WORLD Magazine Feb. 8, 2014 Vol. 29 No. 3

Christian college council turmoil

THE BATTLE FOR

AFRICA With Islam seeping down from the north, sub-Saharan countries like Uganda face huge challenges

Plus:

Mental illness South Sudan Singleness

Feb rua ry 8, 20 14

MS_HCReformAd3_World10.5.13Rev.indd 1 3 CONTENTS.indd 2

9/25/13 PM 1/16/14 1:02:34 9:59 AM

Contents F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4 / VO L U M E 2 9 , N U M BER 3

cov e r s to ry

34 Africa’s hinge

Four out of five residents of fast-growing, 37million-strong Uganda identify with Christianity.

Most Ugandans glowingly welcome evangelical visitors and side with Christian conservatives on many social issues. But beneath the surface, Uganda faces enormous challenges. f e at u r es

40 Long search, short tenure A key Christian college group quickly fires a president—and tries to regain its footing

44 Saving Seth

An Arizona family’s struggle with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder mirrors a nation’s

dispatch es

5 News 16 Quotables 18 Quick Takes

50 Brother vs. brother

As political and tribal conflict splits South Sudan, church leaders hope to be peacemakers

revi ews

54 Single but not solitary

These unmarried Christians face disappoint­ ments but find with Christ they are not alone ON THE COVER: illustration by krieg barrie

23

23 Movies & TV 26 Books 28 Q&A 30 Music notebook

59 Lifestyle 61 Technology 62 Science 63 Houses of God 64 Sports 65 Religion

30

50

54

visit our website—wng.org—for breaking news and more!

3 CONTENTS.indd 1

voices

3 Joel Belz 20 Janie B. Cheaney 32 Mindy Belz 67 Mailbag 71 Andrée Seu Peterson 72 Marvin Olasky world (ISSN 0888-157X) (USPS 763-010) is published biweekly (26 issues) for $59.95 per year by God’s World Publications, (no mail) 12 All Souls Crescent, Asheville, NC 28803; (828) 232-5260. Periodical postage paid at Asheville, NC, and additional mailing o ­ ffices. P ­ rinted in the USA. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. © 2014 WORLD News Group. All rights reserved. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to world, PO Box 20002, Asheville, NC 28802-9998.

1/22/14 11:36 AM

MBA CEDARVILLE UNIVERSIT Y

online

Equipping Christian Leaders

Invest Wisely.

“The earth is the L’s and the fullness thereof; the world and those who dwell therein.” —Psalm :     Marvin Olasky  Mindy Belz   Timothy Lamer   Jamie Dean   Janie B. Cheaney, Susan Olasky, Andrée Seu Peterson, John Piper, Edward E. Plowman, Cal Thomas, Lynn Vincent  Emily Belz, J.C. Derrick, Daniel James Devine, Sophia Lee, Angela Lu, Edward Lee Pitts  Zachary Abate, Megan Basham, Anthony Bradley, Tim Challies, Alicia M. Cohn, John Dawson, Amy Henry, Mary Jackson, Thomas S. Kidd, Michael Leaser, Jill Nelson, Arsenio Orteza, Tiffany Owens, Stephanie Perrault, Emily Whitten   Les Sillars   June McGraw



Send Him.   David K. Freeland    Robert L. Patete   Rachel Beatty  Krieg Barrie    Arla J. Eicher     Dawn Wilson

Thousands of native missionaries in poorer countries effectively take the gospel to unreached people groups in areas that are extremely difficult for American missionaries to reach.

  Al Saiz, Angela Scalli, Alan Wood

4 They speak the local languages

 ..

4 They are part of the culture

4 They never need a visa, airline tickets, or furloughs

 

4 They win souls and plant churches

 Jim Chisolm

Native missionaries serve the Lord at a fraction of what it costs to send an American missionary overseas.

 ..

Help provide for a missionary with $50 per month.

  Kristin Chapman, Mary Ruth Murdoch Christian Aid Mission P. O. Box 9037 Charlottesville, VA 22906 434-977-5650



 worldji.com

 Joel Belz

 Marvin Olasky

  Larry Huff   Debra Meissner    wng.org   Mickey McLean   Leigh Jones   Dan Perkins   Whitney Williams    worldandeverything.com   Nickolas S. Eicher

AND YOUR

FIRST CLASS IS FREE! cedar v ille.edu/mbaonline

  

   Kevin Martin   Warren Cole Smith

START BY SUMMER 2014,

www.christianaid.org

  Joseph Slife     worldoncampus.com  Leigh Jones

’    gwnews.com  Howard Brinkman    David Strassner (chairman), Mariam Bell, Kevin Cusack, Peter Lillback, Howard Miller, William Newton, Russell B. Pulliam, David Skeel, Nelson Somerville, Ladeine Thompson, Raymon Thompson, John Weiss, John White   To report, interpret, and illustrate the news in a timely, accurate, enjoyable, and arresting fashion from a perspective committed to the Bible as the inerrant Word of God.

Contact us: .. / wng.org      ,    ,  ,        memberservices@wng.org  wng.org/account (current members) or members.wng.org (to become a member) KRIEG BARRIE

 .. (within the United States) or .. (outside the United States) Monday-Friday (except holidays),  a.m.- p.m. ET  WORLD, PO Box , Asheville, NC -   , ,     .. /    .. or mailbag@wng.org WORLD occasionally rents subscriber names to carefully screened, like-minded organizations. If you would prefer not to receive these promotions, please call customer service and ask to be placed on our    list.

3 JOEL.indd 2

1/20/14 2:56 PM

Joel Belz

For better, for worse

Don’t fall for the conventional wisdom that sells marriage short

>>

KRIEG BARRIE

A    on New Year’s Day served as a reminder: With all the media and political emphasis on legalizing homosexual marriages, it’s way too easy to get diverted by that grisly debate and to forget that the top challenge for Christians is to nurture and then display the wonders of marriage the way God made it to be.

That’s why at the wedding reception I presumptuously pulled the bride and groom aside for my -second marriage counseling course.

Conventional wisdom, I told them, for too much of the last couple of generations has been that marriage is OK—but don’t expect too much from it.

When we were little kids, weddings seemed mysterious, marvelous, and full of wonder. But then we were taught to get real, to put away our naïveté, discard our illusions, and grow up to the fact that marriage in the real world involves slogging through a whole lot of disappointment, trouble, and sorrow.

Sometimes, in fact, there’s so much emphasis on the grim side of things that we’ve lost seeing marriage in the glorious context God intended it. In our grownup desire to “get real,” we’ve let Satan so disfigure and discolor our ideal picture of marriage that we’ve come to settle for way too little.

At its worst, that diminished target has prompted thousands of couples—and that includes Christians— to give up altogether on marriage and to add to the divorce statistics. As a result, the Christian community has been clobbered by family brokenness in embarrassing ways. Instead of standing out as a model for the rest of society to emulate, our divorce statistics are only a little better than those of the unbelieving world—and we have tended to reflect the very distress we were meant to prevent. It’s tough to look down a pew in a typical evangelical church these days without seeing marital brokenness scattered along the line.

And a lot of that has come about simply because the bar going into marriage was set way too low.

But even at their best, the diminished goals for marriage have produced tens of thousands of joyless Christian couples and Christian homes without

Email: jbelz@wng.org

3 JOEL.indd 3

delight. Husbands and wives have bought into the idea that marriage isn’t much, that boredom is normal, and that marital happiness is only for those who pretend. They’ve bought into the devil’s lie that God’s gifts are phony, and that He didn’t know what He was talking about when He said that marriage is so magnificent that He intends it as a picture of His own relationship to His people.

So, I warned the new bride and groom a couple of weeks ago, please don’t ever fall into the trap of low expectations. Instead, aim for the best—and keep up the effort. Determine early to see marriage as an expression of the gospel itself, where both partners constantly and willingly die for each other. That very process enhances intimacy.

Indeed, what we understood about marriage when we were young and naïve was actually true. What we didn’t know then was that “getting married” didn’t by any means fulfill that promise, but only launched us into a lifelong process of discovering that promise.

The process, like the gospel, involves daily dying to ourselves so that we can live generously toward our mate.

Some of us—and that includes me—had the blessing of seeing such a marriage in our parents. But even those who modeled such marriages didn’t always explain explicitly what they were doing, and why they did it. In my old age, I’ve come to believe both the modeling and the explaining are important.

You might call it the word and deed approach to teaching the art of marriage.

I’ve been a pretty slow learner on this front, I’m afraid. I hope and pray that the newlyweds who sat patiently through my -second counseling session are off to a much faster start. A

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/22/14 11:21 AM

CREDIT

bju.edu/why For graduation rates, the median debt of students who completed the program and other important info visit go.bju.edu/rates. (16104) 11/13

3 NEWS OPENER.indd 4

1/16/14 10:08 AM

Dispatches News > Quotables > Quick Takes

JAN. 13: The grandchildren of former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon stand in front of his grave during his funeral near Sharon’s residence in southern Israel. Sharon was laid to rest as the nation bid a final farewell to one of its most colorful and influential leaders—a man venerated by supporters as a warrior and statesman but reviled in the Arab world as a war criminal.

Baz Ratner/AP

F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4 • W O R L D

3 NEWS OPENER.indd 5

5

1/22/14 11:38 AM

Dispatches > News T h u r s d a y, J a n . 

Under fire

Officials in Yemen say a U.S. drone strike killed two suspected al-Qaeda militants in the southeastern province of Hadramout. The stepped-up use of drone strikes in the Arabian Peninsula is part of U.S. strategy targeting al-Qaeda, but the aggressive plan has led to blowback. According to locals, a Dec.  drone strike in Yemen struck a wedding party, leaving  persons dead. The Obama administration, which pledged last May to tighten rules for drone strikes, says it is conducting an internal investigation.

Poverty push In a speech marking the th anniversary of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s “war on poverty,” President Obama announced the creation of five “promise zones”—special districts in impoverished places that will receive tax incentives and other government funding. As part of his renewed focus on poverty, Obama plans to push this year for raising the federal minimum wage to . from .. Republicans say the measure will destroy jobs, and two of the GOP’s most vocal members—Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin—have already announced their own anti-poverty agendas.

 

In the money A newly released report from the Center for Responsive Politics reveals that for the first time in history the majority of U.S. congressional lawmakers are millionaires. In  at least  of the  current members of Congress had an average net worth of at least  million. Congressional Democrats led with a median net worth of . million, while congressional Republicans trailed with a median net worth of about  million. The richest member of Congress? Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., chairman of the House Oversight Committee, who did well in the car alarm business and in  had an average net worth of  million.

DRONE: MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP/GETTY IMAGES • POVERTY: ASSOCIATED PRESS • RODMAN: THE YOMIURI SHIMBUN/AP • EARECKSON: MESSIAH COLLEGE

We d n e s d a y, J a n . 

Nominated “Alone Yet Not Alone,” sung by Joni Eareckson Tada,, is in the running for a Best Original Song Oscar at the March  Academy Awards. The song, one of five nominees, is in a movie of the same name set in colonial America and produced by Christian filmmakers. Said Eareckson Tada: “A quadriplegic with limited lung capacity is the least likely candidate to record a song for a movie … but isn’t that just like God to display his glory through utter and complete weakness; for that I’m deeply grateful.”



WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 NEWS-1.indd 6

1/22/14 11:47 AM

WATER: MICHAEL SWITZER/AP • TARGET: STEVEN SENNE/AP •SHARON: BAZ RATNER-POOL/GETTY IMAGES • PETERSON: HANDOUT

Spotlight shame Former pro-basketball star Dennis Rodman apologized after he suggested during an interview with CNN’s Chris Cuomo that imprisoned missionary Kenneth Bae had done something to earn his harsh sentence: “At this point I should know better than to make political statements. I’m truly sorry.” During his fourth visit to the communist nation, Rodman also made headlines for singing “Happy Birthday” to Kim Jong Un—who was celebrating his st birthday—before leading a team of American former basketball players in an exhibition game against a North Korean team.

S a t u r d a y, J a n .  

Man knows not his time

WATER: MICHAEL SWITZER/AP • TARGET: STEVEN SENNE/AP •SHARON: BAZ RATNER-POOL/GETTY IMAGES • PETERSON: HANDOUT

DRONE: MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP/GETTY IMAGES • POVERTY: ASSOCIATED PRESS • RODMAN: THE YOMIURI SHIMBUN/AP • EARECKSON: MESSIAH COLLEGE

F r i d a y, J a n .  

Spill ills

President Obama released a disaster declaration and ordered federal aid to assist in cleanup efforts after coal processing chemicals leaked from a Freedom Industries holding tank into a river in Charleston, W.Va. The West Virginia American Water Company issued a five-day “do not use” tap water order that led to a bottled water shortage and the closure of local schools and some businesses. While officials believe about , gallons leaked out of the tank, they said some of the chemical was contained before reaching the river and testing consistently showed either levels below a toxic threshold or no trace at all.

Jersey bridge

Target troubles Target says a post-Thanksgiving data breach is much broader than originally believed: Hackers also gained access to the names, addresses, phone numbers, and emails of  million customers.

Hackers infiltrated at least four other stores including Neiman Marcus.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie apologized and fired deputy chief of staff Bridget Anne Kelly after a newspaper published emails suggesting his staff members orchestrated a massive traffic jam as retribution against a mayor who refused to support the governor’s reelection bid. Christie insists he had no prior knowledge of the plot, which sparked four days of gridlock on the George Washington Bridge.

On Jan.  Christie’s woes worsened as federal auditors launched a probe into the possible misuse of Hurricane Sandy relief funds.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, , died eight years after a massive stroke in January  left him in a coma at the height of his political career. He leaves behind a mixed legacy: revered by Israelis who viewed the military and political leader as a steadfast protector and “Bulldozer” who got things done, but reviled by critics for his ties to the  Palestinian massacre that earned him the nickname “Butcher of Beirut.”

As a conservative, pro-settlement hard-liner, Sharon’s early focus was on successfully redrawing and securing Israel’s borders. But later in his career, he tried reaching out to Palestinians in “reconciliation and compromise to end the bloody conflict and embark on the path which leads to peace.”

This sudden shift in focus paired with his controversial decision in  to withdraw Jewish settlements from Gaza eventually led Sharon to part ways with the conservative Likud party. He then formed the centrist Kadima party.

Named The American Bible Society has named Roy Peterson, CEO of The Seed Company, as its new president. ABS, one of America’s oldest institutions, fired president Doug Birdsall last year, a move many criticized since it came only months after he took the position. Prior to his work at The Seed Company, a Bible translation group, Peterson worked as president and CEO of Wycliffe USA. Peterson starts at ABS in February and will try to help the organization overcome a string of financial and leadership challenges.

Visit our website—wng.org—for breaking news and more

3 NEWS-1.indd 7

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/22/14 11:48 AM

Dispatches > News Tu e s d a y, J a n . 1 4

M o n d a y, J a n . 1 3

Appeal rejected

In a decision that could set a precedent for states with strong pro-life laws, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected Arizona’s bid to defend its ban on abortion past 20 weeks of pregnancy. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had ruled the law unconstitutional. Although the Supreme Court’s lack of decision is not a ruling against the ban, pro-abortion groups in other states with similar laws likely will view the refusal to hear the case as a tacit endorsement for their position.

Under scrutiny

surveillance video

A California jury found two former police officers not guilty in the 2011 beating death of a mentally ill homeless man. The prosecution’s case was centered on grainy surveillance video that captured Manuel Ramos and Jay Cicinelli’s altercation with 37-year-old Kelly Thomas. The FBI announced it will re-examine the case to “see if further investigation is warranted.”

Legal setback A federal judge in Tulsa ruled Oklahoma’s 2004 ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional, but unlike courts that recently struck down Utah’s traditional marriage law, U.S. District Judge Terrence Kern stayed his ruling pending the appeals process. Since Oklahoma and Utah are in the same federal circuit—the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals—the court could combine the cases.

No admittance Russia’s foreign ministry is accusing U.S. journalist David Satter of violating migration laws and has barred him from the country for five years. It marks the first time the country has expelled a U.S. journalist since the Cold War. Satter, who said he abided by migration protocol, believes his expulsion is tied to his criticism of President Vladimir Putin and the Russian regime.

Died Russell Johnson, who played high-school science teacher Roy Hinkley on the 1960s show Gilligan’s Island, died Jan. 16 at age 89. Generations of the show’s fans know Johnson as “The Professor,” a man who could fix anything—except the hole in the bottom of the S.S. Minnow. Johnson spoke of the show’s lasting appeal in a 2004 interview: “Parents are happy to have their children watch it. … No one gets hurt. No murders. No car crashes. Just good, plain, silly fun—that’s the charm.”

8

Arizona: Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images • new mexico: Mark Wilson/Roswell Daily Record/ap • Satter: handout • video: Orange County District Attorney/ap • kelly supporters: Eugene Garcia/ The Orange County Register/ap Johnson: Everett Collection

School shooting A New Mexico seventh-grader allegedly used a shotgun he had concealed in a ­duffel bag to open fire on a group of classmates while they waited for school to start in the Berrendo Middle School gym.

The shooting left an 11-year-old boy in critical condition and a 13-year-old girl in serious condition. Authorities credit teacher John Masterson with saving lives after he convinced 12-year-old Mason Campbell to put down the weapon.

State Police Chief Pete Kassetas said the ­victims were random.

WORLD • February 8, 2014

3 NEWS-1.indd 8

1/22/14 11:48 AM

ABOVE ALL, KNOW GOD. Study the attributes of God and medieval classics. Grab a slice of pizza Friday night with the same friends you worship with Sunday morning. Study under professors who aren’t just experts; they’re spiritual leaders. RBC is a launching pad from which to live an examined life, glorifying God and proclaiming His kingdom—wherever your degree may take you.

CREDIT CREDIT

Apply by March 1.

ReformationBibleCollege.org | 888-RBC-1517

WORLD_FP_FEB_2014_FINAL.indd 1 3 NEWS-1.indd 9

1/7/14 10:49 AM 1/16/14 10:09 AM

Dispatches > News We d n e s d a y, J a n . 1 5

Benghazi report

Floating along Shuttered stores J.C. Penney Co. announced plans to close 33 stores and cut approximately 2,000 jobs.

Chief Executive Mike Ullman hopes the plan will save $65 million a year and rescue the floundering chain, which has gone nine quarters without a profit. The majority of the stores slated to close are located in small markets.

Duck Dynasty and Phil Robertson returned to A&E, drawing an estimated 8.5 million viewers to the show’s fifth ­season premiere.

Although ratings were down 28 percent from last season’s premiere record of nearly 12 million viewers, they were up from the 8.4 million viewers who tuned in for season four’s finale.

Alive The U.S. government believes an American soldier captured in 2009 is still alive after a new video of him surfaced in mid-January. Officials think the Taliban, which captured U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl in Afghanistan, is holding the man somewhere in Pakistan. The Taliban has said it would free Bergdahl, 27, if the U.S. releases several top operatives from the U.S. base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Last summer, Bergdahl’s parents received a letter they believe their son wrote.

10

Widespread net Britain’s Guardian newspaper reported it has documents from fugitive whistleblower Edward Snowden showing the U.S. National Security Agency has been quietly ­collecting millions of text messages a day from around the globe. “The NSA has made extensive use of its vast text message database to extract information on people’s travel plans, contact books, financial transactions, and more—including of individuals under no suspicion of ­illegal activity,” the report said. The secret program, dubbed “Dishfire,” also allowed agency officials to extract geolocation data from the texts. The news came just a day before President Obama defended the government’s extensive surveillance programs while proposing moderate reforms including a restructuring of the program that collects and stores records of Americans’ phone calls. Obama said he would not end the collection of phone call metadata, but ­proposed allowing private companies or an independent body to oversee the database, only allowing government officials to access it when they have a specific need.

NSA: Alex Milan Tracy/NurPhoto/Corbis/AP • Benghazi: Mohammad Hannon/ap • J.C. Penney: David Duprey/ap • Robertson: A+E Networks • Bergdahl: U.S. Army/ap

A long-anticipated Senate Intelligence Committee report determined that the 2012 terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya, could have been prevented. The bipartisan report blamed the State Department for failing to increase security despite known vulnerabilities at the diplomatic compound and warnings about the growing threat to Americans. The scathing report concluded that militants tied to al-Qaeda were ­responsible for the attacks that killed four Americans including Ambassador Chris Stevens. The panel also noted that Stevens bore some responsibility for declining additional military support in the Bloodstained walls weeks leading up to at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi. the attack.

T h u r s d a y, J a n . 1 6

WORLD • February 8, 2014

3 NEWS-2.indd 10

1/22/14 11:55 AM

THEOLOGICAL INTEGRATION IS COMING Introducing a unique new suite of Masters-Level qualifications that integrate the Bible with real life.

Beyond applied theology – the MA in Integrative Theology can either be accessed and completed online worldwide or studied full-time or part-time on campus in London – whichever suits your lifestyle or needs better.

Choose from a ground-breaking range of real-world integrated streams including:

SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY

SOCIAL JUSTICE

NEW TESTAMENT

THEOLOGY, MUSIC & ARTS

OLD TESTAMENT

PUBLIC LEADERSHIP CHRISTIAN WORSHIP STUDIES

LAuNCHING AuTuMN 2014

CREDIT

The future of theological education is the MA in Integrative Theology only from the London School of Theology.

CREDIT

To find out more, register your interest online now at: www.lst.ac.uk/Integrative

3 NEWS-2.indd 11

FAITH & FIRST WORLd PRObLEMS Shane Claiborne is coming to London to give the LST Deo Gloria Lecture on 16 May 2014 - book online at www.lst.ac.uk

1/17/14 4:44 PM

Dispatches > News S a t u r d a y & S u n d a y, J a n .   -  

Mixed rulings

The nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals tossed out key parts of New York City’s  law requiring pregnancy centers to post signs saying they do not offer abortion referrals. In the mixed verdict, the court ruled that the provision was a violation of the centers’ free speech but went on to reinstate a component requiring pro-life centers to disclose whether the facility has a licensed medical provider. Meanwhile, U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles ruled unconstitutional a North Carolina law requiring women to receive an ultrasound before undergoing an abortion. Eagles allowed other parts of the law to stand, including a -hour waiting period and a mandate that abortionists provide women with information on abortion risks.

Dry state

California Gov. Jerry Brown declared a drought emergency and urged residents to begin cutting their water usage by  percent.

The announcement came after California faced one of its driest years on record and endured a wildfire season that began in early May and stretched into December.

No ID needed A Pennsylvania judge struck down the state’s nearly -year-old voter-identification law, declaring it an unreasonable burden on the fundamental right to vote. The law, which Republican Gov. Tom Corbett signed in March , had not yet been enforced due to court orders blocking it while the matter was resolved in the courts.

Olympic threat Concerns about safety and security during the upcoming Sochi Winter Olympics in Russia surged on Jan.  with the release of a video reportedly recorded by two suicide bombers who give an ominous message: “We’ll have a surprise package for you. And those tourists that will come to you, for them, too, we have a surprise. … This will be our revenge.” U.S. intelligence officials consider the threat by the Islamist militants to be serious and have issued strong travel advisories.

LIFE: JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/GETTY IMAGES • BAO BAO: PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/GETTY IMAGES • VIDEO: HANDOUT • BROWN: JEFF CHIU/AP • ABBADO : URS FLUEELER/ KEYSTONE/AP

F r i d a y, J a n .  

