The Daily World News Report of the 22nd of February 2020

Coronavirus

Today is the second day of new cases over 400 as South Korea counts 229. 200 of the newly infected were related to the Daegu church super-spreader at the Shincheonji church of Jesus.[1] One of the reported cases was an employee of Samsung at a small factory in the city of Gumi near the super-spreader event. They closed the facility down immediately at the discovery, placing his close colleagues on self-quarantine.[2]

Asia

Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi, a well-known filmmaker, in Myanmar was sentence to one year in August last year for criticizing the military on Facebook, and he was released seven months later after possible justice reform as he says that “The prison law in Myanmar is out of date and needs to be replaced.”[3]

Africa

The ruling elite of Algeria have been facing a year of pressure to step down as the demonstrators “mark the first anniversary of a protest movement.”[4] In April 2019 President Abdelaziz Bouteflika resigned after ruling for five four year terms, totaling twenty years, due to the movement.[5]

Middle East

Around 3000 troops of the United States army are returning home from “Iran and its proxies in the region” including Iraq and Kuwait. They are members of the “rapid-respond force”, who were called in “the most significant no-notice deployment of military forces in more than 30 year” according to the 82nd Airborne Division Facebook page.[6] These troops were sent to help relieve tension as a result of the Iran backed attack at the US embassy on December 31, 2019.[7]

Although the Taliban and the United State have confirmed to sign an agreement on February 29, 2020 in Afghanistan, the Taliban attacked the Afghan forces in the Balkh province on the first day of their ‘week-long “reduction in violence”. “The incidents did not spark immediate alarm on either side” according to Reuters.[8] “The violence reduction period” still seems to be possible to be successful.

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[1] Ly, Mimi Nguyen. “South Korea Sees Record Jump in Virus Cases to 433.” The Epoch Times, 22 Feb. 2020, www.theepochtimes.com/south-korea-sees-record-jump-in-virus-cases-to-433_3246680.html.

[2] “Samsung Electronics Confirms Coronavirus Case at Phone Factory Complex in South Korea.” Reuters, 22 Feb. 2020, www.reuters.com/article/us-china-health-southkorea-samsung-elec-idUSKCN20G0CG.

[3] Lwin, Khin Moh Moh, and Mratt Kyaw Thu. “Filmmaker Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi Freed from Prison .” Myanmar Now, 21 Feb. 2020, myanmar-now.org/en/news/filmmaker-min-htin-ko-ko-gyi-freed-from-prison.

[4] “Algerians Mark First Anniversary of Anti-Regime Protests.” PressTV, 21 Feb. 2020, www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/02/21/619198/Algeria-protests-first-anniversary-Bouteflika.

[5] “Abdelaziz Bouteflika: Algerian Leader Resigns amid Protests.” BBC News, BBC, 3 Apr. 2019, www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-47795108.

[6] Ly, Mimi Nguyen. “800 US Soldiers Return Home from Middle East.” The Epoch Times, 20 Feb. 2020, www.theepochtimes.com/800-us-soldiers-return-home-from-middle-east_3245505.html.

[7] Stieber, Zachary. “Iran-Backed Groups Attack US Embassy in Iraq.” The Epoch Times, 31 Dec. 2019, www.theepochtimes.com/us-embassy-evacuated-after-iranian-backed-protesters-breach-compound_3189675.html.

[8] Sediqi, Abdul Qadir, and Orooj Hakimi. “Taliban, Afghan Forces Clash on First Day of Violence Reduction Period.” Reuters, 22 Feb. 2020, www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-afghanistan-talks-idUSKCN20G0KT.

"Manifesting himself unto all nations"

Today in the Maxwell Institute Study Edition of the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, I read the reformatted title page. This title page was written by Moroni. The only difference between the text of the study edition and the standard edition of the Book of Mormon is that parenthesis are added around the statement concerning the “abridgment taken from the Book of Ether”. These parenthesis were added to emphasize the editor’s belief that the following phrase applies to the entire book; not only Moroni’s abridgment:

“Which is to show unto the remnant of the house of Israel what great things the Lord hath done for their fathers; and that they may know the covenants of the Lord, that they are not cast off forever—And also to the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations”

The current scripture set that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is commonly known as the “quad”, including the Old Testament, New Testament, Another Testament, and the Doctrine and Covenants. Three of the four parts of the quad was written by the House of Israel (I think that this may be due to the Abrahamic covenant.); however, Jesus is the Christ, and he manifests himself unto all nations.

