The World and Everything in It — November 22, 2019

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Welcome to a special edition of our program!

Today, we’re recording live from Nashville, Tennessee, and the headquarters of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention.

On the program today for Culture Friday, ERLC’s Daniel Darling and Trillia Newbell.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Also today, Megan Basham reviews Disney’s Frozen II.

And George Grant is here, literally right here, and he’ll deliver this month’s Word Play.

REICHARD: It’s Friday, November 22nd. This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Mary Reichard.

EICHER: And I’m Nick Eicher.

REICHARD: And now the news. Here’s Kent Covington.

KENT COVINGTON, NEWS ANCHOR: Two key witnesses cap a week of public testimony in impeachment inquiry » Two key witnesses testified Thursday in the House impeachment inquiry. 

U.S. diplomat David Holmes said he overheard a phone call between President Trump and U.S. ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland. 

HOLMES: I then heard President Trump ask – so is he going to do the investigation? Ambassador Sondland replied, he’s going to do it, adding that President Zelensky will do anything you ask him to do. 

Holmes said after the call, Sondland told him “the president only cares about big stuff.” And he said Sondland clarified that meant big stuff “that benefits the president, like the Biden investigation that Mr. Giuliani was pushing.” 

Former National Security Council adviser Fiona Hill also testified. She recounted a conversation with former national security adviser John Bolton about the president’s attorney, Rudy Giuliani. 

HILL: And he then in the course of that discussion said that Rudy Giuliani was a hand grenade that was going to blow everyone up. 

Hill also said ambassador Sondland carried out “a domestic political errand” for President Trump in Ukraine. 

After two weeks of public testimony, both parties are digging in their heels. House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff said it’s clear that the president is guilty of impeachable offenses. 

SCHIFF: It is beyond anything Nixon did. The difference between then and now is not the difference between Nixon and Trump. It’s the difference between that Congress and this one. 

But the top Republican on the Intel Committee, Devin Nunes, said the Democrats’ case is weak. 

NUNES: As numerous witnesses have testified, temporary holds on foreign aid occur fairly frequently for many different reasons. So how do we have an impeachable offense here when there’s no actual misdeed, and no one even claiming to be a victim? 

Republicans said testimony produced a whole lot of presumption, conjecture and hearsay, but not much more.

Netanyahu indicted on corruption charges » Meantime, in Jerusalem, Israel’s attorney general on Thursday announced formal corruption charges against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

MANDELBILT: [Hebrew]

Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit charged Netanyahu with fraud, breach of trust, and accepting bribes in three different scandals. It marks the first time a sitting Israeli prime minister has been charged with a crime.

The most serious charges were connected to so-called “Case 4000.” In that case, Netanyahu is accused of passing regulations worth millions to the owner of a news site in exchange for favorable coverage. 

Netanyahu denounced the indictment a short time later. He said the accusations are false and the charges are politically motivated.  

NETANYAHU: [Hebrew]

And he accused prosecutors of staging “an attempted coup.”

The charges come amid continued political gridlock in Israel. Netanyahu was unable to form a governing coalition after the most recent election.

And on Wednesday, his chief rival, Benny Gantz, announced that he too had failed to form a new government. That pushes the country closer toward an unprecedented third election in less than a year.

Trump overrules Navy in Gallagher case » President Trump is overruling the Navy in a disciplinary case involving a Navy SEAL, whom he pardoned last week. WORLD Radio’s Anna Johansen reports. 

ANNA JOHANSEN, REPORTER: The president insisted Thursday that the Navy—quote—“will NOT be taking away Warfighter and Navy Seal Eddie Gallagher’s Trident Pin.”

The Trident Pin designates a soldier as a SEAL. 

The Navy on Wednesday notified Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher that he will face a review early next month to determine if he should remain on the elite force.

A military jury convicted Gallagher of posing with an enemy corpse in Iraq in 2017. He was then demoted to chief. But President Trump last week pardoned Gallagher and restored his rank. 

His lawyers have accused the Navy of trying to remove the SEAL designation in retaliation for Trump’s pardon.