Died Acclaimed Italian conductor Claudio Abbado, , who led some of the finest orchestras for more than  years, died on Jan.  in Bologna, Italy. Abbado, whom some critics called the world’s most powerful conductor, spent a decade as the principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, and had stints leading the Vienna State Opera and the Berlin Philharmonic.

Abbado in  won a Grammy Award for best instrumental soloist (with orchestra).



WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 NEWS-3.indd 12

1/22/14 12:17 PM

JOHANSSON: REX FEATURES VIA AP • LEGO MOVIE: WARNER BROS. • VALENTINE: JILL CHEN/ISTOCK • BAE: KYODO/AP • IRAN: KAZEM GHANE/IRNA/AP

Hello, world Bao Bao, a black-and-white, -month-old giant panda cub, made her public debut at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington, D.C., on Jan. .

Zoo officials extended hours to allow curious visitors a peek at the first panda to survive birth at the National Zoo since .

Feb. 2 With Super Bowl ads costing more

than , per second, online broker E-Trade decided against  seconds of advertising time and will be absent from the gallery of Super Bowl ads for the first time in seven years. But, others are picking up the slack.

SodaStream will make its Super Bowl debut to take on soda giants like Coca-Cola and Pepsi with an ad featuring Scarlett Johansson.

M o n d a y, J a n .  

LIFE: JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/GETTY IMAGES • BAO BAO: PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/GETTY IMAGES • VIDEO: HANDOUT • BROWN: JEFF CHIU/AP • ABBADO : URS FLUEELER/ KEYSTONE/AP

JOHANSSON: REX FEATURES VIA AP • LEGO MOVIE: WARNER BROS. • VALENTINE: JILL CHEN/ISTOCK • BAE: KYODO/AP • IRAN: KAZEM GHANE/IRNA/AP

Easing up While UN inspectors looked on, Iranian scientists suspended high levels of uranium enrichment at nuclear facilities across Iran as required under an interim nuclear agreement that went into effect.

In response, the EU lifted certain economic sanctions against Iran for six months. As negotiations begin in February for a final deal, critics caution that even allowing Iran to continue enriching uranium to  percent for use in power production will still leave a substantial enrichment capacity in the country.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, meanwhile, rescinded an offer for Iran to join Syrian peace talks in Geneva after his last-minute invitation threw the long-awaited conference into doubt. Both the United States and the Syrian opposition had protested the invitation.

LOOKING AHEAD Feb. 7

After six years of production, LEGOs are set to star in a feature-length film. More than half a trillion LEGO blocks have been manufactured since the Danish toy company started in , meaning Warner Bros. is banking on ready-made demand for a film franchise. An ensemble cast including Will Ferrell, Morgan Freeman, and Chris Pratt will offer voices for the animated film.

Feb. 7

Former Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano will lead the United States delegation to the  Winter Games in Sochi, Russia. But it’s the absence of President Obama—and the presence of openly gay athletes as part of the delegation—that has Olympic watchers talking. The move is seen as a protest against Russian policies opposing homosexuality.

Feb. 14

   . Read more about state strategies to save babies from abortion, and check out online commentary from Marvin Olasky, Mindy Belz, Janie Cheaney, Andrée Seu Peterson, Cal Thomas, and others.

Feb. 9 Swiss citizens will vote on whether to tighten

immigration restrictions in the land-locked country.

Supporters of the referendum say the measure will stop mass immigration they say is causing a housing shortage and rising crime rate. The growing push to curb immigration reflects trends in Europe generally where opposition to immigration seems to be rising.

Estimates from the National Retail Federation had Americans spending more than  billion for Valentine’s Day last year. And if form holds, Valentine’s Day  shouldn’t look too different. Historical trends indicate men spend much more than women. In , men planned to spend  on average whereas women planned to spend  each.

Jailed Imprisoned American Christian Kenneth Bae appealed for the U.S. government to secure his release during a brief “press conference” in Pyongyang on Jan. . Bae, who was sentenced in  to  years of hard labor for crimes against the state, apologized for committing anti-government acts, but most people believe North Korean authorities forced the confession. Bae, hospitalized for the past several months, said, “It seems now I should return to prison.”

Visit our website—wng.org—for breaking news and more

3 NEWS-3.indd 13

1/22/14 12:15 PM

Dispatches > News

Just say yes

Egyptian voters overwhelmingly pass a new constitution, but worries persist over the country’s future By Jamie Dean

>>

14

W O R L D • F e b r u ar y 8 , 2 0 1 4

3 NEWS-p14.indd 14

would open the door for “Christian groups to draw poor Muslims away from their religion” by offering relief to those in need.

Beyond the debate over church involvement, one reality seemed clear: The new constitution would have passed either way in January. Egyptian voters approved the document by nearly 98 percent.

The new constitution offers improvements over the 2012 version, including

written protections for women and Christians. But the document also strengthens military power, and raises concerns that m ­ ilitary leaders could wield outsized influence in coming years.

The military’s top leader, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, already heads the country’s interim government, and says he hasn’t decided whether he’ll run for president. His decision may hinge partly on voter turnout: Though only 38.6 percent of voters went to the SPEAKING UP: Tawadros casts his vote.

AHMED EL-MALKI/AFP/Getty Images

In the weeks before Egyptian voters overwhelmingly approved a new constitution in mid-January, the leader of the country’s Coptic Orthodox Church made a dramatic move: Pope Tawadros II wrote an ­editorial in Egypt’s state-sponsored newspapers, urging Coptic Christians to vote for the new document.

It wasn’t the pope’s first foray into politics. When Egyptian demonstrators demanded the ouster of former President Mohamed Morsi last July, the pope appeared with a Muslim cleric and military leaders announcing Morsi’s forced departure.

(Morsi—a member of the Muslim Brotherhood—had grown increasingly unpopular after rushing through an Islamist constitution in 2012, and declaring sweeping presidential powers for himself.)

But the Coptic pope’s latest political move was still controversial, even among some members of his church.

Christians—long an oppressed minority in Egypt—remain divided over whether churches should press for more public influence in politics or remain neutral on state affairs.

Some Christians worry official church involvement in state affairs will inflame Islamist notions that Christians were responsible for Morsi’s downfall, despite the masses of secularists and moderate Muslims that demonstrated in Tahrir Square.

Indeed, days after Morsi’s ouster last summer, Islamist mobs attacked, looted, and torched dozens of Coptic, Catholic, and evangelical churches across the country.

By last December, the Egyptian interim government had declared the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization, and froze funds of hundreds of the group’s charitable agencies. Muslim Brotherhood leaders lamented the move

polls in January, the turnout was higher than the 32 percent that voted for Morsi’s constitution in 2012. (The 2012 document passed by 63 percent.)

Some election observers were more concerned about the near-unanimous approval of the new constitution. A Muslim Brotherhood boycott of the ­referendum contributed to the overwhelming consensus, but reports also emerged that military leaders squelched open opposition to the ­document, and arrested a handful of opponents.

A reporter for The New Yorker in Cairo wrote that he asked a spokesman for the High Election Commission if it was legal for an Egyptian citizen to post a sign calling for people to vote no on the constitution.

He said the spokesman replied: “If some person has been arrested right now, then the investigating authority has evidence of their involvement in certain crimes.”

Egyptian ­satirist Bassem Youseff wrote the referendum might as well have offered the options “yes” and “definitely yes.”

Still, at many polling places across the country, the mood was festive, as vendors sold Egyptian flags and voters posed for pictures with soldiers patrolling outside polling stations. Many said they were eager to move forward with a new constitution after years of political chaos.

Iman Mahmoud, a voter in a city north of Cairo, told The New York Times she hoped the vote would dispel criticism that the military had taken over the country: “We’re here so the world will know that this is the people’s will, not a military coup.” A

Download WORLD’s iPad app today; details at wng.org/iPad

1/22/14 11:41 AM

Liberty University Legacy Lectures

TRUTH MATTERS BIBLICAL STUDIES SYMPOSIUM

DARRELL L. BOCK, PH.D. Executive Director of Cultural Engagement and Senior Research Professor of New Testament Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary

Andreas L. Kostenberger, Ph.D. Senior Research Professor of New Testament and Biblical Theology at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary

Josh Chatraw, Ph.D. Pastor of Preaching and Students at First Baptist Church in Dublin, Ga.

MARCH 3-5 Evangelical effectiveness in engaging today’s culture Millennials have serious questions and often can’t defend their faith.

They are seeking the truth and want honest answers.“Truth Matters” is written for this querying audience.

Training Champions for Christ since 1971

Based on their new book, “Truth Matters”

CREDIT

ATTEND FREE ON CAMPUS OR WATCH LIVE AT WWW.LIBERTY.EDU/BSS | #LIBERTYBSS

3 NEWS-p14.indd 15

1/16/14 10:15 AM

Dispatches > Quotables ‘He who has betrayed will betray.’

New York Gov. ANDREW CUOMO on “extreme conservatives” who are “right-to-life, pro-assault weapon, anti-gay.”

‘Obviously, I could have worded things better.’

Seattle Seahawks defensive back RICHARD SHERMAN, on Jan. , one day after his pass deflection put the Seahawks into the Super Bowl. After the play Sherman mocked a San Francisco ers player and later called him a “sorry receiver.” (See p. .)

‘ million’ Amount that Italian authorities say Vatican accountant Monsignor NUNZIO SCARANO tried to smuggle into Italy.

He also faces charges of raising millions in “false donations” for a home for the terminally ill that instead went to pay off a mortgage on one of his properties.

‘The good news is we’re getting healthier. The bad news is we’re poorer.’

HARRY BALZER, a food analyst with the market research firm NPD Group, on a new report that indicated Americans are eating healthier, partly because incomes are flat and they’ve been eating out less often.

‘I’m sure he knows best. I’m just a little country veterinarian. … So what do I know? I’m from a marginal district that they need to have that talks to people on a regular basis. Whatever.’

U.S. Rep. KURT SCHRADER, D-Ore., confirming that White House chief of staff Denis McDonough was “dismissive” of Schrader’s complaints about healthcare premium increases.



WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 QUOTABLES.indd 16

SCARANO: FRANCESCO PECORARO • VATICAN: FILIPPO MONTEFORTE/AFP/GETTY IMAGES • ROYAL: YOHAN BONNET/AP • SHERMAN: ELAINE THOMPSON/AP • SCHRADER: OREGON DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

‘They have no place in the state of New York.’

Listen to WORLD on the radio at worldandeverything.com

1/22/14 12:00 PM

CREDIT

SÉGOLÈNE ROYAL, the former partner of French President Francois Hollande and mother of their four children, when Hollande left her to live with another woman, journalist Valerie Trierweiler. Hollande was recently caught in an affair with another woman, and the scandal has consumed French media.

CREDIT

CREDIT

3 QUOTABLES.indd 17

1/21/14 12:09 PM

Dispatches > Quick Takes

 

  If a Virginia city councilman gets his way, one Old Dominion city will partially turn its back on its Civil War history. Alexandria councilman Justin Wilson has proposed the repeal of a  ordinance that requires new city streets that run north-south to be named for Confederate generals. The Northern Virginia city’s decades-old law also mandates new east-west streets be named for prominent persons or places in American history.

Forget cash rewards. One Abigail Miller of Dayton, Ohio, knew exactly what sort of incentive it would take to find her lost dog: a case of beer and a pack of cigarettes. Miller, , came up with her unusual reward offer to attract local attention after the disappearance of her dog Zoro. The plan worked.

More than a week later, a local man called Miller with information about Zoro’s whereabouts. He turned down the beer and the smokes.

  In Samoa, criticizing the wrong person could cost you not just a lot of money—but livestock too. A Samoan teenager learned this the hard way when he was hit with an unusual penalty for criticizing the island nation’s prime minister on social media. On Jan. , the family of the teenager was assessed a fine of ,, a pair of cows, and  packages of tinned fish as his punishment for poking fun at Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sa’ilele Malielegaoi.

Samoa enshrines free speech in its constitution, but political speech is not uniformly defended.

A statue of a Confederate soldier in Alexandria, Va.



   At least it didn’t cost her a lot of money.

The woman who bought a rare Renoir painting at a West Virginia flea market for  was ordered Jan.  to return it to the Baltimore Museum of Art where it had been stolen in . Martha Fuqua of Virginia claims she picked up the  painting by the French master while poking through merchandise at a flea market. U.S. District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled that even if Fuqua had acted in good faith, she could not legally be in possession of the item, because it had been stolen. The Renoir painting is estimated to be worth about ,.

ILLUSTRATION: KRIEG BARRIE • ZORO: ABIGAIL MILLER’S FACEBOOK PAGE • ALEXANDRIA: ANDRE JENNY STOCK CONNECTION/NEWSCOM • RENOIR: POTOMACK COMPANY/AP • MALIELEGAOI: DRINA THURSTON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

A would-be bank robber’s bad handwriting cost him the chance to make a score when a bank teller was unable to read his stickup note. Police say suspect Jamal Garrett entered an Antioch, Calif., Wells Fargo bank on Jan.  with intentions to rob the bank. Unable to read the scratch marks, the teller took the stickup note to a bank manager for help. But police say Garrett got cold feet during the delay and fled the scene. Only later did bank employees realize the note had been part of a robbery attempt. Officers later caught up with Garrett and charged him with the attempted robbery.

WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 QUICK TAKES.indd 18

1/21/14 4:31 PM

STAR TREK: LINE RAINVILLE/CATERS NEWS • MONKEY: ALAIN DAVREUX/GETTY IMAGES • CHESTER: CLATSOP COUNTY JAIL • ILLUSTRATION: KRIEG BARRIE

 

 

STAR TREK: LINE RAINVILLE/CATERS NEWS • MONKEY: ALAIN DAVREUX/GETTY IMAGES • CHESTER: CLATSOP COUNTY JAIL • ILLUSTRATION: KRIEG BARRIE

ILLUSTRATION: KRIEG BARRIE • ZORO: ABIGAIL MILLER’S FACEBOOK PAGE • ALEXANDRIA: ANDRE JENNY STOCK CONNECTION/NEWSCOM • RENOIR: POTOMACK COMPANY/AP • MALIELEGAOI: DRINA THURSTON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Of all the basements in Quebec, Canada, Line Rainville’s might be the most out-of-this-world.

For the past year, Rainville (left) has been building a replica of Trek’s Enterprise set as a Star Trek theme for her basement suite.

The focal point is her television room, which is done up to look like the bridge of the Enterprise complete with a Spock cutout. But, as Trekkies might note, you can see one thing in Rainville’s basement that you won’t see in the Enterprise: a bathroom.

  Think bananas are for monkeys? Not all kinds. A zoo in southwest England has stopped feeding bananas to the primates because the fruit is making the animals unhealthy, say zoo officials. “Giving this fruit to animals is equivalent to giving them cake and chocolate,” Paignton Zoo nutritionist Amy Plowman said. The problem, according to Plowman, is that the bananas available to the zoo are cultivated for humans. “[They are] much higher in sugar and much lower in protein and fiber than most wild fruit because we like our fruit to be so sweet and juicy.” Plowman said the zoo has weaned its primates off fruit and replaced it with leafy green vegetables.

-  Objective observers can find much to criticize in Laurie Ruth Chester’s alleged crime spree. But most of all, her getaway plan seemed ill-conceived.

Police say Chester began on Jan.  when she allegedly took  out of a Subway restaurant tip jar to pay for her hoagie. She then caused a disturbance at a local Rite Aid before filling up a motorized shopping cart with merchandise at a Home Depot and piloting the vehicle out of the store without paying. Police engaged in a brief low-speed chase with Chester when they spotted her driving the cart on a nearby highway.

  For six months, a German farmer near Regensburg tried in vain to capture his runaway bull. He attempted to lasso the animal, but the bull would always flee into the woods. The farmer tried shooting the beast with a tranquilizer, but the darts proved ineffective. But where the unidentified farmer failed, neighbor Werner Dechant succeeded. In January, Dechant saw the black bull eating grain out of a bucket on his property and tried and failed to snare the cautious bovine. But Dechant had an idea for when the animal returned. The next day, Dechant mixed more grain with a bottle of vodka. The day after, Dechant soaked the grain in two more bottles of the spirit. Once liquored up, the escaped bull was easy to capture and was returned to its owner.

Visit our website—wng.org—for breaking news and more

3 QUICK TAKES.indd 19

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/21/14 4:29 PM

Janie B. Cheaney

The Calvinist’s temptation

Shortcuts and bypaths can only get in the way of loving and following Christ

>>



WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 CHEANEY.indd 20

Suddenly we’re in the Holy City, perched on the temple’s dizzying heights. We know what this is about: Satan wants Jesus to create a spectacle by throwing Himself into space and daring the angels to catch Him. Jesus is saying, “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test,” as we nod sagely to each other.

Isn’t that just the way some megachurches and TV evangelists offer spectacle to pack the people in? And skim their wallets? Jesus isn’t taking that route, and neither shall we. To the law and the testimony!

But now we’re climbing a very high mountain, and even in our dreams we’re panting when we reach the top. Satan has arranged a dazzling display of all the kingdoms of earth, and despite our fatigue we can’t conceal a knowing smile. So blatant, so obvious—what charms do the kingdoms of earth hold for the King of Heaven? This will be easy.

But Jesus stares at the shining palaces with intense longing. What is it? Suddenly we know. He does desire these kingdoms, ardently—He came to redeem them.

What the devil offers is a shortcut, a surface redemption that might save our cities but condemn our souls.

Jesus can’t step from one mountaintop to another; He must sink beneath us, all the way to abandonment and death, in order to raise us up.

Our great temptation is the same: to take shortcuts and forget about dying to self. Any bypath will do; any church-growth plan, any political battle, any cultural crisis—any Christ-honoring doctrine that also happens to flatter our intellect. The church is called to love and follow and witness to Christ. We sink below Him to lift Him up. All our study points to Him; all our theology serves Him. All our efforts, in a world of distraction and woe, must hold fast to Him. A

KRIEG BARRIE

T N Y (B ) T has just picked up on a trend that’s been going on since the early s: “Evangelicals Find Themselves in the Midst of a Calvinist Revival.” Readers of the piece will learn that some of the hottest evangelical preachers are Calvinist, that John Calvin himself “did not read scripture literally,” and that Calvinists are sneaky—at least according to some opposite-leaning evangelicals who resent how their churches have been infiltrated.

Some of us theology nerds recall swapping links to a YouTube video called “I Think My Wife’s a Calvinist,” with insider lines like “She burned that Beth Moore book I gave her,” and clever entendres (“But that’s OK—I didn’t choose her; she chose me”).

When people are writing song parodies about you, Johnny C., you’re definitely a trend. And a fad? The Times article ends with the speculation that Calvinism may end up on the been-there-done-that pile, along with the emergent church movement and the missional church movement.

That seems doubtful. “Calvinism,” or the Reformed faith, or the Doctrine of Grace, is neither a denomination nor a worship style nor a church-growth strategy.

It’s a systematic approach to biblical teaching that can be all those (I know Reformed charismatics, Reformed Catholics, and Reformed liberals). For the most part, believers who accept it testify to a better understanding of scriptural unity and a fuller appreciation of grace, and that’s where I am. But like all good things, it can also be a terrible temptation.

To illustrate, let’s follow Christ into the desert, where He’s been for  days without food—after which Matthew : informs us, with classic understatement, that He’s hungry. We’re just in time for the first temptation. Satan has chosen a moment when evening light falling on the smooth rocks of an arroyo makes them look like loaves of bread. Jesus, with the sharpened instincts of a starving man, can probably smell them. Will he succumb? No way: “Man does not live by bread alone.” Excellent! we cheer. Liberal churches that cater to the material man and freely interpret the Bible should pay attention. We live by the Word of God; got that, libs?

Email: jcheaney@wng.org

1/20/14 12:14 PM

“C12 has given me the vision and knowledge to build a solid, Biblical foundation for the business He has entrusted to me.”

THE C12 DIFFERENCE

business with an

eternal perspective.

12 C

group

®

Are You Seeking a Fulfilling

With more than 1,200 members across 70+ metro areas, The C12 Group is America’s leading Christian roundtable, serving CEOs and owners managing companies from $1M to $1B. The monthly C12 experience provides a unique, proven forum for like-minded business leaders to engage in worthwhile continual learning and intentional accountability. C12 Members repeatedly outperform their peers in all economic climates.

krieg barrie

ENCORE CAREER?

C12 Members Benefit From:

Are you an experienced CEO or business owner seeking a rewarding career where you can apply your business leadership knowledge and Biblical worldview?

If this is your calling, we invite you to explore becoming a C12 Chair.

Call Steve Hase today at 336.841.7100.

An annual in-depth business review

Relevant, proven best-practice business content Monthly counsel from like-minded peers Monthly one-on-one with full-time Chair Targeted conferences and seminars C12’s online resources and value-added tool kit

Christian CEOs & Owners Building GREAT Businesses for a GREATER Purpose™ call us 336.841.7100 or visit us online C12Group.com WorldFullNov13.indd 1 3 CHEANEY.indd 21

9/18/13 2:59:24 PM 1/16/14 10:16 AM

A R E M E DY f o r E VA N G E L I C A L I S M ’ S

SUPERFICIAL THEOLOGY Building on years of research, writing, and cross-cultural ministry, renowned author and theologian David Wells calls our attention to that which defines God’s greatness and gives shape to the Christian life: the holy-love of God.

“Rich, deep, and faithful—God in the Whirlwind invites us to come before the very heart of God.” OS GUINNESS

“A timely and necessary antidote to the spirit of the age which is manifested in the prevailing mancenteredness of contemporary evangelicalism.”

A LI STA I R B E G G “Part biblical theology, part systematic theology, and part cultural reconnaissance, this is a powerful work that my generation—really any generation— cannot afford to ignore.”

K E V I N D E YOU N G

crossway.org

3 MOVIES & TV.indd 22

1/16/14 10:18 AM

CREDIT

“In this important book, David Wells begins the process of bringing his influential critique of late modern culture and the church down into practice.

I’m glad to recommend this volume.”

T I M KELLER

Reviews

Movies  TV > Books > QA > Music

Jack attack

MOVIE: Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit shows early promise but descends into spy thriller formula

BY SOPHIA LEE

PARAMOUNT PICTURES & SKYDANCE PRODUCTIONS

>>

T  J R as America’s more human, more interesting James Bond. The British icon’s greatest flaw is having no flaw at all—he is too smooth, too composed, too perfect to the point of blandness.

When Daniel Craig finally portrayed James Bond as an agent weathered in skin and spirit in Skyfall, critics hailed it as “the greatest James Bond movie ever.” Perhaps fans are ready for an espionage thriller with more believability, and Jack Ryan provides that—to a certain dose.

Though based on Tom Clancy’s bestselling novel series, Jack Ryan: Secret Recruit (rated PG-) deviates

from the book and its film predecessors by rebooting his story as a prequel set in the st century—young, inexperienced Jack Ryan before he became the Jack Ryan.

It’s Sept. , , at the London School of Economics, and a baby-faced Jack Ryan (Chris Pine) is taking an afternoon nap with his head propped on a mathematics textbook. He awakens to watch the World Trade Center disintegrate into smoke and rubble on TV. Eighteen months later, Jack’s a Marine on a military helicopter in Afghanistan. The helicopter crashes, but he survives with a broken back.

While learning to walk again in a

Listen to WORLD on the radio at worldandeverything.com

iPad app today; details at wng.org/iPad 3 MOVIESDownload & TV.indd WORLD’s 23

military rehabilitation center, he falls in love with Cathy (Keira Knightley with an American accent), his physical therapist and future wife.

