The World and Everything in It: November 24, 2023

PREROLL: The World and Everything in It is made possible by listeners like you, and we really mean that. Today and through next Tuesday, which is Giving Tuesday, we’re asking you if you’ve never given before to make a first-time gift, and some long-time friends of WORLD will double the impact. They’re matching dollar for dollar all new gifts now through Giving Tuesday. Please visit wng.org/donate and be the listener who makes this program possible. Hope you enjoy it!

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Good morning! Today on Culture Friday: what’s behind the trend of American women embracing Islam. 

AUDIO: Like there is no once upon a time, no in the beginning. It’s like if you do this, this happens. It gets straight to it.

NICK EICHER, HOST:  Katie McCoy joins us in a few minutes. Also today, two big budget holiday movies aim high and miss. And your Listener Feedback.

BROWN: It’s Friday, November 24th. This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Myrna Brown.

EICHER: And I’m Nick Eicher. Good morning!

BROWN: Up next, Kent Covington with today’s news.

KENT COVINGTON, NEWS ANCHOR: Gaza-Israel » Relief groups are hopeful that a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas will hold as aid workers hope to spend the next several days trucking supplies into Gaza.

With that cease-fire scheduled to start this morning, the Foreign Minister of Qatar, Majed Al Ansari, said of the first hostages Hamas would release,

ANSARI: They will be 13 in number, all women and children, and those hostages that are from the same families will be put together within the same patch.

Qatar mediated the negotiations with Hamas agreeing to release 50 of the more than 200 captives it’s holding during the cease-fire.

Meantime, families of those hostages continue to hope and pray. Efrat Machikawa told Fox News on Thursday that she was missing five family members.

MACHIKAWA: We’re just holding ourself as strong as we can, knowing that we will be happy for anyone that comes alive out of this hell.

Some Americans are among the people abducted from Israel during the October 7th terrorist attack.

Pope accuses Israel » Pope Francis is facing controversy over one word some claim he used in a meeting with Palestinians.

WORLD’s Josh Schumacher has more.

JOSH SCHUMACHER: The word is genocide. And several Palestinians say he used it in a private meeting with them to describe Israel’s offensive against Hamas in Gaza. (The Pope met Wednesday with family members of civilians in Gaza.)

But a spokesman for the Vatican denies that.

Francis also met privately with family members of Israeli victims taken hostage by Hamas last month.

Later at a public address in Saint Peter’s Square, he called on Christians to pray for peace on both sides saying, “This is not war. This is terrorism.”

That statement drew criticism from the Council of the Assembly of Italian Rabbis. They say the Pope is drawing a false equivalency between Hamas terror attacks and Israel’s military response.

For WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

South Korea: Russia helped with North Korea satellite » South Korea has concluded that North Korea likely has Russia to thank for its successful launch of a spy satellite this week.

U.S. authorities have suspected that Russia was providing military technology to Pyongyang in exchange for ammunition for its war in Ukraine. And officials in Seoul now reportedly believe that Moscow did in fact help the North launch the satellite after two failed attempts earlier in the year.

China mystery illness » In China, another mystery outbreak is taking hold, flooding hospitals throughout the country with sick children. WORLD’s Christina Grube has more.

CHRISTINA GRUBE: The medical surveillance service ProMed confirmed the respiratory endemic on Tuesday, calling the illness an undiagnosed pneumonia that's targeting children.

The service was also the first to raise global concern around COVID-19 in China.

Authorities in China pointed to the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions and the circulation of known pathogens like the flu and RSV.

The World Health Organization is pressing China to share more information about the new outbreak.

For WORLD, I’m Christina Grube.

Kentucky town evacuation » In rural Kentucky, authorities have evacuated the town of Livingston after a train derailed, spilling burning sulfur.

The EPA says burning sulfur can release sulfur dioxide which can cause respiratory issues.

One evacuee said they still have very few answers.

EVACUEE: It was really scary because we don't know, how long is this? This could be tonight. It could be three weeks. Who knows? Our homes are empty. People are scared. There's elderly people with oxygen. People needed medicine, if they didn't bring it. It's just a scary situation all way round.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has declared a state of emergency in Rockcastle County.

Trump challenges Biden in new message » The first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses are still more than 50 days away, but armed with new polling data former President Trump has his sights set squarely on President Biden.

TRUMP: So if crooked Joe wants to turn this election into a question of which candidate will defend democracy and freedom, I say bring it on. Let’s go, Joe. Bring it on.

That from a new video Trump released this week.

For the first time this year, an average of recent polls show Trump leading Biden outside the margin of error.

