Valletta said:

As to the rest, I expect that incentives will be given to those who leave voluntarily. Perhaps make it clear that anyone here illegally who does not leave voluntarily will be banned from entering our country for the next twenty or thirty years.

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So those who came illegally in the first place will not be allowed to re-enter legally in the second.

Lord have mercy! May St. Michael protect the future President from all harm.

chevyontheriver said:

She expresses dangerous thoughts. No wonder she is being unfriended by people a bit scared to be 'friends' with such a dangerous person.

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I think she feels like this thing reeks of McCarthyism. And it does. History tends to repeat itself. As far as celebrities, they do it for their careers. It’s all self serving. It’s all to stay relevant and still employable. To the powers that be. When you got so-called friends saying they must publicly shun you… well, what is that? It’s not freedom.

The only celebrities that actually speak against the machine are the one’s that have basically fallen from the limelight and do not care too deeply about returning to it imo.

It’s a big masquerade party.

Jeshu said:

Who can tell me what this means and what, if any, realities in a child's life it demonstrates and how does the teaching of original sin fit into this?

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footnote for research: the "teaching of original sin" is not found in Scripture. The dogmas, teachings, and doctrines developed by carnal (sinful) men should not even be considered (studied nor used).

Two senators are demanding answers from the Federal Bureau of Prisons about why it rejected several offers from faith-based organizations looking to help convicted offenders avoid relapsing into criminal behavior.

Sens. James Lankford, R-Okla., and Gary Peters, D-Mich., requested documents detailing the BOP's process for selecting applicants and other information in a Tuesday letter to the agency's director, Colette Peters.

At issue is the agency's implementation of the First Step Act, signed into law in 2018 by former President Donald Trump.

Continued below.

Mark51 said:

The Bible does not state just what Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” was.

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I thought it says it was an evil spirit ?

We are being attacked from outside and with-in the Church. Time to hunker down and cling to the Truth.

On the first day of the week, after Jesus' Resurrection, how many people did Jesus appear to ?
I believe Jesus did not appear to anyone who was not one of His disciples.
Even today, in 2024, how often does Jesus appear to His followers ?
Why does the enemy appear more often (daily?) to those who are not Jesus' followers ?

On the road to Emmaus, I do not think the disciples had "trouble recognizing" Jesus - they simply could not recognize JEsus UNTIL ABBA or Jesus (Opened their eyes). This is true every day today,.

The Catholic Church's hope lies in the next Pope, I'm afraid. I pray this Pope's eyes are opened to the Truth, but if he doesn't, praying the next Pope is a true follower of the Word. Someone who will reign in these actions that throw mud in God's eye.

2P 2:

20 For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first.

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They knew better than to go back to their old way of life of defilement.

21 For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. 22 What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”

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What was this holy commandment that Peter had in mind?

Peter used a singular noun here but I don't think he had any single commandment in mind. He probably was referring to the Gospel teaching collectively. They had known the Gospel that Christ died for their sins. They knew better not to go back to their sinful life before. They knew Jesus and then they abandoned him.

There are 33 years in Jesus’ life and 33 weeks in Ordinary Time in the Church. Soon we will celebrate the Feast of Christ the King, and then the cycle starts over with Advent.

But first comes the Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B, the dramatic end of the liturgical year. The Gospel for the day is dire, insisting that the end really is coming, and we should be ready for it. Here are takeaways from the readings from previous This Sunday columns.

First: Jesus is revealing the end game of Christianity.

In the Gospel Jesus speaks about a tribulation, after which “the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.” But then “the Son of Man” will come “in the clouds with great power and glory.” The angels will be sent out to gather his “elect.”

Continued below.

This complex question is addressed in a complex, fair feature in The New Yorker​

Soon after becoming president, Democrat Jimmy Carter signed the Hyde Amendment into law — barring the use of federal funds for abortions, except in cases of rape or incest, or when the life of the mother is at stake.

When the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris administration attempted to kill the Hyde Amendment, a small — but symbolic — group of Democrats appealed to the elderly Carter for help.

"We are asking President Jimmy Carter (who signed Hyde into law) to please help us in saving it. We are so grateful for your humanitarian work and for everything you did for women and families in office," said a tweet posted Monday, March 22, by Democrats for Life of America (DFLA).
"America needs you again, Mr. President. Help us save Hyde," the group added.

