The US economy added 64,000 jobs in November while the unemployment rate rose to 4.6% from 4.4% in September, according to the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Due to the federal government shutdown, data for the unemployment rate series was not collected in October.

The unemployment rate had been forecast to remain steady at 4.4% in November. Meanwhile, nonfarm payroll employment had been forecast to show an increase of 40,000 according to FactSet. The Labor Department reported that the US economy lost 105,000 jobs in October. Job gains were revised down for September to an increase of 108,000 from an originally reported increase of 119,000.

https://www.morningstar.com/economy/november-us-jobs-report-unemployment-rate-unexpectedly-rises-46

He's doing pretty much what he did the first time around.

Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Turning Point USA Senior Director Josh Thifault revealed the initiative during a news conference at the Governor’s Mansion [last] Monday. They did not outline any plans that would require schools to initiate the clubs, but Abbott said that he expects “meaningful disciplinary action” to take place against “any stoppage of TPUSA in the great state of Texas.”

Kirk’s organization has traditionally operated on college campuses, promoting itself as a hub for young people committed to conservative values. The group is also known for having created a so-called professor watchlist, which allows users to search for educators perceived as supporting and promoting liberal viewpoints in the classroom. Turning Point’s work has at times caused tension, particularly among students and faculty members who have reported being harassed because of the negative spotlight placed on them by the organization.

The group’s “Club America” chapters, meanwhile, operate in high schools. The clubs aim to “build strong networks, spearhead impactful initiatives, help students register to vote, and inspire meaningful conversations about the foundations of a free society,” according to their website.

Republican officials in Oklahoma and Florida have also announced partnerships with Turning Point to expand the organization’s presence. Those partnerships rely on interested students to initiate the clubs, while Turning Point provides them with organizational support.

Abbott on Monday sought to distance Turning Point from any particular political party, comparing it to organizations like the Fellowship of Christian Athletes currently present in many public schools.

The governor acknowledged that it is highly unlikely he would endorse a similar initiative for more progressive, left-leaning causes, but added that “it would not be illegal” for them to exist in public schools.

[At least he's open about his plans for biased political indoctrination.]

After this latest tirade, please pray that this demented fool in the Whitehouse will get a brain, get a heart, or get impeached. We need better; it's time for a change and I hope leaders and the rest of us will step up to the plate. May we all contract a case of Trump Derangement Syndrome- until there's no more need.

Author and apologist Dr. Sean McDowellhas researched and discussed many aspects of the Christian life—including heaven. McDowell recently answered one of the toughest topics and questions with an approachable truth.

“Would you say that [people in heaven] can’t sin?” asked an audience member at a recent event.

Sean McDowell Says in Heaven, We’ll ‘See Sin for Exactly What It Is’​

As an apologetics professor at Biola University, Sean McDowell speaks at schools, conferences, and universities. After taking a question from the audience from a recent event, McDowell jumped into a conversation about heaven.

Continued below.

During a recent interview, Jenny McCarthy discussed her conservative values and said she “completely surrendered” to Jesus after Charlie Kirkwas murdered. Although the 53-year-old actor has “always been a follower of Christ,” she said the September assassination of conservative commentator Kirk caused her to become “so devoted” to Jesus.

On the Dec. 11 episode of “Culture Apothecary,” host Alex Clark asked McCarthy about her activism and her views about Hollywood, which led to conversations about values and faith. The actor, who was raised Catholic, said she has “a very deep relationship with God.” McCarthy explained, “Some people have to work really hard to hear him. I’ve got a direct line. I mean, Jesus is my homie.”

Continued below.

On Friday, Dec. 12, Angel Studios, the streaming platform that introduced the world to “The Chosen,” announced it will release a new animated adaptation of George Orwell’s “Animal Farm” in theaters nationwide on May 1, 2026. The studio acquired theatrical distribution rights for the project, which is led by director Andy Serkis.

