Former Google engineer Blake Lemoine began talking to LaMDA (Language Model for Dialogue Applications) last fall as part of his job at Google's Responsible AI organization. He had signed up to determine if LaMDA used discriminatory or hate speech.

In talking to the chatbot about religion, Lemoine noted the chatbot talking about its rights and personhood. In another discussion, LaMDA changed Lemoine's mind on Issac Asimov's third law of robotics.

In the most recent Gallup Poll on Values and Belief (May 2022), a mere 20 percent of Americans said they believed in the Bible being the literal Word of God. This number is down from the previous poll of 24 percent in 2017. This polling was first conducted in 1976, and the highest score for belief the Bible was the literal Word of God was 40 percent in 1980 and 1984. Is it possible the belief in the Bible as the literal Word of God may drop to single digits in another 40 years? It sure is possible whenever you reach percentages that are this low.

The recent Supreme Court ruling on June 24 overturning Roe v. Wade is just one example of the Court's support for Christian principles and ethics. This ruling will not stop abortion in America, but it will certainly reduce the number of abortions. Thirteen states plan to outlaw abortion within 30 days with "trigger bans" that were designed to take effect as soon as Roe v. Wade was overturned.

This is not the only Supreme Court decision this term that has provided a pro-Christian theme. On June 27, the Court ruled in favor of a Washington state high school football coach who was suspended for refusing to stop leading Christian prayers with players on the field after games. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote that assistant coach Joe Kennedy's prayers are protected by the Constitution's guarantees of free speech and religious exercise. The school board's discipline was wrong despite their concern of violating the separation of church and state.

Many times scriptures about prayer are used in such a way as to lead people to think all we need to do is have faith and believe, and our prayers will be answered. For example, take a look at this scripture in John 14:13-14: "And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it" (NIV).

Some think this scripture means just praying to Jesus will get you the results you desire. But it is saying much more than that.

On May 14 in Buffalo, New York, an 18-year-old gunman killed ten people at a supermarket. On May 24, another 18-year-old gunman killed 21 people at a school in Uvalde, Texas. There are a number of issues as to why these events occurred, and I'd like to focus on some of these reasons.

To reiterate, I'm just looking at these two incidents and nothing else. Let's start with the age of both of the shooters. Having been an 18-year-old at one time, I can tell you I had a few crazy thoughts in my mind at that age. Luckily for me, I was also focusing in on the Bible in trying to make sense of the world I was becoming aware of. Science makes it clear our brains are not fully developed until we are about twenty-five years of age. Should we let eighteen-year-olds buy guns, or should we raise the minimum age of purchasing a firearm?

In early May, a draft of a Supreme Court opinion was released that stated the Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion would be overturned when the Supreme Court rules on a Mississippi case (Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization) dealing with abortion in June or July. The Mississippi case was looking to ban abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The draft opinion also rejects the Planned Parenthood v. Casey decision in 1992, which reaffirmed the Roe ruling.

One of the many criticisms "the world" has about Christianity is that it keeps women down or does not allow women to reach their full potential. Some of the reasons for this may be due to the fact some Christians and Christian groups emphasize male leadership. The Bible mentions the lead role of a man in marriage. God is referred to as "the Father," and I could go on with other examples.

Despite all this, the Bible makes it clear that God's image is made up of both male and female (Genesis 1:27). Let's not forget this physical life is not what it is all about. God has primary roles for both men and women in this world.

One of the big themes for the Church of God at this time of year is change. God's holy-day season begins in the spring of the year as winter has ended and spring has sprung. This major seasonal transition is connected to the beginning of God's yearly holy days. One of the things the Days of Unleavened Bread bring to mind is the need for change in our lives. Christ's sacrifice for us reminds us of the need to become more like Christ. We can do this by removing sin from our lives.

According to Wikipedia, a genetic chimerism or chimera is a single organism composed of cells with more than one distinct genotype. A genotype is the genetic material of an organism. So, in other words, a genetic chimera is similar to the mythological chimeras, like a griffin, a half-eagle and half-lion-like beast.

Last year scientists successfully grew monkey embryos with human cells. Human stem cells were injected into monkey embryos, and they grew in a petri dish, with three of the embryos surviving for up to 19 days.

How quickly things can change! The recent tension between Ukraine and Russia changed into war and quickly involved the Western powers. Like any conflict, things can get out of hand quickly.

One of the things that may manifest when this conflict simmers is a more united European Union (EU). The most powerful nation in the EU is Germany, and this crisis has probably had the most significant effect on them thus far.

Within a week Germany stopped completion of a gas pipeline with Russia, suspended close banking ties, provided lethal weapons to Ukraine, and promised to increase their defense spending.

One of the most important biblical concepts we can develop is accountability. By accountability, I mean "subject to the obligation to report, explain, or justify something; responsible; answerable." There are so many examples of this in the Bible. Let's take a look at just a few to develop our understanding of this important concept.

Right from the start of the Bible, we see this important principle being played out. Adam and Eve sin, and God holds them accountable. But let us take a closer look at this incident to see a couple of major points we need to make about accountability.

One could easily argue that since the end of World War II the United States has been the most powerful nation on earth. Since that time, our military, economy, and technology have been preeminent compared to all other nations. The argument can be made we are still number one in these categories, but how long will we remain in that position?

One interesting recent development pertains to the development of hypersonic missiles. Believe it or not, the United States (US) has fallen behind both China and Russia in this very important missile technology.

A few weeks back, I wrote a blog on why people fall for cults. We will define a cult as a religion or religious sect generally considered extremist or false, with its followers often living unconventionally under the guidance of an authoritarian or charismatic leader.

I'd like to follow that up with some characteristics of cults. Just because your church might reflect some of these characteristics does not mean you are in a cult. But if these characteristics become the norm or are frequently employed, you may want to take notice.

A new controversial Canadian law went into effect on January 8, which considers Bible teaching on sexuality and gender as a "myth." The passage of Bill C-4 (the "conversion therapy" ban) is raising concern among many Canadian Christians. Conversion therapy, also known as reparative therapy, is a term for approaches aimed at changing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people to a heterosexual orientation or diminishing same-sex behavior and/or attractions.

In a letter published by Liberty Coalition Canada, a group of Evangelical pastors comment:

"This bill's wording is sufficiently broad to allow for the criminal prosecution of Christians who would speak biblical truth into the lives of those in bondage to sexual sins like homosexuality and transgenderism... Even a mother or father who offers their children freedom from sexual sin through repentance and faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 6:9-11) could be threatened with five years in jail."

First of all, what is a cult? A cult is a system of religious veneration and devotion directed toward a particular figure or object. The term has taken on a more negative connotation over the last 50 years. Today many people think of cults as a religion or religious sect generally considered to be extremist or false, with its followers often living in an unconventional manner under the guidance of an authoritarian, charismatic leader. Groups like the Manson Family, the Peoples Temple, the Branch Davidians, and Heaven's Gate would fit into this second definition.

Keeping in mind the negative definition, let's consider the reasons people fall for these extremist groups.

In some of my blog posts, I have argued that things are not always as bad as some try to make it seem. I want to now offer some support for the negative side of things. In November, the United States government announced that over 100,000 Americans died of drug overdoses between April 2020 and April 2021. That is the first time U.S. drug overdose deaths have crossed the 6-figure threshold in any 12 month period.

Partly to blame for this increase is the use of the synthetic opioid fentanyl. Fentanyl is much more powerful than morphine and heroin, which are potent opioids. In fact, over 64,000 of the 100,000 deaths were due to fentanyl. Fentanyl is being added to other drugs like cocaine and counterfeit pills, killing people who ingest it unknowingly.