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Tennessee Middle School Drop Most Required Islam Studies - CBN News
Most Tennessee middle schools are dropping the majority of their required social studies curriculum on the history and religion of Islam.
An entire section on Islam currently taught to seventh-grade students has been removed from the State Board of Education's latest draft of proposed standard for the 2019-20 school year, The Kingsport Times-News reports.
The new draft is undergoing public comment in Tennessee through Oct. 28. The move comes after parents voiced concerns to Sullivan County Board of Education Chairman Michael Hughes.
"They're in favor of just (taking it out of the standards). I don't believe they want it taught at all," Hughes told Kingsport Times-News.
One parent said during a Sullivan County school board meeting in early September that the "Islamic World, 400 A.D./C.E. - 1500s" study text proselytized for Islam.
So far, 11 standards have since been removed from the draft, including:
- information on physical locations and features of the Arabian Peninsula,
- expansion of Muslim rule and cultural diffusion of Islam,
- Arabic language,
- the origins of Islam,
- the life and teaching of Muhammad, including the historical connection to Christianity and Judaism,
- Standards about understanding the Quran and the different sects within Islam.
Board of Education Vice President Susan Lodal said Islam is still a part of required history teaching. Some Muslim history will remain a part of the seventh-grade curriculum, including the importance of Malian king, Mansa Musa and his pilgrimage to Mecca.
Most of the sections involving Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism and other religions will remain unchanged in the draft.
"What Tennesseans will see in the revised social studies standards are that they have increased clarity and manageability and are age-appropriate," Laura Encalade, director of policy and research at the State Board of Education.
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Israeli archaeologists believe they have evidence that the biblical King Hezekiah did indeed destroy the high places and idols in the land of Israel as described in the Bible, evidence officials say highlights Israel's past connection to the land and helps draw the country's boundaries today.
Calling it "an important and unusual discovery," the Israel Antiquities Authority said excavations in the Tel Lachish National Park in central Israel revealed a "gate-shrine" from the First Temple period, about the 8th century B.C. It's the largest known gate from the First Temple period in the country.
The Bible says King Hezekiah "removed the high places, broke down the sacred pillars, cut down the Asherah poles." (2 Kings 18:4).
"The size of the gate is consistent with the historical and archaeological knowledge we possess, whereby Lachish was a major city and the most important one after Jerusalem," excavation director Sa'ar Ganor said.
According to the biblical narrative, everything took place at the city gates where the elders, judges, governors, kings and officials sat on benches.
"These benches were found in our excavation," Ganor said.
The IAA conducted the excavation from January through March at the initiative of the Ministry of Jerusalem and Heritage in cooperation with the Nature and Parks Authority. The excavation completely exposed the gate, which was partially uncovered in a joint Tel Aviv University, British excavation decades ago. The plan is to develop the Tel Lachish National Park.
The 80-by-80-foot Lachish city gate is preserved to a height of 16 feet. It consists of six chambers—three on each side, with the city's main street passing between them.
Artifacts Reveal Details
Artifacts discovered in its rooms give clues as to how they were used 2,800 years ago. Benches with armrests were in the first chamber. At the foot of the benches were many finds, including jars, scoops for loading grain and jar handles bearing the name of the official or a seal impression indicating they belonged to the king.
The IAA said the jars seem to relate to the kingdom of Judah's military and administrative preparations for the war against Assyrian King Sennacherib in the late 8th century B.C.
According to Ganor, "A staircase ascended to a large room where there was a bench upon which offerings were placed. An opening was exposed in the corner of the room that led to the holy of holies."
Ganor said they were excited to find two four-horned altars and scores of ceramic finds, including lamps, bowls and stands in the room. He said the horns on the altar had been "intentionally truncated."
"That is probably evidence of the religious reform attributed to King Hezekiah, whereby religious worship was centralized in Jerusalem and the cultic high places that were built outside the capital were destroyed," Ganor said.