According to Angel Studios’ website, the streaming platform that is “powered by over 1 million Angel Guild members [is] driven by purpose, and built to share stories that amplify light.” In addition to “The Chosen,” Angel Studios has distributed “Sound of Freedom,” “The King of Kings,” Bonhoeffer,” “Homestead,” “Cabrini,” “Sound of Hope,” “The WingFeather Saga,” and the upcoming animated film “David.” It is also often heralded as a family-friendly alternative to the Disney+ streaming platform.

Continued below.

Twenty years ago, I wrote my first book with the late Bishop Harry Jackson, Personal Faith: Public Policy. Among the major issues we examined were immigration and health care. And here we are — two decades later — still listening to the same debates. Some issues in Washington are like that proverbial leaking roof: everyone knows it needs fixing, and every storm reminds us of the problem. But instead of grabbing a ladder and repairing it, the buckets just get moved around.

The current storm was created when Joe Biden, Nancy Pelosi, and Chuck Schumer used the manufactured COVID-19 crisis as cover to spend billions more taxpayer dollars to prop up the failing Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). Many predicted this back in 2010, when Nancy Pelosi famously declared, “We have to pass it so we can read it,” as she pushed it through Congress without a single Republican vote. The so-called Affordable Care Act quickly became what many warned it would become — the unaffordable care act.

Democrats doubled down in March 2021 and again in August 2022, passing the American Rescue Plan Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, again without a single Republican vote. The first bill created temporary subsidies to mask the ACA’s structural failures, and the second extended this bailout until December 2025. Not only has the Affordable Care Act proven unaffordable — contrary to President Obama’s promises — it was deliberately crafted to bypass the longstanding bipartisan Hyde Amendment, which kept taxpayers out of the abortion business.

That brings us to the present dilemma for Republicans, who now find themselves the property managers of this leaking roof. They have inherited a failed, government-driven health system that funds abortion and pays for controversial experimental drugs and surgeries used in gender transitions.

Continued below.

Hobby Lobby is giving away half a million copies of the book The Case for Christmas in the latest example of the nationwide retailer making the Christian faith an essential part of its day-to-day operations.

In an X post on Dec. 3, author Lee Strobel announced that Hobby Lobby is giving away half a million free copies of his book The Case for Christmas at its stores nationwide ahead of Christmas Day: “I’m praying God uses them to point people to Himself!”

Strobel clarified in a follow-up X post on Dec. 6 that Hobby Lobby will continue to give away free copies of the book until 500,000 copies are handed out.

Continued below.

A new report published by the General Secretariat for Catholic Education (SGEC) in France has sent shockwaves through the country’s educational landscape, reopening the debate over the methods used in state oversight, possible ideological abuses, and their impact on educational freedom. 

Published on Dec. 8, the 14-page document widely cited in the French press compiles testimonies from teachers, principals, and staff in Catholic schools under state contract who report having been subjected to what Catholic education leaders describe as “abusive,” “intrusive” inspections carried out by officials from the Ministry of National Education. The report highlights that it does not challenge the principle of state oversight itself but denounces the methods employed — methods that, according to Catholic leaders, risk undermining both the dignity of educators and the very identity of Catholic schools.

The controversy erupted just a few months after the publication of a parliamentary report calling for increased oversight of Catholic institutions in the name of child protection. Catholic school officials are now issuing a strong warning against the climate of suspicion and political exploitation that they have seen develop in recent months.

In July, revelations of physical and sexual abuse at Notre Dame de Bétharram, a Catholic boarding school in southwestern France, triggered a nationwide debate on how abuse in schools is identified, reported, and addressed, alongside similar cases at other institutions. A parliamentary inquiry subsequently examined these cases, highlighting serious institutional failures while also prompting questions about how oversight is carried out at faith-based schools operating under state contract.

Continued below.

About half of American adults who were raised Catholic and stayed in the Church said the faith continues to “fulfill their spiritual needs,” according to a Pew Research Center report.

The Dec. 15 report, “Why Do Some Americans Leave Their Religion While Others Stay?”, examines the religious switching of U.S. adults. It looks into the reasons why people stay or leave their childhood faith, addressing the social and demographic factors associated with the changes.

