How can you follow Jesus and support Donald Trump?

As a personal observation, I have noticed that those who oppose President Trump typically embrace liberal theology. It makes one wonder what is truly leading them: worldly mandates or biblical principles.

I will close with what I stated in a brief op-ed: we can't have our cake and eat it too – there is no middle ground for Christians today. You can choose a president who will wear a Planned Parenthood scarf at her inauguration or one of the countless others who would seek to destroy the America we know and lead us down the primrose path of socialism – or worse. Or you can choose to back President Trump. There is no Plan B.

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The complete Christian history of Christmas & Santa Claus - William Federer

Be blessed by this three part interview over this Christmas season.

Part 1: https://youtu.be/mPUag8tAmxo
Part 2: https://youtu.be/viUtlOKiSEs
Part 3: https://youtu.be/UMvY2tOBYIE

Brilliant Cambridge mathematician debates leading atheists around the world

From a friend:

I think I have may have mentioned John Lennox to you once before.

He is a brilliant mathematician who studied in Cambridge and is still on staff there.

His main focus these days is as a Christian apologist and debates many of the leading atheists all over the country, in fact around the world.

Many of the debates are surprisingly at leading eastern universities Harvard,Yale etc.

This particular address [video below] is at the University of North Carolina and it is not a debate, which I found actually better because he gets to present a full uninterrupted explanation about the factual basis for his faith.

It’s rather lengthy but once I began watching I was caught up in his clear deep thinking and reasoning.

When I first became a Christian it was based pretty much on simple faith and while there was a deep seated unquestioning conviction of my conversion, I still felt like I wanted more evidence to back things up.

I think of the scripture where it says be ready to produce a defense of what you believe.

Sometimes I feel too simple an explanation, at least for some people, means everything is a blind leap of faith and there’s not much basis behind it.

I know it’s not my role to convince or argue someone into believing but I do think the more you know, it does strengthen or in some ways flesh out your belief.

I like knowing more, rather than ducking or trying to ignore the hard questions for which I don’t have credible answers.

This is a fairly intellectual presentation but I’m sending it to you anyway..........kidding of course!

GOD: FACT OR FICTION?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0xyapiZ2pM

Breath of Heaven (Mary's Song) by Amy Grant...is breath taking.

Amy Grant Breath of Heaven (Mary's Song) - The Nativity Story from Kristy Honsvick on Vimeo.

This Christmas song tells the nativity story from Mary's perspective. It portrays the mother of Jesus as a frightened young girl, attempting to deal with the circumstances of giving birth to the Holy Father's Son. Despite her human doubts, Mary's faith in the goodness and mercy of God remain and help her deal with the unique situation she finds herself in. English songwriter Chris Eaton originally penned this song, with the title "Breath of Heaven." (Released on Amy Grant's holiday album in 1983.) READ MORE

Breath Of Heaven (Mary's Song)

Amy Grant

from the album Home for Christmas

I have traveled many moonless nights
Cold and weary with a babe inside
And I wonder what I've done
Holy father you have come
And chosen me now to carry your son

I am waiting in a silent prayer
I am frightened by the load I bear
In a world as cold as stone
Must I walk this path alone?
Be with me now
Be with me now

Breath of heaven
Hold me together
Be forever near me
Breath of heaven
Breath of heaven
Lighten my darkness
Pour over me your holiness
For you are holy
Breath of heaven

Do you wonder as you watch my face
If a wiser one should have had my place
But I offer all I am
For the mercy of your plan
Help me be strong
Help me be
Help me

Breath of heaven
Hold me together
Be forever near me
Breath of heaven
Breath of heaven
Lighten my darkness
Pour over me your holiness
For you are holy

Breath of heaven
Hold me together
Be forever near me
Breath of heaven
Breath of heaven
Lighten my darkness
Pour over me your holiness
For you are holy
Breath of heaven
Breath of heaven
Breath of heaven

What does the bible say about immigration?

Here is the reality, not just a passage or two taken out of context!

With no borders, there can be no nation. The subject of nations is addressed in the Bible 677 times in the context of God’s destiny and purpose for each of them.

