Over 18 hours after the caucuses began, the Democratic Party has confirmed the Hillary Clinton has won the Iowa Democratic Caucus. Clinton won by a razor thin margin. Apparently some precincts were determined by a literal “coin-toss.”
Former Governor Mike Huckabee (R-AR) announced that he is suspending his quest for the White House tonight after a poor showing at the Iowa Caucus. Huckabee won the Caucus in his 2008 bid for President.
Still to be determined is the 2nd and 3rd place in the tight race between Donald Trump and Marco Rubio. No other candidate was in double digits.
O’Malley will announce that he is suspending his campaign for President tonight after securing zero delegates in the Iowa Caucus.
Based on CNN entrance polls going into the Iowa Caucus, it’s a 3 way battle: Trump 27%, Cruz 22% and Rubio 21%. The next closest candidate is Carson at 8%.
Photo released today on Facebook
Apostle’s Creed
Earliest doctrine of the Christian Church dating to the 4th Century
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended into hell.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic and apostolic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
This post is primarily directed to Evangelical Christians, of which I consider myself one. I do not write this post lightly. As a rule, I do not judge a person’s beliefs. I recognize in this nation, one’s faith, or even the lack of it, is not a qualification to hold public office under the Constitution. No one spoke louder than I did in 2012 objecting to the criticisms of the faith of Mitt Romney. However, when one drapes himself in the mantle of a faith and panders to its faithful as one its own and uses it as a basis of your credentials for the office of President, you have made yourself and your beliefs the subject of valid criticisms.
Today, he posted a video wrapping himself around his childhood Bible and holding himself to Evangelicals as one of their own and promising that he would be there for them. That was it for me. It’s time to review the record of Donald J. Trump.
Throughout the campaign, Trump has tried to wrap himself around his mother’s famous pastor Dr. Norman Vincent Peale. He has repeatedly talked about the importance of his faith and family despite a history of broken marriages and extra-marital affairs, but well, at he least he doesn’t drink ….. And surely this is the voice of a godly, Christian man “You know, it doesn’t really matter what [the media] write as long as you’ve got a young and beautiful piece of ass.” — from an interview with Esquire, 1991.
He can’t recall a favorite verse from the Bible because it’s “too personal” when being interviewed by Bloomberg magazine. However, when interviewed by the Christian Broadcasting Network, he recalls his favorite as “Never bend to envy” – a non-existent verse. When asked if he has ever asked God for forgiveness, he didn’t see the need. “I like to be good. I don’t like to have to ask for forgiveness. And I am good. I don’t do a lot of things that are bad. I try to do nothing that is bad.” Now, when I read my Bible, it’s pretty clear:
There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.” Romans 3: 11-12 (quoting Psalm 51)
His claim is a denial of a fundamental tenet of the Christian faith. He further mocks the notion of the need for forgiveness by the trivialization of Holy Communion. “When we go into church — and when I drink my little wine, which is about the only wine I drink, and have my little cracker — I guess that is a form of asking for forgiveness. I do that as often as possible because I feel cleansed, OK?”
Narcissism was never a value preached by Christ in the sermon on the mount. Jesus never taught against the evils of political correctness. He did, however, condemn selfishness, vanity and extravagance.
If that wasn’t enough, he has denied the essence of the faith with his own words. In an interview with the Chicago Tribune published March 12, 1989, Donald Trump made clear he does not believe in Heaven or Hell. That is a denial of the Apostolic Creed, which is the historic statement of faith for Christianity. In short, he is not a Christian. He is committing a fraud upon the faithful.
Yes, I know. You’re afraid. The world changing. The family is under attack. Our faith is under attack. Radical Islamic terrorists want to kill us. We have a President who have been feckless in foreign policy. We have a government that is out of control and economy that is going nowhere and you feel like no one is doing anything about it. You feel like we have to have someone strong – even if we don’t agree on everything.
Times like these call for faith. In whom do we place our trust? In the days of the judges in Israel, the people were convinced they needed a strong man. They needed a king! Samuel tried to warn them:
He said, “This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. Your male and female servants and the best of your cattle[c] and donkeys he will take for his own use. He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, but the Lord will not answer you in that day.” I Samuel 8:11-18
When we compromise our values, we pay a dear price. The strong man only wants power for himself. He says that when he is President “Christians will have power” (something he has no ability to deliver). Satan offered that to Jesus. Jesus knew to reject it. He is not one of ours. He is a fraud. Worse, he panders to hate. How is this behavior consistent with the teaching of Christ? The message of Christ is always love and hope, not anger and hate.
