In the news recently …

A $700 digital microscope helped unlock “hidden” editorial notes in a 1,100-year-old Hebrew Bible known as the “Codex Sassoon,” a noted scholar said.

The Bible — which sold Wednesday for $38 million at Sotheby’s in New York City — is one of six ancient “key manuscripts” from the Middle Ages that conveyed the authoritative Masoretic text of what Christians call the Old Testament to later scribes.

Alfred H. Moses, a former U.S. ambassador to Romania, paid for the acquisition and donated the volume to the ANU Museum of the Jewish People in Tel Aviv. It last changed hands in 1989 for less than one-tenth of the 2023 sales price.

But Nehemia Gordon, executive director of the Institute for Hebrew Bible Manuscript Research in Bedford, Texas, said in a telephone interview that the Codex Sassoon was actually “invaluable.” A digital microscope from Dino-Lite Digital Microscope and backlighting behind each page “made it possible to read a lot of these proofreading notes — called Mesora notes — that were covered over” when leather strips were added to the volume to reinforce the binding.

One of America’s best-known “megachurch” congregations — Saddleback Church in Orange County, California — is appealing its February expulsion from the Southern Baptist Convention.

The church, which averaged nearly 24,000 weekly attendees in 2020, was kicked out because it designated a woman as a “teaching pastor,” which is disallowed under SBC rules.

Delegates to the annual business meeting of America’s largest Protestant denomination will vote June 13 on Saddleback’s appeal. The Rev. Rick Warren, Saddleback’s founding pastor, said he is making the appeal on behalf of hundreds of other SBC pastors who fear “a new inquisition” if the denomination cracks down on female pastors.

The Los Angeles Dodgers were going to recognize a drag troupe who sport nuns’ habits as part of their act, our Valerie Richardson reported.

Then, Catholic advocates — including Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, CatholicVote [c.q.] and the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights — weighed in, and the MLB team decided to balk.

“Given the strong feelings of people who have been offended by the sisters’ inclusion in our evening, and in an effort not to distract from the great benefits that we have seen over the years of Pride Night, we are deciding to remove them from this year’s group of honorees,” the Dodgers said Wednesday in a statement about its plans to give a “Community Hero Award” to the local chapter of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.

Among other reactions to the Dodger’s retreat, Mr. Rubio tweeted: “For once, common sense prevailed in California.”

A pro-life advocate told Congress last week that his family was traumatized by an early morning FBI raid on their rural Pennsylvania home, Valerie Richardson reported.

Although Matthew Houck offered to turn himself in on charges of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, the raid was carried out. Why?

“I’ve been thinking about that for many months, and I can only come up with that the intention was to humiliate me, to scare my children, and to instill fear in pro-life America,” Mr. Houck told members of a House Judiciary subcommittee.

A jury acquitted Mr. Houck of all charges in January. But the activist, a Catholic, said his family still deals with the aftermath.

“I see it every day in their faces. I see it in my wife. Just the fear in their eyes,” Mr. Houck said. “Certainly, they have a fear of law enforcement now, because the law enforcement guys come after the bad guys, not the good guys. So my children are confounded by that.”

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, more commonly known as the Mormon Church, generally revere their president as the movement’s “prophet, seer and revelator.”

Last week, 98-year-old Russell M. Nelson, the oldest president and longest-living apostle, admitted that he uses a walker or a wheelchair to deal with “a small challenge” involving balance.

Mr. Nelson, who dedicated the refurbished LDS Temple in Kensington, Maryland, in August, said on social media, “You may have heard a rumor that someone saw me somewhere using a walker or a wheelchair. Well, it’s not a rumor.”

The Mormon Church, which has 17 million members around the world, offered no comment beyond Mr. Nelson’s statement.

Actor Kirk Cameron, who rose to fame on the ABC sitcom “Growing Pains,” is having few real growing pains in his burgeoning new career as a children’s book author.

Valerie Richardson reported that Mr. Cameron will release “Price Comes Before the Fall” on June 1, the first day of LGBTQ Pride Month.

“This is a story called ‘Pride Comes Before the Fall,’ and it’s a story about a tiger named Valor and his partner named Kevin. They need to learn the lesson of humility,” Mr. Cameron told a crowd of parents and children during an appearance at the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Some 1,000 parents and children showed up to hear Mr. Cameron read from “As You Grow,” his first children’s book. Evangelist Franklin Graham appeared with the actor.

Hallowell: Did Facebook censor Jesus?

You’d think a simple Christian truth wouldn’t cause much trouble on Facebook, the social media site used by tens of millions worldwide.

But, as columnist Billy Hallowell found out, posting six words — “Jesus died so you could live” — can summon the wrath of the social network’s minions.

Facebook, he writes, flagged the post with a message: “Your post goes against our Community Standards on hate speech.” Billy was warned his account “may be restricted or disabled” for another “violation.”

What happened next? And what does this incident suggest about the future of Christian messaging on Facebook? Read the column to find out.

Piper: Elite university defends attack on conservative students

It costs just under $84,000 a year for an undergraduate student to attend Northwestern University, one of the nation’s top universities, with the bulk of that being tuition of $60,276 a year. 

For that money, one might expect exposure to a wide range of worldviews and opinions, but those seeking conservative voices might find those perspectives silenced, our columnist Everett Piper writes.

The school’s Associated Student Government — which dispenses funds to campus organizations — “froze” funding to Northwestern University College Republicans after the group invited James Lindsay, a critic of “critical race theory.”

A school spokesman said that while Mr. Lindsay’s opinions are “protected by free speech,” those expressions do “not align with Northwestern’s commitment to diversity and inclusion.”

Mr. Piper’s verdict? “Our nation’s schools have elevated feelings over facts. Education is no longer about pursuing truth; rather, it’s now about protecting opinions.”

Our contributor Everett Piper is not only a columnist and commentator, he’s also a former university president who holds a doctoral degree and a lifetime of common-sense experience.

Along with commentary, our “Dr. E, Ph.D.” is answering reader questions with guidance for today’s changing world.

In his inaugural advice column, Dr. E answers a reader who asks why “Christians” emphasize abortion as opposed to, say, the deaths of innocents during war. He offers an interesting perspective and challenging questions that will likely lead readers to think about the larger issues involved.

There’s more! “Dr. E” is here for you — send your life questions to askeverett@washingtontimes.com, and he may include them in the column.