Jack also catches the attention of CIA commander William Harper (Kevin Costner), who is impressed by his patriotism and his half-written college thesis on finance patterns. William recruits Jack to finish his Ph.D. in economics and work undercover for the CIA as a financial analyst.

Ten years later, Jack’s still as freshfaced as ever, but he’s recovered, engaged, and working as a trader on Wall Street, while covertly monitoring financial activities that might be linked

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/22/14 9:40 AM

Reviews > Movies & TV



WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 MOVIES & TV.indd 24

DOCUMENTARY

Little Hope Was Arson   

A     of the smoldering ruins of her East Texas church speaking to a reporter: “The building houses so many memories, my great-grandmother went here, my grandparents. I got married here, both of my daughters were baptized here.”

It’s January  and  churches in East Texas have been set on fire, leaving entire towns grappling with loss and confusion.

Little Hope Was Arson, a documentary currently playing in the Slamdance Film Festival, examines these events from the police investigation to the church members’ response to the arrest and imprisonment of the convicted arsonists. By the closing scene, not only the buildings but the church communities would be tested by fire.

Through news clips and interviews, the film portrays the initial anger, sorrow, and fear of the small-town residents as their sanctuaries burned. Pastors feared for their lives, and church members staked out in front of their churches with guns in tow. In the meantime, law enforcement combed through the ruins looking for clues. Finally a tip pointed them to two young men, one of whom was the brother of Christy McAllister, the law enforcement communications director. She helped turn him in.

The film then turns to look at the lives of Daniel McAllister, then , and Jason Bourque, then , who met in Sunday school. Daniel grew resentful toward God when his mother died and his father tried committing suicide. Jason also left the church after a breakup, falling into depression and drug use. The two men pled guilty to the fires and were sentenced to life in prison.

Yet the strongest point of the film was watching the church’s response in finding out the culprit was one of their own. At their sentence hearing, one pastor asked the boys to forgive them for any way the church had wronged them, as they forgive the boys.

Many of the pastors said the boys were welcomed into the churches they have rebuilt.

It’s a wonder for a film–especially one shown in indie film festivals–to portray such a genuine image of forgiveness.

See all our movie reviews at wng.org/movies

1/22/14 9:42 AM

UNIVERSAL PICTURES

>>

LITTLE HOPE WAS ARSON: THE COLLABORATE & GOODNIGHT SMOKE • JACK RYAN: SHADOW RECRUIT: PARAMOUNT PICTURES & SKYDANCE PRODUCTIONS

to terrorists. One day he detects strange activity in the global market, and quickly (and correctly) deduces that Russia is plotting a giant investment scheme that may implode the U.S. economy. Jack follows the dots to Viktor Cherevin (director Kenneth Branagh), a Russian businessman who harbors grievances against the United States for the Soviet war in Afghanistan— modern day, modern terrorism, old nemesis.

The CIA assigns Jack to Moscow to audit Cherevin’s protected files, under his established cover at a brokerage firm. Things tailspin from there, and Jack goes from analyst to operations. Ironically, Jack gets less interesting once the “real” action begins. Literally overnight, he transforms from a finance guy stuttering for backup to—well, a tired James Bond typecast. He suddenly develops mad-precise car chase skills, then screeches on a gravity-defying motorcycle dash to save a city from annihilation.

Don’t be surprised to see Pine cast again as Jack Ryan in a sequel. Alec Baldwin, the most-loved Jack Ryan incarnation from the  film The Hunt for Red October, is a tough act to follow, but Pine effortlessly recaptures his character’s amiable blue-eyed charm.

Director and co-star Branagh plays a brilliant, chilling, sympathetic Russian villain/ patriot who, despite all his heinous crimes, most realistically embodies his humanity. We see too little of Costner as the seasoned CIA veteran William, and we see too much of Knightley as the suspicious fiancée-turned-accomplice.

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit is an entertaining blockbuster and little more, though it showed more promise in the beginning. It matches the template for a predictable, classic spy thriller: time-ticking explosions, thrilling car chases, damsel in distress, and grand conspiracies.

Perhaps the audience still needs a dose of fantastical after all. A

MOVIE

Lone Survivor

by Megan Basham

>>

Box Office Top 10

Universal Pictures

Little Hope was Arson: The Collaborate & Goodnight Smoke • Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit: Paramount Pictures & Skydance Productions

Ever since its release on Jan. 12, Lone Survivor has been making headlines, though few relate to its phenomenal box office performance.

Like so many entertainment offerings these days, the movie, based on the real life story of Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell, has become a political touchstone, dividing media commentators into those who ­support its purported militaristic themes and those who decry them as jingoistic warmongering.

After LA Weekly film critic Amy Nicholson called the movie a “snuff film” Is their ultimate choice a moral one? that trades on the notion “brown people bad, American people a political touchstone: Certainly. Was it the right course? good,” right-wing pundit Glenn Beck condemned her as an Berg (left) and Director Peter Berg leaves that open for “ignorant liar.” Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly and Megyn Kelly Wahlberg on debate. But it is unquestionable that their ­similarly devoted segments lambasting the reactions of New the set of Lone Survivor. fear of being tried and convicted in the York Magazine and Atlantic reviewers who criticized the media informs the team’s decision, which movie’s portrayal of the Taliban as overly villainous. is fairly ironic given the treatment the CNN’s chief Washington correspondent, Jake Tapper, may movie has undergone since its release. have sparked the biggest firestorm surrounding the film There’s a reason Lone Survivor is breaking box office when he asked Luttrell whether the events depicted in the records. Yes, it offers a riveting portrayal of soldiers under film didn’t prove that U.S. presence in the Middle East is the severest stress who bear up under it heroically. But it senseless. However, the award for most graceless reaction also challenges the viewer to reconsider simpleminded must go to left-leaning Time critic Richard Corliss for his ­moralizing when it comes to war action. observation, “That these events actually happened doesn’t Midway through the film our ire is raised when our necessarily make it plausible or powerful in a movie, or keep ­protagonists don’t get help as quickly as they could have it from seeming like convenient propaganda.” because of what seems like an excessively rigid regulation.

Actually, it does. There’s little in Lone Survivor (rated R for Later, ­however, we learn, in the starkest terms, the reason for violence and near-constant profanity) to justify it as either the policy and the devastating consequences of disregarding pro- or anti-war. The fact that one SEAL team’s mission to it. Though Berg shows the mental bravado elite soldiers must confirm the location of a Taliban leader leads to the largest embrace to perform their jobs, he also (though you won’t loss of life ever suffered by the force could be taken as proof hear much about this) provides a of futility or the ineptitude of military touchingly empathetic portrait of the leadership in 2005. But then again, the Afghan people who suffer daily under brutality of the Taliban and their the Taliban, and honors them nearly as hatred of America (which is, if anyFor the weekend of Jan. 17-19 ­ much as he does the SEALs. thing, underplayed in the film) argues according to Box Office Mojo In a fair world, Berg, known for his for a prolonged, dedicated response in cautions: Quantity of sexual (S), ­violent excellent work on the film and tele­vision spite of such losses.

(V), and foul-language (L) ­content on a 0-10 show Friday Night Lights and his lessThe most striking moment in the scale, with 10 high, from kids-in-mind.com than-excellent work in big-budget movie comes when the SEALs debate S V L

bombs like Battleship, would be lauded what to do with three Afghan goat1̀ Ride Along PG-13.......................5 6 5 for a significant contribution to the herders who accidently stumble on 2̀ Lone Survivor* R..................... 1 9 10 microscopic canon of emotionally them and compromise their mission.

3̀ The Nut Job PG.......................... 1 3 2 ­layered, thought-provoking films about Luttrell (Mark Wahlberg) and the rest 4̀ Jack Ryan: Shadow the war in the Middle East. Instead, like of his team are acutely aware that Recruit* PG-13............................2 6 5 so many writers/singers/actors/directors ­freeing these men likely means alerting 5̀ Frozen* PG.................................. 1 3 1 before him, he finds himself caught in a the enemy to their presence and could 6̀ American Hustle* R...............6 4 10 political crossfire. Unlike many of his lead to their deaths. But they are even 7̀ Devil’s Due R............................ not rated colleagues in the entertainment field, more aware of what the American 8̀ August: Osage nothing about Berg’s creation suggests media will do to them if they fail to County R......................................3 4 7 9̀ The Wolf of he wants to be there. A select this option.

Wall Street R............................10 4 10 10 Her R............................................... 7 4 8 `

*Reviewed by world

3 MOVIES & TV.indd 25

F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4 • W O R L D

25

1/22/14 9:43 AM

Reviews > Books

Sticking it to the bourgeoisie Books highlight mankind’s shortsighted ideals and their resulting effects

SHORT STOPS

The United States was remarkably unprepared for Japan’s - assault on American troops in the Philippines, and thousands paid with their lives. Bill Sloan’s Undefeated: America’s Heroic Fight for Bataan and Corregidor (Simon and Schuster, ) movingly tells the story of the desperate defense and brutal aftermath. Peter Savodnik’s The Interloper: Lee Harvey Oswald Inside the Soviet Union (Basic, ) is a well-written examination of how estrangement from America and a failure to find a home in Minsk sent Oswald toward a rendezvous with assassination.

Daniel Anderson’s Biblical Slave Leadership (Regular Baptist, ) is striking in its use of “slave” rather than

WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 BOOKS.indd 26

Edmund Muskie, were honest about it: “Why can’t liberals start raising hell about government so big, so complex, so expansive, and so unresponsive that it’s dragging down every good program we’ve worked for?”

But others gave knee-jerk defenses of big government, and such a response is obligatory now.

George Marsden’s The Twilight of the American Enlightenment (Basic, ) shows how the materialism that grew out of such thinking falls short: He points out that in the s and s secular, liberal elites thought they could guide the nation, but failed.

Marsden disapproves of “culture-war stances” but concludes that journalists should “see one of their tasks as providing leadership in cultivating a public domain as fully inclusive of religiously shaped viewpoints as is feasible. Secularist commentators, rather than writing polemics denouncing religion in the name of universal reason, might better wrestle with the issues of how to respect both secular and religious viewpoints and institutions in the public domain.”

“servant,” but it truly points out that great leaders give up the right to say “no” to crucial tasks. Ara Norenzayan’s Big Gods: How Religion Transformed Cooperation and Conflict (Princeton Univ. Press, ) argues that people play nice when they believe universal gods are watching, but he doesn’t sufficiently take into account religious differences: Those Muslims who think Allah wants them to kill Christians and Jews act worse than they otherwise would.

Liberal journalists were remarkably unequipped to understand the nature of the Soviet Union, as Paul Kengor exposes in his short and punchy All the Dupes Fit to Print: Journalists Who Have Served as Tools of Communist Propaganda (America’s Survival, ). —M.O.

WELLS: KEYSTONE-FRANCE/GAMMA-KEYSTONE/GETTY IMAGES



tralists and astoundingly praised Josef Stalin: “I have never met a man more candid, fair, and honest, and it is to these qualities and to nothing occult and sinister, that he owes his tremendous undisputed ascendency in Russia. … He owes his position to the fact that no one is afraid of him and everyone trusts him.” John Kenneth Galbraith criticized “the conventional wisdom” that poverty had spiritual as well as economic dimensions and applauded s Democratic technocrats.

By  science—learning through careful experimentation—had given way to scientism, with Time that year choosing  American scientists as its Men of the Year. The magazine worshipfully reported, “Statesmen and savants, builders and even priests are their servants. Science is at the apogee of its power.” Governance was supposed to be scientific, and when Washington messed up, some Democratic leaders, like Maine Sen.

Email: molasky@wng.org

1/17/14 4:11 PM

LEWIS: HANS WILD/TIME & LIFE PICTURES/GETTY IMAGES

>>

F S’ The Revolt Against the Masses: How Liberalism Has Undermined the Middle Class (Encounter, ) offers fascinating observations on the hostility to bourgeois life that animated atheistic intellectuals who hoped to rule American culture and politics. H.G. Wells a century ago set the tone when he visited the United States and urged writers to “build up an aristocracy of thought and feeling which shall hold its own against the aristocracy of mercantilism … materialism, and Philistinism.” In the mid-th century, American critics of popular culture like Dwight Macdonald saw his countrymen as “without standards but those of the mob. … The masses are not people. … The masses are, rather, man as non-man.”

This wasn’t racism but a deadly classism parallel to that of the Soviets, and out of it grew sociobiology and the tendency to treat humans as ants. The cultural critics also had a political thrust: Wells decried American decen-

BY MARVIN OLASKY

NOTABLE BOOKS

Four books on literature and Christian authors > reviewed by  

A Prayer Journal Flannery O’Connor Fifty years after her death in , Flannery O’Connor is still celebrated as one of the most influential writers in American literature. As a Southerner and Roman Catholic, O’Connor set her fiction in a “Christ-haunted” American South, using grotesque characters and violence to convey man’s fallenness and need for divine grace. In this recently discovered prayer journal, we meet O’Connor before she assumed the cultural spotlight, and she pours her heart out to God with a lucidity and passion that would later mark her fiction. In particular, her understanding of the refining nature of suffering—as well as how God uses human weakness to show His strength—seem personally prophetic. Note: She occasionally prays to Mary.

Adventure of Ascent: Field Notes from a Lifelong Journey Luci Shaw If anyone could liven up a discussion of the aging process, one would hope Christian poet Luci Shaw could. Her writing career, spanning over  books, has seen her tackle topics as varied as Christ’s incarnation and spring rain with intellectual, emotive wordplay. The Adventure of Ascent partly delivers. Using the metaphor of a mountain climber leaving behind the trappings of human life and eventually her mortal coil, Shaw here finds profound beauty in her ascent toward a heavenly home. Unfortunately, even as Shaw hits her middle s, she is haunted by spiritual doubt, preferring to embrace her experience and the “mystery” of Christian faith rather than the firmer ground of biblical witness.

Letters and Life: On Being a Writer, On Being a Christian Bret Lott

WELLS: KEYSTONE-FRANCE/GAMMA-KEYSTONE/GETTY IMAGES

LEWIS: HANS WILD/TIME & LIFE PICTURES/GETTY IMAGES

Whether laying bare secular literature, the Christian publishing scene, or his own performance as a son, Bret Lott’s Letters and Life is an unflinching book. Yet it is also uniquely God-honoring. In the book’s five essays and one extended memoir, this professor at the College of Charleston and best-selling novelist (including Jewel, an Oprah Book Club pick) pulls a wide range of topics into his field of vision. Comfortable with thinkers as disparate as Raymond Carver, Francis Schaeffer, and Flannery O’Connor, he also recounts God’s work in his own life, including the death of his father. While the pieces vary in focus, all combine excellence in the craft of writing with a solidly evangelical worldview.

SPOTLIGHT C.S. Lewis remains one of the pre-eminent Christian voices on writing and literature. Last year,  years after his death, Focus on the Family Radio Theatre released C.S. Lewis at War. When World War II began, Lewis was an unknown literature professor. By the war’s end, his radio addresses through the BBC on the subject of Christianity had made him a household name.

C.S. Lewis at War combines high-quality radio drama with crisp theological content to show how Lewis brought spiritual light to England during its “darkest hour.” The riveting soundscape includes excerpts from Winston Churchill’s speeches, the Inkling’s fireside chats, the sound of bombers flying overhead, and the voices of young girls who came to stay at Lewis’ rural English home. The recording also includes a dramatic reading of Mere Christianity. —E.W.

Live Like a Narnian: Christian Discipleship in Lewis’s Chronicles Joe Rigney The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis are not allegories, and Joe Rigney marshals Lewis himself to make this point. Yet, the books are repositories of “grace and comfort and encouragement and motivation,” which—once experienced as stories on their own terms—can disciple those who love them. Using selections of Lewis’ writing beyond his stories, including The Abolition of Man and his autobiography, Rigney teases out the rich treasury of moral, political, and theological thought behind the Narnia books.

He then shows how these truths have influenced him as a follower of Christ, as well as how they can benefit his readers spiritually.

Not intended for children.

To see more book news and reviews, go to wng.org/books

3 BOOKS.indd 27

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/22/14 8:52 AM

Reviews > Q&A

From gay to joyous >> Author CHRISTOPHER YUAN journeyed out of a pit into the arms of God



WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 Q&A.indd 28

predispositions toward certain sins, whether gossiping, lying, cheating, sexual addiction, whatever it might be.

What effect did your exposure to pornography at age  have on you? It’s difficult to say whether that was a causative agent, but it was a catalyst. It awoke things in me that shouldn’t have been awoken.

What other environmental factors may have added to your predisposition? I was born in the Chicago area, at a time in the suburbs when there were not many Asians. I was bullied for being Asian and was not good at sports, so I was called gay, fag, sissy, and began to ask myself, “Who am I?” Who are you? As I came to God, I realized who I am in Christ and realized that any identity, any label, should not be before my main identity in Christ.

Your excellent book tells the story of how you learned that—but also how your mother learned that. I came out of the closet in my early s, and it devastated my mom. She and my father weren’t Christians, and she thought an ultimatum could bring me to my senses. She said, “You must either choose the family or choose this.” I left home. Then I got involved in drugs and started selling drugs in Louisville, Ky. What happened to your parents as you did this? My parents were about to get a divorce after being married for close to  years. My mother

bought a one-way Amtrak ticket to Louisville: She was going to say goodbye to me, then end her life. But someone gave her a little pamphlet that she read on the train. It explained how we’re all sinners, and yet in spite of our sins, the God of the universe still loves us. She realized God could still love her and she could still love her gay son.

She visited you in Louisville. She said she loved me. I thought she was a little crazy. But she stayed in Louisville for six weeks, and a wife of a retired pastor gave her a Bible, led her in Bible studies, gave her Christian books. She grew in her Christian faith and went home.

Within a few months my father became a believer as well. I saw how Christianity changed their relationship— they were no longer getting a divorce—and thought, “That’s good for you, but not for me.”

Then what happened?

They moved to Louisville. I was supplying drugs to dealers in over a dozen states at that time, and they had no idea the depth to which I had gone, but they knew I needed to know Christ. They prayed for that miracle, that God would do whatever it takes, which for a Chinese mother is a scary bold prayer to make. She knew there was nothing she could do or say to soften my heart to make me a follower of Jesus, that it needed to be truly an act of the Living God. Were the police in a sense the agents of Christ in

your life, showing up when you had a huge amount of drugs on your counter? Yes. I had just received a large shipment. They confiscated all my money and my drugs, and I faced  years to life in federal prison for having the street value equivalent of . tons of marijuana. I tried calling home from jail, and was imagining my mother in her own self, before coming to Christ, saying, “You deserve what you got,” giving a harsh response.

But as my mom picked up the phone and I told her where I was, the first thing out of her mouth was, “Are you OK?” No condemning words?

No words of rebuke; words of unconditional love and grace.

That’s what Paul writes in Romans :, that it’s not God’s anger, not God’s wrath, but God’s kindness that leads us to repentance. Even on that horrible day for me, God was pouring out His grace and drawing me to Himself through the words of my mother.

And God in His kindness made a Bible available to you? He did. Before I came to Christ, my parents came to visit me, and I kicked them out.

My dad left me with his Bible. I threw it in the trash can. Then, while in prison three days later, I was walking around the cell block, passed by a garbage can, and there on top of the trash was a new Gideon’s New Testament. I took it back to my cell and read through the entire Gospel of Mark that night.

How did you react to it?

People say, “The Bible is good

SCOTT STRAZZANTE/GENESIS

Given the same-sex marriage juggernaut’s political and judicial success last year, we can expect on Valentine’s Day this year to hear early and often how great it is to be gay.

Christopher Yuan, who was a homosexual and a drug dealer, has a different story that led to two sentences: prison and HIV-positive status. God brought him and his parents to Christ, and Yuan went to Moody Bible Institute and Wheaton College, gaining in  an M.A. in biblical exegesis. Now pursuing a doctorate of ministry, he came to Patrick Henry College to answer questions about an outstanding book he and his mother coauthored, Out of a Far Country (WaterBrook Multnomah, ).

Why does the subtitle of your book describe it as A Gay Son’s Journey to God rather than A Gay Son’s Journey Out of Homosexuality ? We wanted to write not simply a story about a gay son, but a story about God—and God not just bringing me to Himself, but my mother and father also coming to Christ as well.

Did you become a gay son because of nature, nurture, or both? People say, “There’s some evidence of a biological component to the development of sexuality,” and then jump to the conclusion, “Therefore people are born gay.” The accurate answer isn’t so much nature or nurture, but nature and nurture. Biblical anthropology tells us we all are born with

BY MARVIN OLASKY

Email: molasky@wng.org

1/22/14 8:55 AM

news.” At that time, it wasn’t good news to me because I felt more and more convicted that not only had I rebelled against my parents and the government, but against God. I read Psalm  the day before I was to be sentenced, and was called into the nurse’s office to get the news that I was HIV positive as well. I got sentenced to six years, which seemed like a life sentence.

Then what?

I began reading more

Scripture. That’s all I had. God delivered me from my drug addiction, but the one thing I was holding to was my sexuality. Passages in the Bible, three in the Old and three in the New, seemed to condemn this core part of my identity at that point: “I am gay.” So I went to a prison chaplain, and to my surprise he told me the Bible doesn’t condemn homosexuality, and gave me a book explaining that view. I took that book. I wanted to find biblical justification for homosexuality.

Did you? I had that book in one hand and the Bible in the other, and every reason in the world to accept what that book was claiming. I wanted to have God

SCOTT STRAZZANTE/GENESIS

and a gay relationship, but as I read through the Bible and read that book, it was clear to me that the book presented a clear distortion of God, His Word, and His unmistakable condemnation of homosexual sex.

Prisons are notorious as places where some people go deeper into homosexuality, with all the pressures and opportunities there.

Yes. So why do you think your response was different? I believe it was a miracle.

I had no reason to reject what that book was claiming. It would have been the easier route—embrace my sexuality, as the world says, not to have to deny myself, pick up my cross, and follow Christ. God helped me not to just read this book on its own, because if you read it as a stand-alone many people would be convinced. I felt I could not read it apart from the Word of God, and the power of the Holy Spirit was guiding me.

So these theories that the Bible doesn’t condemn homosexuality, just a particular type of homosexual practice, didn’t make sense to you? They didn’t. At that time I hadn’t been to seminary and learned Greek and Hebrew: I was just reading the English text. Now I know that Paul in  Corinthians  and  Timothy  links two Greek words that are the exact Greek words we find in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. In Leviticus : those two words are right next to each other, and any first-century Jew who had memorized the Torah, most likely in the Greek, would have known when Paul used that

word for homosexuality it meant Paul affirmed the universal condemnation against homosexual sex in Leviticus : and :.

The Talmudic sages, when they wrote about homosexuality, reflected that understanding as well. It was universal condemnation.

So earlier, when you had to choose between family and sex, you chose sex. Yes. Now, you were clear that this was a question of God or homosexuality. I went through every page of Scripture, looking for positive justifications for gay, monogamous, consensual, adult homosexual relationships. I didn’t find anything. There was nothing in Scripture that blessed a gay relationship.

That’s when I knew I was at a turning point: either reject God and pursue gay relationships by allowing my feelings, my orientation, to dictate who I was and how I lived, or abandon gay relationships by liberating myself from my sexuality, and live as a follower of Christ. I chose God. All this time your mom had been praying not that you stay out of prison, but that you are in prison for the right amount of time. It was so amazing. For her to say, “It’s not important for my son to become a doctor,” was for her to see that Christ must be pre-eminent over all things.

