(dramatic music)
- [Announcer] This is "CBN Newswatch".
- And thank you so much for joining us
for this first edition of "CBN Newswatch"
for Thursday, July 18th, I'm Efrem Graham.
Ahead today, President DonaldTrump on the road again,
firing up supportersand taking on Democrats
as he gets ready for the 2020 campaign.
Get ready for some insanelyhot temperatures this weekend,
in some areas, 100 degrees.
Also the Trump administrationmoving to freedom of religion
for believers of allfaiths around the world.
And we're gonna hear abouthow the Church is doing today
in the place where it wasborn, the Middle East.
All those stories and much more are ahead
in this edition of "CBN Newswatch".
We want to begin this hour
with President Donald Trumpspeaking to his supporters
at a rally in NorthCarolina Wednesday evening,
talking about hisadministration's accomplishments
on the economy, attacking Democrats
and once again, taking on
those four Democratic femalefreshmen Congresswomen
he's been feuding publiclywith the last few days,
including Minnesota's Ilhan Omar.
- And obviously
and importantly,
Omar has a history--- Send her back!
- Of launching vicious,anti-Semitic screeds.
- [Crowd] Send her back!
Send her back!
Send her back!
Send her back!
Send her back!
Send her back!
Send her back!
- They're always telling us how to run it,
how to do this, how todo that, you know, what,
if they don't love it,tell 'em to leave it!
We have the strongest economy in history,
the lowest unemployment numbers ever.
We've rebuilt the most powerful military,
it was totally depleted when I took office
and now it's rebuilt.(crowd cheers)
We passed,
the largest tax cuts and regulation cuts
of any president or anyadministration in history.
- Now the President didthank Democrats in Congress
for voting against aresolution to impeach him.
The measure was overwhelmingly voted down.
Well, we're in the heat of the summer.
Across the nation and in some parts,
record breaking heat has arrived
with heat advisories already in effect,
while temperatures areexpected to soar even higher,
to alarming levels, even.
Here's the forecast from AccuWeather.
- Well, Tropical RainstormBarry is moving on east,
a couple of places'llstill see some showers
or a thunderstorm around fortoday, but the humidity stays.
We're going to have excessive humidity
and building temperaturesthrough the weekend,
so that is really going to lead
to some oppressive conditions.
But FutureCast, as I mentioned,
still going to be a couple of showers
or thunderstorms aroundSouthern New England,
extending down eveninto parts of Virginia,
coastal Virginia could seea shower or thunderstorm.
Our temperatures today, NewYork City gets to 84 degrees.
88 in Philadelphia, 95 in Richmond
and we're going to havebuilding heat here,
right through the weekend.
Ridge building in the jetstream allows all the heat
and humidity in parts of the Midwest,
where we've already beenseeing some excessive heat.
Well, that is going to be expanding
and the AccuWeather RealFeels are going
to make it feel like it's well over 100,
I'll show you a coupleof those in a moment.
But excessive heat watch is in effect,
the darker red, burgundy,shading here into the Northeast,
that's where we have someexcessive heat watches.
We even have excessiveheat warnings in effect
around Philadelphiaand parts of New Jersey
and Northern Delaware.
Because of this,
the New York City mayor hasdeclared a heat emergency
through Sunday
into the New York area.
So cooling centers arelocated in libraries,
community and senior centers.
And also in Philadelphia,
the Philadelphia mayor hasdeclared a heat emergency
through Sunday.
Cooling centers thereare located in libraries,
public pools, communityand senior centers.
So on Friday, our RealFeel,
our AccuWeather RealFeeltemperatures around the D.C. area,
down into parts of Virginia,
it's going to feel like it'sabout 105 to 110 degrees.
We also could see some records challenged,
many locations here, intothe Northeast in Richmond,
98's the forecast forSaturday, the record's 103.
So you're five degrees shy of that,
but it's definitely goingto be a hot one for you.
In Newark, the forecast95, the record was 101,
we're getting closer.
And on Saturday, we've gotthe dangerous heat continuing.
When you factor in thesunshine, heat and humidity,
many locations in theCoastal Northeast are going
to feel like it's about105 to 110 degrees.
- The State Departmentis shining a spotlight
on the plight of thosefacing religious persecution
with Secretary of State MikePompeo hosting a Ministerial
to Advance Religious Freedom.
And yesterday, PresidentDonald Trump heard
from more than a dozen victimsof religious persecution.
Jenna Browder is in Washingtonnow with that story.
- [Jenna] It was an extraordinary
and moving scene in the Oval Office
as President Trump listened to the stories
from people around the world
who have been persecuted for their faith.