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Battles over the Hyde Amendment, and other issues linking tax dollars going to abortion providers, have continued, even after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade in its Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organizationdecision in 2022. That reality played a big role in this week’s “Crossroads” podcast, which focused on a complex, fair-minded Emma Green feature in The New Yorker: “The New Pro-Life Playbook — Under Trump, a new vision of conservative family policy is ascendant.”

Hold that thought, because we will come back to it.

Continued below.

PARIS (OSV News) — Miraculously missed by burning beams falling from the roof on April 15, 2019, and waiting for five years to make it back to Notre Dame Cathedral, the 14th-century statue of the Virgin of Paris made it back home Nov. 15, accompanied by thousands of Parisians praying, singing and lighting candles as they walked their Virgin to Paris’ most iconic church, restored after the fire.

Since the fire, the statue, also referred to as Virgin and Child, or the Virgin of the Pillar, has been housed near the Louvre in the Church of Saint-Germain l’Auxerrois, from where the procession started at 6 p.m. local time.

For Auxiliary Bishop Philippe Marsset of Paris, the statue represents “a kind of miracle.”

Continued below.

Democrats in Michigan’s state House are attempting to ram through “radical” sex education changes in the weeks before control of the body flips back to Republicans.

Earlier this week, nearly two dozen Michigan House Democrats introduced HB 6068, which seeks to make major changes to the Revised School Code Act of 1976. The changes range from allowing schools to distribute condoms to giving schools a green light to teach students that abortion is a “method of family planning” and “reproductive health.”

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ANALYSIS: Here are four important takeaways from the bishops’ most recent gathering in ‘America’s Premier See.’

With the dust still settling from both the U.S. presidential election and the universal Catholic Church’s Synod on Synodality, the U.S. bishops’ just-concluded Nov. 11-14 assembly in Baltimore came at a critical juncture for both the Church and the nation.

And while the bishops addressed several important matters of business, such as the conference’s budget, a new translation of the New American Bible, and the causes of canonization of two American women, several other moves offered important symbolic indicators of where the conference currently stands in relation to both Pope Francis and President-elect Donald Trump.

Here are four important takeaways from the bishops’ most recent gathering in “America’s Premier See.”

1. The bishops are ready for a second Trump administration.

Continued below.

Sudan​

Pray that the 5 per cent of the Sudan population that is Christian would stay strong in the face of intimidation, arrest, imprisonment and other forms of persecution. Pray that many Sudanese Muslims would come to know Christ.
YES - I will Pray

Sudan​

Sudan has experienced more than 50 years of Islamisation including the destruction of numerous churches and the imprisonment of Christians. The Government seeks to eradicate Christians and ethnically African people around its border with South Sudan. Pray for an end to this repression.
YES - I will Pray

China​

Children in China are not permitted to attend any church or profess faith in Christ. Pray that Christian families will have the resources, conviction and encouragement they need to continue to nurture their children in the faith.
YES - I will Pray

China​

Pray for Hunan street evangelist Chen Wensheng who was recently sentenced to one year and seven months in prison for ‘organising and funding illegal gatherings’. Give thanks for his commitment to sharing the gospel and pray that he would know God’s comfort and strength in prison.
YES - I will Pray

China​

Pray for Elder Zhang Chunlei of Guiyang Renai Reformed Church whose wife recently discovered that he has developed cirrhosis of the liver while in prison. Zhang was one of the first church leaders to sign Pastor Wang Yi’s ‘Declaration for the Sake of the Christian Faith’ and was detained in March 2021 following a raid […]
YES - I will Pray
China

Pray for Pastor Hao Zhiwei who was arrested in July 2019. She was charged with fraud for preaching the gospel without approval from the state-sanctioned church and sentenced to eight years in prison. Her case may have been the first of its kind in China.
YES - I will Pray

China​

Pastors of unregistered churches in China are increasingly being arrested on spurious charges of fraud simply for accepting payment for their work. Pray against this new oppressive and unjust tactic.

See also:

essentialsaltes said:

The pacific island nation of Samoa has been making headlines over the past month due to a significant measles outbreak. At last count, 4,995 measles cases had been recorded, and 72 people, mostly young children, had died.

Tragically, 40% of recorded deaths have been in babies under one year old, and nearly 90% among children less than five.

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essentialsaltes said:

Samoa has lifted a six-week state of emergency, which was put in place amid a measles epidemic that killed 81 people and infected more than 5,600.

