- This week on Christian World News

from Capitol Hill to thepulpit, Americans are divided.

How can we start healing together?

Plus as the nation battles thedeadly Coronavirus pandemic,

churches are steppingup and getting creative.

How ministries are meetingneeds and changing hearts.

And the pilgrims wereall about more than just

turkey and pumpkin pie.

How these men and women influenced

the destiny of our nation.

Hello, everyone.

Welcome to this week's editionof Christian World News.

I'm George Thomas.

A house divided cannot stand.

That applies not only to our country,

but also to the church.

The turmoil following thepresidential elections

here in America hassparked similar conflicts

in our churches.

So what must we do to come together?

Charlene Aaron has that story.

- A recent national headline

pointed out that many of today's churches

mirror the country's political divide.

Pastors say it's anissue of growing concern

at a time when unity and healing

are needed in Washington and beyond.

Dr. Ed Stetzer of the BillyGraham Center at Wheaton College

maintains when politics causes people

to see one another as enemies,

the church can not afford to follow suit.

- At the end of the day,

the people that I am in the body of Christ

with need one another.

And I think one of thethings that we don't

want is to bite and devour one another

the Scriptures talk about, right?

- Pastor Dan Backens of NewLife Church in Virginia Beach

points out that believers,both Republican and Democrat,

share a faith that encourageslove for one's neighbor.

- In the church in the house of God,

we have a higher ideal,

and that is to say,

we may not agree butwe can love each other.

And both sides of an issue, I think,

should both take steps towards friendship.

- As many take a political hard line,

Backens cautions againstpotentially threatening

the church's witness.

Case in point, Christianauthor Trillia Newbell

posted an online prayer

asking God to watch over president Trump.

When she did the samefor vice president Biden,

it led to this response.

She followed up with this tweet.

"I'm troubled for all mynon-Christian friends on Facebook

who see professed Christian say this stuff

over a politically neutralChristian discipline."

- The zeal has caused aradicalism on both sides.

And when you get radicalized,

it's hard to be reasoned with you.

So I appeal to the churchthat's kind of in the middle

and pastors to speak up

and let's all commit tobeing bridge-builders

and peacemakers.

- His message to believerswho voted in this election.

- I would say to the personthat's really holding out

for Mr. Trump.

I say that's okay, pray and intercede.

If it doesn't happen like King David,

he prayed for a son to live and he didn't,

he didn't get what hewanted. So what did he do?

He got up, he washed himself

he worshiped and he went home,

go on worshiping God and go home.

And the other side, ifBiden is the winner,

don't have triumphalismand point your finger

at the guys that lost.

- Dr. A.R Bernard of thecultural Christian Center

in Brooklyn also looks to scripture.

- That God works everything in accordance

with His purposes nomatter who's in power.

If we believe in the sovereignty of God,

God is sovereign at all time,

whether it's our chosen candidate in power

or someone that we would not choose.

- Faith leaders point tohumility and understanding

as keys to bridging the gap.

- The anger of the world cannot avail

the righteousness of God

and most anger 95% ofanger is unrighteous anger.

That angry spirit

doesn't make consensus,it doesn't make unity.

- Prayer is also vital.

- I think anger is not a call to action.

Anger is a call to prayer becauseprayer is where we elevate

the heart and mind to God.

We allow him to lift usout of the circumstance

and situation and get hislens on the situation,

get his perspective on it.

And it frees us from the anxieties

that are associated with anger.

- Meanwhile,

Stetzer's desire is that thechurch comes together as one,

regardless of whooccupies the white house.

At the end of the day,

there's a bloody crossand an empty tomb, right?

Jesus had been raised fromthe dead and that same Jesus

who had been raised fromthe dead dwells in us.

And if he dwells in us,that brings us together.

- Charlene Aaron, CBN news.

- Some very, veryimportant messages there.

You know, the 2020 holidayseason will be like none other

in many of our lifetimes,

a COVID comeback is putting a damper

on family and church gatherings.

But as CBN's Tara Mergenershows us that doesn't mean

churches and ministriesneed to be on the sidelines

during these unprecedentedtimes, take a look.

- Experience in helpingpeople deal with tragedy

and disaster allows the faithcommunity to gain trust,

reduce fear, and spreadhope where it's needed most.

- And religious gatheringsare emerging as hotspots now.

- As COVID restrictions rampup again across the country.