- Thank you.- You are there
for the opportunity to see you.
Ista from Nigeria, I dothree years in the (murmurs)
I escaped from Boko Haram.
So thank you your attention--
- That's tough stuff, right?
- Yes.- That's a tough, thank you.
(speaking in foreign language)
- I can call myself a Muslim
in the United States ofAmerica but not in Pakistan,
(speaking in foreign language)
otherwise I'll be punished.
- I'm a--- This is Nadia,
is a Nobel Peace Prize winner.(cameras clicking)
- I'm from Iraq and I
cannot say my family,they are in the Church,
because when ISIS attack us,
no one protect us.
After 2003, we started
to disappear from ourarea, from our homeland.
When ISIS attack us in 2014,they killed six of my brother,
they killed my mom, theytook me to captivity
with my 11 sister-in-law, withall my sisters and my nieces.
Until today, we have 3,000 Yazidi women
and children in captivity.
- [Jenna] The President even insisting
he had time to hear morestories despite his schedule.
- Thank you.- I know the President has
to get on, so I want to--- I don't mind--
- Everybody--- We can take a couple more--
- Can you, okay, good.
- My family are being persecuted in Iran.
(cameras clicking)Iranian people are with you.
- Which--
- The majority of Iranian people--
- Explain what is happening in Iran.
- My parents are pastors,they're Christian pastors,
they've been arrested, all my family,
my father, my mother and my brother.
They are free on bail awaitingthe trial and long sentences.
- [Jenna] They've been invited,
along with thousands ofothers, to tell their stories
and take part in the Trumpadministration's initiative
to protect and promote religious freedom.
- You have over 16countries represented here.
You have approximately 27 people,
but I was in the roomyesterday with thousands
and we had thousandsthat could not get in.
- I heard there was crowd--- So we thank you, President,
for being the leader, thecourageous leader to stand up,
not only in our nation,but countries all around,
for all faith of all peoplethat we should have the practice
and the right to practice our religion.
- [Jenna] Pastor Paula White referring
to the second Ministerial
on International Religious Freedom,
hosted by the administration this week.
The State Department says80% of people worldwide live
in a religiously-restricted environment.
- All people,
from every place on the globe,
must be permitted topractice their faith openly
in their homes, intheir places of worship,
in the public square
and believe what they want to believe.
- [Jenna] And SecretaryPompeo will be addressing
the ministerial again today,
along with Vice President Pence,
who's also been an outspokenadvocate for religious freedom.
In Washington, Jenna Browder, CBN News.
(dramatic music)
- [Efrem] Coming up, as theTrump administration works
to help persecuted religiousbelievers around the world,
we're gonna hear how theChurch is doing today
in the birthplace of Christianity,
we're talkin' about the Middle East,
when we come back.
- [Terry] Remember for a moment
what it was like to be a child.
You believed every story you were told,
you saw a world full ofendless possibilities.
What stories will the world's orphaned
and at-risk children believe?
We believe the Bible tells the only story
truly worth believing.
We believe that every childshould have the opportunity
to dream, the chance to take challenges
and turn them into possibilities,
the chance to stand onthe promises of God,
to recognize their place inthe greatest story ever told.
They have their whole lives ahead of them,
theirs is a world ofendless possibilities.
They are looking for a story to believe.
We will tell them that story.
Will you join us?
(hopeful music)
(children giggling)
(upbeat music)
♪ And where there's joy there's action ♪
♪ It's like a great attraction ♪
♪ That starts a chain reaction ♪
♪ With all the satisfaction ♪
♪ I love the way this joy ♪
♪ Makes me move ♪
♪ I got the ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ I dance around because I'm loyal ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ I move around because I got it ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ Joy to the heart ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ I dance around because I'm loyal ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ I move around because I got it ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ Joy to the heart ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ Joy to the heart ♪
♪ Joy ♪
- Leaders gathering inWashington this week are talking
about the importance ofsafeguarding the rights
of religious minorities around the world,
especially in the Middle East.
1,000 people from morethan 30 countries gathered
for the State Department'sSecond Annual Ministerial Summit
on Global Religious Freedom.
At a special FamilyResearch Council panel,
the U.S. Commission onInternational Religious Freedom
Chairman Tony Perkinspraised northeast Syria
for its commitment to religious liberty.
He suggest the Kurdishregion is a shining example
of a place committed totolerance of varying faiths.
You can hear more--
- Do we believe what's happening
there in northeast Syriacould become a model
for the rest of the MiddleEast about religious freedom
and living together in peace,
allowing one another tolive out their faith.