Open-borders Advocates Quote The Bible To Justify Their Agenda

Look at what a Hispanic professor (and drafter for the Missouri Synod Commission on Theology and Church Relations report Immigrants among Us: A Lutheran Framework for Addressing Immigration Issues) came up with:

Ever since Satan got Adam expelled from Paradise, making him the world’s first exile, the enemy has made the people of God the objects of “the hatred of the world” and driven them “out of their homes” into “exile by whatever means he could. . .”

And then:

Luther sees Abraham as the prime example of hospitality for the New Testament church. 

What would Martin Luther say about today’s migrant and refugee crises?

Adam (of Adam and Eve) was the world's first refugee? Really???

The word "hospitality" is found sixteen (16) times throughout the above article which, besides trying to turn Abraham--and a "16th-century reformer"--into a cosmic welcome wagon, has this very big problem:

For those who argue from the Old Testament law for a policy of open borders, they should realize that they are also arguing for a modern theocracy where everyone in the nation worships only one God (the Triune God of the Bible), and all other religions are forbidden. Religious pluralism was outlawed.

Open Borders and the Bible

Not to mention this REALLY big one:

 …Martin Luther has a little “Jewish problem” that paved the way for the Holocaust:

Luther’s Jewish Problem

And for those who insist on going to the New Testament:

Hoffmeier discusses a scripture that open border advocates often cite, Matthew 25: 31-45. In them Christ welcomes people into his heavenly kingdom because “I was a stranger, and you invited me in.” When they ask when they did that, he replies, “. . . to the extent you did it to these brothers of mine, even the least of them, you did it to me.” This means, say the open border religionists, that one must admit and embrace every foreigner who chooses to enter one’s country.

The fallacy here is that this scripture addresses personal ethics, not national policies, as salvation is a personal issue. The Old Testament, on which Christ based his ministry, did not—as we have seen—command Israel to have open borders. The phrase “brothers of mine,” Hoffmeier notes, always refers to fellow Christians, not the world at large, so the matter is one of private benevolence among believers. Further, he points out, the word translated brothers, adelphoi, may specifically refer to disciples sent on evangelistic missions. And finally, though not mentioned by Hoffmeier, the Greek word xenos, translated as stranger, does not necessarily mean a foreigner. Another meaning is guest. Clearly the message of Matthew 25 is not related to the present day issue of immigration.

Hoffmeier makes his case quite well, but a useful addition might have been a discussion of the general topic of nationality from a biblical perspective. The underlying premise of many open border advocates, religious and nonreligious, is that nations shouldn’t regulate immigration, because — first and foremost — nations shouldn’t exist as sovereign entities, if indeed they should exist at all. These advocates maintain that all men would live in peace if merged together under a one world government.

History, however, offers little justification for this globalist vision.

Book Review: The Bible Gives No Sanction to Open Borders

Finally, always follow the money, honey:

Catholic (and also Lutheran) organizations are raking in the big government bucks for participating in the “resettling” of “refugees”:

Resettling Refugees: Social and Economic Costs

The coffee is brewing, but does anyone smell it?

Do NOT miss the last paragraph:

The coffee is brewing, but does anyone smell it?

