A hard-fought victory for a pair of pro-lifers

A hard-fought victory for a pair of pro-lifers

VERBATIM:  The state of California has dropped its case against David Daleiden and Sandra Merrit after they used undercover videos to reveal Planned Parenthood’s trafficking in the body parts of aborted babies.  The two defendants, who work for the pro-life Center for Medical Progress, have been in court for 10 years as the state tried to punish them for making the recordings.  Daleiden says “Taking this case off the board will allow me to focus fully on our investigative reporting.”  MH SRN NEWS.

PepsiCo is making some changes

PepsiCo is making some changes

VERBATIM:  The giant soft drink maker, which also owns such brands as Quaker Oats, Doritos and Rice-a-Roni, says it is adopting a “viewpoint neutral advertising policy with respect to political or religious status or views.”  Pressure had been mounting amongst shareholders for the company to quit the Global Alliance for Responsible Media — a left-wing group that pushes big corporations to support the LGBT agenda and steer away from anything conservative or Christian.  MH SRN NEWS.

Target abandons the LGBT agenda

Target abandons the LGBT agenda

VERBATIM:  Some say the giant retailer really got the ball rolling on what has become known as “woke capitalism” when it announced in 2014 that it would allow men who are living as women to use women’s restrooms and changing rooms.  Today, with the winds of change blowing in the country, Target has announced that it is joining a growing number of major companies who are pledging to quit pushing the LGBT agenda on customers and supporting left-wing causes.  MH SRN NEWS.

A legal victory for a whistleblowing doctor from Texas

A legal victory for a whistleblowing doctor from Texas

VERBATIM:  Ethan Haim thought the public ought to know that Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston had been carrying out sex-change operations on children, even after officials there said they had stopped.  The doctor leaked documents to journalist Christopher Rufo and was sued by the hospital.  A judge has now dismissed the case against Haim with prejudice, meaning that he cannot be sued again on the same charges.  He could have been sentenced to 10 years in jail.  MH SRN NEWS.

The prosperity gospel is out of fashion with America’s pastors

The prosperity gospel is out of fashion with America’s pastors

VERBATIM:  A new poll from Life Way Research finds only 18% of Protestant clergymen are teaching their parishioners that God will bring them prosperity if they tithe more money to the church.  The people in the pews are a different matter, however, the survey reveals that 45% of Protestant churchgoers believe that to receive material blessings from God they have to do something for God.  That’s about twice as many as believed that a decade ago.  MH SRN NEWS.

Things are getting worse for Christians in Iran

Things are getting worse for Christians in Iran

VERBATIM:  Article 18 and three other international religious freedom groups are sounding an alarm about the Islamic Republic, where imprisonment of Christians for their faith increased 600% over the past year.  Time in an Iranian prison can amount to a death sentence, given the horrific conditions and regular torture.  The vast majority of Christians in Iran are converts from Islam, which puts them at odds with the government as well as friends and family.  MH SRN NEWS.

Another poll about transgenderism

Another poll about transgenderism

VERBATIM:  This one comes from the New York Times and Ipsos and it reveals that 49% of Americans believe that society has gone TOO FAR in accommodating people who are trying to live as the opposite sex.  21% think we haven’t gone far enough.  When it comes to men playing against women in sports, 79% say NO and that includes majorities of Republicans, Democrats and Independents.  71% say NO to puberty-blocking drugs for minors.  MH SRN NEWS.

A new Muslim terrorist group is operating in Nigeria

A new Muslim terrorist group is operating in Nigeria

VERBATIM:  The African country is already beset with TWO such organizations — Boko Haram and the Fulani herdsmen — and now Lakurawa has arrived.  It’s not actually a new group — it has been terrorizing neighboring Mali and Niger for a number of years.  But now Lakurawa has set its sights on Nigeria, killing numerous Christians in the country’s troubled northern region.  Tens-of-thousands of believers have died at the hands Islamic terrorists over the last decade.  MH SRN NEWS.

No more Gay Pride flags at U.S. embassies

No more Gay Pride flags at U.S. embassies

VERBATIM:  New Secretary of State Marco Rubio has forbidden staff at any American outpost in a foreign country from flying the LGBT pride banner or anything OTHER than the Stars and Stripes.  In a statement Rubio says “ “The flag of the United States of America unites all Americans under the universal principles of justice, liberty, and democracy. These values, which are the bedrock of our great country, are shared by all American citizens, past and present.”  MH SRN NEWS.

India has been creeping up the World Watch List

India has been creeping up the World Watch List

VERBATIM:  Every year Open Doors US puts out a ranking of the countries where it’s most dangerous to be a Christian and every year India comes in higher and higher.  In 2025 the giant nation just missed the top 10 worst, placing 11th on the list.  This is significant because India is a key ally of the United States, which sees India as a critical counter balance to China.  But that makes it harder for Washington to take New Delhi to task for persecuting Christians.  MH SRN NEWS.

