In today’s News:
Bolivian Lutherans respond to COVID-19
The South American nation of Bolivia has reported more than 138,000 cases of covid-19 to date, with more than 8,300 deaths. There are currently nearly 29,000 active cases of the coronavirus in the country. Early in March 2020, the government moved to close borders and enact quarantine measures throughout the country. Church services were restricted in Bolivia early on. The evangelical Christian Lutheran Church of Bolivia (Iglesia Cristiana Evangélica Luterana de Bolivia – ICEL) is working to support its members during the crisis, even as the virus affects some of its own members. In response to the pandemic, the ICEL moved quickly to provide online devotional resources for members. The church’s pastors, vicars and missionaries, have provided daily devotional videos via the church’s Facebook page, in both the Spanish and quiche languages. The church has also led a national study of Luther’s Small Catechism, which has been well-received. The church has provided support for Bolivians in practical ways too, including through the distribution of basic necessities. The church continues to look for additional ways to support people.
Senior apartments owner/manager investigated
Secretary of Housing And Urban Development Dr. Ben Carson said the department is investigating a complaint against the owner and manager of senior apartments in Oklahoma for violating The Fair Housing Act by removing Bibles and other religious literature from their common areas. Wilhoit Properties, which manages the apartments and assisted-living homes owned by Vintage Housing, was accused of sending an email to their 116 assisted living facilities asking the managers to remove bibles and Christian literature from their libraries located in the common areas that were shared by all residents, Sapulpa Times reported. Wilhoit properties, which manages more than 200 properties in 16 states, allegedly removed the Bibles and Christian faith-based books without any warning to residents, who pay rent to use the common areas, according to the times, which said the Christian material was removed after a resident complained about angels being used as décor in the common area.
Officials won’t prosecute abortionists
A small group of state prosecutors and attorneys general announced yesterday that they will refuse to prosecute abortionists for killing unborn babies if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade and states criminalize abortion. ABC news reports 63 elected officials signed the joint statement, a project of the organization Fair and Just Prosecution, Including California Attorneys General Xavier Becerra, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison And Delaware Attorney General Kathleen Jennings.
Ban on dismemberment abortion overturned
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court Of Appeals struck down a Texas law on Tuesday that would have banned the use of “dismemberment abortion” procedures common in the second trimester. Enacted in 2017 but never enforced due to legal battles, the law bans the dilation and evacuation (D&E) abortion procedure, more commonly known as “dismemberment abortions,” because they tear a preborn baby apart in the womb. The judges voted 2-1 against the law. The ban “forces abortion providers to act contrary to their medical judgment and the best interest of their patient” by requiring them to instead use “dangerous” procedures that offer “no benefit to the woman, Judge James Dennis claimed in his majority opinion. Its “burdens substantially outweigh its benefits,” he claimed.
