TBC NewsWatch

May 1, 2015

Various

THE TRINITY

AnswersInGenesis.org, 3/10/15, “The Trinity” [Excerpts]: The Bible clearly affirms the existence of three distinct Persons that are all identified as the one God of the universe.

As is traditionally stated, St. Patrick illustrated the trinity by using a shamrock (i.e., a three-leaf clover): “You tell us that there are three gods and yet one,” the puzzled Irish said when St. Patrick was preaching the gospel to them in the 5th century AD. “How can that be?” The saint bent down and plucked a shamrock. “Do you not see,” he said, “how in this wildflower three leaves are united on one stalk, and will you not then believe that there are indeed three persons and yet one God?”

[An] even better illustration of the Trinity is the universe itself (though no illustration is perfect). Isn’t it interesting that the entire physical universe (uni = one) consists of three and only three aspects—space, time, and matter? If you were to take away any of these three, you would no longer have a universe.

Space consists of length, width, and height—three in one. If you were to take away any of these dimensions, you would no longer have space.

Time consists of past, present, and future—three in one. If you were to take away any of these aspects, you would no longer have time.

Matter consists of energy in motion producing phenomena—three in one. If there were no energy there could be no motion or phenomena. If there were no motion, there would be no energy or phenomena. If there were no phenomena, it would be because there was no energy or motion.

We see this tri-unity composing the very fabric of the universe. Why would the universe reflect a trinitarian nature?...So what does the Bible teach about the Trinity? It clearly affirms the existence of three distinct Persons that are all identified as the one God of the universe. This is not a contradiction because we are not saying that God is both one person and three persons. Nor are we saying that God is both one god and three gods. We are saying that God is one in essence and three in Person. There is one “what,” and there are three “whos.” As you can see, God is one and three in different ways. Just as the one universe exists as space, time, and matter, the one God exists as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

(http://goo.gl/OJfUed)

"THREATENING LANGUAGE" IN QUOTING LEVITICUS

ChristianToday, 3/23/15, “Street preacher guilty of using ‘threatening’ language by quoting Leviticus” [Excerpts]: A Christian street preacher was found guilty of using “threatening” language by quoting the Bible when speaking about homosexuality on the streets of Taunton [England] in June last year.

Former paratrooper Mike Overd was convicted under section 5 of the Public Order Act, which concerns causing harassment, alarm or distress by using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour.

The judge at Bristol Crown Court told him that he should not have used the particular verse in the Bible—Leviticus:20:13—because it uses the word “abomination.” The judge suggested that there were other verses he could have chosen if he wanted to talk about what the Bible says about homosexuality.

Libby Towell, spokesperson for the Christian Legal Centre, who represented Overd, said: “The judge is effectively censoring the Bible and saying that certain verses aren’t fit for public consumption.”

Overd was given a fine of £200, and told to pay £1,200 in costs and compensation. This included a sum for the emotional harm caused to the homosexual man, who is also a Christian, to whom he was speaking when he quoted Leviticus.

(http://goo.gl/9oKGxP)

RISE IN ANTI-SEMITISM IN U.S.

ChristianHeadlines.com, 4/1/15, “Anti-Semitism in US Spikes after Nearly a Decade of Decline” [Excerpts]: Anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S. spiked 21 percent last year, according to the Anti-Defamation League, unsettling many American Jews who had thought that hatred of Jews and Judaism was on the decline, at least here at home.

The ADL has released a spring report that, for nearly the past 10 years, showed fewer incidents targeting American Jews. That downward trend contrasted sharply to the rising tide of anti-Semitism in Europe—recently witnessed in the January killings of four Jews at a kosher supermarket in Paris.

But this new ADL report casts a shadow on the idea that the U.S., which is home to about 40 percent of the world’s Jews, stands in stark contrast to European anti-Semitism and far higher levels of antipathy against Jews in the Middle East, as reflected in studies of anti-Semitic attitudes worldwide.

The ADL counted 912 incidents in 2014, up from 751 the previous year.

(http://goo.gl/3roiYO)

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