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Middle School Reading Lists 100 Years Ago Vs. Today

One of the striking features of the Edina list is how recent the titles are. Many of the selections were published in the 21st century. In fact, only four of the selections are more than 20 years old.

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And you wonder why people were so much smarter a hundred years ago?

“I will fetch my knowledge from afar, and will ascribe righteousness to my Maker.” Job 36:3

I recently dug up a 1908 curriculum manual in the Minnesota Historical Society archives. It provided instructions on everything from teacher deportment to recommended literature lists for various grades. As a book lover, I was especially interested in the latter!

public-school-reading-lists-100-years-ago-vs-today

With the exception of a few textbook-like anthologies, the chart below lists the recommended reading material for Minnesota 7th and 8th graders in 1908:

public-school-reading-lists-1908

With such a list in hand, I decided to examine if the common accusation that today’s education standards have been dumbed down is really true. To make sure I wasn’t unfairly weighting this survey in favor of the past, I went to one of the Twin Cities metro area’s finest districts, namely, Edina Public Schools. Again, with the exception of a few textbook anthologies, the list below offers the reading options for their 7th and 8th grade students:

public-school-reading-lists-2014

In examining these lists, I noticed three important differences between the reading content of these two eras:

1. Time Period

One of the striking features of the Edina list is how recent the titles are. Many of the selections were published in the 21st century. In fact, only four of the selections are more than 20 years old.

In comparison, over half of the titles on the first list were at least 20 years old in 1908, with many of them averaging between 50 to 100 years old.

Older is not necessarily better, but the books on the first list suggest that schools of the past were more likely to give their students time-tested, classic literature, rather than books whose popularity may happen to be a passing fad.

2. Thematic Elements

A second striking difference between the two book lists are the themes they explore. The first is full of historical references and settings which stretch from ancient Greece (Tanglewood Tales) to the Middle Ages (Harold, Last of Saxon Kings) to the founding of America (Courtship of Miles Standish). Through highly recognized authors such as Longfellow, Stevenson, Kipling, and Dickens, these titles introduce children to a vast array of themes crucial to understanding the foundations upon which America and western civilization were built.

The Edina list, however, largely deals with modern history, particularly hitting on many current political and cultural themes such as the Taliban (The Breadwinner), cloning, illegal immigrants, the drug war (The House of the Scorpion), and deeply troubled youth (Touching Spirit Bear). In terms of longstanding, classic authors, Mark Twain and Ray Bradbury are the only ones who stand out.

It’s good for children to understand the world in which they live, but as with any area in life, you can have too much of a good thing. A continual focus on modern literature narrows the lens through which children can view and interpret the world. Would it not be better to broaden their horizons and expose them to a balance of both old and new literature?

3. Reading Level

Many of the books on the Edina list use fairly simple, understandable language and vocabulary familiar to the modern reader. Consider the first paragraph of Nothing But the Truth:

“Coach Jamison saw me in the hall and said he wanted to make sure I’m trying out for the track team!!!! Said my middle school gym teacher told him I was really good!!!! Then he said that with me on the Harrison High team we have a real shot at being county champs. Fantastic!!!!!! He wouldn’t say that unless he meant it. Have to ask folks about helping me get new shoes. Newspaper route won’t do it all. But Dad was so excited when I told him what Coach said that I’m sure he’ll help.”

On the other hand, consider the first paragraph of Longfellow’s Evangeline:

“This is the forest primeval. The murmuring pines and the hemlocks,
Bearded with moss, and in garments green, indistinct in the twilight,
Stand like Druids of eld, with voices sad and prophetic,
Stand like harpers hoar, with beards that rest on their bosoms.
Loud from its rocky caverns, the deep-voiced neighboring ocean
Speaks, and in accents disconsolate answers the wail of the forest.”

The first example uses simple words and a casual sentence structure, while the second uses a rich vocabulary and a complex writing format. Naturally, some might look at the second selection and say, “Good grief! How do you expect a child to understand that?!?”