NOTE: When writing about God and Jesus, The Daily Jot means YHVH as God and Yeshua Ha Mashiach as Jesus--the actual original names and the true nature and character of them.    Tuesday, August 14, 2018 There is a socio-political revolution occurring in America. The news media is complicit in giving this revolution a platform. We see it with the revolutionaries' visceral attacks on anyone who disagrees with their positions and the media's amplification of these assaults. These revolutionaries believe that their moral opinions justify breaking the law, fomenting violence, lying and bullying. These actions are seeded in political intolerance and ideological bigotry, and they are not going to go away any time soon. These are the days of great deception and unrest in America because a major political party is become the haven of unrest and revolution. A recent Gallup poll confirms the direction of this civil unrest.   For the first time since Gallup began polling the question in 2010, the Democratic Party favors socialism over capitalism by a significant margin. Gallup reports that 57% of Democrats surveyed had a positive view of socialism, while only 47% had a positive view of capitalism. This is the first time since this question has been asked that a majority of those associated with the Democratic Party did not favor capitalism over socialism. Contrast this with those who associate with the Republican Party where only 16% have a positive view of socialism and 71% have a positive view of capitalism. Gallup statistics confirm that the Democratic Party is turned toward socialism.    Moreover, the youth of this country are steaming toward socialism irrespective of party affiliation. Gallup reports: "Americans aged 18 to 29 are as positive about socialism (51%) as they are about capitalism (45%). This represents a 12-point decline in young adults' positive views of capitalism in just the past two years and a marked shift since 2010, when 68% viewed it positively." The brand of socialism these people support is undoubtedly deeper than an economic debate over socialism vs. capitalism. This trend is particularly dangerous to religious freedom and freedom of speech. The ideological bigotry practiced by America's vocal socialists is targeted at anyone who suggests a Biblical moral code for society.    Progressivism, socialism, communism will end religious freedom in America because these forms of tyranny are based in the Communist Manifesto, which states: "Communism abolishes eternal truths, it abolishes all religion, and all morality, instead of constituting them on a new basis." Christians who believe socialism is true Christianity cite Acts 2:44, "And all that believed were together and had (shared) all things in common," as Biblical justification. Early Christians lovingly had all things in common-they were not forced to do so by a government. The very nature of communism is against God. We'd better wake up and smell the coffee, starting with ongoing conversations with our families, children and grandchildren.  Have a Blessed and Powerful Day! Bill Wilson www.dailyjot.com

Of Social Justice and Christianity

Pastor Bill Wilson
NOTE: When writing about God and Jesus, The Daily Jot means YHVH as God and Yeshua Ha Mashiach as Jesus--the actual original names and the true nature and character of them.

Friday, July 27, 2018

In Acts 5, Peter and the apostles were forbidden by the High Priest of the Sadducees to preach the gospel in the streets and the temple. They were thrown in prison and an angel of the Lord freed them. They were again brought before the priest, who said, "Did we not straightly command you that ye should not teach in this name?...Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men." In essence, this is the Christian commission to obey God rather than humanism. God's laws are supreme and just, man's laws are flawed, sometimes just, sometimes unjust. As Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "An unjust law is no law at all."

The Communist Manifesto says, "...Communism abolishes eternal truths, it abolishes all religion, and all morality, instead of constituting them on a new basis; it therefore acts in contradiction to all past historical experience." From a humanistic point of view--a communist or socialist believes that a just law is unjust unless it follows the Manifesto. And the manifesto denies Christianity. What we see today, therefore, is a dichotomy regarding social justice. One form is Biblical social justice rooted in God's law as fulfilled by Jesus Christ and His righteousness. And another form, political social justice, rooted in humanist principles but disguised as Christian by those claiming to be men of God supporting it.

Political social justice as defined by man in contemporary society is against the word of God. And because we are a nation whose laws are derived from the Laws of God wrapped in the garment of Liberty, we have not only a say in them, but a responsibility to the God we serve to uphold the laws of God over the laws of man. Law is only just if it is in harmony with God's law...And since we are justified by faith, taking on the righteousness of Christ, justice emanates from "we" as a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation hungering and thirsting for righteousness; that in this act we shall be filled and salvation of souls be at hand.

Christians, as the ones who know the truth, are responsible to act on it through the righteousness of Christ. We must put aside traditions of men and hyper-Biblical doctrines, and act on the Word. The Beatitudes, found in Christ's Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7, is a call to action by Jesus Christ. If we are hungering and thirsting for righteousness we shall be filled--our faith shall find action as a just people. And we shall, as James 1:25 says, "...look into the perfect law of liberty, and continue therein..., being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed." Let us hunger and seek after righteousness by not being deceived, and by being hearers and doers of the word as we continue in the perfect law of liberty. This is the true social justice of Christianity--not the false imitation of humanist social justice. Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!

