Christianity: How Christian celebrities can avoid failing the fame test - by Leah MarieAnn Klett

When a monthslong independent investigation found credible evidence that Ravi Zacharias leveraged his reputation as a world-famous apologist to carry out years of sexual abuse, the response from the evangelical community was predictably one of shock, horror and grief.

Many questioned how this pastor could effectively masquerade as a humble servant of Christ and fool millions of adoring supporters? How could this respected intellectual who preached the Gospel of Jesus with clarity and passion brazenly manipulate vulnerable women into providing him with sexual stimulation?

Read more at: How Christian celebrities can avoid failing the fame test | Church & Ministries News

Christianity: America’s evangelical church is being torn apart by culture wars - by Barry Hankins

Is the Southern Baptist Convention – the largest and arguably most powerful Protestant denomination in the United States – being held together by culture wars instead of Biblical teaching? That is the question in recent weeks, as thousands of Southern Baptists gathered in Nashville for their annual meeting to determine the bitterly contested future of the convention. The most segregated metropolitan area in the US according to the study is New York City, followed by Chicago, Milwaukee and Detroit. ‘Where you live determines everything’: why segregation is growing in the US Read more

Many conservative members of the denomination seem to have seen in Donald Trump’s populist authoritarianism a last-gasp chance to save white Christian America – theology, and, for Trump, Christian morality, be damned.

Read more at: America’s evangelical church is being torn apart by culture wars | Barry Hankins | The Guardian

Indonesia: Religious fraternity: : Eid al-Fitr: Jokowi Also Greets Christians on Ascension Day of Jesus Christ

President Joko Widodo or Jokowi greeted and congratulated the nation’s Christians on the day of the Ascension of Jesus Christ that took place in conjunction with the 1442 Hijri Eid al-Fitr on Thursday, May 13, 2021.

“To all of my Christian brothers and sisters, I would like to wish for peace, love and health for us all,” Jokowi said on his official Instagram account @jokowi, Thursday, May 13, 2021.

The Instagram post shows an animated picture of the President on the screen of a cell-phone in front of four Christians who clasp their palms—also on the screen of a cell-phone. Two flying doves are seen beside each of the pictures.
The Eid al-Fitr this year is celebrated alongside the Ascension Day of Jesus Christ on Thursday. The determination of the Eid al-Fitr Day was based on the isbat (confirmation) meeting presided over by Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas at the ministry building’s HM Rasjidi Auditorium in Jakarta on Tuesday, May 11, 2021.

Read more at: Eid al-Fitr: Jokowi Also Greets Christians on Ascension Day of Jesus Christ - News en.tempo.co

'USA - Evangelical right challenged: Allergic reaction to US religious right' fueling decline of religion, experts say - by Adam Gabatt

Fewer than half of Americans belong to a house of worship, a new study shows, but religion – and Christianity in particular – continues to have an outsize influence in US politics, especially because it is declining faster among Democrats than Republicans.

Just 47% of the US population are members of a church, mosque or synagogue, according to a survey by Gallup, down from 70% two decades ago – in part a result of millennials turning away from religion but also, experts say, a reaction to the swirling mix of rightwing politics and Christianity pursued by the Republican party.

The evidence comes as Republicans in some states have pursued extreme “Christian nationalist” policies, attempting to force their version of Christianity on an increasingly uninterested public.

Read more at: 'Allergic reaction to US religious right' fueling decline of religion, experts say | World news | The Guardian

Christianity: Questions you were afraid to ask in Church

Calvary Chapel in Fort Lauderdale had a special surprize in store for their congregation this past Sunday. A one hour question and answer session, on every kind of question one might have on Christianity, but either never did ask, or if they did, was given an unsatisfactory answer. Impressive and to the point Enjoy the clarity and openness of it, and pass it on to anyone you think would benefit from it.

To watch, click here: https://calvaryftl.org/series/97/sermon/788/questions-youre-afraid-to-ask-in-church/

The Mysterious Universe: the link between Christianity and the Universe ia well established and no mystery to believers - by RM

On a clear night, when you look up to the sky and see the billions of twinkling stars, of which many support planets, like the planet we live on, we would be completely ignorant not to question the existence of life on other planets.The concept of the Universe, however, already is a mystery, which can only lead you to a Creator for its origin, because there is no other reliable technical or mathematical way to explain it.

