Trump posts AI image of himself as pope on Truth Social

The picture was published without comment or explanation on the US president's personal account - and then on the White House X and Instagram accounts.

Last week, he was asked by reporters on the White House lawn who he would like to succeed Francis and he replied: "I'd like to be Pope. That would be my number one choice."

From the official White House X account:

This is a very depressing 3 part series by - you guessed it - Matt Bevan of the Australian ABC's "If you're listening."

It has implications for America as well - for all democracies exposed to the increasingly crazy world of social media.

Part 1:

Can Canada & Australia defeat Facebook? | If You're Listening​

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Part 2:

How Musk and Zuckerberg cooked our elections | If You're Listening​

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Part 3 is next week

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Holy See’s former Secretary of State who considered by many Vatican experts as the front-runner to succeed Pope Francis, was stricken with a sudden illness that may hinder his chances in his race for the papacy.

Vatican journalist Diane Montagna tweeted today that the 70-year-old Cardinal “reportedly suffered a sudden illness due to elevated blood pressure & was attended to by a medical team that assisted him for an hour. The incident was reported by Italian journalist Nicos Puntoni.”

Parolin has been a towering figure in Vatican, church and international circles for over two decades. In 2013 he was appointed as the Vatican’s Secretary of State, the number two position in the Holy See; in 2014 Pope Francis made him a Cardinal.

Parolin was expected to preside over the upcoming Papal Conclave and many Vatican observers saw him as the favorite to succeed Francis and continue his progressive programs. Still, others see Parolin’s sudden health problems and how they may affect his performance at the Conclave in a different light.

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Good church service at the church I went to Sunday. They really encourage good worship. That Sunday they had a speaker from Lebanon. Good worship, smiley faces, and then a good time in the word really made for a nice Sunday!

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MS-13, or Mara Salvatrucha 13, formed in the late 1980s and early 1990s, according to federal officials, and has since become one of the most notorious criminal enterprises in the country, relying more on violent attacks than traditional criminal activities.
In New York, the ferocious gang established a strong presence on Long Island, peaking in 2015, and leaving a long trail of ruthless and merciless violence in its path.

Especially with the money they reaped during the Biden administration it is going to be a monumental task to eradicate them from our country.

We have no choice but to continue carrying the cross of the karmic memory that the universe makes us day after day, second by second.

In this video Charlie Kirk and Michael Knowles compare various views/differences between Catholicism and Protestant/Evangelical teaching


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At one point it appears that (Evangelical/Protestant) Charlie Kirk argues that doctrine should not matter and then Michael (Catholic) tends to argue that it does matter. I agree with Michael on that one.

But then they skirt around their differences on transubstantiation - body and bread at the Communion table.

When Charlie indicates that he believes these are symbols of Christ's body and not actual flesh and blood -- I think that there is a context in which both Catholics and Evangelical/Protestants agree 100%.

Both say that when Protestants/Evangelicals celebrate the Lord's Supper - in fact the bread and the grape juice remain -- bread and grape juice. Absolutely no Transubstantiation occurs. In fact Catholic documents say that if one takes an electron microscope and analyze the bread - it is still bread... going all the way down to carbon atom based molecular structure.

Where they differ - is the Catholic claim that Holy Orders convey some "mark of the soul" on the priest that enables them to have the powers to confect what some Catholic authors call "the body, blood, soul and divinity" of Christ in a way that the electron microscope cannot detect.

And both Protestants and Catholics agree that the non-Catholic groups claim no such "marking of the soul" for pastors/priests such that they can in any way confect "the body, blood, soul and divinity" of Christ .

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Just one example of their differences

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Another observation - they have a difficult time comparing notes - without an appeal to "Common ground".

One such common ground is "scripture" - they both agree that 66 books are inspired scripture, but the Catholic view would be that so also are 11 more books.

As Kirk points out - those 11 added books are not NT Christian age books - they are OT Jewish books and the Jews themselves do not consider them to be inspired texts though they do think they are important to read and know about.