I have visited China and have friends with ties to the country, and they have seen evidences that Jesus Christ has visited the people of China. We mainly have the records of the House of Israel. All things will be revealed in the millennium. 

Jesus Christ is the savior of the whole Earth. He has suffered for the sins of all mankind that he may forgive them of their sins. Jesus Christ also resurrected, having power over death. This enables all mankind’s resurrection.

I will conclude by quoting the last words that Moroni wrote on his title page of the Book of Mormon. “And now, if there are faults they are the mistakes of men; wherefore, condemn not the things of God, that ye may be found spotless at the judgment-seat of Christ.” I love this quote because it testifies of Christ’s role that he is a merciful judge. Pondering this, I have a precept to write about next time. Please do not condemn the Book of Mormon. Give it a chance. Read the Book from the beginning with a sincere attempt to find that it is true. I believe that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, and it restores many truths that were lost in the translation of the Bible.

Bonus

I also wrote the following, but I removed it because I don’t believe that it is the true interpretation; however, I will include it because it is pondering of a prophecy:

One understanding of ‘the first shall be last and that last shall be first’ phraseology is that the House of Israel may be understood to receive the Gospel first; then, they will receive the fullness of the Gospel as they are being gathered in the Latter-days by the Gentiles.

There are many understandings of this phrase. I also believe that it means that the Earth was created in a different state than what is it in today called the paradisiacal state or the glory of the Terrestial kingdom. The Earth’s glory fell to a state of Telestial glory after the fall of Adam; however, at the second coming of Jesus Christ the Earth will be raised up again to the paradisiacal state and the glory of the Terrestial Kingdom. I am on a tangent.

Or maybe the Gentiles are the first and the last, since the Jews will reject that Jesus is the Christ until the second coming. The word Gentile alludes to all the nations other than the House of Israel. Adam raised the first families, preaching to them the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in the beginning. The many nations of Adam’s seed, which bottlenecks down to the immediate family of Noah after the flood, are Gentiles. Abraham’s seed and the House of Israel was established a long time after the flood, and there are many other nations covering the Earth before the House of Israel, including the Jaredite nation. The restoration of the fullness Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Latter-days was through the Gentiles.  

The quote was going to be after the second paragraph, and the third paragraph was going to be at the end of the fourth paragraph.

South Sudan's 6 Year Government Stalemate Concludes - 21st February 2020

Hi. I am Alex Hicken, summarizing my daily world news report on February 21^st, 2020 from my blog “Read the Story of the World.” If you enjoy the world news reports, the link to today’s report is in the show notes. The report has more details and the citations; furthermore, a sign up form is available on the article page that will enable the system to email you when I publish a new article. It is on the top right corner.

Let’s begin with the Coronavirus update. There was a spike in the detected infections in China today. A couple days ago, I said that on an average in the past week, there were a little over 100 new cases. The spike was a count of 411 cases. The reason for the spike was the prisons in Wuhan reported nearly 300 infected. Most of which were from a women’s prison. The government fired 11 officials who overlooked the prison situation.

I have some follow up news with the Diamond Princess Cruise ship cluster. The count of 621 cases on the ship was incomplete as they let people disembark as some were infected. Two were discovered in Australia and eleven were detected in Nebraska. It seems like we need to quadruple check, since some organizations detection processes are not as thorough as one would expect.

As Iran ran their parliament elections, the United States placed sanctions on five election managers. The most notable is the powerful clergyman Ahmad Jannati, and the other four are Abbas Ali Kadkhodaei, Siamak Rahpeyk, Mohammad Moghadam, and Mohammad Yazdi. Many good people have tried to campaign for parliament positions, but thousands have been denied the opportunity as they did not favor the regime.

One development in the country of South Sudan seems to be good. The president, Salvar Kiir and the opposition leader Riek Machar was able to negotiate a resolution after rejected peace proposal over the weekend. Riek would become one of five vice presidents, and the “dissolution of all institutions at nation and state levels” was a condition to the progress toward a more united government. Mister Machar will be sworn-in to office tomorrow. Although they do have a lot of work to reorganize their entire government, this decision will hopefully be an end of the 6 year long stalemates in the country’s government coalition.

I am going to give an update to the Syrian war before I report on a couple somewhat more optimistic things. Turkey and Russia are still backing the rebels and Assad at Idlib, and the rebels are on the offensive recently as more than 50 Syrian soldiers were killed in an airstrike.

The more optimistic things have to do with Tesla and stopping of a drug trafficking operation.

