The proportion of Americans who say they are “absolutely certain” God exists has dropped sharply from 71 percent to less than two thirds, the Pew Research Center said Tuesday.
The share of US adults who say they believe in God declined from 92 to 89 percent over the same period, from 2007 to 2014, but is still remarkably high compared to other developed countries.
The percentage of Americans who say they pray every day, attend regular services and consider religion very important have also clocked small, but significant declines, the research center said.
The vast majority of Americans, 77 percent of adults, continue to identify with some religious faith, but a growing number are unaffiliated to a particular group, the study found.
Younger Americans are also less religious than their elders. For example, four in 10 of the youngest Millennials say they pray every day, compared to six in 10 Baby Boomers. (Read more from “Number of Americans ‘Certain’ About God Falls to a Worrisome Percentage” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00kathleenhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngkathleen2015-11-04 01:00:272016-04-11 10:56:33Number of Americans ‘Certain’ About God Falls to a Worrisome Percentage
Victor Marx is an author, speaker, and international child advocate who works with troubled, abused, and trafficked youth all over the world . . .
Recently, he led a team to the Kurdistan region of Northern Iraq, where he and his fellow high-risk missionaries spoke with Yazidi men, women, and children who were driven from their homes. Many of them were tortured and their families killed by ISIS.
The Yazidis belong to a religious community that has its own culture. They are not Muslims, nor are they Christians, but they have been viciously attacked by ISIS and driven out of their homes in Northern Iraq, near the Syrian border.
Huge numbers of Yazidis are now living in IDP (Internally Displaced People) camps in Iraq. Countless Yazidi women and girls have been raped and tortured by ISIS fighters.
Marx and his team ministered the love of Christ to the Yazidi victims of ISIS. They also met with members of the Peshmerga, the Kurdish military, who are trying to stop ISIS from advancing further into Kurdish and Iraqi territory. (Read more from “Courageous and Risky, Daring Missionary Brings the Gospel to This Suffering People-Group in One of the ‘Most Dangerous Places in the World'” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00kathleenhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngkathleen2015-11-03 00:34:302016-04-11 10:56:38Courageous and Risky, Daring Missionary Brings the Gospel to This Suffering People-Group in One of the ‘Most Dangerous Places in the World’
A worker at a Canadian pharmacy accidentally gave out out bipolar medication to trick-or-treaters instead of candy, according to a report.
The mix-up unfolded after a woman unknowingly dropped her 17-year-old son’s prescription drugs while on her way out of a Beauport pharmacy.
Another customer picked up the medication — Quetiapine and Divalproex sodium, both of which are used to treat schizophrenia as well as other psychological disorders — and placed it dangerously close to the candy basket on the counter.
“So – unfortunately – we don’t know how – an employee just mixed it with the candy by accident and distributed it to the kids,” a Quebec City police spokesperson told the Daily Star. (Read more from “This Is What a Pharmacy ‘Accidentally’ Gave to Children on Halloween” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00kathleenhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngkathleen2015-11-02 00:26:582016-04-11 10:56:40This Is What a Pharmacy ‘Accidentally’ Gave to Children on Halloween
A group of students from Ohio University has drawn national attention for a poster campaign denouncing what they see as racist Halloween costumes.
Each poster in the series shows an Ohio University student of a different ethnicity holding a photograph of an offensive costume. An Asian girl holds an image of someone dressed up as a geisha. A Mexican boy holds a photo of someone in a sombrero, colorful poncho and exaggerated mustache riding a stuffed donkey . . .
Each poster has two sentences on it: “We’re a culture, not a costume.” And “This is not who I am, and this is not okay.”
The posters were created by a 10-student group called STARS, Students Teaching Against Racism. The group’s president is Sarah Williams, 24, a senior majoring in political science. She told ABCNews.com she has been shocked by the amount of attention the posters have garnered, but is happy that they have started a national conversation.
“We wanted to highlight these offensive costumes because we’ve all seen them,” Williams said. “We just wanted to say, ‘Hey, this is not cool. This is offensive and this shouldn’t be taken lightly.’ It’s offending a culture and people should be aware.” (Read more from “University Students Hit ‘Racist’ Halloween Costumes” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00kathleenhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngkathleen2015-11-02 00:22:062016-04-11 10:56:41University Students Hit ‘Racist’ Halloween Costumes
The Black Lives Matter movement has the federal government on its side.