Maine settles lawsuit against USDA over $3 million in school funds​

The Department of Agriculture agreed it will not interfere with Maine school funding based on alleged Title IX violations without following the proper procedure, according to a settlement announced Friday.

Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced in March that she would freeze funding to Maine education, saying the state violates Title IX because its student-athlete policies allow transgender girls to compete on girls sports teams.

In the settlement, signed Friday morning, the agency agreed not to freeze, terminate or interfere with the state’s access to USDA funds based on the alleged Title IX violations without going through the legally required process.

"I stood in the White House and when confronted by the president of the United States, I told him I’d see him in court. Well we did see him in court, and we won.”

The governor said the federal agency froze money that helps to feed 172,000 children in Maine without any due process, without any rationale and without any ongressional authorization.

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Hi everyone,

I recently had a disagreement with someone who only watches CNN and MSNBC (Channels that seem to be biased against Trump). Throughout the conversation, they repeatedly insisted that Trump is a “bad person.” As we talked, it became clear that their view was largely shaped by the news sources they rely on—sources that often present only one side of the story. Interviews and coverage usually feature voices that already oppose Trump, and little effort is made to offer a fair or balanced view. This kind of repeated, one-sided storytelling can deeply influence how we think about someone.

As Christians, I believe we need to be very careful here. Scripture warns us not to bear false witness (Exodus 20:16), to avoid gossip and slander (Proverbs 10:18, James 4:11), and to speak truthfully. If there’s no real, clear evidence that a leader is doing wrong, I think we should either remain silent or even offer our support, because to speak against someone based on filtered or biased impressions could cause us to unintentionally spread slander.

That said, we also need to be careful on the other side. It's easy to say that if media builds up a leader, at least it's not gossip. And that’s true—praise isn't slander. But even then, we can't leave our discernment at the door. Just because a leader is being praised by the media station that we prefer doesn't mean they're righteous. History reminds us of this painfully.
The German people, for example, were also swept up by positive portrayals of Hitler. They listened to state-controlled media that praised him as a national saviour. Many supported him enthusiastically without asking deeper questions. Over time, that blind endorsement helped enable one of the greatest evils in history. So we need to recognise that the danger cuts both ways—biased negativity can lead to slander, and biased praise can lead to complicity.

So here’s the heart of the matter for me:
1. When does it become our responsibility to discern truth for ourselves and stop blindly trusting what we’re told,- whether that message is for or against a leader?
2. And if the media we're listening to is constantly negative about a leader, at what point do we become responsible for spreading lies, slander or gossip?

We live in a world full of information and opinions. As followers of Christ, we are called to seek truth, walk in humility, and avoid careless speech. That includes what we say about political leaders. I'd love to hear your thoughts on where this responsibility begins and how we can guard our hearts and words in this area.

Grace and peace,
Nathan

“Running as an act is political. And you know who taught me that? Tim Walz,” Hope said at the beginning of her two-minute rant.
“The first thing he told me when I was first getting into it in high school … was that running is a privilege, and being a part of the running community is a privilege that not all people have access to.

That's the DFL in Minnesota.

One of the FIRST TIME the Greek word BAPTISM appears to me is in 1 Cor 10:2 and reads , And all were BAPTIZED TOGETHER

unto MOSES in the CLOUD and in the SEA ! Since their were thousands to cross the RED SEA and with thousand EGYTIANS following

them , and the Greek WATER // HUDOR is NOT in the Greek text .

By the way , What does the CLOUD and the SEA , mean ??

# 2 And in the book of Acts 1:5 is written , FOR // HOTI , is a CONJUNCATION

# 3 John // IOANNES , is in the NOMINATIVE CASE , and in the SIGNULAR

# 4 TRULY // MEN , is a PARTICILE DISJUNCATIVE

# 5 BAPTIZED // BAPTIZO , is in the Greek , AORIST TENSE , in the INDICATIVE MOOD , means yu better bekeve it , in te SINGULAR

# 6 WITH WATER // HYDOR , in the DATIVE CASE , in the SINGULAR , and in the NEUTER , meaning MALE and FEMALE

# 7 BUT // DE , is a ONJUNCATION PLEASE NOTICE THE BUTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

# 8 YE // HYMEIS , is a PERSONAL , POSSESSIVE PRONOUN , in the NOMINATIVE CASE , in the PLURAL

# 9 SHALL BE BAPTIZED , is in the FUTURE TENSE , PASSIVE VOICE , in the INDICATIVE MOOD , means you better belkeve it , PLURAL

and since it is in the Greek FUTURE TENSE it has not happened yet .

