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October 2, 2023

Andy Stanley, pastor of an Atlanta-based megachurch, spoke out from the pulpit Sunday after he led a controversial, two-day conference geared toward “support[ing] parents and LGBTQ+ children in their churches.”

The North Point Community Church pastor addressed the “Unconditional Conference” during his Sunday message, which was not live-streamed, according to The Roys Report.

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Stanley’s message was purportedly in response to the widespread criticism he and North Point have faced following news he would be hosting the Sept. 28-29 conference, which included LGBTQ-affirming speakers.

Among the critics was Al Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. Mohler argued the event marked Stanley’s departure from a biblical understanding of sexuality, which sees marriage as a covenant between one man and one woman for life.

Mohler stated on a recent episode of his podcast, “The Briefing”:

[A]s a theologian, I just feel a responsibility to say that what this represents is a departure from historic, normative, biblical Christianity. I think both sides understand this is the most basic disagreement we could imagine, so are sex and gender. It’s over ontology and being; it’s over Scripture, the authority of Scripture, and the interpretation of Scripture. It’s over God and the Gospel. It just doesn’t get any more basic than this, but I do recognize the gravity of the words I’m using when I say that what we see here is a departure from historic, normative, biblical Christianity. I say that because I believe that’s exactly what it is, and I believe Christians ought to take note of it.

The Georgia pastor reportedly said he “never subscribed to [Mohler’s] version of biblical Christianity.”

“This version of biblical Christianity is why people are leaving Christianity unnecessarily,” Stanley said. “Its the version that causes people to resist the Christian faith, because they cant find Jesus in the midst of all the other stuff and all the other theology and all the other complexity that gets glommed on to the message’s bottom line, that version of Christianity, draws lines.”

“And Jesus drew circles,” the preacher continued. “He drew circles so large and included so many people in His circle, that it consistently made religious leaders nervous.”

Stanley went on to explain he supports the view “biblical marriage is between a man and a woman,” but applied qualifiers to that statement, making his exact stance on the matter somewhat unclear.

He explained some who struggle with same-sex attraction “are convinced that traditional marriage is not an option for them” and, as such, commit “to living a chaste life.” However, the pastor continued, “For many, that is not sustainable, so they choose same-sex marriage not because theyre convinced its biblical. … They choose to marry for the same reason many of us do: love, companionship.”

Stanley added that, once two people make a decision to enter into a same-sex romantic partnership, it is “our decision” to determine “how are we going to respond to their decisions.” North Point, he reportedly explained, has taken the stance that, “regardless of their starting point, regardless of their past, regardless of their current circumstances, our message is come and see and come sit with me.”

Although Mohler has not yet addressed Stanley’s latest statements from the pulpit, other Christian thought leaders have responded to the pastor’s explanation for his conference.

Andrew Walker, an ethics and public theology professor at SBTS and author of “God and the Transgender Debate,” outlined what he sees as Stanley’s “distinction between doctrine and pastoral practice.”

“What does that mean?” Walker wrote. “It means the doctrine has not officially changed, which is why he can technically affirm a ‘biblical view’ but, for all practical purposes, there is a pastoral accommodation that allows for LGBT-identified persons to disobey Scripture and remain in good standing as a Christian.”

He continued, “What Stanley considers as a failure to live up to an unattainable ideal, Scripture calls sinful. Nowhere in the messages was there any expectation that someone would turn from their same-sex relationship. This is an example of unbounded empathy that listens (which is good) but never invites toward transformation (which is not good).”

Read Walker’s full response below:

I was able to listen to Andy Stanleys messages from today on the topic of same-sex attraction and marriage.

Whats clear from Stanleys teaching is that hes drawing a distinction between doctrine and pastoral practice. What does that mean? It means the doctrine has not— Andrew T. Walker (@andrewtwalk) October 2, 2023

Denny Burk, president of the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, wrote Sunday that Stanley’s view is “subversively anti-Christian.”

“The message is anti-Christian because it tells unrepentant sinners that they can inherit the kingdom of God a message that the Bible roundly contradicts,” he explained in the article on the CBMW website.

Stanley has faced criticism for a handful of theological stances in recent years, including his view of the Old Testament, from which he argued Christians should “unhitch” themselves.

In 2018, he conceded at the end of a sermon series that the Old Testament is “divinely inspired” but argued it should not be “the go-to source regarding any behavior in the church.”

“[First century] Church leaders unhitched the church from the worldview, value system, and regulations of the Jewish Scriptures,” he said, preaching on Acts 15. “Peter, James, Paul elected to unhitch the Christian faith from their Jewish scriptures, and my friends, we must as well.”

Several Christian leaders criticized Stanley for those remarks.

In fact, during a recent conversation with CBN Digital, author and Atlanta-based Pastor Michael Youssef explained his concerns over Stanley’s statements about the Old Testament. View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Tr Goins-Phillips (@tregp)

“Get ‘unhitched’ from the Old Testament?” Youssef said. “This would be like saying, ‘I love this big, beautiful, tall building, but the foundation is not really necessary. Just let’s get rid of it.’ You get rid of the foundation, the building will not stand for very long.”

