It’s Thursday, May 9th, A.D. 2024. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus. ([email protected])

By Jonathan Clark

Algerian pastor faces prison for “unauthorized worship”

A pastor in Algeria, Africa is facing a year in prison. Authorities charged Pastor Youssef Ourahmane with practicing “unauthorized worship.” A court upheld his conviction last Thursday.

He is known for his work with several churches and Bible schools as well as the Evangelical Protestant Association of Algeria. He came to Christ out of Islam and has ministered for over three decades.

Christianity has existed in the country for centuries where Protestants are the fastest-growing group. However, harassment against Christians is common in the North African country. 

Open Doors ranks Algeria, Africa as the 15th most dangerous country worldwide in which to be a Christian.

United Kingdom might require separate male and female toilets

The United Kingdom is considering legislation that will require new buildings to have separate male and female toilets.

The measure is aimed at stemming the tide of gender-neutral bathrooms. A government consultation has noted how women, the elderly, and people with disabilities have faced unfair disadvantages because of the gender-neutral toilets.

Transgender groups are defending gender-neutral bathrooms. But Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch said, “These regulations will guide organizations to design unisex and single-sex toilets, ending the rise of so-called gender-neutral mixed sex toilet spaces, which deny privacy and dignity to both men and women.”

In Matthew 19:4, Jesus asked, “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female?”

U.S. in top 8 most pro-abortion countries

The Charlotte Lozier Institute released a report last week, comparing abortion laws in the U.S. with other countries.

Despite the U.S. Supreme Court overturning the infamous pro-abortion ruling of Roe v. Wade in 2022, America is relatively permissive of abortion.

The report noted, “Of 193 [United Nations] countries, the United States is one of eight countries that allows, at the federal level, abortion on demand without any gestational limits along with Australia, Canada, China, Guinea-Bissau, Mexico, South Korea, and Vietnam. … With no federal gestational limit on abortion and abortion on demand past 15 weeks in 29 states, U.S. abortion law is far more permissive than that of most countries in the world.”

GOP Congressman objects to FBI’s “woke” agenda

A Republican Congressman launched an inquiry into the diversity, equity, and inclusion practices of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio is the chair of the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee. He sent a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray on Monday. 

Jordan wrote, “The FBI's hyper-fixation on hitting Biden administration-imposed DEI initiatives, rather than qualifications that make the best federal law enforcement candidates and officers, has created a climate within the FBI that puts the American public and American civil liberties at risk.”

M.I.T. wakes up from “wokeness”

Speaking of the “woke” program of diversity, equity, and inclusion, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has woken up from “the wokeness.” It will no longer require faculty hires to write diversity statements.

The elite private university is the first to drop the requirement which has become common in higher education. 

Sally Kornbluth, the president of MIT, said, “We can build an inclusive environment in many ways, but compelled statements impinge on freedom of expression, and they don’t work.”

Majority of renters think buying a home would be difficult

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York released a housing survey this week.

The results found 75% of renters believe buying their own home would be somewhat or very difficult, up 8.5% from 2023. Currently, only 13.4% of renters see themselves owning a home.

The median price for a single-family home is $388,700, down slightly from 2023. And the average monthly payment stands at $2,040.

Tornadoes pummel America

Tornadoes struck parts of Michigan on Tuesday, destroying homes and injuring several people.

April to June is the peak of tornado season. CNN reports tornadoes have been reported every day since April 25. That’s 13 days in a row as of Tuesday. Over that timeframe, the National Weather Service reported 287 tornadoes. April saw 300 tornadoes, the second most on record.

Psalm 135:7 says the Lord “causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the Earth; He makes lightning for the rain; He brings the wind out of His treasuries.”

American Bible Society founding anniversary

And finally, this week is the anniversary of the founding of the American Bible Society.

American Protestants founded the group on May 11, 1816 in New York City. Its early leaders included prominent figures like Elias Boudinot -- a President of the Continental Congress, John Jay -- the first Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, and Francis Scott Key -- the author of the U.S. national anthem. 

Since then, the American Bible Society has distributed hundreds of millions of Bibles in thousands of languages around the world. Consider sending them a much-needed donation through the website www.AmericanBible.org.

Every $5 you donate will place a Bible into the eager, waiting hands of:

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And that's The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Thursday, May 9th in the year of our Lord 2024. Subscribe by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I’m Adam McManus ([email protected]). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.