San Bernardino gunman obsessed with ISIS and Israel, dad says

Syed Farook’s father believes that in two years Israel will not exist anymore. Fox News has the story:

San Bernardino gunman Syed Farook shared ISIS’ ideology, wanted to see the establishment of an Islamic caliphate and was fixated with Israel, Farook’s father told an Italian newspaper during an interview in which he also offered his own unusual ideas about Israel.

“My son said that he shared [ISIS leader Abu Bakr] Al Baghdadi’s ideology and supported the creation of the Islamic State,” said Farook’s dad, also named Syed Farook, who lives in Corona, Calif., with another son who is a Navy veteran. “He was also obsessed with Israel.”

“I told him he had to stay calm and be patient because in two years Israel will not exist anymore,” the elder Farook told La Stampa in an article published Sunday. The foreign language daily’s report was translated in part by The Times of Israel.

“Geopolitics is changing: Russia, China and America don’t want Jews there anymore. They are going to bring the Jews back to Ukraine. What is the point of fighting? We have already done it and we lost. Israel is not to be fought with weapons, but with politics. But he did not listen to me, he was obsessed,” the father said in the interview, according to The Times of Israel.

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President: Terror threat has evolved into “new phase”

According to Christian Examiner:

The terror attack that took place in San Bernardino, Calif., last week was a new evolution of terrorism, President Barack Obama said in an address to the nation on Sunday.

Because the attack was not an international operation, the president said, it was much harder to detect than “complex, multifaceted attacks like 9/11,” in spite of the fact that the terrorists, Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, and Tashfeen Malik, 27, had stockpiled a large amount of weapons, ammunition and pipe bombs.

While Obama said the victims of the attack were “brutally murdered and injured by one of their coworkers and his wife,” he did define the attack as an act of terrorism. However, stopped short of saying the attackers had been directed from terror groups overseas. He also said there was no hint of a “broader conspiracy” either.

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Confirmed Dinosaur Blood on Ancient Fossil Astonishes Evolutionists

Christian News Network reports:

Researchers have confirmed that biomaterial discovered on an ancient fossil is in fact preserved dinosaur blood, astonishing evolutionists who continue to believe the fossil is 80 million years old.

Over the past decade, scientists have unearthed a number of dinosaur fossils with preserved blood vessels and soft tissue. Many evolutionists initially treated such discoveries with skepticism and incredulity—while others rejected them outright—due to their seeming incompatibility with the evolutionary timeframe.

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Colorado Bible Study Goes to Pot: “Stoner Jesus” Group Combines Weed with the Word

According to Christian News Network:

MarijuanaA Bible study group in Colorado has literally gone to pot, inviting its members to smoke marijuana together while discussing the Scriptures.

The group is called the “Stoner Jesus Bible Study” and was formed after Colorado legalized the use of recreational marijuana. It was formed by Deb Button, who first posted her invite on Craigslist. Only one person attended at first, who told reporters last month that Button was “so baked out of her head she forgot that she’d invited me over.”

“Many people have a thirst for spiritual connection that is lacking in the traditional church setting and we aim to learn from the wisdom of His word and teachings,” the group writes on its website. “And yes, cannabis is welcome as it can bring clarity of thought and a sense of connectedness that we often only find in a small group of fellow stoners.”

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LIBERTY UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT URGES STUDENTS TO ARM SELVES

According to The Associated Press:

The president of Liberty University urged students at the Christian school to carry concealed weapons on campus to counter any possible armed attack like the mass killings in San Bernardino, Calif.

“Let’s teach them a lesson if they ever show up here,” President Jerry Falwell Jr. told students at a convocation Friday.

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“Own it!”Terrorism is an Islamic issue, say some Muslims

According to Religion News Service some leading Muslims speak out against Islamic extremism:

While details are still unfolding as to why a California Muslim couple turned to murder, Muslims in the West must step up and admit terrorism is rooted in extremist Islam, said four Muslim panelists speaking at a conservative think tank on Thursday (Dec. 3).

They criticized major U.S. Muslim groups that lament such tragedies but say their religion is not responsible. They insisted the violence has roots in Islam, and that Islamist political terror is nurtured in Saudi Arabia’s strict Wahhabi branch of the faith.