Tesla was approved to continue the construction of their new Gigafactory in Gruenheide, Brandenburg near Berlin. The courts have stopped the work twice this month due to petitions by environmental groups. The court said that this is their final decision, joining Germany’s government, who praised the developing business with Tesla.

The second good news is that a Colombian delivery of 5 tons of drugs was observed by the Panama’s National Aeronaval Service. It was not a normal boat as it was partially submerged in the water. Their vessel was a homemade submarine. The Aeronaval Service arrested the four people. They were grateful that they seized a rare opportunity as it is very difficult to detect submarines without aircraft and prior knowledge of the drug trafficking.

I would like to conclude by thanking you for listening as this is my first week of my publication. I hope that it will prosper. My first step to establishing the business is the secure an income for myself; then, we could invest in expanding. If you think that my publication is worth funding, please look up Alex Hicken on Patreon, where creators have their fan’s direct support. I will report again tomorrow. I hope that Riek Machar’s appointment tomorrow to be vice president of South Sudan is successful.

The Daily World News Report of the 21st of February 2020

Coronavirus

411 new cases of the Coronavirus were confirmed on Thursday in epicenter of Wuhan city in the Hubei Province of China. I reported yesterday that the infection rate is not reducing, being about 100, but the rate has spiked as the death toll has increased to 2,249.[1] One reason for the spike is that 271 were detected as infected in Wuhan prisons. Eleven official were dismissed due their oversight.[2] 1451 patients were discharged after recovery on Thursday, adding to the total of 11,788 from the Wuhan medical facilities.[3]

Two passengers that disembarked the Diamond Princess Cruise ship were discovered to be infected after arriving in their home country of Australia from Japan. The detection process of the people may not be as thorough as expected.[4] 11 were detected in the United States as well in Nebraska from the cruise.[5]

Middle East

The parliamentary election in Iran is happening this week, and the execution of it has been corrupt as thousands of people have been disqualified from running. Ahmad Jannati, the official who is partially responsible for the qualification process, was given notice that he and four others were sanctioned by the United States. The four others are the following: “Abbas Ali Kadkhodaei, Siamak Rahpeyk, Mohammad Hasan Sadeghi Moghadam and Mohammad Yazdi. The United States does not approve of how the election is being conducted.[6]

Although the Syrian rebel’s attack failed yesterday, their airstrikes killed more than 50 of Syrian soldiers on the front at Idlib in northwestern Syria.[7]

South Sudan

South Sudan has taken a crucial step to a united government as Riek Machar has agreed to be the vice president of President Salvar Kiir. Riek Machar will be swear-in to his new role on Saturday. He will be the president’s fifth vice president. The negotiation between the opposing parties included “the dissolution of all institutions at national and state levels.”[8] They have a lot of work to do ahead of them to appoint new officials throughout the country.

Central America

Panama’s National Aeronaval Service observed a semi-submersible vessel on a patrol. They discovered that it was a Colombian delivery of 5 tons of drugs. 4 were arrested. The submarine was homemade, and most of the time drug submarines are hard to find. They are easily detected by aircraft and when they have been informed previously of the shipment.[9]

Germany

Tesla resumes the clearing of their land in Gruenheide, Brandenburg near Berlin for their new Gigafactory as courts stopped them for the second time this month with several environmental groups petitioned the cancellation of the project.  The construction was approved and praised by Germany’s government for business with Tesla, and the court has concluded their delays of the project as they have confirmed that this is their final ruling.[10]

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[1] Griffiths, James. “Novel Coronavirus Deaths Top 2,200 as Number of New Cases in China Rises Again.” CNN, Cable News Network, 21 Feb. 2020, edition.cnn.com/2020/02/21/asia/novel-coronavirus-covid-19-update-intl-hnk/index.html.

[2] Fang, Frank. “Hundreds of Prisoners Test Positive for Coronavirus in China, 11 Officials Sacked.” The Epoch Times, 21 Feb. 2020, www.theepochtimes.com/11-chinese-officials-sacked-over-coronavirus-outbreak-in-prisons_3245781.html.

[3] “China Reports 115 More Deaths, 411 New Coronavirus Cases.” Khaleej Times, IANS, 21 Feb. 2020, www.khaleejtimes.com/coronavirus-outbreak/china-reports-411-new-coronavirus-cases-covid19.

[4] “Two Australian Evacuees Positive for Virus after Being Cleared in Japan.” Yahoo!, AFP, 21 Feb. 2020, sports.yahoo.com/australian-coronavirus-victims-had-tested-negative-japan-032356382.html.