“If you understand the Bible … it is one book, not two books,” he continued. “Often, I liken it to a house. The Old Testament is that house, with a foundation and the walls, but it’s lacking a roof. The New Testament is the roof and, therefore, together, you have one building a house. … One without the other doesn’t really make a lot of sense and, so, all of our foundational structure in the Old Testament that says constantly, for hundreds of years, ‘Christ is coming, Christ is coming,’ the New Testament say, ‘Hey, He’s here.’ The New Testament fulfills the Old Testament.”

***As the number of voices facing big-tech censorship continues to grow, please sign up for Faithwires daily newsletter and download the CBN News app, developed by our parent company, to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***

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Jury shown CCTV and bodycam footage of brothers allegedly assaulting police at Manchester Airport

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Jury shown CCTV and bodycam footage of brothers allegedly assaulting police at Manchester Airport

CCTV and police bodycam footage allegedly showing three police officers being assaulted at Manchester Airport has been played to jurors.

Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and his brother, Muhammad Amaad, 26, are said to have struck out after police were called to the airport on 23 July last year, following Amaaz allegedly headbutting a customer at a Starbucks in Terminal 2.

Minutes later, three police officers approached the defendants at the paystation in the terminal’s car park.

A jury at Liverpool Crown Court today watched CCTV footage from opposite angles, which captured what the prosecution says was a “high level of violence” being used by the siblings.

The prosecution says Amaaz resisted as officers tried to move him to arrest him, and Amaad then intervened.

Junior counsel Adam Birkby suggested Amaaz threw 10 punches, including one to the face of PC Lydia Ward, which knocked her to the floor.

His brother Amaad is then said to have aimed six punches at firearms officer PC Zachary Marsden.

Amaaz also allegedly kicked PC Marsden and struck firearms officer PC Ellie Cook twice with his elbow.

He is said to have punched PC Marsden from behind and had a hold of him, before PC Cook discharged her Taser.

Human Rights lawyer Aamer Anwar (centre) arrives with Mohammed Fahir Amaaz (left) and Muhammed Amaad (right) at Liverpool Crown Court, where
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Mohammed Fahir Amaaz (left) and Muhammed Amaad (right) arrive at the court with their lawyer. Pic: PA

The bodycam and CCTV footage, submitted as evidence by the prosecution, allegedly shows the officers’ arrival in the Terminal 2 car park and their attempts to arrest the siblings, as well as their exchanges with them.

PC Ward can be heard saying “Oi, you b*****d” in footage from her bodycam, the prosecution evidence appears to show.

She then appears to fall to the floor and screams.

PC Cook, who is pointing her Taser at one of the defendants, then allegedly says: “Stay on the floor, stay on the floor whatever you do.”

“Get back, get back,” PC Ward appears to say.

The bodycam footage, shown to the jury by the prosecution, shows PC Marsden, who is also pointing his Taser, appear to approach the defendant who is lying on the ground and kick out at him.

Mr Birkby said: “Mr Amaaz, while prone, lifts his head towards the officers. PC Marsden kicks Mr Amaaz around the head area.

“PC Marsden stamps his foot towards the crown of Mr Amaaz’s head area but doesn’t appear to connect with Mr Amaaz.”

Amaaz denies three counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm to the three police officers and one count of assault to Abdulkareem Ismaeil, the customer at Starbucks.

Amaad denies one count of assault occasioning actual bodily harm to PC Marsden.

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Stephen Doohan: Paramedic who secretly gave pregnant woman abortion drug jailed for more than 10 years

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Stephen Doohan: Paramedic who secretly gave pregnant woman abortion drug jailed for more than 10 years

A paramedic who secretly gave a pregnant woman an abortion drug during sex has been jailed for more than 10 years. 

Stephen Doohan, 33, was married when he met the woman on holiday in Spain in 2021 and began a long-distance relationship.

The High Court in Glasgow heard how the victim travelled to Edinburgh in March 2023 to visit Doohan after learning she was pregnant.

During consensual sex, Doohan twice secretly administered the tablets which led to the woman suffering a miscarriage.

In May, Doohan pleaded guilty to sexual assault and causing the woman to have an abortion. He returned to the dock on Monday where he was jailed for 10 years and six months.

Lord Colbeck said Doohan caused “long-term psychological injury” to his victim.

The judge said: “You put her through considerable pain over a number of days and left her facing a lifetime of pain and loss.”

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The court heard how the woman found tablets hidden under the mattress after she became suspicious over Doohan’s behaviour in bed.

Lord Colbeck said: “The complainer then carried out an internet search for abortion tablets and confronted you over your actions.”

After the woman fell ill, Doohan convinced her to lie to medics at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh amid fears he would be arrested if she told the truth.