And that's what religious freedom is,
it's not the freedom of worship,
rather it's the freedom of religion,
the ability to live yourlife according to your faith.
A lot of discussion at the Ministerial
to Advance Religious Freedomabout the America journey,
the American journeyof unalienable rights.
That we understand thatthis right to freedom,
religious freedom is a human right,
it's not a right that wasgranted just to Americans,
it was not a right thatwas granted to people
by government anywhere.
See, our founders understood that
this was a latent human right,it was there but unseen.
It required the visionary leadership
to uncover that freedom
and hold to that freedomand protect that freedom,
a visionary leadershipthat sees the latent,
fundamental human rightof religious freedom.
And we believe it's incumbent upon us
to stand with those innortheast Syria, in that region,
that want to bring thisfreedom to the forefront.
Because we believe and thegrowing body of evidence suggest
that what follows this freedomis greater social stability,
economic development andfreedom in all people.
- Now to hear more aboutthe Religious Freedom Summit
and comments fromBritain's Lord David Alton,
tonight you can checkout the "Global Lane",
that begins at 9:30 Eastern,
you can find it on the CBN News Channel.
Now our Middle East BureauChief Chris Mitchell is
actually here with us in studio,
he'd tell us more about the situation.
Let's begin with theChurch in northeast Syria.
- Yeah, and I was atthat panel the other day
at the Family Research Council.
Inside northeast Syria, it'sboth promising and threatening.
Promising, I found out whenwe were there in January,
there was one evangelical church
in one of the major cities there, Kobani,
now there are three.
So the Church is growing,it's still embryonic.
Also threatening, because a lot
of the Christians see Turkeyamassing military troops
on the border, they're concernedabout a Turkish invasion.
The Christians there areafraid of another genocide.
- Naturally, now earlier thisweek, we saw a story from you
about the Church in Iran,
that it may be the fastest-growingchurch in the world.
What's happening there?- It's one
of the amazing things inthe Middle East right now
and a lot of people think what happened
in China many years ago,
when people realized thatthe Church was growing
behind the communist veil there.
Right now, behind theIslamic veil in Iran,
there's a growing church,the fastest one in the world,
marked by signs and wonders.
These small home groups,women play a prominent role,
it's just an amazing storyof the Holy Spirit moving
in the Middle East.
- I tell ya, it's so beautiful to see.
President Trump heard frompeople of a variety of faith,
we saw there, who sufferedfrom religious persecution.
The Church was born in the Middle East,
but what's happening there right now?
- I would say three things.
First of all, you havea Christian diaspora.
Christians, because of ISIS
and the persecution they had to face,
they really have scatteredaround the world.
The other thing is thatthe Church has stayed,
many people refuse to leave,some people can't leave,
so in places like the Nineveh Plain,
the Church is still there,
traditional church, likeCatholics, Orthodox,
those kind of faiths streamswithin the Christian Church.
The other thing iswhat's happening in Iran.
Many people are coming to faith,
former Muslims are coming to faith
because of dreams and visions.
It's really an excitingstory about what's happening,
sort of rising out of the ashesof what happened with ISIS
and many other Islamic groups
that were persecuting the Christian Church
throughout the Middle East.
It's still growing here inthe cradle of Christianity.
- Speaking of the cradle of Christianity,
you're based in Jerusalem,
what is the situationlike for Christians there?
- Well, for Christians probably in Israel,
it's the safest and the freest place
in the whole Middle East.
They have religious freedom there
and they can practice faith.
In one place in the Middle East
where the Church has reallygrown is there in Israel,
so we see that eventhough there are troubles,
there are sometimes challenges
with maybe ultra-Orthodoxthat oppose religious freedom,
to a certain extent, wesee that finally in Israel,
it's really a bastion of religious freedom
there in the Middle East.
- Praise God for that.
Chris, thank you so much for your time.
- Great to be with you, Efrem.- Great to have you.
(dramatic music)
Still ahead, with the abortion rate
among African-Americansreaching extremely high levels,
one of the largest black denominations
in the country has taken a stand
by helping women to choose life.
We're gonna have that storywhen we come back, stay with us.
- We will move the AmericanEmbassy to the eternal capital
of the Jewish people, Jerusalem!
- [Announcer] As the nations rage.
(suspenseful music)You can stand with Israel.
- History is being writtenand I wanna be a part of it.
- [Announcer] Call1-800-700-7000 and get "To Life".
- [Volunteer] This isour nature as a country.
