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This week's ongoing Bible study will be part 1 of Acts chapter 9

The Unlikeliest of Converts

[Acts chapter 9, verses 1-16]

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Last week, as you recall, we concluded chapter 8 of the Book of Acts of our ongoing study of the writings of the apostle Luke. The apostle Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch (see last week's study here) had just parted ways after the eunuch had gladly received his salvation and baptism. No doubt you also recall how I used Philip's determined but downplayed approach towards the eunuch as an example of how we should all embrace our faith, how it is reinforced on an ongoing basis, as well as setting a benchmark for how we share our beliefs as we lead others to Christ. We are charged with the responsibilities of maintaining the zeal of the apostle Philip as evidence of our own faith, and as we share it with others!

But today as we move on to chapter 9, we are going to see the flip side of that coin. We are going to witness – although in retrospect – what happens when God reaches in and takes zeal away. As we will see, when zeal is grossly or egregiously misplaced, misdirected or both, God will not hesitate to stop misplaced zeal in its tracks. Such is what happened when Saul of Tarsus was called into the Lord's service. So let's begin chapter 9, shall we?

“Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to The Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?' 'Who are you, Lord?', Saul asked. 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting', he replied. 'Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.' The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless. They heard the sound but did not see anyone. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.” (Acts 9,verses 1-9)

As you recall from our study of Acts chapter 6, it was Saul who watched over the clothes of those who were stoning St. Steven to death. So here we are, 3 chapters later, and Saul has advanced in rank as a direct result of his systematic persecution of the followers of Jesus Christ. He had captured for himself a leadership role in the Temple's campaign against Christianity, and he may have been doing this for many months or years prior to his being knocked off his horse and struck blind. We can only imagine Saul's shock as he is told who he has been persecuting. Undoubtedly Saul resisted, especially at first, probably feeling resentful and defensive because of his bruised ego and humiliation. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.' The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless. They heard the sound but did not see anyone.” Everyone there had no choice but to comply, given their situation.

“The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless. They heard the sound but did not see anyone.” The sounds of Christ's commands were meant for everyone, but the blinding light was intended only for Saul, since he was the only one chosen. “Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.” Oftentimes, when God chooses people for certain tasks, and especially for callings into the ministry, he can't really build them up into the man or woman God wants us to be unless he first breaks us all the way down. This is precisely what happened to Saul.

One other thing that bears mentioning here is that God has this way of picking the unlikeliest of people to be his servants and carry out their assigned duties. Moses was a fugitive, Samson was a prisoner of war, Joshua slaughtered women and children, Jonah was a coward, David had his best general killed so he could marry his widow, and Jesus was hung on a cross as a criminal and a heretic. The bottom line here is God uses the rejected and condemned of the world to advance his agenda. God can and will embrace what the world despises, and he may well reject what the world esteems. And now let's move on to part 2 of this week's lesson.

“In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, 'Ananias!' 'Yes, Lord!', he answered. 'Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.' 'Lord', Ananias answered, 'I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call upon your name.' But the Lord said to Ananias, 'Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.'” (Acts 9, verses 10-16)

The first thing I notice about this servant of the Lord is what I noted about the apostle Philip in last week's lesson. They were both very prompt when they answered the Lord's call. Promptness is a key ingredient in the toolbox of every believer. Promptness is like an 'app' that accelerates – as it compresses – the answers to others' prayers while speeding up the answers to our own. Next, we find Ananias being sent by the Spirit to the house of Judas “on Straight Street” (to the best of my knowledge, this street in Damascus exists to this day) to look for Saul, “who is praying”. I would imagine he was considering he had been struck blind, so his persecution of the early church could be stopped in its tracks. Being struck blind must have unnerved the soon-to-be apostle-Paul, who up to this point had been accustomed to having considerable authority.

“In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.' 'Lord', Ananias answered, 'I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call upon your name.” Ananias was no dummy – he was well aware of Saul's reputation as a dangerous man. But he got rebuked when he brought it up before the Lord. “Go!”, the Spirit said, “This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel.” In other words, God was telling Ananias to stop asking so many questions! As I wrote further above, God has this habit of selecting the unlikeliest of people to carry out His missions on earth. At the time these things were occurring, Saul had been an accessory to the torture and murder of dozens, or possibly hundreds, of early Christians. And yet there he was, lying on a cot at the home of Judas of Damascus, blind and helpless.

So as we close out this week's lesson, we find Ananias on a 'mission from God' going to minister to a man he had good reason to be afraid of. What will happen when Ananias arrives at Judas' house? Either Ananias will be able to restore Saul's sight or he won't. Or, once he restores Saul's vision, will Saul turn on them all and attack them? To find out what happens and where this all goes, come on back next week for part 2 of Acts chapter 9. Shalom!

Freedom, Control, The Lights Are On, The Darkness Will End - Episode 1602b

America Will Soon Be Destroyed By Russia

The enforcement of America's laws and her alleged Christianity

Submission To Authority, the Bible, and Common Sense

by Pastor Paul J. Bern

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Although I don't often have to write follow-ups to my postings, I'm making an exception with this Sunday's commentary. (For those who may have missed it, you can read last week's column from right here.) Here in the early 21^st century, we live in a world where authority has gotten completely out of control, even to the point of being abusive. This abuse of authority has now reached such an extreme that we treat toddlers like criminals! The problem with this is those who enforce America's laws have been proven to be criminals themselves! America was lied to back in the 1950's so our government could start the Viet Nam war. We were lied to about President Kennedy's assassination by the Warren Commission, and we were lied to again five years later concerning the murder of Robert Kennedy. We were lied to yet again about Rev. Dr. King's assassination that same violent year of 1968. President Nixon lied to us about Watergate. We were lied to in 2003 as a pretext for invading Iraq the second time. And we were lied to by president Obama when he won the 2008 election while telling us all that he would bring us “change we can believe in”. We got some serious changes all right, resulting in the largest spy and unmanned drone network the world had ever seen.

