Aug. 22, 2019: Archaeological discovery; China releases church elder; YouTube blocks Ten Commandments videos
Here are the latest headlines, brought to you by The Christian Post.
— China releases Early Rain Covenant Church elder 8 months after arrest
Chinese authorities have released an elder of the Early Rain Covenant Church eight months after he was arrested and imprisoned alongside the church’s pastor and over 160 other members.
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The communist regime shut down the house church last year amid its crackdown on worship services that are not sanctioned by the state as part of regulations on religious affairs that were passed in 2018.
A Facebook group that provides updates about the church reports that Li Yingqiang was released on bail on Sunday, but the pastor’s whereabouts remain unknown. Although Li was released, other church members are still being held on charges of “inciting subversion of state power.”
— Archaeological discovery: Researchers find evidence of Babylonian conquest
Researchers have discovered what they believe is evidence of the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem that is detailed in the Bible.
Layers of ash, arrowheads, Iron Age potsherds, lamps, and jewelry from the period were uncovered on Mount Zion by a team led by the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
This particular siege and destruction occurred after King Zedekiah, who reigned in Jerusalem at that time, rebelled against the king of Babylon. The Jewish people were held in captivity for 70 years.
The excavations are part of the Mount Zion Archaeological Project led by Haifa University and UNC Charlotte.
— YouTube blocks PragerU Ten Commandments videos, restricts to 'mature audiences'
YouTube is restricting access to PragerU's videos on the Ten Commandments, labeling them as mature content that's “inappropriate” for “sensitive” audiences.
PragerU is a conservative YouTube channel with more than 1 million subscribers that is headed by conservative radio host Dennis Prager.
They announced this week that hundreds of their videos, including many focused on explaining the Ten Commandments, are being restricted by YouTube. This limits viewers' access to the videos.
PragerU is asking supporters to sign a petition demanding that YouTube remove the age restriction to the videos.
— Hillsong singer recovering from brain aneurysm suffered after church service
A worship leader with Hillsong church in Sydney, Australia, was hospitalized after suffering a brain aneurysm following a worship service on Sunday.
Chelsea Taylor, a member of the worship team at the Hills campus, is now recovering after a nine-hour operation and has been released from ICU.
Hillsong’s Cass Langton posted an update from Taylor’s mother about her condition, saying: “Chelsea pulled the life-support out last night. She is talking and trying to get out of bed. Honestly this is a miracle.”
— Google ad policy meant to hide pro-life pregnancy centers fails
A Google policy meant to block pro-life pregnancy centers from showing up in searches for abortion clinics isn’t working.
In May, Google announced that women’s health organizations running ads using keywords relating to abortion in the United States and the United Kingdom must first be “certified … as an advertiser that either provides abortions or does not provide abortions.”
The change came in response to pro-choice activists arguing that Google was providing pro-life crisis pregnancy centers the ability to advertise when people search for abortion providers online.
But according to The Guardian newspaper in the U.K., which supports abortion rights, Google’s policy only appeared to work when the term “abortion” was searched by a user.
Other search terms such as “free pregnancy test” and “pregnancy symptoms” did not include a disclaimer explaining if the pregnancy center provided abortions.
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