- [Announcer] Discover the untold story
of how Israeli volunteersare changing the world.
- [Volunteer] We considerit our duty to reach out
and help others around the world.
- [Announcer] For a gift of $10 or more,
you can own the acclaimed CDand documentary, "To Life".
- To treat a human, no matter what he is,
which religious hehave, which color he is,
this is what I'm doing.
- [Announcer] Support Israelin their time of need,
get "To Life", now available on DVD.
Call 1-800-700-7000 or log on to cbn.com.
- [Volunteer] And I wish that other people
throughout the world couldsee this side of Israel.
- Orphan's Promise is committed to loving
and serving at-risk children.
To helping keep families together
and to creating opportunities for strong
and sustainable communitiesaround the world.
We're working in over 60countries around the world
and with your help, we can do even more.
There's an old Africanproverb I love that says,
"If you wanna run fast, run alone,
"but if you wanna run far, run together."
At Orphan's Promise, we want to run far
so we can touch thelives of as many orphaned
and vulnerable children as possible.
But we don't wanna go alone,we're out to change the world,
one child, one family,one community at a time.
Will you join us?
(uplifting music)
(wind whooshes)
(children giggling)(bells chiming)
- Abortion statistics in theblack community are alarming
and many African-Americanchurches have been silent
on the issue.
But one of the country'slargest black denominations
has spoken out and is taking a stand
by helping more women to choose life.
Charlene Aaron is on this story.
- According to U.S. Census data,
blacks make up only 13%of the U.S. population,
yet more than 30% of abortedbabies are from black mothers.
- It is the number one killer
of all African-Americans in the nation.
You can add cancer,
you can add AIDS,
you can car accidents,homicides, crime, shooting,
name the gamut and put those together
and it will not equal the amount of lives
that we lose to abortion.
- [Charlene] It is an issue Charles Blake,
the presiding bishop of theChurch of God in Christ,
also known as COGIC, hasspoken out about in the past.
- Black women, accordingto the statistics,
are almost four times aslikely to have an abortion
as are white women.
And almost 65 of those
who have had abortionshave never been married.
You're killing a human being.(congregation exclaims)
It's a human being fromthe moment it's conceived.
- [Charlene] With more than6.5 million members worldwide,
COGIC is working with thepro-life Human Coalition network
to help black women choose life.
They call it the Family Life Campaign,
which challenges church membersto personally take action
in fighting for the unborn.
COGIC members are encouragedto act in various ways,
such as counselingoutside abortion clinics,
or working with expectantmothers inside pregnancy centers.
Campaign Vice President Lesley Monet says
this mission is vital to the survival
of both the black familyand the black church.
- We've placed this at thecenter of our missions department
where we are telling churches,
hey, this is what we needto be grilling our children,
our parishioners on.
We need to make surethat they're pro-life.
We need to make sure childrenare being taken care of
in uterine (laughs) and outside.
- [Charlene] Monet says churches,
specifically African-American churches,
have been silent onabortion for far too long,
which is why COGIC isstepping up to the plate.
- I think one of the reasons is because
we are afraid
to confront
that issue in our church
because we have been a part of that issue.
There are, two-out-of-four womenin church are post-abortive
and so I think it's aruffling of feathers,
a great taboo,
a secret,
a darkness that people don'twanna shed on light on,
but we must shed the light on this issue.
- [Charlene] In the meantime,
COGIC hopes other denominationswill join in the fight
to make abortion unthinkable
and unavailable in theblack community and beyond.
Charlene Aaron, CBN News.
(dramatic music)
- [Efrem] Coming up, every morning
in the Virginia Beach area,
he sends fishermen offto sea with a prayer.
We're gonna let you hear why fishermen say
it gives them a sense of hope.
Stay with us.
(thunder rumbles)(suspenseful music)
(uplifting music)
(light clicks)
(wind whooshes)
(upbeat music)
♪ And where there's joy there's action ♪
♪ It's a like a great attraction ♪
♪ That starts a chain reaction ♪
♪ With all the satisfaction ♪
♪ I love the way this joy ♪
♪ Makes me move ♪
♪ I got the ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ I dance around because I'm loyal ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ I move around because I got it ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ Joy to the heart ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ I dance around because I'm loyal ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ I move around because I got it ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ Joy to the heart ♪
♪ Joy ♪
♪ Joy to the heart ♪
♪ Joy ♪
- When I came to Regent University,
it's like the world opened up.
I felt like I needed to advance my career
and go back to school, Regentwas a perfect fit for me.
The Regent professors areworld class, you are equipped.
