Star Wars Novel Hints That Last Jedi Character Is LGBT

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Liam Nolan of CBR.com has the story:

Passages from Claudia Gray’s Leia: Princess of Alderaan novel imply that the Resistance’s Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo, played by Laura Dern in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, may be either bisexual or pansexual.

The hint that Holdo may not be straight comes during a conversation with Leia about the possibility of an interspecies relationship:

“A pair of pretty dark eyes.” Then Amilyn thought about that for a moment. “Or more than a pair, if you’re into Grans. Or Aqualish, or Talz. Or even – ”

“That’s all right! Leia said through laughter. “It’s just humanoid males for me.”

“Really? That feels so limiting.”

“Thank goodness it’s a big galaxy.”

Although the passage doesn’t explicitly state that Holdo is bisexual or pansexual, it notes she’s interested in more than just humanoid men. While there are many alien species in the Star Warsuniverse that are both humanoid and non-humanoid, some don’t fall into a strict gender binary. The insectoid Xi’Dec, for example, have more than 180 different sexes. Other species are hermaphroditic or have a third sex.

Is a ‘Christian America’ Really on the Decline?

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Kimberly Winston of LifeZette has the details of a new study that says organized religion, including white evangelicalism, is losing numbers:

The future of religion in America is young, non-Christian and technicolor.

Almost every Christian denomination in the U.S. shows signs of growing in diversity as white Christians, once the majority in most mainline Protestant and Catholic denominations, give way to younger members, who tend to be of different races, according to a study released Wednesday, Sept. 6, by the Public Religion Research Institute.

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Michael Brown Excited About Superstitious Gypsy Voodoo Mats

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According to Pulpit & Pen News:

Gipsy Smith – who is mentioned by Brown – is responsible for the “start the revival in this circle” analogy often heard by traveling evangelists. Rodney “Gipsy” (it was spelled “Gipsy” by Smith; not Gypsy) Smith was a British evangelist and a member of the troublesome Salvation Army denomination (until they kicked him out for accepting personal gifts of gold jewelry). A widower at 78, Smith made headlines for marrying a 27 year-old. Smith might best be known for the illustration he often gave as a famous evangelist, in which he would draw a circle around himself with a piece of chalk while preaching and pray that revival start with him, inside the circle. He would exhort people to do the same.

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Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Filed by California Churches Over Directive Requiring All Insurance Plans to Cover Abortion

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Christian News reports:

A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by several California churches over a state directive that they believe forces all faith-based employers to pay for abortion coverage regardless of their religious beliefs.

“[P]laintiffs have not alleged sufficient facts to make it plausible that the director has selectively applied the law to target the plaintiffs’ religious beliefs,” wrote U.S. District Court Judge Kimberly Mueller on Friday.

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The Source of Righteousness

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19 Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; 20 because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. Romans 3:19-20 (NASB) 

The real Gospel is not entertaining. It is not “fun.” It is not hip. It is not cool. No, it is blunt and abrupt and not politically correct. It calls everyone a sinner with no exceptions and those who are justified by God are so on the basis of the righteousness of another while they remain completely undeserving. Not one of them can take credit for their own salvation. After they have been baptized into Christ, they remain “sinners saved by grace.” They are not perfect or perfected. They have not somehow become “better than” anyone else. They have the mark of the Saviour upon them. They belong to Him. They are His bondservants or slaves and He is their Lord, but in the interim until they go home to be with Him forever, they remain in this life both declared Holy and Righteous by God in their justification, but also still sinful and imperfect as they go through the fires of sanctification. What is the source of this righteousness since it is not by any works of the law that it comes as we read in the passage above? In fact, it is through the law that comes the knowledge of sin. View article →

How Fashion Is Helping Megachurch Pastors Reach A New Demographic

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We’ll begin with a quote from a celebrity pastor:

“I don’t see myself as an influencer in fashion at all,” says [Chad] Veach. “I’ve been just really blessed to have guys that are close friends in the [fashion] industry.” Still, he acknowledges that dressing a certain way can provide a quick “in” with people who might otherwise write him off. “If I walk into a place and I’m wearing something that makes people go, ‘that’s a cool outfit,’ I am working with an advantage, rather than a disadvantage of like, ‘man, those are really whack sneakers.'”