Meanwhile here at home, the police have become thoroughly militarized and they are having lots of fun on the job thanks to all their new toys and gadgets, not to mention fully automatic weapons and even tanks! They can stop you and search you without cause and without the Constitutionally mandated search warrant. They are breaking our doors down in the middle of the night and murdering unarmed citizens. A 92-year-old Black woman was shot 19 times and killed by the police more than a decade ago right here in Atlanta where I live and work, and people of color as well as the poor are being arbitrarily killed everywhere by the police, often on the flimsiest of pretexts. Back in 2012 when I tried to renew my drivers license, I was turned away due to a speeding ticket I got back in 1994 in North Carolina – even though I had paid the fine more than two decades previously. So now I no longer own a car, but I'm saving a lot of money by relying on public transportation and “going green”. Still, the state of Georgia's refusal to renew my drivers license makes me feel resentful and disenfranchised by the very system that is sworn to protect and serve us all. (Earlier this year I finally managed to pay off the $418.00 fine for allegedly being clocked at 70mph in a 65mph zone).

US attorney general Jeff Sessions recently quoted Romans 13 as being sufficient justification for America's immigration policies. Speaking as a minister of the Gospel and as an ambassador for Jesus Christ, I have done a little research as to what the Bible says about governmental authority and the abuse of power. It turns out that there is ample argument to be minted for both sides of this same coin. The first part has to do with submission to authority in the context of being a law-abiding citizen as the apostle Paul saw it when he wrote the Book of Romans approximately 1,950 years ago. At the time when this was written, all of what is now modern-day Israel was under the military occupation of the Roman empire. Similarly, much of the world today is occupied by the American Empire. Paul wrote these words in that context, so I will begin with the book of Romans, chapter 13 and verses 1-5.

“Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience.” (Romans 13: 1-5)

At the time the apostle Paul wrote this, the death penalty was commonplace. Capital punishment existed as a means of intimidation and absolute control, and that punishment was carried out with utter ruthlessness and without mercy. Moreover, unlike the Jewish religious establishment of that era, Paul was a Roman citizen and as such he was given rights and privileges that were not shared equally with his fellow Jews. But how does this compare with life in the early 21^st century? Although the death penalty is still administered for capital crimes such as murder and treason, it is carried out with relative infrequency compared to the days of the Roman empire. There were also debtors prisons in Paul's day. People who ran into financial trouble back in those days were routinely imprisoned until their debts were paid. In contrast, today if one gets into financial difficulty, bankruptcy laws exist that are much more fair and equitable than prison. Compared to the times in which the apostle Paul lived, we get a complete picture of a much more fair, equitable and even lenient world in the present day. Let me now make some comparisons between Paul's world and ours using this passage of scripture as a backdrop to the picture that I will now paint for you with my words.

“The authorities that exist have been established by God”. Although Paul sincerely believed at the time that he wrote these words that he was absolutely correct, he was speaking more as a Roman citizen and a Hebrew religious scholar than he was as a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ. In modern America, our rule of law is the Constitution of the United States and so I am writing today in this same context, but as an American citizen. We have the right to free speech and freedom of religion today that did not exist in St. Paul's time. That right, which is established under the first amendment to the US Constitution, allows me to write these words without fear of punishment. As such I am within the law and I will remain so for as long as the law is fair. It's when it's unfair, unjust or both that things can get pretty dicey. But hold that thought as I continue.

The apostle Paul continues with this same theme as he writes further: “Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong.” The same applies today. Take the “patriot movement” and so-called “preppers” of today. Organizing any armed revolt in modern-day America is an idea that I am totally against, preaching and teaching as a man of peace who tries his best to emulate Jesus, the Prince of Peace. Besides, the police have well-armed SWAT teams, and there is always the National Guard that exists within any given state. So, I think one would be foolhardy to try and take on authority in an American armed revolt.

On the other hand, it is perfectly legal, and I would also say that it is even necessary, to engage in peaceful protests and passive resistance against laws and policies that we disagree with, mainly because they are unjust. The US Supreme Court's decision that money equals free speech is one good example. The counterproductive and sometimes downright stupid War on Drugs is another one. The first amendment gives us this right, something that did not exist during Paul's time all those centuries ago. In this regard, we can interpret this passage of scripture a little differently than what Paul wrote back then.

Paul then continues making his point, and so will I. “Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you.” It is sad to say that this is not always true in the modern world. Trying as I do to be a law-abiding citizen, I often find myself looked down on by the many godless, faithless people living in our world of today. I put up with the occasional ridicule and those who troll my blog just because I am openly Christian, but I do so knowing that God is watching everything I do and He is listening to everything I say. But to get back to the topic at hand, it is wise to be “free from fear of the one in authority”. The best way to follow this principle is to obey the commandments and the teachings of Jesus Christ. Just by doing this, we can keep ourselves out of a whole lot of trouble. Besides, the Bible says in the Old Testament to “obey the laws of the land, that it may go well with you in the place you are abiding”. Those words were written at least three thousand years ago, and they are still just as true today as they were back then.

I have, however, another Bible verse or two for Mr. Jeff Sessions that he, and his entire staff, along with the rest of the Trump administration, seems to have overlooked. For example, what does the Bible say about so-called “illegal aliens”? “Do not mistreat an alien or oppress them, for you were aliens in Egypt” (Exodus 22: 21). For those who were unaware, the ancient Israelis (or Israelite's, as the Bible calls them) were slaves to the Egyptian Pharaoh's for 400 years prior to being led out of Egypt by Moses. This applies to the US as well, since America has the world's second-largest Jewish population. Only Israel has more. If it wasn't OK for Israel's ancestors to be oppressed by Pharaoh, it's not OK for her descendants here in America to be mistreating so-called “illegal aliens” either! Especially when we are breaking up families and traumatizing children!