The president tweeted on Thursday that, “This case was handled very badly from the beginning” and he urged those involved to “Get back to business!”

Reporting for WORLD Radio, I’m Anna Johahsen. 

Prince Andrew faces growing calls for answers in Epstein case » Britain’s Prince Andrew is facing mounting calls to provide information to U.S. law enforcement agencies and lawyers about Jeffrey Epstein. That as investigators continue to look for evidence that may point to those who enabled or participated in the former financier’s alleged crimes.

Andrew announced this week that he is stepping back from royal duties because the Epstein scandal had become a “major disruption” to the royal family. 

He also said he’s—quote—“willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations, if required.”

Attorney Lisa Bloom represents victims suing Epstein’s estate. She said the prince should hold nothing back. 

BLOOM: It’s about justice and accountability for the victims. So it’s important that he says he’s going to cooperate with law enforcement. He should also answer questions from all of the accusers’ attorneys.

When Epstein died in August, he was facing charges that he trafficked underage girls to powerful men visiting his luxury properties around the world. 

Prince Andrew denies any wrongdoing and says he regrets—quote—“my ill-judged association with Jeffrey Epstein.”

UAW president resigns amid corruption scandal » The president of the United Auto Workers union resigned this week after a General Motors lawsuit alleged a rival automaker bribed union officials. WORLD Radio’s Sarah Schweinsberg reports.

SARAH SCHWEINSBERG, REPORTER: UAW President Gary Jones abruptly announced Wednesday that he is retiring. That came after GM sued Fiat Chrysler—alleging the company bribed union officials to get more favorable contract terms from the union.

GM settled a contract dispute with the UAW last month to end a 40-day strike. 

The UAW’s International Executive Board recently filed paperwork to expel Jones and another official over allegations raised by a federal investigation. That corruption probe has resulted in multiple arrests starting in 2017. 

Prosecutors have not charged Jones with a crime, but federal agents raided his suburban Detroit home in August.

Jones has been a UAW member for 44 years and started as a factory worker.

Reporting for WORLD Radio, I’m Sarah Schweinsberg.

COVINGTON: I’m Kent Covington. Straight ahead: Chick-fil-A’s decision to distance itself from Christian ministries. Plus, Megan Basham reviews one of this year’s most anticipated movie sequels. This is The World and Everything in It.

MEGAN BASHAM: It’s Friday November 22, 2019. Glad to have you along for today’s edition of The World and Everything in It. A warm welcome to those watching the broadcast live here in Music City.

I’m Megan Basham.

MARY REICHARD: I’m Mary Reichard.

NICK EICHER: And I’m Nick Eicher. It’s Culture Friday. We’re at the headquarters of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission in Nashville. That gives us the opportunity to visit with not one but two ERLC commentators. And today, whatever happened to Chick-Fil-A?

MUSIC: Closed On Sunday—Kanye West

REICHARD: Yeah, I think my number one with the lemonade is the veggie wrap. Just so everybody knows. Kanye West, of course, from his gospel album. Well, Chick-Fil-A’s announcement this week that it would no longer partner with several Christian charities—including the Salvation Army and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes—came as a shock. In an interview with the business publication Bisnow, Chick-Fil-A president Tim Tassopoulos said, “There’s no question we know that as we go into new markets, we need to be clear about who we are.” Now, that struck many people as Chick-Fil-A’s walking away from the stance we’ve heard even as recently as in this 2018 interview on Atlanta television station WSB. Here’s CEO Dan Cathy.

CATHY: We’re a business that has got a long track record of being respectful of other people. I, personally, express my view of support of the biblical definition of marriage. It was not an anti-this or anti-that statement at all. 

But the statement about going “into new markets” and being “clear about who we are” came off to some Chick-fil-A fans as a betrayal. 

Those new markets Tassopoulos refers to include several U.S. airports that rejected the company from concessions deals. It also includes a U.K. lease cancelled after only eight days. All because of protests from the LGBT community.

Now, Chick-fil-A isn’t saying LGBT pressure had anything to do with the company’s decision.

