Boko Haram Attacks Nigerian College; Ebola aid workers reportedly killed 'in cold blood'; Scots stay put...more

God may not be dead, but considering the imago Dei in philosophical discourse and public policy certainly is.  ...Today’s dominant cultural voices argue that an individual’s moral worth should be predicated upon his or her individual capacities of the moment. This view is most acutely expressed in bioethics, the field that wields tremendous influence over health-care public policies and in the ethical protocols of medicine...

At least 8 Ebola aid workers reportedly killed 'in cold blood' by villagers in Guinea  ...These deaths are believed to be the first resulting from resistance to international efforts to curb the Ebola outbreak in the region, Reuters reported. Other aid teams have been forced to turn back by crowds in several locations, and a treatment center in Monrovia, Liberia was attacked and looted.

"The eight bodies were found in the village latrine," Albert Damantang Camara, a spokesman for Guinea's government, told Reuters on Thursday, adding that they had been "killed in cold blood by the villagers."...

Not Even Close: Scots Reject Independence, For Now -- 55%-45%  ...The decision prevented a rupture of a 307-year union with England, bringing a huge sigh of relief to Britain's economic and political establishment, including Prime Minister David Cameron, who faced calls for his resignation if Scotland had broken away...

Colleges say: “We’re doing great!” Employers: “No you’re not!”  ...In the Lumina survey, only 33 percent of business leaders agreed that colleges are producing graduates with the skills their organizations need.

On the other survey, though, nearly all academics (99 percent) claimed their institutions were “at least somewhat effective at providing a quality undergraduate education, with 72 percent saying they are very effective in this area.” Oh, they know something’s wrong overall—38 percent of college leaders admitted that academic rigor has fallen in higher education generally—but not at home: Only 10 percent admitted it had fallen at their own schools. While 44 percent agreed that grade inflation has affected higher education generally, only 14 percent said so for their own schools...

Eric Metaxas on 'The New Witch Hunt'
Eric Metaxas has written best-selling biographies of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and William Wilberforce, and is one of the most popular speakers in America. The headline of his recent BreakPoint commentary caught my eye: "The New Witch Hunt." Here's the story.

Boko Haram Suicide Bombers Attack Nigerian College, 15 Dead ...The Christian Post reports that the militants stormed the school; two of the terrorists were wearing explosive vests. When the militants started shooting, one of the vests detonated, killing the wearer instantly.

Kano State police commissioner Adelere Shinaba said, "They were obviously suicide bombers. One of our officers shot at one of the gunmen and the explosives on him went off, killing him on the spot."...

Satanist Group in Orlando Plans to Provide Public School Students with Activity Books A Satanist organization in New York is planning to distribute activity books to children in Orange County, Florida public schools. The books, provided by The Satanic Temple, feature a variety of activities that are intended to teach children about Satanism and counteract the teachings of Evangelical Christians in the region.

 

Orange County Public Schools allows Christian groups to provide students with Bibles and other religious materials, which prompted the Satanist group to push for an alternative... (Get your kids out now)

GAO Abortion Findings a Wake-Up Call for Lethargic Chrisitans  ...Caught red handed, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that Americans’ tax dollars are subsidizing abortions under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, a.k.a. ObamaCare. At least 1,036 plans cover abortions despite President Barack Obama’s promise that “under our plan, no federal dollars will be used to fund abortions, and federal conscience laws will remain in place.”

Are we really shocked? Christian citizens cannot expect honesty, morality and courage from our elected leaders and their policies if we refuse to elect honest, moral and courageous leaders at the polls. Don’t forget that in 2012, 6.4 million Evangelicals voted for President Obama, an outspoken supporter of abortion on demand, tax-payer funded abortions, partial-birth abortions, and the list goes on...

The Irony of California's Ousting of Campus Christian Groups
A disturbing story came and went, barely noticed a few weeks ago. InterVarsity Christian Fellowship is being unceremoniously booted off the campuses of California's 23 state universities. This begins with a process of "derecognizing" these as legitimate campus groups.

Why? Though everyone is welcome at their ministry events, ICVF reserves leadership only for those committed to their goals and creed, just as a homosexual group would presumably reserve leadership for gays or those who affirm its pro-gay agenda. Or a Muslim group for Muslims...

Cases of Enterovirus EV-D68 Confirmed in New Jersey, New York, Connecticut Officials Wednesday confirmed cases of enterovirus EV-D68 in New York City, Long Island, New Jersey and Connecticut as the unusual and potentially severe respiratory illness continues to sweep across the U.S.

Officials said that at least one of the 12 confirmed cases of the virus previously confirmed in New York state is in New York City, and another case is on Long Island. Cases have been reported in more than a dozen states nationwide...

Alibaba Overtakes Amazon as Most Highly Valued Online Retailer Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is knocking Amazon.com Inc. off its perch as the world’s largest online retailer by market capitalization, signaling the ascendance of a global rival for investor and consumer dollars.

Alibaba begins trading on the New York Stock Exchange today after pricing its initial public offering yesterday at $68 a share, putting the Hangzhou, China-based company’s valuation at $167.6 billion. That exceeds Amazon’s market capitalization of $150.2 billion, as of its closing price in New York yesterday of $325...