So, ultimately, the discovery of intelligent aliens isn't likely to pose a serious crisis for Christianity, who believe in a Creator .They also believe that the penalty for those that sin is death (Romans 6:23). They believe that to rectify the circumstances they are in, God sent His only Son Jesus to die in their place, to take their punishment for sin (Romans 5:8). After Jesus’ death, He arose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:3-6). Jesus is the only way to God (John 14:6) and He provides the blessing of salvation. Each person has the choice to receive or reject our Creator's gift through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9) and experience new birth (John 3:1-8).

If all this doesn't sound like it comes from the Creator of the Universe, I do not know what will. So don't worry about or deny the existence of aliens.

EU-Digest

Christianity: 25 Most Popular Churches in America

While some churches may have trouble filling their pews, the appeal of megachurches continues to grow. The Hartford Institute for Religion Research (HIRR) defines megachurches as Protestant Christian congregations with a sustained average weekly attendance of 2,000 or more people, including children, at its worship services, at all its worship locations. In its most recent […]

Read more at:
https://247wallst.com/special-report/2019/11/01/25-most-popular-churches-in-america/

A Protestant View of Globalization (Part I) - The Globalist

What prevents many Christians from developing a theological perspective on today's globalized world?

Read  more at :
https://www.theglobalist.com/a-protestant-view-of-globalization-part-i/

How Do Christians Fit Into the Two-Party System? They Don’t - by Timothy Keller

How 81 percent of evangelicals could have voted for Donald Trump, given his flouting of their “traditional values,” has been a question for many Americans since 2016.

What should the role of Christians in politics be? More people than ever are asking that question. Christians cannot pretend they can transcend politics and simply “preach the Gospel.” Those who avoid all political discussions and engagement are essentially casting a vote for the social status quo. American churches in the early 19th century that did not speak out against slavery because that was what we would now call “getting political” were actually supporting slavery by doing so. To not be political is to be political.

A major  reason not to align the Christian faith with one party or the other is that most political positions are not matters of biblical command but of practical wisdom. This does not mean that the church can never speak on social, economic and political realities, because the Bible often does. Racism is a sin, violating the second of the two great commandments of Jesus, to “love your neighbor.” The biblical commands to lift up the poor and to defend the rights of the oppressed are moral imperatives for believers. For individual Christians to speak out against egregious violations of these moral requirements is not optional.

Nevertheless, while believers can register under a party affiliation and be active in politics, they should not identify the Christian church or faith with a political party as the only Christian one. There are a number of reasons to insist on this.

One is that it gives those considering the Christian faith the strong impression that to be converted, they need not only to believe in Jesus but also to become members of the (fill in the blank) Party. It confirms what many skeptics want to believe about religion — that it is merely one more voting bloc aiming for power.

Another reason Christians these days cannot allow the church to be fully identified with any particular party is the problem of what the British ethicist James Mumford calls “package-deal ethics.” Increasingly, political parties insist that you cannot work on one issue with them if you don’t embrace all of their approved positions.

This emphasis on package deals puts pressure on Christians in politics. For example, following both the Bible and the early church, Christians should be committed to racial justice and the poor, but also to the understanding that sex is only for marriage and for nurturing family. One of those views seems liberal and the other looks oppressively conservative. The historical Christian positions on social issues do not fit into contemporary political alignments.

So Christians are pushed toward two main options. One is to withdraw and try to be apolitical. The second is to assimilate and fully adopt one party’s whole package in order to have your place at the table. Neither of these options is valid. In the Good Samaritan parable told in the Gospel of Luke, Jesus points us to a man risking his life to give material help to someone of a different race and religion. Jesus forbids us to withhold help from our neighbors, and this will inevitably require that we participate in political processes. If we experience exclusion and even persecution for doing so, we are assured that God is with us (Matthew 5:10-11) and that some will still see our “good deeds and glorify God” (1 Peter 2:11-12). If we are only offensive or only attractive to the world and not both, we can be sure we are failing to live as we ought.

