... there should never be a by-election required.
SURELY the local party should be able to nominate their new MP - typically using the person who had been second on the constituency list to contest that seat in the previous General Election.
Tuesday, May 31, 2022
I Had Friends and Family To See Franklin Who Were Impressed.
Why is Sheffield Cathedral so offended by Franklin Graham?
In calling down the wrath of wokery on US evangelist Franklin Graham, Sheffield Cathedral is unfortunately cutting itself off from the Christian mainstream.
The cathedral has decided to hold an "Affirming Prayer Vigil" tonight - the same night that Graham is due to preach at the Sheffield Arena during his God Loves You tour of the UK.
According to a statement by the cathedral, Graham "has made a number of statements over the years that are hurtful and damaging to many, especially to those who identify as LGBTQI+".
The cathedral's self-righteous indignation with Graham has registered with Sheffield's evening paper, The Star, which reported: "The service, on Wednesday, May 25, has been described as a 'counter' to the hate Graham's critics say he peddles and the chance to send a message that 'every person will be cherished and loved exactly as they are'."
The paper reminded its readers that in 2019, Graham, who it called "an outspoken supporter of former US president Donald Trump", tweeted: "As a Christian I believe the Bible which defines homosexuality as sin, something to be repentant of, not something to be flaunted, praised or politicized."
So, Graham's cardinal sin is to have called homosexuality a sin. Yet in condemning the practice of homosexuality, Graham is totally in line with the traditional Christian sexual ethic, which is part of the public teaching of the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox churches, the majority of Anglican Provinces around the world, and still officially upheld by the Church of England.
The Church of England's Book of Common Prayer describes sex outside of heterosexual marriage as "fornication". One of its Canons (rules), which its clergy are expected to uphold in their own teaching and practice, declares:
"The Church of England affirms, according to our Lord's teaching, that marriage is in its nature a union permanent and lifelong, for better for worse, till death them do part, of one man with one woman, to the exclusion of all others on either side, for the procreation and nurture of children, for the hallowing and right direction of the natural instincts and affections, and for the mutual society, help and comfort which the one ought to have of the other, both in prosperity and adversity" (Canon B30).
The truth is inescapable that Graham is in the Christian mainstream in his convictions on this controversial subject.
I was a parish vicar in Sheffield Diocese for 19 years and attended many events at the cathedral, including the Bishop's Shrove Tuesday lectures, Confirmations, Holy Week services and the swearing in of churchwardens.
In a letter to The Star, I tried to show that Graham's views, far from being "extreme", as the paper called them, are mainstream Christian. I also tried to anticipate the immediate heckle when anyone tries to defend the received biblical teaching of the Church on sexual morality: "That teaching cannot be blamed for the sexual abuse committed by church leaders and for the cover-ups. In fact, if the teaching had been followed, the abuse would not have happened."
It is sad to see the cathedral worshipping at the altar of neo-Marxist identity politics in its decision to jump on the cancel culture bandwagon against Franklin Graham.
Julian Mann is a former Church of England vicar, now an evangelical journalist.
Isaiah 29:16. How Does Mere Clay Dare To Criticise The Mighty Potter?
16) You turn things upside down,
as if the potter were thought to be like the clay!
Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it,“You did not make me”?
Can the pot say to the potter,
“You know nothing”?
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Destruction of Christian Marriage: The Consequences.
PETER HITCHENS: Our selfish dismantling of marriage has left children in a lonely Dickensian hell.
By killing lifelong marriage we are killing children. Liberal Britain cannot see this, but until somebody does, the tragedies will continue.
Last week great publicity was rightly given to a report on children’s social care. It predicted that the number of children in care, now 80,000, would rise to 100,000 by 2032, costing taxpayers a colossal £15 billion a year.
Of course many terrible things happen to children in so-called ‘care’ apart from actual violence and death. The general outcomes for children deprived of what we would once have called stable family life, and deprived of fathers, are just not very good.
No doubt plenty of social workers, foster parents and others do all they can, and I am not trying to criticise these individuals but they just cannot do what a loving, stable home can do.
