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- Suicide's OK in the UK, the Counter-Reformation, and Hallelujah
Suicide's OK in the UK, the Counter-Reformation, and Hallelujah
The British Parliament’s passage of an assisted suicide bill, the fundraising disparity between the pro-abortion and pro-life sides for this year’s ballot measures, the Counter-Reformation, the word “Hallelujah” in the Bible, and much more.
Anthony Langer
November 30, 2024
It's Saturday, November 30, 2024.
Today’s edition covers the British Parliament’s passage of an assisted suicide bill, the fundraising disparity between the pro-abortion and pro-life sides for this year’s ballot measures, the Counter-Reformation, the word “Hallelujah” in the Bible, and much more.
Wisdom says: “I walk in the way of righteousness, in the paths of justice, granting an inheritance to those who love me, and filling their treasuries.” (Proverbs 8:20-21)
Of Christian Concern
SUICIDE’S OK IN THE UK: BRITISH PARLIAMENT PASSES ASSISTED SUICIDE BILL
The Palace of Westminster, where the Parliament of the United Kingdom meets in London, England. (Sean Ingram)
The British Parliament voted on Friday in favor of a landmark bill to legalize assisted suicide in England and Wales. According to The Independent, the bill would allow “a terminally ill adult with a life expectancy of six months or less [to] seek assistance to end their life, provided that two doctors and a High Court judge approve their decision.”
Christian leaders had opposed the bill in a joint letter to members of parliament, but the measure now moves to the committee stage, where amendments can be tabled before it will be voted on again in the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Although the bill will take a while to become law (two years, by one estimate), it passed with a more significant majority than expected (330 to 275), which may signal the likelihood of its ultimate success.
In response to the parliament’s decision, former Mumford & Sons musician Winston Marshall, now a cultural commentator and podcaster, posted on X:
State sponsored suicide, euphemistically called “assisted dying,” has passed parliament.
This is a dark day for Britain.
Christian writer Samuel Sey weighed in:
There is a more powerful government than the British Parliament.
And the king of that government is the sole authority over life and death.
And his ruling is clear: “You shall not murder”
Also Noteworthy
Uganda flag, Cuba flag, Target logo, T.D. Jakes (T.D. Jakes Ministries, cropped), hundred-dollar bills, and the Supreme Court of the United States.
→ A Christian convert in Uganda was beaten to death by his Muslim brothers as his mother’s cries for help went unanswered, The Christian Post reports. This was the second reported killing of a Christian convert in eastern Uganda in October.
→ 63 religious leaders in Cuba signed a joint letter calling for international attention to the Cuban government’s persecution of churches via refusing to legalize places of worship and levying fines against religious leaders.
→ A Target in Fargo, North Dakota, fired a Christian woman for displaying “Trust in Jesus” on her nametag. Upon an internal investigation, Target apologized and offered to reinstate the fired employee immediately.
→ Bishop T.D. Jakes suffered “a slight health incident” toward the end of his church’s Sunday service last weekend but was soon “stable,” according to a statement released by the church. “The church didn't share any specifics about what may have led up to the health incident,” FOX 4 reports. In a 2014 article, Christian writer Tim Challies writes that Jakes is associated with several false teachings, including the prosperity gospel, positive thinking, and—as an Oneness Pentecostal—modalism.
→ The abortion-related ballot measures that were voted on in 10 states this year, seven of which passed in favor of abortion, saw a massive disparity in fundraising between the pro-abortion and pro-life sides. Live Action reports that, collectively, the pro-abortion side raised around $244 million, but the pro-life side only raised around $29 million.
→ A Tennessee transgender case will go before the Supreme Court this Wednesday (December 4). The court will hear United States of America v. Skrmetti and determine whether Tennesee’s law prohibiting “gender transition” drugs and surgeries for children is constitutional. The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) asks people to commit to praying that “the Justices [will] decide in favor of upholding Tennessee’s law.”
