NewsWatch

Islamic State: Jihad Against Apostate Arabs

JihadWatch.org, 4/23/18, “Islamic State calls for jihad attacks against “apostate” Arab states” [Excerpts]: The official Islamic State spokesman on [April 22] published a call for the jihadist terror group’s adherents to focus their attacks on Arab states, diverging from his previous policy of urging assaults on Western targets. 

In an audio-recording that ran for nearly an hour, Abu Hassan al-Muhajir said there was no difference between fighting the Palestinians, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, or Iran and “their American Crusader allies, or the Russians or the Europeans,” the New York Times reported along with an English-language translation of some of his comments.

Arab states should be attacked because they are “apostates,” Muhajir said, using the terror group’s term to describe Sunni Muslims who do not follow its extremist version of the faith.

The Arabs were in fact worse than Western nations, as they were “more fierce and vicious against Islam.” He also issued a warning over Iraq’s upcoming parliamentary election on May 12, saying “the polling centers and those inside are a target for our swords. So stay away from them and do not walk near them....”

(https://goo.gl/qKkaTL)

Willow Creek Elders Admit Failure

ChristianPost.com, 4/23/18, “Willow Creek Elders Admit Failure in Holding Bill Hybels ‘Accountable,’ Will Examine New Allegations” [Excerpts]: The elder board of the storied Willow Creek Community Church in suburban Chicago asked for grace this past weekend as they admitted to failing to hold the church’s founder, Bill Hybels, “accountable to specific boundaries” as more women alleged he behaved improperly around them.  

Responding to newer allegations that were not previously investigated, the elder board revealed that they have engaged in deep introspection and now realized how they could have responded better as the claims were first made against Hybels.

“Over the last several weeks, we have been in a process of deep learning, seeking clarity, and building a path toward reconciliation. Even though Bill is no longer in his role, our work to resolve any shadow of doubt in the trustworthiness of Willow Creek Community Church and its Elders is not done,” the elders said in a letter to the Willow Creek church community Saturday. “As a board, we unanimously agree there are several areas where we could have served you better.”

And holding Hybels more accountable was one of those areas.

(https://goo.gl/RTpnWa)

New High School History Text

FrontPageMag.com, 4/23/18, “New AP History Text Categorizes Trump Supporters as Racist, Questions President’s Mental Fitness” [Excerpts]: It is sadly common for conservative presidents and political leaders to be portrayed in a less-than-flattering light in the left-leaning textbooks used in public school and college classrooms, but a new volume on American history gives a new spin on the term “rush to judgment.” America’s sitting president, Donald Trump is already being maligned in the pages of an upcoming high school history text which insinuates that he and his supporters are driven by racism and that he is mentally unfit to serve as our Commander-in-Chief. 

Textbooks rarely receive a high profile before their publication, but the new history text By the People: A History of the United States written by New York University Professor James W. Fraser and set to be published by the Pearson Education publishing company has already proved controversial for its radical left-leaning and insulting narrative on Donald Trump’s election as president. The book’s one-sided nature was exposed not by an educator but by high school student Tarra Snyder, a junior and AP History student at Rosemount High School in Minnesota, who was provided with Fraser’s book as a sample text that might be used for class instruction next year.

Scott Overland, a spokesman for the Pearson publishing company, told Fox News that the text was “developed by an expert author and underwent rigorous peer review to ensure academic integrity.” He further asserted that it was “designed to convey college-level information to high school students” and “aims to promote debate and critical thinking by presenting multiple sides” of the 2016 election.

(https://goo.gl/JUA6ds)