Trinity Western University promotes events that divide rather than unite Christians

Anyone who thinks that evangelical universities and colleges are actually Christian isn't paying attention; it's becoming increasingly difficult to see any difference between these institutions and the world, especially as the world becomes more anti-Christian. Submitted for your approval, the following items from the events page of Trinity Western University in Langley, British Columbia (bold, links in original):

27/01/2023 - 10:00 :

Trinity Western University's Lunar New Year celebrations bring students, staff, and the community together at Langley and Richmond campuses

As a global Christian university, Trinity Western is a community of learners representing over 80 countries. This year, during Lunar New Year, a festival celebrated by many communities globally, Trinity Western's Langley and Richmond campuses are filled with activities.

On January 23, TWU's Intercultural Student Programs (ICP) kicked off a week-long series of events for students and the campus community, starting with a Korean Dinner hosted in the Global Lounge (Kuhn Centre) on Monday evening. Students shared laughs and good food while participating in dumpling wrapping and lantern making.

Wema Kibe is a student leader who helped coordinate Monday's community dinner. The third-year International Studies major explained that "Community dinners are a great place for people to not just learn about a culture but to also make new connections. Ushering in the new year with people from diverse places was a great way to do this."

The first activity of the evening was making dumplings, and Wema reflected on the intercultural exchange, "It was fun to see people at different tables creating different shapes. I talked to someone from Japan who made a dumpling the way they do it in her culture, and it was interesting to see that integration."

Student leader Anasthasia Anjanette led participants in making paper lanterns. The activity symbolized "letting go of our past selves" and getting ready for the new year. Wema explains, "Inside the lanterns, they wrote down their wishes for the new year." Prizes were given out to the maker of the best-looking lanterns.

The campus Korean club, Manna, took charge of the cooking and cultural explanations of the food.

On Tuesday, a lion dance troupe graced the foyer of the Reimer Student Centre. Boisterous music and drum beats accompanied the traditional dance performance, which was enjoyed by students, staff, and faculty. Wednesday evening saw student dorms racing through a series of stations across the Langley campus—each station presenting a different game or challenge—in a cross-campus dorm night.

Thursday brought celebrations to TWU Richmond's two sites in Minoru and Lansdowne. Activities included calligraphy writing, trivia games, pastoral care and prayer, and a student dance performance. Dumplings and snacks were served, and red envelopes with a treat and a note of Scriptural encouragement handed out. The MLA for Richmond Centre Teresa Wat attended as well, to share new year greetings with the Richmond campus community.

MBA student Merghani Ahmed expressed that he enjoys studying at TWU Richmond, where the community represents "a diversity of different faiths and nationalities." He also appreciates "the flexibility of classes, and good events, such as today's Lunar New Year event, which are good experiences for students from international backgrounds."

The festivities continued that evening in the Reimer Student Centre, where bubble tea was served by TWU's Student Association (TWUSA), and various booths offered games, conversation, gifts, and snacks.

A week of Lunar New Year events wraps up this Friday evening with a talent show at Block Hall.

30/01/2023 - 09:00

Black History Month 2023 at Trinity Western University

Trinity Western University honours Black History Month this February. Join us as we recognize the importance, impact, and contributions of Black history and culture on a global, national, and local scale.

Find out how TWU is celebrating Black History Month, and how you can participate.

See our month-long schedule of events below:

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Library Event and Book Display – Presentation by Aklilu Mulat, Senior Vice President, Business Operations & CFO, Trinity Western University
February 1 | 11:45 a.m. | Glass Room, Norma Marion Alloway Library

Topic: Blacks' Contribution to the TWU Family: The Ethiopian Connection

Mr. Aklilu Mulat's speech is inspired by his own journey and connection leading to Trinity Western, going as far back to the former emperor of Ethiopia (Haile Selassie), and the visible legacy that the connection created. Lunch provided.

TWU Afro-Caribbean Club (ACC) Games Night
February 2 | 8 p.m. | Global Lounge, Kuhn Centre

Join us in bringing TWU together, especially the student community, for a fun night of games, conversation, and friendship-building. Snacks will be shared.

TWU Chapel
February 3 | 11 a.m. | Enarson Gymnasium

Enjoy a special Praise Chapel worship experience with the TWU BHM Choir.

Black History Month Opening Event
February 3 | 5 p.m. | Kuhn Centre Lobby

Our Black History Month kick-off celebration features music by TWU's BHM Choir and the Kara-Kata Afrobeat Band from Vancouver, alongside talented TWU students Ose Obetoh, David Mutabazi, Eddison Bryan and Tamilore Awonusi.
Warm appetizers and Afro-Caribbean beverages provided.

TWU Chapel
February 8, 10 | 11 a.m. | Enarson Gymnasium

TWU President Mark Husbands continues the Chapel sermon series on Justice.

Black History Month Movie Night
February 15 | 6 p.m. | DeVries Auditorium

Movie: Hidden Figures
See the story of three African-American female mathematicians working at NASA—Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson—whose efforts served to launch astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a monumental accomplishment in U.S. and world history.

February 19
Black History Month Podcast Interview

Learning Matters: a Bridge to Practice – Episode #50

What do you get when a Communication Scholar, Historian, Geographer, and a Biologist walk into a room during Black History Month?

On the podcast Learning Matters: a Bridge to Practice, hosted by TWU's Scott Macklin, professors and scholars Divine Agodzo, Robynne Healey, Maxwell Ofosuhene and Laura Onyango discuss and celebrate intersections of black contributors to history and issues of diversity, inclusion and reconciliation across the full spectrum of our educational offerings and scholarship. Answering questions such as, What do you believe are some of the unique challenges facing Black students in Christian universities today, and how do you work to support and empower them? In your opinion, what can be done to address systemic racism and discrimination within Christian universities and communities? What are some books or movies that you consider helpful in exploring or learning about black history?

Black History Month Closing Celebration
February 27 | Front of Reimer Centre

Talk by Hon. Justice Olufunlola Adekeye, CON, CFR,JSC (rtd.) Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria 2009-2012
February 28 | DeVries Auditorium

Topic: The Place of Black Women in Leadership in the 21st Century—Experience as a Trailblazer

Hon. Justice Adekeye will share her Lordship’s experience as a Christian woman who helped to break the glass ceiling in the Judiciary of Nigeria. She was the first woman to rise to the High Court of Ondo and Ekiti States, and the second woman (and first in Southern Nigeria) to rise to the Supreme Court of Nigeria, which is the highest court in the country.

Throughout the month of February: A display of books written by Black authors will be featured at the Norma Marion Alloway Library.

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Gender Cafe: EDID, Politics, and Christian Institutions

Christian organizations should be in the forefront of creating and advancing equitable, diverse, inclusive, and decolonized environments. It is a part of our DNA. So, why are we not leading in this endeavour? The problem is that we follow the political and cultural trends instead of forging faith-led approaches to achieving a just and humane society. How are Christians called to lead the work of shaping the Beloved Community?

Dr. Adkins’ talk will be followed by discussion and a question-and-answer period.

It's FREE and open to the public and refreshments are provided.

About the Speaker

Jennifer Adkins, PhD, is Vice President of Inclusive Excellence at TWU. An expert in diversity, equity, and inclusion, she is a key member of the executive leadership team, the University leadership council, and the strategic planning committee, and she provides strategic leadership and counsel to the University. She is advancing TWU’s work in diversity, equity, and inclusion, and helping to propel the University forward in pursuit of our shared vision to prepare graduates for faithful lives of excellence.

About the Gender Studies Institute at TWU

The Gender Studies Institute fosters interdisciplinary teaching, intellectual dialogue, research, and collaboration in all areas of gender studies. The interdisciplinary nature of the institute will enable TWU scholars to collaboratively address with students gender issues that come out of every discipline, such as domestic violence, child abuse, and gendered visions of care, exploring how categories such as class, race, and gender intersect, to train leaders who will enjoy and foster restorative gendered relationships. The role of our Christian faith in the working out of gender in all aspects of life will inform our teaching and research.

Lunar New Year has considerable worldly superstition and pagan content; from the article The Lunar New Year: Rituals and Legends at the site Asia for Educators (bold, links in original):

Preparations for the New Year

... Domestically there is a traditional cleansing as well. In decades past, the most thorough “spring cleaning” of the year was initiated as a ritualistic sweeping away of all the evil spirits feared to be lurking in dark corners behind heavy and rarely moved pieces of furniture. Today, the only consideration for the vast majority of Chinese is a spotless presentation of one’s home to the many family members and guests who will be welcomed during the holiday season. Windows are washed, or were repapered in the old days, and the courtyard gate or other wooden parts of the house might be repainted. The old agrarian calendar cites the 20th day of the 12th lunar month as the “day for sweeping floors,” and this date still marks the beginning of the major pre-holiday housecleaning projects in Hong Kong. In much of China, peasants waited until the 23rd (in South China) or the 24th (in the North) to pick up the broom and dust pan. It was on this day that the Kitchen God, or god of the hearth, was scheduled to depart to make his report concerning household activities to the Jade Emperor in heaven. So as not to unnecessarily disturb and possibly offend him, housewives waited until he was on his way before they started moving furniture and raising dust.

Sending the Kitchen God off to heaven was a matter deserving special attention. In residence year-round at the hearth, where he was represented by a prominently displayed picture, or in parts of the South by beautifully calligraphed characters for his name, the Kitchen God observed all the family’s comings and goings. Had they been generous to any beggar at the door? Had they wasted any hard-earned food, which some farmer had toiled and sweated to produce? Measures were taken to insure the kitchen god’s cooperation in giving a glowing report to the Jade Emperor, and thereby winning for the family a little heavenly favor. This included ritual offerings of candies or pastries and wine, and even smearing his lips with honey to make certain that he would only have sweet things to say about the family. Once this was done, the picture of the Kitchen God was torched, and he was off on his yearly journey, not to return until New Year’s Day. The dusting, washing, and scrubbing could then begin. Many believed they should sweep with inward strokes toward the center of the room so as not to whisk any of the family’s good fortune out the door...

