Christians in Iraq are still having trouble

Christians in Iraq are still having trouble

VERBATIM:  According to a new analysis by England’s  All-Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom of Religion or Belief, Iraqi believers still face violent persecution and repression, years after ISIS was finally expelled from the country.  Christians living in the Kurdistan region are doing pretty well, but elsewhere in the country they are still being victimized by their Muslim neighbors.  Christians make up just about three percent of Iraq’s population.  MH REPORTING

Pastors are doing better

Pastors are doing better

VERBATIM:  According to a new poll from the Barna Group, emotional strain among America’s clergymen has reached its lowest point in 10 years — feelings of inadequacy and exhaustion are down, energy is UP.  Pastoral confidence is also climbing after collapsing during the pandemic.  It currently stands at 58 percent.  However, the Barna poll also finds that the share of clergy who are “very satisfied” with their vocation has fallen from 72 percent to 52 percent.  MH REPORTING

Samaritan’s Purse is at work in the Pacific

Samaritan’s Purse is at work in the Pacific

VERBATIM:  The giant Christian relief organization has been flying supplies into the islands of Saipan and Tinian after the most powerful cyclone of the year so far came roaring through.  Samaritan’s Purse says “we’ve distributed over 6,500 tarps, nearly 6,000 solar lights, 500 mosquito nets, and nearly 15,000 jerry cans on the islands. To help restore electricity for the most vulnerable, we’ve provided 203 generators for those with chronic illnesses.”  MH REPORTING

Richard Dawkins thinks AI is alive

Richard Dawkins thinks AI is alive

VERBATIM:  The prominent atheist and evolutionary biologist has been holding conversations with the new chatbot Claude, built by the Anthropic company, and says “I believe it has consciousness.”  Author George Calder, writing in The Expose says “Dawkins has always ridiculed belief in God.  But he now conversely appears to believe in machine consciousness.”  Anthropic has also suggested that Claude should be considered a sentient, living being.  MH REPORTING

The world is divided between Catholics and Protestants

The world is divided between Catholics and Protestants

VERBATIM:  The Pew Research Center has been mapping the two belief systems and it concludes that Catholicism is strongest in Latin America while Africa is largely Protestant.  Europe is divided about evenly with more Catholics in the East and more Protestants in the West.  Asian nations tend to skew more Catholic while the Protestants are the majority in the U.S. and Canada.  Overall, more people are quitting the Catholic Church and joining Protestant ones.  MH REPORTING

What music is playing on your local Christian radio station?

What music is playing on your local Christian radio station?

VERBATIM:  The Pew Research Center has been asking and it reports that Contemporary Christian is the genre favored by the vast majority of America’s religious broadcasters.  Worship music and Gospel tunes will also be heard.  And like their secular counterparts, most Christian radio stations spend most of their air time playing the most popular artists and songs.  The Pew study indicates that 87% of the songs heard are by the top 10% of popular artists.  MH REPORTING

A new poll reinforces the Bible

A new poll reinforces the Bible

A new study of who supports abortion

A new study of who supports abortion

Persecution of Christians is on the rise in Southeast Asia as Islam spreads

Persecution of Christians is on the rise in Southeast Asia as Islam spreads

VERBATIM:   A new report from International Christian Concern finds that “The persecution of Christians in the region is complex, damaging, and deep-rooted.  It includes direct, violent, and deadly attacks and incidents.  But it also involves immense, complex, and indirect pressure, discrimination, threats, intimidation, problematic laws, and social isolation.”  There are about 250 million Muslims across Southeast Asia and very few Christians.  MH REPORTING

Young Americans weigh in on marriage and family

Young Americans weigh-in on marriage and family

VERBATIM:  A new poll from the Barna Group finds that 78% of Generation Z and 73% of Millennials say they want to get married some day.  But not today.  Despite their aspirations, young adults are getting married later and later in life — or not at all.  The survey also reveals that most young people do not connect marriage with child rearing.  A majority see no reason to have kids after getting married — nor do they see a problem with having children WITHOUT marriage.  MH REPORTING

A new chatbot will allow you to converse with Satan

A new chatbot will allow you to converse with Satan

VERBATIM:  The product is actually called “Text With Jesus” and allows a user to talk with an Artificial Intelligence program that poses as Christ — along with an image that looks like traditional depictions of Him — and hopefully is drawing its responses from the Bible.  But if you go down to the Frequently Asked Questions section of the Text With Jesus website you will find that it allows a person to text with OTHER Biblical figures — including Satan, and Judas Iscariot.  MH REPORTING

Assisted-suicide has been put on hold in the United Kingdom

Assisted-suicide has been put on hold in the United Kingdom

VERBATIM:  The House of Lords has failed to pass legislation that would allow people in England and Wales to take their own lives with the help of a doctor.  Supporters of the measure are vowing to bring it back to the floor some time this summer, but the procedural process will be tricky.  There is strong opposition to the bill in the public and amongst pro-life advocates, who point to other European countries that have legalized the practice and seen a surge in suicide.  MH REORTING