Three polls released within the past few days, surveying more than 10,000 registered voters in total show Trump ahead by more than 4 points.

Back Friday » Today is Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year. Roughly 130 million people plan to buy Christmas gifts today.

That’s according to the National Retail Federation. But the group’s president Matthew Shay told WFSB it’s getting hard to compare holiday shopping forecasts to those from decades past.

SHAY: Because back then we know that consumers really did start their shopping much later in the holiday season.

But in November and December the NRF expects consumers to spend 3 to 4 percent more than the same time last year, almost $970 billion dollars in total.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: Culture Friday with Katie McCoy. Plus, Listener Feedback for November.

This is The World and Everything in It.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: It’s Friday the 24th of November, 2023. Glad to have you along for today’s edition of The World and Everything in It. Good morning, I’m Myrna Brown.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher.

WORLD depends on your support to bring this program to you each week day. And we are here each week day, whether it’s a holiday or summertime or someone’s on vacation or needing personal time, we’ve built a devoted team that’s big enough to ensure that we’re always here for you. You can count on us!

BROWN: And we count on you! Between now and Tuesday, known as “Giving Tuesday,” we’re asking you, if you’ve never supported WORLD before, please to make a gift of any amount. And we stress “any amount” because we have WORLD friends who will match dollar for dollar whatever new gifts come in. So that will double your impact.

EICHER: But it’s only today, through the weekend, and through Giving Tuesday, So limited time, but we do it as a demonstration that we don’t expect you to give alone. We have thousands of generous WORLD donors, but what really keeps things going, and really keeps things growing is new people joining the ranks of WORLD Movers who share our passion for sound journalism grounded in facts and Biblical truth. So I hope you’ll become a first-time donor today by visiting WNG.org/donate and help ensure the future of independent Christian journalism of the kind you’ve come to rely on here.

It’s Culture Friday.

And joining us now is Katie McCoy. She’s an author and speaker. Her latest book is titled To Be A Woman. Good morning, Katie!

KATIE MCCOY: Great to be with you, Nick and Myrna.

EICHER: Well, here we are. It's the day after Thanksgiving and Katie, I hope you were able to enjoy a little time and just give you a quick opportunity to say what you were thankful for this year.

MCCOY: It was great. It was good to be with my family. I'm always thankful for them. And then I'm very thankful for pie. Because let me tell you, I don't think I have ever made so many pies in one year as 2023.

EICHER: I love pie. How about you? Myrna do you love pie?

BROWN: I do but Katie you you gotta be more specific here. Okay. Sweet potato, or pumpkin?

MCCOY: Oh, I have not ventured making sweet potato pie. But I do love pumpkin pie. And then I think my all time favorite is chocolate pecan.

EICHER: Mmmm, yeah. Pie and a long, long walk that is futile. Futile, but it seems like you're at least making the effort, right?

BROWN: That's right. Well, Katie, I want to call your attention to a growing number of young progressive Western women converting to Islam. The impetus for this disturbing trend is the Israel Hamas war. Let's listen to one woman in particular, her so-called journey.

TIKTOK USER: It just seems that Palestinians have this iron clad faith, even in the face of losing quite literally everything and people were commenting underneath saying, Well, yeah, girl, that's Islam. Have you read the Quran? You should probably read the Quran. Like there is no once upon a time. Here is no in the beginning. There is none of that. It was like alright, if you do this, then this happens if you do, like it gets straight into it. I found some things very interesting. Like first it said, oppression is worse than murder. And I was like, that's a word.

29,000 comments from that one post Katie, I scroll down, one after the other, affirming that young woman's post. What do you make of this?