The Gospel gives us the resources to love people who reject both our beliefs and us personally. Christians should think of how God rescued them. He did it not by taking power but by coming to earth, losing glory and power, serving and dying on a cross. How did Jesus save? Not with a sword but with nails in his hands.

Ben Howe, a US conservative activist who went through a change of heart during the 2016 primaries. Mr Howe who is also a writer, podcaster and filmmaker, grew up in what he describes as an “ideal” evangelical family.

He writes, that even though Trump did get things done for evangelicals, like nominating justices opposed to abortion, he sees in the president “untold chasms of depravity.” And he accuses Trump of pulling many evangelicals into “a vortex of moral ambiguity and relativism,” surrendering their moral voice in the public sphere for a bit of worldly influence.

Note EU-Digest: Timothy Keller, who wrote the complete essay of this EU-Digest report for the New York Times, is the founder of the Redeemer Presbyterian churches in New York City, and the author of “Prodigal Prophet: Jonah and the Mystery of God’s Mercy,” from which this essay is adapted.

EU-Digest

France - Paris: Historic Notre Dame goes up in flames: Huge fire underway at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris

Notre Dame, Paris France

A "significant fire" broke out at the iconic Notre Dame Cathedral in central Paris at 7 pm local time,
according to the national police.

Smoke could be seen billowing out from the top of the medieval cathedral, as flames leapt out beside its two bell towers.

French fire services said they are "not sure" if the fire can be stopped, according to AFP.
 
Both the spire and roof of the cathedral have now collapsed.

Footage from the scene showed flames inside one of the building's two towers.

Notre Dame Cathedral is considered one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture and is perhaps the most famous church in the world. It is the cathedral of the Catholic Archdiocese of Paris and work was begun in 1163 and completed in 1345.  During the French Revolution, the cathedral was rededicated to the Cult of Reason, and then to the Cult of the Supreme Being and many of the treasures of the cathedral were either destroyed or plundered

WATCH MORE: Moment Notre Dame Cathedral's spire comes crashing down amid fire

Live updates: Huge fire underway at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris | Euronews

The Netherlands: Dutch churches for sale as congregations dwindle

Research by Herman Wesselink indicates that nearly 1,000 churches will be left without congregations by 2030 mainly because of population movement. Wesselink states that the Dutch public have distanced themselves from the church over the last 50 years, and that congregations are becoming a thing of the past.

In 1968, 2.7 million Dutch Catholics attended church on a weekly basis. In 2016, this figure plummeted to 173,000. It is expected that in 2030, a mere 63,000 Dutch Catholics will be weekly church goers.

As a result, Wesselink believes that few churches will remain open in big Dutch cities while many will be shut down and sold off in smaller towns.

Note EU-Digest: Sign of the times, or the result of the fact that many of today's Pastors and Priests are unable to properly articulate, or be a living example of the revolutionary message, and the extraordinary transformation available to People, Jesus preached about?

Read more: Dutch churches for sale as congregations dwindle

EU - Christian Community Wake-up Call - Trump visit - Join and encourage protests against Trump's visit to the EU and show that Christian revolutionary compasion is still alive and well

Bozo is in town - please give him a "warm" welcome

Many historical scholars will tell us that Jesus Christ can be considered a revolutionary leader, even today. 

In the sense that he refused to be a narrow political leader that would just make Judea (todays Israel) politically powerful.  

His mission was worldwide to benefit all mankind; leveling the importance of power and wealth.

He was equally compassionate and attentive to: women, tax collectors, foreigners inclusing Roman Centurians, Lepers, those crippled, those blind, insane Gentiles, Samaritans, Pharisees (though he brought some of them up short for their hypocrisy), Sinners, Rulers of the Synagogue, and very rich people, including Nobility.

Unfortunately today his doctrine is only given "lip service" in many Christian Churches around the world, in particular  the US and Europe.  

What has happened to the revolutionary Spirit of compassion and involvement Jesus spoke about ? 

Case in point. When in recent weeks the US government’s abusive and widely condemned policy of separating migrant children from their families was publicly criticized, the attorney general Jeff Session of the Trump Administration responded, by quoting the New Testament writer Paul, who in the book of Romans calls on people to obey the laws of the government. Really?.

