Let’s start this week’s newsletter off with a major “Sound of Freedom” update. Tim Ballard, whose real-life battle against child trafficking is the subject of the hit film, this week urged the Biden administration to take action to protect immigrant children.

Mr. Ballard joined Republican Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey Tuesday to push legislation requiring federal officials to track down the estimated 85,000 unaccompanied minors no longer being tracked by the government. His quest? To protect these kids from exploitation.

Subscribe to have the Higher Ground newsletter delivered to your inbox every Sunday.

“So my question for this administration: Why will you not at the very least give these foreign children that same protection?” Mr. Ballard asked during a press conference. “You’re giving them no protection, hardly any at all. In fact, what you’re giving them is a joke.”

GOP senator’s show-stopping moment

As Americans debate censorship and sexually explicit books, Congress is getting in on the conversation.

“Senate Democrats decrying school boards and parents for censorship got more than they bargained for when Sen. John Kennedy began reading aloud from a couple of the ‘banned books,’” The Washington Times’ Valerie Richardson reports, She noted the Louisiana Republican held little back, sharing two explicit scenes directly from books “All Boys Aren’t Blue” and “Gender Queer.”

And Mr. Kennedy wasn’t done there, as he followed up with a lesson differentiating between censorship and loving acts aimed at protecting children.

NFL star credits God with child’s healing

On the sports front, New Orleans Saints linebacker Demario Davis spoke at a post-game press conference Sunday, crediting God for healing his 4-year-old daughter, Carly-Faith, who recovered after suffering a 30-minute seizure Friday. Mr. Davis said he relied on prayer throughout the terrifying ordeal.

“God gave me just what I asked for, plus some,” he said. “I was blown away.” Read more about the recovery and Mr. Davis’ praise for the Almighty here.

Pastor faces Chinese Communist Party horrors

Bob Fu, Chinese-American pastor and founder of ChinaAid, tells Higher Ground’s Billy Hallowell the story of a Chinese pastor who is facing massive fines for hosting a house church without official government registration.

A foreign concept in America, churches cannot legally meet in China without government approval and face prison and fines if they do not comply with the Chinese Communist Party’s regulations. Watch the shocking discussion.

200 Auburn students baptized after worship program

Lit by automobile headlights and buoyed by the cheers from their peers, 200 students at Auburn University in eastern Alabama were baptized Tuesday night after a campus worship program blossomed into a revival.

A crowd reported to comprise 2,000 to 2,500 students stood around the lake near the university‘s “Red Barn,” where six pastors and others — including Auburn football coach Hugh Freeze — helped baptize the young adults wishing to signify a Christian commitment.

“I do believe that God wants to heal this nation of mental health things, of the bondage that students find themselves in and just kind of the crisis is going on around our nation,” said Tonya Prewett, an organizer of the “Unite Auburn” event. “I believe that that will happen through prayer and through God moving across this nation.”

Lawmakers want more funding to secure synagogues

A bipartisan group of members of Congress are calling for more funding to protect synagogues and other houses of worship.

According to figures released by the Anti-Defamation League in March, antisemitic incidents in the United States last year hit a record-high total of 3,697, including 91 bomb threats.

The two Republicans and two Democrats want the Nonprofit Security Grant Program increased to $360 million from $305 million in fiscal 2024, which starts Oct. 1. They called for the increase during a security briefing at the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center organized by the Jewish Federations of North America, the Secure Community Network, the Anti-Defamation League and the Orthodox Union, among other Jewish groups.

The meeting was held Tuesday, several days before the observance of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and a 10-day period of introspection leading up to Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.

Women file complaints over abortion denial

Meanwhile, abortion is dominating the social and political landscape. The Times’ Alex Swoyer reports on a new legal challenge from women denied abortions in three states where the procedure is mostly banned.

According to Ms. Swoyer, these women, who filed a federal complaint to the Department of Health and Human Services, seek to undo state prohibitions and argue their ”lives were at stake when they were denied necessary medical treatment.”

“The women, represented by the Center for Reproductive Rights, are asking courts in Idaho, Tennessee and Oklahoma to clarify when doctors can invoke medical exceptions to the abortion bans, allowing a pregnant woman facing complications to receive an abortion,” she writes.

Increase in abortions raises questions

Times reporter Sean Salai reports that an increase in the number of abortions since the Supreme Court’s ruling last year overturning Roe v. Wade is raising important questions.

“New figures show that the number of abortions increased during the first six months of 2023, compared to the same period in 2020, when the procedure was legal throughout the country,” Mr. Salai writes. “The numbers cast doubt on the effectiveness of states’ restrictions on abortion since the Supreme Court ended a national right to the procedure in June 2022.”

Read more about the rise in abortions here.

Abortion ad featuring Jesus angers Catholics

Also on the abortion front, conservative Catholics are pushing for the removal of an abortion rights ad that includes a venerated image of Jesus.

CatholicVote President Brian Burch called for Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights to remove the 30-second ad promoting Ohio Issue 1, a major pro-choice amendment on the November ballot.

Read more here.

Iranian crackdown

On the liberty front, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom released a report Tuesday finding Iran’s theocratic government cracked down on peaceful protests seeking more religious freedom after the 2022 killing of Mahsa Zhina Amini at the hands of morality police.

“As many as 537 Iranians have been killed in protests over the young woman’s death and the Iranian regime’s insistence that women wear a hijab in public, human rights advocates say, according to the USCIRF survey,” Higher Ground co-author Mark Kellner reports. “Amini was reportedly detained for failing to wear the mandatory head scarf.”

The report recommended the U.S. take the lead to try to remedy the inequalities and crackdowns. Read more here.

Silent prayer outside clinics lawful

With at least three people being arrested for silent prayer outside abortion clinics in the United Kingdom, a letter from British Home Secretary Suella Braverman could spark reform and help put the issue to rest, as Ms. Braverman said there’s nothing illegal about such silent prayers.

“It is worth remembering that silent prayer, in itself, is not unlawful,” the Conservative member of Parliament wrote. “I am concerned that confidence in policing has been affected by perceptions that the police have in recent years been seen, on occasion, to be taking a political stance.”

Despite the letter being drafted and shared, uncertainties plague at least two Christians arrested or fined for violating Public Spaces Protection Orders.

In our opinion

Over on the opinion pages, Mr. Hallowell tackles a California bill that would punish parents who decline to “affirm” their kids’ transgender identities. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, currently traversing America as he seeks the Republican presidential nomination amid a crowded field, boldly called Assembly Bill 957 “evil” after it passed the California legislature.

“It’s the sort of recipe that yields a toxic cocktail for ignorantly endangering kids and families while also targeting religious sensibilities and liberties,” Mr. Hallowell writes about the measure. “Thus, Mr. Scott’s decision to label it ‘evil,’ an ‘absurdity’ and ‘un-American’ seems pretty succinct.”

Meanwhile, over on the “Ask Dr. E” column, Everett Piper tackles whether Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) meshes with Christianity.

“There are many reasons DEI should be refuted by all biblical Christians (or any thoughtful conservative or even a classical liberal, for that matter),” Mr. Piper writes, before delving into his reasons.

And, finally, Plugged In has your guide to TV show binging, exploring shows such as “The Wheel of Time,” “Ahsoka” and “Virgin River.”