Allow me just one more verse, Attorney General Sessions, before I conclude this week's message: “The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble” (Psalms 9: 9). Based on this verse of Scripture I would say America has been demonstrably acting in exactly the opposite way that King David wrote about. There are other things happening and situations unfolding within the US government that are similarly contrary to God's laws. Take the ten commandments as an example. The eighth commandment says, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor”, which can be expanded to include this simple command: You shall not lie and gossip about people you dislike. Yet America found itself embroiled in a war in Iraq that was based on a lie. Specifically, that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq when Saddam Hussein was still in power. Of course, those WMD's turned out to be non-existent, and it took more than 4,400 US fatalities – and well over 100,000 Iraqi civilian deaths, nearly half of which were children – to find that out!

The same applies to Afghanistan – our troops have been there for 17 years! At first it was to find Osama Bin Laden even though everybody in Southern Asia and the Middle East knew he was in Pakistan. Now that he is deceased, are our troops all back home yet? Absolutely not, effectively making Afghanistan a defacto US territory with an open ended US military presence. And what are US troops still doing way over there? They're guarding the vast fields of opium for the CIA so American pharmaceutical companies can have an ample supply to fuel America's opiate epidemic, that's why!! (The CIA mainly handles the brokerage and logistics.) The US government has been spending $6 billion dollars a week on this occupation, a thoroughly obscene sum of money by any standard. Well over 50,000 Americans per year die from heroin and opiate pain-killer overdoses as a direct result, something I find even more obscene.

Yet all the while, there is unemployment here in the USA that is officially around 3.5%, but that doesn't count all the millions of long-term unemployed who have stopped looking for work, as well as those who are working part-time when full-time work is what is needed. If these facts were figured into this equation, the true unemployment rate is hovering at around 21 percent. There is no money to create over a million badly needed jobs in our country, but there is an unlimited supply of cash for multiple illegal military occupations and drone strikes all around the globe. This is a moral outrage, and anybody with even a little bit of a conscience should be out in the streets protesting against the US military-industrial complex, of which ICE is an integral part. That may not be in the words of the Bible, but it most certainly is in the Spirit thereof.

In closing, Paul then writes in verse 5, “Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience.” This is just as true today as it was when it was first written. Being an outlaw will only get us into trouble, and jail is no place for anybody to be except for the worst criminals. For example, it is a bad idea to drive your car at 90 miles an hour because it is against the law, but also because it is dangerous. By the same token, the ten commandments must be obeyed, and let's be sure to include the teachings of Christ while we're at it. We should not steal, lie or commit adultery, nor should we have any false gods in our lives. This includes electronic devices like computers. To find out if something is an idol, simply compare how much time you spend in front of screens to how much time you spend in prayer (time spent in church doesn't count – sorry!).

We are commanded to “love the Lord your God with all your strength, all your mind, all your soul and all your spirit”, and to “love our neighbor as we love ourselves”. We can and should worship the one true God and Him alone, who sent His only Son to die for our sins and then to rise from the dead on the third day after He was crucified. In the same way that we submit ourselves to God, we should, as far as it is possible, submit to authority here on earth. And we should do so not only “because of possible punishment but also because of conscience”. But here in the 21^st century we can and should oppose and protest against the government's immigration policies, also because of matters of conscience. It is part of the laws of our land, and we should exercise this right because our rule of law says we can. This is also in keeping with God's commands, and I hope and pray that it always remains so.

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This week's Bible study will be part 3 of Acts chapter 8

The Apostle Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch

[Acts chapter 8, verses 31-40]

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Last week when we left off at verse 30 of Acts chapter 8, the apostle Philip had just heeded a command from the Lord to go near a certain chariot by running up to it and inquiring of the occupant, an Ethiopian eunuch. It seems the eunuch was reading from the Book of Isaiah, but he could make no sense of what he was reading (“'Do you understand what you are reading?'”....), so he gladly accepted Philip's offer of some interpretation and invited him to come and sit with him. So let's take up where we left off last week, beginning at verse 31.

“'How can I', he said, 'unless someone explains it to me'? So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. The eunuch was reading from this passage of scripture: 'He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.' The eunuch asked Philip, 'Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?' Then Philip began with that very passage of scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.” (Acts 8, verses 31-35)

Allow me to reiterate one point about this that I made in last week's Bible study, and that was the racial and cultural differences between the Ethiopian eunuch – a Black man – and the apostle Philip, a Middle Eastern Jew. Contrast this with the segregated churches in the USA, which are situated mostly in the very wealthiest or the very poorest neighborhoods. I would say that if the apostle Philip were to walk into a wealthy church in a wealthy American neighborhood, he could and most definitely would shock the entire congregation with a fire and brimstone sermon that would have them all frozen in their seats!! Contrast that with the apostle Philip walking into an inner city Black church in any given American city. I can only imagine the power of the Holy Spirit making itself known in such a service as that, with the African-American community having a far richer Spiritual life than many of their white counterparts. Trust me on this one, I play keyboards in a mostly Black church in an inner city neighborhood in Atlanta. Having been raised in an ultra-conservative all white Catholic church, I can definitely tell you the difference is simply tremendous!

The passage the Ethiopian eunuch was reading was from Isaiah 53, verses 7 and 8, where Isaiah prophesied about Jesus before Pilate (“He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth....”), and of Jesus' subsequent crucifixion (“Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.”). Since the eunuch was Ethiopian, he could not have known about Jesus, so Philip gladly explained it to him, being filled with zeal for the Lord Jesus (“Philip began with that very passage of scripture and told him the good news about Jesus”). How well did the Ethiopian eunuch take the Gospel to heart once the apostle Philip presented it to him? To find out, let's move on to part 2 of this week's study.