- We also put out new guidelinesfor places of worship.

- Churches must remain creative.

- How was that for you?

- In the 20 years I've been ministering

so I just had to imaginethey were out there and try

to ignore all the empty seats.

- To ensure meaningfulworship while encouraging hope

and fellowship amid a relentless pandemic.

- In the great solidaritywe too shall rise.

- Still we find our social

and spiritual interactions limited,

not by choice, but in many cases by law.

- Church services haveresumed here in New York city

but with limited capacity.

- Since COVID first hit,we've seen how loneliness,

fear and stress can overwhelm.

- The church is oftentimeswhere people turn first

when they're in a crisisand looking for help.

So that one of the immediatethings that churches can do

would be to provide counseling

or other types of support services.

- It was like, hey, I believethat the Lord is calling us

out of the boat like Peter.

- Ernest Clover of DC's Dream Center says

following that divine directionmeans leaning on faith.

- I don't know where to other side is,

I don't know how bad this storm will get.

Lord we are grateful thatwe have this opportunity

to come here today.

- With the blessing of his teamClover and the Dream Center

have been supporting the community.

- Seven days a week, givingout non essential items

has been a drastic change.

- How many?

- I guess one cold one hot.

- Temporarily scrappingother community programs

to focus on food.

- And I get to work thereon Saturdays, in open market

when they distribute produce to everyone.

- And other suppliesto help those in need.

- I help prepare the mealsthat go out every day,

since March 16th,

- It fills the gaps.

I would say, due to the income

that comes in for me right now,

it's not a whole lot,but it does what it does.

- We've had over 50,000meals go out of that window

and that little white house

we've had over a hundredthousand hygiene items

and non-perishable food itemsgo out of this dream center

it's something I wouldn'teven have the parameter

to pray for, which was fresh produce.

- And much like churchesand ministries elsewhere.

- The structures of society

have been so thoroughlyrocked to their foundations.

- People are coming to the center

with a hunger for more than food.

- Even when we're not givingup items they just wanna talk.

- A basic need that for someis no longer easily met,

which health experts saycan have grave consequences.

As the government and healthcaresystem deal with areas

like testing, masks and social distancing.

Dr. Steven Gasiewicz saysministries play an essential role

addressing the unprecedentedsocial isolation felt

by so many.

- Being able to offer people you know,

the hope that we have in Jesus Christ

and being able to, you know,to offer people, you know,

opportunities for connecting.

We as a church are uniquely positioned

to able to care for them and to offer

encouragement and hope.

- Experts say outreachduring this holiday season

could be more importantthan ever even before COVID.

This time of year can belonely and even depressing

for some of your family and friends.

In Washington. I'm Tara Mergener CBN news.

- Thank you Tara.

Up next.

Did you know that 10% ofAmericans are descendants

from the Mayflower?

Still those oddly settlersmade a much bigger contribution

to America.

That story in a moment stay with us.

- Daddy.

- Yeah buddy.

- How many nickels are in a dollar?

- There are 20 nickels in a dollar.

- How do birds fly?

- Does (indistinct) make my bone stronger?

- Yeah, yeah.

- Daddy when we die will we go to heaven?

- [Woman] Do you have the answerto life's biggest question?

Call the 700 club, we'llhelp you find answers

to the important questionslife brings your way.

- [Man] Watch breaking news.

In-depth exclusive stories and programs

from health to entertainmentyou won't find anywhere else.

The CBN news channel, aperspective you can trust.

Enjoy credible news reportingfrom around the world.

Discover inspiring programsand stories of hope

all in one place from aChristian perspective.

The CBN news channel arespective you can trust.

To watch the CBN news channel,

download the app orvisit CBNNewsChannel.com.

- Hello, I'm Dr. David Perlmutter

board-certified neurologist and number one

New York times best-selling author.

Wouldn't it be great to boost your energy,

eliminate brain fog andeven reverse brain disease

while you can.

And I'm gonna show you how

along with some of theworld's most well-respected

brain experts in thisDVD, protect your brain.

- [Man] Get Protect your Brain a free DVD

only from the ChristianBroadcasting Network,

featuring experts on thecutting edge of neuroscience

and brain health.

- No matter how many timesyou've failed in the past,

you really can do this.

- [Man] In Protect your Brain

you'll discover simplestrategies to keep your brain

young and healthy, improve your memory,

discover the gut brainconnection in Protect your Brain.