...New Year’s Eve

By New Year’s Eve, family members, some of whom may have traveled long distances to return home, gather for a reunion. In preparation for his return from heaven on New Year’s Day, the new portrait of the Kitchen God is hung, as are the brand new door gods, the duilian (door couplets), and any other festive decor. Some southern families place stalks of sugar cane behind the doors. The height and section-upon-section construction of the sweet stalks represented the family’s hope for a ladder-like ascent to new levels of glory in the coming 12 months. Everyone dresses up, preferably in new clothes, and is on best behavior.

Traditionally, on this last night of the year, the male head of the household led the family in making offerings to various gods of the house and to the ancestors. The ceremonies would begin by sealing the cracks around the door with red paper to prevent the last vestiges of the old year’s bad luck from stealing into the house, and any of the family’s good luck from escaping. Respects would be paid to the god of wealth, the gods of the well, the bed, the hearth, or any others with whom the family wanted to remain on especially good terms. The attention would then turn to the ancestors, to whom sacrifices of food would be given along with burning of incense. Each member of the family would kneel in respect before the ancestral tablets, symbols of many past generations, all the spirits of whom some families believed were in attendance that night. In wealthier households, an entire room might be devoted to use as an ancestral hall, complete with altar, while in poorer families, the ancestral tablets might occupy a modest shed in a corner. Just as important was to show respect to one’s living elders. Younger family members would ketou (kowtow) to members of each generation above them, in order, beginning with the eldest. When children showed respect in this way, they were rewarded with red envelopes (hongbao), which contained New Year’s money (yasui qian)...

...New Year Festivities

...It was at this time that the male head of the house in many educated households would write auspicious characters or phrases to be hung at the entrance to the home. Some also waited for this day to approach the ancestral altar for seasonal rites, and to perform ritual ketou...

...In the days after the new year, it is common to make pilgrimages to temples, especially nowadays for residents of Hong Kong. Theater groups and acrobatic troupes perform in the streets at marketplaces, on temple grounds, or at large public stadiums. Dragon dances, lion dances, stilt-walking performances, and folk pageantry are still particularly popular...

...The Lantern Festival

The 15th day of the first lunar month is known as the “Lantern Festival.” The name for this day on the traditional calendar is Yuanshao, which has come to mean the small round dumplings of rice flour conventionally eaten at this time. The Lantern Festival signals the end of the New Year festival period.

Originally, lanterns were said to have been used on this night to help see the gods by torch light. Each family would construct an elaborate paper lantern for this purpose. Now in many parts of China there is great emphasis on the craftsmanship used in making exquisite lanterns in a variety of shapes and styles, which are then often shown at public exhibitions.

All of the events mentioned above appeal to only certain segments of the population rather than the whole. Lunar New Year is of interest mainly to Orientals; Black History Month helps to perpetuate the separation of Negro history from general history; and "equitable, diverse, inclusive, and decolonized" is Orwellian Newspeak for "eradicate everything coming from white people, especially white males." I defy anyone to find anything distinctively Christian in these events--or in allegedly Christian institutions of higher education.

"Edmonton's Christian University" supports United Nations sustainable development goals

Anyone who thinks that "Christian" universities are actually Christian isn't paying attention. The King's University, which calls itself "Edmonton's Christian University," is funded by churches of the Reformed persuasion, but the university long ago went liberal (I'm not sure it was ever sound). Listed among upcoming events is International Development Week Movie & Pizza (bold in original). The blurb is its own commentary:

February 06, 2023
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Cafeteria

For International Development Week, the Micah Centre invites the King’s community to learn about the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): what are they, and how can they help us achieve a more just, humane, and sustainable world? You are invited to a viewing of ‘Nations United: Urgent Solutions for Urgent Times’, to learn about the SDGs and hear about the amazing work people around the world are doing to improve lives in their communities.

Contributors include Don Cheadle, Beyoncé, Michelle Yeoh, Forest Whitaker, Thandie Newton, and Malala Yousafzai.

Antichrist Ambrose University hosts presentation by theistic evolutionist

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said,... Genesis 3:1

For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Acts 20:29-30

O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called: I Timothy 6:20

Ambrose University in Calgary, Alberta is the denominational school for both the Christian and Missionary Alliance in Canada and Church of the Nazarene Canada. Anyone who thinks that institutions such as Ambrose University are Christian isn't paying attention; they may be "evangelical," but they aren't Christian. From the university's schedule of events (bold, links in original):

The Bible & Ancient Science: Principles Of Interpretation

Date
Wednesday, October 26, 2022

Time
7:00 P.M. (Mountain Time)

Location
Virtual (Complete the registration form to receive the link)

Presented by Dr. Denis O. Lamoureux Event

DESCRIPTION
Is the Bible a Book of Science? Christians have answered in a wide variety of ways. Theologian and scientist Denis O. Lamoureux proposes that during the inspiration of Scripture, the Holy Spirit came down to the level of the biblical writers and allowed them to use the science-of-the-day. In this way, the ancient science in the Word of God is a vessel that delivers life-changing, inerrant spiritual truths.

Handout for lecture

Response by Dr. Colin Toffelmire and Q&A to follow

SPEAKER BIO
Denis O. Lamoureux is Professor of Science and Religion at St. Joseph’s College in the University of Alberta. He is also a research associate in paleontology. Lamoureux holds three earned doctoral degrees—dentistry, theology, and biology. His most recent book is entitled Beyond the Evolution vs. Creation Debate. It was written to assist high school students in understanding origins and the Genesis 1 account of creation. This lecture is part of current Seminary students' courses, but the public are welcome to join in for this special lecture.

Dr. Lamoureux has provided a link (here) for attendees to pre-read about the subject. This will help give context to some of the discussion.

Dr. Lamoureux's entry at the University of Alberta website (bold, links in original:

Denis O. Lamoureux DDS PhD PhD
Professor of Science & Religion
St. Joseph's College, University of Alberta
Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2J5
Canada
dlamoure@ualberta.ca

Denis O. Lamoureux is Professor of Science and Religion at St. Joseph's College in the University of Alberta. His appointment is the first tenure-track position in Canada dedicated to teaching and research on the relationship between scientific discovery and Christian faith. Lamoureux's academic specialty focuses on the modern origins controversy.

Lamoureux embraces the time-honored belief that there are two major sources of Divine revelation—the Book of God’s Words and the Book of God’s Works. The Bible and the physical world complement each other. Science reveals How the Creator made this spectacular design-reflecting world, while Holy Scripture declares precisely Who created it. Together the Two Divine Books fulfill each other; alone they are incomplete.

In his online web lecture Beyond the "Creation" vs. "Evolution" Debate, Lamoureux argues that the simple either/or approach to origins inhibits everyone from making informed choices. He asserts that if the limits of both conservative Christianity and evolutionary biology are respected, then their relationship can be complementary. This view of origins is known as Evolutionary Creation. Concisely stated, it claims that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit created the universe and life through an ordained, sustained, and design--reflecting evolutionary process.

Indeed, evolutionary creation is a challenging view of origins for many Christians, and Lamoureux shares his struggle to accept this position in a web lecture entitled Coming to Terms with Evolution: A Personal Story. He also writes about his voyage in a book chapter that is online.

Evolutionary creation emphasizes that the Bible is NOT a book of science. Instead, it is a God-inspired revelation that offers inerrant, life-changing, Messages of Faith. Holy Scripture does indeed refer to the natural world, but it features an ancient understanding of nature. In other words, the Bible has an ancient science. In his latest book, The Bible & Ancient Science: Priniciples of Interpretation (2020), Lamoureux presents hundreds of verses revealing that Scripture features the science-of-the-day in the ancient world. Through his 22 interpretive principles he argues that the Holy Spirit descended to the intellectual level of the ancient biblical writers in order to communicate as effectively as possible inerrant spiritual truths. Three of these principles and an explanation of the cover of this book can be found here.

Of course, not everyone agrees with Lamoureux's position on origins, as seen in the comments made by famed atheist Richard Dawkins in this video clip.

Lamoureux holds three earned doctoral degrees—dentistry, theology, and biology. He is a Fellow of the American Scientific Affiliation and cited in the Who's Who of Theology and Science. He is also a member of the Evangelical Theology Society. Lamoureux lectures throughout Canada and the United States in both Christian and public academic institutions. In 2001 and 2006, he received teaching awards from the University of Alberta Students' Union. Lamoureux's award winning introductory course on the relationship between science and religion, CHRTC 350: Science and Religion with Class Notes, Class Handouts, and Class Audio-Slides is available online.

With Phillip E. Johnson, Lamoureux co-authored Darwinism Defeated? The Johnson-Lamoureux Debate on Biological Origins (1999). Lamoureux has also written Evolutionary Creation: A Christian Approach to Evolution (2008) and has condensed this book into into a more accessible version entitled I Love Jesus and I Accept Evolution (2009). Lamoureux has debated John Walton, C. John Collins, and William Barrick in Four Views on the Historical Adam (2013).

The Church’s struggle with Galileo's astronomy offers valuable insights for Christians coming to terms with evolution. Galileo popularized the aphorism: “The intention of the Holy Spirit is to teach us how one goes to heaven and not how heaven goes.” Rewritten for the Church today, evolutionary creationists encourage Christians to understand: The purpose of the Bible is to teach us THAT God is the Creator, and not HOW the Father, Son & Holy Spirit created.