Bill Wilson www.dailyjot.com

The Christian Origins of America’s Constitutional Republic

By the 1770s, the generation of Colonial leaders who fought the American Revolution and passed and ratified the Constitution embraced the concepts of popular sovereignty, individual free choice, and need for covenantal agreements–expressed in writing and clearly understood by all to either accept or reject–that Roger Williams and John Lilburne had first advanced more than a century before as natural continuations of their Christian faith to the civil realm.

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Nonie Darwish: Warning to the West

What the West does not understand is that Islam admits that government control is central to Islam and that Muslims must, sooner or later, demand to live under an Islamic government. The majority of the world does not understand that much of the American media is in a propaganda war against the Trump administration simply because he names Islamic jihad and would prefer to see a strong and prosperous America as a world leader rather than to see a dictatorship -- secular or theocratic -- as a world leader. Islam claims to be an Abrahamic religion, but in fact Islam came to the world 600 years after Christ, not to affirm the Bible but to discredit it; not to co-exist with "the people of the book" -- Jews and Christians -- but to replace them, after accusing them of intentionally falsifying the Bible. Islam was created as a rebellion against the Bible and its values, and it relies on government enforcement to do so. Political and legal (sharia) Islam is much more than a religion. Is the First Amendment a suicide pact?

Nonie Darwish, born and raised in Egypt, is the author of "Wholly Different; Why I chose Biblical Values over Islamic Values."

10 biblical truths about animals

Please read all ten...but this one (#9) was particularly (and deeply) moving for me:

9. Animals teach us about the nature of justice

In Robert Bolt’s play, A Man for All Seasons, Sir Thomas More delivers a brilliant summation of God’s purpose for creating the angels, animals, plants, and humanity. Regarding animals, he observes God created them “for their innocence.” It is difficult to find a better description of animals than this. Animals appear to lack the capacity for moral reflection. They simply do what they do. Scripture supports this understanding. It was humans who ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, not animals (Gen. 3:1-7).

This observation of animal innocence is not only important for our understanding of animals. It also helps us understand our sense of justice. When we ask why we are offended by cruelty to animals, we recognize we are reacting to an innate sense within us that is repulsed by wanton violations of their innocence and vulnerability. This recognition helps us understand some of our motivations for our criminal justice system. When we punish acts of aggression against our fellow humans, we are responding to violations of their innocence and vulnerability. Such violations should be punished. Our sense of justice demands it.

Furthermore, we learn about divine justice from animals. Israel’s biblically mandated practice of substitutionary atonement provides this lesson. Scripture teaches that rebellion against God is sin. God’s holiness demands a penalty in response to this rebellion. In other words, God requires justice. Either the guilty person or an acceptable substitute must answer for human sin. God created the sacrificial system in Israel to help his people understand this reality. He commanded that this system regularly kill innocent animals in order to satisfy the demands of his divine justice (Lev. 16:1-34). The innocent animals would bear the sin of the people. This bloody display served as a symbol for what was yet to come—when the innocent Son of God would offer himself as the true, eternal, substitutionary sacrifice for the sin of all humanity (Rom. 3:21-26; 2 Cor. 5:21; Heb. 10:1-18).

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OH, SINNERS, LET'S GO DOWN, DOWN IN THE RIVER TO PRAY

A Brief History of “Down to the River to Pray”

Can Christians View Muhammad As A Prophet?

by Ali Sina:

"I was born a Muslim and in my state of ignorance I believed that Muhammad was all the above and more. He was the most perfect human and an example to emulate.

I woke up from that delusional thinking when I read the Quran. . ."

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"Either Muhammad lied or the Bible lies.  How can a Christian claim to believe in both these mutually contradictory beliefs?"

Prophetic end times-- 4 years ago and today

Thursday, August 18, 2016

Prophetic end times-- 4 years ago and today

Four years ago on August 20, World Net Daily reported that Muslim Brotherhood operatives began crucifying those who oppose the newly elected Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, also a Muslim Brotherhood leader. The United States, at the behest of the "president", aided the Muslim Brotherhood in taking over Egypt in the name of "democracy." Morsi then dismissed all of the pro-American military leadership and replaced them with Muslim Brotherhood commanders; he moved to improve ties to the terrorist group Hezbollah; and held a summit in Iran --the first official visit to Iran by an Egyptian president since 1979. Since then, American foreign policy has also embraced Iran.