But its activists can’t seem to stop desecrating the American flag . . .
Jesse Lee Peterson is a WND columnist, the founder and president of the civil-rights organization BOND (Brotherhood Organization for a New Destiny) and the author of the upcoming book “The Antidote.”
He said the movement associates the U.S. with “whiteness,” and, therefore, despises the very government that appears to be endorsing it.
“Black Lives Matter hates the American system of government, i.e., the Constitution and capitalism,” Peterson told WND. “To Black Lives Matter, the American system of government and the flag represent ‘white supremacy,’ and they want to tear down and destroy everything they think symbolizes whiteness.” (Read more from “Defeat Black Lives Matter or Lose Country, Civil Rights Leader Warns” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-31 00:32:412016-04-11 10:56:42Defeat Black Lives Matter or Lose Country, Civil Rights Leader Warns
A New York court recently ruled that a Long Island woman who killed her baby in a car accident cannot be convicted because her baby was not a person yet.
The Times Union reports Jennifer Jorgensen previously was found guilty of second-degree manslaughter for causing the death of her baby daughter in a car crash. She also was indicted for driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol and endangering the welfare of a child, according to the report.
Jorgensen was in her third trimester when the car accident occurred in May 2008. Her daughter was delivered by C-section after the head-on collision and died six days later, according to the report.
In October, the New York Court of Appeals reversed Jorgensen’s conviction, ruling that she was not guilty because she fatally injured her daughter before she was born . . .
Conservative blogger Warner Todd Huston notes that as outrageous as the ruling may seem, the court is right that current state laws do not recognize unborn babies as “persons.” Jorgensen is no longer being held accountable for her baby’s death because, in the eyes of the state, her unborn daughter did not have the rights of personhood when her reckless behavior fatally injured her child. (Read more from “Woman Who Killed Her Baby Has Conviction Overturned, Court Says Six-Day-Old Baby Isn’t a Person” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-31 00:28:182016-04-11 10:56:43Woman Who Killed Her Baby Has Conviction Overturned, Court Says Six-Day-Old Baby Isn’t a Person
Radical Muslim terror group ISIS/ISIL is reported to have unleashed its death squad to hunt down and murder Christian refugees in Syrian refugee camps, reported Breaking News Israel. The death squad is the latest horrific tactic employed by the Muslim radicals to eliminate Christians in the region and establish a conservative Muslim society.
The report was quoting a forming former Islamic State jihadi who claimed that he was sent to one of the refugee camps to carry out the mission of wiping out the country of Christians by murdering them but changed his mind and eventually left the group.
Indeed, the tactic employed by the ISIS/ISIL terrorist group was so horrible that witnesses are so scared to come out to report the atrocities being committed. In an interview, one aid worker told the Sunday Express, “They’re like a mafia. People are even killed inside the camps, and the refugees are afraid to say if they saw somebody get killed. If you ask them, they’ll say, ‘I don’t know, I was asleep.’ ”
A separate report by The Clarion Project claimed that the jihadi death squads are also kidnapping Christian girls and selling them as sex slaves.
The aid worker said, “The camps are dangerous because they have ISIS as well as Iraqi and Syrian militias. It’s another place for gangs. They’re killing inside the camps, and they’re buying and selling women and even girls.” (Read more from “ISIS Unleashes Death Squad to Murder Christians” HERE)
The cross country runner sprinted across the finish line on October 22 and into the record books as the Davis County High School’s first district champion.
As Zach exchanged high-fives with his coach he turned around and saw one of his rivals struggling to finish the race . . .
So without giving it a moment’s thought, Zach stopped celebrating and rushed to the side of the struggling runner.
Jared Chizek, the assistant director of the Iowa high School Athletic Association, told ABC News that the teen’s act of sportsmanship violated the National Federation of State High School Association race rules. (Read more from “This Is Why a Champion Teen Runner Was Disqualified After Helping a Teen in Medical Distress” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-30 01:07:042016-04-11 10:56:46This Is Why a Champion Teen Runner Was Disqualified After Helping a Teen in Medical Distress
A heroic New York EMT who tried in vain last week to save a 7-year-old school girl choking on her lunch said he was suspended because it is against company policy to make a stop without being called.
Qwasi Reid, who works for Assist Ambulance, was transporting a nursing home patient last Wednesday with his partner when he said they were flagged down at a red light by a frantic man who told them that a student was choking. Reid said his partner, who was not reprimanded by the company, told the man they already had a patient and there was nothing they could do.