Content Catch-Up
Recent, notable content of Christian interest.*
Screenshot of the video where Brittany Adeline tells her Christian testimony. (Soft White Underbelly / YouTube)
→ Bri Finds Jesus: Soft White Underbelly’s interview with former OnlyFans model and nightclub stripper Brittany Adeline took an unexpected turn into a Christian testimony, clearly throwing off interviewer Mark Laita, who responded with remarks many commenters found off-putting. (Video)
→ Beware of “Mary”?: Internet Bible teacher Mike Winger analyzes and shares his concerns about the trailer of Netflix’s new film “Mary,” which dramatizes the life story of our Lord’s mother. (Video)
→ Why Carbon Dating Supports a Young Earth: On Creation Ministries International’s YouTube channel, Dr. Mark Harwood discusses carbon dating: “how it works, what its strengths and weaknesses are, and why it affirms biblical history.” (Video)
→ Against the Pretended Liberty of Conscience: Christian author Stephen Wolfe, known for his controversial book The Case for Christian Nationalism, recently addressed the Evangelical Philosophical Society, seeking to answer whether suppressing false religion violates the freedom of conscience. Here is his talk in written form. (Article)
*Not necessarily an endorsement
Church History Tidbit
The Counter-Reformation
The Council of Trent, from an engraving. Renaissance print. (Public Domain)
Did you know there was a Counter-Reformation in the Catholic Church?
In response to the concerns of the Protestant Reformation (1517-1648), the Roman Catholic Church had its own Catholic Reformation (1545-c. 1700). “It is usually dated from the Council of Trent in 1545 to the end of the Great Turkish War in 1699,” History writer Joshua Mark explains, “but according to some scholars, it continued afterwards and is ongoing in the present day.”
When Martin Luther’s movement was not quickly squelched (due in large part to the use of the printing press), “Pope Paul II (served 1534-1549) convened the Council of Trent (1545-1563) to affirm the truths of the Church and reform abuses and errors.” Some of the practices altered by the council and by subsequent efforts included:
the sale of indulgences
clerical education
rules of monastic orders
doctrines regarding the use of art, music, and architecture in worship
emphasis on the centrality of the Church in people’s lives
According to Mark, the focus was to re-establish “the concept of ultimate, objective truth” and the Roman Catholic Church as its sole arbiter.
Learn more about the Counter-Reformation here.
The Bible, Briefly
Hallelujah
“Hallelujah” in Hebrew, Greek, and English.
How many times do you think the word “hallelujah” appears in the Bible? Before reading further, pause and take a guess.
OK, ready?
Answer: The word “hallelujah” appears in the Bible 27 times (how close were you?). That’s 23 times in the Hebrew scriptures (Old Testament) and four times in the Greek scriptures (New Testament). Here are some observations about the biblical data on this familiar word.
The Hebrew: הַלְלוּ־יָהּ
“Where in our experience, Hallelujah means something like YOO-HOO!!, in Hebrew the word Hallelujah was recognized as proper language, and perfectly understood.” —Abarim Publications, “Halleljuah meaning”
Abarim Publications explains that, in Hebrew, “The word Hallelujah consists of two elements.”
The first is “an imperative form (that means it's a command) of the root הלל (halal),” which means “to shine” or “[to] praise and cheer.”
The second is “יה (Yah) = יהו (Yahu) = יו (Yu), which in turn are abbreviated forms of the Tetragrammaton; the name of the Lord: YHWH.” So, “hallelujah” means “Shine With Yah” or “Praise Yah” and is commonly translated (in the ESV, for example) as “Praise the LORD.”
For that reason, one could argue that using the word carelessly or without reverence for God violates the command not to take the LORD’s name in vain (Exodus 20:7). Leonard Cohen’s song comes to mind.
Abarim Publications continues, “Although Hallelujah consists of two distinct verbal entities (a verb and a name), it's consistently written as one word.” At least in part, this single word “fulfill[s] the function of a…liturgical term.”
Notably, the Hebrew word appears only in the book of Psalms and only in 15 chapters. With one exception (Psalm 135), those chapters are closely grouped—hinting at the intentionality of the psalter’s structure:
The Greek: ἁλληλουϊά
In Greek, the word is simply a transliteration—“that is,” Dr. Robert Plummer explains, “writing a Hebrew word with Greek letters.” It appears only in chapter 19 of Revelation: verses 1, 3, 4, and 6.
Three times, it comes from “the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven” (v. 1), which is “like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder” (v. 6)—a chilling sound to imagine. The other time (v. 4), it comes from the 24 elders and the four living creatures—bizarre in their own right (see 4:4-8; cf. Ezekiel 1:5-11)—as they fall down around God’s throne and worship Him.
The chants of those innumerable voices in that majestic, otherworldy scene list reasons for praising God: salvation and glory and power belong to Him (v. 1), His judgments are true (v. 2), He judged “the great prostitute” and avenged his servants’ blood (vv. 2-3), He reigns (v. 6), and “the marriage of the Lamb has come” (vv. 7-8).
In light of these truths, insofar as it is a command, let us obey it: hallelujah!
What did you think of today’s briefing?
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