And she pleaded with the judge, “Don’t give my son too long of a sentence, but don’t give him too short a sentence.

Just give him just the right amount of time for him to turn his life over to God.” And that’s what happened. That is what happened. A

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD

3 Q&A.indd 29



1/22/14 8:55 AM

Phil and Don

After six decades, the Everly Brothers’ legacy continues By arsenio orteza

>>

30

W O RL D • Feb r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4

3 MUSIC.indd 30

Everly Brothers: Pete Cronin/Redferns/getty images • jones & Armstrong: handout

Since the death of Phil Everly on Jan. 3 at the age of 74, praise for the songs that he and his older brother Don recorded between 1957 and 1989 and performed thereafter as the Everly Brothers has flowed in from practically every region of the pop-music world.

In some ways, it has been like 1983 all over again. That was the year that the Everly Brothers reunited for a concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall after a decade of musical and personal estrangement and showed the generation that had come of age since they’d last hit the charts why they still mattered.

Phil was 44 and Don was 46, yet their high, flawlessly intertwined vocal harmonies seemed barely to have aged at all. Supported by a band led and organized by the British ­guitarist Albert Lee, they reprised their many hits and then some, singing songs that had originally been templates of soured romance as if they were acts of contrition for their own fraternal falling out.

Critics honored the occasion by reminding the public of how influential the Everly Brothers had been. They’d inspired the harmonies of John Lennon and Paul McCartney (the latter of whom had name-checked them in his 1976 hit “Let ’Em In”) and Simon and Garfunkel (whose cover of “Wake Up

Little Susie” was their last hit as a duo). They’d sown the seeds of country-rock (with their 1968 album Roots). The 1975 Top 10 hits of Nazareth (“Love Hurts”) and Linda Ronstadt (“When Will I Be Loved,” which Phil wrote) were Everly recordings first (in 1960). The same went for the 1978 James Taylor-Carly Simon hit “Devoted to You” (1958). In 1982, Dave Edmunds and Nick Lowe included a four-song Everly-covers EP with their band Rockpile’s album Seconds of Pleasure.

A year after the reunion, Phil and Don were back on the charts with their first album of new material in 21 years (the Edmunds-produced EB 84) and a single written for them by McCartney (“On the Wings of a Nightingale”). Neither that song nor its exquisite follow-up, “The First in Line,” achieved the commercial success of “Bye Bye Love,” “Crying in the Rain,” “Let It Be Me,” or “All I Have to Do Is Dream,” but the message was clear: The Everly Brothers were back.

Two more studio albums followed. The title cut of 1986’s Born Yesterday even made the country Top 20 even though it was the less-successful ­follow-up singles “I Know Love” and “These Shoes” that best proved the brothers could still conjure their melancholytinged magic.

For the next 25 years, the Everlys were a touring act.

According to his son Jason, Phil had quit smoking in 2004, but even so he could no longer hit the high notes for which he’d become famous. By 2011, the brothers’ remarkable, nearly six-decade career had run its course.

Their legacy, however, endures.

Alison Krauss and Robert Plant won a Grammy in 2008 for their cover of the Everlys’ “Gone Gone Gone.” And in 2013, Norah Jones and Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong re-recorded the brothers’ 1958 album Songs Our Daddy Taught Us and called it Foreverly (Reprise).

Jones and Armstrong, setting aside every vestige of the styles for which they’ve become famous, honor the angelic innocence that was the Everlys’ sonic trademark. And because they do, Foreverly serves not only as a tribute to the Everly Brothers but also as a portal to all that influenced them—and to the America within which they took such deep root. A

Email: aorteza@wng.org

1/22/14 8:50 AM

Chris Walter/WireImage

Reviews > Music

NOTABLE CDs

New or recent jazz releases > reviewed by  

Swing This Debby Boone Slot this album somewhere between Robert Davi singing Frank Sinatra and Kevin Spacey singing Bobby Darin. Six of the  cuts were signature tunes of Boone’s late mother-in-law, the great Rosemary Clooney, yet it’s no mere reprise of Boone’s  Clooney tribute, Reflections of Rosemary, not with versions of “Cry Me a River,” “Everybody Loves Somebody,” and “These Boots Are Made for Walkin’.” Call it a tentative exercise in genre exploration. Then wonder whether the tentativeness results from Boone’s disinclination to offend or her genes.

In , the Canadian quartet The

This and That Freddy Cole Freddy Cole is now , yet he’s still known as Nat “King” Cole’s younger brother. That he doesn’t seem to mind may explain his vocal insouciance, which in turn may explain his carefree ability to take Helen Reddy’s proto-feminist, motherdaughter anthem “You and Me Against the World” and broaden it to include tandems of all kinds. More impressive yet is his performance of Harry Nilsson’s “Everybody’s Talkin’,” which is so easygoing and dapper that you’d never know it was once the Cowboy. theme song of Midnight Cowboy

Impromptu The David Hazeltine Trio

Out Here Christian McBride Trio

CHRIS WALTER/WIREIMAGE

EVERLY BROTHERS: PETE CRONIN/REDFERNS/GETTY IMAGES • JONES & ARMSTRONG: HANDOUT

Since classical music is half of what has long gone into jazz, it’s perfectly sensible that Hazeltine (piano), Jason Brown (drums), and the famous-inhis-own-right George Mraz (bass) should transmute these instantly recognizable classical melodies (Beethoven, Debussy, Bach, Tchaikovsky, Chopin).

At times, the process feels too easy or at least too obvious, the kind of thing Vince Guaraldi might’ve had Schroeder doing in a Peanuts special. At other times, though, the familiarity fades into the background, freeing the trio to display some seriously formidable chops.

The chief delights of People Music, which McBride released with Inside Straight last May, were Warren Wolf’s vibraphone and Steve Wilson’s alto sax. The chief delight of this album, released three months later, is McBride’s bass. Bowed or plucked, comping or taking the lead, it keeps the ballads crisp, makes the sacred-secular near bookends “Hallelujah Time” and “Who’s Making Love” jump, and keeps “My Favorite Things” both crisp and jumping for over nine minutes. Meanwhile, Christian Sands (piano) and Ulysses Owens Jr. (drums), aren’t exactly chopped liver.

To see more music news and reviews, go to wng.org/music

3 MUSIC.indd 31

SPOTLIGHT Darcys re-recorded Steely Dan’s album Aja, jettisoning the original’s jazz-pop skeleton and reimagining what remained as a fascinating template for st-century midtempo electronica and ethereal voice. The experiment worked, a testament as much to Aja’s innate coherence as to The Darcy’s creativity. Now, as if to balance the scales, the Mark Masters Ensemble has released Everything You Did: The Music of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen (Capri).

Masters seems to have begun his arrangements by listening past anything that was “pop” about Steely Dan and by concentrating instead on the group’s jazz core. Or, as he himself puts it, “The premise of this recording is to free Becker and Fagen’s music from the earthly confines, in some cases, of harmonic structure and allow the band to create the magic that great improvisers birth.” Dodgy syntax aside, the statement is an accurate summary of everything that Everything You Did does.

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/21/14 11:13 AM

Mindy Belz

The thin veneer

A dystopian future could be the one that’s just around the corner

>>



WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 MINDY.indd 32

Rampant gang warfare thrives in Port-au-Prince.

Yet we have become accustomed to news that a child has carried a sawed-off shotgun into a school and killed a few people. We think little about double-digit youth unemployment, unconcerned about the longterm effects on a generation, believing we can tweak the minimum wage and somehow recalibrate.

In Haiti poor young men pee off the sides of trucks as they hitch rides to work. I saw it more than once.

How barbaric, I thought. Yet returning here I was reminded we have rich men and women—in glittering get-ups under million-dollar lights—who disrobe at the Super Bowl and flip their middle finger at the masses. Messing with the halftime show is big business. And that sums up a lot.

Children of Men is a  movie set in , about  years after all the women in the world became infertile and there were no more children anywhere.

“A hundred years from now there won’t be [anyone] to look at this,” says one lead character.

“What keeps you going?”

“I just don’t think about it,” comes the reply from his brother. It’s what we do in a culture with just enough padding, enough comfort and distraction to hold the ruin at bay, even as the padding is wearing thin. In the movie a newscaster dials back to , “a beautiful time when people refused to accept that the future was just around the corner.”

You don’t have to be a conspiracy theorist or environmental doomsayer to realize it sounds at least as contemporary, plausible, as it does dystopian.

Instead of choosing measurements to confirm a pleasant life—our GDP or our OK tax return or ample square footage to live in—I propose another measurement: light overcoming darkness. It’s a measurement that cuts from the heart outward. Can we truly see light overcoming darkness in our homes, on our streets, in our cities? When we can do that, we will say, “Who could possibly deserve this place?” A

KRIEG BARRIE

R   U S from overseas is not what it used to be for me. Used to be I thought I smelled bacon and eggs even before the plane landed. Used to be the sight of a dollar bill filled me with a sudden assurance. After weeks away it represented my dad, I guess because in my memory he was the first person to handle money, and I would phone him to say I was home, and be so glad that I was. And once, returning after covering an earthquake in Turkey, I cried and shook at the airport Starbuck’s counter when a clerk handed me a clean white cup, so broken were things over there, so clean and ordered over here. Who could possibly deserve this place?

Last week the  landed in Miami from Port-auPrince, two worlds crossed in  minutes. Gleaming cars smoothed their way down the highway, and the airport wasn’t being run off generators. But I confess to a lack of feeling for the order and solidity, a thinly worn trust in the assurance of life and peace the United States has represented for me and many millions, coming for the first time or the hundredth.

It’s this. Our crumbling hides itself a little better here. Beneath the clean streets and shining cars, we are biting and devouring one another at an ever greater clip.

We have the richest nation in the world, abundant natural resources, and expansive space, but the poverty in our collective soul is growing.

Haiti has a huge problem with orphans, but despite our excessive wealth we treat children as orphans—let the government feed them a stale breakfast, avoid values lessons in school because they’ve become politically charged, leave them to their smart devices and otherwise on their own to grow up. “Look me in the eye and tell the truth,” I heard a teacher say at one orphan care facility outside Port-au-Prince—a basic level of candor and care lacking in the day-to-day for many American schoolchildren.

Email: mbelz@wng.org

1/21/14 9:21 PM

sem·i·nal

adjective \ʹse-mә-nƏl\

: having a strong influence on ideas, works, events, etc., that come later: very important and influential —Merriam Webster (e.g., his seminal work on theology.)

I

n 2013, P&R published two important works: Thy Word Is Still Truth: Essential Writings on the Doctrine of Scripture from the Reformation to Today and Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Christian Belief.

Both of these volumes—published within one week of each other—have brought to bear timeless truths about God and his Word.

Unparalleled in its scope, Thy Word Is Still Truth holds the key documents on scriptural authority in one readable volume, with seminal articles from theologians such as John Calvin, Jonathan Edwards, J. Gresham Machen, and Cornelius Van Til. Westminster Seminary, the breaking ground for this project and alma mater to editors Dr. Peter A. Lillback and Dr. Richard B. Gaffin Jr., boldly stands by all these theologians in upholding a high view of Scripture.

Systematic Theology (already on its second printing) is the culmination and creative synthesis of Dr. John Frame’s writing on, teaching about, and studying the Bible. The goal of theology, as Frame understands it, is the organized knowledge of God, and in this volume he delivers just that, showing how the Bible explains God’s great, sweeping plan for mankind. This magisterial opus—at once biblical, clear, cogent, readable, accessible, and practical—summarizes the mature thought of one of the most important and original Reformed theologians of the last hundred years.

Books are pictured true to size.

Available online through the Westminster Bookstore at

wtsbooks.com

krieg barrie

prpbooks.com

3 MINDY.indd 33

1/21/14 2:27 PM

Four out of five residents of fast-growing, 37-million-strong Uganda identify with Christianity. Most Ugandans glowingly welcome evangelical visitors and side with Christian conservatives on many social issues. But beneath the surface, Uganda faces enormous challenges.

by Marvin Olasky in Kampala, Lubowa, and Mukono, Uganda p h oto by L i n dy Wa l k e r

t Uganda Christian University (UCU) in November, graduation day for 1,668 students— 43 percent of them business majors—was sunny and hot, as it is on most days in a country ­sitting on the equator. White tents decked with purple and pink bunting lined two sides of a large, manicured green. Students played African drums as female dancers shook hips ­covered in goat hair. Graduates in caps and gowns sat on one side and proud parents— men in suits, women in Victorian-style long dresses with puffed sleeves and wide sashes—on the other.

After Scripture reading, speeches, and prayers, students stepped forward one by one to receive their degrees. Some mothers didn’t let elaborate clothing stifle their enthusiasm. When they heard their children’s names, they jumped up from molded white plastic chairs and ran to the edges of the lawn, joyfully ululating and dancing, like David 3,000 years ago before the ark. They see the academic degrees as economic guarantees in a country still facing massive poverty and unemployment. With half of the nation’s people younger than 15—the average Ugandan woman has six children—demographic pressures are intense.

34

WORLD • February 8, 2014

3 UGANDA.indd 34

1/20/14 1:16 PM

FRONT LINE: Uganda Christian University students.

3 UGANDA.indd 35

1/20/14 1:16 PM

Nations under siege

As thoughtful African Christians fight the fatalistic worldviews that underlie poverty, they also face aggressive Islam.

Tunisia Morocco Algeria

Libya

Western Sahara

Egypt

(occupied by Morocco)

Mauritania Niger

Mali Gambia

Sudan

Chad

Senegal

Eritrea

Burkina Faso

Djibouti

Guinea GuineaBenin Bissau Nigeria Cote Ghana Sierra Central African d’Ivoire Leone Republic Togo Cameroon Liberia Equatorial Guinea

Somalia

Uganda

Gabon São Tomé & Principe

3 Majority Muslim

Democratic Republic of Congo

Rwanda Burundi

Tanzania

Angola Zambia

Namibia

Zimbabwe Botswana

Malawi Mozambique

Madagascar

Swaziland Lesotho

South Africa



Kenya

M

   I (you can hear Susan’s coverage of the UCU graduation and other Uganda experiences on WORLD Radio) visited four projects in the Kampala area—Uganda Christian University, African Bible University, Transforming Nations Alliance training, and Anglican evangelism training—each with different approaches: UCU, owned by the Anglican Church and with a main campus  miles east of Kampala, is the first private university in Uganda to receive a government charter. It now has a

ILLUSTRATION: KRIEG BARRIE

3 %-% Muslim 3 Less than % Muslim

Congo

Ethiopia

South Sudan

In the short run those problems—and many other African countries have similar ones—are more severe than the long-run threat of Islam, but Ugandan Muslims appear increasingly aggressive. Newspapers have run stories of Islamists throwing acid in the face of one convert to Christianity, and of a father almost starving to death his teenage daughter after she professed faith in Christ. A Pew Foundation survey, “Tolerance and Tension: Islam and Christianity in SubSaharan Africa,” found at least  percent of professing Christians in Uganda consider Muslims to be violent.

Historically, when Muslim populations exceed  percent—call that a critical mass—Islamists start pursuing opportunities to make others accede to their demands. Uganda itself has experience of Muslim minorities dictating to the whole nation. In the th century, for example, Kings Ssuuna II and Mutesa I fell under Islamic influence, and Muslims battled Christians in . From  to  Major General Idi Amin, a Muslim, ruled Uganda: A corrupt dictator, he murdered between , and , Ugandans, according to international observers and human-rights groups.

And the question is: Will Africa go as Uganda goes? The map to the left (and on the cover) shows that Uganda is an African hinge. Countries in green are majority Muslim: They typically have little liberty of any kind, particularly religious. Countries in red are less than  percent Muslim and have little if any Islamic agitation. The front-line nations in yellow are - percent Muslim and have maintained largely secular legal systems, although at least nine Nigerian states have imposed Sharia law.

A deep Christianity can readily deal with Islamic threats, but Christian leaders acknowledge that continent-wide belief is often only a centimeter deep.

Many store signs in Uganda show a desire to proclaim belief: God Is Able Beauty Shop. God’s Mercy Computation Center. Billboards, though, reflect massive health problems—“HIV testing is good and normal”—and materialist beliefs: “A man is called a man only if he has a home.” Anglican leader Onesimus Asiimwe notes that two out of three Sunday worshippers are under  years of age, and nominal Christians far outnumber mature ones. “Our Christianity lacks depth.”

WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 UGANDA.indd 36

1/21/14 4:40 PM

GRADUATE: VINCENT MUGABA PHOTOGRAPHY LIBRARY: SUSAN OLASKY • STUDENTS: HANDOUT

The problem, though, is that college graduates want whitecollar jobs and there aren’t enough. Those with less education have worse prospects. Uganda has seen economic improvement over the past two decades, but the hundreds of young men sitting around on every main street may soon be joined by thousands more. Many women seem to work harder as they try to sweep dust from the front of tiny shops made of metal and cardboard, but that’s a labor only a Sisyphus would love. Some young people sell their family’s land to move to Kampala, buy a boda-boda (a motorcycle), and then have nothing to fall back on.

Meanwhile, the mayor of Kampala is a Muslim, the number of mosques is increasing, and at least  percent of Ugandans pledge allegiance to Islam. Many Muslims say that Sharia law and Islamic interest-free economics would create a stronger society. The key question for Uganda, and for Americans who love it: Will Christians there show their countrymen that Christianity has answers to the country’s problems? Uganda has also been very much in the news recently because of its legislation against homosexuality, which many U.S. and European officials have lambasted: My column on page  discusses that.

assure the Christian identity of the University.” Some challenges concern job placement: As hiring opportunities emerge, will employers prefer graduates committed to honesty in the knowledge that God is watching them?

UCU has impressive graduates who know that finding a job will be hard, so they emphasize their willingness to work hard. Daisy Nakiwala Nsangi: “I made sure I maximized every moment I got to read.”

Rose Adede, daughter of a single mom: “I worked hard to excel.” Mollen Ainembabazi: “Many people wondered why I spent so much time reading. … I woke up at weird hours to read.” Linnet Namanya: “I credit God for all my success.”

The much-smaller African Bible University (ABU) is assuring its Christian identity by having its

illustration: krieg barrie

graduate: Vincent Mugaba Photography library: susan olasky • students: handout

UGANDA CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY: Belinda Evy Nabude celebrates with grandmother and aunt; library; swearing in Student Guild Government.

­ eautiful campus with a mix of b old buildings that would be at home in Britain, and new ones— including a library cleverly designed to keep students cool without resort to air conditioning.

It’s growing rapidly: 8,000 students now choose from among dozens of majors. Law, education, science and technology, health, and other disciplines all have seats at the table.

UCU now faces challenges not unlike those hitting American Christian colleges. Some are financial, with leaders deeply involved in fundraising and building programs. Some are theological: To its credit, UCU is guarding against the drift that can readily occur when professors with a personal faith but training in secular universities worship on Sundays but on Mondays approach their subjects with materialist presuppositions. UCU has a new Institute of Faith, Learning and Service chartered “to

113 students major in biblical studies and minor in business, communication, or education.

They go deep into principles of biblical interpretation, books of the Bible, Christian ethics, history, and other topics. Students also hear excellent preaching from Vice Chancellor Palmer Robertson (disclosure—I sat under his teaching for two years when he was a pastor in Maryland) in a beautiful chapel funded by a St. Louis PCA church. A bell that was once on a plantation in Texas, where it tolled for slaves, now summons ­students to freedom.

ABU graduates are also aware of the Islamic threat, since the university sits on Lobowa Hill seven miles south of Kampala, opposite a big mosque on an adjacent hill. On a peaceful afternoon Robertson, while sitting on a porch swing with one of his young sons, was asking what the Sixth Commandment teaches. He got the right answer— “Thou shalt not kill”—as a rant blared through a mosque loudspeaker. The ABU radio station responds by airing music and theological programming to reach Muslim listeners who would risk their lives by entering a church but can and do communicate with one DJ by text messaging.

The Transforming Nations Alliance works without classrooms, dorms, or libraries. It looks for Christians beyond college age whose pastors say they have leadership ability, and Susan and I sat in on a training session that featured eight such earnest men and two women. They sat in the sort of ­inexpensive chairs that are ubiquitous throughout Africa and South America at tables that formed a U. No bells and whistles in

F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4 • W ORLD

3 UGANDA.indd 37

37

1/20/14 1:24 PM

Seed projects demonstrate to Ugandans that God can use meager local resources to bless a community. The projects demonstrate that Ugandans don’t have to wait for outsiders to come and fix problems, and that God cares about the physical well-being of His children, not just the spiritual.

The fourth approach is straightforward evangelism: We watched 40 Anglican youth and student coordinators learn about street evangelism and then head out in a bus, in a van, and by foot to go door-to-door. Evangelist John Nicholas Okwalinga and retired Covenant College professor Henry Krabbendam stopped at one cement-walled, metal-roofed house lingering amid hard-packed red clay and mango, ­avocado, and banana trees. They knocked on the door and a young mother, Maria, opened it, as a runny-nosed toddler in a T-shirt and beaded bracelets on both wrists tugged on her dress. Maria set down two empty plastic jerry cans for water, and her little girl started climbing on them.

Okwalinga and Krabbendam didn’t mince words: Citing biblical references, they told Maria that she has a cobra heart (Psalm 58:3-4), a past filled with excrement (Isaiah 64:6), and a destructive life (Romans 3:12-16). They told her about a crucified Jesus who eradicates the cobra heart, purges the excrement past, and changes the toxic life. They said through His resurrection Jesus supplies a new heart, new righteousness, new holiness. The woman listened, then welcomed the Bible they gave her and their pledge to return and see how she’s doing.

A

ll four of these Christian efforts fight a prevalent fatalism—the idea that Ugandans are born poor and will die poor, throughout their lives controlled by curses and

38

CREDIT

CROSSROADS OF FAITH: TNA representative Judith Murungi (center). Opposite page: raising the cross on the ABU chapel; Kampala mosque (left to right).

WORLD • February 8, 2014

3 UGANDA.indd 38

1/20/14 1:30 PM

judith: Transforming Nations Alliance • cross: African Bible University • mosque: MAHMUD TURKIA/AFP/Getty Images

this ordinary room pocked with stained beige walls and barred windows.

But what they planned was extraordinary: Instead of ­discussing the usual notion of waiting for Western aid, they debated past and future “seed projects.” Young members of Nakalama Rapha Deliverance Church were starting a brickmaking project. Women of the church wanted land to grow more vegetables. Church members in Kikubamutwe, a Kampala slum area, planned a neighborhood cleanup. Others spoke of cleaning litter from drainage ditches or building a shelter for the elderly.

Training session participants were unimpressed by a ­government-organized literary project and a United Nations child-feeding project: They’ve seen big talk and poor results many times. Participants stressed the need to accomplish tasks in one day, so onlookers can quickly see tangible results.

They broke down tasks into basic steps: threshing the area around a well; erecting a fence to keep animals out; removing mud so the well can hold more water from the infrequent rains; and creating and clearing trenches so rainwater flows into the well.

Trainer Judith Murungi emphasized the importance of avoiding dependency, developing local resources, and understanding that Christianity is more than praying and attending church.