Dr. Lamoureux's views appear to be reasonable, until you realize that he denies the historical existence of Adam, which is a denial of the teaching of both Old and New Testaments. According to Dr. David Craig, in his Amazon customer review of Four Views on the Historical Adam:

I Appreciated the personal testimony of Denis Lamoureux's pursuit of truth in the fields of science and theology. He has definitely wrestled with and struggled with all the issues at hand - as a non-believer, as well as a believer in Christ. Lemorourex concludes that his view of evolution disallows for belief in the historical Adam that is revealed in the Scriptures. He argues at length that the realities of history conflicts with modern science. He believes that ancient science (the view of the biblical writers) conflicts with modern science and therefore what we have in the Bible is God accommodating inerrant spiritual truths.

In summary "Lamoureux rejects scientific concordism, the idea that God chose to reveal through the Scriptures certain scientific facts and that modern science, properly understood, can be aligned with the Bible. To the contrary, he says the authors of Scripture had an ancient perception of the world, apparent in their belief in a three-tiered universe, their view of the 'firmament,' and elsewhere. When it comes to humanity's biological origins, the biblical authors likewise had a primordial understanding. They held to 'de novo creation,' the belief that God created man and everything else directly, immediately, and completely, that is fully mature."

Lamoureux argues that Adam did not exist, but that Jesus Christ is a historical person who died and rose again for our sins. He attempts to show how modern science has changed his views on interpreting the Bible through understanding distinctions between ancient and modern science, language accommodation, and his rejection of concordism.

I found his essay to be interesting, but unconvincing. I especially struggled with his weak theological explanation of the historical "Adam" from the lips of Jesus and the Apostle Paul in the New Testament. I also struggled with his interpretation of Genesis 1-11 as not being historical. Lastly, I found his interpretation and methodology in arriving at his conclusions insufficient - leaving me with more questions than answers. I agree with C. John Collins assessment of his essay when he writes, "Lamoureux has followed a style of reasoning that is oversimplified, specifically in that he generally poses either/or questions with only two options; he does not consider whether there are alternatives."

This blogger regards the Bible as the infallible, inspired word of God, and anything that contradicts the Bible is in error. Dr. Lamoureux, on the other hand, regards the Bible as being in error if it's in contradiction with what the latest "science" says. It should be noted that Dr. Lamoureux, in addressing the issue of the existence of Adam, is no longer operating in the realm of science, but has moved into the realm of history, where the scientific method doesn't apply. I also find it curious that an "evangelical" professor teaches at a Roman Catholic college.

As for the man Ambrose has chosen to respond to Dr. Lamoureux's presentation, Dr. Colin Toffelmire says, "...we want to try to think the best of these people we disagree with...," but check his Twitter feed, and you'll see that he doesn't seem to think well of Christians and conservatives, and seems to find more affinity with secular liberal intellectuals. In this Dr. Toffelmire reminds me of pseudo-intellectual Tim Keller, who has had a disproportionate influence among evangelicals, but who never seems to identify with real Christians, but always takes the view that's likely to gain the approval of secular New York liberals.

This isn't the first time that Ambrose has hosted a theistic evolutionist; see my previous post Antichrist Ambrose University has theistic evolutionist as guest speaker for its Faith, Life and Learning Days (February 6, 2020)

See also my other previous posts on Ambrose University:

Why is an Alliance-Nazarene college named after a Roman Catholic saint? (March 2, 2009)

The Ambrose-contemplative connection (March 4, 2009)

Ambrose University College trains Nazarene pastors using materials from a company with ties to Mormonism (March 6, 2009)

Ambrose University College and "Transformation" (March 6, 2009)

The Outhouse (aka The Shack) in God's house (May 5, 2009)

Ambrose Seminary teaches contemplative spirituality in 2009-2010 (February 24, 2010)

Ambrose University College hires Jesuit-educated contemplative spirituality proponent as its new president (May 30, 2012)

Ambrose University College's "Jazz Day" provides evidence of increasing worldliness in evangelical schools (March 5, 2014)

Antichrist Ambrose University College continues on its downward, leftward, and Romeward course (March 8, 2014)

Antichrist Ambrose University President Gordon T. Smith continues to promote ecumenism and Social Gospel (February 28, 2018)

Antichrist Ambrose University has theistic evolutionist as guest speaker for its Faith, Life and Learning Days

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said,... Genesis 3:1

For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Acts 20:29-30

O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called: I Timothy 6:20

Ambrose University in Calgary, Alberta is the denominational school for both the Christian and Missionary Alliance in Canada and Church of the Nazarene Canada; it's been heading downward, leftward, and Romeward for years (see the links to my previous posts on Ambrose at the bottom of this post). A new adventure in apostasy for Ambrose is the 2020 edition of Faith, Life and Learning Days; according to their website (bold, links in original):

FAITH, LIFE AND LEARNING

Join us for our Faith, Life and Learning Days on February 12 & 13 as we welcome guest speaker Dr. Darrel Falk* and discuss the topic of faith and science.

Public Lecture: “Evolution, Creation, and the Breath of God" (Airhart Theatre): Wednesday, February 12, 7:30 p.m.

Chapel (Ambrose Gymnasium): Thursday, February 13, 11:15 a.m.

Open Lecture in Dr. Matthew Morris' class “Principles of Evolutionary Biology." (A2212): Thursday, February 13, 2:30 – 3:45 p.m.

*Darrel Falk is Emeritus Professor of Biology at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego where he has been based since 1988. In 2009, he, along with noted geneticist, Francis Collins and others, founded BioLogos, an organization dedicated to showing the compatibility between mainstream science and the Christian faith. Falk, who began his advanced education with one year at Canadian Nazarene College, a predecessor of Ambrose University, earned a doctorate in genetics from the University of Alberta and followed that with postdoctoral fellowships at the University of British Columbia (in the lab of David Suzuki) and the University of California, Irvine. Besides his extensive writing at the BioLogos website, he is the author of Coming to Peace with Science (InterVarsity Press) and, with Dr. Todd Wood, The Fool and the Heretic: How Two Scientists Moved beyond Labels to a Dialog about Creation and Evolution (Zondervan).

Since I'm suspicious of everything that Ambrose does, it came as no surprise to this blogger to see Dr. Falk's connection with BioLogos, which promotes theistic evolution, i.e., the idea that God created, but did so using evolution. By evolution, they mean macroevolution, the changing of one kind of creature into another kind of creature. I think theistic evolution is worse than "secular" evolution, because it tries to have a foot in both camps. The secular evolutionist believes that God isn't necessary at all in order for evolution to take place, while the believer in creation believes that macroevolution is supported by neither the evidence nor the Bible.

The BioLogos blog has a number of posts by Dr. Falk. I glanced at just one--written when he was president of BioLogos--and that was enough to convince me that he is not a sound teacher, and should not be invited to speak at a Christian school. An abridgement (bold, links in original):

BioLogos and the June 2011 “Christianity Today” Cover Story

The cover story of the June issue of Christianity Today, entitled "The Search for the Historical Adam" (the full article can be viewed here), notes that our website The BioLogos Forum has played a prominent role in moving the discussion surrounding the historical Adam forward and cites various blogs and articles that appear on these pages. We are pleased that a matter deemed so important by us is beginning to play a prominent role in the discussion for the Church as a whole.

As detailed extensively on these pages over the past two years, there is now little doubt that God has created all life forms, including human beings, through an evolutionary process. God could have created in an instant. After all, in the supreme divine act of all time Jesus was raised from the dead—in an instant. However, it now seems certain that this is not the way He chose to create the human body. God’s process was gradual, not instantaneous...

...the data with regard to human creation has been accumulating for 150 years, and the conclusions have been substantiated through a wide variety of scientific disciplines. Astronomy shows that the universe is billions of years old. Geology independently shows that the earth, though a little younger, is also billions of years old. Paleontology poignantly lays out the parade of created life forms and graphically documents the species-changes over hundreds of millions of years. Comparative anatomy and developmental biology show feature after feature in living bodies, each with its distinctive trademark pointing to gradual alteration from that which came before. And, with the sequencing of the human genome, genetics provides the final confirmatory lynch pin. Creation through a gradual process is not a hypothesis that emerges from a peripheral scientific sub-discipline. To show it wrong would involve overturning principles that independently lie at the very core of the findings of most of the natural science disciplines. True, they all together cry out in unison with a loud voice—“Created!” However, they also, in a subtle, but persuasive whisper, add the all-important qualifying phrase—“…slowly and not in an instant!”

The Christianity Today cover story is important because it engages the Church in one of the most important questions of all: was there a historical Adam and Eve? There has been much discussion of this point on these pages and although we strongly encourage ongoing discussion, BioLogos does not take a position on the issue. Denis Alexander, Director of the Faraday Institute and a frequent contributor to the BioLogos conversation says ‘yes’ in this BioLogos article, and Tim Keller, pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City affirms it in this one. Denis Lamoureux and Peter Enns believe otherwise and have expressed their views here and here, for example. The scientific data are silent on the possibility of a federal headship—two unique individuals singled out by God from all others to enter into relationship with him and to bear his image. Similarly, science is silent on the veracity of the alternative possibility— that the story of Adam and Eve is not a story of two unique individuals. According to this latter view, the story of Adam and Eve is in a very real sense the story of all humankind—we have all sinned and we are all in need of redemption.

These are theological questions, not scientific ones. Science makes it abundantly clear, we believe, that God has created through an evolutionary process and that there was never a time when there were just two individuals on earth. It goes no further though. Beyond that, we are in a different realm, one deeply steeped in the traditions and creeds of the church, and in theology, biblical scholarship, and philosophy...

...The “Federal Headship” model that accepts the scientific findings while at the same time holding to the historicity of a real first couple has not yet been carefully worked out by theologians...

...The purpose of BioLogos is to show that there can be harmony between mainstream science and evangelical Christianity. We are in complete agreement with Richard Ostling (the author of the aforementioned article) and the Editors of Christianity Today that working through the historicity question is of the utmost importance to the Evangelical Church. Within the framework outlined above, it boils down to theology not science, and we urge the Church to reserve judgment for a while. Let’s keep both possibilities before us. Here’s hoping that some of our greatest theological minds will work on the question of what a model based on “Federal Headship” would look like. Here’s also hoping that some of our finest theologians will continue to work on how the view of a non-historical Adam would address some of the issues that puzzle and concern most evangelicals...