By killing lifelong marriage we are killing children. Liberal Britain cannot see this, but until somebody does, the tragedies will continue
The report does recognise that ‘it is loving relationships that hold the solutions for children and families overcoming adversity’. But how will they be created by bureaucracy and state cash – the solutions generally offered by those who run our society?
A long time ago the Blairites promised us ‘joined-up thinking’, but in fact modern dogmas, in which there is no right and wrong and the old Christian rules are spurned, often refuse to see vital connections.
The tragedy of care is a direct consequence of 50 years in which the law, and our culture, have encouraged the idea that lifelong marriage is dispensable – a cruel prison from which adults should be free to escape. The latest loosening of the marriage laws, effectively allowing divorce on demand, follows the same failed view.
Should we not connect the number of children in care to the fact that, in England and Wales, the numbers getting married fell in 2019 to the lowest rate since records began? Less than 20 per cent of these weddings were in a religious building, where the idea that marriage is for life is still pretty much insisted upon.
Many modern weddings are lavish affairs in beautiful places, but they simply do not demand the commitment that couples used to make. And many modern couples, seeing which way the wind is blowing, never bother to marry at all. Such commitment is generally discouraged, even viewed as foolish.
And of course this results in much freer lives for adults in their prime, no longer tied down by crabby old rules. But the children are the ones who suffer, and whose freedom from worry and insecurity has been sacrificed to allow for grown-up freedoms to do as we will.
Among the well-off, the damage is generally not so bad, though there is damage. But among the poor, and in the parts of the country where the schools are bad and the streets are grim, it is another story. And that story often ends in care, with all its miseries, loneliness, insecurity and disappointment.
It is not the same sort of hell as the workhouses and the orphanages of the past were, but it can be hell even so. We need a modern Charles Dickens to depict it. If more people realised how bad it was, we might start to wonder if the gradual dismantling of stable marriage was such a good idea after all.
Blogger - furthermore the lack of realistic discipline in care homes leads to: crime; escapees walking out who cannot be physically prevented; sexual abuse - both inside care homes and through prostitution on the streets. They attract pimps and drug dealers who do not have the restrictions on them that staff do, who entice children out onto the streets.
There is wholesale bullying as the stronger prey on the weak.
How do I know all this? - Directly from people who attempt to foster these children and directly from workers in these horrendous places.
Until discipline is fully re-established - so many children's homes are simply unfit for purpose.
If You Couldn't Spot an Oxymoron Before ...
Britons are 'deluded' in thinking we have a more tolerant society than America, says Stephen Fry.
The actor and presenter, 64, said he was 'shocked and embarrassed' when he realised that he was a part of the problem with racism in Britain as a 'decent progressive' person. Mail.
Monday, May 30, 2022
A Moving Tale.
UKRAINE: RELEASE PARTNERS TELL OF COURAGE UNDER FIRE.
27 May 2022
Five Ukrainian Christians who were caring for hundreds sheltering in a church basement until they were killed in the fighting have been remembered by residents of Mariupol in Ukraine.
Partners of Release International broke the news of their story.
Days before their deaths, the Christians rescued a man trapped inside a burning building while the city was under attack and led him to the Lord.
The believers were gathering food and medicine for the 200 or so people who had to take shelter for weeks in the basement of Central Baptist Church in Mariupol. They were taking care of church members, relatives and neighbours, including some who were not Christians.
Bombardment
As they were braving the bombardment to gather supplies, they found writing on a nearby fence saying: ‘Help us. There is a baby that needs food.’
By the grace of God, they were able to find and deliver baby formula, even as the area came under constant fire.
Then a neighbour told the Christians that the owner of a home nearby which had come under attack was trapped in his basement.
The house had been shelled many times by Russian Grad missiles. It was smouldering, and finally burst into flames. There were no firefighters and little water, so the Christians had to improvise ways to fight the fire while they worked to rescue the man.
