We start this week’s newsletter with the Houston horror that unfolded last Sunday when a female assailant shot an AR-15 inside prominent pastor Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church.

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The shooter, Genesse Moreno, 36, entered the church with her 7-year-old son and opened fire in a hallway. She was killed when security officers returned fire, The Washington Times’ Mark Kellner reports. Commander Christopher Hassig of the Houston Police Department Homicide Division said she had a “Palestine” sticker on the AR-15’s rifle butt. Moreno had a history of mental issues. Read the full report here.

U.S. Jews express fear, change behavior

Months after Hamas’ October terror attack on Israel, Jews in the U.S. are expressing fears and admitting to changing their behaviors for fear of being victimized in attacks. 

According to Mr. Kellner, a new survey from the American Jewish Committee found that “46% of U.S. Jews it surveyed said they had changed their behavior and 63% said they feel ‘less secure than a year ago.’” 

There’s more to the stunning data here.

North Carolina lieutenant governor’s vow

The lieutenant governor of North Carolina is on a mission to “defend women,” proclaiming at a recent campaign stop that “transgender women should be arrested if they use women’s bathrooms,” The Times’ Victor Morton reports.

Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the Republican frontrunner for governor, pledged to defend females, offering words that quickly captured media attention. Read what Mr. Robinson had to say here.

Muslim parents can pull kids out of gender classes

Muslim parents in a suburban Minneapolis school district will be able to keep their children out of a gender identity and sexuality curriculum that’s part of elementary school English classes, Mr. Kellner reports.

The school system also will grant exemption requests for middle and high school students, said First Liberty Institute, one of the groups working on the case for the Somali American parents.

Harvard back in the crosshairs

Harvard University is back in critics’ crosshairs, with The Times’ Sean Salai reporting that the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a free speech advocacy group, has “rebuked Harvard University with an ironic ‘lifetime censorship award,’ chiding it for censoring campus expression on hot-button issues from gender identity to Israel.”

Here’s why Harvard’s “speech policing” didn’t sit too well with the watchdog.

New Hampshire bans ‘he/she’ on state websites

Over in New Hampshire, a collection of terms have been banned from state websites to foster “inclusivity and respect.” Words such as “elderly” and “normal” will be no more.

“The guidelines suggest avoiding words traditionally tied to gender, proposing alternatives like ‘human-made’ instead of ‘man-made,’” The Times reports. “Additionally, terms such as ‘chairman’ and ‘manhole’ are discouraged in favor of gender-neutral expressions.” Read more about the changes here.

A new family-friendly kids show

Ryan and Katy Chase are the creators of the new DailyWire Bentkey show “A Wonderful Day With Mabel Maclay.” They  joined “Higher Ground” (watch the video) to explore their belief the streaming service is providing something “parents and families are really thirsty for.” 

Inspired by Mr. Rogers and Mary Poppins, the couple hopes the show will encourage children to embrace imagination and creativity while staying true to family values. Find out more about this exciting project.

In our opinion

Ad outrage.  A Jesus-themed Super Bowl commercial sparked reactions ranging from frustration to accolades. Columnist Billy Hallowell ponders why he believes many people could be reading it all wrong.

“Some have viewed the He Gets Us ad as a treatise of sorts compelling Christians to bow to certain ideologies or lifestyles, endorse anti-biblical sentiments, or water down the Gospel,” Mr. Hallowell writes. “But my initial reading of the ad was quite different. What I saw amid a mixture of photos were numerous images representing people living unbiblical and sinful lives or making unfortunate choices in violation of biblical truth.” Read the full piece.

Why did God allow the Lakewood Church shooting?  That’s the question Jason Jimenez asked in a recent column for The Times, with Mr. Jimenez noting that such horrific events can cause us to ask questions about our faith and to ponder why these occurrences are permitted to unfold.

“As Christians, we turn to our faith for guidance, finding solace within the pages of the Bible,” he writes. “While the Word of God may not offer immediate solutions or eradicate all forms of suffering, it does impart profound wisdom and hope that can sustain us through our most challenging times.” Read everything Mr. Jimenez had to say here.

Apologies for the past?  Everett Piper fielded a truly interesting question this week: “Why are modern Christians asked to apologize for misdeeds over the centuries?” The inquiry came from an individual noticing a pattern of asking Christians today to apologize for past issues — something that didn’t sit well with the person. Here’s what Mr. Piper had to say.