{"id":7654,"date":"2025-04-18T19:40:54","date_gmt":"2025-04-19T02:40:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/?p=7654"},"modified":"2025-04-18T19:43:13","modified_gmt":"2025-04-19T02:43:13","slug":"things-glen-found-interesting-volume-500","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2025\/04\/18\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-500","title":{"rendered":"Things Glen Found Interesting, Volume 500: faith, China, and&nbsp;Trump"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-4396\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=300%2C300&#038;ssl=1\" alt srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=768%2C768&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=1024%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=1200%2C1200&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?w=2048&amp;ssl=1 2048w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?w=1680&amp;ssl=1 1680w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 85vw, 300px\"><\/a>On Fridays I share articles\/resources about broad cultural, societal and theological issues. Be sure to see the explanation and disclaimers at the bottom. I welcome your suggestions. If you read something fascinating please pass it my&nbsp;way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is the 500<sup>th<\/sup> time I\u2019ve composed this email. I thought I might do something special this week to commemorate that milestone, but there are too many interesting articles I\u2019ve run across \u2014 this will a regular installment. Enjoy!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Maybe when we get to volume 520 \u2014 that will signify ten years of emails.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Things Glen Found Interesting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list simple-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/04\/18\/style\/religion-america.html?unlocked_article_code=1.A08.re3l.rR3_Zy-HAmxP&amp;smid=url-share\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Americans Haven\u2019t Found a Satisfying Alternative to Religion<\/a> (Lauren Jackson, New York Times): \u201cAmerica\u2019s secularization was an immense social transformation. Has it left us better off? People are unhappier than they\u2019ve ever been and the country is in an epidemic of loneliness. It\u2019s not just secularism that\u2019s to blame, but those without religious affiliation in particular rank lower on key metrics of well-being. They feel less connected to others, less spiritually at peace and they experience less awe and gratitude regularly.\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Unlocked. Note that this is not in the opinion section (somewhat surprisingly, it is in the style section). The author is an ex-Mormon.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thefp.com\/p\/ross-douthat-why-its-logical-to-believe-in-god\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Ross Douthat: Why It\u2019s Logical to Believe in God<\/a> (Bari Weiss interviewing Ross Douthat, The Free Press): \u201cThe book of Genesis begins with an admonition: Fill the Earth, and subdue it. We\u2019ve done that. We have reached an interesting point in history from a religious point of view. And there\u2019s a really open question\u2014where do we go next? Do we collapse? Do we go to the stars? Do we become transhuman? Do we merge with the machines and so on? So, it\u2019s a high-stakes moment. And if God exists and he has intentions for us, it\u2019s really important at a high-stakes moment to take those intentions into account. I think of people like Musk and Altman. The contest for their literal souls is really important to the whole future of the human race. If God exists, it\u2019s a big moment. You want belief to win out over the alternatives.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thefp.com\/p\/is-this-the-chinese-century-not-if\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Conventional Wisdom Is That China Is Beating Us. Nonsense.<\/a> (Tyler Cowen, The Free Press): \u201cThe bottom line is that the smartest entities in the world\u2014the top AI programs\u2014will not just be Western but likely even American in their intellectual and ideological orientations for some while to come.\u2026 Moving to a world where the AIs are the smartest entities in China, rather than the CCP, is for China a radical change\u2014and one the CCP is probably very afraid of. Much of the legitimacy of the CCP sprang from its claim to be a wise manager of the Chinese legacy. But now it will be outsourcing that management to Western-based AI models. From a Western geopolitical point of view, that could end up a lot better, and more effective, than planting a bunch of spies in the Chinese government.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/julieroys.com\/chris-tomlin-new-song-resurrects-worlds-oldest-known-hymn\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Chris Tomlin\u2019s New Song Resurrects The World\u2019s Oldest Known Hymn<\/a> (Bob Smietana, The Roys Report): \u201cA new version of the Oxyrhynchus Hymn debuted last week, courtesy of a new translation from Dickson and help from Chris Tomlin and Ben Fielding, two of the most popular modern worship songwriters.\u2026 \u2018I think the most theologically significant thing is that it\u2019s a hymn to the Trinity \u2014 Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the century before the Nicene Creed,\u2019 he&nbsp;said.\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Hear it at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=cIjmLPeeOmc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The First Hymn<\/a> (YouTube): seven minutes<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.graphsaboutreligion.com\/p\/belief-in-an-afterlife-is-increasing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Belief in an Afterlife is Increasing in the United States<\/a> (Ryan Burge, Substack): \u201cIn that first data collection in 1973, about 76% of folks believed in something beyond this life. But by 1990, that figure had crept up to just about 80% and it continued to rise very slowly from there. Really, from 2000 all the way through 2022, the estimates are all basically the same. Even today, the share of Americans who believe in life after death is 82%. When people ask me, \u201cIs the United States a religious country?