Besides cutting off the horns of the altar, apparently Hezekiah had a toilet installed in the "holy of holies" to further signify the abolition of worship and as the "ultimate desecration" of the place.
The "toilet" was a chair-shaped stone with a hole in the middle found in the corner of the room. It was apparently symbolic, as tests showed it had never been used.
According to the IAA, archaeological research has identified stones like this as toilets. The idea of using a toilet to defile cultic locations is even mentioned in the Bible, as in the case of Jehu when he destroyed the cult of Ba'al (2 Kings 10:27). It's the first time the phenomenon has been confirmed archaeologically.
Israeli officials were excited about the discovery. Minister of Jerusalem and Heritage Ze'ev Elkin said the discovery is an example of how excavations "show us time and time again how biblical tales that are known to us become historical and archaeological stories."
Culture and Sport Minister Miri Regev said the discovery deepened Israel's "connection to our ancestors who walked this land."
"The uncovering of these finds joins a long list of discoveries that enlighten us about our historic past, a past that is manifested in our country's soil and in the writings of the Book of Books," Regev said.
"The Bible—the founding book of the Jewish people—draws the country's boundaries and the heritage of the Jewish people that was exiled from its country and returned to its homeland. It boldly commemorates the way of our forefathers, the prophets, the kings and the judges," she said.
Shaul Goldstein, director general of the Nature and Parks Authority, said Tel Lachish is one of the most "quintessential places" that offers "proof of Israel's hold on the its land."
The gate is currently undergoing a conservation process in preparation to open it to visitors.
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Pastor Jim and Lori discuss the topics covered in the book Future War, written by special guest Lt. Col. Robert Maginnis.
Quotes
And if Christians would stop fighting each other, we could win the world again. Because we used to be able to make things happen. – Pastor Jim
We could win. If we wanted to. But I’m not convinced that we have people that have the vision to win. – Lt Col Robert Maginnis
I want to be ready to be able to be one of the harvesters in the last days to win souls. – Pastor Jim
Your vote does count one way or the other, and your lack of vote counts. – Pastor Jim
We need men and women that will stand up and be stage persons in the name of God and for the best interest of this country. Otherwise, we are going to lose those very things you have there pastor, religious freedom, freedom of speech. – Lt Col Robert Maginnis
Scriptures
Matthew 24:12 KJV And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
Revelation 22:17 KJV And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.
Matthew 25:35 NIV For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,
Proverbs 19:17 NKJV He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, And He will pay back what he has given.
Mark 3:24-25 MEV If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.
Originally Posted: 02 Sep 2013 Reposted Sept. 29, 2016
"Blow the Shofar at the New Moon...Because It Is a Decree for Israel, a Judgment Day for the God of Jacob" - Psalms 81
Jews around the world prepare for Rosh Hashanna this week, the festive New Year holiday when the shofar -- ram's horn -- is blown in synagogues.
The American Colony photographers recorded a dozen pictures of Jewish elders blowing the shofar in Jerusalem some 80 years ago. The horn was also blown in Jerusalem to announce the commencement of the Sabbath. During the month prior to Rosh Hashana, the shofar was blown at daily morning prayers to encourage piety before the High Holidays.
Ashkenazi Jew in Jerusalem blowing the shofar to announce the Sabbath
View the American Colony Photographers' collection of shofar blowers in Jerusalem here.
Click on the pictures to enlarge.
Click on captions to view the original picture.
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"Tell the Israelites: In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you are to have a day of complete rest, commemoration, and joyful shouting - a sacred assembly."Leviticus 23:24
We wish all our readers and friends a blessed Jewish new year 5777 and would like to say thank you! Thank you for a year of loyalty, trust and support!
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With Rosh HaShanah and the beginning of the High Holidays only a few days away, I thought I would review some of my material on this from the perspective of a Christ follower.
It should be of no shock that the early believers, both Jew and Gentile, celebrated the festivals of Israel even after coming to Messiah. This included the celebration of Rosh HaShanah and fasting on Yom Kippur.
