The significant tax cut passed by the Republican-controlled Congress last year is a source of pride and joy for the Republican Party and especially for President Trump. The Republican Congress is now seeking to make these tax cuts permanent

Few have noticed what I believe to be one of the more momentous developments of 2018—the growing Russian footprint in the Middle East. Vladimir Putin has a major naval base in Syria, at least two airbases and a diplomatic clout with many Middle Eastern governments not seen since the days of the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

Ed Stetzer, who holds the Billy Graham Distinguished Chair of Church, Mission, and Evangelism at Wheaton College and is executive director of the Billy Graham Center, asks this poignant question: “How can we spiritually lead our people struggling to respond in a culture charged by political polarization and fed a diet of cable news and social media?

Jill Kay Melchior of the Wall Street Journal poignantly ask these questions: “If your teenage daughter suddenly declares herself transgender, should you assume she’s mature enough to make decisions that will affect her health, fertility and future? Or could she be influenced by societal and peer pressure?”

Last year (2017) we celebrated the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther nailing his 95 Theses to the Castle Church door in Wittenberg, Germany, thereby beginning the Protestant Reformation. Most historians agree that one of the contributing causes of both the appeal and the subsequent spread of Protestantism was a crisis of confidence within the Catholic Church: corruption, immorality, nepotism, simony and other factors which describe a decadent church out of touch with its people. In many ways, a similar crisis of confidence is brewing within the Roman Catholic Church today.

For most of human history the decision to have children was a given. Unless there were infertility problems, it was natural and expected that a couple would have children. But with the emergence of birth control options (e.g., pharmaceutical products and devices, as well as abortion) the choice to not have children is a viable one.

The death of John McCain on 25 August 2018 appropriately led to a series of memorial services in his home state of Arizona and then in our nation’s capital. Because he was a naval hero, he was buried at the US Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis, Maryland. Few people in American history deserve the title “hero” but John McCain is certainly one of those.

In June, the United States withdrew from the United Nations Human Rights Council, which UN Ambassador Nikki Haley described as “a protector of human-rights abusers, and a cesspool of political bias.”  This UN Council is quite frankly a sham.  Aaron Rhodes, author of The Debasement of Human Rights: How Politics Sabotage the Ideal of Freedom,
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The technology of the 21st century has transformed entertainment and leisure-time choices for the typical American. The gaming industry in America has raised significant concerns for modern psychology. Hollywood has taken the 20th century Marvel comic book and transformed it into a lucrative movie brand that is nothing short of astonishing. What does this tell us about American civilization in the early years of the 21st century?

The 21st century’s sexual revolution is not about birth control, sexual promiscuity, or “free love.”  This sexual revolution argues that your identity as a human is tied to your sexuality, and in the spirit of Postmodernism, it is up to you to decide.  Gender and sexual choice are now fluid terms, which necessitate the re-definition
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