“As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, 'Look, here is water. Why shouldn't I be baptized?' And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.” (Acts 8, verses 36-40)

As you can all clearly see by the actions of the apostle Philip and the eunuch, the presence of the Spirit always removes procrastination as it quells fear and hesitation, just as Christ went to his death on the cross fearlessly and without hesitation. But more than that, Philip had just won another soul to Christ while his new convert, the Ethiopian eunuch, sought baptism at the first opportunity! Shouldn't this be the way we should embrace our faith as we embrace – not merely express our belief in – the Prince of Peace, the very redeemer of our souls? Those who have not, or whose faith lacks any progress in developing one's relationship with Christ, you have your work cut out for you. Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to scold anybody! You've made it this far in your walk with Christ, and Jesus has been right there with you every step of the way. So I want to encourage you all to continue to pursue your walks with Christ, and to continue to seek his endless love and compassion. “Work out your own salvation”, the apostle Paul once wrote, “with fear and trembling before the Lord”. This is even more true now than when Paul first wrote it.

“When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing.” I can't help but admire the Ethiopian eunuch. He was both astute and humble enough of an individual to know that he had a problem understanding the Scriptures. But more than that, he was not ashamed to ask for help, and he had no problem allowing Philip to board his chariot to explain it. And when the apostle Philip was suddenly taken away by the Spirit of the Lord, the eunuch didn't complain, wondering where Philip had been taken to. He “went away rejoicing”, and I suspect he converted quite a few people when he got back home to Ethiopia. And Philip appeared in Azotus, which is in the southwest part of modern Israel. Literally. All I know is “Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.”

I refuse to speculate on how this may have occurred. If God told any of us how Philip got to Azotus as it actually happened, we probably wouldn't understand anyway. One thing is for sure – Philip's means of transit was not by way of a “transporter” like we saw on “Star Trek” episodes of the 1960's. The apostle Philip was instantly transported a distance of approximately 62 miles by an unknown means that came directly from God. I have no reservations about this whatsoever. All we can do for now is to look forward to the day when, in a flash and the twinkling of an eye, we shall find ourselves instantly transported a much, much further distance away so that we may hear those sweetest of sentences, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” And next week we'll start on Acts chapter 9.

The forcible separation of immigrant families being done in the name of the law

A Few Words About Separating Children From Their Parents

and What the Real Bible Has to Say About It

by Pastor Paul J. Bern

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By now most everyone has heard about the outrageous remarks made by White House Propaganda Minister (um, I meant Press Secretary) Sarah Huckabee Sanders. You know, when she said that since the Bible says we have to be law-abiding citizens, it's perfectly fine to forcibly separate children from their parents at America's southern border. Before I get too deep into this, let me give a partial quote from the original article.

White House cites Bible to defend child separation border policy
Sarah Sanders slammed for saying US-Mexico border policy was justified because it's 'biblical to enforce the law'.

(Al Jazeera News) “White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders has seemingly invoked the Bible to justify the Trump administration's policy of separating children from migrants caught crossing the US-Mexico border, drawing anger and ridicule from many online. At a press briefing on Thursday evening, Sanders responded to a question put forward by CNN journalist Jim Acosta on US Attorney General Jeff Sessions' use of Christian scripture to justify detaining children separately from their parents. Acosta asked Sanders to point out where in the Bible the policy found its moral justification. "Where in the Bible does it say it is moral to take children away from their mothers?" he asked. Sanders responded: "I am not aware of the attorney general's comments or what he would be referencing ... I can say it is very biblical to enforce the law, that is repeated a number of times throughout the Bible." When pressed to point out a specific verse justifying the policy by Acosta, Sanders lashed out at the journalist. "I know it's hard for you to understand even short sentences I guess," she said, before going on to blame "loopholes" created by the Democrats for the policy. The comments from Sanders and the similar sentiment expressed by Sessions have earned the ire of many on social media.”

“Some cited biblical passages that emphasized the need to do justice by the poor and oppressed, while others pointed out the contradiction in justifying a policy, only to blame (the Democrats) for its existence..... "So, Sarah Huckabee Sanders is blaming Democrats for the Trump regime's ripping children away from their families and throwing them in prison camps whilst her and Jeff Sessions are citing the Bible to explain why it's all okay. They are about as Christian as Kim Jong Un is," wrote twitter user Ricky Davila.”

“The issue of child separation on the US-Mexico border has drawn widespread protests since it came to light last month..... In May, Attorney General Jeff Sessions reiterated the threat to prosecute those who made the crossing. "If you're smuggling a child, then we're going to prosecute you, and that child will be separated from you, probably, as required by law." The "zero tolerance" approach has drawn criticism from those on both sides of the political spectrum, including from the UN human rights office, which said the practice "amounts to arbitrary and unlawful interference in family life, and is a serious violation of the rights of a child". The number of interior removals - or deportations of those already in the US - grew by 37 percent during Trump's first year in office when compared with the same period in 2016, according to government data. Sessions has also recently come under fire for issuing a ruling that may make it nearly impossible for domestic abuse and gang violence survivors to seek asylum in the US.”

First of all, I assume you saw where this article came from – Al Jazeera! The reason I picked this article was to show you all you can't trust the American news media to tell you the real story. And the real story is that we now live in a country where many people – but not all, since people like myself practice unconditional love and compassion – think it's perfectly OK to forcibly separate children from their parents because they are allegedly “illegal aliens”. Let me remind Sarah Sanders, president Trump and Attorney General Jeff Sessions that there is no such thing as an illegal human being (“The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it”, Psalm 108: 1 and, “The whole earth is full of His glory”, Isaiah 6: 3). People have been coming to America illegally for 400 years, so this is nothing new. Some came on slave ships, but that was legal. So how come it's illegal to cross our borders when they are not slaves?