MCCOY: Myrna, we've been doing these for a while now for a few years. And I have to tell you, this is quite possibly the most mind blowing story that I think I've discussed here. When I listened to that clip, there were a few things that stood out. First, this young woman notes that oppressor and oppressed dynamic. The nation of Israel is considered an oppressor. You'll hear that they're colonizers, some people perceive them to be white. This is a capitalist society. Interestingly, it's a secular society, though it's a place where LGBTQ rights are considered the most liberal than anywhere in the Middle East. So it's a secular society, but then shift to what this woman is saying. And she's identifying with that almost in a reaction to Israel. She is wanting to affirm an Islamic faith. And I can't help but think that she did not read the fine print on what Islamic faith says about women. Let me just give you a few things even in recent history, and then get into some of its teaching. You look at the shift in women's rights and education just in Afghanistan since the US military withdrew. Within about a year, girls could no longer attend school, a look up before and after photos of women in Iran following the revolution of 1979. And note, the incredible stricture that they were under, go look at Islamic law, Sharia law and how that treats women things like honor killings, and these honor killings are happening in Muslim communities. Even in Western countries like the United Kingdom. Sharia law stipulates that a young woman can be executed if she is raped, because by being raped, she has allegedly brought dishonor on her family and they punish her. Some Muslim cultures practice child marriage, other Muslim cultures practice female genital mutilation as a way to control women's sexuality. And then in many Muslim cultures, women have to have the permission of a male guardian in order just to travel. Now, I want to find a glimmer of light here, Myrna I really do and so here's the one thing that I think we could say is a glimmer of hope. I think this shows the failure of secularism to provide a sense of identity, belonging and purpose. In our very hyper individualized culture, we still have this impulse to belong to something that is bigger than who we are. For the last decade or so we found that in identity politics and Mary Eberstadt writes about this in her book, Primal Screams, that, that identity politics has replaced family. And then also we've seen not only the decline of family, but the decline of religion and religious influence. And secularism is not cutting it. People are still looking for some type of idea or organizing principle outside of themselves by which they can live and order their lives. And you know, in a very different way, it reminds me of this real influx among Millennials and Gen Z to be attracted to more liturgical expressions of even Christianity. They are wanting that high church. Why? Because religion and religious identity is identity forming, it gives us that sense of belonging. I think this is an opportunity for us as Christians to talk about the identity, the purpose, the belonging, the mission, that we offer the world when we are presenting Christ.

EICHER: I am sure that you follow the story of Ayaan Hirsi Ali. And it's interesting, I thought of her as you were talking there about the failure of secularism because she started out as Islamic, she became an atheist. And now in her own way, as I guess, starting to at least speak favorably of the Christian religion. How do you analyze that in light of all of this?

MCCOY: Yeah, in fact, she's apparently professing to be a Christian herself. It's an interesting thing when she talks about her journey of faith here, because it's almost like she's looking at it from cultural to individual. And I pray if she hasn't already, that she will come to those individual realizations of who Jesus is. But she talks about the Christian faith in terms of its contribution to culture. And she's able to contrast it with other religious influences, whether that is Islam or secularism and see that Christianity offers people a more compelling vision, a counter truth to the secularism that we see today. And really fascinating is how the West owes so much of its value of the individual to the Christian faith. In fact, there are a religious scholars who have talked about how the West sort of poached off of Christianity, its value of the individual. That was not something that the Greco-Roman world gave us, this value of people no matter what their socio economic status, or their gender, or their ethnicity, that is something that the West receive from the influence of Christianity. And so everything that Ms. Ali is saying is accurate. And I hope that she continues on this journey of faith.

BROWN: So Ali is speaking out against this, but there's crickets when it comes to those favoring the you know, the #MeToo Movement, other prominent Western feminists all silent. What do you think about that, Katie?

MCCOY: Oh, yes, because when we look at so many of these social movements, part of why they fall so short in meeting the moment that we're in today is I don't think we could say that they were are anchored in any kind of transcendent truth. Certainly everything that the #MeToo Movement was identifying was anchored at least in a claim of right or wrong, but the trajectory of where it took us where we had to go to create a just and fair society. When you're left with only secular claims, and no transcendent truths to anchor those claims in, you're still devolving everything in terms of these power dynamics that we see today. And so that's part of why the nation of Israel when people in this power dynamic framework, look at it and put it in that oppressor class. It doesn't really matter how they are treated, how they are oppressed. It doesn't matter that Jewish women are horribly mutilated and raped because they belong to this oppressor class in this power dynamic. And it really demonstrates that apart from a justice keeping God we really don't have any claim or framework to anchor justice in.

BROWN: Author and speaker Katie McCoy. Her newest book is titled To Be a Woman. Katie, thank you.

MCCOY: Always good to be with you.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Today is Friday, November 24th. Thank you for turning to WORLD Radio to help start your day.

Good morning. I’m Nick Eicher.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: And I’m Myrna Brown. Coming next on The World and Everything in It…big movies at the box office.

Thanksgiving week tends to be a busy one for movie theaters. Many families have a tradition of going to see a movie during the holiday. But is there anything worth seeing? Here’s arts and culture editor Collin Garbarino.

COLLIN GARBARINO: Apple Studios has been burning the tech company’s cash in its pursuit of accolades and awards. Earlier this year, it spent hundreds of millions of dollars on Martin Scorsese’s historical prestige movie Killers of the Flower Moon—a movie which was never destined to make back its budget. This week, another of Apple’s ridiculously expensive historical films from a storied director arrived in theaters: Ridley Scott’s Napoleon.

NAPOLEON: Wait. Let them think they have the higher ground.