The focus of the faculty ison each individual student.
Whether it's online or in-person,
you become a part of Regent's family.
You carry with you, not justthe content and the knowledge,
but the confidence to understand
that we can be significant in the world.
- [Announcer] RegentUniversity, follow your path.
(uplifting piano music)
- I am Regent's first ROTC graduate.
(women laughing)
(crowd cheers)
(birds signing)
- [John] Get the top political news
and analysis from Washingtonon "Faith Nation",
tonight at 6:00 Eastern onlyon the CBN News Channel.
- Many fishermen in theVirginia Beach area are familiar
with Captain David Wright,
they've heard his morningprayers over the charter fleets
as they're heading out to sea.
Wendy Griffith caughtup with this area legend
on a pretty choppy day on the water.
(engine hums)
- [Wendy] Each morningfor nearly 30 years,
Captain David Wright ofHigh Hopes Sports Fishing
in Virginia Beach sends local fishermen
off to sea with a prayer.
- Oh great and Mighty God,we thank ya for the day
that you made for us today.
We ask for your blessin' and protection
to be on each and every one of us
out here on the water today.
We ask you to be withus in the name of Jesus,
in his name we pray.
Amen.
I hope you guys all have a blessed day.
- [Fisherman] Thank you,Dave, I really appreciate it.
- [Fisherman] Amen, thank you, David.
- Amen.
- [Wendy] Captain Wrightsays the prayers began here
at Rudee Inlet during aparticularly big tuna season
back in 1991.
- We were actually havin' a discussion
about how good our tuna fishing was
(Wendy laughs)and somewhere along the line,
one of our captains broughtup the idea of saying,
you know, we should work together
but we should have a prayer in the morning
before we start our day.
I said, "Yes, that's a great idea!"
I had no idea it was gonna be me.
- You said, "Lord, here I am."
- I said, "Yeah, hereI am, Lord, send me."
- High Hopes, it's more than just the name
of Captain Wright's boat,
it's the message behindevery prayer that he gives
and the feeling fishermen saythey get when they hear it.
- Honestly, it kinda givesyou like a sense of hope
that somebody's lookin' out for you.
'Cause when you leave the slipand when you leave the inlet,
you're at the mercy ofmother nature and everything
so it's always nice to knowthat somebody's lookin' out
and, you know,
prayin' for everybody.
- [Wendy] 19-year-old Haley Harris is one
of the few female firstmates you'll see around here.
- My dad grew up as amate, where I am now,
and worked his way up tocaptain and I was like,
"Oh, that's pretty cool,that's what I wanna do."
- What's it like working next
to a local legend like Captain Wright?
- It's really awesome.
People come down here lookin' for him
and I'm like, "He's justtwo slips over, go see him,
"he's the best!"
He's got a really big heart
and really cares about your well-being,
always cheers you up,puts a smile on your face.
- [Wendy] Captain Wrightsays out on the water,
fishermen strive to help each other.
Today, we saw that firsthand
as a fellow charter boat lost power.
High Hopes was able to tow the boat,
loaded with fishermen, to safety.
- [David] You're good, man!
I'm gonna getcha outta of the tide line!
- [Wendy] Captain Wright says
whether it's throwing someone a rope,
taking families out fora dream fishing trip,
or throwing up a prayer,giving hope is the mission.
- God told me many yearsago when I started this,
and I didn't know whatto do, to pray, to say,
he said, "Tell them about me."
There's another generation of fishermen
that'll come after me and my hope
and prayer is that this carries on.
- [Wendy] Wendy Griffith, CBN News,
Virginia Beach, Virginia.
- Every day is better whenit begins with prayer.
Time now for your Thursday Thankful
and I pray that you will join me
with this prayer of gratitude.
Father, I may make plans,
but I'm grateful that it isyour plan that always prevails.
With that prayer and that word,
I hope that you will maketoday a thankful Thursday
and then be sure to make the rest
of this week a wonderful one, as well.
That is gonna do it for this first edition
of "CBN Newswatch".
Remember, you can find more on the issues
you care most about,always, at cbnnews.com.
You can also watch CBN News programs
anytime throughout the dayon the CBN News Channel.
We would love to know what you think
about the stories you've seen here today,
you can email us, theaddress is newswatch@cbn.com.
You can also reach outand touch us on Facebook,
Twitter and Instagram.
I certainly hope you'll join us again,
right here, next time.
Make it a thankful Thursday,
we'll see you right backhere same time tomorrow.
Goodbye, everybody and God bless you.
(dramatic news music)