Many Ugandans profess to be Christians but also believe that evil spirits and curses control their lives. Murungi spoke about how God has given Ugandans creativity and energy that will allow them to change their communities and defeat poverty. They can dig latrines, wash hands before eating, and use mosquito nets to keep out malarial mosquitoes: small, doable projects.

judith: Transforming Nations Alliance • cross: African Bible University • mosque: MAHMUD TURKIA/AFP/Getty Images

CREDIT

witchcraft. For eons hunger and grinding poverty—consequences of this worldview dominated by the need to avoid upsetting evil spirits— have plagued Uganda. British control from the late 19th century to 1962 brought missionaries but also European materialism. Now, the Chinese government is buying up mineral rights throughout Africa, while Muslims, who once enslaved many in East Africa, seek to enslave their posterity in a works-based religion that persecutes other faiths.

Islamists offer dollars and a promised land of dolls to young men willing to give their lives to kill Christians and Jews. Other Muslims purchase wives from nominally Christian Ugandan fathers who are willing—if there’s enough money in it—to have their daughters become Muslims. Some Ugandans would rather be employed Muslims than unemployed Christians. A variety of quasi-Christian ministries have fought back by offering their own rewards through a prosperity ­gospel.

Faith healers have found a market: When Benny Hinn came to Kampala, some Ugandans arrived six hours early to get a place.

In Uganda now, rapidly increasing cohabitation is undermining marriage. Alcohol consumption is massive. Old superstitions, such as gaining a feeling of security by carrying the skin or hair of a lion, remain.

Muslims say they revere marriage so much that every woman must be in one, along with up to three other wives. Muslims say they throw out bottles and superstition. Christians need to demonstrate the ability to demolish vicious cycles of apathy, corruption, poverty, disease, and degeneration.

Some believe Uganda can escape eventual Muslim dictatorship by developing secular, materialist institutions such as Makerere University, the Harvard of Uganda—but it is the type of institution that generates liberal opposition to Islamic revolutions and then goes under when the tide rises. Soft s­ ecular faiths have not competed well against Islam’s scimitar-edged ferocity, particularly when they provide occasional ­circuses but insufficient amounts of bread.

That’s particularly true when politicians who claim the mantle of Christ offer honeyed words but corrupt practices. In December an international NGO, Transparency International, released its 2013 Corruption Perception Index: Uganda dropped from a miserable 130th place to an even worse 140th.

Also in December, the African Development Bank noted that

Email: molasky@wng.org

3 UGANDA.indd 39

Uganda has an external debt of $5.5 billion, but from 2002 to 2011 more than $7 billion obtained by individuals through corrupt means flowed into bank accounts and tax havens outside of Uganda.

The Transforming Nations Alliance contends that “[Ugandan] Christians are still very shallow in their understanding of Scripture and still have a mindset locked in the ­animistic worldview that is fatalistic … hence the ­poverty, social instability, domestic violence, and other social problems that bedevil the nation.

The level of corruption is so high that the stability of the nation is seriously threatened.” ABU student Garnet Kibombwe wrote thoughtfully about the problem and asked, “What does Christ think when he sees us g ­ iving and taking bribes, ­cheating, abusing people …?”

South of the Sahara, the number of Muslim adherents has gone from 11 million in 1900 to 234 million in 2010, and the number of those professing Christ during that time period has soared from 7 million to 470 million. Yet, TNA reports that “while many Sub-Saharan African countries boast of large Christian populations, their impact or influence is hardly seen or noticed in the real world. The Church in these nations has largely lost credibility and is accused of being totally irrelevant in society.”

If those 470 million Christians are educated and energized, they can avoid falling under Muslim enslavement—and that is the latest “if” in a long struggle. Ishmael and Isaac were at odds 4,000 years ago, Muslims and Christians fought often during the millennium that began in Muhammad’s time 1,400 years ago, and the war, sometimes cold and sometimes hot, goes on today. A —Listen via podcast or radio to “The World and Everything In It” segments on Uganda by Susan Olasky during the weeks of Jan. 26 and Feb. 2

F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4 • W O R L D

39

1/22/14 9:17 AM

3 CCCU.indd 40

1/21/14 9:41 PM

A key Christian college group quickly fires a president—and tries to regain its footing

by J.C. Derrick in Washington | the council for christian colleges and universities (CCCU), with 119 members and 55 affiliates, provides offcampus programs for Christian students and development conferences for administrators. Operating from offices near Capitol Hill, it tries to protect Christian schools from government encroachment in areas ranging from faculty hiring to Obamacare-mandated provision of abortion pills.

Threats from within and without are hitting the CCCU as it prepares to host on Feb. 12-14 in Los Angeles its quadrennial International Forum on Christian Higher Education—the largest Christian higher-education gathering in the world. Along with discussing demographic challenges and shrinking budgets, members will chart the future of the Council itself: Within the past year the CCCU lost its president and three of its four vice presidents.

Over the past three months I’ve looked into the CCCU’s firing last October of its 57-year-old president, Edward O. Blews Jr., after only ten months in office. I interviewed two former CCCU presidents, seven college presidents (including three former CCCU Board chairmen), other college administrators, and three former staffers. I found two stories: one about an organization trying to find its way in a shifting economic and political climate, and one about a man who “took a hacksaw” to an important organization.

after an 18-month search,

photo by Victoria Ruan

tions,” said Bob Andringa, the CCCU president from 1994 to 2006: “It’s an entirely different ballgame at the federal level than the state level.”

Critics say Blews lacked sufficient education and experience, but Board members such as Messiah College President Kim Phipps, then the Board’s chair, enthusiastically backed him.

Blews in his CCCU inaugural address said, “I answered my phone to hear a commanding female voice that sounded ­suspiciously like Kim Phipps saying, ‘Ed. This is God. And she is calling you to the CCCU presidency.’”

Blews’ inaugural celebration was the first such bash in the Council’s history, complete with giveaways for attendees: pens and golden bookmarks engraved with Blews’ name. He brought in as entertainment the acclaimed but typically offcolor Capitol Steps, a political satire group that charges $9,500 per hour—an amount roughly equal to a college’s annual membership dues. The CCCU website’s account of the event began, “In an inspiring and compelling ceremony marked by an extended standing ovation. …”

Three former CCCU ­employees—WORLD is giving them anonymity because they could lose their current jobs— describe the work environment Blews created in nightmarish terms: He would berate staff, sometimes in front of colleagues, in meetings that could last for hours. They say Blews tracked which employees complimented him, and during his first staff meeting laid out on a table ­dozens of congratulatory letters to himself. The Spring 2013 issue of the CCCU’s Advance Magazine had 18 photos of Blews.

Staffers say he had to approve everything. “You felt like you needed permission to go to the bathroom,” one former employee said. “It became this paranoid, Soviet culture.”

Inconsistency marked Blews’ tenure even in lobbying, his area of strength. He officially protested Obamacare’s abortion pill mandate to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), but his communications strategy wasn’t robust. In July, days after HHS released its final rule, Inside Higher Ed ran a story quoting leaders of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty and the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities, but noted that the CCCU declined to comment.

Long search, short tenure

the CCCU Board in 2012 tapped Ed Blews to replace the retiring Paul Corts, a former assistant attorney general in the Bush administration. Fellow students at Seattle Pacific University had elected Blews student body president, but SPU says he never earned a bachelor’s degree there.

Blews did graduate from Thomas Cooley Law School, which accepts certain students without a bachelor’s degree, but the State Bar of Michigan fired: Blews has no record of him ever passing the bar. speaks at his Blews spent 28 years in a lobbying role inauguration at the Association of Independent Colleges last January. and Universities of Michigan, a four-person operation without the size and scope of the CCCU, which has 72 full-time employees. “He was probably overwhelmed by the complexity and the diversity of institu-

F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4 • W O R L D

3 CCCU.indd 41

41

1/21/14 9:41 PM

Some CCCU member presidents saw Blews as unresponsive to their concerns.

Eleven of the  administrative staff members in Washington left the Council in , taking with them seven decades of institutional knowledge. Andringa said the departed employees played critical roles, and cited Kyle Royer as “a terrific CFO” who had been with the Council  years. Blews’ solution: bring in a temporary accountant two days a week. Office disarray led to confusion about plans for February’s Forum: When the Board unanimously ousted Blews in October, registration was still not online and the program was still unset.

Philanthropist Roberta Ahmanson, the opening-night keynote speaker at next month’s Forum, says the CCCU Board should have more carefully reviewed Blews’ educational background: “If they did know, then they really need to do some soul searching about why they went ahead and hired him.” I contacted Kim Phipps and the current CCCU Board chair, Chip Pollard, president of John Brown University, but they both declined to comment. I left voicemails for Blews and visited his home in Washington, but he did not return my messages.

’   as the

THREATS FROM WITHIN AND WITHOUT: Phipps and Blews (above); the Spring  issue of the CCCU’s Advance magazine.



WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 CCCU.indd 42

© VICTORIA RUAN

council already faced significant challenges. According to the most recent data available on GuideStar, which collects nonprofit financial reports, member dues accounted for only . million of the CCCU’s . million budget in . Threefourths of it, . million, came from offcampus student programs, including a journalism program in Washington, a filmstudies program in Los Angeles, and study-abroad programs in countries around the world.

Former employees confirmed enrollment in those programs is down dramatically in recent years, as more institutions create their own study-abroad programs and seek to keep

student dollars on campus. Some schools are saying scholarship money cannot be used for off-campus courses. Former president Andringa, now a nonprofit ministry consultant, said many campuses suffer from dwindling denominational support, have already deferred campus maintenance, and have mandated hiring and salary freezes.

The CCCU Washington administrative staff is barely half the size it was a year ago. Blews’ contract may leave the CCCU in a financial bind: When he first met the staff in July , he boasted that his “ironclad five-year contract” could not be voided even if he was fired with cause. No former employee would reveal to me the details of the contract, but according to GuideStar, Blews’ predecessor had an annual salary of almost ,. If Blews was making that amount and the contract is as ironclad as he thinks it is, the Council could pay as much as . million over five years—a lot of money for an organization that cleared only , in fiscal .

Blews may sue the CCCU over his dismissal, and this would create more uncertainty for an organization that, according to Andringa, has “lost a lot of credibility, unfortunately, in the last year.” Although acting CCCU president Bill Robinson made Forum planning his top priority, and registration went online days after the firing of Blews, as of mid-January the Council was still scrambling to secure enough registrants to cover the Los Angeles hotel contract.

Former CCCU president Corts told me the CCCU is a crucial defender of Christian institutions’ right to hire only believers: Without that right, Christian institutions cease to be Christian and “all the rest is for naught.” The Obama administration has argued the religious exemption to laws against hiring discrimination should not exist, but the U.S. Supreme Court in  ruled unanimously in favor of keeping it. “It’s such a fragile thing,” Corts said. “In virtually every Congress there is legislation introduced to take that right away.”

Colorado Christian University vice president Christopher Leland said it’s becoming increasingly difficult to convince accrediting bodies that educational excellence can go together with a uniquely Christian vision: “We have a lot of Christian colleges and universities who are doing a lot of good work and need help.” Some CCCU members want an organization that will engage not only Congress and the Department of Education, but scholars and writers who critique higher education.

Andringa said Christians should rally around the CCCU: “The Council is critical to the body of Christ in the next several decades.” Without accountability, says Ahmanson, scandals are inevitable: “It’s time for evangelical institutions, especially in higher education, to assess their boards. … They need to also understand that being supportive means asking hard questions.” A

Email: jderrick@wng.org

1/21/14 9:41 PM

Together for the Gospel

Obstacles Opposition & Opportunities Considering the Task of Evangelism Plenary Speakers Ligon Duncan 1 Albert Mohler 2 Mark Dever 3 David Platt 4 John Piper 5 Kevin DeYoung 6 Thabiti Anyabwile 7 Matt Chandler 8 Breakout Speakers Ed Copeland Leonce Crump Juan Sanchez Simon Gathercole Peter Williams Dave Russell Owen Strachan David Sinclair Mack Stiles Mez McConnell Mike McKinley

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Š Victoria Ruan

Louisville, KY April 8–10, 2014 Register at T4G.org

3 CCCU.indd 43

1/22/14 10:42 AM

3 MENTAL ILLNESS.indd 44

1/21/14 12:33 PM

An Arizona family’s struggle with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder mirrors a nation’s

B

y now the infamous mug shot of Jared Loughner—head shaved, eyes crazed, smile crooked and unreadable—is embedded in Americans’ minds. He was once a goodlooking, well-toned teenager with blue eyes. Today, he’s better known as a mass murderer who in Phoenix on Jan. 8, 2011, shot 19 people, including U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

Six of them, one a 9-year-old girl, died.

Loughner’s inappropriate smile, which so hauntingly captured his manic thoughts at the time, chilled many viewers who watched it flash on screens for days and weeks. More mass shootings have erupted across the nation over the following two years—at a Colorado movie theater, a Connecticut elementary school, and the Washington Navy Yard. They all trace back to untreated mental illnesses, as do 63 percent of mass shootings since 1982, according to a list compiled by Mother Jones, a liberal investigative magazine.

Still, fewer than one out of 100,000 mentally ill individuals become mass murderers. The everyday tragedies are those within individual lives and families: About 7.7 million American adults, or 3.3 percent of the U.S. population, suffer from a serious mental illness, primarily schizophrenia and bipolar disorder with psychosis. Schizophrenia, according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) may cause people to “hear voices other people don’t hear” and “believe other people are reading their minds, controlling their thoughts, or plotting to

harm them.” Bipolar disorder causes unusual and severe “shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks.” A 2010 study by NIMH estimates that 40 percent of adults with schizophrenia and 51 percent of individuals with severe bipolar disorder receive no treatment within any one-year period. How should Christians respond?

We can start by listening to the stories that ­mothers of the mentally ill tell. In Phoenix, Deborah Geesling tries to be a good mother to her son Seth Geesling, 21, who stands a hulking 6-foot-1-inch.

He speaks soft and low, and his eyes are brown and doe-like, curtained by lashes that could make a teenage girl jealous. He LISTEN: is the third of four brothers—all over Deborah 6 feet tall, dwarfing their blond, Geesling with a photo bespectacled mother. The three of Seth. ­others do not have mental illnesses.

Before I met Seth, Deborah told me her son is a perceptive, kind sweetheart, her “pico de gallo.” Although she worried how he would respond to me, when we met he showed himself a gentleman: warm, polite, and considerate. But observe him for some time, and certain things seem a little off. Seth is restless, unable to focus or sit still.

At times his speech wanders and slurs. He can be slow in responding to questions, and sometimes he smiles or chuckles at odd times. His official diagnosis

by Sophia Lee in Phoenix, Ariz. p h o t o b y C h a r l i e L e i g h t/g e n e s i s

F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4 • W O R L D

3 MENTAL ILLNESS.indd 45

45

1/21/14 12:33 PM

A

rizona’s mental health laws are considered some of the best in the nation, in part because of a 1981 class-action lawsuit, Arnold v. Sarn.

Arizona is one of the few states that allow ­residents to be involuntarily (by court order) evaluated and treated for mental disorders if they are

46

­ onsidered “a danger to self,” “a danger to others,” “gravely c disabled,” or “persistently or acutely disabled.” Most states only allow involuntary treatment if the person is a danger to self and others—which bluntly translates to requiring violence before acting toward prevention, rather than proactively ­taking all measures to prevent it.

The Geeslings were able to petition the courts to commit Seth involuntarily. Per Arizona’s law, the judge put him on court-ordered treatment for one year; but once the order expired, Seth stopped taking his medication. And so began the perplexing issue: ­carousel: Hospital. Court. Home.

The closed Central State Hospital again. Transfer to another Hospital in Milledgeville, hospital, then another. Home. A Ga., which originally shortage of public psychiatric beds opened in 1842 (below); Seth with his parents in the state meant hospital staff and one of his brothers could only keep Seth long enough (top right); Jared to stabilize him. At home he would Loughner’s mug shot stop taking his medication; (bottom right).

s­ ymptoms would return, and he would be back at the hospital to start the cycle all over again. Deborah calls it a “revolving door system.”

The bed shortage is a nationwide problem. The Treatment Advocacy Center, a national advocacy organization, estimates that the nation is short 95,000 psychiatric beds. In 1955, 300 public psychiatric beds were available for every 100,000 people. America has lost 95 percent of those beds since then: Half a century ago states started deinstitutionalizing the mentally ill, releasing about 830,000 people into their communities.

Deinstitutionalization back then appealed to both civilrights liberals seeking to “free” the mentally ill from lockdown institutions, and to fiscal conservatives looking for ways to cut

Jaime Henry-White/ap • Geeslings: handout • Loughner: Pima County Sheriff’s Forensic Unit/Getty Images

is schizoaffective disorder, which means he shows symptoms for both schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Seth was 14 when he started showing bipolar symptoms.

His reckless behaviors jumped far out of his usual sweet character. He secretly overdosed on Benadryl and awoke ­vomiting. He would run away from home, once disappearing for three days. “At the time, it just seemed like he was being a rebellious teenager,” said Deborah. She found his behaviors extreme and perplexing, but “we didn’t know what we were really dealing with at all.” The behaviors turned increasingly irrational, violent, manic. He ran away from home so often that the Geeslings had an on-call search team of church ­pastors. The Geeslings’ fingers were poised to dial 911 at any given moment.

One night, Seth hit his father. By that point, the Geeslings knew Seth shouldn’t be at home. Deborah was hysterical from fear and exhaustion. Too frequently, they were sending his younger brother to the safety of a friend’s house. They had tried everything: a Christian ranch in Montana, juvenile deterrence programs, counseling, discipline—nothing was working. It was a bizarre situation that night: A parent begging a cop to arrest a son.

But as Deborah watched her son being led away in handcuffs, she felt it might save him: “This goes against the norm of a parent’s heart, but we were very grateful he was in jail. At least we knew he was safe for that time.”

After jail and staying in an interim house, Seth was put on probation—but he stopped taking his medication, started hanging out with the wrong crowd, and rapidly fell into a worse mental state. By then he was 18—a legal adult. Soon after, he had his first psychotic break: He went around his neighborhood ringing his neighbors’ doorbells and singing the same song over and over. His brothers chased him while disturbed neighbors looked on. By the time he ran into a busy street, five police officers were after him. He pushed an officer down and ran out into the middle of the road. Cars honked, tires screeched, people howled. Finally, an officer tasered him.

W ORLD • F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4

3 MENTAL ILLNESS.indd 46

1/21/14 12:26 PM

Jaime Henry-White/ap • Geeslings: handout • Loughner: Pima County Sheriff’s Forensic Unit/Getty Images

budgets. In an era devoted to liberation, activists and novelists (such as Ken Kesey, author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, which became a muchlauded movie) argued that the mentally ill might be the sanest among us, and in any case treatment should be voluntary.

This massive social experiment worked for some higher-functioning patients, especially with the introduction of effective antipsychotic drugs such as chlorpromazine, which helped certain patients with schizophrenia to improve significantly. The introduction of Medicaid in 1965 and the expansion of other federal programs led state governments to ask, “What can we get Washington to pay?”

Before such federal programs, state governments paid 98 ­percent of mental health costs.

But state cost-cutters realized that by closing down psychiatric beds and forcing out patients, they could shift the financial burden onto the ­federal government.

Medicaid did not pay for state psychiatric hospital patients between the ages of 22 to 64, but it covered community-based services and also paid for inpatient psychiatric care in general medical hospitals. Those rules gave states incentives to push patients into outpatient programs and general medical hospitals (usually ­ill-equipped for long-term ­psychiatric care). By 1986, 42 percent of mental health ­expenditure was on inpatient care, and by 2005 that had dropped to 20 percent.

Medicaid brought some benefits, including adoption of safer and more effective antidepressants and antipsychotic drugs.

But some researchers believe it also tilted public mental healthcare toward Medicaid-covered people and services, as states aggressively pursued policies and programs that met Medicaid match requirements. State agency roles dwindled to financing and adopting reimbursable Medicaid practices that often did not fit individual patient needs.

One problem quickly emerged: Once the patients were liberated, who would make them take their medicine? Homelessness spiked. Prison populations swelled. Public resources, spent on law enforcement and emergency services, surged. D.J. Jaffe, executive director of Mental Illness Policy Org., told me, “Under the guise of protecting civil liberties, we have more people incarcerated for mental illness than ever before. Civil liberties? Freeing people from their psychosis, from their ­hallucinations, is the greatest liberty you can provide them.”

W

hen Seth was first hospitalized in an adolescent psychiatric hospital, the clinic discharged him after one week, saying, “We think he may be bipolar.” His parents stood confused, helpless, and scared. “So ... what do we do? What now?” they asked. “Go find him a counselor,” the psychiatrist and a caseworker advised. The

F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4 • W ORLD

3 MENTAL ILLNESS.indd 47

47

1/21/14 12:26 PM

3.6 million

400,000 216,000 1,400

40-50%

90%

48

I

W ORLD • F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4

3 MENTAL ILLNESS.indd 48

1/22/14 9:22 AM

Charlie Leight/genesis

7.7 million

sources: National Institute of Mental Health; National Alliance on Mental Illnesses; National Alliance to End Homelessness; Treatment Advocacy Center

ence working as a detention officer for a jail, where his interGeeslings drove back home feeling as though they were actions with the mentally ill were limited to insuring they “groping in the dark,” Deborah recalled. Meanwhile, Seth take their medication and maintaining a safe, structured steamed with bitter resentment in the backseat, certain his environment. Now he works in a setting where the goal is to parents were the enemies. They had lost his trust. keep r­ esidents out of jail. He and Seth share a casual interacJaffe says the top-recurring question from parents is, “My tion of easy banters and occasional admonishments, like a son doesn’t realize he has a mental illness. What do I do?” Nor big-brother mentorship. do adult children with psychotic parents know what to do. Yet “The concept of helping develop them into a member of individuals without insight into their mental illness—a clinisociety where they can have a job, a wife, children, a family ... cal condition called “anosognosia”—are the greatest danger to I didn’t connect it,” Jacoba said. The biggest thing he’s learned themselves and society. Many national organizations talk a lot while working in this group home, he said, is that people with about getting rid of stigma regarding the mentally ill, but the mental illnesses are not that different from “normal” people. most seriously mentally ill are too sick to care about stigmas, “If you don’t pay attention, if you think they can’t talk about or even to realize they’re sick. They need immediate, direct anything beyond the weather, then you’re missing out. You’re treatment—medications, hospital beds, and assisted transition really missing out on some truly interesting individuals.” to court-ordered outpatient care—but often don’t get it.

Seth has improved significantly with the acute care proIt took Deborah years of experience to gain adequate treatvided at the group home. Still, Deborah has to keep fighting to ment for Seth. She attended a National Alliance on Mental keep Seth there for as long as he needs to be.

Illness (NAMI) “Family to Family” class, a Although Seth has fared much better and is 12-week course taught by trained family gradually slipping out of anosognosia, he still members. Other mothers and advocates struggles physically and psychologically. taught her options and strategies never introFor one, Seth hasn’t had a proper holiday duced by doctors or caseworkers. “I always American adults have dinner with his family for years. He has feel like it’s almost a game,” she said. “You severe mental illness. counted the exact number of days that he’s need to learn how to game the system, and been away from home since he was age 17: 367 I’m constantly fighting to get my son the supspent in hospitals, institutions, and jail, not port he needs.” Deborah was eventually able American adults have counting the almost two years he’s spent in a to get Seth into a 24/7-care group home in severe mental illness and group home. “Holidays are hard for Seth,” Mesa, Ariz., with four other men also with do not receive treatment Deborah said. “I can’t remember the last good serious mental illnesses. in any given year. holiday dinner. Seth has a hard time, I think, In addition to the group home, Seth has an because it reminds him of what he’s lost.”

