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IRF Ministerial: Day Two Highlights
Schedules were full at Day Two of the Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom hosted by the State Department. Participants were divided into one of three tracks:
- Track One — Building Blocks for Advancing Religious Freedom
- Track Two — Emerging Trends in Religious Freedom
- Track Three — Religious Freedom in Development and Humanitarian Assistance
A variety of topics was covered in more than 30 general and breakout sessions. The conversations ranged from how to combat the rise of anti-Semitism, documenting atrocities, and the role of journalism in international religious freedom to the fragmentation of religious minority communities, innovation and technology in global development, and the economic and security benefits of advancing religious freedom. Continue reading “IRF Ministerial: Day Two Highlights”
UPDATE: IRF Ministerial Day One
Secretary Mike Pompeo and Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback kicked off the second annual Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom at the State Department today. Following are some of the notable moments and quotes of the day: Continue reading “UPDATE: IRF Ministerial Day One”
Kershaw’s Ping-Pong Pitch
If there’s one thing Clayton Kershaw takes seriously, it’s . . . ping-pong? The Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher and three-time Cy Young Award winner is half way through his 12th Major League season. He and the Dodgers are in fine shape to pull out another National League West division win later this summer (may it be so). But it is Kershaw’s ping-pong pitch, not baseball, that has Number 22’s attention at the moment. Continue reading “Kershaw’s Ping-Pong Pitch”
A Fighting Chance against Poverty
Tomorrow is my youngest daughter’s birthday. She turns eight this year. Though I know she dearly loves her dolls, dreams of becoming a lawyer, and her favorite color is yellow, I have never actually met this precious little girl. Maria (not her real name) is my sponsored daughter. My birthday gift to her is a fighting chance against poverty.
Maria lives in one of the poorest nations on earth, in a mud home with dirt floors and few luxuries. Crime and poverty define her town. But Maria is lucky. Each day her belly is full and she has clean water to drink. Medicine keeps her healthy. She wears suitable clothes, and she has a place to go to school. Others are not so fortunate. Continue reading “A Fighting Chance against Poverty”
Summer Reading List
The Memorial Day celebrations have ended. That means it’s time for a new summer reading list!
The books on this year’s list run contrary to popular headlines, which daily magnify the real and growing division Americans encounter in all corners of our culture.
The truth is, we have a trust issue. Confidence in the nation’s leading societal institutions has been waning for decades. According to a Gallup survey, between 1998 and 2018, government, education, the media, and big business all have received persistently low confidence ratings.
The church in particular has succumbed to this trend. In 1998, nearly 60% of respondents said they had a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in the church or organized religion. By 2018, that number plunged to 38%.
In this climate, it is getting harder to discern what is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent and praiseworthy. The works profiled on this year’s summer reading list draw us back to that path, not to dismiss our current challenges, but to confront them head on. These books remind us much remains in our culture that is worthy of our trust and deserving of our nurture.
So pull up a beach chair, slap on some suntan lotion, and let’s start reading. Here’s the list! Continue reading “Summer Reading List”
Social Capital: America’s True Measure of Wealth
The American Dream often comes wrapped in an ethos of prosperity, homeownership, and upward mobility. Turns out that view misses the mark. According to a recent Survey on Community and Society (SCS) conducted by the American Enterprise Institute, most Americans value freedom and family more than the size of their mortgage or the number of digits in their bank account. Likewise, when gauging the nation’s collective riches, it would seem social capital is America’s true measure of wealth.
Social capital is the benefit we bank as a result of the relationships we forge with each other. Civic engagement, social connectedness, and community involvement all contribute to social capital. What counts as engagement? Involvement with volunteer public service groups such as Rotary or Kiwanis, for one. Coaching or supporting athletic teams and groups like Little League, AYSO, or YMCA. Then there’s the local PTA, cultural or hobby organizations, homeowners association, or Veterans groups.
In his bestseller Alienated America: Why Some Places Thrive While Others Collapse, Timothy P. Carney writes, “Strong communities function not only as safety nets and sources of knowledge and wisdom, but also as the grounds on which people can exercise their social and political muscle. These are where we find our purpose.”
Continue reading “Social Capital: America’s True Measure of Wealth”For Ukraine’s disabled, a wheelchair means dignity
Ukraine is a nation of 44 million people. More than 2.5 million of them have disabilities — 200,000 of those are children. Though the government of Ukraine is required by law to provide its people with mobility aids (wheelchairs, walkers, canes, crutches), few resources are available to meet this need. The result: many citizens live cradle to grave in isolation, segregated from mainstream society and unable to participate in daily activities most of us take for granted. For Ukraine’s disabled, a wheelchair means dignity.
One organization is working to change the status quo. God’s Hidden Treasures (GHT) is a non-profit Christian ministry founded in 1997 by Nita Hanson, a former computer marketing manager from Southern California. “Our mission is to serve the needs of the poor, afflicted, and orphaned of Ukraine and to bring God’s love through personal relationships in the name of Jesus Christ,” says Hanson. Continue reading “For Ukraine’s disabled, a wheelchair means dignity”
Notre Dame’s Enduring Message of Hope
Even in tragedy, Notre Dame offers an enduring message of hope. As sure as the sun rises and sets each day, we have been comforted by a certainty that, always at the heart of Paris, Notre Dame stands firm.
Memories of an admiring expat
How can this be? Disbelief consumed me even as flames consumed the centuries-old Notre Dame cathedral in Paris yesterday. Like the rest of the world, I watched transfixed as the horrific inferno swallowed one of mankind’s most enduring and graceful architectural accomplishments.
Like millions of pilgrims through the ages, I have stood marveling at the base of this magnificent gothic structure, walked reverently through its medieval passages, and stood in awe of its craftsmanship and beauty. For two years, Notre Dame provided a constant backdrop for my daily life. My husband and I lived in a neat flat with our two young daughters just a few miles from the cathedral, expats on a grand Parisian adventure.
Continue reading “Notre Dame’s Enduring Message of Hope”ARTICLE: Tis the season…to pray for persecuted believers
In a season punctuated by presents and merrymaking, the hard truths of persecution are a sobering reminder of the work that remains toward promoting and protecting freedom of religion or belief.
[Photo credit: ChinaAid]
By Erin Rodewald // December 18, 2018
(This article originally written for and posted to 21Wilberforce)
For the world’s 2.3 billion Christians, the week ahead marks the culmination of one of the holiest seasons of the year — the anticipation and arrival of the Christ child. Sadly, the advent period has been marred by persecution, as global headlines make clear.
In China, authorities arrested more than 100 leaders and members of the Early Rain Covenant Church in early December. A week later, finding the church building locked, faithful congregants gathered at a nearby park for worship, where police arrested even more members. ChinaAid founder and president Bob Fu says these arrests represent “a major escalation of religious persecution in China.”
Earlier this year, the Xi regime revised its religious regulations, which has resulted in the closure of many unregistered churches throughout China, as well as persistent harassment and mass arrests of the nation’s minority Christian community. Cell phones are monitored, homes are searched, church leaders are followed, and scores have been detained for their beliefs. Among those imprisoned is Pastor Wang Yi, leader of Early Rain, who has declared that the “Communist regime is filled with fear at a church that is no longer afraid of it.” Continue reading “ARTICLE: Tis the season…to pray for persecuted believers”