Moreover, America's northern border with Canada is at least as porous as its southern border, if not even more so. Nobody says a word about this. Do you know why? It's because Canadians are mostly white. Latino/Latina people are mostly brown. It's all about race, Jeff Sessions and Sarah Sanders and all those before you, the multitudes of bigots who insist that it's 'my way or the highway'. Nonwhite people please stay away from us Anglo's, they say when no one is around. Blacks and Hispanics are not welcome in many Caucasian neighborhoods, and would be told (not asked, mind you) to leave most conservative white churches. The state of American spirituality is pathetic indeed!

So what was the Bible passage Jeff Sessions and Sarah Sanders were quoting from? It was Romans chapter 13, the first 5 verses, and I quote: ““Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience. This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, then pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.”

There is another infamous person from history who quoted from that passage of scripture often to control the masses – Adolf Hitler. The problem with using this passage of Scripture in this context is that it says nothing about separating children from their parents. It sure as hell says nothing about locking children in cages away from their parents just after locking up their parents while the children watch helplessly. These poor kids will be traumatized for life by what's being done to them, and still more people will hate our country because of all these things. This is no way to run a country; separating parents from their children in the name of 'law and order'. Separating children from their parents is also unconstitutional because it's an 8^th Amendment violation!

What are some additional examples of what the Bible says about the treatment of children? “Train a child in the way they should go, and when he gets older he will not forget about it”, (Proverbs22: 6) is one example. How can these incarcerated children learn when their parents are not there to teach them? Another example is Proverbs 29 verse 15, “A child left to himself disgraces his mother.” Jesus mentioned children on numerous occasions. One of his most memorable is from Matthew's gospel chapter 19, verse 14: “Let the little children come unto me, and do not hinder them. For I tell you truthfully, the kingdom of Heaven is made of such as these.” So you see, people, God made all the little children just like you and me. And God made these various children from various cultures, backgrounds, races and ethnicity's with different skin colors to teach us all about the richness of diversity, as well as teaching us to have some tolerance for those whose physical appearance and mannerisms are different than our own. Never forget that the same Almighty God has made us all!

This week's ongoing Bible study will be part 2 of Acts chapter 8

Examples of True Repentance and Diversity in the Bible

[Acts chapter 8, verses 18-30]

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Last week in our ongoing study of the Book of Acts, we left off at verse 17 of chapter 8, where Simon the sorcerer had just been converted to what we now call Christianity by the apostles Peter and John. Back then the teachings of our Lord and Savior were simply called “The Way”, a much better name in my own opinion. So this week as we move on, we will find Simon getting himself sharply rebuked by Peter for asking the wrong question the wrong way, followed by a Biblical example of the absence of prejudice in the face of racial diversity. So let's pick up where we last left off, starting at verse 18.

“When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles hands, he offered them money and said, 'Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.' Peter answered, 'May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.' Then Simon answered, 'Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.' When they had testified and proclaimed the word of the Lord, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, preaching the Gospel in many Samaritan villages.” (Acts 8, verses 18-25)

Although many pastors and teachers of the Word habitually use Simon as an example of how NOT to use the gifts of the Spirit (and there's nothing wrong with that), let me also point out that Simon was a reflection of the times in which he lived. There was widespread paganism 2,000 years ago, with all kinds of weird beliefs, rituals and superstitions. There was also a lot of sorcery and witchcraft, not to mention fortune-tellers, astrologers and even Luciferians who engage in devil worship. These types of nefarious activities are still prevalent today in some parts of the world, but these forms of negative worship, or 'worshiping in vain' as I call it, exist globally in one form or another, and that includes North America. It is the duty of every Christ-believer to oppose, and to repent of for those who need to, all of the above activities and beliefs and to the organizations that represent them. You all know who you are!!

Verse 19 is one good verse to use when pointing out the erroneous teaching known as the “Prosperity Gospel”, which is really no 'gospel' at all. Simon the sorcerer said to Peter as he flashed his cash at him, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” Clearly this was a big mistake on Simon's part. But this corrupt mentality of his made its presence known because Simon was a reflection of the culture he grew up in. He probably didn't have much of an upbringing nor much education, so he probably had lived by his wits for much of his life. No wonder there was such a need for a Savior for all of humanity! In a world where kids grew up to be sorcerers and warlocks, the need was great. In today's world, where kids grow up to be gang members and school shooters, the need for a Savior has never been more acute. Pray, everyone! Pray for our children!

“Peter answered, 'May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money!” To put this into 21^st century vernacular, Peter was telling Simon to take his money and himself right back to whatever part of Hell they had originated from. Then he adds insult to injury in his rebuke when he added, “You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you....” Again, to put this into a modern context, Peter was telling Simon not only that he was an unfit Christian, but also that he had no business in the ministry at all! As in 'period, end of story'. Peter's swift and sure response to Simon's attempted bribery still holds true today. It is a sin to accept or offer a bribe – period, end of story.

“Perhaps”, Peter told Simon, “He will forgive you.” The Supreme Sacrifice of Christ on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins, no matter how grievous they may be, guarantees eternal forgiveness for those who embrace Jesus. Like Simon though, it depends on how sincere we are about our repentance. We get a hint of the level of Simon's repentance in his response to Peter in verse 24: “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.” Simon evidently felt so convicted he may have felt unworthy to pray for himself, I can't say for sure. He is never mentioned again in the Bible, and nobody knows his fate to this day, but I hope he is with the Lord. But then we see, in verse 25, Peter and John preaching in “many Samaritan villages” on their way back to Jerusalem. As I mentioned in last week's lesson, this is an example of the power of the ministry of Christ – that two orthodox Jews would stop and preach to a bunch of Gentiles. Prior to these occurrences, Jews and Samaritans associating with one another was unheard of. Which brings me to part two of today's lesson, beginning at verse 26.

“Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, 'Go south to the road – the desert road – that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.' So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the book of Isaiah the prophet. The Spirit told Philip, 'Go to that chariot and stay near it.' Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. 'Do you understand what you are reading?', Philip asked.” (Acts 8, verses 26-30)

I'm not sure why this verse of Scripture was translated this way, but I think it would have looked a little better had it been translated as, “Meanwhile, while all this was occurring, the Spirit of our risen Lord had dispatched the apostle Philip to the south of Jerusalem”, with Samaria being roughly northeast of Jerusalem. As he goes, he encounters an Ethiopian man, a eunuch in a chariot who is reading the Book of Isaiah. So we have a similar occurrence here with Philip that we had with Peter and John above – Jewish men not only associating with but even ministering to different cultures than their own. The Ethiopian eunuch was obviously a Black man, whereas Philip most likely had light brown skin. And yet modern churches seem to conveniently skip over this Biblical fact and its implications for racial reconciliation, starting with here in America where we need it the most. Such a teaching would be a scathing indictment of wealthy, and mostly white, churches.

But Philip allowed no such barrier to hinder him, nor did he care that the Ethiopian eunuch was a Black man. “The Spirit told Philip, 'Go to that chariot and stay near it.' Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. 'Do you understand what you are reading?'”.... All the apostle Philip saw in that man was a ministry opportunity and a chance to lead someone to salvation in Christ. When the Spirit commanded the apostle Philip to get close to the chariot he saw, Philip ran! He got to that chariot as fast as he could run, as if it were an emergency. And there was an emergency! A man whose heart was crying out for salvation had its needs met by the apostle Philip. So there was a Spiritual emergency. But what did the Ethiopian eunuch ask Philip, or how did he respond to Philip's query? To find the answer to this most pertinent question, you'll have to return next week for the third and final part to our analysis of chapter 8 of the Book of Acts. Until then, let's all focus on being as repentant as Simon was after being rebuked by Peter. Let's all continue to pray for ourselves and each other, that God's judgment never falls on any of us either. Then, let's live our lives as such.

Is the American Dream Dead Already, or Is It Just Asleep?

The American Dream Has Become a Nightmare

by Pastor Paul J. Bern

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The “American Dream” has at its core an escape from the real world to build a personalized utopia, a custom-made fantasy island of sorts. When we were taught to pursue this dream back when, we were 'taught' that if we work hard and diligently enough we'll be able to make enough money to buy a house in the 'right' neighborhood so our kids go to the 'right' schools and buy enough stuff so as to please ourselves, stay even economically with our neighbors and relatives, and shut out the rest of the world so we can keep it all to ourselves. But the house and our neighborhood are not the only part of our island. Our cars and our Internet gives us the power to choose almost everything such as where we work, or where our houses or churches are. Not to mention who our friends are, too. Our cars allow us to escape what we don't like about the neighborhoods we must sometimes live in.

If that is not enough, our TVs and our Internet connections allow us to filter out whatever else could intrude on us. Not that we need help to filter out what is unpleasant, the 'lame stream media' does that for us already. All one has to do is talk to those who are from other countries such as Yemen, Afghanistan, Libya, Syria and Israel/Gaza. Our media protects us from the real life negative stories about what our country and corporations do to others. In lieu of the unpleasant truth, our media reports only that which does not interfere with our consumption of their sponsors' products. And out of that small selection that is left from all of this filtering, we use the remote to choose shows based on how they make us feel. What a dumb life this is! Ever considered turning off your cable TV and pocketing that money each month? Thank God we have the alternative media outlets such as Israeli News Live, We Are Change, SGT Report, Jason A and many, many other high-quality channels or websites to choose from!

Christendom as a whole sees this self-imposed isolation by its secular fellow Americans as an affirmation of his own similarly withdrawn theology. For example, I rarely see any articles or postings that call into question the extreme immorality of waging war. In its place their articles, Christian books and TV shows are concerned with fine theological points, pointless evangelical arguments, how to better manage church services, all about miracles real or imagined or engineered, and all the while oftentimes overemphasizing fund raising.

But it is not just the articles that show how we distance ourselves, but we use our gospel of individual salvation to shut out what we find disturbing. We so reduce our standing before God – in our own eyes – to our current state of inner self and beliefs that we become hyper vigilant over ourselves while ignoring the needs of others. As a result, we become agitated and even panicked when the concerns of the world ask for our time. And it isn't just the negativity of the news that disturbs us, it is its complexity. Since things are simple when we only have to care for ourselves, we prefer to pay as little attention as possible to others. The apostle Paul wrote, “we have the mind of Christ”, but some 'Christians' aren't acting like it.

And when we do see and respond to the suffering of others, it is only to a chosen few fellow Christians or to those whom we cannot avoid. But such an approach to helping others goes against what the Bible teaches. Isaiah chapters 58 and 59 and Jeremiah 22:16 (“He defended the cause of the poor and the needy, and so all went well. 'Is that not what it means to know me', says the Lord?”) closely tie helping those in need with having seen the light. Likewise, Jesus' parable of the sheep and the goats (see Matt. 25, verses 21-46) not only taught that those who helped others in need were the sheep who received eternal life, it also showed that those who neglected the needy, looking after only themselves, were banished from heaven forever! He also demonstrated this latter principle in his parable of the rich man and Lazarus.