Four months earlier in April 2014 White House officials were meeting with Muslim Brotherhood (MB) representatives. By then, it was well known that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's top aide Huma Abedin had close ties to the MB, and that several appointees to Homeland Security and the Pentagon were associated in some way with the terrorist organization. The MB creed is as follows: "Allah is our objective. The Prophet is our leader. The Qur'an is our law. Jihad is our way. Dying in the way of Allah is our highest hope." The White House admitted that it was meeting with representatives of the Muslim Brotherhood, and sponsoring meetings at the National Security Council with the MB.

Fast forward to today. MB sympathizers run deep in the Clinton circle of influence. Breitbart reports of Clinton's Vice Presidential running mate, Tim Kaine: "He appointed a Hamas supporter to a state immigration commission; spoke at a dinner honoring a Muslim Brotherhood terror suspect; and received donations from well-known Islamist groups.". Clinton's right hand woman remains Huma Abedin. Abedin's brother, mother, and deceased father are all confirmed to have leadership ties to the MB. This assists in connecting the dots between the current Administration's assistance of the MB in government takeovers in Libya, Egypt, Tunisia, Yeman, and now Syria.

There are many verses in the Koran that instruct Muslims to kill Christians and Jews. Islam is not a peaceful religion. It is an antichrist system. 2 John 7 says, "For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist." The Koran specifically says that Allah has no son. Koran Sura 23:91 says, "Never has Allah begotten a son, nor is there any other god besides Him." America's foreign policy is supporting the Muslim Brotherhood. This administration and the one that wishes to replace it are advancing the Islamic agenda and have close ties to the terrorist group with a stated goal of Jihad to do it. Those ties have only deepened over the past four years.

Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!
Bill Wilson [DailyJot.com]

NOTE: When writing about God and Jesus, The Daily Jot means YHVH as God and Yeshua Ha Mashiach as Jesus--the actual original names and the true nature and character of them.

13th-century scholar Thomas Aquinas warned us about Islam 750 years ago

[Thomas} Aquinas contrasts the spread of Christianity with that of Islam, arguing that much of Christianity’s early success stemmed from widespread belief in the miracles of Jesus, whereas the spread of Islam was worked through the promise of sensual pleasures and the violence of the sword.

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THE COMING HOLY WAR

A Holy War Is Coming: The Cross Will Be Our Banner; Our Souls Will Be Armed With The Sword Of The Spirit, And The Hilt Of The Sword Will Be Gripped In The Thrall Of Mighty Christendom! The Holy League Will Rise Again, And The New Crusade Will End With The Sword Stained By Muslim Blood!

By Walid And Theodore Shoebat (Our Sunday Special, in advance)

Who ever dreamt that Britain will exit the E.U? And what will happen to ISIS now that it attacked the airport in Istanbul, Turkey?

Answer: what will happen will be the opposite of what most people think.

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"HELL ACROSS THE BORDER" - FULL LENGTH DOCUMENTARY

Theodore Shoebat:

"There is another country where cruelty is extremely common and rampant: Mexico. It is absolutely horrifying. That is why I made a documentary about this evil taking place in this nation, to show the whole world as to the evils occurring against Christians under the hands of the demonic narcos.

Hundreds of thousands of people slaughtered, countless innocents forced under the yoke of the most horrific and sinister tyranny. But there is hope, for tens of thousands of Christians are raising arms and fighting back. I did a whole documentary on this, called Hell Across The Border, a documentary unlike any other. Watch it, show it to everyone you know, your friends, your family, churches, everyone"

:

SHOEBAT.COM and RESCUECHRISTIANS.ORG

ALERT: Three U.S. Churches to Vote on Anti-Israel Resolutions this Spring

Legal Insurrection:

Spread the word about how a minority of committed anti-Israel, and in many cases anti-Semitic, activists are trying to steer some of America’s oldest churches astray toward a morally suspect agenda.