As you might expect, Napoleon tells the story of Napoleon Bonaparte, one of the world’s most famous military leaders. You also might expect a certain amount of stylishness from Ridley Scott and his lead actors Joaquin Phoenix and Vannessa Kirby who play Napoleon and his wife Josephine. What you might not expect is how utterly stupid the movie is.

NAPOLEON: Send in the infantry. Take their position on the higher ground.

This is the kind of movie history buffs get excited for, but director Ridley Scott has a pretty spotty track record when it comes to the genre. His Kingdom of Heaven and Robin Hood are two of my least favorite movies of all time. If you love history, like I do, then you’ll hate Napoleon.

First, Joaquin Phoenix is miscast. He’s too old. The movie begins with the 49-year-old actor playing a 24-year-old Napoleon at the beginning of his career. To make matters worse, in real life, Napoleon’s wife Josephine was six years older than him, but Vannessa Kirby, who actually makes a nice Josephine, is 14 years younger than Phoenix—and she definitely looks it.

The average moviegoer will probably find the battle scenes mildly entertaining, but Ridley Scott doesn’t attempt to be historically accurate. He has Napoleon charging out at the head of the army. On impact, cannonballs inexplicably set a mast of a ship on fire. The battle scenes are pure fantasy. The keen-eyed fan of military history will be appalled to see British squares forming up and firing directly at each other. It’s all very stylish, but it’s all a lot of rubbish.

NAPOLEON: Cavalry from the west. Pierce their flanks!

The film is rated R for some brief language, gory violence, and some sexual content—though there isn’t any nudity.

Ridley Scott isn’t the filmmaker you go to for nuance, but nuance is just what’s needed when talking about Napoleon. He was complicated. And historians still argue over whether he was an enlightened military genius or merely a brutal tyrant.

This movie views everything in Napoleon’s life through the single lens of his relationship with Josephine. He isn’t brilliant, proud, and ambitious. He’s lovesick, jealous, and frustrated—and actually kind of dumb.

I also left Napoleon feeling like Scott was taking a swipe at masculinity itself, attempting to rob one of history’s most consequential men of any distinction.

Let’s move to another new movie I don’t think you should bother seeing.

AUDIO: [Asha singing]

Wish is Disney’s newest animated feature. The young heroine of Wish is Asha, voiced by Ariana Debose. She lives on the island nation of Rosas which is ruled by a benevolent sorcerer named Magnifico, voiced by Chris Pine. Asha hopes to become the sorcerer's apprentice, but she’s horrified when she learns Magnifico is nefarious rather than benevolent, stealing the wishes of his subjects.

MAGNIFICO: They give their wishes to me willingly. I make it so they forget their worries.

ASHA: You make it so they forget the most beautiful part of themselves.

With the help of the wishing star, Asha will set everything right.

Wish takes its inspiration from the idea of “wishing on a star,” which became a central theme in Disney’s marketing. And to be honest, Wish feels less like a movie and more like a marketing campaign to celebrate Disney’s 100 years of animation.

The movie follows the classic formula. We get a talking animal sidekick and six original songs. And the movie is also chock full of references and visual imagery derived from earlier Disney movies. For example, Asha has seven loyal friends who mimic Snow White’s seven dwarfs.

Sadly, the homage to Disney’s better years feels wasted because this film is so disappointing. The storyline, what little of it there is, seems to be an afterthought—a mere framework to stuff in all the references. And the songs are mere echoes of the catchy tunes from Disney’s best musicals.

One particular song sounds downright blasphemous as the characters sing about how we’re all made out of cosmic stardust and we are our own origin story.

MUSIC: [“I’m A Star”]

So we’re all our own wishing stars. And we’re obligated to never give up on our wishes, which the movie says is the most special part of our hearts. Disney’s really dialed up the devilish “follow your heart” theme to the nth degree with this one.

The animation is beautifully rendered, but in terms of engaging story and moral value, Wish is a disaster.

ASHA: [singing] So I make this wish, for us to have something more than this.

Disney fans deserved better than this.

So, it turns out there’s not much to be thankful for this week at the movies. But if you’re looking for a recent historical movie this weekend, you could cue up Jesus Revolution on Netflix. Or if you want a family-pleasing animated movie, you could try The Super Mario Bros. Movie on Peacock.

I’m Collin Garbarino.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Today is Friday, November 24th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Myrna Brown.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher. Up next, listener feedback for the month of November. Let’s start with a correction and a clarification. 

The first is a pronunciation clarification:

JEANETTE DENCID: Hi, this is Jeanette Dencid calling from Miles City, Montana. Long time listener. Love your program, all aspects of it. I wanted to comment on the November 6th History Book about Scottish missionary John Payton that he went over to Tanna, but the name of the country is Vanuatu. We know that because we have been there several times and very good friends of ours are over there now doing a Bible translation. Thank you so much.