Get your free copy at cbn.comor call 1-800-700-7000.

- If you wanna improvethe quality of your life,

get the DVD, Protect yourBrain and get it today.

- Welcome back to Christian World News.

Pilgrims are synonymous with Thanksgiving.

You cannot have or thinkof one without the other,

but these brave men and womendeserve to be remembered

for much more.

Their covenant and form of self rule

shaped America's constitutionand the entire government.

And as Paul reports,

they believe religious freedom and liberty

were worth dying for.

- 2020 is the 400th anniversaryof the founding of Plymouth.

I think that's a huge milestone

it's some great milestonein human history.

- [Man] Christian historian,Jerry Newcombe's documentary

"The Pilgrims" looks athow those 51 pilgrims

not only survived theirfirst Massachusetts winter,

but went on to influencetheir future nation.

- This small small groupcast a very large shadow.

- From the documentary.

- Did you know that today10% of the population

of the United States areMayflower descendants?

30 million people from 51.

- The pilgrims founded Americafor all intents and purposes.

- [Man] In those days,England demanded all citizens

belong to the church of England

and conform to its beliefsor face harsh punishment.

- You will worship asthey say you worship.

And so to do this illegallymeant you could be arrested.

- Or even put to death.

So the pilgrims fled.

- They just wanted to worship Jesus

in the purity of the gospel and the King

wouldn't let them do that.

He was ruling it over their conscience,

and that's why they fled.

- [Man] They come tobelieve in radical ideas

they found in the Bible likethey had rights given by God

and that He wanted them to be free

to govern themselves from within.

- The Mayflower was a cargo ship,

but the most precious cargo

that was carried across the Atlantic,

were the ideas in thehearts of the pilgrims

that were drawn from the Bible.

- [Man] And after unexpectedwinds blew them off course

away from any governing authority,

they made a covenant between God and man

for a new form of government.

- The pilgrims gave usthe Mayflower Compact,

which was an agreement forself-government under God,

which was really thefirst step in the creation

ultimately of thedeclaration of independence

and of the US constitution.

- It was a polarity changein world government.

Instead of top down rule by these Kings,

they keep getting more andmore powerful, it's bottom up.

It's the people themselvesdeciding what laws

are gonna pass andagreeing to submit to 'em.

- It made freedom thecornerstone of America

as shown by the words on the Liberty Bell.

- It says proclaim libertythroughout the land

and to all the inhabitants thereof.

- [Man] Some students arewrongly taught the pilgrim

stole from the Indiansand treated them horribly.

The record shows the opposite was true.

- The pilgrims were kind to the Indians.

They showed them love.

They showed them compassion.

They showed them the godly way to live.

- They did take some buriedcorn in cold new England,

but only because theywere literally starving.

- And they even said,

when they later came into contactwith the native Americans,

they said, find out whose cornthat is so we may repay them.

They didn't steal land in Plymouth.

It had been abandoned by the Indians.

There was a plague that occurred

three years before thevoyage of the Mayflower.

And it wiped out about 95% of the Indians

in that particular region.

- They wouldn't come backon it because of the plague.

The pilgrims took land nobody wanted,

- And they showed the Indiansthey treat them as equals.

- Then there was even a situation

where a pilgrim killed an Indian.

The pilgrim was put on trial.

- The Indians expected.

- A mock trial, go through the motions,

get it over with, let them go.

After all, all I did was kill an Indian.

- And that's not what happened.

They found the pilgrim guiltyand he was hanged for murder.

- Everybody was equal under the law.

Now the Indians could trust the pilgrims.

- [Man] The Pilgrimshowed future Americans

that God blessed cause withsomething worth suffering for,

even dying for.

The Mayflower's captainJones offered to rescue them

from the first deadly winter they faced.

- Half the mammoth died,

this is not what theysigned up for at all.

And Jones says anybodywho wants to come back

to England with me, I will take them.

Now one of them went.

- [Man] The Pilgrim's madeliving by the Bible and loving it

a very American habit.

- And that textbook was the Bible.

- The Bible was the key bookfor the first 200 years.

- [Man] The foundingfathers brought America

and enlightened revolution.

- And above all, they quoted the Bible

four times more than theyquoted any human author.

- [Man] It gave them the goahead to throw off Britain's

ungodly tyranny.

- They recognize thatthere is a higher law,

the law of God,

and that God resides overthe affairs of nations.