A warning from a leading Christian researcher

A warning from a leading Christian researcher

VERBATIM:  George Barna has been measuring America’s spiritual condition for decades and he believes the country is in trouble.  Barna, who heads the Cultural Research Center, says ““A quarter century ago, 12% of the adult population held a biblical worldview.  Since then, we have seen a steady reduction in that incidence.  We reached a low point—4%— in 2023.”  But Barna says the decline can be reversed if churches start focusing on discipleship.  MH REPORTING

The Family Research Council seeks restitution

The Family Research Council seeks restitution

VERBATIM:  The Southern Poverty Law Center has long branded the ministry as a hate group because it opposes gay marriage and the LGBT agenda in general.  In 2012 a man entered the FRC building in Washington D.C. and opened fire, wounding one person.  Ministry leader Tony Perkins says the SPLC’s hate group designation “doesn’t just damage reputations, it has put lives at risk.”  He says the SPLC should pay the FRC restitution.  MH REPORTING

A victory for religious freedom in Washington state

A victory for religious freedom in Washington state

VERBATIM:  A federal district court has rejected a request by the state that it dismiss a lawsuit filed by a Christian couple.  Shane and Jennifer DeGross were rejected as foster parents because they would not agree to a new stipulation by Washington that they agree to help any child in their care live as the opposite sex, should that child ask to do so.  Alliance Defending Freedom represents the couple and says the state is putting ideology above kids’ needs.  MH REPORTING

Christians weigh-in on Artificial Intelligence in the pulpit

Christians weigh-in on Artificial Intelligence in the pulpit

VERBATIM:  A new poll from Life Way Research asks Protestant churchgoers how they would feel if they discovered that their pastor was using AI to help him prepare his sermons.  44% say they would have no problem with it — 43% say they would be unhappy about it and 13% can’t make up their mind.  The survey also reveals that 61% of believers are worried about the effect AI might have have on Christianity in this country.  MH REPORTING

A warning from religious freedom advocates

A warning from religious freedom advocates

Pittsburgh hosts its first March For Life

Pittsburgh hosts its first March For Life

Parents are worried about social media

Parents are worried about social media

VERBATIM:  The Pew Research Center has released a new report that indicates a lot of moms and dads wish their teenagers didn’t spend so much time on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram and other platforms.  The poll finds many parents think it harms their kids’ mental health.  Other studies have shown that social media is a largely unregulated space where adolescents can be exposed to pornography, sex-trafficking and other dangers without parental supervision.  MH REPORTING

Samaritan’s Purse is ministering in the Midwest

Samaritan’s Purse is ministering in the Midwest

VERBATIM:  Multiple tornadoes hammered the region over the weekend and help is needed.  Samaritan’s Purse has volunteer clean-up teams at work and a group of chaplains are also on hand to deliver spiritual comfort.  Officials in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota say the violent weather has caused a lot of property damage and rendered a number of roads impassable.  April, May and June are peak tornado season in the Midwest and more storms are expected.  MH REPORTING

A victory for religious freedom in Indiana

A victory for religious freedom in Indiana

VERBATIM:  The South Madison County School Corporation has agreed to pay 200,000 dollars to a counselor who was fired.  Kathy McCord was dismissed when she refused to abide by a county policy requiring school officials to conceal from parents the fact that their child was living as the opposite sex in class.  Alliance Defending Freedom represented McCord and says “No American should be fired for expressing her beliefs.”  MH REPORTING

Pro-lifers win a court battle in Oregon

Pro-lifers win a court battle in Oregon

VERBATIM:  A federal judge has ruled that Oregon Right to Life does NOT have to include coverage for abortion in its employee health insurance plan.  State lawmakers passed a measure back in 2017 that enacted such a requirement with an exemption for religious organizations.  When Oregon Right to Life applied it was rejected as not religious enough.  The organization is calling the ruling a victory for all pro-life Oregonians.  MH REPORTING

Arizona lawmakers reject assisted-suicide

Arizona lawmakers reject assisted-suicide

VERBATIM:  The legislation would have allowed state residents who suffer from terminal diseases to get a doctor’s help in taking their own life.  Pro-life advocates warned that a RIGHT to die could quickly become a DUTY to die and the Arizona legislature was listening.  Before killing the bill lawmakers raised concerns about oversight and whether vulnerable people might find themselves pressured to take their own lives.  MH REPORTING

Scripture will be heard in the nation’s capital next week

Scripture will be heard in the nation’s capital next week

VERBATIM:  Beginning Sunday, every verse of the Bible from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21 will be read aloud at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C.  An army of volunteer readers will take the podium for brief stints from 9am to 9p until the job is done in seven days.  Amongst the readers will be members of President Trump’s cabinet, members of Congress, governors and some well-known pastors as well.  The event will be livestreamed.  MH REPORTING