But that’s the whole point. Unless we give our students challenging material to dissect, process, and study, how can we expect them to break out of the current poor proficiency ratings and advance beyond a basic reading level?

My takeaway from this comparison? It’s great that schools today have students read contemporary literature. But we still need to make sure that students also read good literature from the past and are sufficiently challenged.

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Bible Doctrine

The Coming World Government Will Raise The Jews And Israel Above All The Other Nations On Earth With Jesus Christ Ruling On The Throne Of David In Jerusalem

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The Bible declares the day is coming when King Jesus will restore the Jews as His people and Israel as His holy land

The other day I watched something truly incredible, I saw Tucker Carlson in an interview with US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, and they were discussing who has the right to the land of Israel. In near disbelief, I watched as Tucker suggested compelling Jews in the Middle East to submit to a ‘Mischling Test’ created by the Nazis in WWII to determine bloodlines, and only the Jews who ‘passed the test’ would be allowed to live in the land of Israel. It was a total Twilight Zone moment, and the funny thing is, nearly no one is prepared for how the Bible says it will actually go.

“He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.” Luke 1:32,33 (KJB)

So let me help you today by showing you what your King James Bible decrees to be the absolute truth of what will most assuredly happen when Jesus Christ returns with His Body on white horses at the Second Advent to restore the Jews and the nation of Israel. This is information virtually unknown on social media and not preached in most churches including Baptist churches.

1). Israel becomes the center of the world

For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth.” Deuteronomy 14:2 (KJB)

When King Jesus sets up His government, it will be smack-dab in the literal, physical and visible modern-day Israel that is held in such disdain and low account here in our day. The hallowed halls of the stately thrones of Europe along with the power and might of the great America are tossed to the side like so much garbage on a trash heap in favor of the world’s most-deadly piece of dirt, Israel, as the place where Jesus sets up shop. No, this is not happening spiritually, metaphorically or in ‘types and pictures’, this happens in 3D Earth time as the world watches. The land that is now so despised, by Jew and Gentile alike, becomes literal holy ground. Israel will stand above, not among, all the nations of the Earth, and the inhabitants of Earth will bow down before it.

2). The Jews will be on top

“Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.” Zechariah 8:23 (KJB)

You want to talk about ‘Zionist conspiracies’? This is a good one! Imagine King Jesus returns as the Bible says He will, and when His government is set up, if you want to know what’s going on, you got to go find a Jew to teach you a few things about the new system. Gentile rule and dominion? Dead as a doornail and never to be seen again. Times of the Gentiles are now finished, and the lowly, maligned and hated Jew is now on top. Democracies and Republics are yesterday’s news, welcome to the real Theocracy.

3). The land of Israel will be massive

“In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: The Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites, And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims, And the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.” Genesis 15:18-21 (KJB)

Israel in 2026 exists as a sliver of land roughly the size of the state of New Jersey, but in the new government, it will be quite a bit larger. This new Israel will include what is now the upper-right portion of Egypt, all of modern-day Israel, all of Lebanon, all of of Syria, a piece of Turkey, half of Iraq, the northern half of Jordan, and a little slice of Saudi Arabia. What will happen to the Palestinians that everyone is so concerned about? The LORD kicks them out of the land that never has, and never will, belong to them. Zechariah 14:21 says “…and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.” One state solution, check.

“For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him: lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations.” Numbers 23:9 (KJB)

You know why you don’t understand the Middle East? Because you’re not looking at it how the Bible looks at it. Because if you did, you would clearly see that in the last days, the Jews will be apostate and not in a right relationship with God, just as they are right now. But their restoration is coming. You would see how Israel was called to be separate from all the nations, not a part of the United Nations, the Trump Board of Peace, or any of that other ungodly junk, and God won’t let them stay there. When you study the Bible, it gives you the long game, and leads you to the proper conclusions. But when you get your information from the headlines, you’re playing the short game on something that’s already been decided, and you wind up on the side of the antisemites like Tucker Carlson, Chuck Baldwin and all the others. God is preparing to soon place the Jews and Israel into the time of Jacob’s trouble, and not to worry, they will be judged to a degree you cannot even begin to imagine. But when it’s done, and the remnant is brought through the refining fire, Israel will reign supreme over the whole world and the Jews will be exactly where God always intended for them to be. So be smart – study your Bible, play the long game, and get on the winning side.

Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church

When you contribute to this fundraising effort, you are helping us to do what the Lord called us to do. The money you send in goes primarily to the overall daily operations of this site. When people ask for Bibles, we send them out at no charge. When people write in and say how much they would like gospel tracts but cannot afford them, we send them a box at no cost to them for either the tracts or the shipping, no matter where they are in the world. We have a Gospel Billboard program. We are now broadcasting Bible studies, Podcasts and a Sunday Service 5 times a week, thanks to your generous donations. All this is possible because YOU pray for us, YOU support us, and YOU give so we can continue growing.

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But whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Time is short and we need your help right now. The Lord has given us an open door with a tremendous ‘course’ for us to fulfill that will create an excellent experience at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please pray for our efforts, and if the Lord leads you to donate, be as generous as possible. The war is REAL, the battle HOT and the time is SHORTTO THE FIGHT!!!

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)

“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB

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Donald Trump

Trump Finds Out That A 15% Tariff On The Whole World, Plans To Reveal ‘The Truth’ About Aliens And All-Out War With Iran Still Doesn’t Quash The Epstein Files

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Donald Trump is watching his presidency implode as he threatens war with Iran, the ‘truth’ about space aliens and a 15% tax on the entire world to distract from the Epstein Files

What we are watching now with sitting president Donald Trump is truly historic, something the American people have not witnessed under any other president. A 15% tariff on the whole world. Promises to unveil the truth about aliens. Escalating rhetoric toward a soon all-out war with Iran. And yet none of it is enough to silence the growing storm surrounding the Epstein files. The more power that is flexed, the less control appears to exist.

Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help.” Psalm 146:3 (KJB)

The American Right once crowned Donald Trump as the bulwark against cultural decay, global corruption, and deep-state tyranny. He was framed as the man who would save a nation drifting from God. But now, the façade has cracked, and what we see is not triumph—but a prophetic unraveling of the world’s most-powerful nation in the last days.

One of the most glaring examples of this unraveling is Trump’s Board of Peace — a self-styled global governance body that was supposed to be his legacy-defining achievement on the world stage. Instead, it is revealing strategic confusion, lack of coherent accomplishment, and diplomatic rejection. Trump’s Board of Peace was formally established with much fanfare as an international peace and reconstruction mechanism for war-torn Gaza and beyond. It has a charter and ambitious goals to restore stability, lawful governance, and peace in conflict zones. But the reality on the ground tells a far different story.

On paper, Trump and his allies claimed billions in pledges and troop commitments to rebuild Gaza. In reality, despite announcements of $5-10 billion in pledges to rebuild, no reconstruction has yet begun. Gaza remains devastated, crushed under rubble and suffering without meaningful relief or transformation. Even the Vatican refused to join the Board, citing concern that it undermines the role of the United Nations — leaving Trump’s vision isolated on the world stage.

We have global tariffs slapped on the world economy — a geopolitical sledgehammer masquerading as economic policy. We have proclamations about revealing “alien truths” — a grand narrative diversion. We have escalating rhetoric toward confrontation with Iran — keeping the world on edge. And yet even these theatrics cannot bury the Epstein files, cannot stabilize Gaza, and cannot salvage Trump’s political momentum.

Is the presidency collapsing? Politically speaking, yes — Trump’s political capital and credibility are eroding under the weight of lies, contradictions and unmet promises. But what is truly collapsing is the myth that the next election, the next president, or the next political savior will save America. That belief has been shattered on the rocks of reality. America is lost, and there is none to save her. Donald Trump has become the Swamp and the Deep State embodied in a single person.

