As a career journalist of the old school I don't take sides politically. I can't, nor should any real journalist do that. We should all be political independents so we can cover politics and political campaigns 'fairly and honestly.' The fact that the news media is so obviously biased in one direction or another shows how far journalism has fallen and, unfortunately, it is leading to the fall of a nation. The 'free press' was supposed to be part of how a constitutional republic (the U.S. is not a democracy) could remain free of tyranny. As a child of the 40s and 50s and a journalist beginning in the 60s I've also seen how political parties have changed - and it has not been for the better. As a former atheist who entered Christianity in the early 70s, I have also seen the 'church' infiltrated with the very people that Jesus Christ, the prophets, and apostles warned us to avoid and not allow to take positions of leadership in His Church. Our salvation is in Jesus alone. There is no political party or ruling class that can save us - only Jesus Christ. Humanism, socialism, Marxism, communism, paganism - not much difference really because they all oppose Christ. As the Apostle John wrote - 'Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us." (1 John 2:18-19) The world is filled with people and movements that are against (anti) Christ. Unfortunately, many of the 'shepherds' that should protect and feed the Lord's sheep have left their posts to follow the ways of this world. They have chosen to follow the world's 'worldview' rather than God's 'worldview.' Unsaved men and women fill the pulpits of churches and positions of leadership in denominations. That is a massive mistake - though we find overwhelming evidence that all of this was prophesied thousands of years ago in the Bible. Christians have chosen to leave the 'narrow' path for the 'broad' way - a way that leads to destruction. We know that the true 'Church' is not lost because Jesus said He would build His Church - and He is doing just that. However, many who claim to be part the Lord's Church are part of something else - they are 'of the world' and the world's system. The 'shepherds' have opened the doors of churches to the wolves who do what they do best - devour and destroy. As the Apostle Peter wrote in his second letter, these men "secretly bring in destructive heresies." It is no wonder that many in the modern American church have fallen away from God (apostasy). As for the current political status of our nation, especially in light of the upcoming election, this journalist sees the coming of a 'rupture' that may lead to the end of our republic in short time. As with the death of many civilizations through the centuries, something will take its place. It may be socialism, humanism, paganism, communism - probably a mix of what the ''enemy' has to offer. Whatever 'it is' will most likely be 'ungodly and worldly.' Any journalist or citizen who has taken the time to keep up with the plans of political leaders for the past several decades knew a day of reckoning was coming. I wrote an article 50 years ago predicting that the U.S. was moving in that direction - not because I'm a prophet but because I do what journalists should do - observe, watch, ask questions, and report what they find - honestly and objectively. Voting for political office in our country has always been challenging and often contentious. However, I have not seen any political 'season' as contentious as the one we are witnessing now - at least not in my almost 60 years in journalism. That leads to the question - for whom should I vote this time? As a journalist I point you to the facts - not opinions, not feelings - but solid facts. I'll share the facts - you choose the best candidates based on your worldview. However, as a Christian I would like to share this piece of advice. It's not my advice because I'm not that smart. It's the advice God gave Moses thousands of years ago about how to choose godly leaders. "Choose wise, understanding, and knowledgeable men from among your tribes, and I will make them heads over you" (Deuteronomy 1:13.) My advice - if you find a candidate who meets God's criteria for godly leadership, by all means cast your ballot for them. If you don't find one, then you have to make the best choice you can under the circumstances. Whatever happens this election season - Christians have a much higher calling. Jesus commanded us to preach the Gospel, make disciples, and teach them to obey Him. Let's keep our focus on what God wants us to accomplish.
I'm glad to hear your confirmation of Basham's work -- and yes, it's been obvious for some time that these things are happening. My argument is that many of those who warn about the Left/Progressivism/Identity Politics, including Basham, Shinvi, Rufo, Mitchell, etc., must assume what I say in the piece, viz., that socialism is a phenomenon going back centuries, but that it arises in tandem with the rejection of Christianity in the 18th century as the basis for all of life, i.e., Humanism. In my last contribution, which you can find at TWB, I argue that we must vote for the best available candidate, and I provide scriptural justification as well. Currently, that candidate will inevitably be a Republican, even a very flawed Republican.
Well, it's not an "undercurrent," I'm explicit that Christians should vote for Republicans against Democrats. The reason, which I try to support as much as I can in a short piece, is that the Democratic Party as a whole has adopted elements of socialism, and they will collectively move the country in that direction. There may be local races of little national consequence, but for the US Senate, House, and the White House, Christians who hold to "Christian natural law" should vote a straight ticket for Republican candidates. As for Basham's book, I thought the case she made that well-funded leftwing organizations are pressuring Evangelicals to vote for Democrats was sound.
Hi, Nicholas. I've already written a response to some of your article, so I won't repeat that here. What I would like to say is that as a journalist with almost 60 years experience I can say that Megan Basham is a good journalist. What I mean by that is she does what journalists should do. She gathers facts, confirms facts, and reports facts. I read her book and did an online review of it several weeks ago. Most of what she reported has been obvious to any careful observer for decades. Many of the best-known church leaders have turned toward 'worldly' thinking - which has become a large crack in churches, denominations, organizations, seminaries, Bible colleges, etc. She simply reported things that have been publicly available in various writings and speeches for the last 20-30 years (at least). I'm glad she wrote her book because it needed to be reported by someone with a national voice. Just a reminder that what someone says can be 'slander,' but what a person writes can be 'libel.' They are sub-categories of 'defamation.' I did not find that Basham 'libeled' anyone in her book. I've also watched many interviews she's given and I did not find that she 'slandered' anyone. She reported publicly available facts about people and organizations that are viewed as being part of the 'Christian' community. Facts are facts. Opinions and feelings are not facts. As long as a journalist reports facts objectively, they should be fine in the legal realm.
I hope I'm just being overly sensitive, but I got an undercurrent of "Vote for Trump because Democrats are woke" thread underneath this newsletter. I've had a high opinion of this newsletter until now.
Sadly, you are citing an error-filled polemic, Megan Basham, Shepherds for Sale (HarperCollins), 2024, which slanders a number of good Christian organizations such as Campus Crusade for Christ and (I think) the Evangelical Immigration Table.
As a career journalist of the old school I don't take sides politically. I can't, nor should any real journalist do that. We should all be political independents so we can cover politics and political campaigns 'fairly and honestly.' The fact that the news media is so obviously biased in one direction or another shows how far journalism has fallen and, unfortunately, it is leading to the fall of a nation. The 'free press' was supposed to be part of how a constitutional republic (the U.S. is not a democracy) could remain free of tyranny. As a child of the 40s and 50s and a journalist beginning in the 60s I've also seen how political parties have changed - and it has not been for the better. As a former atheist who entered Christianity in the early 70s, I have also seen the 'church' infiltrated with the very people that Jesus Christ, the prophets, and apostles warned us to avoid and not allow to take positions of leadership in His Church. Our salvation is in Jesus alone. There is no political party or ruling class that can save us - only Jesus Christ. Humanism, socialism, Marxism, communism, paganism - not much difference really because they all oppose Christ. As the Apostle John wrote - 'Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us." (1 John 2:18-19) The world is filled with people and movements that are against (anti) Christ. Unfortunately, many of the 'shepherds' that should protect and feed the Lord's sheep have left their posts to follow the ways of this world. They have chosen to follow the world's 'worldview' rather than God's 'worldview.' Unsaved men and women fill the pulpits of churches and positions of leadership in denominations. That is a massive mistake - though we find overwhelming evidence that all of this was prophesied thousands of years ago in the Bible. Christians have chosen to leave the 'narrow' path for the 'broad' way - a way that leads to destruction. We know that the true 'Church' is not lost because Jesus said He would build His Church - and He is doing just that. However, many who claim to be part the Lord's Church are part of something else - they are 'of the world' and the world's system. The 'shepherds' have opened the doors of churches to the wolves who do what they do best - devour and destroy. As the Apostle Peter wrote in his second letter, these men "secretly bring in destructive heresies." It is no wonder that many in the modern American church have fallen away from God (apostasy). As for the current political status of our nation, especially in light of the upcoming election, this journalist sees the coming of a 'rupture' that may lead to the end of our republic in short time. As with the death of many civilizations through the centuries, something will take its place. It may be socialism, humanism, paganism, communism - probably a mix of what the ''enemy' has to offer. Whatever 'it is' will most likely be 'ungodly and worldly.' Any journalist or citizen who has taken the time to keep up with the plans of political leaders for the past several decades knew a day of reckoning was coming. I wrote an article 50 years ago predicting that the U.S. was moving in that direction - not because I'm a prophet but because I do what journalists should do - observe, watch, ask questions, and report what they find - honestly and objectively. Voting for political office in our country has always been challenging and often contentious. However, I have not seen any political 'season' as contentious as the one we are witnessing now - at least not in my almost 60 years in journalism. That leads to the question - for whom should I vote this time? As a journalist I point you to the facts - not opinions, not feelings - but solid facts. I'll share the facts - you choose the best candidates based on your worldview. However, as a Christian I would like to share this piece of advice. It's not my advice because I'm not that smart. It's the advice God gave Moses thousands of years ago about how to choose godly leaders. "Choose wise, understanding, and knowledgeable men from among your tribes, and I will make them heads over you" (Deuteronomy 1:13.) My advice - if you find a candidate who meets God's criteria for godly leadership, by all means cast your ballot for them. If you don't find one, then you have to make the best choice you can under the circumstances. Whatever happens this election season - Christians have a much higher calling. Jesus commanded us to preach the Gospel, make disciples, and teach them to obey Him. Let's keep our focus on what God wants us to accomplish.
I'm glad to hear your confirmation of Basham's work -- and yes, it's been obvious for some time that these things are happening. My argument is that many of those who warn about the Left/Progressivism/Identity Politics, including Basham, Shinvi, Rufo, Mitchell, etc., must assume what I say in the piece, viz., that socialism is a phenomenon going back centuries, but that it arises in tandem with the rejection of Christianity in the 18th century as the basis for all of life, i.e., Humanism. In my last contribution, which you can find at TWB, I argue that we must vote for the best available candidate, and I provide scriptural justification as well. Currently, that candidate will inevitably be a Republican, even a very flawed Republican.
Well, it's not an "undercurrent," I'm explicit that Christians should vote for Republicans against Democrats. The reason, which I try to support as much as I can in a short piece, is that the Democratic Party as a whole has adopted elements of socialism, and they will collectively move the country in that direction. There may be local races of little national consequence, but for the US Senate, House, and the White House, Christians who hold to "Christian natural law" should vote a straight ticket for Republican candidates. As for Basham's book, I thought the case she made that well-funded leftwing organizations are pressuring Evangelicals to vote for Democrats was sound.
Hi, Nicholas. I've already written a response to some of your article, so I won't repeat that here. What I would like to say is that as a journalist with almost 60 years experience I can say that Megan Basham is a good journalist. What I mean by that is she does what journalists should do. She gathers facts, confirms facts, and reports facts. I read her book and did an online review of it several weeks ago. Most of what she reported has been obvious to any careful observer for decades. Many of the best-known church leaders have turned toward 'worldly' thinking - which has become a large crack in churches, denominations, organizations, seminaries, Bible colleges, etc. She simply reported things that have been publicly available in various writings and speeches for the last 20-30 years (at least). I'm glad she wrote her book because it needed to be reported by someone with a national voice. Just a reminder that what someone says can be 'slander,' but what a person writes can be 'libel.' They are sub-categories of 'defamation.' I did not find that Basham 'libeled' anyone in her book. I've also watched many interviews she's given and I did not find that she 'slandered' anyone. She reported publicly available facts about people and organizations that are viewed as being part of the 'Christian' community. Facts are facts. Opinions and feelings are not facts. As long as a journalist reports facts objectively, they should be fine in the legal realm.
I hope I'm just being overly sensitive, but I got an undercurrent of "Vote for Trump because Democrats are woke" thread underneath this newsletter. I've had a high opinion of this newsletter until now.
Sadly, you are citing an error-filled polemic, Megan Basham, Shepherds for Sale (HarperCollins), 2024, which slanders a number of good Christian organizations such as Campus Crusade for Christ and (I think) the Evangelical Immigration Table.