ACT (Assertive Community Treatment) team, Deborah’s voice started quivering: “He so an interdisciplinary program for severely incarcerated American much wants to be with his family. But his mentally ill outpatients. The ACT program adults have untreated brothers are moving on with life, and it’s hard emerged during the deinstitutionalization era mental illness. emotionally for him.” Sometimes, as Deborah and is available in six states and various local drives back home after visiting Seth, she regions. Theoretically, the teams help outpabreaks down in the car. It breaks her heart as tients transition into community through a homeless American a parent to leave a son in another home. long-term, proactive, highly individualized adults have untreated Mental illness is a lifelong issue. Although approach. But it still takes a mother or father severe mental illness. much improved because of better medications, to step in frequently and be an advocate, as Seth’s mental state destabilizes whenever Deborah did to put Seth under 24-hour care things fall out of routine. Right after Jacoba in a group home. persons died in got promoted from group home manager, Seth The group home sits in a quiet, suburban ­homicides committed snuck out the window and ran away. His residential area with manicured lawns. It’s a

by American adults with father had to go find him. “Such is our life!” clean, airy, five-bedroom house that offers severe mental illness in Deborah wrote in an email to me. But she also patients board games, a TV, and a ping-pong 2012. tells me, “From the beginning, my son is the table. The residents are assigned various hero here. He’s the one who’s suffering, and household responsibilities: Each takes a turn we’re the ones watching him suffer … but as cooking dinner or wiping the windows. They of individuals with much as God has allowed the suffering, every share a common love for hot sauce—they keep schizophrenia and step of the way, He’s provided.” a Costco-sized bottle of Tapatio on their din­bipolar disorder have ing table, and squirt it on everything from anosognosia, or “lack of fries to popcorn. insight.”

Staff members monitor Seth and other thought about what Deborah meant patients, teach them basic skills, and resolve by “hero” on the long drive back home, and conflicts. The group home manager when I I realized she meant Seth is a living sacriof state psychiatric visited was Ian Jacoba, a 6-foot-4-inch exfice. His family has shed many tears, but ­hospital beds have been football player with thick arms, a thick neck, they also have witnessed God’s providence eliminated since 1960. and a thick voice. He had two years of experiin every trial. Seth has brought blessings of

SOURCES: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH; NATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL ILLNESSES; NATIONAL ALLIANCE TO END HOMELESSNESS; TREATMENT ADVOCACY CENTER

CHARLIE LEIGHT/GENESIS

‘From the beginning, my son is the hero here. He’s the one who’s suffering, and we’re the ones watching him suffer … but as much as God has allowed the suffering, every step of the way, He’s provided.’

grace and insight to those who wept and rejoiced with him.

Whatever Seth’s mental condition, Deborah said, “He responds to Christ. … We know the Holy Spirit is in him.”

In Deborah’s Sovereign Grace Church, her pastor Trey Richardson and his wife lead a small group for caregivers once a month. About four families meet at a local Applebee’s to share Scriptures and struggles, check up on each other’s progress, and pray for one another. “It’s very encouraging,” Deborah said. “We’re very open with each other, and we laugh about things we probably wouldn’t on a regular day.”

It took some time and guidance, but Deborah said members of her church have learned more about her son Seth’s illness.

Email: slee@wng.org

3 MENTAL ILLNESS.indd 49

They seek ways to interact with him and take him out regularly.

She said that members are learning that her son and others are “not unreachable—but they’ve been neglected for so long.” A doctor often only treats the brain as an organ with symptoms. The church, however, can treat the whole person by lifting the hopelessness, unhappiness, and selfworthlessness that obstruct a person’s ability to worship and glorify God. Once a week, Seth meets with his pastor, Trey Richardson, for biblical counseling. Seth’s love for his church hasn’t wavered, and even if sometimes he walks out in the middle of a sermon, Richardson uses that incident to teach him about the fruit of the Spirit. Recently he asked Seth, “What was your happiest moment this week?” Seth replied: “When I’m in church.”

One afternoon at church after his biblical counseling session, Seth prayed, “Dear Father, I pray that you enlighten us today in our walk with you. … Thank you for our church and family. May we come to love you more and more. … Amen.”

“Well said, well said,” replied Richardson.

Later, Richardson told me that Seth and his family have blessed both him and the church, as members have watched God’s promises transform into real fruits through the Geeslings’ trial: “It’s amazing to see someone not just talking about it, but living it out. You can read a book or an article about it, but it’s not the same as when you see a life actually living it.” A —This was part one of Sophia Lee’s investigation. In part two she writes about a young woman dealing with bipolar disorder, a young man whose condition tortures his mother and himself, and what government and churches are doing—and not doing.

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/21/14 12:29 PM

BROTHER vs

hen John Chol Daau heard gunfire erupt in Juba, South Sudan, on the night of Dec. 15, the sound was disturbing but familiar.

Daau, now an Episcopal priest, fled his home in South Sudan in the 1980s, as Sudanese troops from the north waged a brutal 20-year war against southerners in an attempt to impose Islamic law on the Christian and animist region.

The war killed some two million South Sudanese and displaced an estimated four million.

The young Daau joined the now-famous “Lost Boys” of Sudan—a cadre of about 20,000 South Sudanese boys and teenagers who trekked more than a thousand miles across treacherous terrain to sparse­ ­refugee camps in neighboring countries.

50

W O R L D • F ebruar y 8 , 2 0 1 4

3 SOUTH SUDAN.indd 50

1/22/14 11:15 AM

BEN CURTIS/AP

As political and tribal conflict splits South Sudan, ch urc

VS. BROTHER

BEN CURTIS/AP

, ch urch leaders hope to be peacemakers /// by JAMIE DEAN

More than  years later, the north and south signed a peace treaty, and South Sudan declared its independence from the north in . Daau pursued Christian ministry and returned to South Sudan to establish a Christian college and seminary in the land he once fled.

But the gunfire Daau heard in South Sudan’s capital of Juba this past December signaled the beginning of a conflict that threatens to unravel the -year-old nation. This time, southerners are fighting southerners, and in some regions tribes have turned against tribes.

That’s a vexing reality for hundreds of thousands of South Sudanese citizens who now have fled their homes again. The United Nations estimates nearly half a million displaced citizens.

And it’s an urgent challenge for church leaders like Daau who have worked hard to promote peace for years.

Indeed, churches have played a vital role in South Sudanese life for decades, providing aid during wars and counsel during conflicts. In the past, government officials have appointed church leaders to head peace commissions between warring tribes.

DISPLACED: People rest after getting off a river barge in Awerial, South Sudan—some of the thousands who fled recent fighting between government and rebel forces in Bor.

Abraham Nhial, an Episcopal bishop in South Sudan and author of the autobiography Lost Boy No More, says churches are facing the complex problems of the new conflict with simple means: visiting refugees, talking with government officials, praying with those suffering, and preaching the Bible.

“Politics can’t bring people together, but the gospel can,” he said in a phone

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD

3 SOUTH SUDAN.indd 51



1/22/14 11:15 AM

52

By mid-January, the two sides had sent representatives to peace talks in Ethiopia, but fighting continued. A key question remained unanswered: What did Machar hope to achieve? Few believed Machar could gain control of the country, and Kiir seemed determined to end the rebellion.

But other questions loomed: Even if the two sides reached a ceasefire, how would the country address the deeper problems that led to the conflict? And how could outside nations help the country move past crisis and toward development?

For the United States, that’s a critical question. The U.S. government helped steer South Sudan toward independence and has given the nation $300 million in aid over the last two years. But some American experts on South Sudan say U.S. officials should have done more to help defuse the building tension over recent months.

Eric Reeves—a Sudan expert and professor at Smith College—wrote that South Sudan received too little help in “establishing democratic institutions that would allow the SPLM to outgrow its guerilla warfare past.” He continued:

W O R L D • F ebr u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4

3 SOUTH SUDAN.indd 52

1/21/14 4:43 PM

Ben Curtis/AP

P

EMBATTLED: Government soldiers ride through the still-smoldering town of Bentiu after capturing it from rebel forces Jan. 12.

SOLDIERS: Mackenzie Knowles-Coursin/AP • KIIR: Sayyid Azim/AP • MACHAR: ASHRAF SHAZLY/AFP/Getty Images

It’s a complicated conflict with deep roots. In the 1990s, southern forces known as the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) split in their fight against the north. Machar defected for a time, and he led an infamous massacre of some 2,000 Dinka tribesmen in 1991.

John Garang, the first president of eacemaking seemed elusive South Sudan, eventually reconciled after fighting erupted in Juba with Machar in an attempt to unify the on Dec. 15 between soldiers south. Garang died in a helicopter loyal to President Salva Kiir crash shortly after the war ended in and those loyal to former Vice President 2005, and Kiir became president.

Riek Machar.

Machar became vice president.

After a gunfight between soldiers in But the old wounds festered, an army barracks, the president even as the country declared accused Machar of attempting its independence in 2011, a coup. Machar denied it, and Kiir absorbed membut called for Kiir to step bers of militia from various down. Machar became tribes into the country’s the leader for rebel troops army. Meanwhile, Kiir that initially seized control faced increasing criticism of key cities. as the new country continIn some regions, the Salva Kiir ued to suffer from weak political fight stoked ethnic development and accusations conflict: Kiir is a member of of government corruption. the Dinka tribe; Machar Machar was a chief critic belongs to the Nuer ­ethnic of Kiir, who fired Machar group. Reports emerged from his vice presidential that Dinkas had killed post last July. Tensions members of the Nuer swelled over the next few tribe in Juba, and that months until fighting Nuer tribesmen had killed Riek Machar broke out in December.

Dinkas in other regions. interview. “As Christians, we want to be peacemakers.”

Nhial says the prospect of southerners fighting southerners is bewildering.

“We were born in war. We grew up in war. We had our own children in the war. We don’t want it to continue.”

mediate tribal conflicts and press for peace agreements. John Chol Daau, the Episcopal priest and former Lost Boy, has served on a government peace commission led by Episcopal Archbishop Daniel Deng.

Church officials say they want to use biblical principles to address spiritual problems that lead to conflict, and to point out problems when needed.

In a joint statement last year by Deng and the Catholic archbishop Paulino Lukudu Loro, the pair wrote: “We are not politicians. The prophetic

factions needed help learning how to govern together. Jok told The Wall Street Journal that outside countries helped South Sudan with foreign aid. The paper added: “What they missed is that people’s souls have to be fat in the same way.”

ENDANGERED: Mothers hold their young boys as they receive treatment for dehydration, vomiting, and diarrhea in a refugee camp in Awerial.

F Ben Curtis/AP

SOLDIERS: Mackenzie Knowles-Coursin/AP • KIIR: Sayyid Azim/AP • MACHAR: ASHRAF SHAZLY/AFP/Getty Images

“The U.S. couldn’t dictate governance, but could have done more to assist.”

During the months leading up to the current crisis, two key U.S. posts were vacant: the special envoy to Sudan and the chief of Africa policy for the State Department. Andrew Natsios, special envoy for Sudan under President George W. Bush, told Reuters news ­service: “When all of this was deteriorating, there was no one in charge.”

Jok Madut Jok—a former South Sudanese official who now works for the Sudd Institute in Juba—said longtime

or South Sudan church leaders, attending to the needs of bodies and souls has been a decades-long process. During the war in the 1980s and 1990s, churches were often the only institutions left in parts of South Sudan.

Church leaders offered spiritual and material help that fostered substantial credibility with local populations.

Over the years, government officials tapped pastors and priests to help

Email: jdean@wng.org

3 SOUTH SUDAN.indd 53

voice of the church reads the signs of the times in the light of gospel values and, like the prophets of the Old Testament, calls for a change of heart leading to a change of behavior.”

After the recent fighting, Dinka and Nuer church leaders from Catholic, Episcopal, Presbyterian, and other denominations issued a statement pleading with South Sudanese citizens not to allow a political conflict to turn into an ethnic war.

Daau says it’s critical to remind Christians from different tribes of their

common identity: “We are one community. We are believers in Jesus Christ.”

Bishop Nhial says that’s a message he’s emphasizing among self-identified Christians who sometimes divide along tribal lines—especially those fighting in the current conflict. “They need to know what the Bible tells them,” he says. “Do they know they cannot be divided? Do they know they are one family of God?” Meanwhile, though resources in South Sudanese churches often are limited, both Nhial and Daau say they are working with church leaders to deliver aid to refugee communities when possible. Other church leaders are already visiting refugee camps to preach, comfort, and pray with those in need.

Those numbers continue to swell, as thousands have fled the country and aid groups struggle to deliver aid to tens of thousands in overcrowded camps in the country. Satellite images have shown dead bodies and burned homes in key embattled towns.

The UN reported attacks on aid ­convoys had kept vital supplies from reaching vulnerable populations. Many aid groups evacuated their foreign staff to surrounding countries.

The Christian relief group Samaritan’s Purse continues its operations at the Yida refugee camp near the north-south border in South Sudan. The camp hosts nearly 70,000 people who have fled to South Sudan after enduring bombing campaigns in northern Sudan for more than three years.

Some aid workers worry officials in northern Sudan will take advantage of South Sudan’s current crisis to advance their own interests in nearby oil fields.

Ken Issacs of Samaritan’s Purse said the group had enough food on hand to feed Yida refugees through mid-February, but that precarious security conditions could hamper delivery of more aid.

Nhial says some citizens have fled to other parts of the country that have remained peaceful during the conflict, but that some families have separated as they fled. For the former Lost Boy, it’s a sad reality.

“Now there are more lost boys from this fighting,” says Nhial. “But I still have hope that one day there will be no more lost boys in South Sudan.” A

F ebr u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4 • W O R L D

53

1/21/14 9:35 AM

SINGLE

BUT NOT SOLITARY These unmarried Christians face disappointments but find with Christ they are not alone

M

ike Sense glanced around the room at his Covenant Seminary classmates. Most had gold rings gracing their left hands. He thought bitterly, “Everyone in this room is getting what they want and I’m not.”

At 32 and one of the few single men in his St. Louis seminary, Sense honestly voices his frustration: “Wait, God, I’ve moved to the other side of the world for you, I’ve served you and forgone money and fortune—and this one thing I ask for, I don’t get?”

While Sense has been in relationships, none of them have worked out.

As he watches friend after friend get married and have kids, he knows theologically that God is not unjust, and he understands that singleness has upsides: more time to care for his friends and help them through their

54

WORLD • February 8, 2014

3 SINGLENESS.indd 54

1/21/14 3:35 PM

Kevin Vandivier/genesis

by Angela Lu

Kevin Vandivier/genesis

problems. But there’s always the lonely drive home to an empty house.

Despite the rise of cohabitation and changing attitudes about marriage, many Christians continue to hold a high view of the institution and yet find themselves single. As Valentine’s Day approached, I spoke with a dozen of them to uncover the struggles they face and the consolation they find as they brave an uncertain future not of their own choosing.

Some Christian

young women complain about their male counterparts’ unwillingness to commit, but Sense has never struggled that way. He views marriage as a “beauti-

FABS HARFORD: ful thing the Lord has graciously given so Articulating the that man and woman can flourish and Christian faith. have places of safety and trust.” Lately he’s been feeling a deep desire for children, which coming from a man seems to surprise his friends: “When women share that … people receive it in stride.”

In Los Angeles, Gina Fenwick, 42, approaches the end of her childbearing years and still has not found a husband: “The biological clock is ticking. At 30 I didn’t focus so much on marriage, I just assumed it would happen. … I still believe that I will get married, but maybe years down the line. I kind of

F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4 • W O R L D

3 SINGLENESS.indd 55

55

1/21/14 3:33 PM

realize I need to give up my dream of having children.”

Fenwick, who has been celibate since professing Christ  years ago, admits that she has days when it’s a fight to stay pure in a city that bombards her with erotic messages. Sometimes she’s tempted to take things into her own hands and find someone–anyone– to fill that void. But as her relationship with God grows, she’s been seeing what’s really at stake. “If I entertain these thoughts, I’m going to lose so much more than giving my body away: It’s going to impact my relationship with God, the church, and my community.”

As a single woman, she has had the time to serve in her church’s prayer ministry, lead a postabortion group at a local pregnancy center, and help others in her community group. Most of her friends in L.A. are single, so she spends time meeting up with them for dinner, going to concerts, and hosting game nights.

Fabs Harford,



WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 SINGLENESS.indd 56

Sense

even wanting someone, but being confused as to why someone doesn’t want me. … Why did no one pick me? Am I too fat? Too annoying? Is my personality bad?”

Harford turned to Fenwick blogging to work through these issues. In , she started a series that looks at how many of the struggles of singleness— loneliness, rejection, lost dreams—are actually blessings pointing her toward Christ. Her most popular post was “Blessings of Singleness #: Lack of Physical Intimacy.” Who determines what she needs most? she asked: Her Swett body? Or God? Her conclusion: God “doesn’t promise to give me everything I need to never be hungry. He promises to give me everything I need to not starve to death on the road home to Him.” More than  women and men commented on the post, many saying that her writing touched on thoughts and feelings that they’d never been able to express. “For a lot of people it helped them feel heard to have someone say, ‘Hey, it’s

hard that you’re alone, that no one picked you, but someone understands you,’” Harford said.

Jenilyn Swett,

, works in the women’s ministry at Crossroads Presbyterian Church in St. Louis. She talks about the benefits of mixed-aged activities at church: “Getting to see married folks actively work through some of the struggles of marriage has just kind of kept reality in view.” She adds, “Being single is hard, so is being married. … In no way has that deterred me or discouraged me [from getting married], but it’s helped me to remember to keep marriage in its appropriate place and to not elevate it too much.”

By watching so many of her friends get married, Swett realizes there’s no formula to finding a husband, and the fact that her past relationships haven’t worked out and she’s currently single is only because this is where God wants her right now. “I think a lot of trusting Him in this is learning to lament … and being able to honestly say to Him, ‘This is hard’ or ‘This is really lonely’ or ‘This really sucks’ or ‘Really? Another friend is getting engaged?’” Swett said. “Just being able to talk to Him as a Father, that He cares, that He sees me, and everything He promises is true even if it doesn’t always feel that way.”

Even though Swett would like to get married, she doesn’t always appreciate it when married women offer to set her up with the one other single person they know, but she’s willing to be set up by someone who knows her well and knows a man who would complement her.

At ,

Linda Kennedy of Atlanta is still looking for her man. After she professed Christ in , she’s found that only non-Christian men pursued her.

She found singleness most difficult while she was raising her son, and then raising a niece and nephew. But despite lonely holidays, Kennedy says she’s learned to be content. She doesn’t want to com-

ILLUSTRATIONS: LAVANDAART/SHUTTERSTOCK • PHOTOS: HANDOUT

a -yearold serving in the women’s ministry at Austin Stone Community Church in Texas, describes her feelings about singleness as a pendulum that swings between a pity party and being OK with where she is.

Harford has felt pressured to get married ever since professing Christ a decade ago. But as she’s grown in her faith, her reasons for wanting to tie the knot have also matured: Now she desires marriage as a covenant binding together husband and wife and requiring grace and forgiveness. Even as she hears from her married friends about difficulties, she wants to experience the sanctifying benefits of marriage and have the opportunity to act out the gospel in someone else’s life.

When she joined the church staff seven years ago, she

didn’t mind being single—most of the other women on staff were single as well. But over the years, as she’s attended weddings and baby showers, her thoughts began to change: “The harder struggle with singleness is not

Email: alu@wng.org

1/21/14 4:47 PM

promise, and is currently seeing a “gentleman” she hopes to marry.

But if it doesn’t work out, she’s still willing to submit to God’s will.

She tells younger singles Kennedy that “God is faithful and able to keep you living single and not fornicate. It doesn’t mean you stop having feelings, but that you are God’s property and He will help you through the Holy Spirit.”

On Fabs Harford’s hard days, she holds on to the promise that marriage is temporal, while the fruit of her ministry is eternal. She said her greatest comfort is knowing that Jesus lived His life single, yet still lived the perfect life.

The best advice Mike Sense ever heard came from the Bible and

not from well-meaning church people assuring him that he’ll find “the one” someday. He points to Isaiah  and , where the Lord promised “the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give in my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting place that shall never be cut off.”

Despite hard days, unmet desires, and feeling misunderstood, Sense finds encouragement in the unchanging Word: “It makes me feel important to know that singles have a place in the Bible.” A

The five worst things to say to singles ‘You won’t find your husband until you’re fully satisfied with God.’ ‘But you’re so pretty, how can you still be single?’

‘Don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll find him/her someday.’

‘Don’t be so picky, you know you’re getting older.’

‘So, are you still single because you have a fear of commitment?’

Single in the city of sex At Gina Fenwick’s church, Reality LA, singles make up about  percent of the congregants. Meeting blocks from the Hollywood sign, Reality LA reaches out to the people in the entertainment industry, where married couples are rare.

Reality LA’s Pastor, Tim Chaddick, said he has parishioners coming up to him weekly with their struggles with singleness. In one sense it’s difficult to fix the “singleness” problem they believe they have, he said, because relationships can’t just be manufactured. “It takes a lot of work, you have to discover … people you connect with, discover people you have an interest in,” Chaddick said. “I think when I talk about the theological side of it, most people receive that—that’s what Scripture says—but I think a lot of people want a very detailed how-to manual.”

ILLUSTRATIONS: LAVANDAART/SHUTTERSTOCK • PHOTOS: HANDOUT

He encourages singles to meet in local community groups where they can interact with other singles in a group setting while also learning from the wisdom of married people. And while he sympathizes with his single congregants and their struggles, he encourages them to focus less on their marital status and more on pursuing holiness in their current stage of life.

Especially in a sex-crazed city like L.A., singles can make an impact on culture by caring about and striving for purity. “When our city sees men and women who are abstaining from sexual activity and yet who are single, that is mind-blowing,” Chaddick said. “Why would you ever not be going out and getting laid and hooking up? Why would you ever not do that? That’s absurd. So it becomes this amazing opportunity to say, ‘Because there is something greater.’ … I think there’s an incredible potential for Christian witness.”

For instance, one congregant wrote an opinion column in L.A. Magazine explaining why she was saving herself for marriage in their annual sex issue. Between articles about hot spots to pick up romantic flings and a roundup on condoms, Marielle Wakim writes that at , she’s a virgin by choice, and that God does affirm sex–as long as it’s in marriage.

In the hipster enclave of Silver Lake where -year-old Chaddick lives with his wife and three daughters, he is an anomaly. People are shocked and confused at why a young man like Chaddick would throw his life away to be “tied down” to family. So at the pulpit he preaches the countercultural messages of both the theology of marriage as well as the important role of singles in the kingdom of heaven. —A.L.

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD

3 SINGLENESS.indd 57



1/21/14 4:47 PM

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS h does world have paid summer internships?

Yes. The road to compete for one runs through the May 19-31 World Journalism Institute (WJI) course. See worldji.com/ programs/view/60. We’re looking for exceptional magazine, website, and radio/podcast interns.

h i’m employed but i’ve read world for years and would like to write occasionally for the magazine or website. any possibility of that?

Yes. Apply to attend the Nov. 17-21 fourth annual WJI mid-career training course. Send a resumé and writing sample to June McGraw (jmcgraw@wng.org). Limited to 10 WORLD members.

h i know of a local christian poverty-fighting charity that could be a winner in your 9th annual hope award for effective compassion. how do i let you know about it?