And they blasted the Obama administration for steadfastly refusing to brand terror as Islamic extremism. President Obama decried the deaths and pledged a thorough investigation of the attack but cautioned against setting blame based on the killers’ Muslim names.

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Archaeologists Discover Seal Bearing Name of Biblical King Hezekiah in Jerusalem

According to Christian News Network:

Israeli archaeologists have discovered a mark from the seal of biblical King Hezekiah, who helped build Jerusalem into an ancient metropolis.

The circular inscription, on a piece of clay less than a centimeter (0.4 inches) long, may very well have been made by the king himself, said Eilat Mazar of Jerusalem’s Hebrew University who directed the excavation where it was uncovered.

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CRISIS: Southern Baptists seek ways to assist unemployed missionaries

According to Christian Examiner:

After the International Mission Board’s (IMB) shocking announcement in August about a serious budget deficit, what will happen to the 600 to 800 overseas missionaries whose jobs it announced it will cut during its “organization reset”?

Southern Baptists have responded to the 170-year-old organization’s financial crisis — rising through the past few years and finally requiring the IMB to stop relying on reserves and make some heart-wrenching personnel cuts — by welcoming home missionaries with help finding housing, transportation, and jobs.

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N.Y. newspaper blasts post-shooting prayers: “GOD ISN’T FIXING THIS”

Christian Examiner reports:

Prayer - Charles SpurgeonWhile media pundits debated terrorism Wednesday night, the Southern California mass shooting touched off another heated debate on social media over the value of prayer, and the New York Daily News escalated the dispute with an inflammatory and even sacrilegious headline screaming: “GOD ISN’T FIXING THIS.”

It isn’t clear when the argument on Twitter and Facebook started, although George Zornick, Washington editor for the liberal-leaning The Nation, sent out a Tweet several hours after the shooting with two pictures comparing the Twitter reactions of the Democratic candidates and the Republican candidates for president.

Democrats such as Hillary Clinton called for more gun control – “We must take action to stop gun violence now,” she wrote – while Republicans such as Ted Cruz called for prayer. “Our prayers are with the victims, their families, and the first responders,” he wrote.

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“I Don’t Believe That”: Seventh Day Adventist Ben Carson Says Hell Does Not Exist

According to Christian News Network, Dr. Ben Carson rejects the Bible’s clear teaching on hell and chooses to embrace Seventh-Day adventism’s unbiblical teaching that souls sleep until the Second Coming of Christ.:

Despite the numerous Scriptures warnings given by Jesus himself, Seventh Day Adventist and presidential candidate Ben Carson told The Washington Post that he does not believe in hell.

“I don’t believe there is a physical place where people go and are tormented,” he stated. “No. I don’t believe that.”

As previously reported, Seventh Day Adventists believe in the “annihilation of the wicked,” rejecting the doctrine of eternal torment out of their assertion that the Bible doesn’t teach about a permanent place called Hell, but rather the snuffing out of the soul.

“How repugnant to every emotion of love and mercy, and even to our sense of justice, is the doctrine that the wicked dead are tormented with fire and brimstone in an eternally burning hell; that for the sins of a brief earthly life they are to suffer torture as long as God shall live,” wrote founder Ellen White in “The Great Controversy Between Christ and Satan.”

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Court Rules Cross Memorial Is Constitutional Despite Objection from Humanists

Christian News Network reports:

A federal court has ruled that a memorial cross that sits on public land is constitutional, despite objections from a prominent humanist organization.

The Bladensburg World War I Veterans Memorial, also known as the “peace cross,” was erected in 1925 by the American Legion to honor the lives of 49 men from Prince George County who died during the war.

The cross stands 40 feet tall in Memorial Park, and also features a plaque that reads, “The right is more precious than the peace; we shall fight for the things we have always carried nearest our hearts; to such a task we dedicate ourselves.” The site is mainly used by the American Legion for Memorial Day and Veterans Day celebrations.