Whitney Bauck of Fashionista tells us how “pastors” who are into fashion are winning back millennials who are leaving the Church in droves. According to Bauck, “there’s no doubt that fashion plays at least a supporting role” in bringing them back to what is considered a church these days.

Megachurch pastor Chad Veach

Hailey Baldwin considers “church wife” to be an aspirational look, according to her Twitter and her stylist’s Instagram.

If you mostly know Baldwin through social media, which features myriad images of the model wearing scanty lingerie or revealing dresses, that may seem incongruous. But if you know the churches she’s referencing — and the ministers that lead them — it’s less surprising.

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Three Egregious Obama Power Grabs Trump Can Rescind After DACA

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Just as he promised during the campaign, Donald Trump is in the process of dismantling the “many, many left-wing remnants of Obama’s term,” says Edward Woodson of LifeZette. He writes:

You have to admit: Liberals are good at playing the victim. Former President Obama’s executive amnesty hasn’t even been around along enough for the Supreme Court to declare it unconstitutional, but as President Donald Trump prepared to announce its end, you’d think the world was ending.

My favorite part was the CEOs, now thoroughly addicted to cheap labor, acting shocked and disappointed that Trump is following through on one of his biggest promises during the campaign.

“There’s no issue that’s more gut-wrenching for us,” one tech exec anonymously told Axios’ Mike Allen, adding that some companies are considering smuggling their illegal alien employees abroad. Here’s an idea: How about take the money you would spend on that and use it to increase the wages of your employees?

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Victims of Bill Johnson’s SOZO Ministry speak out

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Berean Research (BR) examines the dangerous inner healing and deliverance ministry known as SOZO. In an earlier piece, BR revealed that “SOZO prayer is the brain child of husband and wife team Bill (self-proclaimed modern-day apostle) and Beni  (New Age guru) Johnson, both of whom are pastors of the infamous Bethel Church in Redding CA.” Supposedly the SOZO ministry will help participants solve problems that are blocking their spiritual growth. But what those who take part in this are unaware of is that some of the techniques used are drawn from occult methodologies.

Now to the first installment of a series on SOZO prayer:

Many churches are bringing a practice called SOZO into their ministry, at the peril of damaging the sheep and possibly shipwrecking their faith. SOZO Prayer is a technique based on psychology and used by so-called “inner healing ministries” sweeping churches today.

This psycho-spiritual deliverance and inner healing methodology is designed to exorcise demons from Christians. Not that a Christian can be possessed by demons, but that is one of many apostate teachings from the New Apostolic Reformation, or NAR. (See, What your church needs to know about NAR.)

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My brethren, do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good

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1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:1-2 (NASB) 

In our daily Christian walk it is a rare day in which we take every thought captive and, through our active repentance, successfully deny ourselves through every circumstance. I don’t think I could claim that I have successfully done this the majority of the time. However, our God is wise and omniscient. It should be a matter of great rejoicing on our part that our perseverance is in His hands and is based on the work of the Holy Trinity on our behalf, not on our will power. View article →

Why did Jesus come?

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32 “ Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it. Deuteronomy 12:32 (NASB) 

We live in a very strange time. Perhaps earlier men lived in times that were just as perilous and even as spiritually dark as ours, but to me, being in my mid-sixties and a Christian for over 31 years, what is happening to the Church seems unprecedented. I know this is nothing new, and the Church has gone through apostasy before and that is why God wrought the Protestant Reformation. However, since the latter part of the 19th Century, liberalism and its various forms have invaded the Church in many ways. If we read the Reformers such as Tyndale, Luther, and Calvin, etc. and the Puritans such as Owen, Bunyan, Watson, Love, and Brooks, etc. up to Spurgeon and Broadus, etc. then compare their understanding of the Gospel and how it is preached and why that is what we are to be about then compare that to what we have now with the likes of Joel Osteen or Stephen Furtick then we must understand that a great downgrade has taken place. View article →

Why does God desire that all in Christ be filled with the Spirit?

