Has This Really Happened in Only 15 Years?

June 9, 2019

Ruins of the Library of Celsus
Photo by heydrienne

“In Pew Research Center polling in 2004, Americans opposed same-sex marriage by a margin of 60% to 31%.

Support for same-sex marriage has steadily grown over the past 15 years. And today, support for same-sex marriage remains near its highest point since Pew Research Center began polling on this issue. Based on polling in 2019, a majority of Americans (61%) support same-sex marriage, while 31% oppose it.”

The quote above is taken from an article entitled Attitudes on Same-Sex Marriage which was published less than a month ago.

One can look up numerous articles which try to explain this change.

I think we need to find the Book again, the same Book that was found in 2 Kings 22. The article published by the Pew Research Center shows that the Book has been lost again, at least in the minds and hearts of many Americans. Adherence to that book is the only solution for our nation. I wonder what will happen in the next 15 years.

“On June 26, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down all state bans on same-sex marriage, legalized it in all fifty states, and required states to honor out-of-state same-sex marriage licenses in the case Obergefell v. Hodges.”

It has been almost four years. Why does it feel like 40?

Chris Reimers

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The Church of Norway…Statistics

May 9, 2019

Nidaros Cathedral
King Olav Haraldsson was buried after he was killed in the battle of Stiklestad in 1030. Tradition has it that the high Altar of the Cathedral now stands on the exact spot of this burial site. The Cathedral is currently being used by the Church of Norway.
Photo by Jan Hammershaug


A flurry of articles about the Church of Norway were published in 2016. They covered a variety of topics but two, in particular, gave statistics that are striking. In March an article entitled “Most Norway Church members ‘not Christian'” appeared.

The same month an article entitled “Majority of Norwegians ‘do not believe in God’ for first time in country’s history” was published.

“Most non-religious Norwegians are members of the Church of Norway” came in August of 2018.

Each of the three articles is brief but these are the findings in short:

Statistic #1: Less than half of the 3.8 million baptized members of the Church of Norway (The population of the entire country is almost 5.4 million) consider themselves Christians, according to a new poll for Aftenposten newspaper.

Statistic #2: For the first time ever, there are more in Norway who say they don’t believe in God than those who say they do. On top of that, there is a large group that is in doubt.

and

Statistic #3: Many of those who do not have a religious belief in Norway are still members of the Church of Norway and use the church for ceremonial events.

These statistics warrant several questions:

Question #1: In a country where 70% of the population is baptized into what is supposed to be a Christian church, how can there be such corruption? The corruption I’m referring to has been dealt with in a number of articles on this blog. If you are not aware, the Norwegian Child Welfare Services is guilty of stealing children from their parents. The government sponsored NCWS is supposed to help families. In many cases, they ruin families.

There is a theological answer, from a Christian perspective, to this question. The corruption is possible because baptism in itself does not make someone a Christian. If you disagree, find one Bible verse that announces that baptism alone is responsible for salvation. If you can find one, please share it here in the comment section.

Question #2: Why are those who are members of the “Church” in Norway silent about the corruption? We know that more than half of the “Church” members don’t consider themselves Christians but what about the million or so who say they are? What about the leaders in the church? Why are they silent?

There is a theological answer to this question as well. If it is correct or not is another question. The Church leaders in Norway, just like many who had religious positions of note in the days of Jesus, are too comfortable with the status quo and with their positions of power to speak out against duplicity. They fear they have too much to lose. There is at least one pastor in all of Norway who has consistently spoken out against this evil:
Pastor Jan-Aage Torp. It is not surprising that he is not a pastor in the Church of Norway. Pastor Torp should be admired for his lone stand on such an important issue. At the same time his Oslo Church is part of an international movement that is called “The New Apostolic Reformation.” It is an error-filled movement but that is another subject.

Question #3: How can God bless a nation that has turned it’s back upon Him? Since, there are more in Norway who say they don’t believe in God than those who say they do, it appears to be a question that could be asked of it. It has been a question that has been asked about America many times on this blog.

Yes, there is a Biblical answer for this as well. Since God gave the Israelis chance after chance and finally allowed them to be taken into bondage, it appears the answer is clear. The only reason for the reappearance of Israel as a nation in the last century was because of God’s covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

This is what happens when nations or individuals continually turn their backs on God:

18 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. 21 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.

24 Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. 25 For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

26 For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, 27 and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error.

28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; 32 and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.”

– Romans 1

I pray for Norway and I pray for America. The statistics are extremely disturbing.

