Social media pounces on Rick Warren tweet about Jesus: 'You'll find him in the middle'
Rick Warren faced a raft of backlash on X in response to a post in which he referred to the two thieves who were crucified on either side of Jesus, and declared, "If you're looking for the #realJesus, not a caricature disfigured by partisan motivations, you'll find him in the middle, not on either side."
Warren, the author of the popular book "The Purpose Driven Life," founded Saddleback Church with his wife Kay in 1980, according to pastorrick.com.
His Feb. 11 post has earned thousands of replies and more than 3 million views.
Seth Dillon, the CEO of the satire site the Babylon Bee, sarcastically quipped, "Yeah, because if there's one thing Jesus was known for, it was his desire to meet in the middle and compromise on the issues that matter most."
"This is possibly the worst Biblical interpretation I've ever seen, and that's really saying something," conservative commentator Allie Beth Stuckey declared. "Jesus is not 'in the middle' on the murder of children, gender deception, the definition of marriage, or anything else, for that matter. In fact, I seem to remember Him having a particular disdain for the lukewarm."
"What happens when the authorial intent of a biblical text is discarded? The text becomes a wax nose, bent according to our own intent. Case in point," Brad Klassen, a professor at The Master's Seminary, wrote regarding Warren's post.
David Limbaugh, the brother of the late conservative radio icon Rush Limbaugh, tweeted, "Meaningless mush," adding, "with all due respect."
In his most recent tweet prior to the one that came under so much scrutiny, Warren had written, "Jesus: "Whoever #serves me must #FOLLOW me." Jn 12:26," adding, "Seems obvious, right? But while serving Jesus in ministry, we can stop #following Him! Instead, we start following politicians, podcasters, or peers-and our vision, values & priorities come from social media, not Jesus. #bad"
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Newsweek
3 days ago
- Newsweek
Over 10K Sign Christian Petition Rebuking 'Immoral and Cruel' Trump Budget
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"If it passes, millions of Americans will suffer as a result." Why It Matters While the budget proposal has received its fair share of criticism from Democrats and some Republicans over its impact on social safety net programs and the federal government's deficit, Christians have largely supported Trump during the presidential election. According to the Associated Press, roughly eight in 10 white evangelicals supported him in 2020 and 2024. President Donald Trump delivers remarks before signing a series of bills related to California's vehicle emissions standards during an event in the East Room of the White House on June 12 in Washington, D.C. President Donald Trump delivers remarks before signing a series of bills related to California's vehicle emissions standards during an event in the East Room of the White House on June 12 in Washington, To Know In its petition, Faithful America calls out the Trump-backed House budget proposal: "It is immoral and cruel to deprive people of health care, access to affordable food, and educational opportunities to satisfy a few individuals who have more money than they could spend in a lifetime. Tens of millions of Americans will suffer if this budget advances. This budget is a direct violation of Jesus' teachings to love and care for the poor." Trump's "big beautiful bill" includes permanence for the individual income and estate tax cuts enacted in his first term. It also features new exemptions for tipped income, overtime pay and interest on certain auto loans, designed to target working-class voters. The bill would increase the standard deduction and includes a temporary $500 boost to the child tax credit for tax years 2025 through 2028. But the spending plan also outlines nearly $700 billion in cuts to Medicaid, including new eligibility requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents—a requirement for 80 hours per month of work, education or service. Recipients would also face biannual eligibility verification. Democrats have criticized the proposal, warning of possible increases in premiums and reductions in health care and food assistance for millions. "This budget is the antithesis of Jesus' teachings. It harms millions of Americans while benefiting only the wealthiest in our country," the Rev. Dr. Shannon Fleck, executive director of Faithful America, told Newsweek. "Trump and his followers' rhetoric is not in alignment with the majority of Americans, and it's incumbent on all American Christians who love our neighbors and want a nation made of love and opportunity for all to speak out loudly in opposition to the damaging and harmful proposal." The Congressional Budget Office estimated that the bill would increase the U.S. federal debt by $2.4 trillion from 2025 to 2034, while reducing taxes by $3.75 trillion over the same period. The analysis was released as the bill moved from the House to the Senate for further debate. While some Republicans have voiced concern over debt implications, Trump's allies have