[5] Chavez, Nicole, and Hollie Silverman. “11 Americans at Omaha Facility Tested Positive for Coronavirus, Hospital Says.” CNN Health, Cable News Network, 21 Feb. 2020, www.cnn.com/2020/02/20/health/nebraska-coronavirus-positive-tests/index.html.

[6] “US Slaps Sanctions on Iranian Officials for barring Candidates.” Khaleej Times, Reuters, 21 Feb. 2020, www.khaleejtimes.com/business/economy/5-iranians-targeted-in-latest-sanctions-action-.

[7] “Turkey Claims 'More Than 50' Syrian Forces Killed After Two Turkish Soldiers Killed in Airstrike .” Haaretz, Reuters, 20 Feb. 2020, www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/syria/turkey-more-than-50-syrian-government-forces-killed-near-syria-s-idlib-1.8561003.

[8] “S.Sudan Rebel Leader Appointed Vice President.” Yahoo!, AFP, 21 Feb. 2020, news.yahoo.com/sudan-rebel-leader-appointed-vice-president-155918433.html.

[9] McCluskey, Mitchell, and Nicole Chavez. “Police in Panama Found More than 5 Tons of Drugs in a Homemade Semi-Submersible Vessel.” CNN World, Cable News Network, 21 Feb. 2020, edition.cnn.com/2020/02/20/americas/panama-drug-bust-semi-submersible-vessel/index.html.

[10] “Tesla Gets Court Approval to Clear Forest for German Gigafactory.” The Straits Times, Reuters, 21 Feb. 2020, www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/tesla-gets-court-approval-to-clear-forest-for-german-gigafactory.

An Introduction to the Sword

     I concluded reading the introduction of the Maxwell Institute Study Edition of the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. From my experience reading to 1 Nephi chapter 18 in my first attempt to read the book, I have found it more insightful than reading the standard version of the Book of Mormon. There are a few things that I would like to point out from the introduction. I will address the following: the book is designed with a scholarly perspective, context is preserved better, and reference to the original translation is abundant.

     I am not too scholarly; however, the book keeps in mind the Royal Skousen’s studies of the Book of Mormon. The book states the following concerning him in the Brief History of the Text section: “Royal Skousen, a professor of linguistics and English language at Brigham Young University, is the central figure in the academic analysis of the Book of Mormon text, including its origins, transmission, variants, and grammar.” The current Book of Mormon offers a lot more footnotes with bold chapters with headings. The Maxwell Institute Study edition reduces the extra headings and footnotes to a minimum, respecting that the original golden plates do indicate different chapters; although, the transcript was given to the printer at first without paragraphing or punctuation. The type setter, who is named John Gilbert, organized the transcript with punctuation. One may realize that one person deciding the punctuation of the text can cause variations of meaning in the writing. Clarification have been made throughout the years by the church, but I have found that there has been very minor changes to the original translation.

     The Book of Mormon was originally publish in a paragraph format, and I have come to appreciate this. I would say that Book of Mormon’s context is preserved better this way. The current verse structure can fragment the context of the scriptures. Some verses may be ignored because it is not the rich doctrinal statements that we love. Complete contextual messages are more obvious, since they are in a paragraph, while one might stop reading in a middle of a paragraph without the paragraphing that is found in the current edition of the Book of Mormon.

     I have a reference and a clarification that I would like to relate to you that I have found meaningful in the Maxwell Study Edition of the Book of Mormon as it is a reference to the original translation, which I said that I was going to address. The verse that a word was clarified in is verse 18 of 1 Nephi chapter 12 read as follows:

"And the large and spacious building, which thy father saw, is vain imaginations and the pride of the children of men. And a great and a terrible gulf divideth them; yea, even the word of the justice of the Eternal God, and the Messiah who is the Lamb of God, of whom the Holy Ghost beareth record, from the beginning of the world until this time, and from this time henceforth and forever."

Coincidently the word that was clarified was the word “word”. I have italicized it in the quotation. In the original transcript the “word” was sword. The ‘sword of justice… beareth record’. The word and sword have the same meaning. 

The word might be the sword of Justice, yet the book of Alma chapter 31 verse 5 says the following:

"And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just—yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto them—therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God."

However the word has been referred to as the sword many times. Most notably is in the Book of Revelation chapter 19 verse 15, stating the following: “And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.” An interesting thing is that Joseph Smith translation removes the sword again as shown the following quote: “And out of his mouth proceedeth the word of God, and with it he will smite the nations; and he will rule them with the word of his mouth; and he treadeth the winepress in the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.” Okay. Now that Joseph Smith’s clarification confirmed that God will rule by his word. I need to look into this more. I found the following verses relating the word to a sword or a rod. I also looked up the word rod because it can be related to a hilt or handle of a sword.

• Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
• Helaman 3:29 Yea, we see that whosoever will may lay hold upon the word of God, which is quick and powerful, which shall divide asunder all the cunning and the snares and the wiles of the devil, and lead the man of Christ in a strait and narrow course across that everlasting gulf of misery which is prepared to engulf the wicked.
• sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, Eph. 6:17.
• word of God … sharper than any twoedged sword, Heb. 4:12 (D&C 6:2).
• out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword, Rev. 1:16
• And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me; 1 Nephi 21:2 (Isa. 49:2.)
• sword of justice hangeth over this people, Hel. 13:5.
• take … the sword of my Spirit, D&C 27:18.
• I would let fall the sword of mine indignation, D&C 101:10.
• repent, lest I smite you by the rod of my mouth, D&C 19:15.      
• rod of iron … was the word of God, 1 Ne. 11:25 (15:23).
• he did straiten them … with his rod, 1 Ne. 17:41.
• he shall rule them with a rod of iron, Rev. 2:27 (12:5; 19:15).
• smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, Isa. 11:4 (2 Ne. 21:4; 30:9).

     The word is referred to in the scriptures many time as a sword, and the words of sword and rod is referred to as the word as well. Why is this important? In our homes, we may be tempted to rule with fear for that is the way of the natural man, seeking to accomplish the things that we desire with the least amount of effort; however, many prophets and Jesus Christ himself teaches that his word is sharper than any two edged sword, which is quick and powerful, yet Doctrine and Covenants section 121 verse 41 states “No power or influence can or ought to be maintained by virtue of the priesthood, only by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned;”

     I believe that the word sword can be attributed to the nature of God as a person of justice, judgement, and order. We should fear the justice of God. We should fear the consequences of sin.

     The power of the word can also be used as a tool to bless the earth by bring others to God, for it is true. The truth is more powerful than fear. We have been charged to take the sword of the Spirit to fight “principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” (Ephesians 6:12) The word, when we hearken to it, holding on to the iron rod, “shall divide asunder all the cunning and the snares and the wiles of the devil.” (Helaman 3:29) Let us take heart and feast of the word of God that we may face the world without fear.

Two Themes for Today's Report 2020.02.20

Hi, I am Alex Hicken with my daily audio and visual world news report, summarizing my blog called “Read the Story of the World”. Today is Thursday, February 20, 2020. I have noticed more engagement in my content today, and I am grateful for your participation in my first week of the publication. If you find my content consistently informative and serviceable. Please consider becoming a patron of my publication. Look me up on Patreon with Alex Hicken.

I have a theme in my report today, and that is warring countries seeking to take advantage of the condition of their nation by blocking the United Nation’s Humanitarian Aid. South Sudan and Yemen are my suspects.

The Houthi rebel group, who have kicked out the Yemen president Abd Hadi, controls a lot of the country of Yemen. Saudi Arabia is seeking to restore the president to power as he is in asylum in the country. The rebels are trying to take advantage of the United Nation’s Humanitarian Aid to obtain concessions. They recently changed this demand, for they previously requested 2% of the billions of humanitarian funds. Manipulation is expressed by implementing policies over the regions that they control on UN before they enter, requiring compliance. UN have rejected their requirements; thus, the rebels have blocked their entrance to help much of the country. “Half of the United Nations aid delivery programs” have been stopped. The UN has threaten to reduce the support, if they continue limiting them. The articles, where I found this information, pointed out that many people are starving, and many are dependent on international aid.

South Sudan use limiting UN aid to the country to their advantage as well. Not only one of the rivalry is to blame for this practice. The UN accuses the country’s leaders of “deliberately starving” their citizen to gain strength for their efforts. This is not all, but many civil officials have become incredibly rich by embezzling millions of dollars for personal use.

Another theme of today’s report is Russia maliciously snooping around.

United States has been monitoring Russian actions, and Russia paid a Mexican man to spy and provide information of a vehicle within an US operation. The man and his wife were stopped after a flight by federal officials, asking for their phones. They found a picture of the license plate of the vehicle in the deleted images file of the wife’s phone. The man did confess that Russia did hire him.

The second news concerning Russia is Britain and the United States announced that Russia’s military intelligence service called GRU performed the wide spread cyberattack in late October last year in the country of Georgia, taking down several government and corporate websites, including the president’s as well as a couple TV stations. Georgia was targeted because they were a former Soviet nation, “causing anxiety among the general public.”