BASHAM: Yeah, but that’s meeting with lots of skepticism.

In one of the most searing pieces so far, Rod Dreher of The American Conservative wrote, “Those good men and women [of the Salvation Army and the FCA] are not good enough for Chick-fil-A now. Chick-fil-A is embarrassed by them. If Chick-fil-A’s executives think they’re going to get a fair shake from progressives now, well, they’re going to learn otherwise—and they’re going to deserve what they get.”

So now we welcome Daniel Darling and Trillia Newbell from the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. Dan, Trillia, thanks for joining us.

DAN DARLING, GUEST: Glad to be here.

TRILLIA NEWBELL, GUEST: Thanks for having us.

EICHER: So Dan, let’s start with you. To sort of generalize about the responses I’m seeing—many, like Dreher, feel that this is a betrayal of a loyal customer base.

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, one-time presidential candidate, and the guy who organized a Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day, when the restaurant chain came under fire back in 2012. This is from a Family Research Council interview with Huckabee.

HUCKABEE: It’s such a disappointment, such a bewildering situation as to why Chick-fil-A, after being so successful, would decide that they’re going to surrender to the bullies. And I think that the implications of this are far broader than Chick-fil-A and that’s what I’m really concerned about.

On the other side, I’m hearing that Christians shouldn’t be so quick to make assumptions about what motivated the decision. That Chick-fil-A fulfilled their commitment to those charities and they’re just choosing to partner with other charities now. 

I’ll be honest, given their president’s comments and the fact that the groups they’ll now be partnering with make a point of highlighting how “affirming” they are to the LGBT community, I probably tend to agree with the former.

What do you think? Are we right to feel grieved about this?

DARLING: Well, there is reason for skepticism, right? Because the response of Chick-Fil-A and the announcement has been kind of conflicting. And on the one hand, they’re pulling away from FCA and Salvation Army. On the other hand, they’re saying that they’re not going to discriminate against anyone in terms of their giving. They’re just trying to do a new funding formula to form effectiveness and they wouldn’t discriminate against any faith-based institution—even those that have a biblical view of marriage. But it’s a conflicting response. I saw that Franklin Graham posted a few hours ago that he talked to Dan Cathy and he was reassured that this was not going into the calculus.

But I think what really is alarming here—regardless of Chick-Fil-A’s motivation—so, we don’t know. Perhaps they are just changing their funding formula. They’re not going to discriminate against people who have a biblical sexual ethic. But if you take a step back and you look, what’s alarming here is that we’re talking about the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and we’re talking about Salvation Army. These are not people even known for being overtly political or even culture warriors. I mean, the Salvation Army is doing incredible work among the homeless. And the fact that even these groups are targeted by the left simply because they believe what Christians have believed for 2,000 years. They believe what President Obama believed, what, 15 years ago. And all of a sudden, this is a cause to ostracize them. That is really alarming. I think it goes beyond Chick-Fil-A. So I think we do need to give Chick-Fil-A the benefit of the doubt that they are saying they’re not going to discriminate. But it is disappointing. They are a corporation, so they can do with their money what they like. But they have been known for being courageous and for being successful in the midst of this. And so it is alarming for fans of Chick-Fil-A.

EICHER: I was just doing the math in my head. President Obama took that position seven years ago. I mean, this is really very recently minted orthodoxy.

DARLING: Yeah, and the fact that, again, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes is doing great work among students across the country. Salvation Army with the red kettles every year at Christmas. The fact that they’re too controversial. And the thing we have to understand is that this is not even enough for people on the extreme left. Until Christian institutions, not just abandon their beliefs but embrace everything of the sexual revolution, they won’t be accepted. So, I think as Christians we have to just steel ourselves and know that if you follow the scriptures, if you follow Jesus, if you follow a biblical sexual ethic, the way that God has ordered marriage and sexuality, that you’re going to be out of step with the culture by the way Jesus warned us. Jesus said that we, as Christians, if we’re living out the gospel, at some point we’re going to conflict with the culture. It’s been like that in every generation since Jesus uttered those words. But I think it’s a little harder for us as Americans because I think we’ve been used to sort of a protection and a little bit of favor for being Christians.