The report includes findings from a survey of 8,937 U.S. adults who are part of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP). The survey was conducted May 5–11 and its overall margin of error is 1.4 percentage points. It also uses information from the center’s 2023-24 Religious Landscape Study (RLS), a survey of 36,908 U.S. adults conducted from July 17, 2023, to March 4, 2024, with an overall margin of error of 0.8 percentage points.

While the report revealed many U.S. adults (35%) have left the religion they grew up in, the majority of Americans (56%) still identify with their childhood religion. Another 9% weren’t raised in a religion and still don’t have one today.

Continued below.

United Airlines reached a settlement with a flight attendant who alleged that the airline fired him for endorsing Catholic teachings on marriage and gender identity.

The former employee, Ruben Sanchez, of Anchorage, Alaska, alleged that United Airlines investigated his social media history after someone reported a private in-flight conversation he had with another Catholic flight attendant.

“Sanchez and his colleague discussed their working conditions and everyday life. As they were both Catholic, their discussion turned to Catholic theology and then, with United’s ‘Pride Month’ activities set to start on June 1, Catholic teachings on marriage and sexuality,” Sanchez’s complaint states.

The Catholic Church makes a distinction between homosexual orientation and homosexual activity. Same-sex attraction itself is not considered morally wrong, and homosexuals “must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2358), with unjust discrimination avoided. The Church teaches that God’s design for sexuality is entwined with marriage and family life and is characterized by the exclusive, indissoluble covenant of marriage.

Continued below.

The 14-year legal battle against federal contraceptive mandates will continue, with Little Sisters of the Poor and the federal government seeking to reinstate moral and religious exemptions that were established in 2017.

Little Sisters of the Poor have already won religious freedom cases on this subject twice at the Supreme Court level. The high court ruled in 2016 that the federal government must protect religious freedoms for those who oppose the contraceptives and in 2020 ruled that the federal government had the legal authority to adopt the broad exemptions established in 2017.

Those exemptions fully covered employers that had religious or moral objections to providing the contraceptives, some of which can be abortifacient. Under the rules, those employers were not required to include any contraceptive coverage in their insurance plans for employees.

In spite of the prior Supreme Court wins, a federal court in August 2025 struck down the 2017 exemptions on grounds that the Supreme Court had not yet ruled on.

Continued below.

After being edged out by 2.9% in the Nov. 16 general election by his Communist Party opponent Jeannette Jara, Republican Party candidate José Antonio Kast reversed the result in the Dec. 14 runoff vote to become the new president-elect of Chile.

With 58% of the vote, and in line with the polls that predicted him as the winner with more than 55%, Kast prevailed over Jara, who obtained 42%.

With 99.97% of the ballots counted, showing a difference of more than 2 million valid votes, the runoff election marks a change of political direction for the country, currently led by President Gabriel Boric of the political left.

Kast is slated to take office as president of Chile on March 11, 2026. On the same day, the legislators elected in November will also take office.

Continued below.

Pope Leo XIV on Monday thanked Costa Rican artist Paula Sáenz Soto for donating a pro-life Nativity scene to the Vatican, named “Gaudium” (“Joy”), which features a pregnant Virgin Mary.

“I thank the Costa Rican artist who, along with the message of peace of Christmas, also wanted to make an appeal for protecting life from conception,” the pope said during the audience he granted Dec. 15 to the delegations that prepared this year’s Christmas tree and Nativity scenes that will adorn the Vatican during the Christmas season.

The artwork from the Central American country has been on display since Dec. 15 in the Pope Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican, the large hall where the pope is now holding his Wednesday general audiences so pilgrims don’t have to endure the cold temperatures of the Roman winter in St. Peter’s Square.

In his address, the Holy Father alluded to its composition, mentioning the 28,000 colorful ribbons that symbolize lives saved thanks to the support provided by Catholic organizations to pregnant women in vulnerable situations.

Continued below.

I've been Catholic for some years now, but when I first became Christian, I was Presbyterian. I enjoyed the particular church I attended, not because it was "Presbyterian" per se, but because of the quality of the people. In particular the pastor and his family were outstanding. I often mention the pastor in my posts on the forum in one way or another.