\u201d This is the stat that I\u2019m going to trot&nbsp;out.\u2019&nbsp;\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Emphasis removed for readability.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/mereorthodoxy.com\/kelly-loving-act\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Rotten Fruit of Obergefell: On the Kelly Loving Act<\/a> (Jake Meador, Mere Orthodoxy): \u201cFor the past ten years we have already held, as a nation, that the state defines marriage. Why then should the state not also get to define what a parent is or what good parenting is? The Kelly Loving Act, in other words, is an obvious outworking of the logic of <em>Obergefell<\/em>, the Supreme Court ruling that redefined marriage.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Trump is all over the news. Here are some things that caught my interest. Remember that my sharing an article is not a sign that I agree with it completely, it is a merely a sign that I think it makes points or tells a story worth considering. See the disclaimers at the bottom: I assure you they are heartfelt.&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/thedispatch.com\/article\/afghanistan-christians-good-friday-trump-administration\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Get Out by Good Friday, Feds Say to Afghan Christians<\/a> (John McCormack, The Dispatch): \u201cAhmad\u2019s conversion to Christianity after attending a university in Afghanistan led to his imprisonment by the Taliban\u2014where he said he was beaten and tortured via electric shock\u2014before fellow Christians were able to ransom him from Taliban captivity. The same Christians who got Ahmad out of prison then got him out of Afghanistan by helping him travel to Brazil. Ahmad traversed on foot the Dari\u00e9n Gap that connects Central and South America for three days and ultimately\u2014after presenting himself at the southern U.S. border seeking asylum\u2014made a home for himself in Raleigh.\u2026&nbsp; Ahmad, like some other Afghans legally living in the United States, received a letter from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) telling him he must leave the country by Good Friday.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/thedispatch.com\/newsletter\/gfile\/trump-democrats-presidency\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Precedent Trump<\/a> (Jonah Goldberg, The Dispatch): \u201cIt has been a dream of the left for ages to get rid of the tax-exempt status and relative autonomy of religious institutions\u2014Christian universities, charities, hospitals, etc. If Trump succeeds in making the IRS revoke Harvard\u2019s tax-exempt status, based in no small part on personal opposition to what Harvard teaches, what will be the principled objection to a President Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez or Elizabeth Warren when the Eye of Mordor swings rightward?\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thefp.com\/p\/trump-supreme-court-deportations\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">No, the President Has Not Defied a Supreme Court Ruling<\/a> (Jeb Rubenfeld, The Free Press): \u201cDue process is a bulwark of the Constitution and the rule of law, and the courts must not allow its violation. But Trump opponents, like Professor Snyder, are making a mistake when they try to paint this case as a massive assault on due process. For now at least, this case is another example of the hyperbole over a Trump run-in with the courts outrunning the facts of the&nbsp;case.\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The author is a professor of constitutional law at Yale. I found this article reassuring in the abstract, while still being displeased over the particulars of this case. There\u2019s a significant difference between deporting someone from the country and deporting them into a foreign prison.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/04\/18\/world\/americas\/bukele-abrego-garcia-elsalvador-prison.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Inside the \u2018Tropical Gulag\u2019 in El Salvador Where U.S. Detainees Are Being Held<\/a> (Annie Correal, New York Times): \u201cDeaths and physical abuse in CECOT remain undocumented because of a lack of access to inmates or anyone who has been released, said Juanita Goebertus, Americas director at Human Rights Watch. But, she added, \u2018Based on the torture and mistreatment we have documented in other prisons in El Salvador, we have every reason to believe that people sent to CECOT are at high risk of abuse.\u2019 The U.S. government itself spotlighted atrocities in El Salvador\u2019s prisons in 2023. At El Salvador\u2019s two dozen other jails, rights groups have documented systematic torture, forced confessions and what Noah Bullock, the executive director of the Salvadoran human rights group Cristosal, calls \u2018the intentional denial of access to basic necessities like food, water, health care, hygiene.\u2019\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>I find these allegations plausible because of my belief in depravity. Humans do bad things when they have people completely under their control, especially when there is little external oversight or accountability. We may learn in time that the details are off, but the essential complaint is almost certainly correct.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/04\/18\/us\/politics\/white-house-prayers.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">White House of Worship: Christian Prayer Rings Out Under Trump<\/a> (Elizabeth Dias &amp; Ruth Graham, New York Times): \u201cRoutinely, and often at Mr. Trump\u2019s enthusiastic direction, senior administration officials and allied pastors are infusing their brand of Christian worship into the workings of the White House itself, suggesting that his campaign promise to \u2018bring back Christianity\u2019 is taking tangible root.\u2026 Mr. Trump\u2019s team has hosted briefings and listening sessions billed as opportunities for the leaders to share their particular concerns, which have ranged widely: religious liberty, adoption and foster care, the breakdown of the nuclear family, human trafficking, urban poverty and antisemitism, among others.