REICHARD: At the end of the day, even though everyone’s talking about it, our feelings about Chick-Fil-A probably won’t have much impact on our lives. But now I want to turn to a topic that does demand a response from all of us—and that’s sexual misconduct in the church.

BASHAM: Yeah, and that’s a much more difficult subject. I found that out first hand, recently. I gave a commentary Tuesday arguing it does a disservice to women to paint them solely as victims in all cases and that pastors and teachers are issuing uniform responses to situations that aren’t necessarily uniform. As an example, I pointed to John Crist. The popular Christian comedian used his fame to pressure women into giving him sexual favors.

However, the Crist case is different from many other revelations of abuse we’ve heard lately. He wasn’t the women’s pastor or employer. He held no authority them. And they were all adults. Short version of my take: part of pastoral care is calling women to accountability for sin just as much as men. And none of the responses I saw to the Crist case demonstrated that. In fact, Charisma magazine’s decision to withhold their names even though four of them were willing to go on the record struck me as infantilizing.

Some listeners thanked me for expressing feelings they’ve had themselves. Others were upset and felt I was casting stones at victims. Trillia, how do we hold both loving victims and personal accountability for sin in tension when talking about this?

NEWBELL: Yeah, that’s a great question. Well, I think first I would say that there’s a difference between sin and a crime. There’s a difference between a sin and sexual abuse, sin and rape. And so I think when we are talking about sexual sin, then, yes, that needs to be held accountable. And God says if we confess our sin, he’s faithful and just to purify us. So, if a woman is engaged in any kind of sexual sin, she needs to be held accountable. It needs to be confessed. And it needs to be held to the exact same standards. Yet, in many of these cases, we are talking about someone abusing their power, abusing their role, abusing their celebrity even. And, in particular, in the Crist situation, there was more. Obviously there’s so much that I don’t know because I’m not up on everything that was even reported. But I will say that there was harassment involved from what he confessed. And so I think when we look at these unfortunate, sobering situations, we have to be able to distinguish, again, what is actual sin and what is a crime. What is sin and what oversteps the boundaries of what becomes abuse. In this case, I do think—and it seems like—he confessed that there was some abuse.

BASHAM: Well, I think what was more my point was what I was hearing from pastors. And we might differ a little bit on that. The details I saw, he seemed like a definite creep. He seemed like somebody who exhibited predatory behavior. But I didn’t see something that, to me—for adult women—when I read things like emotional manipulation, I went, I don’t see that in the Bible that if you were emotionally manipulated, then you’re not responsible. For me as an adult woman, I went, my husband would be pretty upset if I was putting myself in some of these situations regardless of how emotionally manipulated I felt.

NEWBELL: Yeah, so, I think if we are called to love our neighbor, we won’t manipulate them, right? And I do think that people can, I mean, we have no idea what the state of their minds, their weak—who knows. I know that in a case of power, we can be given to fear and allow fear to lead us. And so I do think that these are cases that you’d have to—I’d have to sit down with these women and ask them more questions and hopefully they are receiving that pastoral care. Someone who will love them and serve them and walk them through this. And I pray that Crist is. I pray that he is truly repentant and that he will be restored fully into the faith.

EICHER: Dan Darling and Trillia Newbell from the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. Thank you all so much.

NEWBELL: Thank you.

DARLING: Thank you.

REICHARD: OK, so a cow, a donkey, and a camel walk into a bar.

Well, not exactly. But the trio did stroll into a neighborhood in a suburb of Wichita, Kansas last Sunday. Minding their own business, swishing their tails, and sampling the leaves of bushes along the way.

Two little girls jumping on a trampoline when the menagerie passed by weren’t quite sure what they were seeing. Little Emma Dillon put it this way to KWCH-tv:

EMMA DILLON: I’m like, Mom, there’s a horse or something in the yard!