# 10 THE HOLY // in the DATIVE CASE , in the SINGULAR and in the NEUTER

# 11 SPIRIT // PNEUMA , in the DATIVE CASE , in the SIGNULAR and in the NETER

# 12 NOT // OU , is a DISJUNCATIVE PARTICILE NEGATIVE

# 13 MANY DAYS // POLYS , in the ACCUSATIVE CASE , in te PLJRAL

# 14 HENCE // META , a PROPOSITION

These means WATER BAPTISM has moved on from WATER BAPTISM to HOLY SPIRIT BAPTISM , as in Eph 4:5 which reads

ONE LORD , ONE FAITH , ONE // HEIS and ONE // HEIS , means ONE BAPTISM , during this AGE of GRACE and we are SAVED

By Rom 10: 9- 10 , period

But Baptism will reappear for Israel in Eze 36 :25 when Israel and Judah become ONE STICK in EZE 37:15-28 , and ISRAEL

will BE BORN AGAIN , will ONLY happen to Israel in Eze 37 !

dan p

Christ says, "The first will be last and the last will be first." Those who never forgive will always be punished, and those who always forgive will never be punished.

The Department of Justice has reached an agreement in principle to settle a lawsuit brought by the family of Ashli Babbitt, a pro-Trump rioter who was shot by a U.S. Capitol Police officer during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

The details of the proposed settlement were not made clear during a Friday hearing before federal Judge Ana Reyes, of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Babbitt's family members sued the government in January 2024 seeking $30 million for what they allege was her wrongful shooting death by Capitol Police Officer Michael Byrd.

Byrd was cleared of any wrongdoing following an internal investigation into the actions leading up to his shooting of Babbitt as she tried to climb through a broken window that led to the House Speaker's Lobby, where several lawmakers and their staff were sheltering from rioters.

Babbitt's attorneys disclosed the agreement in principle was reached during the hearing, which was convened on an emergency basis after one of Babbitt's prior attorneys sought a preliminary injunction on Friday to ensure he received payment for his work on the case if a settlement was formally announced.

Robert Sticht, the lawyer for Babbitt's family, said he expected the family to sign the formal settlement agreement within the next three weeks.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed his solidarity with Babbitt's family and called for "justice" for what he has said was her "murder" at Byrd's hands -- in line with his broader vocal support for the pro-Trump rioters who attacked the Capitol to overturn his 2020 election loss.

In March, Trump said in an interview with Newsmax he wasn't aware of the lawsuit brought by Babbitt's family but promised he would "look into" it.

Revelation Eight:
1 When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.
2 And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets.
3 Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar.
He was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints
upon the golden altar which was before the throne.
4 And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints,
ascended before God from the angel’s hand.
5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar,
and threw it to the earth.
And there were noises, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake.
6 So the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.

The assignment of the "other angel" in this passage is to mix incense with the all the prayers of the Saints, to raise a cloud of smoke before the Throne of God. To be clear, the effectual fervent prayers of the righteous availeth much. The Lord has been in the business of answering prayer, especially since prior to the Ascension He instructed us to ask whatever we would in His Name.

Therefore, these are answered prayers, and the time for intercession has ended, for the Wrath of God will soon be poured out.

Three witnesses to the end of prayer as judgment approaches in Jeremiah.

7:16 Therefore do not pray for this people, nor lift up a cry or prayer for them, nor make intercession to Me; for I will not hear you.

11:14 “So do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry out to Me because of their trouble.

14:11 Then the LORD said to me, “Do not pray for this people, for their good.

So what purpose does this cloud of smoke serve?
Is there an Old Testament observation that is comparable?
Indeed there is!

