Monday's Catch: 'Over 1,600 Christians killed for their faith since 2000 - study' And More

Over 1,600 Christians killed for their faith since 2000 - study
A new Vatican-led investigation has revealed that over 1,600 Christians worldwide have been killed because of their faith in the past 25 years.

The report, compiled by a panel of theologians, historians, and Church experts, draws on authenticated testimonies, media accounts, and evidence gathered from bishops’ conferences and religious and institutions.

San Diego Pastor Shot Dead in His Home; Suspect Apprehended, Motive Under Investigation
A San Diego County community is mourning the loss of Pastor Felipe Ascencio after he was shot and killed in his own home. Ascencio, a father of two, was pastor of Templo Monte Horeb in Ramona, California.

How do we end a pattern of political violence?
We have a choice: to surrender to outrage and conspiracy, or recommit to our first freedoms — a sacred democratic commitment to one another.

Also See: Charlie Kirk shooting: Why kill him?

What is a 'Groyper'? How Charlie Kirk is linked to movement after assassination
The murder of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk has spotlighted a bitter rivalry within far-right circles, prompting questions about one particular movement.

Also See: Kirk suspect far from 'central casting' model of 'far-left Antifa activist' — here's why; The possible Tyler Robinson motive no one’s talking about

Listening to young adults explain their love for Charlie Kirk
he main thing these women kept circling back to in their praise of Charlie Kirk was his uncompromising relationship with the “truth.” The very thing so many conservatives admire about Donald Trump is the way he speaks the “truth.”

And yet, even a cursory familiarity with the words of both men would reveal they have an estranged relationship with the “truth,” to put it very mildly. We are a truth-starved nation that, I fear, has become so disoriented and confused we cannot recognize the truth when we hear it. Just because something is offensive, loud or vulgar does not make it true. Just because something is confrontational does not make it true. Just because something makes listeners uncomfortable does not make it true.

Part of what worried me while listening to these students speak was the idea that Charlie Kirk called people out “just like Jesus called people out,” as if the main function of Christ’s ministry was confrontation with his interlocutors. These young women seemed to believe Kirk’s debates on college campuses were perfectly analogous with Christ’s preaching ministry in which he debated the Pharisees. Have we erroneously caricatured Jesus as nothing more than a provocateur? Preaching the kingdom of God is an altogether different thing than owning one’s political enemies.

The belief that Jesus was deliberately confrontational as well as the equation of being truthful with being outspoken are two views that I have often heard on social media, views expressed by pastors as well as other self-identified Christians. The frequency with which these views are expressed online raises the question of how these views are influencing thought in US churches, in what churches, and to what extent they affect the attitude and behavior of those attending these churches.

A word about the killing of Charlie Kirk to Christians beyond the USA
The editor of Riforma, an Italian-language newspaper published by and for Baptists, Methodists and Waldensians in Italy, invited me to contribute a 5,000-character front-page article for this week’s edition sharing my perspective on the shooting of Charlie Kirk and American Christian responses to it. This is what I wrote, prior to its translation into Italian....

Violence and Technology
I thought long and hard about whether or not to write this post after Charlie Kirk’s horrific and tragic assassination. So much has already been written on it, and at some point, silence and prayer for the family and for justice is the best response left. But it did strike me that it was worth considering the role technology has played in mediating our experience of each other and thus numbing each other to our shared humanity, to our shared imago dei. I’m not arguing necessarily that this is a motive behind Kirk’s killer, but that it helps explain people on TikTok (reportedly) rejoicing over his death. They aren’t celebrating the death of a human, but a symbol. And it can explain the rampant vitriol, racism, hatred, and threats of violence that fill social media daily....

Choose Life
During a recent Sunday Eucharist, I shared an old proverb: “For want of a nail, a shoe was lost; for want of a shoe, a horse was lost.” We reflected together on how small choices shape great results, and how each day we face the choice set before Israel by Moses: life or death.