It was quite a sight to see a cow, a donkey, and a camel hanging around so neighbors called 911. Police arrived and posted a photo to Facebook. Soon the owner who works at a wildlife park nearby rounded them up and all’s well that end’s well.

But neighbor Kevin Wilcox could see something heartwarming about it, given that some families already put up Christmas lights.

KEVIN WILCOX: We thought It was only missing the sheep ’cause you had the cow, you had the camel, and you had the donkey all in the Nativity and I just thought that was kind of a cool thing you know.

Missing something else, I think.

It’s The World and Everything in It.

MARY REICHARD: Today is Friday, November 22nd. Thank you for turning to WORLD Radio! I’m Mary Reichard.

NICK EICHER: And I’m Nick Eicher. We are recording before a live audience in Nashville, Tennessee. Coming next on The World and Everything in It: those fairy tale sisters who had every little girl in our kingdom singing “Let it go,” well they’re back.

And our reviewer Megan Basham is here to tell you whether they’ll make you “want to build a snowman” a second time.

MEGAN BASHAM, FILM CRITIC: So, how many of you here are parents of children under 10? Okay, well, you might be dreading this. Or maybe you’re eagerly looking forward to it. But there’s no avoiding it. Six years after it blew the doors off the box office to become the first billion dollar movie for Walt Disney Animation, Frozen is back.

CLIP: Enjoying your new permafrost, Olaf? I’m just living the dream, Anna. Oh, how I wish this could last forever. And yet change Moxas with her beauty. Forgive me, maturity is making me poetic. Tell me, you’re older and thus all knowing, do you ever worry about the notion that nothing is permanent?, No. Wow, I can’t wait until I am ancient like you so I don’t have to worry about important things.

So here’s the good news: the sequel is gorgeous, funnier than its predecessor, and has enough positive messages to outweigh the negative. The bad news? It’s 20 minutes longer than it needs to be. The plot wanders into magical muddle territory. And there’s not a song in it that can hold a candle to “Let it Go.” Though, this could also be good news for those of you who can’t stomach the idea of another icy aria playing on constant repeat in your mom taxi.

The story opens with a haunting voice calling to Elsa. It soon becomes clear the hold it has on the queen of Arendelle is connected to an earthquake that threatens to destroy the kingdom. Not about to let her big sis head out to solve the mystery of voice alone, Anna vows to tag along in time-honored little sis fashion. That naturally means snowman Olaf and handsome hero Kristoff will join the quest to provide plenty of comic relief. 

CLIP: Kristof can I borrow your wagon and Sven? I’m not very comfortable with the idea of that. You are not going alone. Anna, no, I have my powers to protect me, you don’t. Excuse me, I climbed The north mountain, survived the frozen heart, and saved you from my ex-boyfriend. And I did it all without powers so, you know, I’m coming. Me too. I’ll drive. I’ll bring the snacks. I will look after your people. Make sure they stay out of the kingdom until we return. Of course. Let’s let them know. Anna, I am worried for her. We have always feared Elsa’s powers might be too much for this world. Now, we must pray they are enough. I won’t let anything happen to her.

Anyone who saw Pocahontas or Avatar or a dozen similar movies will be able to guess pretty quickly from an early flashback what the sisters will uncover as they enter a mist-shrouded, enchanted forest. Think of it like a modern update to Anton Chekov’s “gun in the first act” principle. You see an aristocratic European ancestor and a tribe of pacifist forest-dwellers who revere the spirits of nature and… Well, let’s just say you know somebody’s going to turn out to be a duplicitous villain. And it’s probably not going to be the wise matriarch preaching harmony with nature.

The vague animism is too silly to feel terribly concerning. Especially as it doesn’t make much sense. Is the supernatural voice calling Elsa her mother, or some manifestation of her own power? Why do the anthropomorphized elements keep trying to stop her if they want her to achieve her goal? 

Beyond that, there’s little to raise parents’ eyebrows. Though the song “Show Yourself” is ambiguous enough to maintain plausible deniability. But it likely will goose social media rumblings about what kind of love interest Elsa should have. 