argued that the official estimates do not fully account for economic growth they claim will result from the tax cuts. The House of Representatives narrowly passed the bill of more than 1,000 pages by a vote of 215–214, following prolonged negotiations and deep divisions within Republican ranks. All House Democrats and two Republican representatives voted against it. "As Christians, we know that budgets are moral documents," Faithful America wrote on its website. "And the budget reconciliation bill currently making its way through Congress says dire things about what the Trump regime values -- and who it is willing to leave behind." In March, the group also launched a petition against Trump's efforts to dismantle the Department of Education, saying the action corrupted the Christian faith. "It's clear Christian nationalists want to take full advantage of [Trump's efforts]. But forcing Christianity on others doesn't spread our faith, it corrupts it," the prior petition said. Still, three months into Trump's second term, white evangelical protestants were some of his staunchest supporters, according to Pew Research Center think tank, which suggested 72 percent approved of Trump's handling of the presidency. What People Are Saying Fleck also told Newsweek: "There is nothing beautiful about Trump's budget proposal. It's really a big betrayal and yet another example of the Project 2025 agenda: cutting funding that aids vulnerable communities and pitting them against one another while using that money to provide tax cuts for Trump and his billionaire friends to line their own pockets." Alex Beene, financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek: "One subject continuously discussed in the proposed budget is cuts to important programs that provided services to tens of millions of Americans, many of which voted for the current administration. New requirements could have a dramatic effect on the number of those who qualify, and the loss of healthcare coverage could be devastating, particularly to states which lean heavily on the federal funding these programs provide." What Happens Next The bill is now under debate in the Senate, where Republicans hold a slim majority. Several in the GOP have signaled opposition or uncertainty, citing provisions related to the debt ceiling and deficit spending. Modifications are expected before any final vote. "It's no surprise some religious groups are making moves to attempt to stop the bill's progression and get Congress to reassess some of the proposed cuts," Beene said.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Donald Trump Sounds Like a Democrat From the 1980s
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Justin Amash, the former Republican congressman from Michigan, is one of the few politicians who lives up to his own billing ("a principled, consistent constitutional conservative dedicated to individual liberty, economic freedom and the Rule of Law"). He threw shade on the Trump/Warren kumbaya session: "Donald Trump is, at his core, a big-government politician with misguided views on economics and the federal budget. He's a more socially conservative Elizabeth Warren, which is to say he's a 1980s Democrat." Bingo. Having grown up as a Democrat in Pennsylvania in the 1970s—the only Republicans I knew were of the Rockefeller variety and wore bowties—I was greatly influenced by the rise of Reagan and eagerly switched parties after the 1980 election. I remember the era's politics clearly, as I was studying political science at George Washington University. 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He added: "The Democrat Trump sounds like is Dick Gephardt," who "in the 1980s and 1990s…was the face of center-left trade Luddism, the union goons' answer to Ross Perot." Luddism refers to the Luddites, those 19th-century British textile workers who fought against technological advancements—mechanized looms—to protect their antiquated jobs. Although an aside and the subject for another day, 1980s Democrats also were oddly unconcerned about the expanding, freedom-crushing Soviet Empire. They couldn't bring themselves to unequivocally condemn communist totalitarianism, preferring instead to seek out toothless negotiations, with some Democrats oddly sympathetic to dictators such as Cuba's Fidel Castro and Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega. Yes, I'm referring to Trump's awkward praise for modern despots, and his amoral approach toward Vladimir Putin and his Ukraine invasion. Remember that democratic-socialist U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders—another progressive with whom Trump occasionally makes economic common cause—took his honeymoon in the USSR. Gephardt was fairly hard-edged in his approach to immigration, at least by Democratic standards. But the alignment between MAGA and progressivism goes much deeper than agreement on particular pro-union, anti-trade, big-spending policies. The Washington Post's conservative columnist George Will—who I heard speak during the Reagan era at a conference in Washington, D.C.—recently listed the "nine core components of progressivism" and concluded that "Trump nails every one." 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If you support it, fine, but please stop accusing its foes of being RINOs (Republicans In Name Only). This column was first published in The Orange County Register. The post Donald Trump Sounds Like a Democrat From the 1980s appeared first on
