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We've all had the experience of getting a song stuck in our head for an extended period of time. If you're really unfortunate, that song may be one by Christopher Cross or Air Supply. But sometimes, these "earworms," as they are dubbed, can lead to good things. That recently happened to one of us right here at BreakPoint. While reading a biography of the early 20th century evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson, my colleague and friend Roberto Rivera found himself humming and singing the gospel song "It Is No Secret (What God Can Do)." He's not sure why the song popped...

Here comes Kasichmania? CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Gov. John Kasich is about to launch a national political committee that would allow him to raise money and his profile as he considers a run for president in 2016, sources close to the Republican said Thursday. (SNIP) But I don't think he'll get that far. If he runs, plenty of people in the base are going to react the way Mofo Politics reacted when he put forth a plan to expand Medicaid in Ohio under Obamacare: Kasich justifies his “very conservative” decision to expand Medicaid and implement Obamacare... (SNIP) ... There’s a, kind...

A God versus political correctness hoo-ha erupted when the Western Conservative Summit, which has been called the CPAC of the West, refused to allow the Log Cabin Republicans, a same-sex marriage advocacy group, a display table at their upcoming June 26-28 Summit in Denver. Various left-wing media lobbed the usual firebombs, claiming bigotry, hatred, homophobia, unfairness, some demanding boycotts of the Summit and pressuring scheduled speakers like Gov. Scott Walker and Dr. Ben Carson to bow out. Both sides agree the conference, which attracts 4,000 participants, has the legal right not to sell the same-sex marriage group a display table;...

What is the Wrath of God? By: Msgr. Charles PopeIn Yesterday’s (Sunday of the 30th Week) Mass there was a reference to the wrath of God and how only Jesus can save us from it. St Paul, writing to the Thessalonians, commends them who have turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God and to await his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus, who delivers us from the coming wrath (1 Thess 1:9-10). Well thank you, Jesus!But what is God’s wrath? It is spoken of often in the scriptures and it is a concept with which...

God and God Alone: A Homily for the 29th Sunday of the Year By: Msgr. Charles PopeThe Gospel today contains lots of interesting juxtapositions: hatred for Jesus but grudging respect for him,  real questions versus rhetorical ones, politics and faith, duties to Caesar and duties to God. The word  “juxtaposition” is from the Latin juxta (meaning “near”) and positio (meaning “place or position”). Hence juxtaposition is the placing of two things near to each other in order to see how they are similar and yet different.  In English, usually a juxtaposition emphasizes differences more than similarities.Let’s look at these one...

Last week, people from around the world stood in solidarity with the Jewish people on Yom HaShoah. Holocaust Remembrance Day is a solemn and sacred day of remembrance for the six million Jewish men, women, and children who perished in the Holocaust. Watching the Obama administration feverously try to sell the Iranian Nuclear agreement brings back frightening comparisons to Neville Chamberlain’s overly optimistic defense of Adolph Hitler’s intentions before all hell broke loose in Europe. The Iranian leaders’ open threats of death to Israel and America are portrayed as internal posturing, while the criticism of the deal by Israel and...

God’s Plan will Stand – A Word of Encouragement to the Fainthearted By: Msgr. Charles PopeAdvent is a season of waiting, waiting for God to fulfill his promises. We know that most of His promises from the Old Testament were fulfilled magnificently by Jesus. But as St. Paul reminds, we have received but the first fruits of his work in our soul (cf Rom 8:23). The created world and our physical bodies still await the full implications of what He has done. We still await a new Heaven and a new earth where the justice of God will reside...

How can the religious community live in peace and harmony with the LGBT community? New York Times columnist Frank Bruni has the solution. Just rewrite the Bible. In his April 3rd column, “Bigotry, the Bible and the Lessons of Indiana,” Bruni, himself gay, recognizes that Christian beliefs are not necessarily grounded in hatred. The problem, he claims, is that, “Beliefs ossified over centuries aren’t easily shaken.” Bruni, for his part, wants to shake us free from our fossilized faith. According to Bruni, who evidences little or no understanding of how believers view the Scriptures (namely, as God’s inspired Word), if...

book review ___ Why Science Does Not Disprove John Batchelor interviews author Amir Aczel podcasts 39:45

Bombing, beheading, hijacking, mosque sermons — these are just a few of the instances where the proclamation “Allahu akbar” is shouted. But what does it really mean?The mainstream media tells us that the Islamic statement is a pledge of allegiance to the god of the Prophet Muhammad and is an admirable demonstration of faith and piety. It’s portrayed as a humble utterance of praise that is too often misused by jihadists during acts of terror. However, the real meaning behind the most controversial term of our time is much more sinister than the liberal left would have you believe.Recently,...