Chris Reimers

Hammerfest Church, a parish church of the Church of Norway
Photo by Bruno Jargot

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“Now he is killing his own people”

August 19, 2018

Francisco Valdivia, Anibal Rosales, Ariel Teran, Augusto Ayala, German Zeledon, and Rommel Moreno
Photo from http://www.ggggnews.com/News.htm


Received here only a few days ago…

“Hi Chris, do you remember me? I am Aníbal Rosales, from your article “Nicaraguan Patriots Visit Hot Springs” in October 2009. It is very sad what Nicaragua is living now, what in 2009 seemed like a distant future has arrived. Ortega took all the powers of the state, the presidency, the supreme court of justice, the electoral power and the assembly, he completed his project of dictatorship. Now he is killing his own people, for having raised us to protest against him, since last April 18, more than 350 people have died, there are more than 500 unjustly arrested, many disappeared and many people fleeing in Costa Rica and others living hidden in safe houses, so that the government does not kill them. We have a real humanitarian crisis, there are thousands of people who need shelter, food and medicine. If you can, tell this story to our friends in Hot Springs.”

After searching the internet for news of this situation, I’ve found that Anibal is not exaggerating. It is very sad news, indeed. The Nicaraguan Patriots who visited Hot Springs were, at the time, working to reverse the corrupt government of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega. They came here to get ideas on how to do just that. It is one of the highlights of my 23 years in Hot Springs.

From the several news sources that I’ve read, the Catholic Churches are being targeted in particular and, of course, anyone who protests the government policies. Anyone who wishes to see the article Anibal is referring to may see it here:

http://www.ggggnews.com/News.htm (You will have to scroll down to the September 18th, 2009 entry. It is not that far down the page!)

The article describes corruption that these brave men were dealing with at the time. It was bad then, but as Anibal has noted, things have deteriorated substantially.

Please pray for our friends in Nicaragua.

Chris Reimers

Rep. Shelby, Rommel Moreno, Ariel Teran, Dir. Peggy Maruthur, Bob Driggers, German Zeledon, Augusto Ayala, Francisco Valdivia
Photo at http://www.ggggnews.com/News.htm

The few articles I have read recently (The first two were published yesterday):

Nicaragua: How Ortega’s Fragile Alliance Of The Elite Set The Stage For Crisis

Analysts: Nicaragua’s Ortega Using Venezuelan Tactics To Suppress Opposition

Nicaragua Clergy, Siding With Protesters, Becomes ‘Terrible Enemy’ of Ortega

Nicaragua’s Ortega-Murillo power couple toppled a dynasty – only to form another

Dictatorship the underlying problem in Nicaragua riots, priest says

“Ortega has been president of Nicaragua since 2007, and oversaw the abolition of presidential term limits in 2014. His wife, Rosario Murillo, is also his vice president.”

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Posted by Chris

What mean these stones?

June 1, 2018

A Sermon by David Martyn Lloyd-Jones (An excerpt)

Let me put it to you like this. Christianity is not a philosophy. What is a philosophy? Well, a philosophy is made up of ideas put forward by men, in an attempt to try to understand life and our problems and how to deal with them and how to solve them. It is a matter of ideas, of thoughts and of teachings. My point is that while there is obviously a teaching and a doctrine which is a vital part of Christianity, that is not the first thing. What differentiates this is that it is first and foremost a record of historical events and historical facts. What mean these stones outside Gilgal? All that they mean is that certain things happened to these people-history. Let us be clear about this. There are so many people today who talk about the Christian attitude-towards war and peace, a Christian attitude towards education, a Christian attitude towards art, drama and literature. Now all that tends to turn it into a philosophy, into a teaching, into a theory, into a point of view. But that is really not to be true to our position. So Christianity, we must remember, is not one of a number of theories and ideas and philosophies with respect to life. It is quite unique because it is teaching which is based upon history.

I can go further and I can say this. That this is the thing that differentiates the Christian faith from religion-from any kind of religion. You take these religions that people, some of them, are turning to at the present time. Buddhism or Confucianism or Hinduism, or any one of these ‘isms’. What are they? Well, they are all something invented by men. They are all teachings. They involve a kind of worship, but they are not based upon facts and upon events. They are all based upon ideas-and they are ideas that are supposed to lead you and to help you to arrive at the particular deity that you want to worship.

Now here again, you see, our Christian faith is entirely different. It calls attention to facts. And that is why this building in a sense is going to do exactly the same as the bread and the wine do in a communion service. They again are calling attention to facts. So, we must start with this all important matter-this principle-and realise that it is vital to our whole situation. The uniqueness of the Christian faith depends upon a series of historical facts and events and the teaching which results from them.