Unfortunately the Presbyterian Church of Queensland is under a lot of financial stress due to a court ruling as a result of what seemed to be unwise financial decisions by it's aged care business, Prescare. They're facing a $32 million dollar payout to clear the debt as a result, and some church property may have to be sold.


I don't wish them any ill will. There is one Presbyterian pastor I've got no time for, but other than that I hope they can pull through without losing too many parish churches.

That was a good service!

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God came into the cave, yet we have made gods of our own design, gods we bear about with us and seek hour by hour to propitiate. If such description seems to smack of melodrama, the question nonetheless bears investigation.

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Advent is a season of waiting. While our culture urges us to rush toward Christmas, Advent invites us to slow down, to watch, and to wait with faith. Scripture is full of people who waited on God, but one story in particular—found in Matthew 15:21–28—continues to fascinate and challenge us.

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Day 1 — December 16

Hail, and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem in piercing cold.

In that hour, vouchsafe I beseech Thee, O my God, to hear my prayers and grant my petitions through the merits of Jesus Christ and of His most blessed Mother. Amen

(Mention your intentions here)

PRAYER

O Shepherd that rulest Israel, Thou that leadest Joseph like a sheep, come to guide and comfort us.

Our Father....
Hail Mary....
Glory be....

I think of children who are born without a brain, or at least most of it. Most die from it, I know, but some survive. But when they didn't have, let's say, the visual center at the back of their heads, they still saw. I know that the muscle attachment to the eyes is independent of a brain, and is controlled by the cerebral cortex, so the soul is probably in the cerebral cortex anyway, but they should really be blind when they don't have the "visual" center at the back of their heads:






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We see the current deadly mass shooting on Bondi Beach in Sydney Australia. What motivated such hatred, how could they kill so many innocent people? What we see, is basically a attack much like the Pogroms of old, to wipe out the Jews.

Antisemitism in the form of persecution and Pogroms were happening way before the Holocaust, and everyone knows what happened in 1492 in Spain, but something else happened that year. In 1492, King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castille issue the Alhambra Decree, mandating that all Jews be expelled from the country. History records what happened, "Spanish Jews were forced to renounce their faith or leave their thousand-year homeland behind. Meanwhile, the Spanish economy crumbled as hundreds of thousands prepared for departure, liquidating their assets and scrambling to arrange their affairs."

This had started even earlier back a century before, in 1391, when a wave of anti-Jewish riots swept through Spain, where thousands were killed. Others were forced to accept Christianity, so you can see the problem with the sincerity of these "conversions", so many of these "converts" now became persecuted by the Inquisition. And everyone knows the Roman persecution of the Jews leading up to the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, and millions being killed or were exiled or fled for their lives.

So why was there such hatred of the Jews, it cant be explained by the accusation that the Jews were Christ-killers., as anti-Jewish riots swept through Roman Empire as Christians were dying in the Coliseum and spread even in non-Christian areas. So what made them different than the people in the other nations and areas, well the day of worship certainly made them stand out and distinct to say the least.

Mary had been visited by an angel of God and told that she was going to give birth to the Son of God and that she was to name him “Jesus.” But Mary was a virgin and had not been with a man, so she wondered how this would happen. And the angel told her that the Holy Spirit would come upon her, i.e. that the baby would be conceived of the Holy Spirit and not of man. Therefore, when Jesus was born and he lived on the earth, he did not have a sin nature as we did, and he was fully human and fully God (God incarnate).

Sometime after Mary’s encounter with the angel, she went to the home of Zacharias and Elizabeth, and when Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby in her womb leaped for joy. And that baby ended up being John the Baptist who God used to prepare the way of the Lord Jesus Christ. And Elizabeth called Mary blessed because she believed that there would be a fulfillment of what the Lord had said to her through the angel. For Mary considered herself the bondslave of the Lord, and so she submitted to God’s will for her life.


Mary gave all the glory and praise and credit to God and to God alone for what the Lord was doing in her life. She recognized that, even though all generations from that time forward would most certainly count her blessed of God, it was because of the great things that God did for her. So she did not raise herself up above all others. She did not desire to be worshiped. She was humble of heart and mind that God would choose her to give birth to the Son of God. So her soul exalted the Lord, and not herself.

