“Textbook Could Put Bible Into Schools—Seeking to defuse a central controversy of the culture wars, a Bible advocacy group will unveil a new textbook [...] that could open the door to widespread Bible courses in public high schools.

The textbook, titled ‘The Bible and Its Influence,’ was written to thread a constitutional and legal needle by teaching, not preaching, about the Bible [...].

[...] Courts and school districts have wrestled for decades over how or whether to teach the Bible. Scholars have been looking for a way to teach about the Bible in public schools for years [...].

A source of faithful inspiration to many, the Bible is also a cultural touchstone that’s crucial to young students [...].

The new book includes sections explaining the Bible’s influence on literature, art, music and history. [...]” Steven Thomma, Knight Ridder Newspapers

“Double Standards of Mainline Denominations—Several mainline Protestant denominations are increasing the hostility toward Israel. They have ignored the Biblical warnings about those who do not support Israel and are calling now for economic sanctions (designed to punish the Jewish people). These ‘mainline’ churches are demanding that businesses divest themselves of any holdings and facilities located in Israel. Their denominational leaders are blaming Israel for the terrorism in the Middle East and around the world. It is ridiculous and unbelievable—but it is true!” David Hocking, Israel Watch

“Quietly the EU Gains Super Power Status—Americans for years have tended to think of the European Union as merely an extension of the Common Market [...]. But evidence is mounting that the EU does not only aspire to be a counterweight to the United States in global affairs; it has already become one.

With the largest market on Earth, it does much to regulate global commerce—even that which takes place beyond its borders.

[...]And increasingly, countries in other regions of the world are looking not to America but to Europe as a model for the future.

‘The Europeans have developed a different kind of power, which is more effective in a world of globalization and democracy, where military power has very high costs associated with it,’ said Mark Leonard, the author of Why Europe Will Run the 21st Century. [...]

[...] ‘There are about 80 countries around the world that cover 1.5 billion people for whom the European Union is the most important and critical player,’ said Leonard, director of foreign policy for the London-based Center for European Reform [...].” Oxford Press, by Don Melvin of Cox News Service

“In John 14:6 [Jesus] states, ‘I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life, no man cometh unto the Father but by Me.’ But now a new Newsweek/Beliefnet poll is showing a shocking number of people who call themselves evangelical and born-again have come to reject those words. The question in the poll read: ‘Can a good person who isn’t of your religious faith go to heaven or attain salvation, or not?’

According to the poll results [...], 68 percent of evangelical Christians believe ‘good’ people of other faiths can also go to heaven. [...] Americans have become so focused on a very personal style of worship [...] that spiritual experience has begun to supplant dogma, or teaching based on the authority of the Bible.” Fred Jackson, Agape Press

“In a sobering confirmation of the thesis of ‘China: The Gathering Threat,’ a new book by Constantine Menges, the Pentagon will soon tell us that China’s military budget continues to skyrocket. It now has the third, some say second, largest military budget in the world [...].

[...] If we don’t yet feel threatened by China’s rapid and ongoing militarization, we certainly should, Menges argues.[...] He calls China ‘a gathering danger hidden in plain view,’ pointing out that the Beijing regime has, since 1990, ‘defined the United States as its “main enemy”, [...] and explicitly threatened to destroy entire American cities if the U.S. were to help the democratic country of Taiwan defend itself against Chinese military assault.’ China’s ultimate goal, Menges points out, is to become the hegemon, dethroning the United States as the world’s dominant power. [...]” Book Review by Steven W. Mosher, The Washington Times