In Jesus' parable of the rich man, who built extra barns to hold the excess of his harvest and told himself to eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow he could die – well, sure enough, he did. He begged Lazarus from the fires of hell to give him just one drop of cool water, but Lazarus could not. Last in my list is the book of Proverbs, containing such tasty nuggets of wisdom as, “He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God” (chapter 14, verse 31), and “Do not exploit the poor because they are poor, and do not crush the needy in court, for the Lord will take up their case and will plunder those who plunder them” (chapter 22, verses 22-23).

But perhaps the most pathetic way that Christians fail in their missions of service, prayer and worship is by blindly submitting to authority. It is not that Christians are not called to submit to those in authority – quite the contrary! But many of today's Christians do so as a way of shielding themselves from the risks that come with confronting evil, such as opposing corruption and speaking truth to power (think Rev. Dr. King, the Kennedy brothers, Huey Long, Malcolm X, and many more like them). Submission to authority, then, is sometimes practiced not in order to love God and others, but to secure for oneself the kind of world that is most comfortable.

And so when evil prevails in either the private or public sector, this legitimate command to submit to the authorities is used to hide the very ones who are perpetrating evil and mayhem, and especially government and workplace corruption. But not only are we negligent in our Christian duty when we fail to confront those who abuse their power, we also become complicit in their evil ways. And we do so in order to ride on the coattails of evil and power rather than risk any reprisal for challenging it. If we as a people – regardless of religious affiliation or the lack thereof – continue to allow abusive and corrupt authority to run our country, we will soon lose it forever.

Martin Luther King faced this very dilemma when he stood up to the legalized racism and racial hatred that was rampant in the American South. He wanted to honor and follow the commandment in Romans 13 that told him to submit to the authorities. At the same time, he knew that many authorities were enforcing unjust laws while allowing abuse and even murder. He could have submitted and just gone along with the status quo and he would have avoided making himself a target. But that would have been the coward's way out! Had he remained quiet, others would have continued to suffer horribly. So King concluded that he could meet both responsibilities by using political dissent and organized passive resistance as forms of peaceful protest. When arrested, he made no effort to resist. He did not challenge the authority of the police, but he most definitely did challenge the validity of unjust laws and the society that profited from that authority. The institutionalized racism that Rev. Dr. King stood against exists to this very day! What are white or Caucasian Christians doing about this?

There is a Biblical reason why the American Dream is so desirable to Christians. It is because we see the American Dream as the Garden of Eden restored and thus it's our Christian duty to make it so. In fact, some think that the purpose of God's Word is to make Paradise accessible again, not understanding that we who call upon the name of the Lord are destined for a Paradise that will put the Garden of Eden to shame. Such Christians argue that basing one's life on God's Word is like following the right blueprints when constructing a building, and they have a point. The more we follow God's Word, the more we can avoid the hazards of sin. But the big question becomes, did God give us His word to return us to the Garden or to help us through the wilderness? But before answering that question, we must understand why would Jesus commanded us to collect our treasures in heaven rather than on earth, and why the writer of the book of Hebrews tells us we are to look for a new home to come rather than a home here.

To believe that God's Word tells us how to regain Paradise is inaccurate, to put it nicely. By the same token, the real attraction to the American Dream isn't the opportunity to restore what was lost but to worship what can be found – the twin false gods of money and materialism. The American Dream is a monasticism with benefits. Its preachers assure us that we can be righteously selfish. The “prosperity gospel” is taught in churches like a canned sales pitch, and is gleefully and mistakenly received as truth by the gullible. It allows us to flee from what is unpleasant and distasteful in the world while enjoying its corruptible fruit. This makes America a trap for 21^st century Christians. For when we try to take what we want instead of waiting on God, we become deaf and blind to both the world God wants us to share His love with, as well as our own depleted spiritual conditions.

My conclusion, then, is to reject materialism and the pursuit of economic gain! Jesus said, “One cannot serve two masters. He/she will either love one and despise the other, or cling to one while rejecting the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon (materialism)”. Choose today whom or what you will serve in life. You can either pursue wealth and material goods, or you can pursue a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and all that goes with it. There is so much more to choosing Christ than there is to choosing riches, which can be here one day and gone the next without warning. One cannot serve them both, since from the vantage point of the believer they are in opposite directions from each other.

Our wealth and possessions die with us or are willed to others after we are gone, but Jesus Christ lives today, tomorrow, and forever! It is He and he alone that is the correct choice for us to make. It is Christ alone who offers us the eternal salvation our souls urgently need. Right now would be a perfectly good time to do this (for those readers who haven't already done so). Simply pray within yourself to Jesus and ask Him to take charge of your life. It doesn't matter how you surrender to him, just do it. He always does a perfect job anyway, so there is no profit in resisting him. Ask Jesus now, he is waiting eagerly for you! And he loves you unconditionally!

5 Global Meetings Simultaneously and the Brink of War

Free book excerpt #25 from Progressive Author and blogger Rev. Paul J. Bern

Coming this fall from Author Rev. Paul J. Bern: the 4th updated edition of his popular 2011 nonfiction work, "The Middle and Working Class Manifesto"

The second part of the Manifesto is what I will devote this chapter to. It summarizes the 11 Demands of the People and then organizes them into 7 basic human rights in such a way that they can be legislated into existence. How do we accomplish this? One way would be for a large group of people to go to Washington and demonstrate our disapproval by surrounding Congress outside the main Congressional building where the House of Representatives and the US Senate preside, and continuing to surround it while demanding that the Eight Fundamental Rights Of Mankind be passed into law in the form of a US Constitutional amendment. Nobody leaves until our demands are met. Our demonstrations will be peaceful, and weapons will be prohibited. I have lots of other ideas about how to go about changing the system, but for now let us take a chapter from this book to explain and analyze these basic human rights, how they apply to us middle Americans, and why these basic human rights are what this new Civil Rights movement represents.

