The Scottish “Coronation”
The Scottish “coronation” of King Charles III took place on July 5. The service was sad and highly objectionable. To Episcopalian features and gimmicks (items in Gaelic and Scots) were added women ministers, Romanism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism and humanism. The occasion does not bode well for the future of the United Kingdom, or of Scotland, or of the monarchy. “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” (Gal 6:7). DWBS
It is Written – Male and Female
The opening chapter of Genesis declares, “So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him, male and female created He them” (v 27). These simple and meaningful words of Holy Scripture concisely convey the fact that God created man in His image, male and female.
It is true that Adam and Eve grievously rebelled against God in the Garden of Eden and came (together with their whole posterity) under His curse. They were all now fallen creatures, wholly estranged from God. Man has, since that day, wallowed in all that is sinful and contrary to the righteousness and purity of his Creator. Though the Fall was solemnly most radical and its influence very extensive, people’s gender did not change: people remained (in every generation) either male or female, as the Holy Scriptures and the histories of civilisation testify.
Indeed, the entirety of Adam and Eve’s posterity, in all generations, in every part of the world, has until very recently been consistent in how they classified themselves. People have always been male or female; their children, likewise, male or female.
In recent years, a small number of people, making up a most insignificant proportion of the world’s total population, have increasingly insisted on making a change, an outrageously enormous change. They wish to move from the divinely ordered male-and-female division of society and have people “self-identify” as belonging to one or more of a whole array of potentially fluctuating and increasingly extending “gender identities”.
The organization, SexualDiversity.org, in their paper, “How Many Genders Are There? Gender Identity List”, not being content with the scriptural norm of two genders, states (and note their use of italics) that there are “107 gender identities currently listed for 2023” (https://www.sexualdiversity.org/edu/1111.php).
The influence of those advocating these changes, especially in the West, is very considerable, and most worrying. More and more governments, judicial courts, media groups, and educational institutions (including schools) are arrogantly demanding (or being forced by others to demand) mandatory acceptance of these changes by everyone. Should they be permitted to be implemented, these changes are bound to erode further the biblical foundation of society in our and other lands. May this serious matter drive us to prayer!
It is interesting to note that some developments in recent days indicate that the aggressive and worldly forces pushing their evil and unscriptural agenda are not consistently making headway and winning their battle. An interesting illustration is the following judgment concerning a Mrs Kristie Higgs. Mrs Higgs lost her employment as a teaching assistant for sharing two Facebook posts that raised concerns about how transgenderism and compulsory sex education were to be taught at her son’s Church of England primary school, at which Mrs Higgs worked.
“The President of the Employment Appeal Tribunal, Dame Jennifer Eady, allowed Mrs Higgs’s appeal against the decision of Bristol Employment Tribunal, and held: ‘The freedom to manifest belief (religious or otherwise) and to express views relating to that belief are essential rights in any democracy, whether or not the belief in question is popular or mainstream and even if its expression may offend’.
“Mrs Justice Eady criticised the judges in Bristol for failing to assess, as they were required by law, whether the investigation and dismissal of Mrs Higgs ‘were prescribed by law and were necessary for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others, recognizing the essential nature of [Mrs Higgs’s] rights to freedom of belief and freedom of expression’.
“The ruling sets a legal precedent [in England and Wales] which confirms that the Equality Act 2010 protects employees from discrimination not only for their beliefs, but also for expression or manifestation of their beliefs. It confirms that any limitation of freedom to manifest religion at a workplace must be prescribed by law and go no further than is necessary in a democratic society for the protection of rights, freedoms and reputation of others.”
Further information on this interesting and ongoing case can be found at https://christianconcern.com/news/teaching-assistant-wins-appeal-after-sacking-for-facebook-posts. The previous three paragraphs are quoted from this source.
May the Lord hear the cries of His people as we continue to pray, for all the peoples of our lands, that the Word of God may once again be acknowledged and followed throughout society as the sole, supreme and infallible rule of faith and practice! DPR
Online Pornography
Temptations to sin have harassed mankind since the Fall, but the avenues of temptations opened up by the internet and social media have increased the risks, especially to the young.
In 2017, the UK parliament passed an act requiring legal pornographic websites to implement “robust” age-verification checks. However, it was never enacted, in part because it did not cover media platforms. Instead, the UK Government has published its “Online Harms White Paper”, which aims to protect children from online pornography, including what can be found via social media platforms. But a survey has shown that 46% of 16- and 17-year-olds had used a VPN (virtual private network), which encrypts and therefore protects users’ data and also allows them to bypass censorship; or Tor browser, which gives anonymous access to free internet. If these young people cannot be “seen” by the provider, the requirements of the Government for verification and age restrictions, for instance, will have no effect.
A survey of over 1000 young people in England showed that: 53% of 11- to 16-year-olds reported viewing online pornography (28% of 11- to 12-year-olds and 65% of 15- to 16-year-olds); 28% of those polled first encountered online pornography accidentally; 19% were shown it by someone else and 19% looked for it themselves; 36% of males and 26% of females said they were not ashamed of viewing pornography, which shows how society is becoming increasingly desensitised to this vile material.
Among the top ten health concerns for children, internet safety ranked fourth in a national poll on children’s health. An additional major concern is that children viewing pornography are targets for online sexual predators. In the USA, the Crimes Against Children Research Center estimates that one in five teenagers have been targeted by an online sexual predator.
Parents are advised to have open discussions with their children about their experiences online. While it is possible to set suitable limits with one’s own children, other youngsters can cause children to be exposed to pornographic material by accident or on purpose. Children are curious by nature and it is natural for them to probe and explore, but it is becoming increasingly important that we do everything we can to make sure our children are protected.
Young people who are brought up under the gospel and taught the fear of the Lord by their parents are surely less likely to be drawn into this evil morass than their companions who do not have the same privileges. But our hearts are deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, and Satan will do his best to target the young and vulnerable. Teachers, parents and young people must all be on guard and seek that the Lord would be as “a covering of the eyes” to those at risk.
“Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report . . . think on these things.” FRD