The Fierce Urgency of Prophetic Hope

  ©Wendell Griffen, 2023 In November 2019 I wrote an article about US Trump administration support for illegal Jewish settlements in Palestine that was published in Baptist News. As I mentioned in the article, an occupying power that inserts members of its civilian population into occupied territory violates international law and commits war crimes: https://baptistnews.com/article/deja-vu-jewish-settlements-in-palestine-u-s-policy-and-support-from-conservative-christians/ The Israeli government recently announced plans to move forward with more than 4000 new Jewish units in the occupied West Bank. Here’s an article from Al Jazeera on that development. Notice the statement from the UN decrying ongoing Jewish settlement activity in the West Bank as the driving factor for current tension and violence between Israeli security forces and Palestinian militants. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/6/20/un-chief-tells-israel-to-halt-illegal-settlements-in-palestine US foreign aid e

  ©Wendell Griffen, 2023 The Southern Baptist Convention recently expelled two churches who chose women to serve as pastors and amended its primary doctrinal document to make it clear that Southern Baptists believe that it is not right for women to hold pastoral leadership positions ( https://baptistnews.com/article/anti-egalitarian-forces-make-clean-sweep-at-sbc-annual-meeting/ ). Donald John Trump, the twice-impeached, thrice-divorced, adjudicated sexual predator, former US president, and current candidate for the 2024 Republican Party nomination for president was recently arraigned on 37 felony charges for mishandling classified information, obstructing justice, and making false statements to federal investigators ( https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/06/13/us/trump-indictment-arraignment-court ). Texas Governor Greg Abbott recently sent 42 migrants from Venezuela, Honduras, Guatemala, Haiti, and China – including 15 youth and three babies – from Texas to Los Angeles, Californ

    ©Wendell Griffen, 2023   Each year US media outlets usually publish something about the Six-Day War of 1967. Because of that reporting, many Americans believe that the Six-Day War was begun by Arab nations who were defeated by the Israeli military. It is not likely that you read, heard, or know that the 1967 Six-Day war was an offensive by the Israeli military against neighboring Arab states. Israel was the aggressor, not the Arab nations. The Israeli offensive resulted in Israel seizing the Golan Heights overlooking Syria, and expanding its military occupation over Palestine (the West Bank). This year, as in the past, there will be no media coverage or ceremonies marking the June 8, 1967, attack on the USS Liberty by Israeli warplanes and torpedo boats. If things go as they have for the past 56 years, there will be little news coverage – if any – about the USS Liberty attack on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, PBS, or any of the other major news outlets. US news outlets will not re