That this would have ruled out the actions of Jesus himself, was seemingly lost on Sessions, as indeed was the fact that Jesus’s family were forced to escape across borders. 

Or the fact that Psalm 202.28 states: "The children of your servants shall dwell secure; their offspring shall be established before you", and as we read in Mark 9:42: "Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea".

But the Sessions incident highlighted the problem that Christianity has and the problems that are still being created. 

To put it bluntly: in the 2016 presidential election a majority of practicing Christians in the USA voted for the most racist and misogynistic candidate going, and in so doing helping Donald Trump to the position of the most powerful person in the world. 

Against such a background it’s easy to forget that the movement from which Christianity emerged was one that shared possessions in common, renounced war and at least in some ways modelled more progressive understandings of gender than was generally accepted in those days  To use some words that weren’t around at that time in history; human rights, democracy, pacifismt and pro-feminism.. 

It is easy and quite hypocritical in a way, to externalize modern day problems as happening a long way away, or to personalize them in the name of political leaders; but when injustice is being justified in the name of one of the worlds largest faiths, professed by most of the EU population, it is important for us to voice our protest.

Trump’s ‘America First’ ideology has many similarities with those of  other dangerous nationalist- populists around the world..

Trump has also not attempedt to conceal his admiration for other populist movements around the world. He openly supported the Brexit movement, and populist Marianne Le Pen's campaign in the French Presidential election against President Emmanual Macron. He also hails authoritarian 'strongmen' like Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, and Vladimir Putin.  He obviously, secretly, envies their freedom of action, and probably wonders why the restraints of this "bourgeois democracy" continuously tie his hands behind his back. 

In the relatively short time period the current Trump administration has been in power,Trump pulled the US out from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the Paris agreement on climate change and the Iran deal. He also withdrewn the US from the United Nations' top human rights body and plans to end NAFTA -- while his recently announced tariffs affecting the EU, China, Mexico and Canada, are on the verge of starting a global trade war.

These International actions, however, are only the top of the Iceberg, in comparison to the changes his administration has already made on the home front, negatively affecting peoples health, immigration policies, taxes,  and personal freedom.

And now.... Donald Trump has arrived in Europe, arrogant and cocky as ever.

Check out your local press and social media for additional details of the Donald Trump visit to the EU, and where demonstrations will be held in your area---and please attend.

Trump's program which starts this afternoon July 10 in Brussels, where Trump will meet with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, before participating in high-level sessions with the 28 allies on Wednesday July 11. and Thursday July 12th at the NATO headquarters.

On the 13th of July he will be in Britain where he will meet Prime Minister Theresa May, Queen Elizabeth II and business leaders, before heading to the Trump resort in Scotland on Friday evening, where he’s expected to play some golf over the weekend.  

The US president is due to spend his first and only night in London at the US ambassador’s official residence, Winfield House, in Regent’s Park. Over the weekend he will be going to Scotland for some golf and probably stay at his luxury hotel he owns in Ayrshire, the Trump Turnberry  

On Sunday evening July 15, Trump will fly further north to Helsinki, Finland for a one-on-one meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Given the backdrop of international trade tensions following Trump’s tariff increases; the litany of retaliatory measures announced by U.S. allies including the European Union (EU); Trump’s criticism of NATO; and close scrutiny of his administration’s links to Russia — some of these encounters are bound to be less congenial than others.

The role that we as individuals can each play is to join in demonstrations, wherever they may be held in in Europe. 

You might feel this does not add up to much, but together it can add up in disrupting the US president’s hoped-for, and loved media PR opportunity, by showing an alternative to what he stands for. 

But that is only a first step. The bigger job is, after acknowledging the problem, to dismantle the scaffolding of structural racism, and economic inequality,  that allowed Trump to get where he is today, and which allow comparable policies to happen in Europe and around the world. 

If you live or have family or friends in the areas where Trump is visiting please pass this article along and encourage them to demonstrate. 

Make Trump understand his Administrations policies are not acceptable in the EU.

EU-Digest

Middle East Christian Communities: Why Did Christian Leaders in the Middle East Shun Vice President Pence's Visit?