The Coronavirus’ death count is up to 2118 as two of the infected from the Diamond Princess Cruise liner have died. South Korea is experiencing a super-spreader events as I reported in Singapore yesterday in a church. The church is called Shincheonji Church of Jesus.

The rebels are not done fighting for Idlib in northwestern Syria. 2 Turkish soldiers were killed during an offensive operation that they were trying to carry out; however, the government’s army withstood the attack. It became very apparent in my articles that I read today as the dead Turkish soldiers were attacked by Russian air force that the support from these nations are not merely supplies.

Turkish people were a victim of racism as they were deliberately targeted in a mass shooting in German “town of Hanau about 15 miles east of Frankfurt on Wednesday night.” Half of the ten killed were citizens of Turkey. The gunman fled the scene, killing himself and his mother. Chancellor Merkel condemns the racism, stating Racism and hate is poison for the nation.

I have a follow up story to yesterday’s report. I reported eight eastern African countries are enduring pestilences. I learned today that Pakistan is also enduring the invasion of the locusts, when I found an article, stating that India is purchasing more drones to monitor and control the locust infestation after successfully defending their country from the invasion last year.

That is my report for today. Thank you for listening. The citations and more information is in my official “Read the Story of the World” post of the day in the show notes, and I will talk to you tomorrow. 
https://readthestoryoftheworld.blogspot.com/2020/02/the-daily-world-news-report-of-20th-of.html

The Daily World News Report of the 20th of February 2020

Coronavirus

2 of the 621 Coronavirus cluster from the Diamond Princess Cruise ship in Japan has died. The two were both elderly, having outstanding health issues. The total death count is now at 2,118.[1] South Korea faces a super-spreader as well in the city of Daegu with 31 people infected. The origin is a church called the Shincheonji Church of Jesus.[2]

United Nations Theme

Many regions of Yemen has been taken over by the Houthi revolutionaries as the former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi is in asylum in Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has been seeking to restore him to presidency.  The Houthi rebels are blocking “half of the United Nations aid delivery programs”, and they are demanding more responsibility over the humanitarian effort involving the allocation of billions of dollars. The regions of the country under Houthi control seek to implement policies to guide the UN humanitarian aid, which they have rejected. The rebels reduced their requirements to concessions last week after a 2% cut of the funds for months. UN replied on Thursday, saying they will scale down their humanitarian aid, if the Houthi rebel continue to limit their access. The country is war-torn and many are dependent on international aid.[3]

UN reports today that their efforts to provide aid to the South Sudan people are blocked as well, and they are accusing the warring sides of “deliberately starving” people to their strategic advantage. About half of the nation of 6 million people are going hungry. Millions of dollars are used for personal gain by many officials.[4]

Locust Pestilence

Yesterday I reported on the struggle that eight eastern African nations are struggling with the pestilence of locusts. Pakistan is also enduring the same hardship. The Indian nation has had to implement measures to stop their invasion, and they are currently successful in their efforts. They are purchasing “drones and specialist equipment to monitor the movement of locusts and spray insecticides to ward off a new outbreak” according to Times of India. A small swarm can consume the food of 35,000 people in one day.[5]

Syrian Civil War

Assad has not completely secured Idlib in northwestern Syria as the Russian air force performs an airstrike, killing two Turkish soldier, in an operation that helped repel an offensive by the rebels with 5 injured.[6]

Europe

A mass shooting was carried out by a far-right man, who ended up killing himself and his mother, “in the town of Hanau, about 15 miles east of Frankfurt [Germany] on Wednesday night”. Half of the 10 killed were citizens of Turkey.[7] German Chancellor Merkel condemns racism "This poison exists in our society, and it's to blame for too many tragic events."

A wide spread cyberattack on October 28, 2019 in the country of Georgia, taking down many “state, private, and media websites” as well as a couple “private television stations”, was determined to be orchestrated by a Russian “military intelligence service, commonly known as the GRU” in a joint announcement with Britain and the United States today. According to Georgia’s “foreign ministry spokesman Vladimer Konstantinidi”, “causing anxiety among the general public”, Russia targeted Georgia because it is a former Soviet nation[8]

Russia

Russia hired a Mexican citizen to spy and provide information concerning a U.S. operation, monitoring them. The information was a picture of one of the vehicles’ license plate that participated in the U.S. operation. The Mexican was arrested, and the picture was found on his wife’s phone in the recently deleted images file. He did confess that the allegations were accurate.[9]

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[1] “Coronavirus: Two Passengers Dead from Quarantined Diamond Princess.” BBC News, BBC, 20 Feb. 2020, www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-51568496.