Well thank you so much. That’s helpful!

Next, an error that slipped through the cracks from November 6, an item on the War Powers Act. We mistakenly identified President Ford as Henry Ford instead of Gerald Ford. Several listeners caught this one … including Rem Seekman from Bel Air, Michigan:

SEEKMAN: I chuckled at it myself since I would likely have made the same switch in haste. In fact, I needed to go back several times to make sure I heard it correctly. Thank you for your amazing ministry and I’ll continue to listen for the information upon which I have come to depend on a daily basis. Thank you.

BROWN: Before we go today, one more voicemail. This one from a first time caller:

DEREAMER: Hi, my name is Matt Dereamer, just outside of Atlanta, Georgia, and I wanted to call in about Ryan Bomberger’s “We’re all wanted by someone” piece from November 8th, 2023. His piece on this really stuck with me. I listen to it several times, but that final paragraph was just a hit to the heart:

RYAN BOMBERGER: My birthmom chose to be stronger than rape and abortion. My story started in violence. Today, it’s steeped in victory.

It’s just amazing to hear that kind of testimony. So props to Ryan and for his courage and strength to do this type of piece. Thank you.

DEREAMER: It’s just amazing to hear that kind of testimony. So props to Ryan and for his courage and strength to do this type of piece. Thank you.

BROWN: Matt, thanks so much for your encouragement. We’ve sent your comments on to Ryan. I know he appreciates them as well.

EICHER: And just a quick programming note: tomorrow, we have a special weekend episode of The World and Everything in It planned. It’s an extended conversation about forgiveness. A few weeks ago, WORLD’s Paul Butler sat down with pastor and author Chris Brauns to talk to him about his book: Unpacking Forgiveness, our Classic Book of the Month for November.

PAUL BUTLER: So give us some guidance of how do we know when there's something that love should overlook and something that we should move towards reconciliation?

CHRIS BRAUNS: It's such a great question. We have this tension biblically on the one hand, Peter says, “love covers over a multitude of sins” but the book of Proverbs says, “a man's wisdom gives him patience. It's to his glory to overlook an offense.” So we have that on the one end. On the other hand, Matthew 18: “If your brother sins against you go and show him his fault just between the two of you, if he listens to you, you have won your brother over.” So you’re kind of like, which is it?

BROWN: To hear the rest of Pastor Chris Brauns’ answer, be sure to join us for this 40-minute conversation that we think you’ll find helpful and encouraging.

Thanks to everyone who wrote and called in this month. We’re grateful that you listen, and that you take the time to provide thoughtful feedback.

EICHER: If you have comments to share with us you can send them to editor@wng.org. And if you’re writing, would you consider reading your comment and making an audio file attachment? You can do that or you can phone it in at 202-709-9595.

BROWN: And that’s Listener Feedback for this month!

NICK EICHER, HOST: Well, it’s time to say thanks to the team members who helped put the program together this week:

Mary Reichard, David Bahnsen, Emma Perley, Mary Muncy, A.S. Ibrahim, Onize Ohikere, Jenny Lind Schmitt, Janie B. Cheaney, Javier Bolaños, Lauren Canterberry, Anna Johansen Brown, Jenny Rough, Cal Thomas, Katie McCoy, and Collin Garbarino.

And, Gretchen Whittington, with production assistance by Les Sillars.

Thanks also to our breaking news team: Kent Covington, Lynde Langdon, Steve Kloosterman, Travis Kircher, Lauren Canterberry, Christina Grube, and Josh Schumacher.

And, breaking news interns Tobin Jacobson, Johanna Huebscher, and Alex Carmanaty.

And thanks to the guys who stay up late to get the program to you early … Johnny Franklin and Carl Peetz.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Our producer is Harrison Watters. Our production team includes Kristen Flavin, Benj Eicher, Lillian Hamman, Emily Whitten, and Bekah McCallum.

Anna Johansen Brown is features editor, and Paul Butler is executive producer.

The World and Everything in It comes to you from WORLD Radio. WORLD’s mission is biblically objective journalism that informs, educates, and inspires.

The Psalmist writes: “Your testimonies are wonderful, therefore my soul keeps them. The unfolding of your words gives light, it imparts understanding to the simple. I open my mouth and pant, because I long for your commandments.” —Psalm 119: verses 129 - 131.

Be sure to worship with your brothers and sisters in Christ, in church this weekend. And Lord willing, we’ll meet you right back here on Monday.

Go now in grace and peace.

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.