Buried
They sawed through the floor to get to the basement, where the owner, Vova, was unable to move. He was buried up to his waist with one leg pinned and a broken arm.
Stanislav Burdun was on the rescue team. He called out to Vova: ‘You will live. Do you believe that God will save you?’
Vova had been buried for ten hours and was frozen. The rescue team had to throw water over him repeatedly to extinguish the flames that were reaching towards him. But finally, they were able to pull him clear.
They carried Vova to the church using a door as a stretcher. They gave him tea, washed him, changed his clothes and took him to the hospital in the morning. Later they were able to visit Vova in hospital.
He had survived and declared he believed in God.
Stanislav’s wife, Victoria, believes God saved Vova’s life. She said: ‘Three times it seemed that everything was in vain. But we prayed and God helped us put out the fire. There was no shelling during this period. We thank God that he gave us the time to save him.’
No fear
Victoria says the team had no fear during the rescue operation, because weeks ago they had already resolved to lay down their lives for the Lord.
On February 28, she posted on her Facebook page, ‘We are not leaving anywhere and we are staying… My husband and I have no fear, and we are ready to die, if God wills!’
Victoria’s resolve would soon be put to the test.
On March 9, five rescuers, including her husband, left the church basement and drove off in a minivan in search of medicine and fuel. They never returned.
Later the burned-out shell of their vehicle was discovered, along with the bodies of four of the men. The car appeared to have taken a direct hit from a grenade launcher. A fifth man, Victoria’s husband, is still missing, presumed dead.
Faithful witness
Two of the dead were from Central Baptist Church in Mariupol. The remaining three were from Bethany Church, Mariupol.
Release International partner, ‘Pavel’, who is based in Kiev said: ‘I feel the terrible pain for my dear brothers. Very painful…’
Another partner of Release, Voice of the Martyrs Korea, is supporting each of the five widows with an emergency gift, including Victoria.
They say: ‘They bore faithful witness to Christ unto death.’
And thinking back to Vova, who was rescued from the rubble and put his faith in Christ, they add: ‘We will have one more brother in heaven because of their ministry.’
Pray.
Please keep praying for our brothers and sisters in Ukraine, that they will know God’s presence with them, remain faithful under fire, and lead others to Jesus during this time of trial.
And please pray for the Russian Orthodox priests who are risking all to take a stand against Russia’s war, which has the backing of their church.
Release Int.
What Are Our 'Asherah Poles' Today?
What Is an Asherah Pole?
These poles, or sometimes stylized trees, stood as a sacred monument and tribute to the Canaanite goddess, Asherah. According to Canaanite myth, this mother goddess created several gods in the Canaanite pantheon with the other creator god, El. The Canaanites often worshipped her via trees (Asherah poles) because of her association with the tree of life.
Throughout the Old Testament, we see the words “Asherah pole” often in conjunction with the practices of foreign religions. God appears to hate these objects, but what exactly are they?
Borne out of Canaanite religions, these objects tempted the Israelites throughout their history to stray after foreign gods instead of the one true God.
In this article, we’ll dive into the origin of Asherah poles, where they play a role in Israelite history, and why this matters for us today.
What Are They?
These poles, or sometimes stylized trees, stood as a sacred monument and tribute to the Canaanite goddess, Asherah.
According to Canaanite myth, this mother goddess created several gods in the Canaanite pantheon with the other creator god, El. The Canaanites often worshipped her via trees (Asherah poles) because of her association with the tree of life. She gives life to 70 other gods in the Canaanite pantheon.
She’s most famously the mother of Baal, another god who shows up throughout the Old Testament when the Israelites stray after other idols. She also has ties to fertility, hence 70 gods emerging from her union with El.
An Asherah pole, like the ones found here, often represented trees associated with this mother goddess, but some archeologists believe they used living trees for these objects of religion.
In their mythology, the Canaanites (or Israelites of a certain Canaanite cult) sometimes paired Asherah with Yahweh, as though she was Yahweh’s wife. Especially since El and Elohim have similar roots in name, it is suggested that maybe the Israelites formed a separate religion from a Canaanite one.