...This is an exciting time for the Church because there is much interesting work to be done. Personally, I reserve judgment and I urge that all of us proceed with caution. Let’s see what emerges. Let’s see what our theologians and philosophers come up with, especially those who hold to a historical Adam and Eve...

One of the reasons I believe that the account of the serpent in Genesis 3 is true is because the lies spoken by the serpent are the very lies that are believed today. In the case of BioLogos, the relevant lie is the first one: "Yea, hath God said...?" Dr. Falk and the BioLogos crowd are trying to sow doubt and uncertainty where God's word isn't uncertain. Dr. Falk seems to be trying to have it both ways regarding creation (using words in a way that must please Gordon T. Smith, Ambrose's Jesuit-trained president), but it's apparent that whenever the Bible and "science" disagree, he comes down on the side of "science."

Dr. Falk denies that God created instantaneously. However, in Genesis 1 we repeatedly see the words, "And God said, Let...and it was so." He spoke, and it was. He formed the first man from the dust of the ground (Genesis 2:7), and the first woman from a rib of Adam (Genesis 2:21-22). There's no indication from the account in Genesis that this took a long time.

BioLogos itself is more than a little disingenuous when it "does not take a position" on a historical Adam and Eve. To "not take a position" on an issue on which God's word definitely does take a position is in fact to take a position--of unbelief. That Adam and Eve were the first two people and were actual historical figures is taught not only in the Old Testament, but in the New Testament, and was believed and taught by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. To deny that there was a time when there were just two people on Earth is outright unbelief. Dr. Falk, like the organization he's affiliated with, isn't honest enough to come right out and say that he doesn't believe the Bible's account of creation.

The duplicity of the BioLogos crowd and institutions such as Ambrose University that give them a platform offer more evidence of why Christian parents should conduct a careful examination before sending their children to "Christian" colleges and universities. Ambrose should change the name of its event to "Doubt, Apostasy and Disinformation Days."

See my previous posts on Ambrose University:

Why is an Alliance-Nazarene college named after a Roman Catholic saint? (March 2, 2009)

The Ambrose-contemplative connection (March 4, 2009)

Ambrose University College trains Nazarene pastors using materials from a company with ties to Mormonism (March 6, 2009)

Ambrose University College and "Transformation" (March 6, 2009)

The Outhouse (aka The Shack) in God's house (May 5, 2009)

Ambrose Seminary teaches contemplative spirituality in 2009-2010 (February 24, 2010)

Ambrose University College hires Jesuit-educated contemplative spirituality proponent as its new president (May 30, 2012)

Ambrose University College's "Jazz Day" provides evidence of increasing worldliness in evangelical schools (March 5, 2014)

Antichrist Ambrose University College continues on its downward, leftward, and Romeward course (March 8, 2014)

Antichrist Ambrose University President Gordon T. Smith continues to promote ecumenism and Social Gospel (February 28, 2018)

British Columbia Supreme Court rules that Indian cleansing ritual imposed on schoolchildren is "cultural," not "religious"

This blogger has long maintained that the judges in British Columbia are the most mentally and morally retarded in Trudeaupia Canada, and their latest outrage does nothing to alter my opinion. As reported by the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, January 8, 2020 (link in original):

The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (jccf.ca) is disappointed with the January 8, 2020 Supreme Court of BC decision that allows schools to require children to participate in religious or spiritual rituals, despite parental objections to the explicitly religious aspect of “cleansing” the spirits of children. In 2015, a Port Alberni school required children to participate in a smudging ceremony whereby smoke from burning sage was fanned over the classroom, furniture and space occupied by children ’s children. In a letter to parents, the school claimed that this ritual took place for the express purposes of cleansing the children’s spirits of negative energy. Later in the school year, a prayer was offered at a mandatory student assembly.

“We are reviewing the decision with an eye to next steps,” stated Jay Cameron, counsel for Candice Servatius and Litigation Manager at the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms. “This is a disappointing decision for citizens from any religion or cultural background, each of whom has a constitutional right to be free from state-compelled spirituality.”

The week-long case against School District 70 was heard in November 2019 in Nanaimo, B.C. The Justice Centre represented mother Candice Servatius, whose two children were subjected to a religious or spiritual ritual at John Howitt Elementary School without her knowledge or consent. Witnesses for the Attorney General of B.C. and the Nuu-chul-nuth Tribal Council, which intervened in the case, testified during cross-examinations that it is not consistent with First Nation’s practice to compel anyone to be smudged against their will, and that it is “unnecessary” to hold cleansing ceremonies in classrooms in order to teach about First Nations culture.

However, in September of 2015, Mrs. Servatius received a letter from the principal of John Howitt Elementary School (JHES) in Port Alberni, BC, where her two children attend. The letter informed parents that JHES would be hosting a “Traditional Nuu-chah-nulth Classroom/Student Cleansing” performed by a “Nuu-chah-nulth Member” in the school’s classrooms. The letter did not provide a date for when these cleansing rituals would take place. The term Nuu-chah-nulth is used to describe fifteen related First Nation tribes who live on the southwest coast of Vancouver Island.

The letter from the school outlined specific beliefs of the Nuu-chah-nulth: “everything is one, all is connected” and “everything has a spirit.” The school’s letter described in detail how the cleansing ritual would “cleanse” the classroom of “energy” and cleanse the “spirits” of the students. The letter claimed that without cleansing, the classroom and even the furniture would harbour negative “energy” and would not be safe until the “energy” was “released.” The letter stated that each student would participate in the cleansing ritual by holding onto a cedar branch while having “smoke from Sage fanned over [their] body and spirit.”

Concerned about the explicitly supernatural and religious nature of the cleansing ritual, and how it conflicted with her own family’s religious beliefs, Mrs. Servatius immediately went to the school to learn more. When she arrived, she was shocked to find out that the ritual had already been imposed on her nine-year old daughter. Mrs. Servatius had received less than 24 hours of notice from the school, and did not have the opportunity to opt her child out of the religious ritual.

When the child expressed to her teacher that she did not want to participate, the teacher told the girl that it would be “rude” not to participate in the ritual and that “all” the students were “required” to participate.

In January of 2016, Mrs. Servatius learned that a prayer based on First Nations spirituality had been performed at a JHES student assembly, with explicit references to an unspecified “god”. JHES did not notify parents.

School District 70 argued in court that the ceremonies and prayers that children are required to participate in violate the right of Mrs. Servatius and her children to be free of government-imposed religion, and claimed that such rituals are merely “cultural”.

One can hardly imagine the Court coming up with such a ruling if a charismaniac had insisted on going into a school and holding a service in which he cast out demons; the only difference I can think of is that charismaniacs view demons as spirit beings rather than negative energy. And I find it strange that Canadian Indians, who are increasingly whining about "cultural appropriation," should insist on forcing non-Indians to participate in their "cultural" ritual.

Backlog: Schoolchildren are increasingly being prepared to receive the mark of the beast

And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Revelation 13:16-17

When I was in kindergarten in Edmonton in 1966-67, I didn't go to a bus stop. A station wagon with a "School Bus" sign on top, driven by a nice, attractive brunette (who must be in her late 70s now, if she's still alive), stopped at the house of each child, and took us all downtown, where we had kindergarten in the basement of the Seven Seas restaurant, and then took us home afterward. I'll take that over the surveillance technology of the 21st century.

The following article, six years old but still relevant (maybe now just for historical purposes), illustrates that surveillance technology can have positive aspects. No parents want their children to be on the wrong bus or in the wrong school, or who-knows-where. However, it's only a matter of time before an electronically-scanned card today becomes a mark in the right hand or forehead tomorrow. As reported by Andrea Sands in the Edmonton Journal, September 20, 2013:

When five-year-old Jack Rattray gets on his school bus to leave Wes Hosford Elementary School in Sherwood Park, a swipe of his electronic bus pass tells school district authorities he's aboard.

Jack swipes the card again when he gets off the bus at a busy transfer centre at Salisbury Composite High School, where he boards a second bus to his day home with another swipe. On days his mom isn't working, Jack takes a different bus from school straight home.

Jack's mom, Sydney Rattray, can log in at work using an application called My Stop and see on a map where Jack's bus is located and its estimated arrival time.

"If he got confused one day and thought he was supposed to go to the day home, I could find him," said Rattray, a pharmacy technician who does shift work at the University of Alberta.

"It feels safe. You can monitor without being there, without hovering...It does give me peace of mind."

Elk Island Public Schools was the first school district in Canada to use student-scanning bus passes and GPS on all its buses, said transportation director Lisa Weder.

Now, Edmonton Public Schools and Edmonton Catholic Schools are testing similar on-board GPS systems that will let parents locate their child's bus pass on a map.

Elk Island Public Schools started rolling out the technology last year, Weder said.

More than 8,000 of Elk Island Public Schools' 16,500 students travel on about 165 buses running 591 routes across Sherwood Park, Fort Saskatchewan, Vegreville and Strathcona County, she said.

The student-scan and GPS technology, plus an automated system called Checkmate that ensures no child is accidentally left on the bus, are now fully installed at a cost of $275,000, Weder said.

"Because we run so many transfers and we transport kindergarten to Grade 12 students on all the same buses, it really helps us if a student boards an incorrect bus," Weder said.

Last week, a four-year-old boy in Winnipeg was dropped off at the wrong school, where he spent his entire first day of kindergarten before someone noticed the error. Also last week, an Edmonton boy got off his bus at the wrong school when he took the bus for the first time to kindergarten, Global News reported.

A school bus driver with the Northern Lights School District was suspended in January 2012 after a young boy was left alone on a bus for an entire school day.

Mix-ups are most common with new students, and more frequent at the beginning of the school year, said Weder.