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San Bernardino Shooting Day Two: The Jahidis Next Door

Breitbart reports:

Day Two: Authorities are still investigating details of a mass shooting Wednesday morning in San Bernardino, California at the Inland Regional Center, a facility for developmentally disabled adults. 14 people were killed and at least 17 injured in a conference room at the center, where county employees had been enjoying a holiday party. There appear to be two suspects, both Muslim, a husband-and-wife team named Syed Rezwan Farook, 28, and Tashfeen Malik, 27. Large portions of the city remain locked down.

6:45 a.m.: A high school in Pacific Palisades, a Los Angeles neighborhood where many Hollywood celebrities live, has received a threat, according to the Palisadian-Post:

BREAKING: Parents this evening received notification that Palisades Charter High School is on “high alert” due to an anonymous tip. According to Pali High Principal Pamela Magee, it was Palisades Charter Elementary School that received a threatening call today. “Pali High was notified of the alert and sent out a similar message about being on high alert due to the incident in [San Bernardino],” Magee told the ‪#‎palipost‬. Pali Elementary could not be reached for comment.

One parent commented on Facebook: “Having received that call from Palisades Elementary School tonight I can say that while the call itself was disturbing the complete lack of update or follow up made it more so. The call didn’t say do or don’t send kids to school, so I think we have all been left wondering.”

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Colorado Lawmaker to Planned Parenthood: “Stop the Violence Inside Your Walls”

Christian News Network reports:

A Republican lawmaker in Colorado pointed to Planned Parenthood’s violence against the unborn in a comment on social media this week, stating that the nation must “start pointing out who is the real culprit.”

Rep. JoAnn Windholz of Denver made the comments on Monday on Facebook.

“The freedoms we enjoy in the United States include those that were made up to fit the audience and unsubstantiated numerical support, specifically the right to an abortion,” she wrote. “When a violent act happens at a Planned Parenthood facility (most recent in Colorado Springs) the left goes on ‘auto-pilot’ blaming everyone in sight when they should be looking in a mirror.”

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Backlash brewing against same-sex marriage gay leaders fear

Christian Examiner reports:

Supreme Court 5-4Supporters of same-sex marriage are warning about a backlash against this summer’s landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision, and a prominent Christian sociologist says they have reason to be concerned.

The anxiousness on the part of LGBT leaders follows the defeat of a transgender equal rights ordinance in Houston as well as the widespread support among Christian conservatives for Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who refused to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples if her name was on them.

Additionally, the Alabama Supreme Court in September ruled that the state doesn’t have to recognize the adoption of children by a lesbian woman in a custody dispute across state lines. She lives in Georgia, while the biological mom and the children live in Alabama. The controversy began when the two women ended their relationship.

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Donald Trump cancels event with black pastors, stands by his 9/11 Muslim remarks

Religion News Service reports:

Republican presidential front runner Donald Trump has canceled a public event set for Monday where he had planned to announce endorsements from blackpastors, after a group of African-American academics and clergy members urged them to reconsider, citing Trump’s “racially inaccurate … rhetoric.”

Trump sent out word to media outlets last week that he would hold an early afternoon news conference Monday to announce the endorsement of his campaign by “100 African American Evangelical pastors and religious leaders…after a private meeting.”

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The Sports Media Mocks Tebow Over Break-Up with Former Miss USA Due to his Abstinence Pledge

According to News Busters:

Tim Tebow’s relationship with former Miss USA model Olivia Culpa is over. Because, according to reports, Culpo is upset that the couple isn’t having sex, since Tebow has decided to remain abstinent until marriage.

So long story short, a report that should have come as no surprise since Tebow has already had one relationship end because of his moral stand and maybe, just maybe, God-forbid engender some sense of begrudging respect from the media elite for at least having the courage of his convictions, has instead triggered a few juvenile headlines and one-liners from a legion of sports reporters who would never be allowed in the same room as a Miss USA, current or former. Unless they bought a ticket.

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South Korean Pastor’s “Drop Box” Inspires Georgia Women to Create “Hope Box” to Save Babies

Christian News Network reports:

Two women in Georgia have launched a life-saving ministry that they call “The Hope Box” after being inspired by the documentary “The Drop Box,” which featured a South Korean pastor who rescues abandoned orphans through a drop-off at his home.

