Planned Parenthood Election Spending Highly Effective

(Religion Today)

The country's top abortion provider received a great return on the money it spent in this year's election, according to an analysis by the Sunlight Foundation, Baptist Press reports. The analysis showed that more than 98 percent of Planned Parenthood Action Fund's spending in election races produced the desired result, making Planned Parenthood No. 1 for effectiveness in the 2012 election cycle. Planned Parenthood, which spent about $15 million in the election, succeeded with a two-part approach, pollsters and strategists told The Washington Post. It used Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's words against him, and it identified about 1 million women voters, mostly in swing states, who were especially open to its message. "Those were the women that we were going to relentlessly target over and over again between June and November," said Dawn Laguens, Planned Parenthood's executive vice president. Planned Parenthood used Romney's opposition to Roe v. Wade and federal funding of Planned Parenthood to influence those voters -- part of a dramatic shift by campaigns and outside groups, which spent $39 million on advertising related to abortion. "There was a huge increase in the number of spots on these issues in 2012 versus 2008," said Ken Goldstein, president of the media tracking company Kantar Media. "Overall, the Democrats aired over six times as many spots on abortion as Republicans."   MORE

Newtown: Should We Be Surprised?

 (Trevin Wax)

Are We a Violent People?

The search for a scapegoat has begun.
Now that the initial shock of the Newtown massacre has worn off, our society is looking for something to do and someone to blame.
Something to do? Many are lobbying for stricter gun control laws and bans on assault weapons. Others are recommending teachers and school officials be armed and ready to fight back.
Someone to blame? The talking heads on television have begun a conversation about mental illness that they are woefully ill-prepared for. I shudder to consider what lies ahead for autistic children and adults with Asberger’s Syndrome if hearsay and ignorance win the day.


Pointing Fingers  MORE

The Global Religious Landscape

(Pew Research Report)
A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World’s Major Religious Groups as of 2010

Executive Summary

Navigate this page:

• Geographic Distribution
• Living as Majorities and Minorities
• Young and Old
• About the Study
• Defining the Religious Groups
• Roadmap to the Report

Worldwide, more than eight-in-ten people identify with a religious group. A comprehensive demographic study of more than 230 countries and territories conducted by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life estimates that there are 5.8 billion religiously affiliated adults and children around the globe, representing 84% of the 2010 world population of 6.9 billion.  MORE

Must We Believe The Virgin Birth

Albert Mohler.
In one of his columns for The New York Times, Nicholas Kristof once pointed to belief in the Virgin Birth as evidence that conservative Christians are “less intellectual.” Are we saddled with an untenable doctrine? Is belief in the Virgin Birth really necessary?

Kristof is absolutely aghast that so many Americans believe in the Virgin Birth. “The faith in the Virgin Birth reflects the way American Christianity is becoming less intellectual and more mystical over time,” he explains, and the percentage of Americans who believe in the Virgin Birth “actually rose five points in the latest poll.” Yikes! Is this evidence of secular backsliding?
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The Gospel According to Christmas Carols

It’s that time of year. Turn on the radio, take a trip to the mall, or simply stroll down the aisles of the local grocery store, and you’re likely to hear songs about Jesus’ birth playing in the background. Though we call them “Christmas carols,” they are really just Christian hymns celebrating the incarnation of our Lord and Savior. For a few weeks each December, these profound songs of worship become a ubiquitous part of the holiday atmosphere. And our society’s pervasive interest in them provides us with a unique opportunity to share the gospel. After all, it’s the perfect time to explain the meaning of these songs to those who don’t know Christ.

Today’s blog post is just one example of how the content of Christmas carols can be used to share the good news of the gospel. It is adapted from an evangelistic message I put together a couple holiday seasons ago. Whether you follow a format like this or not, be sure to make the most of this Christmas season — sharing the truth of God’s grace with unbelieving friends and family.  MORE

The Complexities of Christmas

By Tim Brister
Last Sunday, in my disciple-making training, we did a little excursion from our normal schedule to think about Christmas. As disciples of Jesus, we should seek to leverage every opportunity to make much of Him, including (or especially) the season of Advent. However, not everything is as “wonderful” this time of the year as we think. For many, it is the most stressful, demanding, and overwhelming time of the year, with challenges awaiting from all facets of life.

On a cultural front, we are constantly hearing news about the culture war, in particular how the tide of our culture is washing away any remnants of Christianity. Whether it be nativity scenes in the square, “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas”, or the marginalization of Christmas carols that have anything to do with Jesus, each Christmas is another incoming tide of secularism in our country.    MORE

Should Christmas Celebrate Christmas?

(John MacArthur)
Scripture doesn't specifically command believers to celebrate Christmas--there are no prescribed "Holy Days" the church must observe. In fact, Christmas was not observed as a holiday until well after the biblical era. It wasn't until the mid-fifth century that Christmas received any official recognition.
We believe celebrating Christmas is not a question of right or wrong since Romans 14:5-6 provides us with the liberty to decide whether or not to observe special days:

One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks (Rom. 14: 5-6).    MORE

The X in Christmas

(RC Sproul)
Why is X Used when it Replaces Christ in Christmas?
The simple answer to your question is that the X in Christmas is used like the R in R.C. My given name at birth was Robert Charles, although before I was even taken home from the hospital my parents called me by my initials, R.C., and nobody seems to be too scandalized by that.
X can mean so many things. For example, when we want to denote an unknown quantity, we use the symbol X. It can refer to an obscene level of films, something that is X-rated. People seem to express chagrin about seeing Christ’s name dropped and replaced by this symbol for an unknown quantity X. Every year you see the signs and the bumper stickers saying, “Put Christ back into Christmas” as a response to this substitution of the letter X for the name of Christ.

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A Christmas Quiz

(Probe Ministries):
Written by Dr. Dale Taliaferro

1. Can you name the parents of Jesus?
a. Mary (Matt. 1:16; Luke 1:31, 2:6-7).
b. God (Luke 1:32, 35).
c. Joseph (by adoption) (Matt 1:16, 19-20, 24-25).

 2. Where did Joseph and Mary live before they were married?
a. Mary--In Nazareth (Luke 1:26-27).
b. Joseph--In Nazareth, presumably (Luke 2:4).

3. What was the name of the angel who appeared to Mary?
Gabriel (Luke 1:26).   MORE