"There's a significant number of students boarding incorrect buses. In the first two weeks of school, we probably had, I would say, at least four to five cases a day where students were boarding incorrect buses."

The scanned bus passes allow school authorities to monitor which bus each student boards and leaves and at what time. The data also shows transportation planners exactly how many students are taking the bus each day so they can plan most efficiently, Weder added.

"You could have 70 students registered to a 72-passenger bus, but who's actually riding that bus?"

On-board GPS systems also send data about what the bus is doing to school district staff, Weder said. That means employees can see if a bus is speeding, if it stops completely at railway crossings, if it follows the designated route, if it stops on time and in the proper spots to pick up or drop off children, she said.

Edmonton Public Schools started testing on-board GPS at six schools this fall, said district spokeswoman Jane Sterling.

Secular humanists win legal battle to help shape religious education curriculum in Britain

As reported by Gabriella Swerling of the London Daily Telegraph, August 2, 2019:

Humanists are set to help shape religious education curriculum after winning a legal battle to sit on a council’s education board.

Humanists UK, the national charity working on behalf of non-religious people which campaigns for a secular state, has won a proposed legal challenge against a London council that rejected its application to join its religious education body.

The organisation said that the decision is “likely to pave the way for more humanists to sit on such bodies across England”.

Rachel Taggart-Ryan applied for full membership to Greenwich Council’s Standing Advisory Council on RE (SACRE), the body that oversees the religious education curriculum in the local area and which has members from varying religious groups.

However its sitting members voted against giving her full membership and voting rights because she is a humanist, with the Council backing this decision on the grounds that humanism is not a religion.

Their decision came in spite of an identical 2017 legal challenge in Wales which saw that Council back down and decide to admit another humanist, Kathy Riddick, as a full member.

It then prompted the Welsh Government to issue guidance clarifying that human rights law means humanists have the right to be full members, and subsequently decide to change the underlying education law to explicitly reflect the need to treat humanists and humanism equally in religious education. The law in Wales is identical to England.

After being refused by Greenwich Council, Rachel sent a letter before action to them, arguing that she had been discriminated against because she was a humanist. The Council again refused to admit her as a member.

As a result, Humanists UK then instructed solicitors, who notified the Council of their intention to apply to the High Court to take a case. Only then did the Council decided to acknowledge that there is a legal basis on which humanists can be full members of SACREs. Ms Taggart-Ryan, who is the charity’s campaigns officer, has now been admitted as a full member of Greenwich Council’s SACRE.

She said: “I applied to my local SACRE because I believe it’s important that children have the opportunity to learn about a broad range of beliefs in RE including humanism.

“The key way to get involved in this is to join the local SACRE, but I was completely dismayed when the panel rejected my application solely because I am a humanist. This issue is a matter of fairness and equality so I am glad that I now have the right to participate and vote in my SACRE.”

Councillor Jackie Smith, Cabinet Member for Children's Services and Community Safety said: “The Royal Borough of Greenwich has admitted Rachel Taggart-Ryan as a member of its Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education and welcomes her contributions in helping shape the local curriculum for our diverse population”.

U.S. President Trump backs efforts by state legislators to allow teaching of Bible literacy in public schools

One can hardly imagine the Manchurian Pothead or anyone else in his antichrist government issuing a similar tweet in Trudeaupia Canada. Mr. Trump has been good in defending the rights of Christians in the United States, to the continued irritation of secularists. As reported by Caleb Parke of Fox News, January 28, 2019 (links in original):

A growing number of states are considering bringing the Bible back to the classroom.

At least six states -- Florida, Indiana, Missouri, North Dakota, Virginia, and West Virginia -- have introduced legislation this year pushing for public schools to offer Bible literacy classes.

Supporters say learning the basics of the Bible is an important part of American history -- and students should not be denied learning its tenets just because someone might be offended.

The laws being proposed do not make Bible classes mandatory, but they will be offered as electives.

"Yeah, there's a separation of church and state, but there's not a separation of books from education," North Dakota State Rep. Aaron McWilliams, who co-sponsored a Bible bill in his state, told Fox & Friends Monday morning. "If we don't have a good foundational understanding of this, we're not going to understand how the Founding Fathers of our country and other countries put it together to have the world we have today."

Even President Trump has weighed in on the issue. He celebrated the efforts in a tweet Monday morning.

"Numerous states introducing Bible Literacy classes, giving students the option of studying the Bible," Trump wrote. "Starting to make a turn back? Great!"

But critics call the moves "unconstitutional."

"State legislators should not be fooled that these bills are anything more than part of a scheme to impose Christian beliefs on public schoolchildren," Rachel Laser, CEO of Americans United for Separation of Church and States, said in a statement.

Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin signed into law a bill that allowed public schools to add Bible literacy classes in 2017. But in 2018, all the state that proposed similar legislation -- Alabama, Iowa, and West Virginia -- came up short.

Legislators say they are not deterred.

"Without allowing a Bible into the schools, without allowing a Quran or any other religious text in the school, we look at establishing a religion of secularism in our schools without having anything else," McWilliams said.

The proposed bills are reportedly linked to an initiative called Project Blitz that is coordinated by a variety of conservative Christian groups, including the Congressional Prayer Caucus Foundation and the National Legal Foundation, USA Today reported. The bills also include several proposals to add "In God We Trust" posters in the classroom.

Opponents of the bills argue Trump and conservatives on the right are pandering to their base and not actually trying to pass legislation they expect to become law. They believe the state bill won't pass the legislation.

Museum in Jerusalem displays Near East artifacts rescued from robbers

As reported by Jewish News Service, December 19, 2018:

A collection of artifacts that were stolen but later rescued will be on display at the end of the month at the Bible Lands Museum Jerusalem.

The museum will open a new exhibit on Dec. 30 called “Finds Gone Astray,” featuring tens of thousands of antiquities such as, but not limited to, stone and pottery vessels, inscribed clay tablets, coins, figurines and other items of significance from the ancient Near East.

Some of the Mideast artifacts were illegally trafficked into the region, while others were unlawfully uncovered in ways that usually caused damage.

According to the museum, “Hours of intensive detective work including patient surveillance, carefully planned ambushes and nightly observations led to successfully intercepting the thieves and retrieving these priceless artifacts. The rescued objects have been carefully preserved and stored, and numerous looters operating in Judea and Samaria have been prosecuted.”

The exhibit will be the first of a new series of publications documenting the more than 40,000 stolen items.

“The primary goal of the museum is to present the vital history of our region, the crossroads of the ancient world, through innovative exhibitions and programming,” said Bible Lands Museum Jerusalem director Amanda Weiss in a statement. “‘Finds Gone Astray’ is a unique opportunity to shed light on the importance of preserving the history of our region and protecting our ancient sites.”

“Theft and destruction of antiquities is a widespread phenomenon that crosses borders for a range of reasons. In Judea and Samaria specifically, there is rampant destruction of ancient sites caused by preparations for cultivating or building on the land,” said Hananya Hezmi, head of the Central Command. “The methods used by the antiquities looters to uncover and expose the findings are brutal, causing irreversible damage to both sites and the findings and clearly harming academic research.”

He added that “we will continue to do everything in our power and invest the necessary resources in order to stop the damage to our shared culture and history.”

School board in Michigan refuses to cave in to whiny atheists

It's nice to know there's at least some place where someone will speak up for the rights of the majority against the intolerance of the extremely fragile minority known as atheists; a reported by the Grand Rapid television station WZZM, December 10, 2018:

The Newaygo School Board says they will "consider ways to refine" a religious display at one of the district's elementary schools.

After hearing from the public at a meeting on Monday, Dec. 10, the school board voted 6-0 in favor of a motion that "the board has no desire to remove the display."

School board president Vince Grodus said he, "would however like to authorize Dr. Mathis to consider ways to potentially refine the display so it better reflects our purpose as Newaygo Public School District."

Dr. Peggy Mathis is the superintendent of Newaygo Public Schools.

Late last month, the Michigan Association of Civil Rights Activists filed a complaint about the display featuring the three wise men and a star. They say the district is promoting one religion over others.

Since then, a few thousand people have signed a petition asking that the display be left alone, saying it is a 40-year tradition.

The school board did not clarify at the meeting "how" they will change the display to better reflect the school district's purpose.

Earlier, as reported by Jon Mills of WZZM, November 30, 2018:

NEWAYGO COUNTY, Mich. - The Newaygo Public School district could face legal action if three wise men and a star aren't removed from one of the district's buildings.

A state association involved in separation of church and state cases put the district on notice this week.

The issue and possible removal of the display is becoming the talk of Newaygo as residents prepare for Friday night's Christmas walk. Residents say the display goes back more than 40 years.

"Here it's a tradition," said Stacie Johnson. "You can see it coming from White Cloud."

Johnson and more than 2,000 others have signed an online petition asking the school district to leave the wise men and star in place.

"Majority are saying leave it alone," said Johnson.

The Michigan Association of Civil Rights Activists believes the display violates the U.S. Constitution.

"It clearly conveys the message of the Christian nativity," said Mitch Kahle, with MACRA.

The association gets involved in separation of church and state issues around the state on behalf of local citizens.

"We were approached by a complainant from the area," said Kahle.

The school district's attorney is working with school leaders to formulate an appropriate response.

"And they have promised to get back to us by December 7th," said Kahle.

"You have a public school that's promoting the story of the Christian nativity and that's not permitted under the Constitution," he added.

If the display does come down, supporters are working to secure permission to place it on a tall hill on the north end of Newaygo. They selected a site that's private property and would likely withstand any legal challenges.

British Columbia "Human Rights" Gestapo sides with yet another whiny atheist

The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Psalms 14:1 (also Psalms 53:1)

Submitted for your disapproval, yet another piece of evidence in support of blogger Vox Day's contention that atheism is a form of autism, and that atheists are socially autistic; as reported by Bethany Lindsay of CBC News, December 13, 2018 (bold in original):

An atheist family whose child was not allowed to re-enrol in preschool after her parents fought against classroom Christmas and Hanukkah celebrations has been awarded $12,000 by the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal.