Some archeologists say that when the Israelites cut Asherah out of the picture, they moved from a polytheistic religion to a monotheistic one, but Scripture clearly indicates the opposite.
God condemned the worship of Asherah poles (Exodus 34:13 makes it clear that he is one and not one of a pantheon of gods, Deuteronomy 6:4) and condemned the Israelites engaging in pagan worship. The Canaanite religion fell under the umbrella of “pagan worship.” Any connection between God and Asherah is a perversion of the truth. God does not have a wife.
How Do They Play a Role in Israel’s History?
Nevertheless, they managed to find their way into Israel’s history as the nation rebelled against God.
We see that they made an appearance in Exodus 34:13, which means the Israelites engaged with pagan religions back during the time of Moses. We can see how their time spent in Egypt might have influenced them. When they were constantly bombarded by images of Egyptian polytheism, they might have let these elements seep into their own religion.
By the time of Gideon (Judges 6), we see that his father had a statue to Baal and an Asherah pole. This must mean that other Israelites also had such objects and regularly paid tribute to them.
The evil king of Israel, Ahab, also set up an Asherah pole (1 Kings 16:33). The list goes on, with about 40 mentions in the Bible.
Throughout the Old Testament, God had prophets and his people tear down these objects.
Why Does This Matter?
Does it matter that the Israelites kept these objects if they worshipped the one true God?
Yes, it matters.
First, God alone deserves our worship. If the Israelites placed their faith and hope in anything other than the Almighty, they would surely end up disappointed.
Not to mention the Canaanite religion had quite a few immoral myths and practices. Asherah, for instance, likely married her son after he supplanted El, reminiscent of an Oedipus Rex plot.
Second, it matters that we don’t mix paganism with Christianity.
Sure, we don’t pair God with Asherah, but do we try to marry him to something unholy? Do we have pagan worship practices at our churches, or try to mix a prosperity gospel with the real gospel?
We have to cut down our own Asherah poles!
Third, we have to be careful what influences us, and always balance our opinions against what Scripture truly says.
The Israelites spent a great deal of time in Egypt, 400 plus years. No doubt, during that time, pagan religions influenced their thinking. So, by the time we reach Exodus 34, God commands them to tear down Asherah poles.
In the same way, we don’t live in a Christian bubble. Through our media, our workplace, and our day-to-day activities, we absorb non-biblical ideas of the culture around us.
Whenever that happens, we have to remind ourselves about the truth of Scripture and God. The true God, not Asherah.
©iStock/Getty Images Plus/alberto clemares expósito
Hope Bolinger
Who Could Argue The Point?
I can put up with a certain amount of inconsistency, muddle-headedness and even hypocrisy in politics. As the American poet Walt Whitman wrote: “Do I contradict myself?/ Very well then I contradict myself,/ (I am large, I contain multitudes.)”But I draw the line when pundits self-righteously demand more action on net zero while at the same time complaining of “fuel poverty”. I bridle when lobbyists rage against the Australia and New Zealand trade deals because they will “flood” us with “cheap food”, and then have the nerve to moan about “food poverty”.... DT.
Isaiah 29:13. (Does This Sound Anything At All Like An Abundance of Our Churches Today?)
13 The Lord says:
“These people come near to me with their mouth
and honour me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
Their worship of me
is based on merely human rules they have been taught.
and honour me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
Their worship of me
is based on merely human rules they have been taught.
Sunday, May 29, 2022
After Mumford and Sons.
Winston Marshall, the former banjo player who left the famous British band Mumford & Sons after facing a barrage of attacks for a post on Twitter praising journalist Andy Ngo's book about Antifa, said after spending months reflecting on the matter, he feels like "I got my soul back."
Super.
New Oklahoma law requires students to use bathrooms that match their biological sex.
Unsplash/Tim MossholderOklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt has signed into law a measure that requires students in public schools to use bathrooms that correspond with their biological sex as opposed to their gender identity.