[2] “South Korea Reports First Coronavirus Death as Daegu Church Cluster Cases Soar.” South China Morning Post, Reuters, 20 Feb. 2020, www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3051503/south-korea-reports-31-new-cases-coronavirus.

[3] Michael, Maggie. “Yemen’s Houthi Rebels Impeding UN Aid Flow, Demand a Cut.” AP News, The Associated Press, 19 Feb. 2020, apnews.com/edb2cad767ccbf898c220e54c199b6d9.

[4] “South Sudan Warring Sides 'Deliberately Starving' Citizens: UN.” Al Jazeera, Al Jazeera Media Network, 20 Feb. 2020, www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/02/south-sudan-warring-sides-deliberately-starving-citizens-200220105302156.html.

[5] “India Buys Drones, Specialist Equipment to Avert New Locust .. Read More at: Http://Timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Articleshow/74212114.Cms?utm_source=Contentofinterest&utm_medium=Text&utm_campaign=Cppst.” Times of India, Reuters, 19 Feb. 2020, timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/india-buys-drones-specialist-equipment-to-avert-new-locust-attack/articleshow/74212114.cms.

[6] Fraser, Suzan, and Vladimir Isachenkov. “Turkish Soldiers Killed in Syria amid Threats of Escalation.” AP, The Associated Press, 20 Feb. 2020, apnews.com/a245ab41546b6dd77be773137da8e0c4.

[7] Morris, Loveday, et al. “After Germany Shooting Tied to Far-Right, Merkel Says ‘Racism Is a Poison’ the Country Must Overcome.” The Washington Post, 20 Feb. 2020, www.washingtonpost.com/world/death-toll-in-germany-shootings-climbs-to-11-including-alleged-suspect/2020/02/20/16feb5a6-53b3-11ea-80ce-37a8d4266c09_story.html.

[8] “U.S. and Britain Say Russia Launched 'Paralyzing' Cyberattack on Georgia.” NBC News, Reuters, 20 Feb. 2020, www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/u-s-britain-say-russia-launched-paralyzing-cyberattack-georgia-n1139766.

[9] Cramer, Maria. “Mexican Citizen Is Accused of Spying for Russians in the U.S.” The New York Times, 19 Feb. 2020, www.nytimes.com/2020/02/19/us/hector-alejandro-cabrera-fuentes-spying-russia.html.

A speech can help guide you through the LGBT discussions and situations

This speech can help guide you through the LGBT discussions and situations. It is by Dallin H. Oaks, a living apostle of Jesus Christ. Click here to read the official website’s publishing of the speech.

Two Great Commandments

By President Dallin H. Oaks

First Counselor in the First Presidency

We must try to keep both of the great commandments. To do so, we walk a fine line between law and love.

My dear sisters in the gospel of Jesus Christ, I greet you as divinely assigned guardians of the eternal family. President Russell M. Nelson has taught us, “This Church was restored so that families could be formed, sealed, and exalted eternally.”¹ That teaching has important implications for persons who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender, commonly referred to as LGBT.² President Nelson has also reminded us that we don’t “have to [always] agree with each other to love each other.”³ These prophetic teachings are important for family discussions to answer the questions of children and youth. I have prayerfully sought inspiration to speak to this audience because you are uniquely affected by these questions, which directly or indirectly affect every family in the Church.

I.

I begin with what Jesus taught were the two great commandments.

“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

“This is the first and great commandment.

“And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”⁴

This means we are commanded to love everyone, since Jesus’s parable of the good Samaritan teaches that everyone is our neighbor.⁵ But our zeal to keep this second commandment must not cause us to forget the first, to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind. We show that love by “keep[ing] [His] commandments.”⁶ God requires us to obey His commandments because only through that obedience, including repentance, can we return to live in His presence and become perfect as He is.

In his recent talk to the young adults of the Church, President Russell M. Nelson spoke of what he called the “strong connection between God’s love and His laws.”⁷ The laws that apply most significantly to the issues relating to those identifying as LGBT are God’s law of marriage and its companion law of chastity. Both are essential in our Father in Heaven’s plan of salvation for His children. As President Nelson taught, “God’s laws are motivated entirely by His infinite love for us and His desire for us to become all we can become.”⁸

President Nelson taught: “Many countries … have legalized same-sex marriage. As members of the Church, we respect the laws of the land … , including civil marriage. The truth is, however, that in the beginning … marriage was ordained by God! And to this day it is defined by Him as being between a man and a woman. God has not changed His definition of marriage.”

