Current Events Archives

Mom Abandons Her Baby with Down Syndrome; Thousands Give Help

A news summary on issues that matter.

“Dad Refuses to Give Up Son With Down Syndrome” and accepts his wife’s divorce instead. In response, thousands have donated almost $500,000 to his GoFundMe page to help the new single dad become his son’s full-time caretaker. Most recent reports provide a statement from the mother and show at least the possibility of reconciliation. With an abortion rate of about 50 percent for preborn babies diagnosed with Down syndrome, the bottom line is many refuse to care for such a child.

Topics: Current Events Tags: news February 10, 2015 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Making Sense of the Measles Outbreak

Measles.

It’s not the sort of souvenir you’d expect to bring home from the “Happiest Place on Earth,” but that’s exactly what dozens of children took away from their visit to Disneyland last December.

Ironically, Jean and I were there with the boys the very week of the outbreak.

More than fifty children contracted the disease as a result of exposure to the infection at the California theme park. Some spread it to others, and by the end of January more than a hundred cases had been confirmed in the U.S.

Topics: Current Events Tags: kids, news, parenting, policy February 5, 2015 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Why Are These Christian Women Reading Porn?

One of our nation’s leading Christian publishers conducted a survey asking respondents to name the most influential book they had read in the past year. A startling number of women – Christian women – said “Fifty Shades of Grey” was their favorite book of the year.

Why is that so noteworthy?

Because the “Fifty Shades of Grey” books are a written form of pornography, plain and simple. It’s a book series that’s become nothing short of a cultural phenomenon, having sold more than 100 million copies in just a few short years.

Topics: Current Events Tags: broadcast, entertainment, intimacy, marriage, sex February 4, 2015 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

This Pastor Chose Against Acting on His Same-Sex Attractions

Allan Edwards is a pastor with the Presbyterian Church in America. He’s also married to Leeanne Edwards and the couple is expecting their first child in July.

Allan has also admitted to struggling with same-sex attraction.

In fact, he recently shared his story with National Public Radio. In the midst of the conversation, Allan said the reason he’s never acted on the attraction is because he believes homosexuality is a sin.

Some have suggested that Allan is denying his true identity and that he and his wife couldn’t possibly be happy.

Topics: Current Events Tags: church, faith, homosexuality, marriage, news February 3, 2015 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Last Night’s Super Bowl Ad Winner: DAD

After last night’s big game, everyone had a simple question on their mind:

Why didn’t the Seahawks try to just run the ball in from the one-yard line?

Every game is a drama with many actors, and it’s always easy to pin the blame on a single one. But your heart has to go out to Pete Carroll’s team. Thirty-six inches from back-to-back Super Bowl wins! But now everyone is talking about the untimely interception and the legacy of Tom Brady.

Topics: Current Events February 2, 2015 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Super Bowl Ads Promise to Break Dim-Witted Dad Stereotype

After a few years of Super Bowl commercials featuring Dad as the butt of too many jokes, it seems like this year may be in for a refreshing change. There are two pre-released game day ads that show fathers in a positive light.

First up is Dove Men + Care’s 60-second spot, “#RealStrength,” which shows children of various ages calling their dads and ends with the tagline “Care Makes a Man Stronger.” It’s so well-made it’s likely many viewers will be left with tears in their eyes.

Topics: Current Events Tags: entertainment, family, parenting, pop culture January 28, 2015 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Why This Doctor and Widower Opposes Physician-Assisted Suicide

For many of us, the issue of physician-assisted suicide was brought to our attention last year with the very public illness and death of Brittany Maynard, a 29-year-old woman who chose to end her own life with a lethal prescription after receiving a diagnosis of an aggressive form of cancer.

This pains me in so many ways, not the least of which is that it compounds the heartbreak of a horrible, terminal illness with the tragic choice of a young woman to take her own life.

Topics: Current Events Tags: faith, news, policy, pro-life, wife January 27, 2015 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Four Stories Before the Weekend

From the serious to the light-hearted, here are some recent news articles on topics that impact faith and family that might be of interest to you.

– Obama’s Middle-Class Blind Spot, via The Wall Street Journal: The president’s proposed tax credit for families doesn’t extend to families with a stay-at-home parent.
President Obama is missing an opportunity to help all struggling families…

– Pope: Catholics need not breed ‘like rabbits’: USA Today reports on the controversial statement.

Topics: Current Events Tags: family, news, pro-life January 23, 2015 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Contact Your House Rep Over GOP Pulling Pro-Life Bill

Four decades and 50 million innocent lives later, those of us who support the protection of the unborn were heartened to hear of the upcoming vote in the House of Representatives that would have banned abortion after 20 weeks. But now we’ve learned the bill has been pulled by the GOP leadership over some of the legislation’s language. Rather than have a public fight on the floor of the House, leadership has chosen to cancel the vote altogether.

Topics: Current Events Tags: news, policy, pro-life January 22, 2015 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Are Christians Too #Blessed?

Are you “blessed”?

There are many Christians, myself included, who would suggest that by the sheer nature of our Salvation in Jesus Christ, we are, indeed, a blessed people.

But if you asked a room full of people what it means to be “blessed,” I suspect you’d get a wide array of answers.

For some, to be blessed means to have health, wealth and a good family.

To others, to be blessed means to travel the world or climb a mountain.

Topics: Current Events Tags: faith, pop culture, technology January 21, 2015 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura