Delaware just passed a law that looks to be problematic for parents that spank their children. Here’s what the law says: “Abuse” means causing any physical injury to a child. . . “Physical injury” to a child shall mean any impairment of physical condition or pain. Because the law defines “physical injury” as anything that causes “pain,” it appears that Delaware has effectively become the first state in the Union to outlaw spanking. The law goes on to say that anyone causing “pain” to a child under the age of 3 years could be charged with a felony. Here are the specifics from the Home School Legal Defense Association:
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Is the Stay-at-Home Dad a Man-Fail?
Moody Radio recently hosted a debate about stay-at-home dads. Owen Strachan squared-off against stay-at-home dad Matt Peregoy and argues that the Bible commands able-bodied men to be the primary bread-winners for their homes. This is a fascinating discussion, and I think Owen does a fantastic job representing a complementarian position. You can download the conversation here or listen below. [audio:http://podcasts.moodyradio.org/UpforDebate/2012-09-15_Up_for_Debate.mp3]
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Was C. S. Lewis a Calvinist?
I think I missed this when it first came around. In the video above, Doug Wilson argues that C. S. Lewis was a Calvinist, and he makes the case from various selections from Lewis’ writings. I’m no Lewis scholar, but this sounds really novel and unlikely to me. I wonder if any Lewis-philes would offer an alternate perspective on this. UPDATE: John Piper just weighed-in saying that Lewis was not a Calvinist but now is. (HT: Dane Ortlund)
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McLaren Presides over Same-Sex Commitment Ceremony
Brian McLaren caused quite a stir in 2010 when he announced in his book A New Kind of Christianity that he no longer believes that homosexuality is a sin. Many people were surprised by the news simply because he himself had called on evangelicals in 2006 to observe a five year moratorium on making moral pronouncements about homosexuality (see here). Yet in the book, McLaren not only made a moral pronouncement, he also chastised conservative evangelicals for their views on the matter.
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Anne Rice’s Apostasy
In 1998, the famous agnostic vampire novelist Anne Rice quietly converted to the religion of her youth—Roman Catholicism. The news of her conversion was fairly dramatic. The “I Am Second” campaign even featured her testimony in one of their videos (watch it here). In a recent video, however, Rice explains that she no longer believes in Jesus (see above). She doesn’t give much explanation as to why she no longer believes, but she does mention that her first steps away from faith happened in 2010 when she decided that she could no longer be a part of organized religion (read here). At that time, she left the Roman Catholic Church…
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The Bayou State in Week Four of College Football
LSU beat Auburn tonight, but it was ugly. And when I say ugly, I mean really ugly. Again, there were too many penalties and turnovers, and LSU looked lucky to come away with the win. The final score was 12-10. What I said after the first game is still true today. LSU does not look like a championship team, even though their record is now 4-0. Unfortunately, the Tigers are not playing anywhere close the level that Alabama is playing at. Unless there’s a dramatic shift in the way that the Tigers are playing, I expect LSU to lose at least 1-2 regular season games this year. I hope I’m…
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Don’t Believe the Hype on the Gospel of Jesus’ Wife
My college Greek professor taught me more than simply how to read the Greek New Testament. He also instructed me that to be a theologian I would have to learn my “ABCD’s.” That was my prof’s acronym for “A Built in Crud Detector”—only he didn’t use the word “crud.”
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Same-Sex Marriage Poised To Win Popular Vote
Supporters of traditional marriage have always been quick to point out that same-sex marriage has never survived a popular vote at the state level. Even in the very blue state of California, Proposition 8 passed with a simple majority. That track record of success for traditional marriage may be about to change. NBC News reports:
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Justin Bieber’s Pro-life Story
Justin Bieber’s mother, Pattie Mallette, has just published a book about her lifestory. In it she reveals some painful details about her past. As a young girl, she endured sexual abuse and subsequently turned to substance abuse. She underwent some sort of religious conversion but nevertheless became pregnant out of wedlock at age 17. In a recent interview with Kathy Lee Gifford (see above), Mallette shares that she was encouraged to abort her unborn child, but she refused. Watch the excerpt above. The rest of the interview is here.
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The 9/11 Surfer
Do you remember the 9/11 story of the man who survived the collapse of the World Trade Center by “surfing” down from the upper floors on top of the rubble? I first heard that tale reported in the immediate aftermath of the attack. I remember thinking then that the story was far-fetched. Since then, the story has been written-off as an urban legend—an extraordinary fabrication stemming from extraordinary events.