The Middle East At Easter: "the US 
want Jesus to be a political Jesus"

According to Israeli news outlet Haaretz, Christian leaders in the Middle East shunned Vice President Mike Pence in his recent trip to their countries.

Christian leaders in Egypt and Jerusalem reportedly decided to boycott his visit, in an attempt to protest President Trump’s December 7th recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Pence was unable to visit Bethlehem, the city where Jesus was born, because it is located in the occupied region of the West Bank controlled by the Palestinian Authority who declared that Pence was ” unwelcome in Palestine.”

Pence declared that recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital is the “only true foundation for a just and lasting peace.” Arab Christians apparently disagree, wanting East Jerusalem to be the capital of a non-Israeli Arab state. Protestors held signs that read, “Pence you are desecrating our land. Pence go home.”

Pence reportedly completed his visit to the Middle East without meeting with any prominent Christian leaders from Egypt, Jordan and Israel. In his meeting with the Egyptian president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, Pence raised the issue of protecting Egypt’s Christians from persecution.

After meeting with King Abdullah of Jordan, Pence’s remarks made clear their disagreement over a two state solution: “Friends occasionally have disagreements, and we agreed to disagree on recognizing Jerusalem. We agreed all parties need to come to the table. I hope I impressed on him our earnest desire to restart the peace process.”

In his speech to the Knesset today Pence used religious symbolism, quoted from the bible, and explained his support for Israel as a moral and religious obligation, not solely a political one. His speech was interrupted by numerous standing ovations by Israeli  Knesset members.

According to The Associated Press, Palestinian Christians reject Pence’s “brand” of Christianity:

They argue that such streams of evangelical Christianity have used religion to whitewash Israel’s harsh policies during its half-century-old rule over millions of Palestinians.

“For me, it’s a sick ideology,” said Munib Younan, the recently retired bishop of the small Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land and former president of the Lutheran World Federation, an umbrella for churches with millions of believers.

 “When I say Jesus is love, they want my Jesus to be a political Jesus,” Younan, 67, a Jerusalem-born Palestinian, said in a recent interview at his West Bank church.

The AP adds that while Christian Arabs are a minority living in the West Bank, they lived peacefully next to their Muslim Arab neighbors, describing their neighborhoods as places “where the pealing of church bells often blends with the Muslim call to prayer.”

Note EU-Digest - Jesus Christ represents love, not hatred or violence, and if politics and fanaticism was not injected into the Middle East as a result of  foreign interventions,  historical peaceful coexistence would still prevail there today.   

Read more: Why Did Christian Leaders in the Middle East Shun Vice President Pence's Visit?

'Christianity as default is gone': the rise of a non-Christian Europe - by Harriet Sherwood

Europe’s march towards a post-Christian society has been starkly illustrated by research showing a majority of young people in a dozen countries do not follow a religion.

The survey of 16- to 29-year-olds found the Czech Republic is the least religious country in Europe, with 91% of that age group saying they have no religious affiliation.

Between 70% and 80% of young adults in Estonia, Sweden and the Netherlands also categorise themselves as non-religious.

The two most religious countries, Poland and Lithuania, and the two least religious, the Czech Republic and Estonia, are post-communist states.

The trend of religious affiliation was repeated when young people were asked about religious practice. Only in Poland, Portugal and Ireland did more than 10% of young people say they attend services at least once a week

Note Almere-Digest.  Pew Research Center in 2015 said Europe’s Christian population is expected to shrink by around 100 million people in the coming decades. Maybe, as someone suggested, it is not that there is something wrong with the message, but rather that today the problem lies with those who bring the message. 

It seems they have forgotten that Jesus, in most, if not all his spiritual teachings, professed an egalitarian society, whereby the division between rich and poor has been erased. It is little wonder that the Romans crucified him, and that his followers were persecuted. And, of course, it is the polar opposite of what today's "conservatives" stand for. 

Early Christians practiced a form of "socialism". Acts of the Apostles tells us, "The believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he or she had need." Isn't it time for Christians to become revolutionary again when it comes to bringing the message of redemption, and willing to fight for it?

Read more: 'Christianity as default is gone': the rise of a non-Christian Europe | World news | The Guardian

Christianity: Billy Graham: Influential US evangelist dies at 99

US evangelist Billy Graham - one of the most influential preachers of the 20th Century - has died aged 99. 

