First Things: The Battle for the Body; Voters: Biden’s America becoming a ‘police state...more

First Things: The Battle for the Body 

This war against the body lies at the heart of so much of our modern politics. It connects to the sexual politics that deny that human genitals are to be used in some ways and not in others. It connects to gender politics that see the significance traditionally ascribed to sexed bodies as an oppressive social construct. It connects to debates about abortion and the status of the bodies of both mother and the child in utero. And it connects to the politics of parenting that replace the significance of biology with notions of functional parenthood. In each area, the authority of the body is utterly denied. What C. S. Lewis described as the abolition of man now manifests itself most pointedly as the abolition of the body. How should the church respond? The easy answer is that the church must teach anthropology. So far, so predictable. But war against the body means we must do this with a clear emphasis upon the theological importance of the body. This will not be news to some. Pope John Paul II’s rich legacy on the theology of the body is meat and drink to thoughtful Catholics, yet it is not something that Protestantism has expended much energy on until recently. The centrality of embodiment to what it means to be human is something that all Christians need to be taught

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California Federal Court Says Teachers Don’t Have to Comply With School’s Secret Gender Transitioning Policy After a series of losses in state and federal court, last week finally saw a win in the nationwide battle against public school secret social transitioning policies. California’s Southern District Court Judge Roger Benitez ruled in favor of two middle school teachers who refused to hide information from parents about their children’s newly expressed gender identity. 

The teachers claimed that the school’s “parental exclusion” policy violated their constitutional right to free exercise of religion by forcing them to deceive parents. In a strongly worded opinion condemning the policy, the court agreed and temporarily stopped the school from enforcing it against them while it continues to consider the case.

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Voters: Biden’s America becoming a ‘police state’  

Nearly three-quarters of voters believe that America is “becoming” a police state under President Joe Biden, whose administration has invested heavily in investigations of Republican politicians and political challengers.

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Libraries Clearing Shelves Through ‘Equity-Based’ Book Weeding... Everything before 2008 must go!   And therein lies the problem, because we all know who gets to decide what is relevant and inclusive: the progressive activists who utterly dominate schools and libraries, and who have a woke agenda to control what information and ideas are available to the young, malleable minds of their students. 

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It’s No Accident The Southern Border Is Collapsing, It’s Intentional  

The numbers tell the tale. Nearly six million people have been arrested crossing into the United States illegally since Biden took office. Millions more have gotten in without being caught. About 200,000 are arrested every month. They are coming in such great numbers because they know that if they can get across the river they’ll be allowed to stay. Under Biden, there is almost no chance of being deported. It’s not more complicated than that.

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Chinese Spy Ops on U.S. Soil Soar Under Biden, GOP Rep Says...Biden admin 'unable to protect the United States from CCP espionage' 

 Chinese citizens "have gained or attempted to access military bases and other sensitive sites at least one hundred times over the past few years," according to the committee, with potential Communist agents even infiltrating "a U.S. Army test range" and gaining access to "numerous missile sites." Likely spies have also "used drone technology to surveil" military bases, and in another case, "individuals were found scuba diving in a location home to a launch site for U.S. spy satellites and other sensitive military equipment." In addition to China’s apparent focus on sensitive U.S. military sites, there are additional and "ongoing efforts to collect intelligence on the White House—including its layout, security, and communications equipment." 

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Is the Pope Catholic?

What has disturbed so many clergy about Pope Francis is that he seems to be lax in following the precepts laid down by prior Church councils, including the Council of Trent. For instance, Trent confirmed that one must be in a state of grace before receiving Communion. Pope Francis, however, has presided over Masses where known clear and unrepentant supporters of abortion, like Nancy Pelosi and Joe Biden, received Communion. He has also welcomed audiences with same-sex couples and others clearly flaunting an immoral lifestyle. The pontiff seems to believe he is following Christ’s image of tolerance, but we have scant evidence that he is echoing to these people what Christ said to the woman caught in adultery after showing her mercy: "Go and sin no more."