Leviticus 16:
12 Then he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from the altar before the Lord, with his hands full of sweet incense beaten fine, and bring it inside the veil.
13 And he shall put the incense on the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of incense may cover the mercy seat that is on the Testimony, lest he die.

The cloud of smoke before the Lord on the Day of Atonement protected the High Priest from wrath. Now God is preparing to pour out of His Spirit, the restrained wrath of the Age, so again, why the smoke? The function is now reversed.

Habakkuk 1:

1 Are You not from everlasting,
O Lord my God, my Holy One?
We shall not die.
O Lord, You have appointed them for judgment;
O Rock, You have marked them for correction.
13 You are of purer eyes than to behold evil,
And cannot look on wickedness.
Why do You look on those who deal treacherously,
And hold Your tongue when the wicked devours
A person more righteous than he?

The Father will NOT bear witness to the punishment of the wicked.
The Saints are the witnesses.

Psalm 91:8 Only with your eyes shall you look,
And see the reward of the wicked.

Psalm 68:
22 The Lord said, I will bring again from Bashan, I will bring my people again from the depths of the sea:
23 That thy foot may be dipped in the blood of thine enemies, and the tongue of thy dogs in the same.

Malachi 4:
1 “For behold, the day is coming,
Burning like an oven,
And all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble.
And the day which is coming shall burn them up,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“That will leave them neither root nor branch.
2 But to you who fear My name
The Sun of Righteousness shall arise
With healing in His wings;
And you shall go out
And grow fat like stall-fed calves.
3 You shall trample the wicked,
For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet
On the day that I do this,”
Says the Lord of hosts.

.A father and son team joined their love of racing and a marathon and raised £250.00 for Open Doors at the silverstone running marathon- it reminds me I need to do the same and plan on doing so!

. Please pray for our sister in Christ Nagres Nasri from Iran, despite being pregnant with her first child, she has been sentenced to 16 years in jail for house church activities.

. We learn of pastor Yang in Myanmar- having to be constantly on the move with his family due to the civil war in Myanmar- having to move with his children and wife.

. We hear of Romi in Malaysia- a formerly nominal Christian who heard the proper Gospel from an evangelist, thanks to Open Doors he now has a Bible in his language. Despite the loss of benefits from the Government and loss of community standing, he continues pressing on to know Christ more and more!

. We learn of Long and Ha from Vietnam- a couple whose house was torn down by a raging mob and they were forced away from their village for their faith in Christ- to make matters even more distressing Ha was eight months pregnant.

Please continue to pray for your persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ!

America First Legal Foundation accused the Biden campaign and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg of violating election laws.

In a 4-0 decision, the commissioners rejected America First Legal Foundation’s claim that President Joe Biden, while still running for reelection, had illegally “looked to lawfare to destroy” Trump. The commissioners also rejected the group’s allegation that Bragg pursued a “politically motivated prosecution against Trump” that constituted an “excessive” campaign contribution and expenditure, according to a case file released Thursday.

Good fruits will always increase our self-esteem and bad fruits will always lower our self-esteem. And whoever humbles himself with the intention of being praised, will be praised with the intention of being humiliated. Whoever praises himself unjustly will be humiliated unjustly. Whoever does good will be praised and whoever does bad will be humiliated.

The human is like a drop, God is like the sea, the human is like a neuron, God is like the brain, the human is like a candle, God is like the sun

drop, candle or neuron, who does not forgive 70 times 7 and who is an enemy of Lord forgiveness, will be punished with the eternal wrath of the sea, the sun or the brain

A drop of water, a candle or a neuron that does not forgive 70 times 7 and is an enemy of Lord Forgiveness will be punished with the eternal wrath of the sea, the sun or the brain.

James Three:
13 Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you?
let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom.
14 But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts,
glory not, and lie not against the truth.
15 This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.
16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.

Think for a sec, (don't want to impose unpleasantness), of the most horrific act you have ever heard of a person inflicting on others. The Spiritual Reality is that Every Evil Work begins in the simplest, fruit of the flesh.
This reveals a Spiritual Truth that must open the squinty eyes of Christianity.