Graham became one of the best-known promoters of Christianity, beginning his worldwide mission in large arenas in London in 1954.

He died at his home in Montreat, North Carolina, a spokesman for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association said.

In a 60-year career, he is estimated to have preached to hundreds of millions of people.

Read more: Billy Graham: Influential US evangelist dies at 99 - BBC News

Christianity under threat: ‘Worst Year Yet’: The Top 50 Countries Where It’s Hardest to Be a Christian: by Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra

For decades, North Korea has clearly been the world’s worst persecutor of Christians. But now, another nation nearly matches it.

Open Doors recently released its 2018 World Watch List (WWL), an annual ranking of the 50 countries where it is most dangerous to follow Jesus. Approximately 215 million Christians now experience high, very high, or extreme levels of persecution; that means 1 in 12 Christians live where Christianity is “illegal, forbidden, or punished,” according to Open Doors researchers.

Kim Jung-un’s country hasn’t moved from the No. 1 spot on the list for 16 years in a row. “With more than 50,000 in prison or labor camps, such a ranking is little surprise for the totalitarian regime that controls every aspect of life in the country and forces worship of the Kim family,” Open Doors reported.

But rivaling it this year is Afghanistan, which ranked No. 2 by less than a point. North Korea’s total score was 94 (on a 100-point scale), pushed above Afghanistan’s 93 by a 0.6 difference in their 

Open Doors recently released its latest World Watch List (WWL). The annual list ranks the top 50 countries "where Christians face the most persecution," aiming to create "effective anger" on believers' behalf.

“This year, the threshold was higher for a country to make the list, indicating that worldwide levels of persecution have increased,” stated Open Doors in announcing its analysis of the "significant trends" in 2014 that drove persecution higher worldwide, "even in places where it has not been reported in the past."

So while countries such as Sri Lanka and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) fell significantly in rank on this year's watch list (Sri Lanka dropped 15 spots to No. 44, and the UAE dropped 14 spots to No. 49), their level of persecution dropped only slightly from last year's list (by four points and two points, respectively, on a 100-point scale). 

Bahrain, Morocco, and Niger—were removed from the list this year, the level of persecution in each remained virtually the same from 2013 to 2014.

Overall in 2014, pressure on Christians increased in 29 countries, decreased in 11, and remained stable in 7. Three countries—Mexico, Turkey, and Azerbaijan—were added to the watch list this year. 

To get the complete report click go to: https://www.opendoorsusa.org/2018-world-watch-list-report/

Read more: ‘Worst Year Yet’: The Top 50 Countries Where It’s Hardest to Be a Christian | News & Reporting | Christianity Today

Turkey authorizes the construction of a church

Turkey has authorized the construction of an Assyrian church in Istanbul. This will be the first construction of a place for Christian worship since the fall of Ottoman Empire at the end of the First World War.

Turkish law prohibits the construction of churches even though the country provides shelter to several Christian patriarchs.

However, several years ago, a derogation was granted to re-establish liturgic celebration in an old Church.

Turkish law has also applied in the Northern part of Cyprus, since Turkish occupation in 1974. Deceitfully, official tourist leaflets present Christian places of worship, now derelict, as “castles”.

By way of comparison, since President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan came to power, more than 9 000 mosques have been built in Turkey.

The nuncio (Pope’s ambassador) appointed to Ankara by the Pope is not registered as Monseigneur Paul Russell, but as His Excellency, Ambassador Paul Russell.

Read more: Turkey authorizes the construction of a church

Our planet - Just Evil Terrorists? or do we live on a planet populated by Evil People?

Once again, the world has been shocked by another evil terrorist attack, committed by a radical, religiously and politically brainwashed human being, killing many innocent people. .

This act deserves nothing but condemnation - but when you really start thinking about evil, isn't there evil all around us, and unfortunately also in all of us.

Isn't it evil, when governments invest more in their military, than in universal healthcare, or in taking care of the environment? 