The case wasn't about whether the school should be allowed to display Christmas ornaments or dreidels, or if teachers can discuss religion and holy days with their young charges. Instead, it was about the school's response to the parents' complaints — a response the tribunal described as discrimination.

The dispute began when Gary Mangel and Mai Yasué, two outspoken atheists, were told their daughter would not be allowed to continue to attend Bowen Island Montessori School (BIMS) unless they signed an agreement confirming their "understanding and acceptance" of all aspects of the school's cultural program.

"At its core, it is about a letter which held [a child]'s registration hostage to a demand," tribunal member Barbara Korenkiewicz wrote in her Tuesday decision on the case.

According to the decision, the events that led to that letter included emotional confrontations, "veiled" Islamophobia and even a mock Nazi salute.

'No discussion of Santa Claus'

Mangel and Yasué's three-year-old was attending BIMS in 2014 when they heard about the school's plans for the month of December, which included decorating elf ornaments and potentially also lighting candles on a menorah.

Mangel, who was on the board of directors for the school, wrote an email to other members saying it wasn't appropriate for preschoolers to celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah or any other "religious/political event" — including, he said, Remembrance Day.

"I certainly hope that there will be no discussion of Santa Claus at BIMS. I am absolutely against anyone blatantly lying to my daughter," Mangel wrote.

Over the next few months, the dispute snowballed as the couple exchanged colourful and occasionally testy emails with the school's board and had tense meetings with staff about the religious and cultural content of the curriculum. They also objected to celebrations of Easter and Valentine's Day, holidays they believe have become too tied up in materialism and consumerism.

The standoff reached a climax in June 2015, when the school asked Mangel and Yasué to sign off on their acceptance of the curriculum, which emphasizes multiculturalism. When they refused, the little girl wasn't allowed to return to school in the fall, according to the decision.

That demand amounted to discrimination on the basis of race, ancestry and religion, Korenkiewicz said.

"I find nothing in the evidence that could justify the refusal to register [the child] unless Dr. Yasué and Mr. Mangel essentially agreed that they would be significantly limited in their ability to raise issues about the cultural aspects of the BIMS program," Korenkiewicz wrote.

She said the school should pay the child $2,000 and the parents $5,000 each as compensation for the discrimination.

Unacceptable behaviour

That's despite some conduct by Mangel that strayed "beyond the acceptable," in Korenkiewicz's words.

For instance, when Mangel learned the school planned to include clay elf decorations in its December festivities, he wrote an email to the board objecting, and suggested some "atheist Christmas ornaments" that would better represent the views of his family.

That included one that simply says "Skeptic," and another that depicted the World Trade Center in New York with the caption "Atheists don't fly airplanes into buildings."

The latter, according to Korenkiewicz, was nothing more than "a veiled form of Islamophobia."

The tribunal also heard about an uncomfortable conversation Mangel had with the husband of a BIMS administrator. They were discussing the use of religious symbols at the school when the husband pointed out that children in public schools still sing the national anthem even though it includes the word "God."

"Mangel responded, 'I'll sue them too' and then began doing the Nazi salute and marching around while he sung a different version of O Canada," Korenkiewicz wrote.

Mangel told the tribunal he understood he was being politically incorrect but the display was meant to be a "preposterous analogy."

School board president Maria Turnbull described the $12,000 award to the family as a "meaningful sum," and said BIMS officials will need to examine how they can pay it.

She told CBC News: "What the decision provides is a level of certainty that is valued by the school, and we look forward to getting 100 per cent back to our focus on the young people."

It's interesting that this occurs not in a Christian or regular public school, but in a Montessori school, in which children are encouraged to develop what are regarded as their own natural abilities, with less structure than traditional schools. Maybe the reason the school refused to permit the parents to re-enroll their child was because the parents, as typical atheists, were so obnoxious and intolerant, trying to force their views on everyone else. And once again, the "Human Rights" Gestapo conjures up pseudo-legal excuses for preserving its 100% conviction rate. When is anyone ever going to stand up to these pseudo-legal bullies?

As for the claim that "atheists don't fly planes into buildings," they do kill tens of millions of people because they're in the wrong economic class (see "Soviet Socialist Republics, Union of"), and kill more Christians in one particular country than the number of Jews murdered by the Nazi regime in Germany (see "China, People's Republic of").

See also my posts:

British Columbia "Human Rights" Gestapo rules that sodomy trumps religious freedom (July 24, 2012)

University of Windsor caves in to whiny atheists and removes prayer from convocation ceremony (December 20, 2012)

Study finds that atheists are more likely to be left-handed (December 21, 2017)

Another university caves in to whiny atheists (October 1, 2018)

Ontario "Human Rights" Gestapo hammers another nail into the coffin of religious freedom in Canastan Canada (December 7, 2018)

Nebraska elementary school principal is put on leave after attempting to ban Christmas

Let's hope the leave is permanent. As reported by Sheila Gunn Reid of the Rebel Media, December 6, 2018 (links in original):

An elementary school principal in Elkhorn, Nebraska is this year’s Grinch that stole Christmas.

In a memo, Jennifer Sinclair informed her staff and faculty that she comes from a “place where Christmas and the like are not allowed in schools” so she would now make this the “expectation for all educators” at Manchester Elementary.

Her edict then went on to ban:

- Santas or Christmas items (clipart) on worksheets
- Christmas trees in classrooms
- Elf on the Shelf
- Christmas carols
- Christmas music
- Scholastic books that are Christmas related
- Making a Christmas ornament as a gift
- Candy canes
- Red/green items
- Reindeer
- Christmas videos/movies and/or characters from Christmas movies

Yetis and cartoon snowmen escaped her naughty list.

Sinclair acknowledged she was causing a lot of blowback to be directed towards her staff, who are being forced to follow her grinchy mandate, but that she was seeking to be inclusive and culturally sensitive to all students.

Today, I’ll break down the demographics of Nebraska and ask the question: Does Sinclair know what the word “inclusive” means?

In her efforts to be “inclusive” and extra tolerant, she excluded at least 96 per cent of the population and addressed criticisms about Christmas that weren’t even being made.

Sinclair was just put on leave from her role as principal at Manchester. The school board said her Christmas ban was not in line with school policy.

This should give the elementary school principal some free time to terrorize the residents of Whoville.

Earlier, as reported by Michael Foust of Christian Headlines, December 5, 2018 (links in original):

A legal organization that specializes in religious liberty issues is urging a Nebraska school principal to overturn her directive that banned anything related to Christmas – including Christmas music, Christmas carols, Christmas trees, candy canes and the colors red and green.

“I come from a place that Christmas and the like are not allowed in schools, as over the years in my educational career, this has evolved into the expectation for all educators,” Jennifer Sinclair, the principal of Manchester Elementary School, wrote in a letter to faculty.

The banned items involve not only religious symbols but secular ones, too, including Santa.

Liberty Counsel, a legal group that specializes in First Amendment issues, wrote the superintendent of Elkhorn Public Schools, urging him to overturn the policy.

“The ban violates the U.S. Constitution by showing hostility toward Christianity,” the letter read. “The ban also violates Elkhorn Public Schools board policy; the academic freedom rights of teachers; and it violates the First Amendment right of students to receive information...”

...Candy canes were banned because “historically, the shape is a ‘J’ for Jesus.”

“The red is for the blood of Christ, and the white is a symbol of his resurrection,” the principal wrote. “This would also include different colored candy canes.”

Among the items that are allowed: polar bears, penguins and the Frozen movie character Olaf.

Liberty Counsel said it did not want the principal removed from her position. It only wanted the policy changed.

“The principal appears to have conflated her own values and preferences with the law,” the letter read. “The First Amendment simply does not require elimination of all Christmas symbols – religious and secular – in a misguided attempt to be ‘inclusive’ by eliminating all traditional elements of a federally- and state-recognized holiday. The effort to comprehensively eliminate Christmas symbols is Orwellian.

“Nothing,” the letter added, “prohibits public schools from teaching objectively about religion, or about holidays with religious significance, like Thanksgiving and Christmas. Nothing prohibits public school music programs from having a mix of sacred and secular songs relating to the Christmas holiday, as part of a balanced Christmas music program; or classroom assignments from having relevance to Christmas.”

10-year-old girl in Italy successfully petitions to have Jesus' name included in school's Christmas song

A rare victory for common sense over the forces of political correctness; as reported by Agenzia Nazionale Stampa Associata, November 30, 2018:

Venezia - A 10-year-old girl launched a petition and managed to get Jesus's name put into a school's Christmas song after it was left out so as not offend the sensibilities of non-Catholic students.

The incident happened on the Riviera del Brenta between Venice and Padua.

Museum of the Bible removes five fragments thought to be from the Dead Sea Scrolls after they're proved to be forgeries

As reported by Harriet Alexander and Nick Allen of the London Daily Telegraph, October 22, 2018:

A Bible museum founded by an evangelical Christian billionaire has remove five fragments thought to have been from the Dead Sea Scrolls after experts concluded they were "inconsistent with ancient origin".

The $500 million Museum of the Bible was opened in November by Steve Green, the founder of craft chain Hobby Lobby, and displayed some of his artifacts built up over a decade of collecting.

But on Monday the chief curator, Jeffrey Kloha, announced that five of the 16 fragments in the museum's collection were being removed from public display after German-based scholars examined them.

Mr Kloha told CNN: "Though we had hoped the testing would render different results, this is an opportunity to educate the public on the importance of verifying the authenticity of rare biblical artifacts, the elaborate testing process undertaken, and our commitment to transparency."

He added: "As an educational institution entrusted with cultural heritage, the museum upholds and adheres to all museum and ethical guidelines on collection care, research and display."