Newsweek
3 days ago
- Newsweek
Freed January 6 Prisoner Launches Bid for Congress
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. For Jake Lang, a 29-year-old Donald Trump supporter who spent four years in prison for his alleged involvement in the January 6, 2021, Capitol Hill riot, though he was never convicted of any offenses, January 20, 2025, was "like a Biblical miracle." Sitting in his prison cell, Lang heard Trump had pardoned around 1,500 people convicted over their involvement in the 2021 storming of Congress, with charges dropped against those, like him, still battling through the courts. Speaking to Newsweek, Lang said it was "like the Red Sea was parted," adding: "A guarantee that God had given me years ago that he would save me, that he would not forsake me, came true in that moment." When the pardon was issued, Lang was facing a number of serious charges, including "assaulting, resisting, or impeding" law enforcement and civil disorder, with prosecutors alleging he struck police officers with an aluminum baseball bat and kicked one who fell on the ground. Lang has consistently denied any wrongdoing and insists he acted in self-defense after violence was initiated by the police. Lang is currently running for Congress, hoping to take the Florida Senate seat vacated by Marco Rubio when he was appointed as Secretary of State by Trump and currently occupied by Republican Senator Ashlee Moody on an interim basis. A special election for the seat is scheduled for November 2026 and Lang is hoping to beat Moody in a primary contest to become the official Republican candidate. January 6, 2021 Lang, an e-commerce entrepreneur originally from New York State, was one of tens of thousands of Trump supporters who gathered in Washington, D.C., on January 6, 2021, to protest what the then-president claimed was the "rigged" 2020 presidential election. The day held great significance as Congress was expected to certify the election result, rebuking Trump's allegations of systematic fraud, though some Republicans refused to do so. Like Trump, Lang remains convinced the 2020 presidential election was rigged in favor of Joe Biden, though the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency insisted it had been "the most secure" election in American history. A plethora of legal challenges issued by Trump's team failed to get the election result overturned either nationally or in any single state. The January 6, 2021, demonstration turned violent, with hundreds of Trump supporters storming Congress in a bid to block the election result's certification, sparking chaos in which one demonstrator was shot dead by police whilst dozens of officers were injured. Jake Lang is running for Marco Rubio's old Florida Senate seat following his release from prison. Jake Lang is running for Marco Rubio's old Florida Senate seat following his release from prison. Blessed News According to prosecutors, Lang, wearing a gas mask and wielding a baseball bat, struck officers whilst shouting taunts such as "This is our house, we paid for this f****** building." When interviewed by Newsweek, Lang didn't deny handling a baseball bat and wearing a mask but insisted he didn't take them to the demonstration, adding: "I presume whoever brought that was probably worried about an Antifa gang jumping them." He also said he only acted in self-defense. The Congressional hopeful blamed law enforcement for the violence, commenting: "During the course of the police brutality, it escalated to such a crazy nature, people were literally dying, and in order to stop the loss of human life, me and a group of men literally had to put ourselves between the unarmed protesters and this thuggish police group that killed people." This version of events is contradicted by a 40-minute documentary released by the New York Times and largely based on raw footage, which showed demonstrators approaching a police perimeter outside Congress and attempting to overpower them at what it said was the start of the violence. Lang told Newsweek that at times, police were "shooting things over the crowd," which were "landing in the middle of thousands of people," causing them to surge forward towards the police, though video shared on social media appears to show the police being engaged before any tear gas or pepper spray was deployed. According to Lang, during the ruckus, he attempted to rescue Rosanne Boyland, a Trump supporter who died outside Congress, from "the bottom of the dogpile as she was crushed to death" with his arms. Federal Prison Following the January 6 riot, Lang was arrested and spent four years in federal prison as his legal team successfully battled to push his trial back, in part because of a Supreme Court case he was involved in against the prosecutor's use of Obstructing an Official Proceeding charges which carried a maximum sentence of 20 years. Lang said he was