“Being that we are the number one state in America for sex-trafficking, there’s a rise in women becoming pregnant through this and not knowing what to do with their babies,” Tiffany Turolla, co-founder of The Hope Box told WXIA-TV.

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Officer Killed During Shooting at Colorado Planned Parenthood Was Pro-Life Pastor

Christian News Network reports:

The police officer who was killed during a shooting at a Colorado Planned Parenthood Friday was a pro-life co-pastor at an evangelical church, reports state. Garrett Swasey, 44 and a married father of two, has served for seven years at Hope Chapel in Colorado Springs. He spent six of those years on the police force of the University of Colorado.

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French Muslim body calls for imams to require “licence to preach”

France 24 reports:

France’s leading Muslim body called Tuesday for imams to require a permit to preach in a bid to root out extremists, and for a new religious body to fight back against jihadist propaganda.

Anouar Kbibech, president of the French Council for the Muslim Religion (CFCM), said the country’s imams should be given a certificate — “like a driving licence” — that ensured they promoted a “tolerant and open Islam”.

The CFCM said it would hand out the permits by testing theological knowledge and adherence to French principles, and make them sign an “imams’ charter” in which they agreed to “respect the laws of the Republic”.

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Silicon Valley professionals are taking LSD at work to increase productivity

The Telegraph reports:

Could taking LSD at work make your more productive?

It seems unlikely, but that’s apparently what some Silicon Valley professionals have been doing – and reporting great results.

According to Rolling Stone, a growing number of people are experimenting with “microdoses” of psychedelics to help them work.

A microdose of LSD is around 10-15 micrograms, approximately a tenth of a “normal” dose.

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Smoking high-strength cannabis may damage nerve fibres in brain

According to The Guardian:

High-strength cannabis may damage nerve fibres that handle the flow of messages across the two halves of the brain, scientists claim. Brain scans of people who regularly smoked strong skunk-like cannabis revealed subtle differences in the white matter that connects the left and right hemispheres and carries signals from one side of the brain to the other.

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Hillsong’s Brian Houston failed to report abuse and had conflict of interest – royal commission

According to The Guardian Brian Houston, who was national president of the Assemblies of God in Australia at the time, neglected to inform authorities that his father was a child sexual abuser, even though he knew about it:

Brian HoustonBrian Houston, the founder of the Hillsong Church, failed to alert the police about allegations his father had sexually assaulted children, and had a conflict of interest when he assumed responsibility for dealing with the accusations, a royal commission has found.

In October 2014 the royal commission into institutional responses to child sexual abuse examined the responses of the Assemblies of God in Australia (now Australian Christian Churches) to allegations against three men, including Frank Houston, a preacher who helped build the Pentecostal movement in Australia and who died in 2004.

Frank Houston had abused up to nine boys in Australia and New Zealand, and in its final report on the case released on Monday, the commission found multiple failings within the church executive – at the time led by Frank Houston’s son Brian – in responding.

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After same-sex wedding, Baptists sever ties with Greenville church

GreenvilleOnline reports:

The revelation that First Baptist Greenville would marry same-sex couples sparked renouncements and rejoice over the summer — left wing, right wing, casual non-believers, an issue wrapped in tradition and the ripe moment of a cause.

The dust had just begun to settle here in the cradle of conservative Baptist theology, but now another longtime Baptist church on the outskirts of downtown Greenville has aroused interest — and fueled new rounds of praise and condemnation.

Today, Augusta Heights Baptist Church finds itself in a similar position after its pastor officiated a same-sex marriage outside the church.

The blessing of the bond of two gay men has brought with it ultimatums from the Baptist organizations it has long affiliated with.

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Dad demands abortion after surrogate learns she’s having triplets

According to Fox News:

A man who paid a surrogate to have his baby became overwhelmed when he learned she was having triplets — and demanded the woman abort one of the fetuses while threatening her with financial ruin, she claims.

“They are human beings. I bonded with these kids. This is just not right,” mom-to-be Melissa Cook told The Post on Tuesday.

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