Isn't it evil, to carpet bomb and kill hundreds of thousands of civilians in proxy wars, and calling  the casualties "collateral damage ? "

Isn't it evil, when corporations consider profits more important than the health of human beings? re:industrial pollution; the genetic manipulation of foods;  the production and sale of pesticides, all of these having caused a number of health effects, which today are linked to a range of serious illnesses and diseases in humans, from respiratory problems to cancer ?

Of course many people reading this will say: "that is all good and well, but I am certainly not an evil person".

Really?  what about : jealousy, lies. cheating, gluttony,intimidation, lust, fornication, pride, - all evil acts .Can anyone honestly say they never had anything to do with any of those evils listed ?

Evil is evil, lesser, greater, middling - makes no difference. The degree is arbitrary, the definition blurred. If one would have to choose between one evil and another, It is better not to choose at all.

Christians, in contrast to all other beliefs, know, they are not alone in their sufferings and struggles against evil. They know they are all in this battle together, and that everyone will experience trials. 

"Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time” (Revelation 12:12).

If we consider the whole picture, specially now we get bombarded daily by all kinds of alarming news, there should be no doubt in our minds, that this is Satan’s world and planet, rather than God’s. Paul even refers to these times as “this present evil age” (Galatians 1:4).

However, Satan will not always dominate planet earth. Biblical prophecy reveals that an astounding series of events will shake our world, as never before and usher in a new age—a 1,000-year era under the reign of Jesus Christ in the Kingdom of God (Matthew 6:10; Luke 21:31).

God never promised that believers wouldn’t have suffering, but He did promise to be with us through it.    Jesus said, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)

EU-Digest 

The US has come to the end of white Christian America. What will that mean? by Jason Wilson

merica is a Christian nation: this much has always been a political axiom, especially for conservatives. Even someone as godless and immoral as the 45th president feels the need to pay lip service to the idea. On the Christian Broadcasting Network last year, he summarized his own theological position with the phrase: “God is the ultimate.”

And in the conservative mind, American Christianity has long been hitched to whiteness. The right learned, over the second half of the 20th century, to talk about this connection using abstractions like “Judeo-Christian values”, alongside coded racial talk, to let voters know which side they were on.

But change is afoot, and US demographics are morphing with potentially far-reaching consequences. Last week, in a report entitled America’s Changing Religious Identity, the nonpartisan research organization Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) concluded that white Christians were now a minority in the US population.

Soon, white people as a whole will be, too.

The survey is no ordinary one. It was based on a huge sample of 101,000 Americans from all 50 states, and concluded that just 43% of the population were white Christians. To put that in perspective, in 1976, eight in 10 Americans were identified as such, and a full 55% were white Protestants. Even as recently as 1996, white Christians were two-thirds of the population.

White Christianity was always rooted in the nation’s history, demographics and culture. Among North America’s earliest and most revered white settlers were Puritan Protestants.

The big picture is the steady erosion of America’s white majority. Due mostly to Asian and Hispanic immigration, and the consolidation of already established immigrant populations, white people will be a minority by 2042. This will be true of under-18s as soon as 2023. According to Pew’s projections, in the century between 1965 and 2065, white people will have gone from 85% of the population to 46%.

Note EU-Digest: the question one might ask  Does this really matter given that America's strength is really also its diversity.

Read more: We're at the end of white Christian America. What will that mean? | US news | The Guardian

USA: God has given Trump authority to take out North Korea's Kim Jong Un, evangelical pastor Robert Jeffress says - S. P. Bailey

Texas megachurch pastor Robert Jeffress, one of President Trump’s evangelical advisers who preached the morning of his inauguration, has released a statement saying the president has the moral authority to “take out” North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

“When it comes to how we should deal with evildoers, the Bible, in the book of Romans, is very clear: God has endowed rulers full power to use whatever means necessary — including war — to stop evil,” Jeffress said.

“In the case of North Korea, God has given Trump authority to take out Kim Jong Un.”

Jeffress said in a phone interview that he was prompted to make the statement after Trump said that if North Korea’s threats to the United States continue, Pyongyang will be “met with fire and fury like the world has never seen.”

Note EU-Digest: How crazy can you get? People like "Pastor" Robert Jeffress are the ones giving Christianity a bad rap.


Read more: God has given Trump authority to take out North Korea's Kim Jong Un, evangelical pastor Robert Jeffress says - The Washington Post