It is not known how much was spent on the fragments but some academics had disputed their authenticity since they went on display.

Last year the museum sent the fragments to Germany's Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und-prüfung.

Experts there used 3D digital microscopy and studied the ink used on the papyrus.

Last year, the US Justice Department accused the Green family's company of smuggling ancient artifacts from Iraq.

Hobby Lobby agreed to pay a $3 million fine and return more than 5,000 items in a government settlement.

The Museum of the Bible issued a statement at the time stating that none of the artifacts involved were part of the Museum’s collection.

As reported by Yonat Shimron of Religion News Service, October 22, 2018:

Since its grand opening nearly a year ago, the Museum of the Bible has exhibited five fragments from the storied Dead Sea Scrolls, the ancient parchment fragments discovered 70 years ago in a desert cave.

On Monday, the museum acknowledged that the five fragments it had on display were forgeries. They were taken down several weeks ago and replaced with three other fragments that do not have the same anomalies.

The museum had long suspected the fragments may be forged and a sign accompanying the exhibit says scholars had raised questions about their authenticity. Last week the museum received scientific verification via digital and X-ray testing of the ink, sediment layers and chemical composition, which proved conclusively that the fragments were forged.

“This is part of our ongoing commitment to making sure we’re adhering to all legal and museum standards, that our displays are accurate, that when we have information, we make it available,” said Jeff Kloha, chief curatorial officer. “Where we had uncertainty about the documentation, we put that up on the museum website and updated labels on the displays.”

This is not the first time the museum has faced questions about the problematic origins of some of its antiquities. Many of the items in the Washington, D.C., museum were purchased beginning in 2009 by the billionaire Oklahoma-based Green family, owners of the Hobby Lobby craft store chain.

The museum has benefited from the Greens’ buying spree. The family amassed about 40,000 items, some of which were donated to the museum, including the purported Dead Sea Scroll fragments.

But last year, Hobby Lobby agreed to return nearly 4,000 artifacts to Iraq after they were found to have been looted from Iraqi archaeological sites. As part of the settlement with the Justice Department, the company was also required to pay $3 million to the U.S. government.

The Dead Sea Scrolls are considered among the 20th century’s greatest archaeological finds. They were discovered by Bedouin shepherds in 1947 in caves near the Dead Sea and are about 1,100 years older than any other existing texts of the Hebrew Bible. Among the fragments are portions of the Ten Commandments and the Book of Genesis.

They would be a prized item for any serious collector, and especially the evangelical Green family. But the Israel Antiquities Authority owns most of them and displays them in Jerusalem’s Shrine of the Book. Many can now be viewed online, too.

“For the Greens and many collectors like them from the evangelical community, there’s something about the tangibility of the text, something about being able to touch a part of the Bible that predates Jesus,” said Joel Baden, a professor of Hebrew Bible at Yale Divinity School. “There’s some deeply seated appeal in ‘the oldest’ and these are absolutely the oldest texts we have.”

The Green family bought 16 scroll fragments between 2009 and 2014, Kloha said. Twelve of the 16 were purchased in 2009 and 2010. He did not say how much Hobby Lobby paid for the items before they were donated to the museum.

Lawrence Schiffman, an adviser to the Museum of the Bible, disputed a commonly held narrative that the Greens erred by buying too many artifacts too quickly, without guidance from professionals who could properly vet their origin and authenticity.

He noted that since 2002, close to 70 items that have come on the market as Dead Sea Scroll fragments appear to be suspect. Some fragments were sold to Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, others to Azusa Pacific University in Azusa, Calif.

“This is not the only institution with post-2002 fragments,” said Schiffman, professor of Hebrew and Judaic studies at New York University. “They were purchased by a whole bunch of people and they were purchased with very good pedigree. These buyers were all filched by sophisticated people.”

Kloha said the scroll fragments underwent three rounds of investigation to verify their provenance, handwriting style and the chemical relationship between the parchment and ink. The results of the third round, considered the best determinant of authenticity, came in last week.

March 14, 2020 update: As reported by Marc Brodsky of Jewish Telegraphic Agency, March 13, 2020 (link in original):

The 16 Dead Seas Scroll fragments housed at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., are forgeries, museum officials said Friday.

“We’re victims — we’re victims of misrepresentation, we’re victims of fraud,” CEO Harry Hargrove said at an academic conference hosted by the museum, National Geographic reported.

A team of researchers led by an art fraud investigator issued a 200-page report saying that while the fragments may be made of ancient leather, the ink was from modern times and altered to look like the real Dead Sea Scrolls.

Most of the 100,000 real Dead Sea Scroll fragments lie in the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, and the report does not question their authenticity. Bedouins found clay jars in the West Bank’s Qumran caves in 1947 holding thousands of the parchment scrolls dating back more than 1,800 years, including some of the oldest surviving copies of the Hebrew Bible.

Recent articles from the Daily Telegraph document Britain's--and Western society's--increasing insanity

Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope:..
...Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! Isaiah 5:18, 20-21

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come...
...But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. II Timothy 3:1, 13

Here, surely, is the world's record in the domain of the ridiculous and the contemptible... Sir Winston Churchill

Western society is getting more insane every day, fulfilling the prophecy above. The London Daily Telegraph has provided ample documentation of the increasing decadence in recent articles such as the following (links in original).

As reported by Camilla Turner, October 4, 2018:

Parents who refuse to let their son wear a skirt to school may need to be referred to social services, a council’s guidance has advised schools.

Mothers and fathers who dismiss a “gender questioning” child’s requests to change their name could also be a trigger for concern, according to Brighton and Hove City Council’s “Trans Inclusion Schools Toolkit”.

It comes after warnings that schools are "sowing confusion" in children's minds by over-promoting transgender issues, and that children are being encouraged to “unlearn” the difference between boys and girls.

The guidance advises teachers on how to handle a number of different scenarios, including if parents say: “I refuse to allow my son to change his name or wear skirts”.

Schools are advised that some parents may “struggle” to accept their child’s gender identity and it may be a long time before they accept the change.

“If a setting has a significant concern about the child’s wellbeing and or safety in relation to how the parents or carers are managing the exploration of the child’s gender identity it may be necessary and advisable to follow safeguarding procedures,” schools are told.

The Department for Education (DfE)’s statutory guidance on safeguarding says that staff with concerns about a child must alert the school’s safeguarding lead, and if necessary contact social services or the police...

...The guidance document, now in its third edition, was produced by Allsorts Youth Project, a charity that supports young people who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender or Queer (LGBTQ).

It advises that in “all cases”, transgender pupils should be allowed to use the changing room that corresponds to their gender identity, rather than their biological sex.

This means that any boy who identifies as a female should be allowed to use girls’ changing rooms, even if it makes other girls feel “uncomfortable”.

“It is important to ensure that these are safe environments for all by challenging underlying attitudes and bullying behaviours,” the guidance says...

...Earlier this year, it emerged that a teacher who was accused of “misgendering” a child was told by police that she had committed a hate crime.

The teacher, who claimed they were a “grammatical purist”, refused to acknowledge that the pupil self-identified as a boy and failed to use the pupil’s preferred pronouns of “he” or “him”.

As reported by Ms. Turner, October 11, 2018:

A student union is seeking to ban students from dressing up as Tories at fancy dress parties to avoid causing offence.

Kent University’s student union has drafted a new set of “Fancy Dress Guidelines” which say that groups are allowed to host fancy dress parties so long as costumes are not “offensive, discriminatory and prejudice to an individual’s race, gender, disability or sexual orientation or based on stereotypes”.

This is to ensure that the university is a “safe space" for undergraduates, where no one is embarrassed or upset by seeing a fellow student's costume, according to the Canterbury Journal.

Dressing up as “Tories” and “chavs” are given as examples of costumes to avoid, as these would breach the “class and political stereotypes” section of the guidance.

“Fancy Dress themes should also not be centred around political group stereotypes or the stereotypes of different levels of perceived class in the means to diminish their worth or validity,” the guidance says.

“This again would promote an unsafe and exclusive campus to which we do not tolerate.” Among the dozens of outfits it deems "offensive" are cowboys, Native Americans, priests and nuns, and anyone who wears a Mexican sombrero.

Students have also been warned against anything that has a sensitive historical or religious connotations. It gives the Crusades, Isis bombers, Israeli soldiers and The Prophet Mohammed as examples of costumes to avoid.

The guidance says: "Fancy Dress themes should also not be centred around political group stereotypes or the stereotypes of different levels of perceived class in the means to diminish their worth or validity.

"This again would promote an unsafe and exclusive campus to which we do not tolerate."

But the union does list cave people, aliens, Ancient Greeks and Romans, and doctors and nurses as acceptable attire choices.

Costumes of celebrities known for their sexual misconduct or abuse of power have also been banned, including the disgraced DJ Jimmy Savile and movie producer Harvey Weinstein.

Aaron Thompson, the Kent Union president, said: “Over the last few years we have received complaints over some student groups’ choice of fancy dress.

“As a result we have drafted some guidelines as a discussion point with some of our groups and as part of a proactive approach to ensure that student events remain inclusive.

“We of course want students to enjoy themselves and often host fancy dress parties in our own nightclub, but we would ask students to be mindful of their choices and whether any offence could be caused.”

He said the fancy dress policy document is currently in draft form, and will the union is seeking feedback on its proposals.

As reported by Jamie Johnson, October 17, 2018:

Waitrose is to change the name of its Gentleman’s Smoked Chicken Caesar Roll because feminist campaigners said it was sexist.

The roll, from Heston Blumenthal’s range at the supermarket, contains anchovy mayonnaise, similar to ‘gentleman’s relish’ but the name was branded “outrageous” on social media and the chain has issued an apology.

Amy Lamé, Sadiq Khan’s London night Czar posted an image of the product on Twitter and said: “I never knew sandwiches were gender specific. I’m female but thankfully Waitrose let me purchase this anyway.”

