The following articles have been selected because they are informative, instructive, entertaining, or simply interesting. Articles appearing in Your Friday Five do not represent an endorsement.
Average American spending between $1,000 – $2,000 on holiday gifts in 2020, research shows, By Audrey Conklin
The average American will spend between $1,000 and $2,000 on holiday gifts in 2020 despite pandemic-induced financial hardship that has fallen on many U.S. families, research shows.
Advent Devotion: Peace, By Dr. Jonathan Arnold
Glory to God in the highest
And on Earth peace, goodwill toward men.
If you’re anything like me, you find yourself caught in the web of constant busy-ness. Despite my protestations to the contrary, I clearly believe (at least according to my actions) that awake time exists solely to be filled with the important tasks of the day. Whether those tasks involve requirements for the job that pays my salary, the church where my family is covenanted in life, or the family entrusted to me matters little in the overall feeling of busy-ness. And this busy-ness has done nothing but grow in my adult years. With every passing year, the very concept of that peace that was announced two millennia ago grows more ethereal, moves farther outside the realm of (even an imaginative) possibility, and remains firmly established just beyond my grasp. Don’t get me wrong, I do not doubt that peace exists—in some form or fashion—but, if I am being completely honest, I do not hold out much hope that I will ever actually experience it—at least not on this side of the grave.
NJ religious leaders win SCOTUS case fighting COVID rules: ‘What’s good for Costco is good for church’, By Caleb Parke
After receiving a temporary victory from the Supreme Court, New Jersey religious leaders are celebrating their challenge against state coronavirus restrictions they say unfairly target houses of worship. Father Kevin Robinson of St. Anthony Padua Church, who brought the case to the Supreme Court with Rabbi Yisrael A. Knopfler, called it “wonderful news” Thursday.
FIRST-PERSON: Learning from 1918’s quiet Christmas, By Eric Reed/Illinois Baptist
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (BP) – They called the holiday of December 1918 “the peace Christmas.” A truce had been declared. With the armistice announced, the shooting had stopped at 11 a.m. on Nov. 11. Although the agreements to end The Great War were not yet signed, the world sighed relief that the confrontation that had consumed Europe and left 18 million dead had ended. Back home, wives and fathers and sisters and mothers hoped their valiant surviving men would be home by Christmas.
Southern Baptists warn about LGBTQ proposals to Biden, By Tom Strode
WASHINGTON (BP) A new agenda proposed to the incoming administration of President-elect Joe Biden by the country’s leading gay and transgender rights organization poses a serious threat to religious freedom, especially that of Christian colleges and universities, Southern Baptist leaders have warned.