Balancing all this out is plucky Anna. Once again, she proves more admirable than her elder. She’s too busy trying to serve her sister and her kingdom to get too angsty about her own feelings. || This is especially welcome as it comes in the middle of her relationship with Kristoff hitting a rough patch. It demonstrates that we can choose to fix our minds on something other than our own emotions and desires.

SONG: How to rise from the floor. When it’s not you I’m rising for? Just do the next right thing. Take a step, step again. It is all that I can to do. The next right thing.

Anna’s example is a great opportunity to discuss with little people that, yes, each day will have trouble. But we can still decide to fix our minds on the light and do the next right thing.

For WORLD Radio, I’m Megan Basham.

MARY REICHARD: Today is Friday, November 22nd. This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Mary Reichard.

NICK EICHER: And I’m Nick Eicher. George Grant is here now for our November installment of Word Play.

Hi George!

GEORGE GRANT, COMMENTATOR: Is it a blessing or a curse when a company’s product so completely defines an industry that its brand name becomes a generic term? Ask Xerox or Kleenex or Jacuzzi. Any number of products we use every day—from Zippers to Escalators and from Band-Aids to Thermos bottles—are genericized trademarks.

You might have been able to guess that ChapStick, Post-It Notes, Frisbees, Dust Busters, and Scotch Tape were brand names.  But, what about Roller Blades, TV Dinners, Jet-Skis, Bubble Wrap, and Yo-Yos? Or, what about Ziploc Bags, Popsicles, Kitty Litter, Onesies, or Crock Pots? Everyone of them is a genericized brand name.

Did you know that the large mobile trash bins we typically call “Dumpsters” were the creation of the Dempster Brothers of Knoxville, Tennessee? The Dempsters ran a sanitation business and wanted to create commercial bins that could be mechanically emptied into the back of their trucks. In 1936 they named their clever invention the “Dumpster,” a compounded portmanteau from the word “dump” and their last name.

Did you know that Laundromats were invented by Harry Greenwald just after World War Two in Brooklyn, New York? He was inspired by a neighborhood restaurant where he regularly had lunch. Called “The Automat,” the diner featured food conveniently served vending-machine-style, behind coin-operated glass doors. 

Greenwald took the idea to Westinghouse—demonstrating how the same technology could be applied to their washing machines. Shortly thereafter, Greenwald and Westinghouse opened their first trademarked Laundromat. 

In 1931, Rolla Harger, a professor at Indiana University, invented a device to test the sobriety of erratic drivers—originally dubbed the Drunk-O-Meter. But five years later when Harger patented the device for the university, he renamed it the Breathalyzer.

Tupperware got its name from its creator, Earle Silas Tupper. The Zamboni is an ice resurfacer, a familiar sight to NHL fans, named for its inventor, Frank Zamboni. Taser is a trademarked acronym for Thomas A. Swift’s Electric Rifle. Similarly fascinating stories can be told about Ping-Pong, Q-Tips, Velcro, Weed Eaters, Wite-Out, X-acto Knives, Novacain, Plexiglas, Styrofoam, and Formica. Even Windbreaker is a trademarked word for jackets made by the Celebration Trading Company.

Who knew our vocabulary was so larded with genericized terms? But, don’t just take my word for it—you can Google it.

For WORLD Radio, I’m George Grant.

NICK EICHER: The World and Everything in It takes a team of people to put it all together and provide programs all week: So thank you to our hard-working colleagues: Megan Basham, Joel Belz, Paul Butler,  Kent Covington, Jamie Dean, Kristen Flavin, George Grant, Anna Johansen, Leigh Jones, Jill Nelson, Trillia Newbell, Onize Ohikere, Michele Schlavin, Sarah Schweinsberg, and Cal Thomas.

MARY REICHARD: Johnny Franklin and Carl Peetz stay up late to get the program to you early!

And of course, without you, there’s no us. So thank you for helping keep—in the marketplace—sound journalism grounded in God’s word. 

The Bible says we who take sweet fellowship together walk in the house of God in the throng. 

Go now in grace and peace.

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