Evil follows the same Sow and Reap principles.
To what degree is this a direct threat to one's
entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven?
Mark Four:
26 And He said, “The kingdom of God is as if
a man should scatter seed on the ground,
27 and should sleep by night and rise by day,
and the seed should sprout and grow,
he himself does not know how.
28 For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade,
then the head, after that the full grain in the head.
29 But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts
in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

The Heart Also "grows crops" in ways we do not know,
until the blade, then the head, and finally the full grain.
Tare or wheat? You will not know until the angel reapers
come, if you have not accepted the Chastisement of the Spirit.
I have witnessed countless believers who struggle with
their commitment to Christ, but in all sincerity exclaim,
"but God knows my heart right?" And so it goes.

Lack of diligence in a believer is not just a threat to themselves,
the become a source of defilement for an entire Assembly.
Should we wonder why Paul was so steadfast in directing
steps and procedures for their removal.

Hebrews Twelve:
14 Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:
15 looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness
springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;
16 lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright.

So in my situation, I must be concerned as a sower of strife, and seek out the harm I have done.
So come forth with your testimonies, who have a defiled who wasn't already by a lack of diligence.
Certainly not my call, I do not know what any of you do as work in the Kingdom, but what I do know now
is that for the past twenty to thirty years, an eye opening number of believers have spent a highly inordinate amount of time in idle Christian chat, and passing that off a true fellowship, with faux polite comments that are actually being passed off as humility.
Without cause, I cannot and would not state names.
The point that must be "looked into carefully", is the
possibility that the symptoms are of a most insidious
spiritual defilement, which is described with one word.
Lukewarm

So for example, 26 years ago, I was out trying to convince every believer I met in discussion that Y2K had nothing to do with us, and that Corporate America was just passing the cost of fixing a network issue onto average taxpayer citizenry . Meanwhile, I looked on while churches held Y2K symposiums, and CTV networks hawked food dehydrators.
The fearful are expressing unbelief in the most elemental Promises of God.

Anyone want to share a testimony?

Please pray for my son Jakeb. Please ask God to heal him mentally and body. Please ask God to let him get some sleep and have happiness. Please ask God to let me hear him laugh or see him smile. If it is God's will and in the name of Jesus. Thank you and God bless you. Carmen.

Vance says war in Ukraine ‘not going to end any time soon,’ hours after US signs minerals deal with Kyiv​

Trump suggested just last week that Russia and Ukraine were “very close to a deal” after his foreign envoy, Steve Witkoff, spent three hours meeting with Putin at the Kremlin.

Talks to end the war — which Trump previously promised to do within 24 hours of taking office — have largely stalled, despite several top level meetings and at least two direct phone calls between Trump and the Russian President Vladimir Putin.
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/05/02/europe/vance-ukraine-war-not-ending-soon-intl

During the recent interview with ABC's Paul Moran, Trump pointed to a frame Declaration of Independence. Moran asked him what the document meant to him to which he replied, "Exactly what it says", then went on to explain that it was a "declaration of love and unity and respect". The president has no clue.

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The look on the interviewer's face!

Pauline Lee is the daughter of immigrants who came to the United States as teenagers, with nothing.

"When they came here they were dirt poor," she recalled.

They worked entry-level jobs at first, before they both went on to study and build successful careers in California.

Lee is proud of her family's immigration stories — and the fact that they came to the U.S. legally.

"Illegal immigration is, for me, one of the biggest problems, because you're also giving these illegal immigrants a lot of our resources that should be retained for our own Americans," she said. "That's a real problem."

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The Sahel continues to be the region with the most terrorist violence, with Burkina Faso again being the country with the most killings, while Niger shot from 10th to fifth-worst in the world, according to the 2025 Global Terrorism Index (GTI).

The region accounted for over half of all deaths from terrorism in 2024 and 19% of all attacks, according to the GTI report, published by the Sydney, Australia-based Institute for Economics & Peace.

Despite a drop in terrorist violence in Burkina Faso, it was the country most prone to such violence for the second straight year, reflecting its steep deterioration since its rank of 114th in 2011.

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