Bombing, beheading, hijacking, mosque sermons — these are just a few of the instances where the proclamation “Allahu akbar” is shouted. But what does it really mean? The mainstream media tells us that the Islamic statement is a pledge of allegiance to the god of the Prophet Muhammad and is an admirable demonstration of faith and piety. It’s portrayed as a humble utterance of praise that is too often misused by jihadists during acts of terror. However, the real meaning behind the most controversial term of our time is much more sinister than the liberal left would have you believe....

For centuries, the essential meaning of marriage was universally understood (and taken for granted) in Western civilization, and, with very few modifications, in the pagan world as well. Because a marriage was always seen as the defining core of a family, providing a context for bearing and rearing children, its purpose and nature were taken to be self-evident, and seldom was thought to require defining. Among those societies informed by Scripture, marriage was also understood to be necessarily heterosexual, monogamous and life-long. With the coming of the sexual revolution of the 1960’s, many of these assumptions began to be eroded...

Recently, while announcing his 2016 presidential bid in front of 13,000 onlookers at central Virginia’s Liberty University, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz garnered tremendous applause, saying, “I believe God isn’t done with America yet.” I think he’s right. Though the forces of evil may try, there are many Christ followers who intend to see spiritual revival break out in this, one of the two greatest nations on earth. “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will...

Hebrews 4:15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Despite more than nine out of 10 Americans agreeing Jesus was a historical figure, what they believe about Him diverges widely, according to a newly released survey from the Barna Research Group, a nonprofit organization that has been analyzing cultural trends related to religious belief since 1984. The survey of more than 4,000 U.S. adults online and by phone suggests Americans are conflicted about the central figure of...

In Guam recently my wife and I taught a writing course and then went snorkeling. Near coral reefs we fed, underwater, hundreds of 6-inch-long needlefish. Slender with little teeth, they appeared infused with light. So many sped around our hands that they formed a silver streak amid the blue-gray waters of Tuman Bay. We became fond of them. Later, I read for the first time in 45 years a story that influenced me as a teenager, J.D. Salinger’s “A Perfect Day for Bananafish.” The main character is a troubled veteran, Seymour Glass, surrounded at a hotel by the materialism Salinger...

What if it's not injustice that has led so many blacks across America to feel disenfranchised? What if it's judgment? Last week on two separate occasions guests on Sean Hannity's radio program reiterated Jesse Jackson's decades old mantra that "blacks can't be racist because we have no institutional power." This may be a clandestine way to excuse blacks for destroying cities like Ferguson, MO in the name of justice for Michael Brown, but it's hardly worth addressing seriously. Unknown to many is the fact that blacks hold more government jobs by percentage than any other ethnicity. In an article entitled...

I grew up on the Jersey shore. (No, it wasn’t like the TV show.) Every summer morning I’d see several men combing the beach with metal detectors looking for jewelry and change lost the day before. One lost diamond earring or ring could pay for the metal detector several times over. But as useful and successful as metal detectors are, they can’t be used to find everything. Metal detectors won’t help you find wood, plastic, rubber, or other nonmetallic objects. Now, suppose metal-detector man, after just combing the beach, says to you, “I know there’s no plastic or rubber on...

Rep. Louie Gohmert unloaded on Federal Communications Chairman Tom Wheleer Wednesday during a Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet. “You’re playing God with the Internet,” the conservative firebrand shouted at the FCC chief, referencing the agency’s move to regulate the web.

The Attributes of God by A.W. Pink 16. The Wrath of God It is sad to find so many professing Christians who appear to regard the wrath of God as something for which they need to make an apology, or at least they wish there were no such thing. While some would not go so far as to openly admit that they consider it a blemish on the Divine character, yet they are far from regarding it with delight, they like not to think about it, and they rarely hear it mentioned without a secret resentment rising up in their...

The temptation for many will be to cave or compromise. The temptation even for the faithful will be to retreat into our churches and cloisters. In 2004, same-sex “marriage” came to Massachusetts. Contrary to the claim that such laws would usher in an age of “tolerance,” the law immediately became a legal club to beat unwilling participants. Catholic charities bravely refused to place orphans in same-sex homes, because it was contrary to their mission. Unfortunately, they stopped doing adoptions in the state. This cannot be our precedent. What they should have done is to say, “We are called to place...