moved between different facilities repeatedly after he continued political campaigning in prison, which, together with coronavirus lockdowns, resulted in him spending hundreds of days in solitary confinement. He said: "They don't want the interviews happening so they'll throw you in solitary and then what we do the second I get in the solitary is we have a call to action go out on like Gateway of people call and inundate the jail and they realize I'm too much of a headache, let's just ship him down the road, tell the U.S. Marshals to come pick me up and they're bring me to Virginia or Pennsylvania or New York, God knows where else, all the way out to Oklahoma one time." According to Lang, Trump was popular in federal prison, in part because he signed the 2018 First Step Act, which introduced additional programs and training for prison officers in a bid to reduce recidivism, but also "because Trump has a swagger that they really like." By contrast, he said: "I only met one Joe Biden supporter the entire time I was in prison." Trump supporters clashing with police and security forces as people try to storm the US Capitol on January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC. Trump supporters clashing with police and security forces as people try to storm the US Capitol on January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC. Brent Stirton/GETTY During Lang's stint in prison, he remained active with both religion and politics, spending time as an unofficial pastor "doing Bible studies" and "baptizing people." He said there was "a big black market in prison" with "the prison smuggling in whatever, and so if I could get my hand on a phone, that's a great weapon on information warfare to use." Lang claimed that in one prison, somebody even told him, "They could get me a cat." Newsweek contacted the Department of Justice for comment on Thursday via online inquiry form. January 6 Love Story During his time in prison, Lang first came across his now fiancé Rachel, another January 6 defendant who was convicted before being released on probation. He said: "It's a J6 love story, the greatest love story every written in the January 6 world. So Rachel was a Jan 6er and I was on a Twitter space I was doing from my prison cell and she was listening. This is one of the times, very rare, where I had a cell Brooklyn Federal Prison, Brooklyn, New York. "We met basically through one of my media interviews...I reached out and we started talking, she started becoming one of the people I trusted and like a right hand of mine while I'm in an amazing woman and I couldn't help but love her and ask her to marry." Run for Congress Following Trump's pardon, Lang quickly re-engaged with politics, announcing his Florida Senate bid in March 2025 after Rubio joined Trump's cabinet. Lang painted Senator Moody, Rubio's replacement, as an establishment figure, commenting: "Ashley's an interesting character because she feigns a lot of Trump's policy positions, but at the end of the day, she is a DeSantis loyalist, and on top of that, she has this extremely established background. She's like the polar opposite of an outsider candidate, just like Donald Trump vs Ron DeSantis." Whilst not a Florida native, Lang said he has deep ties to the state, as "both my grandparents growing up lived in Florida, my mom lives in Florida, and I've lived in Florida myself for different spans." Lang added: "Beyond my roots here Florida is ready, Florida is the most MAGA state in the country, the area around Mar-a-Lago in the West Palm beach where I live is like the conservative Hollywood." If elected, Lang is pledging to help advance Trump's "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) agenda. He said: "For me, my calling for running for United States Senate was more I'm going to continue to bear the touch with Donald Trump to mark America's golden age... "The old RINO Republican Party, that Trump obliterated when he came old guard, the uniparty, RINOs, establishment hacks whatever you want to call them, they're no longer in control, and with candidates like myself and other Jan Sixers running were seeing this crazy shift where it's not just Trump, it's more MAGA, its more patriots, that are going to be leading the next generation." While Trump hasn't commented on Lang's campaign, the former January 6 arrestee said he was in touch with the president's team, commenting: "We have a lot of great connections into Team that have been his former attorneys, advisors, now people who are working inside his department of more just giving them information then they do with it what they want." Compensation Asked if he thinks those imprisoned over the January 6 riot should receive compensation, Lang replied: "Of course, 100 percent. I mean, first of all, you have people that lost their entire livelihoods, and there are real monetary damages that happened. People's careers, homes, cars, marriages – all of them dissolved... "I believe that the Jan 6ers are going to come out of this not even just financially stronger but also in a position to start to make real change. People are going to see us as the vindicated patriots that stood up for the stolen election."