Email a note to June McGraw. Include the name, city, website address, and a paragraph explaining why you think the charity is remarkable. To get a sense of what we’re looking for, see wng.org/compassion/2013.php.

JOIN WITH SGA TO HELP THEM TODAY! In the U.S. and Western nations, we often take our freedom for granted. In the former Soviet nations— especially across Central Asia—believers are facing renewed persecution, at the risk of jail and even their lives. But there are still millions of lost souls groping for truth, and the faithful, persecuted believers lack the resources needed to reach them.

“In the beginning, they wanted to arrest us all . . . the children cried . . . officials were confiscating Bibles, song books, and computers . . . We were hiding the children in storage rooms and toilets . . . The circumstances were tense . . .”

—A recent letter from Central Asia

Contact SGA to find out what you can do today to help them share the love of Christ!

SGA exists to serve these believers, and this month marks our 80th year of Gospel Ministry . . . training in God’s Word . . . printing and distributing God’s Word . . . supporting national missionaries in unreached regions . . . reaching and discipling orphans . . . and much more!

3 LIFESTYLE and TECH.indd 58

SGA u 6151 Commonwealth Drive Loves Park, Illinois 61111 u 800-BIBLE-50 info@sga.org u www.sga.org/world03

1/20/14 4:09 PM

KRIEG BARRIE

THEY NEED YOU!

Notebook Lifestyle > Technology > Science > Houses of God > Sports > Religion

Completely impossible When complete satisfaction is expected, disappointment is inevitable

KRIEG BARRIE

BY MARVIN OLASKY

>>

O  L  we report on not only trends but also oozes, subtle long-term changes that affect how we all think and live. One American ooze is the insistence on complete satisfaction: Since that does not meld well with life in a fallen world, it forces us into exaggerations and sometimes lies.

Example: Recently, as I completed paperwork to buy a Ford Fiesta, the salesman handed me a sheet of paper with questions about sales performance and only two answers possible: “completely satisfied” and “unsatisfied.” Nothing in between. He said

Download WORLD’s iPad app today; details at wng.org/iPad

3 LIFESTYLE and TECH.indd 59

that unless I answered “completely satisfied” to every question he wouldn’t sell me the vehicle.

My jaw dropped, and I asked the sales manager to help me pick it up. The manager affirmed the salesman’s plea, explaining that, if individuals and dealers didn’t get a perfect score, they’d be out thousands of dollars and lose their chance to win company awards. He agreed that performance ratings thus derived would be inaccurate, but Americans demanded complete satisfaction.

Is that true? If so, it’s certainly a hard standard to live by. Recall, as Valentine’s Day

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/22/14 12:21 PM

Notebook > Lifestyle out a questionnaire without pressure to sing the Hallelujah Chorus.

Doesn’t it seem that when a pitcher thinks about how he looks as he’s throwing the ball, and demands applause after each curve ball, he’s on the way to the minors?

Could one of the reasons for problems from divorce to politics to decreased church attendance be that we demand complete satisfaction?

A.A. Milne’s poem “King John’s Christmas” is good in this regard. Jack wants crackers, chocolates, and a pocketknife that really cuts, but he’s satisfied when a big, red rubber ball hurtles through the window. If we expect to be completely satisfied by every material thing we receive and every person we meet, disappointment is inevitable. And if we could be completely satisfied with anything this world has to offer, wouldn’t we lose our eagerness to step heavenward?

Abortion regrets



WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 LIFESTYLE and TECH.indd 60

The most popular baby names in  were—well, that depends on who’s counting. The website nameberry.com tabulated  million page views and declared Imogen the year’s most popular girl name and Asher the most popular boy’s, while babycenter. com’s compiling declared Sophia and Jackson (with variations) to be No. .

Since many of its readers are pregnant and haven’t yet chosen names, babynames. com says its list predicts future trends. Its most popular  names: Charlotte and Liam. The website babynames.net, which invites users to vote (“social baby naming”), predicts that “den” names (Aiden, Jayden) will be “out” and biblical names like Caleb and Shiloh “in,” along with mythologyinfluenced names like Thor.

(Confession: I once had a dog named Thor.)

The definitive answer on which baby names were most given in  is to wait for a Social Security Administration announcement later this year. The websites babynamewizard. com and ourbabynamer.com both rely on those numbers.

In , Jacob and Sophia were tops. —Susan Olasky

BABY: JAMIE GRILL/GETTY IMAGES • SIGN: JONATHAN ERNST/REUTERS/NEWSCOM

Some women who headed to Jan. ’s massive March for Life on the National Mall in Washington carried “I Regret My Abortion” signs. It’s not certain when the first such sign appeared, but it may have been one carried by Anglicans for Life director Georgette Forney in — and she carried it to a pro-abortion rally in Washington, D.C., organized by the National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL), the National Organization for Women (NOW), and Planned Parenthood.

Forney recalls, “Every woman at the rally but one treated me with disdain. I came away realizing that they didn’t care about women or their health. It was all about power, and the money they can make from the abortion industry. And make no mistake, it is an industry, earning nearly  billion each year.” She now encourages church members to discern where they may be called to help: “It could be as simple as a prayer for a teenage girl you see passing by on the street, or dropping off a pack of diapers at a pregnancy resource center.”

Forney had an abortion when she was , so she is sometimes contacted by abortion-minded women curious about a pro-life person who had aborted. One example: An unemployed young woman impregnated by an unstable man called and told her, “I have to have an abortion.” Forney said, “No, you don’t,” and helped the young woman get a job and material help such as a crib. The young woman kept her baby, and her healthy little girl turned  this past March. That mother was not, on Jan. , carrying a sign, “I regret my child.” —Jim Edsall

 

Visit our website—wng.org—for breaking news and more

1/17/14 4:25 PM

PHOTOS COURTESY OF LAURA HOLLANDER PHOTOGRAPHY

approaches, that traditional marriage vows are for life, whether richer or poorer, in sickness or in health—even when only partially satisfied. Some new marriage vows suggest the option to leave unless completely satisfied at all times.

I’m not yearning for good old days of brutal honesty. My first car-buying experience came in : Poor and about to get married, I visited a Ford dealership and asked to see the least expensive new car on the lot. The salesman announced on the loudspeaker: “Who has a cheap car for this customer?” I slinked out and ended up buying a Chevette with no back seat or radio. It did have windshield wipers.

A middle course of aiming for satisfaction (but not demanding the “complete” kind) would be best. Husbands and wives should serve each other, and it’s good for Avis to try harder. When buying Ford trucks in Texas during the s, I filled

Notebook > Technology

Testing morality

her pregnancy, a MaterniT test showed Newman’s baby boy had Down syndrome.

Newman says it was important Will safer and more sophisticated prenatal tests give parents a for her and her husband to know helpful heads-up, or prompt abortions? BY DANIEL JAMES DEVINE the diagnosis in advance.

“Regardless, we weren’t going to end the pregnancy.” She grieved over lost expectations, but A      is growing in popualso spent time learning about Down syndrome, informing larity. It’s noninvasive, and checks for genetic disorders family members, and ensuring her hospital would provide with minimal risk and high accuracy. Instead of collectextra fetal monitoring for heart defects or intestinal problems ing DNA from the womb with big needles, it sequences associated with the condition. cell-free fetal DNA that floats in the mother’s bloodstream Being prepared made the birth less overwhelming, she during pregnancy. says. “My son was born, and it was a celebration. We were With just a simple blood sample from mom, tests using ready.” Eli, whom she describes as a “perfect son” knit cell-free DNA (sold in the United States under brand names together by God, will turn  in April. A MaterniT Plus, Panorama, Verifi, and Harmony) can flag a MaterniT test for Newman’s third child, variety of chromosomal conditions in a baby, such as trisomy PREPARED: due in April, came back normal and revealed  (Down syndrome), trisomy  (Edwards syndrome), and The Newmans. trisomy  (Patau syndrome). They may also check for sex gene disorders like triple X and Klinefelter syndromes.

All this testing could bode well or ill for children, depending on their parents’ viewpoint.

Noninvasive tests are safer for the baby than amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling, which may occasionally cause a miscarriage. Noninvasive tests can be performed early in the pregnancy, too, at nine or  weeks. They are advertised to be highly accurate, detecting Down syndrome, for example, in  out of  cases.

The potential problem is the motive for prenatal testing in the first place. Why offer testing for a disorder you can discover at birth? Often, the answer appears to be so women can make an “informed decision” whether to “continue” their pregnancy—or abort.

Donna Harrison, the executive director of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, points out that when doctors test for a disease like strep throat, they normally have the goal of treating and curing the patient. “There is no drug or treatment that can modify the genome of the fetus, so the fetus receives no benefit,” she says of the prenatal testing trend. “And, what if the test is wrong?” (They do give false positives occasionally.)

Parents who discover their unborn child is positive for a chromosomal disorder often decide to abort.

When they discover Down syndrome by prenatal diagnosis, up to nine out of  parents choose to terminate, according to some studies. As prenatal tests the baby’s gender (a boy) at just ½ weeks gestation (more at become less invasive, more convenient, and more common, BarryAndAshley.wordpress.com). it’s reasonable to think more parents will be prompted to The provider of MaterniT expected to sell , tests abort an “imperfect” child. last year. Other brands are selling tens of thousands more.

Not everyone views the new tests negatively, though. In Whether used to improve a birth or prevent one, noninvasive  Ashley Newman of Spring, Texas, became one of the first prenatal tests are coming to an ob-gyn office near you. A women to use a noninvasive prenatal test. Halfway through

BABY: JAMIE GRILL/GETTY IMAGES • SIGN: JONATHAN ERNST/REUTERS/NEWSCOM

PHOTOS COURTESY OF LAURA HOLLANDER PHOTOGRAPHY

>>

Email: ddevine@wng.org

3 LIFESTYLE and TECH.indd 61

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/22/14 11:46 AM

Notebook > Science

Drowsy drug

>>

A long-term health database of adolescents that has formed the basis for over 1,900 scholarly articles may be skewed by young “jokesters” who lied to scientists about their sexual orientation. Over 70 percent of teenagers who originally claimed to have same-sex attractions in surveys for the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health identified as exclusively ­heterosexual by the time they were young adults.

Writing in Archives of Sexual Behavior in December, researchers suggest many of these teens either falsely reported samesex attraction as a joke, or didn’t understand what “romantic attraction” meant.

The erroneous survey results have implications for subsequent studies that used the data to measure the physical and mental health of gay, lesbian, and bisexual youth.

Based on the same database, researchers recently found that 36 young women who consistently claimed to be virgins also admitted they had given birth. —D.J.D.

Hidden plague New statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate three major sexually transmitted diseases continue to spread in the United States, despite efforts to raise awareness. In 2012, the rate of gonorrhea rose 4 percent, and the rate of primary and secondary syphilis rose 11 percent. Chlamydia increased slightly to 1.42 million cases—the most-reported disease in the United States.

Health experts are worried because most cases of gonorrhea and chlamydia occur among people under 25, and both diseases can cause infertility in women. About three out of four new cases of syphilis occur among homosexual men, raising their chances of transmitting HIV. —D.J.D.

62

WORLD • February 8, 2014

3 SCIENCE and HOG.indd 62

drug: INTS KALNIN/Reuters/landov • test: Bluberries/istock • STD: handout

A strange thing happened to dozens of European kids who received a vaccine against the 2009 pandemic swine flu. They began falling asleep abruptly and unexpectedly in the middle of the day. Research into the problem revealed that in rare cases the Pandemrix swine flu shot had triggered the onset of narcolepsy, an incurable sleep disorder.

In December, scientists from the Stanford Center for Sleep Sciences and Medicine in Palo Alto, Calif., announced they had discovered the likely explanation: “molecular mimicry.” A protein found in the H1N1 swine flu virus partially resembles hypocretin, a human hormone responsible for maintaining wakefulness. The hormone is produced by certain brain neurons. After genetically susceptible people either contracted swine flu or received the vaccine (which contains the virus), their immune cells became primed to attack not only swine flu but hypocretin-producing neurons. The end result was ­narcolepsy—among both vaccinated Europeans and unvaccinated Chinese who had contracted the flu.

The vaccine, made by GlaxoSmithKline, has been discontinued and was never used in the AFTERSHOCKS: Emelie Olsson developed United States. Out of 30 million people vaccinarcolepsy after being immunized in 2009 nated in Europe, the drugmaker has counted with the Pandemrix H1N1 swine flu vaccine. about 900 associated cases of narcolepsy. The problem seems more common among children.

(In Finland, about 1 out of every 16,000 vaccinated children developed the disorder.) The Stanford researchers and their collaborators, publishing in Science Translational Medicine, say their study confirms for the first time that narcolepsy is an autoimmune disease.

The government of the United Kingdom recently acknowledged the link between the GSK vaccine and the sleep disorder. Lawyers there have filed a class-action suit to demand compensation for 50 vaccinated people, mostly children, who developed narcolepsy—up to $1.6 million apiece.

Visit our website—wng.org—for breaking news and more

1/17/14 4:31 PM

Binsar Bakkara/ap

Duped database

Scientists explain why a swine flu vaccine caused narcolepsy in Europe By daniel james devine

Notebook > Houses of God

Binsar Bakkara/ap

drug: INTS KALNIN/Reuters/landov • test: Bluberries/istock • STD: handout

A church in Sibintun, North Sumatra, Indonesia, stands near Mount Sinabung as it releases a pyroclastic flow on Jan. 6. The volcano has sporadically erupted since September, forcing thousands of people to leave their homes.

F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4 • W O R L D

3 SCIENCE and HOG.indd 63

63

1/17/14 4:31 PM

Notebook > Sports

‘Better than a Super Bowl’ Football doesn’t come first for several Super Bowl stars

>>

Before this year’s playoffs began, Seattle pastor Mark Driscoll interviewed Wilson and four other Seahawks (for Driscoll’s Resurgence interview series).

Defensive assistant coach Rocky Seto told Driscoll that Jesus is “even better than a Super Bowl.” All five have now reached the pinnacle of a football career, but free safety Chris Maragos said he knows “how empty that is” without Christ.

By contrast, Seahawks defensive back Richard Sherman ranted after his game-saving play during the Jan. 19 Seahawks’ 23-17 win over San Francisco for the NFC Championship. He derided the 49ers and “sorry receiver” Michael Crabtree, whom Sherman successfully defended in the deciding play. Sherman implied he’s the NFL’s best DB. “I appreciate that he [Crabtree] knows that now.” Sherman later apologized.

Sherman’s hubris goes on the line against the Broncos’ Manning, who

this season threw for 55 touchdowns, breaking a record held

by New England Patriots QB Tom Brady. (Then Manning beat Brady’s Patriots 26-16 on Jan. 19 to reach the upcoming Super Bowl.) Unlike Sherman, Manning quietly handles criticism about his age and arm strength. He neither trashes others nor praises God on camera.“I just want my actions to speak louder,” he wrote in Manning.

Despite the endless football storylines—a rare matchup between No. 1 seeds, the best defense versus the best offense, and more—an equal contrast will be players’ worldviews as the Broncos and Seahawks meet. If the Seahawks win, Sherman may rave again, but not Seto.

“If that [win] happens, God willing,” Seto told Driscoll, “we’ll be able to tell people that Jesus is way better still.”

COMMON GROUND: Manning (18) shakes hands with Wilson after the Seahawks beat the Broncos 40-10 in a preseason game Aug. 17.

A halftime to miss The halftime show once again won’t be family friendly. Many parents may know pop headliner Bruno Mars only by his boyish voice and his clean love song “Just the Way You Are.” But much of his other work features explicit language and sex. The rock group Red Hot Chili Peppers will join Mars, and bassist Flea bawdily asked fans on Twitter if they wanted to see him nude at the Super Bowl. He’s been known to perform with little more covering than his guitar. —A.B.

64

W ORLD • F e b r u a r y 8 , 2 0 1 4

3 SPORTS and RELIGION.indd 64

top: John Leyba/The Denver Post via Getty Images • bottom: Rick Diamond/Getty Images for Atlantic Records

A championship ring is often life’s highest goal for NFL players, but as Super Bowl XLVIII approaches on Feb. 2 at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, the quarterbacks for the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos cherish something even more.

Says future Hall of Famer and record-shattering Broncos QB Peyton Manning in the 2001 book Manning: “For me generally it had always been the big four: faith, family, friends, and football. … [A]s important as football is to me, it can never be higher than fourth. My faith has been number one since I was thirteen years old.”

Seahawks QB Russell Wilson—NFL newcomer extraordinaire—says in a self-produced October 2013 video, The Making of a Champion, that his football goals changed when he became a Christian at age 14: “I realized that God had given me so many talents that I wanted to give Him all the glory.”

Visit our website—wng.org—for breaking news and more

1/22/14 12:07 PM

baptism: Michael Coyne/National Geographic/Getty Images • pills: ManoAfrica/istock • germany: Roland Holschneider/picture-alliance/dpa/AP

By Andrew Branch

Notebook > Religion

Devil in the details The Church of England waters down baptism

CREDIT

BAPTISM: MICHAEL COYNE/NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC/GETTY IMAGES • PILLS: MANOAFRICA/ISTOCK • GERMANY: ROLAND HOLSCHNEIDER/PICTURE-ALLIANCE/DPA/AP

>>

T A C has introduced a revised version of its baptismal service that replaces language deemed “inaccessible” to unchurched people. In particular, the new ceremony removes promises that parents and godparents had previously made to repent of sin and to “reject the devil.”

The archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, supports the change.

Even though attendance at British Anglican congregations is generally quite low, many unchurched parents still wish to have newborns baptized. “In some instances,” the Anglican Liturgy Commission notes, “there are few people present [at a baptism] who have any real understanding of the Church’s language and symbolism.”

The current liturgy, which dates to , has Anglican ministers ask parents if

BY THOMAS KIDD

they “repent of the sins that separate us from God,” as well as renounce the devil and “rebellion against God.” The new text simply asks them, on behalf of the baby, if they “reject evil, and all its many forms, and all its empty promises.” The bishop of Wakefield, Stephen Platten, the Liturgy Commission chair, calls the older reference to the devil “theologically problematic.”

Conservative Anglican critics, such as Michael Nazir-Ali, the former bishop of Rochester, have decried the change.

“Rather than the constant ‘dumbing down’ of Christian teaching,” Nazir-Ali says, “we should be spending time preparing people for these great rites of passage.”

Schoolhouse Islam German public schools have begun offering classes on Islam, in an attempt to help assimilate the country’s Muslim population. Islamic organizations had provided similar classes before, but the new courses feature state-developed curriculum taught by teachers who work for the schools. The classes stand alongside ethics-focused curricula on ASSIMILATING? Timur Kumlu Protestantism and Catholicism, effectively putting Islam teaches Islamic religious education on the same level as Christianity. Schools are piloting the in Frankfurt Main, Germany. program in the state of Hesse.

Germany’s population of Muslims has grown quickly in recent decades, even as the native German population has stagnated under low birth rates. Estimates place German Muslims at about four million people, or  percent of the population. Officials have worried about the radicalization of Muslims after repeated exposures of German terrorist cells since the / attacks. The Hesse courses advocate a peaceful and tolerant version of Islam for Muslim schoolchildren, hoping to counteract jihadist voices the youths might hear elsewhere.

German school leaders have regularly debated how best to integrate conservative Muslims. A court ruled in a  case in Hesse that traditionalist Muslims must allow their daughters to participate in coed swimming lessons, but conceded that the girls can wear “burkinis,” the full-body swimsuits preferred by Muslim traditionalists. —T.K.

Email: tkidd@wng.org

3 SPORTS and RELIGION.indd 65

 A recent exchange hosted by the Religion News Service raised questions about whether evangelicals’ opposition to Obamacare’s contraception mandate might signal growing evangelical resistance to contraception itself.

Georgetown University doctoral student Jacob Lupfer, a liberal critic, suggested that religious liberty was not the real reason behind many evangelicals’ stance against the HHS mandate, which requires employers’ health plans to cover contraceptives and abortifacients. Instead, he charged, many evangelicals wish to increase their influence by having more children than irreligious families, and that less birth control would mean fewer women in the workplace and fewer female clergy.

Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, responded to Lupfer by asking, “Are evangelical protests rooted in concern about religious liberty or about birth control? The answer,” he said, “is yes.” In addition to creating legitimate concerns about religious freedom, Mohler argued, the mandate controversy was also pushing evangelicals toward more mature reflection on contraception and Christian sexuality. Mohler has previously contended that while evangelicals may ethically use contraceptives, they should be wary of adopting a worldly “contraceptive mentality.” —T.K.

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/20/14 11:00 AM

THE WORLD MARKET Classifieds are priced at  per line with an average of  characters per line and a minimum of two lines. Bold text and uppercase available for  per line; special fonts and highlighting available for an additional charge.

You will receive a  percent discount with a frequency of four or more.

All ads are subject to the approval of WORLD. Advertising in WORLD does not necessarily imply the endorsement of the publisher. Prepayment and written confi rmation will be required of all advertisers. : Dawn Wilson, WORLD, PO Box , Asheville, NC ; phone: ..; fax: ..; email: dwilson@wng.org

EMPLOYMENT I United Christian Academy (UCA), Newport, Vermont: Seeks Head of School. www.ucaeducation.org.

I Colorado Dude/Guest Ranch seeking service-minded summer staff of high integrity. Latigo Ranch at LatigoTrails.com.

school located in Sugar Land, Texas, one of the fastest growing and most diverse communities in the United States.

Applications for the 2014-2015 school year are now being accepted for teaching professionals dedicated to training the next generation for Christ.

For more information or to apply, visit www.FortBendChristian.org/W-Faculty.

CHURCH EMPLOYMENT

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

I Reformation Covenant Church (CREC), Oregon City, OR, hiring Associate Pastor.

Starting -K. JD at: www.reformationcovenant.org/files/email/APJD.pdf.

I Proverbs  Women and Others: Solid Ethics, Solid income. From Home. www.HomeBasedYou.com.

Call Beth () -.

SCHOOL EMPLOYMENT I CHRISTIAN TEACHERS NEEDED IN NORTH IRAQ. Join our teams serving at the School of the Medes in Dohuk, Sulymaniah or Erbil, Iraq. , students enrolled, all instruction in English, western curriculum, grades K-, greatest need for English, History and Science teachers at high school level. Salary plus a % of housing and airfare provided depending on qualifications. www.servantgroup.org.

I TEACHERS URGENTLY NEEDED IN LAOS! ELIC has an urgent need for teachers of English in Laos. This is an outstanding opportunity for singles, couples, families and second-career adults. Two-year commitment. Opportunities to return to North America. Serve on a vibrant team.

Teach at the university level to future leaders in every sector. Previous teaching experience not required. Complete training provided. Thirty years of sending and caring for teachers in Asia. Additional strategic opportunities in Mongolia, China, Vietnam & Cambodia. We can get you there. www.elic.org. () -.

I K-12 Faculty. Fort Bend Christian Academy is a K-12 private Christian

MINISTRY OPPORTUNITIES I BE A MISSION NANNY. Volunteer women needed to serve overseas with missionary families as domestic/childcare help. www.MissionNannys.org.

SERVICES

WRITING CAMPS

CHRISTIAN CEO

I Hands-on, H.S. writing camp, save $, register now–www.cornerstone.edu/ cornerstone-journalism-institute.

WEB RESOURCES I Defend the faith: Heart, soul, mind, & strength. www.WitnessKit.com.