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15 Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, 16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil. 17 So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; 20 always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father; 21 and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ. Ephesians 5:15-21 (NASB) 

What is God’s purpose for the Christian to be filled with the Spirit? I am going to start by simply posting some scripture first. View article →

Colleges rocked by left-wing rallies face backlash from parents, donors

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According to Fox News:

Both the University of Missouri and Evergreen State College have been rocked by left-wing demonstrations, some of which administrators in both schools allowed. Now both have had to deal with falling enrollment and a decline in funds – and there are fears the situation could spread to other schools.

The defining issue is whether parents and donors see administrators as capable of containing clashes and responding firmly when protests get out of control, experts say.

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Federal Judge Blocks Texas’ Ban on Dismemberment Abortion

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Breitbart reports:

A federal judge temporarily blocked a Texas law that banned second trimester dismemberment abortions in which unborn babies are “torn limb from limb” and then extracted from the uterus.

Following a challenge by Planned Parenthood, U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel issued a two-week injunction Thursday against the law – signed in June by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) – that would have taken effect Friday.

The judge wrote that Planned Parenthood and the other plaintiffs satisfied a requirement for the temporary injunction showing that “threatened injury to the Plaintiffs outweighs any damage that the temporary restraining order might cause the State.”

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Ronnie Floyd to preside over National Day of Prayer

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“The National Day of Prayer includes Catholics, Protestants, Muslims, Hindus,” reminds Jeff Maples” and just about any other aberrant anti-Christ religion in the world who will stand in front of courthouses, government buildings, churches, streets…anywhere, and join hands in prayer to their false gods in the name of ‘restoring America.’”

So with this in mind, why would a former SBC president agree to take part in the National Day of Prayer? Berean Research reveals who the movers and shakers (literally) are that have hijacked the ecumenical event. Hint: NAR.

Former SBC President Dr. Ronnie Floyd will assume the role of President of the National Day of Prayer. For those of you who are unfamiliar, the ecumenical May event has been organized since 1952. It is a time when millions of people of all religions stop what they are doing and pray in unity with one another to whichever god they worship for the well being of America.

Says Floyd:

The National Day of Prayer must become a multi-church, multi-denominational, multi-ministry, multi-generational, multi-ethnic, and multi-lingual movement of prayer for America.

I believe this is possible by having strategic partnerships with churches, ministries, and denominations. We must create authentic relationships with all people regardless of who and where they are, whatever their age, stage, or vocation may be. With a convictional and competent staff team, we will exemplify servant leadership to all persons.  Source

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God Hears and Will Answer

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It shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, l will hear. (Isaiah 65:24)

Quick work this! The Lord hears us before we call and often answers us in the same speedy manner.

Foreseeing our needs and our prayers, He so arranges providence that before the need actually arises He has supplied it, before the trial assails us He has armed us against it.

This is the promptitude of omniscience, and we have often seen it exercised. Before we dreamed of the affliction which was coming, the strong consolation which was to sustain us under it had arrived. What a prayer-answering God we have!  View article →

Kids at Risk: AWANA Continuing Down the Emergent Road

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Following is a letter to the editor of Lighthouse Trails. The person who wrote the letter offers plenty of reasons parents should be concerned about their children’s participation in AWANA. Church leaders such as Sean McDowell recommend that our youth read books by Henri Nouwen, Dallas Willard, Rick Warren, N.T. Wright and others:

Dear Lighthouse Trails:

A while back I alerted you to the fact that Awana was joining forces with Josh Griffin who was the youth pastor for Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church. Josh Griffin is also associated with Youth Specialties, an organization that promotes occult [contemplative] practices to youth.