Another warning about America’s birth rate

Another warning about America’s birth rate

President Trump pulls out of the Paris Climate Agreement

President Trump pulls out of the Paris Climate Agreement

VERBATIM:  An executive order allows the U.S. to quit, which has made a lot of people happy — especially pro-life advocates.  You might think the PCA has nothing to do with abortion, but in fact the lengthy accord includes much promotion of abortion and contraception as a means of reducing global population — despite growing alarm over the fact that the birthrates of many industrialized countries are plummeting.  President Trump is also withdrawing from the World Health Organization.  MHNSRN NEWS

Young people want restrictions on abortion

Young people want restrictions on abortion

VERBATIM:  Democrats predict that America will become more liberal on the issue as Millennials and Generation Z begin to take power, but a new poll suggests otherwise.  The numbers come from a YouGov, Survey USA study and they reveal that nearly 70% of 20 and 30-somethings favor limitations on abortion.  Only nine percent say the procedure should be completely unfettered.  Meanwhile other polls indicate that people become gradually MORE pro-life as they age.  MH SRN NEWS

Samaritan’s Purse continues to provide hurricane relief in North Carolina

Samaritan’s Purse continues to provide hurricane relief in North Carolina

Aborted babies will be remembered this week

Aborted babies will be remembered this week

The latest numbers on persecution of Christians are disturbing

The latest numbers on persecution of Christians are disturbing

VERBATIM:  Open Doors US has produced its annual report and it concludes that more than 380 million believers suffer high levels of persecution for their faith and tens-of-millions more see their religious freedom restricted in lesser ways.  That means one in seven Christians around the globe is persecuted, including one in five in Africa and two in five in Asia.  Muslim radicals are the primary culprits, though India has a problem with radical Hindus and Communism is a problem elsewhere.  MH SRN NEWS.

The Speaker of the House goes to the Bible

The Speaker of the House goes to the Bible

VERBATIM:  Mike Johnson says the reason the lower chamber passed a bill that bars males from competing against females in sports can be found in the book of Genesis. Talking to reporters he said ““We know that men are men and women are women and men cannot become women.”  When asked HOW we can know that, Johnson replied ““It goes back to Genesis. Male and female He made them.”  The ban now goes to the Senate.  MH SRN NEWS.

Chaplains are on the ground in the L.A. fire zone

Chaplains are on the ground in the L.A. fire zone

VERBATIM:  They work for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and they are in the shelters where fire victims are living, ministering to them even as the crisis unfolds.  Ministry spokesman Josh Holland says “The images coming out of California look like scenes out of a Hollywood movie—yet they show the real-life horror that the people of the Los Angeles area are experiencing today.”  Other Christian ministries are also rushing help to the city.  MH SRN NEWS

The Supreme Court will hear another religious freedom case

The Supreme Court will hear another religious freedom case

A new report on religious violence in Nigeria

A new report on religious violence in Nigeria

VERBATIM:  It’s pretty shocking.  10,000 Christians murdered over the course of two years.  Global Christian Relief has been adding up the numbers in Nigeria from November of 2022 through November of 2024 and it’s worse than ever.  Two Muslim terror groups are active in Nigeria and they have made it their explicit goal to kill every Christian in the country or drive them all out — ushering in a Sharia state.  The government is apparently unable or unwilling to stop the violence.  MH SRN NEWS

The speakers list for the March For Life is being finalized

The speakers list for the March For Life is being finalized

VERBATIM:  Florida Governor Ron DeSantis will be there, as will Congressman Chris Smith of New Jersey.  Professional surfer Bethany Hamilton is also scheduled to speak, along with Lila Rose, the founder of the prominent pro-life group Live Action.  It’s also possible that President Trump might address the gathering — something he has done in the past.  The annual March For Life will take place here in Washington D.C. on Friday, January 24th.  MH SRN NEWS.

Sweden is closing churches

Sweden is closing churches

VERBATIM:  It’s all about so-called climate change.  The Lutheran National Church of Sweden says it will shut down seven houses of worship on the island of Gotland from October to May, in order to eliminate the use of fossil fuels to heat them.  Local parishioners who would like to attend services during that time are simply out of luck.  Church officials have issued a statement saying “ “Knowledge about climate justice should permeate all activities of Church of Sweden.”  MH SRN NEWS.

A lot of people will be reading the Bible in 2025

A lot of people will be reading the Bible in 2025

VERBATIM:  You Version, the most popular free Bible app in the world, reports a record 800,000 individuals downloaded it on January 5th — the most in one day in You Version’s history.  In fact, there’s been a big surge in downloads since the beginning of the new year, suggesting that a lot of folks have decided to try and read through the Bible in 2025 and will use the app to do so.  You Version founder Bobby Grunewald tells the Christian Post the surge is being seen outside the U.S. too.  MH SRN NEWSS.

Barely half the U.S. adult population is married

Barely half the U.S. adult population is married