RETIREMENT I Come Home To “GO YE VILLAGE,” A Christian LIFE CARE Retirement Community. Nestled in the beautiful foothills of the Ozarks in Tahlequah, OK, the village offers activities, fellowship, and security knowing you will always be cared for in independent, Assisted Living or Long Term Care environment. CALL TODAY () - or visit our website www.goyevillage.org for more information.

TRAVEL I Take the trip of a lifetime to Utah!  days of incredible adventure – no experience necessary - www.donsunshine.org.

I ’s of departures including Best of Britain, Christian Tours to Germany, Switzerland, Steps of St. Paul in Greece & Turkey, Bible Lands of Israel, Jordan, Egypt, etc. www.pilgrimtours.com. () -.

REAL ESTATE I Maine Properties. Recreational, woodland, investment, & residential.

Owner financing; () -; www.themainelandstore.com.

Are you a mature Christian who has enjoyed a successful business leadership career as Owner, CEO, President or Executive Coach/ Consultant & are now called to use these gifts to help other leaders fulfill their God-given calling & potential? Do you believe Christ is Lord, the Bible is true, God has an eternal plan for each believer’s life, & this plan includes their business? Would you be excited to build a high-impact professional practice to equip, encourage & inspire like-minded Christian leaders based on this truth? If so, you may be called by the Lord to be an Area Chair for The C12 Group, America’s leader in helping Christian CEOs & Owners Build GREAT Businesses for a GREATER Purpose. If you’re in a position to investigate a great franchise opportunity, visit www.C12Group. com to learn more!

I CHRISTIANS HELPING CHRISTIANS: Like-minded believers are sharing one another’s medical expenses through a unique ministry that doesn’t involve insurance. Samaritan Ministries, P.O. Box , Peoria, IL ; or call () -, ext. .

EDUCATION I CHRISTIAN BOARDING SCHOOL FOR AT-RISK GIRLS; () -. www.ParentHope.com.

I OPEN YOUR OWN READING CENTER: Make a difference in the lives of others.

Operate from home. It’s needed. It’s rewarding. Great results. NOT a franchise.

Earn -/hr. We provide complete training and materials. www.academicassociates.com; () -.

Why isn’t your ad here?

Christian Realtors in the Phoenix area 0 Nearly 1,000 homes sold . . . Mesa . . . Tempe . . . Chandler . . .

Gilbert . . . Sun Lakes . . . Scottsdale 0 30+ years experience 0 Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) and Graduate 0 Realtor Institute (GRI) Professional Designations 0 Dan & Carol are licensed Arizona Real Estate Brokers 0 Honest • Professional • Old Fashioned Values

For information about advertising contact

Dan & Carol Smith

Dan Smith Realty (480) 820-6833

www.dansmithrealty.com email: danandcarol@hotmail.com

3 SPORTS and RELIGION.indd 66

call: 828.232.5489 | fax: 828.253.1556 email: advertise@wng.org

1/16/14 10:25 AM

Mailbag ‘Tidings of discomfort and joy’

Dec.  My compliments to Jamie Dean for her article about churches losing buildings but gaining far more in return. My wife and I began worshipping with Holy Trinity Anglican Church less than a year ago. We had never before felt so warmly welcomed, and Fr. Don Hellmandollar is remarkable. It will be fun to watch where God leads us from here!

—F W H, Bristol, Conn.

daddies. Using such science to support a biblical point promotes the unbiblical idea that animals and human beings are alike in “social and behavioral consequences.”

—C K. T, Long Grove, Ill.

‘Around the corner, part II’ ‘Waiting and singing’ Dec.  This column makes me cry again for these dear brothers and sisters in Pakistan. I pray for them, and for myself to remember their example of singing through their tears. And thank you for pointing us to Jesus, our Immanuel, for in Him we have hope.

—V T, Lebanon, Ore.

As an Anglican who saw the church of my youth hijacked by humanists, the cover story reminded me of a quote from an -year-old widow who left the -year-old Episcopal church in North Carolina where her husband is buried.

“I do not worship my husband’s bones,” she said, “I worship my husband’s God.” May we Anglicans give half as good a testimony as our Christian brothers and sisters in Pakistan have given through their perseverance and faith.

—S K, Odessa, Texas

‘Disparate impact’ Dec.  I wholeheartedly agree with Christina Hoff Sommers on education, especially her comments on the Aviation High School in Queens. I am a  alumnus of that school, back when it was in Manhattan. It taught me mechanical skills and prepared me for life’s challenges and my future career

Send photos and letters to: mailbag@wng.org

3 MAILBAG.indd 67

in the Air Force as a fighter pilot and commander.

—J K J., Macon, Ga.

Human Race Dec.  I appreciate WORLD but am disappointed in your report on the death of Paul F. Crouch, which focused on his lavish lifestyle and the prosperity preachers on TBN. I respect your right to question his lifestyle, but you didn’t mention that TBN also enables Billy and Franklin Graham and many others who guard the gospel of Jesus to preach it around the world.

—P C, San Antonio, Texas

‘Going with the flow’ Dec.  As a conservative Mennonite I am not surprised that some mainstream Mennonites have come to this point. Our forefathers were willing to surrender their lives to uphold the authority of Scripture, but now some of their descendants are “going with the flow” just when a degenerating society needs the reminder to be loyal to Scripture.

—C W, Lagrange, Ind.

Dispatches Dec.  We need not look to “monogamous mice” to know children need

Dec.  Thank you for summarizing reader expectations about the future from a “seemingly downcast group.” I myself am on the bridge from pessimism to optimism. I had an “Aha!” moment while reading Ephesians that shifted my emphasis from God’s plan to save me to God’s plan to defeat evil through His church.

—D A. E, Greenwood, Ill.

‘Man knows not his time’ Dec.  The obituary on Nelson Mandela was good, but it only told half the story, failing to mention the many people Mandela’s communist ANC murdered in its efforts to overthrow the apartheid South African government.

—P M, St. Charles, Ill.

Daniel of the Year Dec.  Thank you for the article on Bishop Antoine Audo. This was a wellwritten and informative story connecting Middle East history with the current state of Syria. Please keep hammering away at our insulation from what a large number of Christians live with daily.

—G A. D, Farmers Branch, Texas

Truly, Bishop Audo is fighting a good fight, especially when contrasted with pastor Steven Furtick’s “battle” over

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/21/14 2:29 PM

Mailbag

NORTH MAROON PEAK, COLORADO submitted by John F. Toner

his ,-square-foot house (“The house that Steven built,” Dec. ).

—K H, Columbus, Ohio

‘The other side of failure’ Dec.  The story of the orphans who were deported from Laos back to North Korea was very sad, especially the fact that so many children who make it to South Korea wobble or lose their faith.

The missionaries helping these children escape see that the children’s faith is more important than a comfortable life in South Korea. We often pray that fellow believers would be delivered from persecution, but we should also pray that they endure faithfully what God has planned, even terror, torture, and execution.

—E K, Ontario, Calif.

‘Men on the street’ Nov.  Your article on street evangelism was interesting and balanced.

I believe there is room for everyone when it comes to proclaiming Jesus.

If we are too combative some people will take offense, but if we serve without words some people will not recognize we are proclaiming Christ.

—M A, Holland, Mich.

3 MAILBAG.indd 68

‘Adoption under fi re’ Nov.  Thank you for the compelling article about the challenges facing international adoption. My heart aches for the orphan children and their prospective adoptive families who have been caught in the middle.

May this raise awareness of the great need of God’s precious children and encourage others to take action.

—M S, Alexandria, Va.

‘The high cost of negligence’ Nov.  Abusers of all kinds, and sometimes their friends and families, have similar characteristics, including denial and protecting the abuser from dealing with his problems. God bless all who commit themselves to breaking through this and helping those who are trapped.

—K L, Indianapolis, Ind.

‘Dead seriousness’ Oct.  Thank you for this carefully researched article on the death penalty and the commentary, “Better off dead?” My concern is the need to meet the biblical standard of two or three witnesses. Could not the automatic appeal process and the need to meet other legal safeguards

1/21/14 2:29 PM

before execution occurs meet the requirement?

—S T, Oak Harbor, Wash.

I strongly disagree that “[t]he Bible sets a very high bar for capital punishment, and the American legal system today rarely reaches it.” The American standard of “beyond a reasonable doubt” is the toughest the world has ever seen. Can we please keep sympathy focused where it belongs, on the victim and their loved ones?

Health care for people of Biblical faith

—J G, Fullerton, Calif.

‘Fleeting images’ Oct.  We appreciated the article addressing pornography. It is extremely difficult to escape its infiltration into every aspect of culture.

We stopped watching TV  years ago, but now suggestive material is even creeping into mainstream news websites. We’re very disappointed.

—F  W S, Colorado Springs, Colo.

Corrections Tom Clancy’s book The Hunt for Red October became a Hollywood blockbuster (“ departures,” Jan. , p. ); Howard Phillips was the founder of the Conservative Caucus (p. ).

Russell Moore and his wife Maria had three biological children after they adopted two boys from Russia (“To protect and project,” Dec. , p. ).

Copepods react within  or  milliseconds to escape from predator seahorses (“By the numbers,” Dec. , p. ).

Global Aid Network is the overseas humanitarian arm of the ministry Cru (“Suffering servants,” Dec. , p. ).

LETTERS & PHOTOS

If you are a committed Christian, you can live consistently with your beliefs by sharing medical needs directly with fellow believers through Samaritan Ministries’ non-insurance approach. You do not have to violate your faith by purchasing health insurance that pays for abortions, abortifacient drugs, and other unbiblical practices. Health care sharing satisfies the individual mandate in the recent Federal health care law (United States Code 26, Section 5000A, (d), (2), (B)).

Every month the more than 27,000* households of Samaritan Ministries share over $7 million* in medical needs directly—one household to another. They also pray for one another and send notes of encouragement. The monthly share for a family membership of any size has never exceeded $370*.

For more information call us toll-free at 1-888-268-4377, or visit us online at: www.samaritanministries.org.

Follow us on Twitter (@samaritanmin) and Facebook (SamaritanMinistries). * As of November 2013

Email: mailbag@wng.org Write: WORLD Mailbag, PO Box , Asheville, NC - Please include full name and address.

Biblical faith applied to health care www.samaritanministries.org

3 MAILBAG.indd 69

1/20/14 3:07 PM

Are You Frustrated You Frustrated with YourAre Current Level of Income? with Your Current Level of Income?

Call Call

800-903-0890 800-903-0890

For a 1-Minute Recorded Message.

For a 1-Minute Recorded Message.

KardianLodge Rocky Mountain Gap Year • • • • • • •

Biblical Studies Spiritual Formation College Credit Option $6,500 Total Cost Work/Study Two 14-Week Terms Rocky Mtn Natl Park

www.kardianlodge.org

FREE FREE

More More than than 500 500 Bible Bible Verses Verses Put Put to to Music Music Absolutely Absolutely FREE FREE == FreeBibleMusic.com FreeBibleMusic.com

In August 2013, Antoinette Tuff protected more than 900 lives when she talked a school shooter back from the brink. Now she shares her incredible story!

“She is a reminder of what Christian courage looks like.”

—Eric Metaxas, BreakPoint

We can get exceptional mileage from your old car. When you donate your vehicle to WORLD, you help drive the expansion of Christian worldview journalism.

Call 800-822-9286 or visit worldmag.com/cardonation

American Hero Prepared for a Purpose

by Antoinette Tuff with Alex Tresniowski

KRIEG BARRIE

Good News for Your Car

The True Story of an

A Division of Baker Publishing Group • bethanyhouse.com Available at your bookstore or by calling 1-866-241-6733

3 SEU PETERSON.indd 70

1/21/14 2:32 PM

Andrée Seu Peterson

Challenges and blessings God’s teaching in sickness and in health

>>

KRIEG BARRIE

I    (as it says in the book of Ruth, where nothing just so happens) that the first year of our marriage we lived with Mrs. Herbst. Responding to an ad, we took a room upstairs and cooked for her, and other than that all I recall from  is how she would corner me, lock her eyes on mine, and say accusingly, “He fell sick a month after I married him.” I thought, “Oh my God. The man is  years dead and this woman has never made any progress. She has chosen to die pickled in her own gall.”

I have imagined their life together. She would have made his meals and cleaned his house, but in such a way that is careful not to communicate any affection or contentment. In this manner she would be able to have her cake and eat it too: be unimpeachable in her actions, while simultaneously signaling to him that he is the cause of her unhappiness and that if she had only married the other guy her life would be better.

It just so happens that my present husband has been beset by maladies since shortly after our wedding. This pushes all my buttons in a way so ingenious and personal and multifarious that only I and God can fully appreciate His hand in it.

Nevertheless, rather than saying to the Lord, “Lord, I see your hand in this,” I have tended to freak out.

One Sunday after my husband was not able to attend Sunday school for the sciatica pain, my frustrated desire came out sideways: “I thought we were going to serve the kingdom of God together.”

(The understood second half of the comment was: “Now we cannot do amazing, cutting-edge things for the kingdom because you are sick in bed and I will have to take care of you.”)

David immediately put a question to me: “Where does Jesus say the kingdom of God is located?”

“Within,” I replied, sensing his direction. He encouraged me to see obstacles as God’s working on the inside of the cup before sending us out to minister.

What good would we be for the gospel if, when it came to preaching about God’s power to transform lives, we ourselves were disqualified?

Then David said, “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but …” and he let me complete the sentence: “… of righteousness and peace

Email: aseupeterson@wng.org

3 SEU PETERSON.indd 71

and joy in the Holy Spirit.” His point was: What do we have to give to the world if we don’t possess these? It is the testing of your faith, not the absence of testing, that produces them (James :-). So we must let patience “have its full effect.” Why? That we “may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

Paul the apostle found it necessary to make a second pass through Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, to exhort new converts not to be unsettled by trials as if something strange were happening to them.

What they were experiencing was normal: “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts :)—and enter, and enter.

I realized that I was frustrated because I had had a mental blueprint of the future. I thought my -year-plan of ministry duo was indispensable to God. I was annoyed because I had believed I knew best what the kingdom needed, and it needed a healthy husband and wife engaged in lots of activity; I could conceive of the matter no other way.

It’s all about choices. I can choose to rage against the dying of my dream. Or I can suppress outward complaining and adopt a stoic but joyless resignation.

Or I can forsake both wretched alternatives and “Be perfect,” as Jesus commands, saying, “I praise you, Father, for giving me exactly the right husband at exactly the right time. If not for this affliction, how would I have seen the extent of my husband’s faith?

If not for this affliction, how would I have seen fear of man and worldly desires melt away? Your plan is better than any I had cooked up.”

Besides, who wants to end up  and pacing the floor and muttering, “It’s my husband’s fault,” “It’s God’s fault,” “It’s my mother’s fault,” …? As for me and my partner, we will take the adventure that Jesus hands us. A

FEBRUARY 8, 2014 • WORLD



1/22/14 12:20 PM

Marvin Olasky

Problem or solution?

Christianity and the controversy surrounding Uganda’s anti-homosexuality bill

>>



WORLD • FEBRUARY 8, 2014

3 OLASKY.indd 72

kill those who reject him. The pages, though, fed on Christ and chose to die rather than to sin so blatantly.

Given that fact, many Ugandans see tolerance of homosexuality in Uganda, let alone praise for it, as historical treason. Does that mean I applauded the parliamentary legislation (which is likely to return to President Museveni’s desk in some form)? No: It was harsh and unlikely to be effective. I write that because ancient Israel’s experience shows how sinners like all of us tend to act when faced with a long list of laws: We break them. The ancient Israelites had the best laws, since God gave them. They had every reason to be confident in their lawgiver, since God had delivered their ancestors from slavery. They had every reason to fear breaking them, since the penalty often was death. But, under these best of possible conditions for obedience, they disobeyed.

Howles has a better idea: Promote Christianity, not tradition. He argues that if Ugandans temper their desire to put homosexuals in prison, “it will most likely be because of Christianity, as churches preach a message of godly love and kindness towards active homosexuals.” Homosexuality is wrong and laws can be useful educators, but our hope is in “the gospel that shows us that all people are created in God’s image … the gospel that welcomes all people to confess that Jesus is Lord and unite together in a broken but re-built community of Christ,” as Ephesians :- explains.

Anti-Christians shudder at that notion and desperately need to pretend that Ugandans would be positive about homosexuality if not brainwashed by missionaries—because if that’s not true, two liberal axioms crumble. One is that Africans are natural allies of the left in a war against “religious reactionaries.” The other is that “multiculturalism” is an ideological ally in the war against Christ. When Africans line up with Christian conservatives, the religious left can choose to change its thinking or fall into conspiracy theorizing. The latter is popular, even though the idea that African Christians are puppets demeans them as much as past racists ever did.

Fear-based laws may work for a while, and laws to protect life are certainly important, but rules imposing morality usually sweep problems under the rug instead of solving them. If law doesn’t work for long, what does? Only the gospel. Christ loved us enough to die for us. Once we stop thinking of ourselves as the center of the world and recognize that God owns it and us, we realize that our greatest pleasure comes not from indulgence but from feeling God’s pleasure. A

STEPHEN WANDERA/AP

G : When the Ugandan parliament shortly before Christmas passed a bill legislating long prison sentences for homosexuals, The Huffington Post quoted one activist calling Dec.  “the worst day” in history, and the U.S. State Department (which looks the other way as Muslims murder Christians) was quick to “condemn” the bill.

On Jan.  Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni chose not to sign the bill, citing a technicality, and columnists blamed American Christians for manipulating the purportedly ignorant and easily led Africans.

A deeper analysis came from Chris Howles, a missionary in Uganda who in his blog, Namugongo Life, called the national opposition to homosexuality historical rather than religious. Howles wrote online (“Homophobia in Uganda: Is Christianity the problem or the solution?”), “The vast majority of Christians in this country have never met or spoken with a Western missionary. Nor have their leaders. Many of these attitudes about homosexuality come direct from traditional Ugandan culture.”

Who ya gonna believe? I side with Howles, in part because in November I visited his central Ugandan township of Namugongo and saw a memorial to  pages, young royal servants who professed Christ and were martyred in . That page scandal reminded me of when U.S. representatives in  and  came under fire for sex scandals involving congressional pages, except in the United States no one died (except politically).

Uganda’s scandal was different: King Mwanga II had the  pages burned to death, and a national holiday now honors them.

Why the king killed them is important in understanding the recent Ugandan legislation.

LAW OF THE LAND: Ugandans demonstrate Students learn that against homosexuality in Kampala.

Mwanga II expected the royal pages to submit to his homosexual advances. After all, the traditional saying Namunswa alya kunswaze (the queen ant feeds on her subjects) indicated that the monarch is licensed to

Email: molasky@wng.org

1/21/14 9:29 PM

Join Joinususthis thissummer summerfor forananexceptional exceptional conference conferenceininOxford Oxfordand andCambridge, Cambridge,England England Reclaiming Reclaimingthe theVirtues Virtues Human Human Flourishing Flourishing in the in the 21st21st Century Century

EXCEPTIONAL EXCEPTIONAL PROGRAMMING PROGRAMMING

Engage Engage your your mind, mind, your your faith, faith, & your & your imagination imagination withwith inspiring inspiring lectures, lectures, outstanding outstanding breakouts, breakouts, meaningful meaningful worship, worship, academic academic symposia, symposia, & tours & tours of C.S. of C.S. Lewis’s Lewis’s home. home.

EXCEPTIONAL EXCEPTIONAL SPEAKERS SPEAKERS

Caroline Caroline CoxCox EricEric Metaxas Metaxas Diana Diana Pavlac Pavlac Glyer GlyerGregory Gregory Thornbury Thornbury OsOs Guinness Guinness Norman Norman Stone Stone Malcolm Malcolm Guite Guite Michael Michael Ward Ward Wilfred Wilfred McClay McClay Kallistos Kallistos Ware Ware Joseph Joseph Loconte Loconte Rowan Rowan Williams Williams Louis Louis Markos Markos Bishop Bishop of Oxford of Oxford Vishal Vishal Mangalwadi Mangalwadi...and ...and more! more!

EXCEPTIONAL EXCEPTIONAL EXPERIENCES EXPERIENCES

Enjoy Enjoy stellar stellar performances performances by the by the CityCity of of Oxford Oxford Orchestra, Orchestra, Max Max McLean, McLean, Keith Keith & Kristyn & Kristyn Getty, Getty, Ad Ad Deum Deum Dance Dance Co., Co., David David Payne, Payne, Institute Institute Chorale, Chorale, & others. & others.

C.S. C.S.LEWIS LEWIS

SUMMER SUMMER INSTITUTE INSTITUTE

July July 2121 - 31, - 31, 2014 2014 STEPHEN WANDERA/AP

Register Registernow nowatatwww.cslewis.org www.cslewis.orgoror1-888-CSLEWIS. 1-888-CSLEWIS. Use Use code code “LAMPPOST” “LAMPPOST” to to save save $100 $100 offoff regular regular registration. registration.

3 OLASKY.indd 3

1/17/14 4:41 PM

PROTECT YOURSELF FROM AMERICA’S GREATEST THREAT THE

DEBT BOMB!

“The biggest national security threat facing our country is our national debt.” - Admiral Mike Mullen, Fmr. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff History clearly shows how many of the world’s greatest empires have fallen, not as a result of brute military force, but rather, as a result of reckless government spending and the massive accumulation of debt. The current and approaching debt of the U.S. is the largest sum in the history of the world. Renown Harvard economists Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff, (“This Time It’s Different”), point out the historical record clearly demonstrates the “tipping point” when a nation generally passes the “point of no return” is when a nation’s debt to GDP ratio hits 90%, a figure America recently surpassed in 2010!

HOW EMPIRES FALL

SUDDEN DESTRUCTION, LIKE A THIEF IN THE NIGHT

The U.S. does not have years to defuse the debt bomb. Harvard historian Niall Ferguson states, “the economic collapse normally comes quickly, like a thief in the night”. A massive hidden tax (in the form of higher inflation) could soon be coming as the government desperately tries to harness the debt dragon. The value of the dollar could be decimated, along with traditional retirement savings in 401K’s and IRA’s.

For centuries, both savers and investors have turned to hard assets, most notably gold and silver to protect their purchasing power in the face of a paper currency devaluation or even collapse. If you are concerned about our current fiscal nightmare and want to learn more about some proven methods you can take to protect your financial assets from what could be a devastating economic scenario, call now for your FREE OFFER.

HOW TO PROTECT YOUR PURCHASING POWER

TWO SPECIAL FREE REPORTS:

A Better Way to Own Gold - Investing in precious metals is simple, but understanding the right method and form of gold and silver to purchase is paramount. This informative report clearly describes the various pitfalls, benefits, and unique opportunities in acquiring the right gold and silver products for you.

How to Survive The Coming Meltdown in America - The writing is on the wall. U.S. debt is accelerating at

an unsustainable pace. As the Fed continues to debase the dollar, the threat of a hyperinflationary depression looms on the horizon. This report will explain in detail how to be completely prepared.

FREE Bonus CD - “Understanding America’s Debt Crisis” A complimentary CD containing the

recent interview with Focus on the Family and U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, author of “The Debt Bomb” will be sent FREE with our two special reports.

To Receive All Three FREE Offers, Call anytime on our toll free 24 hour recorded information line. ICA, “America’s Most Trusted Precious Metals Firm”, serving our customers coast to coast since 1972 and carries the highest A+ rating with the BBB. www.mcalvany.com

1-855-393-5840

3 OLASKY.indd 4

1/21/14 12:13 PM