Unfortunately, Awana is continuing down the emergent road. Here are some examples:

1. On February 22, 2017, Steve Kozak, the executive director of Awana YM, (Youth Ministries) wrote a blog post encouraging youth leaders to promote Lent. Lent is very popular among those in the emerging church. Wikipedia says “The purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer through prayer, doing penance, mortifying the flesh, repentance of sins, and self-denial.”(1) Kozak in his blog said, “Teach your students to go without, so that they can experience an overflowing of Christ.”(2) Nowhere in the Bible is the practice of Lent mentioned.  View article →

See our Research Paper on Contemplative Prayer

Same Sex Attraction: Is It a Sin?

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Caleb Kolstad of Post Tenebras Lux answers the question:

I had not heard of the phrase “same sex attractions” (SSA) until I attended a Together For the Gospel conference a few years ago.  During one of the Q&A sessions a pastor addressed the subject is God anti-gay and other questions about homosexuality, the Bible and SSA (I believe Sam Allberry was a guest during one panel discussion). Allberry says that these SSA “are part of what I feel but are not who I am in a fundamental sense.  I am far more than my sexuality.”

These questions have been raised again at the Gospel Coalition.  A recent article by Matt Moore titled, How I Discovered True Masculinity set the internet ablaze.

Pastor Phil Johnson of Grace to You responded to this article on Twitter and Facebook with these comments, “Yet another hazy, misleading sophism from TGC. Lusting for something sinful is not “obedien[ce] to God.”

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‘Lot of Explaining to Do’: Chaffetz Says Comey May Have Perjured Himself

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Fox News reports:

Jason Chaffetz said former FBI Director James Comey has a lot of “explaining to do” in light of new reports that he began drafting a statement exonerating Hillary Clinton even before interviewing key witnesses, including the former secretary of state.

“He’s certainly got a lot of explaining to do. He could have perjured himself,” the former House oversight committee chairman said on “Fox & Friends.”

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley and fellow GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham wrote a letter to the FBI this week, expressing concern over whether Comey made up his mind about the email investigation months before his public news conference.

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The ‘Sounds True’ ‘Self-Acceptance Summit’

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Why are some professing Christians promoting an online event that is all about “self”? In one workshop, New Age/New Thought grande dame Marianne Williamson “Explores the spiritual dimension of self-acceptance” plus she will guide you to “the source of unconditional compassion.” Berean Research shares the nuts and bolts of the event and gives some pretty good reasons why Christians shouldn’t even consider taking part in it:

A 10-day online event promises to make you a better you. It’s called the Self-Acceptance Summit, and I’ve seen several Christians promote it.  The event is put on by a group called “Sounds True.” (Are you tempted to add the words, But Isn’t? I know I am.)

While Jesus tells us to deny self, pick up our crosses and follow Him, these spiritual leaders are doing the opposite: teaching hearers to worship self.

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The Lord is good to those who wait for Him

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2 And do not enter into judgment with Your servant, For in Your sight no man living is righteous. Psalms 143:2 (NASB) 

3 “ Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Matthew 5:3-4 (NASB) 

24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “Therefore I have hope in Him.” 25 The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the person who seeks Him. 26 It is good that he waits silently For the salvation of the Lord. Lamentations 3:24-26 (NASB) 

Despite the prevalent “Christian” teachings in our time that suffering is never God’s will for His people, a close, sober, and honest study of Scripture reveals that the fires of tribulation are used by God to form and refine His people. The view that God desires of each Christian to always be healthy and prosperous is based on many false assumptions. One false assumption is that salvation is somehow deserved and those who profess faith can claim anything they want from a god who is bound to meet all their requests. Another false assumption moves the focus of salvation from God’s glory to the person’s glory and their “having their best life now.” Sin is seen as simple mistakes that God overlooks because He is all love. View article →

Is Discernment Ministry Biblical?

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We urge our subscribers and visitors to our site to watch (or listen to) this video — and share it! 

