JPMorgan Chase aided Jeffrey Epstein & discriminates against Christians & pro-lifers; 30% depressed, made worse by COVID shutdowns; 53-year-old summits Mt. Everest for 27th time!

It’s Thursday, May 18th, A.D. 2023. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus. ([email protected]) By Jonathan Clark Sec. of State: Religious persecution continues globally The U.S. State Department released its 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom on Monday.  The report found some countries improved like Brazil. However, Secretary of State Antony Blinken noted the trend of religious...

It’s Thursday, May 18th, A.D. 2023. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus. ([email protected])

By Jonathan Clark

Sec. of State: Religious persecution continues globally

The U.S. State Department released its 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom on Monday. 

The report found some countries improved like Brazil. However, Secretary of State Antony Blinken noted the trend of religious discrimination continues globally. 

BLINKEN: “Unfortunately, the report also documents the continuation, and in some instances, the rise of very troubling trends. Governments in many parts of the world continue to target religious minorities using a host of methods including torture, beatings, unlawful surveillance, and so-called re-education camps.”

The report documented religious freedom violations in many countries, including Afghanistan, China, Iran, Iraq, Myanmar, Nicaragua, and Nigeria. These countries are also on the Open Doors World Watch List of nations where it is most difficult to be a Christian.

Category 5 storm hits Myanmar

Speaking of Myanmar, a category 5 storm slammed into the coast of the Southeast Asian country on Sunday.

Cyclone Mocha made landfall in Myanmar’s western Rakhine State with winds of over 150 miles per hour. The storm led to the deaths of at least six people and caused extensive damage. Hundreds of thousands of people had to evacuate as the cyclone approached. 

The disaster only adds to the humanitarian crisis in the area. The region is a battleground between pro-democracy forces and Myanmar’s military government, leading to the displacement of over a million people. 

JPMorgan Chase aided Jeffrey Epstein, discriminates against Christians & pro-lifers

JPMorgan Chase is in hot water lately. 

The  U.S. Virgin Islands government believes the bank giant aided Jeffry Epstein in sex trafficking acts. The government’s latest action in the lawsuit was to subpoena tech billionaire Elon Musk for information in the case. 

Meanwhile, 19 Republican attorneys general in the U.S. are calling out JPMorgan Chase for religious discrimination. A letter from the attorneys general documented how the bank has closed the accounts of religious, conservative, and pro-life groups.

The letter stated, “This discrimination is unacceptable. Chase must stop such behavior and align its business practices with the anti-discrimination policies that Chase proclaims.”

North Carolina legislature overrides pro-abortion Governor Cooper’s veto

On Tuesday, North Carolina’s legislature voted to override Democratic Governor Roy Cooper’s veto of an anti-abortion bill.

The 12-week abortion ban is now law. It prohibits the killing of unborn babies in most cases after 12 weeks of pregnancy. The state already banned nearly all abortions after 20 weeks.

The new law also bans mail-order abortion pills.

30% of American adults battle depression, made worse by COVID shutdowns

A new survey from Gallup found a record 30% of U.S. adults say they have been diagnosed with depression at some point in their life.

That percentage hovered around 20% for years until 2020. The percentage of adults who say they currently are being treated for depression also rose significantly since then. 

Young adults aged 18 to 29 and women had the highest rates of current depression or treatment for depression.

The study noted the mental health effects of the pandemic isolation lockdowns. It said, “Clinical depression had been slowly rising in the U.S. prior to the COVID-19 pandemic but has jumped notably in its wake.”

Proverbs 29:2 says, “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; but when a wicked man rules, the people groan.” 

U.S. church attendance is bouncing back

The American Bible Society released data on church attendance in their State of the Bible USA 2023 report.

Three years after the start of the pandemic, attendance is bouncing back.

Sixty-seven percent of church goers say they attend primarily in person, up from 38% in 2021. The percentage of those who attend mostly online is down from 45% to 21%. 

In-person church attendance increased most notably in younger generations, especially Gen Z, over the last year.

53-year-old summits Mt. Everest for 27th time!

And finally, a 53-year-old Nepali Sherpa set a record after summiting Mount Everest for the 27th time yesterday.

Kami Rita first climbed the nearly 30,000 foot mountain in 1994 and has been scaling it nearly every year since. Kami’s father was among the first Sherpa guides after Nepal allowed foreigners to climb Everest in 1950.

Being a Sherpa is perilous, but Kami said he got into it to provide for his family, “We were illiterate and poor and there were no other means of survival. As a result, we were compelled to climb dangerous mountains to eke out a living.”

Since 1953, mountaineers have scaled the incredible piece of God’s creation over 11,000 times.

Psalm 95:3-4 says, “For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In His hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are His also.”

Close

And that’s The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Thursday, May 18th in the year of our Lord 2023. Subscribe by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast a www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I’m Adam McManus ([email protected]). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.