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/2025\/04\/all-the-presidents-pastors-whos-advising-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">All the President\u2019s Pastors: Who\u2019s Advising Trump?<\/a> (Harvest Prude, Christianity Today): \u201cThe president hasn\u2019t publicly attended a church service since his inauguration day, he doesn\u2019t hold membership in a particular congregation or denomination, he\u2019s gone back and forth over whether he needs to ask for God\u2019s forgiveness, and he avoids speaking in detail about his personal devotional life, so what we know about Trump\u2019s faith comes largely from the pastors around him at the White House\u2014starting with Paula White-Cain.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Less Serious Things Which Also Interested\/Amused Glen<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list simple-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/kottke.org\/25\/04\/olympic-gold-medalist-dominates-the-100m-at-her-kids-sports-day-event\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Olympic Gold Medalist Dominates the 100m at Her Kid\u2019s Sports Day Event<\/a> (Jason Kottke, blog) \u2014 I find this hilarious<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smbc-comics.com\/comic\/virtue\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Virtue<\/a> (SMBC)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/babylonbee.com\/news\/donkey-entering-jerusalem-glad-to-be-finally-getting-recognition-he-deserves\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Donkey Entering Jerusalem Glad To Be Finally Getting Recognition He Deserves<\/a> (Babylon Bee)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/babylonbee.com\/news\/man-realizes-last-8-months-of-career-could-have-been-an-email\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Man Realizes Last 8 Months Of Career Could Have Been An Email<\/a> (Babylon Bee)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/youtube.com\/shorts\/ky0YOo7_Y0o?si=JI_rNe1Z1zZt_gS1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Punctuation Marks Hanging Out<\/a> (Elle Cordova, YouTube): one minute that tickled me<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=FzIn9rD5-ns\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Mortenn Christiansen<\/a> (Penn and Teller Fool Us, YouTube): nine minutes<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.penny-arcade.com\/comic\/2025\/04\/16\/dauphin\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Dauphin<\/a> (Penny Arcade)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><b>Why Do You Send This&nbsp;Email?<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>In the time of King David, the tribe of Issachar produced shrewd warriors \u201cwho understood the times and knew what Israel should do\u201d (1 Chron 12:32). In a similar way, we need to become wise people whose faith interacts with the world. I pray this email gives you greater insight, so that you may continue the tradition of Issachar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><b>Disclaimer<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Chi Alpha is not a partisan organization. To paraphrase another minister: we are not about the donkey\u2019s agenda and we are not about the elephant\u2019s agenda \u2014 we are about the Lamb\u2019s agenda. Having said that, I read widely (in part because I believe we should aspire to pass <a href=\"http:\/\/econlog.econlib.org\/archives\/2011\/06\/the_ideological.html\">the ideological Turing test<\/a> and in part because I do not believe I can fairly say \u201cI agree\u201d or \u201cI disagree\u201d until I can say \u201cI understand\u201d) and may at times share articles that have a strong partisan bias simply because I find the article stimulating. The upshot: you should not assume I agree with everything an author says in an article I mention, much less things the author has said in other articles (although if I strongly disagree with something in the article I\u2019ll usually mention it). And to the extent you can discern my opinions, please understand that they are my own and not necessarily those of Chi Alpha or any other organization I may be perceived to represent.\n\nAlso, remember that I\u2019m not reporting news \u2014 I\u2019m giving you a selection of things I found interesting. There\u2019s a lot happening in the world that\u2019s not making an appearance here because I haven\u2019t found stimulating articles written about it.\n\nIf this was forwarded to you and you want to receive future emails, sign up <a href=\"https:\/\/theglendavis.substack.com\/\">here<\/a>. You can also <a href=\"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/category\/links\">view the archives<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On Fridays I share articles\/resources about broad cultural, societal and theological issues. Be sure to see the explanation and disclaimers at the bottom. I welcome your suggestions. If you read something fascinating please pass it my&nbsp;way. This is the 500th time I\u2019ve composed this email. I thought I might do something special this week to \u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2025\/04\/18\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-500\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> \u201cThings Glen Found Interesting, Volume 500: faith, China, and&nbsp;Trump\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[16],"tags":[124,219,125,271,127,160,227,113,318,175],"class_list":["post-7654","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-links","tag-apologetically-interesting","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-china","tag-heaven","tag-history","tag-how-the-church-is-perceived","tag-immigration","tag-lgbtq","tag-politcs","tag-worship"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6Ded-1Zs","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7654","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7654"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7654\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7662,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7654\/revisions\/7662"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7654"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7654"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7654"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}