Because the best antidote to hate is exposure.

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COME QUICKLY, LORD JESUS

http://billygraham.org/story/come-quickly-lord-jesus/

After His death and resurrection, Jesus ascended into the heavens, while disciples stood awestruck and attending angels made this promise: “This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11, NASB).

Unlike the incarnation, where our Savior’s full deity was cloaked in His humanity, the Second Coming of Christ will be visible to everyone on planet Earth. “For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be” (Matthew 24:27, NASB).

For the believer who has placed his faith in Christ’s atoning work on the cross, it will be a time of great rejoicing. The dead in Christ, and those alive at His coming, will receive new, redeemed bodies.

For the unbeliever, however, it will be a time of terror and dismay, as they see the Savior they have rejected and scorned coming in great power and glory. Fear and trembling will overwhelm them as they await their final judgment and assignment to hell’s lake of never-ending fire.

Although the Bible says that certain signs will precede and accompany Jesus’ glorious return, it also tells us that no one knows the day or hour when it will occur. The Scripture’s emphasis is always on spiritual readiness.

The believer in Jesus Christ is to be eagerly watching and waiting for the return of the Savior. Like the servants in the parable of the talents, followers of Christ should be busy with the Lord’s work, using their time, talents, and resources for the sake of the Kingdom.

We also should be boldly sharing our faith with those who still live in spiritual darkness and death, telling them of the great joy of eternity with Christ and the great horror of eternity apart from Christ.

Above all, believers should be daily yielding to the rule and reign of the Holy Spirit, walking in holiness. “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, … you ought to live holy and godly lives” (2 Peter 3:10-11, NIV).

***snip***

It is my prayer that this emphasis will increase your love for the Savior, and encourage you in the faith. Death, sin, sickness, and every form of evil will be done away with as Jesus returns to establish His Kingdom. No more tears, no more pain, no more despair.

Come quickly, Lord Jesus.

©2008 BGEA

Bible verses marked NASB are taken by permission from the New American Standard Bible, ©1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif.

from the January 2009 issue of “Decision” magazine

The Benedict Option: Christianity In The Brave New World

For me, the real point — and the most important Benedict Option point — is found in these lines near the end of Hanby’s speech

Even if there were an abundance of tolerance and good-will, there is little indication that the brave new world which we have ushered in can accommodate a Christianity which refuses to conform to its ideal of human nature and truth. The more urgent questions is whether we can resist the enormous pressure to accommodate ourselves to this post- human ideal.

Think of it this way. It’s not hard for Christians to imagine George Orwell’s vision of totalitarianism coming to bear on their communities from a hostile state. It is much harder for Christians to recognize the threat posed by the Aldous Huxley view of dystopia — that is, a totalitarianism that is welcomed by those enslaved to it because it makes them comfortable, and because they don’t recognize it for what it is.

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The United States of Feelings

Dennis Prager, TOWNHALL:

The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on the redefinition of marriage seals the end of America as the Founders envisioned it.

From well before 1776 until the second half of the 20th century, the moral values of the United States were rooted in the Bible and its God.

Unlike Europe, which defined itself as exclusively Christian, America became the first Judeo-Christian society. The American Founders were Christians -- either theologically or culturally -- but they were rooted in the Hebrew Scriptures. Even Americans who could not affirm traditional Christian or Jewish theology affirmed the centrality of God to ethics. Americans, from the Founders on, understood that without God, there is no moral truth, only moral opinion -- and assumed that those truths were to be gleaned from the Bible more than anywhere else.

Beginning with the Supreme Court's ban on nondenominational school prayer in 1962, the same-sex marriage decision has essentially completed the state's secularization of American society. This is one thing about which both right and left, religious and secular, can agree. One side may rejoice over the fact, and the other may weep, but it is a fact.

And what has replaced Judaism, Christianity, Judeo-Christian values and the Bible?

The answer is: feelings.

READ MORE