From Polemics Report:

This is a sermon from the Judge Not Conference, on the topic of “judging” as taken from Matthew 7 and a systematic theology of discernment. Is discernment ministry Biblical? Is it a sin to judge? Should discernment stay within the local church? JD Hall begins speaking at 5:25. (Source)

Evangelical Coalition Releases Nashville Statement, A Manifesto On Biblical Sexuality

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From Berean Research:

A manifesto written by evangelical leaders has drawn the ire of the LGBTQ community, the liberal press, and has Progressive Christians ticked off as well.  Why? Because conservative evangelicals had the audacity to release a statement proclaiming that traditional sexual morality is based on the clear teaching of Scripture, not on the whims of an ever changing culture.

Liberals aren’t the only ones who have voiced their concern. Even some conservative evangelicals are apprehensive about the declaration. They point out that there are always risks involved with these sorts of issue declarations. And they’d like those who penned what is being called the Nashville Statement to address those concerns.

So – our advice is this: Before you sign it make sure your concerns are addressed. Ask yourself, do I really want my signature on a statement just because some of my favorite Church leaders signed it?

Being a Berean means doing your research. Bereans investigate. So for starters, go to the scriptures and find out what our Creator has to say about what it means to be a human being. What was God’s design for marriage from the very beginning? Then carefully read through the Nashville Statement. Does it line up with Scripture?

Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, was a speaker at the event in Nashville, TN where the manifesto was announced and a signatory as well. On August 30th Dr. Mohler began The Briefing with a lengthy explanation of what the Nashville Statement contains.  Following is from the transcript:

In a time of confusion, one of the greatest gifts that can be given to and by Christ’s church is clarity, and clarity requires at times that matters of truth, matters of truth in particular times of trial, should to be put into words in order to bear the testimony of that clarity. A manifesto was released yesterday; it’s known as the Nashville Statement, it’s a coalition for biblical sexuality. A group of evangelical leaders had gathered in Nashville for a meeting to determine how the statement should be released, and it was released yesterday morning by the Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. I should say at the beginning, I was a speaker at the event and a signatory to this statement, and there are many others, as we shall see, who signed it as well. The big issue is this: What took place as released on August 29, 2017 was a statement by Christians who believe that it is our responsibility to speak clearly to issues of gender and sex and sexuality and biblical morality in a time when these issues are commonly confused. By late yesterday the Nashville Statement was one of the most often discussed issues in social media and it had gained a great deal of media attention as well. More on that attention in just a moment, back to the statement for now.

The statement begins with a preamble that states,

“Evangelical Christians at the dawn of the twenty-first century find themselves living in a period of historic transition. As Western culture has become increasingly post-Christian, it has embarked upon a massive revision of what it means to be a human being.”

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Houston Rescue Images Destroying Media’s Race Narrative

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LifeZette has the story:

For the past two weeks, media panels on CNN have painted a picture of America as a nation deeply divided by race. But the countless rescue stories out of Houston, and the images of men rushing in with boats to rescue whites, blacks and Hispanics from rooftops and flooded homes and streets have shown Americans something different.

“The racist thing is going out the window because of the hurricane that happened in Texas…” a Florida woman named Jennifer Santana who goes by the pen name Political Avenger said in a YouTube video that got a thousand likes on Monday.

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Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires

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1 Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, 4 who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for His name’s sake, 6 among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ; 7 to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 1:1-7 (NASB) 

Genuine Christians were rescued out of this lost and dying world according to the mercy and will of God by His grace through faith as His Gift, not according to any merit or work on the part of the believer (Ephesians 2:8,9). According the Matthew 16-20, which is often called “the Great Commission,” this saving of souls is seen as the outcome of the mission of the church in going and making disciples out of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that Christ has commanded us. This is God’s plan.  View article →

Atheist Activist Group Asks Sen. Marco Rubio to Stop Tweeting Bible Verses on Govt.-Related Account

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According to Christian News:

A prominent professing atheist group has sent a letter to Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, urging him to stop sharing Bible verses on his official Twitter account, which they say violates the separation of Church and State.

The Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) sent the letter on Aug. 22, noting that Rubio has tweeted over 60 Scriptures in the past three months. It asserted Rubio is violating the Constitution since he is posting the messages on what the group perceives as being a government-related account, not a private and personal account focusing on his home and family life.

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