Reid, who has driven ambulances for four years, said he knew the choking girl took a priority over the transport, and against his partner’s urging, jumped out of the ambulance’s back door and administered first aid to the girl, who he said had already turned blue. No one at the school was rendering first aid, he said.
“I don’t regret it,” Reid, who said he is suspended without pay, told FoxNews.com. “I’d do it again. If I know there’s a child choking, I’m going to do my best to help her.” (Read more from “EMT Says He Was Suspended Without Pay for Trying to Save Choking Girl” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-29 03:06:242016-04-11 10:56:48EMT Says He Was Suspended Without Pay for Trying to Save Choking Girl
“Thank God for the Saudis and Prince Bandar,” Senator John McCain has publicly stated numerous times. He is not alone. Many American elected officials regularly praise Saudi Arabia as one of its “greatest Gulf-State allies,” also referencing America’s “Qatari friends.”
However, these “friends” are among the world’s worst human rights offenders. Under Shari’a law, Saudi women are prohibited from:
Going out unaccompanied in public. Women must be accompanied by a male guardian (a mahram) once they leave their home. Imagine “being allowed” to shop, run errands, or see a doctor– only with an “approved” chaperone. If violated, women face strict punishment. As The Guardian explains, “freedom of movement” causes women to become “vulnerable to sin.”
Opening a bank account. Wives must first receive their husband’s permission. Daughters, their father’s permission.
Driving. If women drove automobiles their presence would “undermine social values.” Amnesty International reports that women who supported the recent “Women2Drive campaign, launched in 2011 to challenge the prohibition on women driving vehicles, faced harassment and intimidation by the authorities, who warned that women drivers would face arrest. Some were arrested but released after a short period.”
Dressing “indecently.” When going out, women are required to always wear an abaya, a long, black cloak, and a head scarf. According to Arab News, the Shoura Council (the king’s advisory body) recently ruled that the women should wear “modest” clothes and should not “show off their beauty;” meaning, not wear any makeup.
Interacting with men in public. Women and men enter public buildings through separate entrances. Public transportation, parks, gyms, pools, and beaches are all segregated by two genders only: male and female. If women and men do interact, they are charged and punished for committing a crime with varying penalties.
Competing as athletes. Unless a female athlete receives the required permission to compete in a competition, and are accompanied by a male guardian, they must also wear “Sharia-compliant” uniforms and cover their hair. Despite this, however, Saudi clerics still call women athletes “prostitutes.”
Trying on clothes/undressing in store dressing rooms. To do so even behind closed doors in public is scandalous.
Reading uncensored fashion magazines.
Entering a cemetery.
Purchasing a Barbie doll. Unless it’s a Fullah.
If America’s Gulf-state friends are as praiseworthy as U.S. senators suggest, why not send their mothers, wives, and daughters to live there? Why not suggest that American women also benefit from the way in which Saudi women are treated?
Why not prohibit American women from driving, having bank accounts, shopping, reading fashion magazines, burying their dead, and wearing make-up?
In addition to these restrictions, Amnesty International’s 2014-2015 Report on Human Rights Violations states that the Saudi government has:
“Severely restricted freedoms of expression, association and assembly, and cracked down on dissent, arresting and imprisoning critics, including human rights defenders. Many received unfair trials before courts that failed to respect due process.
“New legislation effectively equated criticism of the government and other peaceful activities with terrorism. Authorities clamped down on online activism and intimidated activists and family members who reported human rights violations.
“Torture of detainees was reportedly common; courts convicted defendants on the basis of torture-tainted ‘confessions’ and sentenced others to flogging. Women faced discrimination in law and practice, and were inadequately protected against sexual and other violence.
“Authorities [also] made extensive use of the death penalty and carried out dozens of public executions.”
Saudi women and girls are systematically legally and culturally discriminated against. Under Shari’a law, women have subordinate legal status to men, as defined in the Qur’an Surah IV (Women), which establishes guidelines for marriage, divorce, child custody and inheritance. Saudi women are rarely protected from sexual and other violence. Amnesty International reports that domestic violence is endemic to Saudi culture.
Yet, Americans are to “thank God for the Saudis.” (For more from the author of “Women’s Rights According to America’s Greatest Gulf State Ally” please click HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-29 02:58:192016-04-11 10:56:49Women’s Rights According to Islam (and America’s Greatest Gulf State Ally)