For more information:
In a move seen coming for some time, the International Anglican Communion voted to suspend the American Episcopalian Church for three (3) years. The move has been threatened for a number of years as the Episcopal Church has made itself more open to the gay community. While the Church of England, Church of Scotland and the Episcopal Church all had ordained gay priests, the issue was still divisive within most of the communion and came to a head in 1999, when the Church of England ordained an openly gay bishop. After investigation, the Archbishop of Canterbury ruled that consecration of people in same sex relationships should cease.
In July 2009, the Episcopal Church voted to reject the moratorium on consecration of gay bishops. In response, just short of a complete fissure, the Archbishop of Canterbury declared that the Episcopal Church no longer spoke on behalf of Anglicans.
In response to the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, which immediately legalized same sex marriages nationwide, the Episcopal Church voted in July 2015 (effective November 1, 2015), after contentious debate, to permit same sex marriage and created new rites which were gender neutral – although as a compromise priests would not be compelled to perform same sex unions.
The churches formed from association with the Church of England, which was formed by King Henry VIII when he broke with Rome when Pope Clement VII refused to grant Henry an annulment in his marriage from Catherine of Aragon.
Congressman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), Chairman of the House Committee for Oversight and Government Reform, announced today that he is endorsing Marco Rubio as the Republican nominee for President. This follows yesterday’s announcement by Congressmen Chris Chocola (R-IN), former President of Club for Growth, that he is endorsing Marco Rubio.
Today Chaffetz said, “Marco Rubio is a conservative leader who understands the challenges facing American families in the 21st century. I’m looking forward to hitting the campaign trail with Marco to talk about the future of our country and the importance of electing a next-generation conservative in 2016.” With Chaffetz’s endorsement, the entire Utah house delegation has now endorsed Marco Rubio.
Chocola stated yestreday, “”I am proud to support Marco Rubio, a strong fiscal conservative and living testament to the American Dream.”
See Chaffetz announce endorsement on NBC News
Conservative icon Trey Gowdy, Chairmen of the House Select Committee investigating Benghazi, endorsed Marco Rubio today. He is campaigning with him in Iowa.
“Marco is a rock solid conservative and a leader we can trust. He is someone we can count on in Washington to stand true to his word. And I know from experience: that is hard to find in Washington, ” said Gowdy.
No eye was upon Bethlehem. Few upon Judea. The world was Rome. Well, so, it thought in 5 BC. Of course, the world was a lot bigger than that. In Japan, the legendary Suinin – one of Japan’s most famous Emperors was at the peak of his power. The Han Dynasty held sway in China, but began its decline as the Confucian scholars declared they had lost their mandate from Heaven. The Mayans were at the peak of their civilization cutting out hearts and making lots of predictions.
The Parthians held sway in the East, from which the famous Magi would come. The year prior Phraates V had taken the throne of Parthia marrying his own mother – a slave girl who been a “gift” to his father from Roman Emperor Augustus.
In Rome, Augustus plotted to place his adopted children in positions of power, while his own wife plotted with her son Tiberius to advance his own interests against theirs. Some speculate that Augustus’ death was not due to natural causes.
In Damascus, Publius Quinctilius Varus, the Roman governor of the province of Syria stood in readiness to pounce upon prey. Herod the Great, the ruler of the Roman client state of Judea was dying and raving mad. He was preparing to execute his heir Antipater and his other sons were plotting against each other. The radicals were ready to revolt upon Herod’s death and Varus was ready.
In Jerusalem, all wondered how long the king would linger – how many he would kill before dying. While many marveled at the new Temple, which was even grander than Solomon’s Temple had been, they were horrified that a Roman Eagle had been placed upon its gate and some were determined to take it down even at the cost of their life.
Taxes. Everyone must pay them. In order to collect them, a census was ordered. Again, no one looked to Bethlehem – except those who were from there and must go there. Everyone else looked elsewhere for deliverance, but none was to be found. Except those few, including the Magi, who bothered to read a passage from the obscure prophet Micah:
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
from ancient times.”
Therefore Israel will be abandoned
until the time when she who is in labor bears a son,
and the rest of his brothers return
to join the Israelites.”
While the world swirled in conspiracy, intrigue, murder and hatred, a newly married couple expecting a child rode to Bethlehem just doing what the state asked them to do – register and pay their taxes. There was no room for them. While many would like to make analogies to events today, they are not right. It was no one’s fault at the time. However, it would display the wisdom of God. In a place where no one was looking because they were looking everywhere else, God gave us the greatest gift of all.
In poverty, in homelessness, without power or grandeur was born the greatest who has ever been born or ever shall be. And so, the Wisdom of God has confounded the wise and brought low every prince. For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
May the Blessings of Christmas be upon you and your families now and in the coming year. May we know the reality of the Prince of Peace.