- You are to obey the lawful authorities,

but if the lawful authoritiestake too much authority

unto themselves andthey violate God's laws,

then obedience to God meansresistance to tyrants.

- So the pilgrims who'd fledEngland for their freedom,

laid the foundations that shaped America

and eventually its freedom.

Paul Strand, CBN news, Washington.

- Thank you (indistinct).

Coming up.

The pandemic has done nothing

to stop a Christianpersecution across the globe.

In fact, it's getting worse.

That story in a moment.

- Are you suffering fromfeeling tired or worn out

during the day?

Can you not turn off your brain at night?

You are not alone.

Hi, I'm Br. MichaelBreus, the sleep doctor

and I've partnered with theChristian Broadcasting Network

and we're gonna bring yousome unbelievable information

that you can use tonight toget a better night's rest.

- [Woman] Wake up to your best life.

Call +1 800-700-7000 or go tocbn.com to get your free copy

of "Protect your Sleep" today.

- [Man] Nutrition,exercise, essential oils,

weight loss and more.

It's Healthy Living with Lori Johnson.

- Talk about what's in this.

- Join CBN health reporter, Lori Johnson,

to get the latest information

from today's top health experts.

- This is fantastic.

- [Man] Find out what you need to know

to live a healthier life.

Watch Healthy LivingTuesday night at 9:30.

- Hi Superbook fans, here'ssomething else you'll love.

It's new Superbook Bible pack .

It's packed with games,activities and Superbook episodes

that you can watch for free.

There's trivia, a fun daily devotional,

and answers to your Bible questions.

Plus an easy to understand Bible,

the whole family will enjoy.

You can even create yourown Superbook character.

(indistinct)

Sorry, pardon me.

Sorry, excuse me.

- Are you getting this?

- Earn super points towin daily prizes too

and so much more!

Time to get back to my adventures.

See you soon.

It's the new Superbook Bible App.

Free download on iTunes,Google play and Amazon.

- Welcome back to Christian World News.

It's a freedom many peoplehere in the United States

take for granted.

The freedom to worship,but in Africa to Asia,

to the middle East,

millions of people facehostility for their faith.

In fact, new figures fromthe Pew Research Center

show restrictions areat their highest levels.

I recently spoke withan expert who monitors

religious intolerance.

Here to discuss the worsening conditions

for religious freedom aroundthe world is Elizabeth Cassidy,

director of research and policy

with the United States Commission

on international religious freedom.

Elizabeth, great to haveyou on the broadcast.

The Pew Research Center has been tracking

restrictions on freedom ofreligion in 198 countries

since 2007.

According to them,

religious persecution isworsening worldwide, right?

- Pew did just put outtheir latest report.

Yes, that's correct.

They do show that the trendof religious restrictions,

which is not necessarilyreligious freedom violations

have been consistently worsening.

Authoritarian states in ourreviewing of the evidence

on this that you serve as well.

We have many authoritarianstates that we report on

that severely violate religious freedom.

They tend to want to control every aspect

of their citizens lives,

including any religiousbeliefs or practices.

This year was the firsttime that Pew looked at

government type andcompared it to their data

and you're absolutely correct.

They did find that there was association

between authoritarianregimes and high levels

of government restrictions on religion.

- Are there other areas of the world

that are worse than othersfor people of faith?

- Pew definitely showsthat the highest government

restrictions levels arein the middle East region

and the Asia Pacific region.

And that's been pretty consistent

throughout their reporting.

Our lens is a little bit different

because we're reporting onreligious freedom violations,

which means violations within the meaning

of the international standards on freedom

of religion or belief,as well as the US law,

the International ReligiousFreedom Act that we work under.

Not every restriction isnecessarily a violation,

but we also do see anumber of countries in both

the MENA and Asia Pacific regions,

where we have serious concerns.

- Why are people are faithElizabeth considered a threat

to governments around the world?

- Well, for authoritariangovernments there, as I said,

there's a need tocontrol a want to control

anything outside the government's control

is viewed as threatening

religion in particularbecause it is a source of

sort of belonging and inspiration

for people out outside of the state.

I should say too, though,that these reports

Pew's reports and our reports also cover

people who are notreligious because the right

to religious freedom is a right to believe

in the religion of your choice

or not to believe in any religion at all.

And we do see in anumber of these countries

where there are seriousand severe violations

against people who don'twant to follow any faith

in particular in countrieswhere they enforce

an official or majorityfaith on everybody.