[1] Rights of Workers and Independent Contractors

The basic rights of all workers can be broken down into six parts; fair minimum wage, right to unemployment protection, right to free vocational re-training for life, right to choice of career path regardless of economic status, right to organize, right to a flexible work week, and right to family and maternity leave.

The first thing on the list is also the highest priority, that of a fair and realistic minimum wage. As I write this the current minimum wage is only about $7.50 per hour. That's a gross pay of $300.00 for a 40-hour work week, about $210.00 after all applicable taxes for a single person. Now, let us ask ourselves one basic question: could I live on $840.00 per month? Of course you can't! But the need to raise the federal minimum wage to $14.00 per hour is only part of the solution because it is only part of the problem. The real problem that I see here is a moral issue that is disguised as an economic issue. The cost of living is so high today in the early 21^st century that the true minimum wage should be close to $35,000.00 annually before taxes. That is what it costs a family of four to live week-to-week in 2018 dollars. If the US business community and/or Congress refuse to agree to any such thing, and it's a sure bet that they will, then let there be protests and worker walkouts all across the country. We could even haggle down from the $14.00 level to, say, $12.00. The important thing will be to keep them talking to us. Sooner or later we will get the large increases we urgently need, even if it means shutting down the whole country for a day or more, or even a week. 

But what about the times when the cost of living overwhelms us and a real financial emergency sets in, such as an unexpected car repair or a medical emergency? This brings me to the point that I wish to make, and it is this. In today's world, if the net take-home pay of any given individual does not meet, or just barely meets, that same individuals daily cost of living, then that is tantamount to economic slavery. Let me say that again because this point simply cannot be overemphasized. If your take-home pay won't even take you home, you are a slave. Oh, you are free to move around and to come and go as you choose, that is true. But if after you stop at the grocery store, pay the light bill (assuming you are fortunate enough to be able to do that), put gas in your tank (assuming you are lucky enough to still own a car) and set some money aside for next month's rent or mortgage, then you peek into your wallet and realize that you have $7.00 left for the whole stinkin' week, that's when you know you are a slave. What happens to the people whose incomes are at or below minimum wage? They go hungry and are often homeless. And this is happening in the United States of America, supposedly the greatest country in the world, while millions of its people live in abject poverty. How much longer do we wait before taking matters into our own hands? After all, it's the only way we are going to accomplish our goals.

On this point alone, there are enough issues on the collective dinner plate of the American people to foster open revolt throughout the land. Never mind everything else that I have written about. Think about it for a minute. How does it feel to be an economic slave? Makes you feel kind of angry, doesn't it? It make us all feel violated because we have all been slaves, often without realizing it. The time to rise up and say, “No more!” has arrived. It's time for all of us to get out from in front of out TV's, our computers and our phones, and to get ourselves out into the streets and start protesting. Never mind your game consoles either, there's no more time for that. And that's just for this issue alone. Now allow me to mention the rest of these basic rights.

The second right under worker's rights is the right to better unemployment insurance, and to also allow independent contractors to draw unemployment provided certain conditions are met. Any worker who has lost his or her job through no fault of their own will be entitled to up to 52 weeks of unemployment compensation instead of the current maximum of 26 weeks of non-emergency benefits. Once the benefits have been exhausted, if the job seeker is unable to find full time work, they will have two options. The first will be to enlist in free vocational re-education, which will be offered for the lifetime of that worker or until retirement (more on that further below, so please stick with me). The second option will be to enlist as a worker in new public works projects, which will be described later in this chapter. Under this new 21^st century plan, we can and will wipe out unemployment and poverty forever.

The third human right listed is the right to free vocational retraining for life. Anybody can go back to school and get retrained at will, up to and including a 2 year degree, and under this new system it will all be free of charge. We will be able to pay for it with the new tax code that I will describe to you later in this chapter. Students in the program who have children will, upon qualification, be given taxpayer-funded day care free of charge so they can get their education without having to worry about their kids. Much is being made right now about the fact that higher education is becoming more financially out of reach for an increasingly large percentage of the US population. Offering free taxpayer-funded reeducation will take down this barrier, and can be thus used as a tool for peaceful and orderly wealth redistribution. 

The fourth human right under worker's rights that I have written about is the choice of career path without economic qualification. This is basically a continuation and clarification of the above right to vocational retraining. It adds a civilian draft which is designed to eliminate unemployment and homelessness. Every able-bodied homeless person, newly released prisoners, and the long-term unemployed will be put to work in a public works program that I will explain in detail later in this chapter.

The next right I mentioned is simply the right for workers to organize. It will include a provision making it illegal for states to outlaw labor unions and it prohibits companies and corporations from preventing unionization. American workers will get worse working conditions, not better, if they do not organize. They also won't stand a chance of getting pay raises, better benefits and investment opportunities because company management isn't about to give away any of this voluntarily. The workers are going to have to collectively go to management and make their needs known.

The fifth human right that I mentioned is the right to a fair workweek. All workers who work more than 40 hours in a week, and all salaried managers who work more than 50 hours per week, will be entitled to compensation at time and a half. All companies with more than 100 employees will be required to offer either a four day workweek with a ten hour workday, or a five day workweek with an eight hour workday to all its workers. Workers who are paid biweekly will be paid overtime for all hours worked in a 40-hour week. It will be illegal to require such workers to work 80 hours over Less than two weeks before paying them overtime.

The right to family leave, which will include maternity leave for women, is the final right for all workers and independent contractors. It will be illegal for any company to fire any worker for taking maternity leave or family leave. Any worker who loses their job due to family or maternity leave will be required to be compensated by that employer with a minimum of 30 days pay to a maximum of one year's salary pending arbitration.....

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