Yom Kippur is to Judaism what Christmas is to Christianity; just as many Christians go to church on Christmas—even if they never enter a church throughout the rest of the year—so too, most Jews fast on Yom Kippur and attend synagogue services. It is a cultural and spiritual landmark. Not surprisingly then, we find a passing reference to this fast in the book of Acts:
"Now when much time had been spent, and sailing was now dangerous because the Fast was already over, Paul advised them, saying, "Men, I perceive that this voyage will be with disaster and much loss, not only of the cargo and ship, but also our lives"(Acts 27:9–10, NKJV).
"The Fast" referenced here is Yom Kippur. Daniel Stökl Ben Ezra assumes that Luke would not have used the term "the Fast" as a calendaric reference unless he himself was keeping the fast and assumed that his readers were as well:
I cannot help but draw the conclusion that Luke himself and his implied readers observed Yom Kippur. Why else would Luke use a "Jewish calendaric reference for a secular problem?" He clearly presumes that his readers will understand what he is referring to.
Scholars speculate that the readers of Acts were Gentiles like Luke himself. In order for Luke's readers to understand such a passing reference, they must have been observing Yom Kippur. Indirect evidence can be found in the book of Revelation.
The book of Revelation is packed with allusions to the rituals and themes of the high holidays. The apocalyptic imagery—the day of judgment, the books of judgment, the blast of trumpets, the Temple scenes, and so forth—are all borrowed directly from the traditional observance of Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur. John addressed the book of Revelation to seven communities in Asia Minor, constituted predominantly of Gentiles.
If those communities were not celebrating the high holidays along with the Jewish community, they would have been ill-prepared to decipher the book of Revelation, just as the church is today. Records of Gentile believers celebrating Yom Kippur appear in later church literature. The late second-century Epistle to Diognetus rails against Christians who observe Jewish laws such as "the Fast." Origen mentions Christians fasting on Yom Kippur:
Whence also we must say something now to those who think that in virtue of the commandments of the Law they must practice the fast of the Jews (Homily on Leviticus 12:2 [Barkley]).
He mentions another case, again involving Caesarean Christians, in his Homilies on Jeremiah, proving that this is not an isolated instance; there must have been at least several groups of Gentile Christians in the third century still celebrating this major feast day of Judaism. In the late fourth century, John Chrysostom is still denouncing those who "join the Jews in keeping their festivals and observing their fasts."
Further witness to this phenomenon can be found in the fifth-century medieval church practice of the Fast of the Seventh Month. This fast formed part of the Ember Days and was one of the most solemn days of the church's liturgical year. Scholars see this fast as the result of the Christianization of Yom Kippur.
In other words, because many Christian Gentiles were celebrating Yom Kippur, as the church began to split from Judaism, Christianity slowly transformed it into a solely Christian fast in the month of September. This is similar to the transformation of Passover into Easter.
The fifth-century theologian and pope Leo the Great wrote: "We proclaim the holy Fast of the Seventh Month, dearly-beloved, for the exercise of common devotions, confidently inciting you with fatherly exhortations to make Christian by your observance that which was formerly Jewish" (Sermon 90:1).
In this we once again see that many Gentile believers celebrated Yom Kippur, so much so that it remained even after the parting of the ways began to take place between Judaism and Christianity.
Toby Janicki is a teacher, writer, and project manager for First Fruits of Zion(ffoz.org). He contributes regularly to Messiah Journal and has written several books including God Fearers: Gentiles and the God of Israel.
It's often said, "There is only one race—the human race." While the phrase has become almost cliché in repetition, it happens to be 100 percent accurate, both scientifically and theologically speaking.
From Ferguson to Baltimore, Tulsa to Charlotte—and on college campuses from coast-to-coast—a great divide is sweeping America. It is fueled largely, if not entirely, by half-truths and outright lies. Truth is irrelevant. Only the narrative matters. When "Hands Up Don't Shoot™" can do so very much to further "the cause," it matters not that it represents a holocaust-denial-level of detachment from reality.