—————————–
It is probably not altogether right to excerpt from one of the greats, though I think the good Doctor would be happy with my reasoning here. How many were saying in 1977, when the sermon was given, that the Bible was a good book but that much of it consisted of “meaningful fables” and “nice stories” and that its historicity was in serious question? This type of liberal Christianity, already quite popular then, was something that Martyn Lloyd-Jones abhorred. How much more are the historical parts of the Bible under attack today? Yes, parts of the scriptures are beautiful poetry and some are eschatological wonders. But there are the parts that, until the past few centuries, were always considered history and still are by men in agreement with Martyn Lloyd-Jones. Remarkably, currently and in the recent past, men are calling what has always been considered history poetry or allegory. There is the “Documentary Hypothesis” and a myriad of similar criticisms which weaken the inspired intentions of the text. Some go so far as to question the miracles.

I admire men like David Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Walter Martin, and Charles H. Spurgeon and I agree with them. All great scholars, they upheld the Bible as the inspired word of God in times of question. We are living in times when many consider the Bible as just another book on the shelf. In their time, these great men were astonished that anyone could have such an opinion and if any were with us today I think they would receive more mocking than they did in their day and would respond no differently than when they were alive.

This is a sermon that needs to be heard more today than ever. I am including a link to the text of this sermon and another to the recording of the actual sermon. Either would be more than worth your time.

Chris Reimers

COMPLETE TEXT OF “WHAT MEAN THESE STONES?”

A RECORDING OF THIS EXACT SERMON BY Dr D Martyn Lloyd-Jones (Preached at West Street Baptist Church; Crewe; in 1977.)

A sermon WITH THE SAME TITLE was preached at Newport; South Wales; in 1977. Martyn Lloyd-Jones often used this text at the opening of new churches. It was on this text that he last preached at the opening of Barcombe Baptist Chapel in 1980.

MEET DR. LLOYD JONES (INTERVIEW)

4 Comments | Commentary, Creation, Education, LIFE, Love of God, Sermons, theology, worship | Tagged: , | Permalink
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Planned Parenthood forced to cancel abortions after Supreme Court ruling

June 1, 2018

Photo from Lifesite News

ARKANSAS, June 1, 2018 (LifeSiteNews) – Planned Parenthood has been forced to cancel abortion appointments in Arkansas days after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to block a law regulating chemical abortions from taking effect.

“The law that we were trying to get blocked went into effect immediately, and the immediate results were we had to turn away from the clinic people who were scheduled to take the pill,” Dr. Stephanie Ho of Planned Parenthood Great Plains in Fayetteville confirmed to NBC News.

READ THE REST OF THE ARTICLE HERE.

————————————-
My comment: In a world that seems like it’s gone mad at times, here is some great news. I appreciate all of the legislators in Arkansas who have worked hard to go against the ungodly views of so many in the U.S. today. Both Senators, all four Reps. to the U.S. Legislature, and the Governor of Arkansas each have strong pro-life positions. Even though they are all Republican, Arkansas is among only a few other states where Democratic leaders have “made it clear…that they will welcome pro-life candidates in their state.” The majority of the people in Arkansas are against abortion and I pray that it stays that way.

CR

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“Timely if mayor Bergheim were to come up with an unreserved apology to the couple”

May 28, 2018

Ken, Vebeke, and Family Reunited
Photo by Lisbeth Lund Andresen
(Click on photo to enlarge)

By Magne Storedal

• • •

The child protection case which is the main subject of the article – that of Ken Joar Olsen and Vibeke Morrissey and their daughter – has been described and discussed on several websites abroad and here. (See below)

This article originally appeared in Norwegian, on 25 May 2018, in Romerikes Blad HERE.

Translation: Marianne Haslev Skånland. All rights remain with the author Mr Storedal.
• • •

The resignation of CPS leader Arnfinn Heimstad on Wednesday augurs well for the process of developing a better Barnevern in the municipality of Lørenskog. The case which triggered his withdrawal – the child protection case against Ken Joar Olsen and Vibeke Morrissey – was deficient on very many levels. Romerikes Blad has in a series of articles given an account of the inadequate and criticisable casework in this CPS case.

The most criticisable aspect was the way the municipality went all the way in their employment of heavy means without attempting to help and support the parents when their daughter was taken into care on an emergency order in January 2015. In what followed, the municipality ignored information and suggestions from not less than eight experts who all found Ken and Vibeke to be competent parents. Parallel with the outcome in the Ken and Vibeke case, the courts have quashed three takings into care and returned the children to their parents. All after decisions made in Lørenskog. In sum these outcomes are so serious that it was natural for Heimstad to resign.

At the same time it is important to note that making heads roll in Lørenskog has never been the goal. Our primary aim has been to have the injustice to Ken and Vibeke’s daughter remedied, but also, of course, that against the parents. With the CPS and the municipality leadership being so restrictively against opening up for reconsideration and self-criticism, head municipal administrator Ragnar Christoffersen has taken matters in hand over the last weeks.