Stitt signed Senate Bill 615 Wednesday, which requires “each public school and public charter school that serves students in prekindergarten through twelfth grades in this state” to “require every multiple occupancy restroom or changing area designated” either “for the exclusive use of the male sex” or “for the exclusive use of the female sex.”
The bill defines “sex” as “the condition of being male or female based on genetics and physiology, as identified on the individual’s original birth certificate.”
The measure contains a provision requiring schools to “provide a reasonable accommodation to any individual who does not wish to comply” with the requirement that students use bathrooms and changing areas designated for their biological sex.
It cites “access to a single-occupancy restroom or changing room” as the reasonable accommodation schools can offer. In other words, trans-identified students who do not want to use bathrooms that match their biological sex can use single-occupancy restrooms.
A school district’s failure to comply with the law will result in a 5% decrease in state funding “for the fiscal year following the year of noncompliance.” The bill took effect immediately following its approval.
Stitt’s signature followed the Republican-controlled Senate’s 38-7 vote to approve the measure on May 19 and the House of Representatives’ approval of the legislation in a 69-14 vote that same day.
The bill was nearly unanimously opposed by Democrats, with one Democrat voting in favor in the Senate and no Democrats supporting it in the House.
Tanya Cox-Toure, the executive director of the ACLU of Oklahoma, condemned the legislation in a statement.
“Transgender people are part of our families, our workplaces, and our neighborhoods, and they, like everyone else, need to be able to safely access restrooms,” she said.
“By singling out transgender students for discrimination and excluding them from restrooms that match their gender identity, SB 615 discriminates based on transgender status and sex in violation of the United States Constitution and Title IX of the Civil Rights Act,” Cox-Toure added. “These violations put Oklahoma at risk of losing hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding, and harms transgender youth, all to solve a problem that plainly does not exist.”
The activist insisted that transgender individuals “go to the restroom just like everyone else, and their presence harms no one.”
“SB 615 has and will continue to cause severe harms to transgender students who are just trying to live their lives and go to school alongside their peers," Cox-Toure stressed.
Policies allowing trans-identified students to use bathrooms that correspond with their gender identity have received increased scrutiny across the U.S.
The proposed implementation of such a policy led to massive protests in Loudoun County, Virginia, where school district leadership assured concerned parents that no sexual assaults had taken place in girls’ bathrooms at the hands of male students.
However, three weeks before the contentious Loudoun County school board meeting, a sexual assault did occur in a girls’ bathroom at one of the high schools in Loudoun County, committed against a girl by a boy reportedly wearing a skirt. The two students had a previous history of romantic involvement.
Emails released by the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office showed that district leadership was aware of the sexual assault on the day that it occurred, leading to a conclusion by outraged parents that Superintendent Scott Ziegler misled parents at the June 2021 school board meeting.
Critics of the Loudoun County Public Schools claim that the district deliberately concealed the sexual assault in an effort to avoid the derailment of a proposed policy that would allow trans-identified students to use bathrooms and locker rooms that align with their gender identity.
The school board ultimately approved the policy in August 2021, and news of the sexual assault broke two months later.
Concerns about biological males using areas where women are partially or completely undressed extend beyond public schools.
Last year, a video of a woman confronting employees at a Korean spa in Los Angeles for allowing a trans-identified male with his genitals exposed to enter an area where females, including little girls, were naked went viral. When employees defended letting the man use women’s facilities based on his self-identified “sexual orientation,” the woman responded “What sexual orientation? I see a d***!”
Besides Oklahoma, other states that have passed laws requiring students to use bathrooms that correspond with their biological sex include Tennessee and North Carolina. The North Carolina law was derided as a “bathroom bill” by critics, and backlash led to the bill’s repeal in 2017. CP.
Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: ryan.foley@christianpost.com
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Franklin Graham preached in Glasgow, launches new fund to defend religious freedom in the UK. Staff writer Franklin Graham preaching at ...
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https://www.christianpost.com/voices/marys-magnificat-the-wait-is-over.html
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The Tories have almost wholly given up on conservative principles. What a tragic waste