Which tells you everything you need to know about the cause.
This is by design. These embers of racial division are purposely fanned to a red-hot flame by certain political leaders, "social justice" warriors and "community organizers"—cut principally from the same ideological cloth—in order to permanently ingrain a turbulent level of cultural division based solely upon the varying shades of people's skin. This, in turn, is intended to provoke widespread governmental dependency and, thus, one-party political control in perpetuity.
Yet, even at its core the idea of racial division—of race itself—is a myth. To sub-divide humanity based upon nothing more than varying levels of skin pigmentation is to rely upon the weakest of genetic markers.
And "race" really does signify nothing more than skin color.
Science dispels the Myth of 'Race'
In a Feb. 5 Scientific Americanarticle titled, "Race Is a Social Construct, Scientists Argue," journalist Megan Gannon writes, "Today, the mainstream belief among scientists is that race is a social construct without biological meaning. And yet, you might still open a study on genetics in a major scientific journal and find categories like 'white' and 'black' being used as biological variables."
"In an article published today (Feb. 4) in the journal Science," continues Gannon, "four scholars say racial categories are weak proxies for genetic diversity and need to be phased out."
"It's a concept we think is too crude to provide useful information. It's a concept that has social meaning that interferes in the scientific understanding of human genetic diversity, and it's a concept that we are not the first to call upon moving away from," notes Michael Yudell, professor of public health at Drexel University in Philadelphia. Under the latest genetic research, race is "understood to be a poorly defined marker of that diversity and an imprecise proxy for the relationship between ancestry and genetics," he adds.
While not directly involved with the research, Dr. Svante Pääbo, a biologist and director of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany, agrees wholeheartedly with its findings. "What the study of complete genomes from different parts of the world has shown is that even between Africa and Europe, for example, there is not a single absolute genetic difference, meaning no single variant where all Africans have one variant and all Europeans another one, even when recent migration is disregarded."
Still, as the researchers likewise note, "Assumptions about genetic differences between people of different races have had obvious social and historical repercussions." Indeed, there are those on both extremes of the political spectrum with a vested interest in making sure these social and historical repercussions remain as inflamed and catastrophic as possible.
"Race" is a divisive means to a selfish political end.
It is not a scientific reality.
God's Final Word on 'Race'
We love labels. We love to pit people against one another and lump them into neat, fixed little categories of put-upons, most often based upon outward appearances: black vs. white; Hispanic vs. Asian; tall vs. short; skinny vs. fat; old vs. young; abled vs. disabled, and so on.
Yet these divisions are artificial. They're man-made. Every human being is created by a holy God, in His image and likeness, and imbued by Him with infinite worth and import. There is only one true and transcendent physical division, and that division was both created and intended by God to become reconciled as one flesh through the holy bonds of marriage—this, to propagate the human race: "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them" (Gen. 1:27).
Male and female. The XY and the XX. Immutable distinctions with a beautiful and bountiful difference. That's it. All other physical divisions, especially racial divisions, remain artificial.
Our bodies, you see, are merely outward shells. As the great Scottish author and theologian George MacDonald once wrote, "Never tell a child 'you have a soul.' Teach him, 'you are a soul; you have a body.'"
We are souls. We have a body—an outward shell or "Earth suit" as one of my favorite professors used to say. Why on God's Earth are we so deceived to believe that we must separate ourselves and hate one another based upon superficial, almost cosmetic outward appearances?
"Now I urge you, brothers, to closely watch those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the teaching which you have learned, and avoid them" (Rom. 16:17).
To be sure, Christ Jesus alone can dissolve these divisions. "For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is generous toward all who call upon Him" (Rom. 10:12).
These are not financial riches, but riches of love, life, spirit and salvation.
As a man with an Italian wife, a black sister-in-law, a Filipino uncle and biologically-related half Filipino cousins, a step-grandmother who illegally immigrated from Mexico, biologically-related half Mexican aunts and uncles, and dozens of foster brothers and sisters from across the globe, I have learned firsthand throughout my life that "race" is truly meaningless—it's less than skin deep.