And all of us who have trusted in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our lives should have the same frame of mind and heart as Mary did in recognizing that God is our source for all the good that he does in and through our lives, and that we should give him all the glory and not take glory for ourselves. If he calls us by his grace to a particular area of ministry or service to him, we should be sure to give him all the glory and praise, and to give him all the credit for what he is doing in and through our lives.

But then Mary went on to talk about God’s mercy upon generation after generation toward those who fear him, as Mary feared God. And to fear God is to be in awe of him and to show him respect, honor, reverence, worship, devotion, and obedience to his commands. It is to take God’s words to heart, to believe them, and to honor them. And we do this when we submit to his Lordship over our lives, and we willingly deny self, die to sin daily, and walk in obedience to his commands, all in the power of God and by his grace.

But those who do not fear the Lord, because they are proud in the thoughts of their heart, he will scatter (dismiss, terminate). For Jesus Christ, in his death on that cross, put our sins to death with him so that, by faith in him, we will now die to sin and live to obey our Lord and his commands. So, all who refuse to bow the knee to him, to humble themselves, and to submit to his will, and who choose their own sinful path, instead, even if they profess faith in the name of Jesus, they will not inherit eternal life with God.

For we learn in 1 John 1-3 that if we claim that we have fellowship with God, but yet we walk in darkness (sin), we are liars. If we claim that we know God, but we do not obey his commandments, in practice, we are liars. For it is not the one who claims he is “in Christ” who is “in Christ,” but it is the one who has denied self, died with Christ to sin, and who is now walking in obedience to our Lord and to his commands, in practice, and no longer in sin. We have the hope and the promise of eternal life with God in heaven.

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]

As the Deer

By Martin J. Nystrom
Based off Psalm 42:1

As the deer panteth for the water
So my soul longeth after You
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You

You alone are my strength, my shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You

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My Soul Exalts The Lord
An Original Work / December 16, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Here is my list of NT texts outside the protestant canon that are inspired. I believe the internal dates, and claims of authorship of all these texts.

The follow internally date to before 70 AD:

Gospel of Nicodemus
History of Joseph the Carpenter
Protoevangelium of James
Didascalia Apostolorum Teaching of the Apostles.
Acts of Barnabas (not epistle of Barnabas or Gospel of Barnabas)
3 Corinthians (letter only)
Didache
Apocalypse of Peter
Revelation of the Magi.
2 Clement

The following have no internal date but I believe they were written pre 70 AD, and are therefore inspired:
Pseudo gospel of Matthew (Jerome said written by Mathew the apostle).
Acts of Peter, and Paul (different than apocryphal acts of the apostles). I believe was written 65/66 AD.

Possible
Infancy gospel of Thomas. Some manuscripts say written by Thomas the Israelite which I assume to be Thomas the apostle.
Gospel of Barthelemew : uses gamatria references wisdom of Solomon which internally is written by Solomon, and also uses gematria. If one is real I assume the other one is too I am just skeptical of gematria. I like both.

All are on audiobook on YouTube.


Daniel 9 gave a series of events to happen, and ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, and one thing that was going to happen by then was vision, and prophecy would be sealed up aka inspired scripture would stop then so that is why NT texts with internal dates before 70 AD are essentially claiming to be inspired, and some have prophecies of 70 AD associated phenomena in which case they are automatically claiming to be inspired. I'd recommend listening to all of the above on audiobook or they are all on websites as text or annas archive is the free e book website. These texts are incorrectly labelled as pseudepigrapha, and a lot are in the multi volume books called NT apocrypha which contains a lot of books I do not believe were written pre 70 AD.

For OT ones the most important ones are 1 Enoch, Assumption of Moses, Life of Adam, and Eve, and there are a lot more.

Authorities said one of the women suffered a knife injury, although women managed to barricade themselves in another room, the report states. The woman who was uninjured retrieved a firearm and opened fire on the intruder, fatally striking him. - Woman fatally shoots man she had protective order against after break-in: cops