President Nelson continued: “God has also not changed His law of chastity. Requirements to enter the temple have not changed.”⁹

President Nelson reminded all of us that “our commission as Apostles is to teach nothing but truth. That commission does not give [Apostles] the authority to modify divine law.”¹⁰Thus, my sisters, the leaders of the Church must always teach the unique importance of marriage between a man and a woman and the related law of chastity.

II.

The work of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is ultimately concerned with preparing the children of God for the celestial kingdom, and most particularly for its highest glory, exaltation or eternal life. That highest destiny is possible only through marriage for eternity.¹¹ Eternal life includes the creative powers inherent in the combination of male and female¹²—what modern revelation describes as the “continuation of the seeds forever and ever.”¹³

In his talk to young adults, President Nelson taught, “Abiding by God’s laws will keep you safe as you progress toward eventual exaltation”¹⁴—that is, to become like God, with the exalted life and divine potential of our Heavenly Parents. That is the destiny we desire for all we love. Because of that love, we cannot let our love supersede the commandments and the plan and work of God, which we know will bring those we love their greatest happiness.

But there are many we love, including some who have the restored gospel, who do not believe in or choose not to follow God’s commandments about marriage and the law of chastity. What about them?

God’s doctrine shows that all of us are His children and that He has created us to have joy.¹⁵ Modern revelation teaches that God has provided a plan for a mortal experience in which all can choose obedience to seek His highest blessings or make choices that lead to one of the less glorious kingdoms.¹⁶ Because of God’s great love for all of His children, those lesser kingdoms are still more wonderful than mortals can comprehend.¹⁷ The Atonement of Jesus Christ makes all of this possible, as He “glorifies the Father, and saves all the works of his hands.”¹⁸

III.

I have spoken of the first commandment, but what of the second? How do we keep the commandment to love our neighbors? We seek to persuade our members that those who follow lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender teachings and actions should be treated with the love our Savior commands us to show toward all our neighbors. Thus, when same-sex marriage was declared legal in the United States, the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve declared: “The gospel of Jesus Christ teaches us to love and treat all people with kindness and civility—even when we disagree. We affirm that those who avail themselves of laws or court rulings authorizing same-sex marriage should not be treated disrespectfully.”¹⁹

Further, we must never persecute those who do not share our beliefs and commitments.²⁰ Regretfully, some persons facing these issues continue to feel marginalized and rejected by some members and leaders in our families, wards, and stakes. We must all strive to be kinder and more civil.

IV.

For reasons we do not understand, we have different challenges in our mortal experiences. But we do know that God will help each of us overcome these challenges if we sincerely seek His help. After suffering and repenting for violations of laws we have been taught, we are all destined for a kingdom of glory. The ultimate and final judgment will be by the Lord, who alone has the required knowledge, wisdom, and grace to judge each of us.

Meanwhile, we must try to keep both of the great commandments. To do so, we walk a fine line between law and love—keeping the commandments and walking the covenant path, while loving our neighbors along the way. This walk requires us to seek divine inspiration on what to support and what to oppose and how to love and listen respectfully and teach in the process. Our walk demands that we not compromise on commandments but show forth a full measure of understanding and love. Our walk must be considerate of children who are uncertain about their sexual orientation, but it discourages premature labeling because, in most children, such uncertainty decreases significantly over time.²¹ Our walk opposes recruitment away from the covenant path, and it denies support to any who lead people away from the Lord. In all of this we remember that God promises hope and ultimate joy and blessings for all who keep His commandments.

V.

Mothers and fathers and all of us are responsible to teach both of the two great commandments. For the women of the Church, President Spencer W. Kimball described that duty in this great prophecy: “Much of the major growth that is coming to the Church in the last days will come because many of the good women of the world … will be drawn to the Church in large numbers. This will happen to the degree that the women of the Church reflect righteousness and articulateness in their lives and to the degree that the women of the Church are seen as distinct and different … from the women of the world. … Thus it will be that female exemplars of the Church will be a significant force in both the numerical and the spiritual growth of the Church in the last days.”²²

Speaking of that prophecy, President Russell M. Nelson declared that “the day that President Kimball foresaw is today. You are the women he foresaw!”²³ Little did we who heard that prophecy 40 years ago realize that among those the women of this Church may save will be their own dear friends and family who are currently influenced by worldly priorities and devilish distortions. My prayer and blessing is that you will teach and act to fulfill that prophecy, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.