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On the heels of his announcement that he will make a film about the life of Jesus, controversial film director Martin Scorsese has now completed a docudrama series for Fox Nation called “The Saints.”

Discussing the project during a private screening in New York City on Nov. 14, Scorsese said this project is the fruition of an idea he’s been ruminating on for years.

“I grew up practically living in St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral downtown and contemplating, meditating on those statues, of those saints, different saints — and wondering about their stories: What is a saint? This is something superhuman? Can they achieve something easier than we can, because we’re human beings? And of course, I realize, no. The point is that they’re human and that there are aspects of them that we can have as a good example to follow or to inspire us.”

Continued below.

World War II ended almost 80 years ago, and yet, amazingly, Jews are being persecuted in some parts of Europe in earnest again.

CNN reports on last week’s clash in Holland after a sports event: “that Israeli soccer fans were beaten and injured in violent clashes.”

Now Israel is warning Jews in Europe even against attending cultural and sports events.

The Wall Street Journal adds this wrinkle to the story since Jews were chased down the street and beaten (for being Jews): “The Israeli government said it was sending planes to the Netherlands to evacuate its citizens.”

With the rise of radical Islam in Europe, among other anti-Jewish sentiments, some places there are no longer safe for Jews.

Continued below.

As Shariah law continues to be implemented in Brunei, Christians face ongoing restrictions on how they can live out their faith in public. Under these laws, conversion from Islam is illegal, and pressure is intense for anyone who follows Jesus. Many Protestant churches can’t register as “churches”, and instead are forced to register as businesses or secular organisations that submit financial and organisational reports to the government each year. Brunei has strict guidelines about any non-Islamic worship. Public Christmas celebrations are banned – Christians can only celebrate Christmas in places where Muslims can’t see them. Bibles are heavily controlled, and importing of them is rarely allowed outside of personal use. Church activities are monitored, and any sharing of faith with Muslims is illegal. All Bruneian Christians face some level of discrimination, though converts are particular targets for pressure from family, community and government.

Overall, Brunei is a difficult place to follow Jesus, filled with daily pressures and risks. Meet Lina “I was sitting in a corner by myself reading [the Bible], when a few girls approached me asking why I brought a Bible to school. They yelled, ‘Leave that book at home!’ I was so frightened. These were my friends. I had never seen them that angry before.” Lina (name changed), a young Christian in Brunei. What does Open Doors do to help? Open Doors raises prayer support for persecuted believers in Brunei.

Please pray Pray for Christians who struggle with laws that are biased against anything outside of Islam. Pray that younger Christians in Brunei will have the strength to continue to follow Jesus. Pray that there would be more freedom to worship openly in Brunei.

Davy and Natalie Lloyd, two American missionaries were killed in Haiti in May this year by armed gangs.

They were in Haiti to help spread the Gospel and to also provide aid to the youth of Haiti.

They were soon due to be celebrating a wedding anniversary- I'm sure they envisioned themselves growing old together and spending precious moments with grandchildren, but this was not to be.

Their last conscious moments on this earth were not spend in their home Country of the USA but spent fleeing gunfire from Haitian gangs.

But we know that they are now in heaven, the last terrifying moments of their life but a distant memory- and in the new earth they will see their beloved Haiti- a Haiti that will be free from suffering, corruption and violence.

How can we know the above? By trusting that Christ shed his blood on the cross for our sins and that by believing this we can get to heaven when we die, our sin was paid for on that cross.

We can get three things from this amazing couple's story:

1. Their faith should inspire us to be bold in preaching the Gospel and showing Christ's love by helping others.

2. That we must pray for our Haitian brothers and sisters in Christ- that they may be shining beacons of hope to their Country and that they may be safe.

3. Davy and Natalie Lloyd knew that the armed gangs that killed them are not too far gone to be saved (noone is) - and we should remember this too!

Dale said:

Do you eat beef?

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You drink milk?

The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the U.S. Department of Education unlawfully denied nonprofit status to Grand Canyon University, one of the country's largest Christian higher education institutions.

In a 3-0 decision, the panel instructed the department to revisit GCU's status using the correct legal standard under the Higher Education Act. The department overstepped its authority by using an incorrect standard, the court ruled.

"The Department invoked the wrong legal standards by relying on IRS regulations that impose requirements that go well beyond the HEA's requirement and instead implement a portion of [law] that has no counterpart in the definition of the term 'nonprofit' set forth in HEA," the ruling states.

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