Necessary changes lie ahead. The Barnevern (CPS) case against Ken and Vibeke will face investigation internally and externally. At the same time, the case is before The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). The case if far from over; a large sequel which must induce comprehensive learning and change in all of Barnevernet lies ahead. Irrespective of the outcome of such review, the municipality must urgently enter into a dialogue with all child expert personnel who had anything to do with Ken and Vibeke’s case. Between them they possess important proficiency and qualifications, urgently needed to be made use of by the municipality.

While Barnevernet is under fire in Lørenskog, another public service reaps well-deserved honour. Lørenskog’s low threshold ‘Preventive Psychological Health Service’ (Forebyggende psykisk helsetjeneste (FPH)), offering free and fast psychological help for Lørenskog’s citizens, has received the prize of the year for ‘innovation’ awarded by the Norwegian Society for Psychological Science. The service of FPH is monitored through research by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health. Added to the fact that the municipality has got this service up and running, it also works. People suffering from anxiety and depression have, according to the Institute of Public Health, obtained better life quality as soon as after 6 – 8 conversational sessions. With this expertise being present within the municipality, it is horrible that the two services did not cooperate in this concrete child protection case. Rather, according to FPH itself and the last two experts Anette Svendsen and Evelin Tjemsland, the CPS was active in Ken and Vibeke not getting necessary help after their daughter was taken into care. This is serious and must be checked up on thoroughly.

With the traumas in mind which Ken and Vibeke have gone through, it would probably have been timely if mayor Ragnhild Bergheim came up with an unreserved apology to the couple as well.
———————————

My comment:

This is welcome and encouraging news in the struggle of families who have been devastated by the ungodly actions of the Norwegian Child Welfare Services (Barnevernet). I was not aware of this development and I would like to thank Professor Marianne Haslev Skånland for translating this article and sharing it with me. This is the first occasion involving a Norwegian CPS case, of which I’m aware, where the head of a CPS office has had to resign over the way several CPS cases have been handled by his office. Only God knows how many hundreds of parents in Norway have gotten the same type of treatment only to never have their children returned. This is certainly a step in the right direction but it is one case of so many that must be reviewed!

Here are a few of many articles published here and abroad about this family. To see all of the posts here, just type “Ken Olsen” into the search box on this blog.

“Ken Joar Olsen and his Aria – Norway”

“Ken Joar Olsen speaks at the demonstration against Barnevernet and human rights violations in Oslo 11 June 2016”

“Praise God! It appears that Aria has been returned to Ken and Vibeke!!”

“Ken Joar Olsen, My Good Friend, Speaks in Trondheim”
…

Romerikes Blad, is a Norwegian newspaper published in Lillestrøm, covering especially districts east of Oslo. The Norwegian title was “Forløsende om ordfører Bergheim kom med en uforbeholden unnskyldning til paret”.
Magne Storedal is the paper’s chief editor.

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Posted by Chris

A case exposing the double standards of Norway’s CPS

May 15, 2018

Jan Simonsen (L) and Marianne Haslev Skånland demonstrating against Norway’s CPS.
Photo private


By Jan Simonsen & Marianne Haslev Skånland

One of Norway’s top child-protection policy experts, Jo Erik Brøyn, was sentenced to prison under the country’s child pornography laws. His arrest further discredits Norway’s Child Protection Services.

A child psychiatrist and top child protection expert, 56-year-old Jo Erik Brøyn, who in 2010 became the single father to two Indian surrogate babies, has been sentenced to nearly two years’ jail under Norway’s child pornography laws.

Brøyn was found guilty of possessing and sharing an enormous quantity of material—about 200,000 pictures and 4,000 hours of video—showing children subjected to brutal sexual abuse. The indictment against Brøyn reads: “Pictures and videos show sexual abuse committed by adults against children, sexual acts between children, and children performing sexual acts on themselves.”

This case is symptomatic of the Norwegian child protection services (CPS) system (known as “Barnevernet”) and our authorities’ attitude to it. It demonstrates the double standards of what people in authority do and say in relation to the strict legislation regarding children that they themselves promote and through which they exercise power.

The Norwegian police were notified of Brøyn’s possession of this material as far back as 2014, from the Swiss police. However, Brøyn was not stopped from continuing as an expert and child psychiatrist in the CPS system for several years thereafter. He has been downloading abuse material from 1997.

…However, Brøyn was not stopped from continuing as an expert and child psychiatrist in the CPS system for several years thereafter…

THIS EXCELLENT ARTICLE EXPLAINING YET ANOTHER CASE OF THE NORWEGIAN “PROTECTIVE CHILDHOOD” RUN AMOK CONTINUES HERE…

HERE IS ANOTHER WAY TO SEE THE ARTICLE. (This is Suranya Aiyar’s excellent website. She has spearheaded this series of articles in the Sunday Guardian Live.)

A photo of this “top child protection expert” from 2010

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