The victim later attended another hospital with her sister and was told she was having a miscarriage.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) said Doohan sent the woman gifts including perfume, socks, facial cleansing oil, money to get her hair done and bought tickets for them to attend a football match.

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The woman complained to the Scottish Ambulance Service in May 2023, sparking an investigation.

The court heard that on 14 March 2023, the day the woman told Doohan she was pregnant, the paramedic used a work intranet to search for abortion drugs.

Lord Colbeck said: “You planned out what you did to your victim using resources available to you as a paramedic.”

In addition to his prison sentence, Doohan was also added to the sex offenders’ register and banned from contacting his victim.

Fiona Kirkby, procurator fiscal for high court sexual offences, said: “Stephen Doohan’s calculated and heinous actions caused the loss of the victim’s pregnancy, robbing her of plans she had for the future.

“He has now been held accountable for this fundamental breach of trust.

“While offences like this are thankfully rare, I hope this prosecution sends a clear message to all those who seek to inflict sexual harm towards women.

“Our thoughts remain with the victim, who must be commended for reporting her experience and seeking justice.

“We recognise that reporting sexual offending can be difficult but would urge anyone affected to come forward and seek support when they feel ready to do so.”

The Scottish Ambulance Service branded it an “appalling case”.

A spokesperson added: “We recognise the courage it must have taken for the victim to come forward and speak out.

“As soon as we learned of these very serious allegations and charges, we immediately took action, providing ongoing support to her whilst liaising with Police Scotland throughout the investigation.

“We know nothing will change what has happened to the victim and all we can hope is this sentence provides some comfort to them.”

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UK farmers have ‘nothing more to give’ as they fear govt will compromise welfare in US-UK trade deal

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UK farmers have 'nothing more to give' as they fear govt will compromise welfare in US-UK trade deal

UK farmers have “nothing more to give” as they fear the government will use agriculture to further reduce US tariffs in a trade deal with the White House.

The UK is trying to reduce steel tariffs to zero, from a current reduced rate of 25%, but Downing Street refused to confirm if it was confident ahead of Donald Trump’s deadline of 9 July.

Tom Bradshaw, president of the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), said UK agriculture had already been used to reduce Trump-imposed tariffs on cars but any other concessions would have serious repercussions for farmers, food security and the UK’s high animal welfare standards.

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He told Sky News: “It just feels like we, as the agricultural sector, had to shoulder the responsibility to reduce the tariffs on cars from 25%.

“We can’t do it anymore, we have nothing more to give.

“It’s clear the steel quotas and tariffs aren’t sorted yet, so we just want to be very clear with the government: if they’re sitting around the negotiating table – which we understand they are – they can’t expect agriculture to give any more.”

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Tom Bradshaw, the head of the NFU, speaking to Sky News
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Tom Bradshaw, the head of the NFU, said farmers cannot give any more

‘Massively undermine our standards’

Since 30 June, the US has been able to import 13,000 tonnes of hormone-free British beef without tariffs under a deal made earlier this year, which farmers feel was to reduce the car import levy Mr Trump imposed.

The UK was also given tariff-free access to 1.4bn litres of US ethanol, which farmers say will put the UK’s bioethanol and associated sectors under pressure.

Allowing lower US food standards would “massively undermine our standards” and would mean fewer sales to the European Union where food standards are also high, Mr Bradshaw said.

It would leave British farmers competing on a playing field that is “anything but fair”, he said, because US food can be produced – and sold – much cheaper due to low welfare which could see a big reduction in investment in UK farms, food security and the environment.

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‘The US will push hard for more access’

He said the US narrative has always suggested they want access to British agriculture products “as a start and they’ll negotiate for more”.

“The narrative from the White House on 8 May, when a US-UK trade deal was announced, was all about further access to our agriculture products – it was very different to what our government was saying,” he added.

“So far, the UK has stood firm and upheld our higher welfare standards, but the US will push very hard to have further access.

“No country in the world has proved they can reduce the 10% tariffs further.”

US poultry welfare is lower than the UK, with much more intensive farming that means the meat has to be washed with antimicrobials. Pic: AP
Image:
US poultry welfare is lower than the UK, with much more intensive farming that means the meat has to be washed with antimicrobials. Pic: AP

US ‘will target poultry and pork’

The Essex farmer said he expects the US to push “very hard” to get the UK to lower its standards on poultry and pork, specifically.

US poultry is often washed with antimicrobials, including chlorine, in an attempt to wash off high levels of bacteria caused by poor hygiene, antibiotic use and low animal welfare conditions not allowed in UK farming.

US pig rearing methods are also quite different, with intensive farming and the use of feed additive ractopamine legal, with both banned in the UK.

A government spokesperson told Sky News: “We regularly speak to businesses across the UK to understand the impact of tariffs and will only ever act in the national interest.

“Our Plan for Change has delivered a deal which will open up exclusive access for UK beef farmers to the US market for the first time ever and all agricultural imports coming to the UK will have to meet our high SPS (sanitary and phytosanitary) standards.”

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