Those who don't follow that faith,

whether they want tofollow a different faith

or whether they want to be non-religious

often are sufferingreligious freedom violation.

- Research continuesto show that Christians

are the most persecuted religiousgroup in the world, right?

- What the Pew study continues to show

is that there are reports ofharassment against Christians

in more countries than any other group.

Muslims have reports in the second highest

number of countries, bothvery, very similar numbers

that's also been consistent.

I think it shows how sortof widespread harassment

on religious grounds can be.

I think a very striking figureis that the group that is

harassed in the thirdhighest number of countries

is the Jewish community,

which is quite striking given how small

the Jewish community is interms of global population.

- Elizabeth thank you somuch for coming on the show.

- Thank you very much forhaving me today George.

- You're welcome.

- [Man] Come home to thesounds of Southern Gospel

from CBN radio.

You'll enjoy a richSouthern blend of bluegrass,

classic gospel andSouthern gospel favorites.

Like the Gaithers, The Crabb Family

and bluegrass sounds like Mountain Faith.

So make yourself at homewith the all-new CBN

Southern Gospel nowavailable at CBNradio.com.

- It's about the competition.

- I kind of put that pressure on myself

and I think people had expectations.

- [Man] It's about overcoming.

- We use this phrase allthe time, keep chopping,

keep practicing hard.

- [Man] It's about going the distance.

- And I think as a fatherit's my job, you know,

just be the best husbandand father I can be.

- [Man] Watch Going theDistance with Shawn Brown

Saturday night at 7:30on the CBN news channel.

- [Man 2] Life, it'smeant to be lived fully.

Jesus said, "I came to give you life."

Life to the fullest, life in your family,

life in your finances,

life in your body, mind and spirit

life in your every day

at CBN.com we're takingwhat Jesus said seriously.

We're here to help you discover life.

Life, live it fully.

CBN.com.

- Welcome back to the broadcast.

One of Jerusalem's most iconicsites is The Tower of David

at the entrance of the Old City.

Now this ancient citadel isgetting its first major overall

in hundreds of years. That's right.

It's so old.

Chris Mitchell reports from Jerusalem.

- [Chris] It's seen Musliminvaders, Roman concourse,

and the crusaders.

The Tower of DavidMuseum is one of Israel's

historic and archeological treasures.

Now it's one of the largestconservation projects here.

- This is a rare and uniqueopportunity for archeologists

because we have a lot ofquestions about the citadel,

archeological questions,historical questions.

Not every day you getthe chance to explore

a symbol in Jerusalem.

- [Chris] Jerusalem's chief archeologist

Amit Re'em oversees this massive project.

- Suddenly the stones starts to speak

And we, the archeologists see things.

We document everything, we're excavating.

We discover hiddenpassages, ancient walls,

ancient fortifications.

It's become alive.

- It's huge project to renew this museum

for the future visitors.

Of course we're talkingabout seven new galleries,

which tell the story of Jerusalem,

but it's more than, it'sall what you see around

conservation of theremains, the ancient walls,

the infrastructure of the museum.

- [Chris] It's a tiny piece of Jerusalem.

- You can see the layersupon layers upon layers

and understand the beauty of the evidence,

the archeology and the history together.

The combination is really unique.

- Everyone was here.

Everyone wanted to seize the citadel

to hold the citadel.

If you want to understand,if you want to learn

about the history of Jerusalem

so this is the place startingfrom the first temple period

and ending in modern times.

- The renewal project isuncovering hidden treasures

and secrets of ancient Jerusalem.

For example, this passagewaymay have been used by crusaders

to escape the citadel.

- Every time I'm here I just imagine

that in the time of trouble,

all the knights all the Crusader knights

all the Muslim knights

running away in this dark tunnel

emerging outside the city.

- The renewals projectgoal is to bring the story

of Jerusalem to life.

- It's the heart of Jerusalem

and this place represents everything

all the story of Jerusalem.

It's a very unique, it'sa symbol of Jerusalem

for many generations.

- The visitor will havehealed the ultimate experience

before they enter to visit Jerusalem.

You must visit here.

- Chris Mitchell reportingfor us from a Jerusalem.

Folks that is it for this week's edition

of Christian World News.

I hope you enjoy the rest of your week

and a great weekend ahead.

Until next time, goodbye and God bless.