She tagged the organisation Everyday Sexism, who document instances of sexism experienced on a day to day basis.

Other people were quick to pile in with criticism of the supermarket, with Sian Murray saying: “What a ridiculous name!” and Joe Alessi calling it “outrageous”. Nikki Alvey said she was "disappointed" with the product's name.

The roll costs £3.80, but is currently on sale at a cutdown price of £2.85 and features a picture of a rooster dressed in waders holding a fishing rod with a fish at the end of the line.

Waitrose describes the roll as: “The ultimate Caesar salad to go. A parmesan ciabatta roll filled with pulled, smoked chicken breast, beechwood smoked bacon and Parmigiano Reggiano all topped with anchovy mayonnaise and Cos lettuce for crunch.”

The supermarket addressed the complaints about the product by apologising to anyone who felt offended by the name ‘Gentleman’s Smoked Chicken Caesar Roll’ and promised to change it.

A spokesperson told the Telegraph: "It's never our intention to cause offence - we're not dictating who should eat this sandwich - we hope anyone who tries it will love the distinctive flavours. However we are planning to change the name of the sandwich soon."

They did not confirm when the name change would happen, or what the new product will be called...

...The ‘Gentleman’s roll’ is not the first product to fall foul of sexism claims. Back in 2002, Nestle’s Yorkie chocolate bar launched a brash campaign in which it was labelled “Not for Girls.” The slogan stayed for ten years before being dropped quietly.

It's no wonder that schoolchildren are reporting increasing anxiety, given that the "adult" society is around them has declared war on nature and common sense. As reported by Laura Donnelly, October 9, 2018:

Schools will be asked to monitor children's happiness and mental health in a bid to tackle growing levels of anxiety among young people, the Prime Minister will announce today.

The new measures are part of a wider mental health strategy which will see thousands of therapists sent into classrooms, and annual publication of a ‘happiness index’ tracking the state of the nation’s youth.

Theresa May will also appoint the UK’s first minister for suicide prevention and £1.8m funding for the Samaritans, as she pledges to “end the stigma that has forced too many to suffer in silence”.

It comes amid concern about an epidemic of anxiety and distress among young people, with record levels of mental ill-health among a generation dealing with the fallout from social media.

Half of mental illness begins by the age of 14, and statistics due out later this year are expected to show levels far higher than has previously been recorded.

Under the plans, the Government will publish a “State of the Nation” report every year highlighting trends in young people’s mental well-being.

This will be the first time it has been given the same focus as physical health and academic attainment.

And all primary and secondary schools will be asked to regularly measure their pupils’ mental well-being, as part of lessons in relationships, sex and health education.

Officials said teachers would be expected to help young pupils to cope with modern pressures, while schools would be offered tools to help them assess pupil wellbeing.

It comes after The Daily Telegraph launched a duty of care campaign calling for more stringent regulation of sites like Facebook and Instagram, in order to protect children from harm.

A report from the National Audit Office today reveals a five-fold rise in the number of children and teenagers ending up at Accident and Emergency departments because of psychiatric problems over the last decade.

It also warns of falling numbers of child psychiatrists, at a time when demand continues to rise.

Today Mrs May will announce the launch of a new campaign to train a million people in mental health awareness, starting with a pilot in the West Midlands...

...Mrs May will announce that new mental health support teams will start working in schools across England next year.

The plans will see a new profession of healthcare professionals trained to deliver therapy in schools, and to ensure specialist help is given to those in need.

And she will appoint health minister Jackie Doyle-Price as the UK’s first minister for suicide prevention.

Around 4,500 people take their own lives each year in England and suicide remains the leading cause of death for men under 45.

In her new role, the minister will lead government efforts to cut the number of suicides, working with charities, clinicians and those personally affected by suicide.

It comes as Health Secretary Matt Hancock hosts the first ever Global Ministerial Mental Health Summit in London, attended by more than 50 countries as well as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

While taking what used to be considered sins or symptoms of madness and redefining them as normal and deserving of "human rights" protection from any opposing views, those who presume to define society's values are now criminalizing and pathologizing normal, although perhaps impolite, attitudes and behaviours. As reported by Martin Evans, October 17, 2018:

The drive to target hate crime is forcing police officers to spend valuable time investigating wolf-whistles, bad manners and impolite comments, a police leader has warned.

Sergeant Richard Cooke, the recently elected chairman of the West Midlands Police Federation, said forces were expected to record and follow up reports of hate crime, even when no criminal offence had taken place.

Writing in the Telegraph, Mr Cooke warns police officers would be dispatched to offer words of advice to people, but this meant they had less time to focus on "genuine crimes" such as burglary and violence.

Mr Cooke said he did not believe this was what the public expected of its police service. While applauding the principle behind protecting those at risk of hurtful abuse, officers have expressed their frustration at being drawn into what they see as social rather than criminal issues.

Mr Cooke, who represents 6,500 rank and file officers in the country's second largest police force, said: "I fear a dangerous precedent could be set, where our scant resources are skewed further and further away from the genuine crisis in public safety taking place on our urban homes and streets.

"Nobody, especially police officers, would ever want to see any elderly person or woman subjected to any sort of crime. The same goes for any other innocent member of the community. But we do have laws to address all manner of crimes and anti-social behaviour already."

Earlier this week the Home Secretary, Sajid Javid, announced that he had asked the Law Commission to consider whether misogyny and ageism should be added to the list of categories that constitute a hate crime.

It is hoped that by broadening out the definition of the offence, police and prosecutors will have more power to tackle and punish those who deliberately target vulnerable groups.

Newly published figures show how religious hate crimes rose by 40 per cent last year with attacks on Jewish people representing 12 percent of all offences.

Abuse against gay and transgender people and the disabled has also risen.

But there are increasing warnings that in the drive to identify and tackle the problem, police priorities are being impacted.

Mr Cooke said: "We all abhor and want to end genuine crimes motivated or aggravated by intolerance and prejudice. They should be investigated, and those who commit them should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, as should those who incite them."

But he went on: "Let us focus urgently on genuine crime, supported by basic evidence. Let’s not encourage people to think we can solve deep social problems or give impolite people manners.

"Are we really going to be required to routinely record, and potentially act on, incidents like a builder’s wolf whistle or an insensitive comment towards an elderly driver?

"I do not believe for one second that this is what the public, outside of the politically correct 'court of Twitter', expects or wants us to do."

South Yorkshire Police recently came in for criticism after urging people to report insults that did not necessarily constitute hate crimes.

Last month the newly elected chairman of the Police Federation, John Apter, warned that common sense policing was disappearing with officers forced to spend time intervening in trivial social media disputes rather than attending burglaries and other serious crimes.

He said it was time for a debate sensible debate about what the public expected of its police service.

"Where we get drawn into local disagreements, the argument over the remote control, the dispute in the playground, the row on Facebook it is frustrating. I certainly think police time can be better spent and it makes a mockery when we are so stretched," he said.

The immaturity and lack of self-discipline that often characterizes young people who are away from home without adult supervision for the first time is now considered a sign of mental illness, as reported by Ms. Turner, October 16, 2018:

For university students, falling asleep during lectures after staying up all night partying was once considered par for the course.

But now nodding off during classes at Buckingham University will be treated as a possible sign of a mental health disorder.

Under new plans, every member of staff at the university will be given mental health first aid training so they can spot signs of potential distress among students.

Starting from January, all university employees - from professors to cleaners, caterers and gardeners - will be enrolled on a compulsory half-day training course in mental health. They will also be able to sign up for a longer two-day course and become a mental health champion.

Dee Bunker, head of welfare at Buckingham University who is overseeing the staff training programme, said: “We will teach about the signs and symptoms of stress and of someone who is depressed: not being engaged, not attending classes, a lack of eye contact or a lack of sleep.

“If someone is anxious you may find them pale, sweating, wringing their hands or nervous. They may not be able to concentrate, look you in the eye, hold a conversation, sit still or sit in same room with you.”

Academics will be taught that if a “student is falling asleep in your lecture”, this could serve as “an indication that they are not sleeping at night” due to anxiety or depression.

"Our hope is that no member of staff would ever walk past anyone who is upset,” Ms Bunker said. “This training gives people the knowledge and confidence to say: ‘Are you ok? Is there anything I can help with?’ and signpost them towards where they can get more help.”

Ms Bunker said that staff will not be expected to diagnose mental health conditions on the spot. “It won’t make you an expert - but it means you won’t ignore someone who is distressed,” she added.

It is the latest in a series of mental health initiatives launched by Buckingham University, which will host a wellbeing in education conference this Friday.

Sir Anthony Seldon, the university's vice-Chancellor, said: "No member of staff should walk past a student clearly in distress. The aim is to save lives and we should all be playing our part.”

He has previously warned that universities are turning a blind eye to freshers’ week “excesses” and urged fellow institutions to end their “permissive” culture.

Sir Anthony, a former headmaster at Wellington College, said that said that first-year students should be offered alternative activities to parties and social events where heavy drinking and drug-taking are prevalent.

“Every student should be taught how to breathe deeply and to control the breath to manage stress,” the report said.

“Students who learn how to relax deeply and practise yoga, tai chi, pilates or other relaxation approaches develop growing resilience and confidence for life.”

His report, published last year by the Higher Education Policy Institute, outlines how to create "positive universities" also suggests first-year students take psychology courses that teach them about the importance of wellbeing and good mental health.

It suggests all students should be offered mindfulness classes, as well as a psychology programme in their first year which teaches them skills such as resilience, how to deal with emotions, build relationships and identify and use their own strengths...

Of course, it could just be that students drink and have parties because they enjoy it, and regard such activities as part of university life. The perceptive reader will notice that the Vice-Chancellor's solution involves mindfulness, a Buddhist practice masquerading as non-religious. I recommend searching the site of Lighthouse Trails Research Project for information on mindfulness.