Cardinals, one of them an American, issued public “dubia,”</a> or doubts, directly challenging the Pope, to which he has never formally responded. 
Fernandez is a prolific writer, having written over 300 articles and books. But notably missing from a partial list of his works attached to the official announcement of his appointment was a 1995 book on kissing, titled &#8220;Heal Me With Your Mouth. The Art of Kissing.&#8221;
“This book was not written based on my own experience, but based on the lives of people who kiss,&#8221; Fernandez wrote. &#8220;In these pages I want to synthesize the popular feeling, what people feel when they think of a kiss, what mortals experience when they kiss. For that I chatted at length with many people who have abundant experience in this area, and also with many young people who learn to kiss in their own way…&#8221;
In his letter accompanying the announcement, Pope Francis acknowledged the challenges faced by the DDF and expressed his expectations for Archbishop Fernández&#8217;s tenure.
&#8220;The Dicastery over which you will preside in other times came to use immoral methods. Those were times when, rather than promoting theological knowledge, possible doctrinal errors were pursued. What I expect from you is undoubtedly something very different,&#8221; Francis wrote.
He also highlighted the importance of embracing “modern” and diverse perspectives within the Church. He encouraged Archbishop Fernández to foster an environment where different lines of philosophical, theological, and pastoral thought would be welcomed. 
&#8220;For &#8216;different lines of philosophical, theological and pastoral thought, if they allow themselves to be harmonized by the Spirit in respect and love, can also make the Church grow. This harmonious growth will preserve Christian doctrine more effectively than any mechanism of control,'&#8221; the pope wrote.
The Pope further emphasized that the Church should encourage theologians&#8217; charism (or inspiration/gift/anointing) and theological research. He urged Archbishop Fernández to avoid a &#8220;desk theology&#8221; approach, stating, &#8220;they are not content with a desk theology, a cold and hard logic that seeks to dominate everything.” Fernandez is to ensure, the pope writes, that all prior teachings “are coherent with the rich humus of the Church&#8217;s perennial teaching and at the same time embrace the recent Magisterium.”
Pope Francis also reminded Archbishop Fernández of the primary purpose of the DDF, which is to guard the faith — and instructed him not be distracted by scandals.
&#8220;Given that for disciplinary matters — related especially to the abuse of minors — a specific Section has recently been created with very competent professionals, I ask you as Prefect to dedicate your personal commitment in a more direct way to the main purpose of the Dicastery which is to &#8216;guard the faith,’&#8221; he wrote. 
In addition to his position as Prefect of the DDF, Fernandez will also become the President of the Pontifical Biblical Commission and the President of the International Theological Commission.

D0249009-8031-4698-9503-F629F17A518D_1_201_a

Pope Francis Elevates Archbishop Who Once Wrote A Book On Kissing To Top Vatican Post

Argentina

Pope Francis

The Vatican

A famous Princeton University professor has launched an effort to replace calling June “Pride Month” with the moniker “Fidelity Month.”
Celebrated philosopher professor Robert P. George, the author of “Making Men Moral: Civil Liberties and Public Morality,” “In Defense of Natural Law,” and “The Clash of Orthodoxies,” served as chairman of the National Organization for Marriage. He also was one of the drafters of 2009’s Manhattan Declaration — signed by religious leaders of various faiths — that &#8220;promised resistance to the point of civil disobedience against any legislation that might implicate their churches or charities in abortion, embryo-destructive research or same-sex marriage,” as the New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/20/magazine/20george-t.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reports</a>.
“If polls are to be believed, there has been a precipitous decline in Americans’ belief in the importance of patriotism, religion, marriage and family, and community—values that, broadly speaking, have throughout our history united Americans despite our many differences,” George tweeted in May. “By the authority vested in me by absolutely no one, I’ve declared June to be ‘Fidelity Month’—a month dedicated to renewing fidelity to God, spouses and families, our country, and our communities.”
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2/ By the authority vested in me by absolutely no one, I&#39;ve declared June to be “Fidelity Month”—a month dedicated to renewing fidelity to God, spouses and families, our country, and our communities. If you share these values, please join us, use our logo, and spread the word. <a href="https://t.co/4BnJ8N0hvo">pic.twitter.com/4BnJ8N0hvo</a>
&mdash; Robert P. George🇻🇦🇺🇸🪕 (@McCormickProf) <a href="https://twitter.com/McCormickProf/status/1662457468935438339?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2023</a></blockquote>
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“If you are a public official and your office recognizes special days, months, etc., please officially recognize Fidelity Month,” George wrote. “If you are a legislator, please do whatever you can according to the customs and traditions of your legislative assembly to raise the profile of Fidelity Month. If you are a pastor, please make sure your church or parish or synagogue or other congregation does something for Fidelity Month.”
The Fidelity Month website “earned a perfect score of one hundred from the domain host GoDaddy,” National Review <a href="https://www.nationalreview.com/news/princeton-professors-initiative-to-rebrand-june-fidelity-month-gains-steam-on-religious-right/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">noted</a>, adding that members of various faiths are backing the effort.
The Fidelity Month website <a href="https://fidelitymonth.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">urged</a> people of different faiths to observe a day of fasting on the last day of June, writing:
<blockquote>
Fasting is a spiritual discipline common to Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and other religions. It can be a form of penance for our sins, an offering of sacrifice to God, and a way in which we purify ourselves from worldly attachments – allowing us to focus on what is most important from an eternal perspective and to pray and act more effectively. 
As a people, we’re in deep need of each of these aspects of fasting. We need to repair our relationship with God – who alone is the source and summit of all fidelity – through repentance, so that He can heal and restore us as a people. &#8230; we invite you to also fast and pray in accordance with your own religious traditions for an increase in fidelity to God, family, and country. 
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