News and Prophecy Staff

Ursula von der Leyen is the current EU Commission President, and on July 1, Angela Merkel took over the six-month rotating presidency of the European Council. Both women are German, and they will occupy Europe’s two most powerful posts. In the words of Spiegel International, “the European Union is set to be run by two German women with a long history.

A recent Guardian article title tells a sobering story: “UK universities suffer worst-ever rankings in world league table” (June 9, 2020). For centuries, English universities have garnered tremendous respect around the world. Cambridge, Oxford, Imperial College London, and other universities in the United Kingdom have long been recognized as some of the best in the world, and have been tremendous sources of pride for the English.

The respected journal Foreign Affairs recently published an article on the emerging role of “middle powers” (“Can Middle Powers Lead the World Out of the Pandemic?,” June 18, 2020).

About a year ago, there appeared to be a thaw in the perpetually tense relationship between North and South Korea, stirring hope for increased unity between the two countries. However, last week North Korea “blew up an inter-Korean liaison office in its city of Kaesong”—an office built in 2018 that was used for inter-Korean meetings (Deutsche Welle, June 16, 2020).

Finnish politician Päivi Räsänen is a physician and a Lutheran who has written on and spoken extensively about homosexuality and the Bible. Her views on homosexuality reflect the Bible’s clear teaching that homosexuality is a sin. As Jonathan Van Maren describes in a May 28 article for First Things, her position and writings on the matter have resulted in her being interrogated by Helsinki police on several occasions.