Until we learn this as a nation, we will remain a nation divided.
Yes, love is the answer. "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another" (John 13:34).
There is no political fix to this problem.
It's a spiritual problem, requiring a spiritual fix.
And His name is Jesus.
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The choices of this year's election season pose some significant moral challenges. I have heard that Christians are struggling with the values of the Democrat party: the so-called "pro-choice" position, which means, in virtually 100 percent of cases, pro-abortion; limiting religious freedoms; more government control over citizens' lives; and more. And I have also heard Christians who are struggling with the morality of voting for a brash, twice-divorced, casino-owning presidential candidate.
These are real struggles, and I don't intend to minimize the pressure under which some sincere and concerned Christian voters are struggling. Let me ask you to consider the morality of a third option I'm hearing, and that is voting for a third party candidate or not voting at all. I have lumped these last two together because the reality is that the action of taking no action by Christians would certainly guarantee a U.S. president whose party platform will not protect life in the womb, will not support religious freedom, and will force you to forsake your traditional Christian values or face legal punishment if you resist caving in to the anti-God atmosphere across the nation. Those will be only a part of the negative results. I can guarantee it.
Edmund Burke (1729-1797) is known for his now-famous saying: "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." You will be faced with a moral decision on November 8, 2016, our national Election Day. You may vote for liberal values, vote for an unknown candidate who has, to many conservatives, questionable qualifications, or vote for a third-party candidate who cannot win and will thus, by default, add to the pro-liberal victory. By staying home, you will help liberal values to prevail.
However, without telling anyone whom to vote for, I do have a suggestion for overcoming this dilemma: Focus on the political parties' platforms. Delegates of both major parties worked hard through discussion and debate to construct their respective platforms with the solid planks that outline and support their party's core values. These platforms were approved at each convention. And the platforms are not secret documents. My suggestion for every Christian potential voter: Read both platforms and consider them plank by plank, value by value. Then consider supporting with your vote the one that best reflects your own values. Here is a link to our helpful 2016 Presidential Election Voters Guidethat outlines the Republican and Democrat party platforms along with suggestions for prayer.
We cannot change the fundamental strengths or flaws in any candidate, but we can identify with the platform principles that will guide the elected officials' governance—from Congress to the U.S. President.
Yes, it may be a tough decision. I hope my suggestion offers some clarity.
Dave Kubalis president of Intercessors for America.
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In ancient Israel, the people turned away from God in their prosperity. They turned to the false god of Baal, even offering up their children as sacrifices on this demonic altar.
"They called what was evil good and what was good evil," says Cahn, author of best-selling books The Harbinger and newest title, The Book of Mysteries. "They drove God out of their government, out of their culture, out of the lives of their children. They persecuted and hunted down the righteous."
Cahn goes on to point out how nine harbingers of national destruction that appeared in ancient Israel are now appearing on American soil—many of them in New York City. One especially blatant sign just appeared in New York City—the arch that leads to the temple of Baal.
Watch the entire video to understand the spiritual dynamics behind this shocking event.
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US President Barack Obama on Wednesday made a tremendous symbolic gesture toward Israel by ordering all American flags lowered to half-mast in honor of former Israeli President Shimon Peres, who passed away earlier in the day at the age of 93.
The official order issued by the White House was titled “Death of Shimon Peres” and read:
“The flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and on all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset, on September 30, 2016.”
A personal statement sent out by Obama called Peres “the essence of Israel itself — the courage of Israel’s fight for independence, the optimism he shared with his wife Sonya as they helped make the desert bloom, and the perseverance that led him to serve his nation in virtually every position in government across the entire life of the State of Israel.”
Obama was scheduled to lead a large US delegation, including both Bill and Hillary Clinton, to attend Peres’ funeral in Jerusalem on Friday. They were to be joined by over 80 other world leaders.
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