News Weakly - 8/12/2017

The Shroud Might Be Real!
Apparently CNA (the Catholic News Agency) is reporting that there is more evidence now that the Shroud of Turin is possibly authentic. Catholics are thrilled. Me? Not so much. I mean, what do I care about relics, all highly coveted by Roman Catholics? My faith is not in the shroud or the lance that pierced His side or the goblet from which He drank, all highly coveted items "from Christ." My faith is in Christ. And most Protestants will feel much the same. "Really? Who cares?" That is, until an archaeological dig finds evidence that substantiates something from the Bible or when science affirms something from Scripture. Then they're just as delighted. You go ahead. As for me, if I place my faith in science to affirm these things, then when science does not, I will need to deny these things. I just don't trust science that much. So when science agrees with God's Word, good for science! I'm glad they got something right. I'll still put my faith in God.

Safe not Sane
Have you heard about Rainbow Day Camp? It's a day camp in El Cerrito near San Francisco, California, that provides a safe place for transgender kids as young as 4 years old. They get to make their own nametags with their own pronoun of choice. Some change their name or pronouns daily "to see what feels right." Because as everyone knows, science has nothing to say about gender, reason has nothing to offer these kids, and safety without sanity is the very best we can offer them. After all, who knows what's true or not better than a 2-year-old, right? This is what we get for ignoring Scripture (Gen 1:27), science, and reason and opting instead to consider children the wisest beings on the planet. Some call it wonderful. Not me. The Washington Times reports, "The physician credited with discovering Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) in American football players said that anyone who lets children play football could be held accountable for abuse." This kind of mishandling of children's gender (read "irrational desires") I call child abuse.

The New Arms Race
This is serious. Japan says that North Korea has a missile capable of hitting the U.S. mainland and "it was possible that the regime had acquired the ability to miniaturise nuclear warheads." This is a no-win situation. The Cold War was fought with rational heads, knowing that if one side launched, the other could destroy it. "Mutually Assured Destruction" was the thing that held the Soviets and the Americans in check. The North Korean dictator gives no indication of rationality and the alternatives and possible responses all seem bad. And the rhetoric just continues to ratchet up.

I write this not to scare anyone, but to remind believers to follow Paul's entreaty. "First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity." (1 Tim 2:1-2) (Can you imagine what would happen if believers prayed and God opened the heart (Acts 16:14) of a Kim Jong Un to receive Him? That would be awesome!)

The Irony of Tolerance
We're all about "tolerance" these days and we won't tolerate anyone who disagrees. So when James Damore, an engineer for Google, wrote a memo criticizing Google's approach to diversity, they fired him. And when Google attempted to follow that up with an all-staff diversity meeting, they had to cancel it because staff members were afraid to ask questions for fear of reprisals. Tell me again about "tolerance" and "diversity" ... where we eliminate those we won't tolerate who are diverse.

The Latest in Autocorrect
If it hasn't happened yet, it's bound to. Google announces new technology that "autocorrects any errant thoughts its users are having, replacing them with positions approved by the company." Must be true; I read it on the Internet.