In the three weeks since the last release of the Epstein Files, a staggering amount of damage has been done. Hyatt Hotels heir Thomas Pritzker on Monday resigned his post as the executive chairman of the hotel company. Kathy Ruemmler announced last week that she was stepping down as Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel at the investment bank Goldman Sachs, effective June 30. DP World Limited, one of the largest logistics companies in the world, announced last week that its chairman and CEO, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, had resigned, effective immediately. Peter Mandelson, a member of the House of Lords in the United Kingdom, stepped down from the Labour Party earlier this month, after his name appeared in the newly released documents multiple times. And former prince of England Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on his 66th birthday. Haverford College students and alumni are calling on the school to remove Trump’s Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s name from its library after revelations about Lutnick’s ties to the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. All this is just the tip of the iceberg, something that the Trump Department of Justice seems to have absolutely zero interest in investigating. That by itself tells you everything you need to know.

The longer it goes on, the closer it all gets to Trump, and at some point he will realize that, short of starting WWIII, he is powerless to do anything about it. Everything about his presidency is fake, all of it illusion, and the house of cards he has built is about to meet the storm that can’t be stopped. Q drop that.

Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church

When you contribute to this fundraising effort, you are helping us to do what the Lord called us to do. The money you send in goes primarily to the overall daily operations of this site. When people ask for Bibles, we send them out at no charge. When people write in and say how much they would like gospel tracts but cannot afford them, we send them a box at no cost to them for either the tracts or the shipping, no matter where they are in the world. We have a Gospel Billboard program. We are now broadcasting Bible studies, Podcasts and a Sunday Service 5 times a week, thanks to your generous donations. All this is possible because YOU pray for us, YOU support us, and YOU give so we can continue growing.

nteb-free-king-james-bible-program-750-550

But whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Time is short and we need your help right now. The Lord has given us an open door with a tremendous ‘course’ for us to fulfill that will create an excellent experience at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please pray for our efforts, and if the Lord leads you to donate, be as generous as possible. The war is REAL, the battle HOT and the time is SHORTTO THE FIGHT!!!

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)

“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB

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I Am Watching In Shock As Baptist Churches Are Now ‘Observing The Season Of Lent’ That Comes Directly From The Roman Catholic Counterfeit Church

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There is no doctrine of Lent found anywhere in the Bible, it is purely a creation of the Roman Catholic counterfeit church

Every year, as winter fades into spring, millions of professing Roman Catholics line up to receive ashes on their foreheads and begin a 40-day religious observance called Lent. They fast, they abstain, they “give something up,” and they prepare for Easter through ritual and self-denial. But here is the question every Bible believer must ask: Where is Lent found in the King James Bible?

“Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,” Colossians 2:18 (KJB)

Historically, Lent developed centuries after the apostles were dead. It grew within the Roman Catholic system as biblical Christianity was merged with imperial power and pagan culture. The 40-day structure was patterned after Christ’s temptation in the wilderness — yet that event occurred before His earthly ministry began, not as preparation for celebrating His resurrection.

There is no biblical instruction to imitate Christ’s 40-day fast annually. Furthermore, Ash Wednesday — the ceremonial marking of foreheads — is nowhere commanded in the New Testament. It is ritualized symbolism borrowed from Old Testament mourning practices and institutionalized by Rome. The Roman Catholic Church would have you to believe that Lent is about fasting and repentance, but is really the pagan rite of Weeping for Tammuz.

Bible believers do not borrow doctrine from a system that:

  • Teaches sacramental salvation
  • Maintains a priesthood distinct from the believer
  • Claims authority equal to Scripture
  • Persecutes Bible believers throughout history

We are not Protestants protesting Rome. We are Bible believers standing on the Book. At least, that’s what we’re supposed to be doing, but it’s not stopping Baptist churches like First Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Florida, from jumping on the Lent bandwagon. In a recent YouTube video entitled ‘Why Lent Matters’, they had this to say about Lent.

Lent is a season that invites us to slow down and recalibrate our hearts before Easter. It reminds us of a hard but necessary truth—we are dust: finite, sinful, and deeply in need of God’s grace. Yet this season does not leave us in sorrow; it leads us to the cross, where we see both the seriousness of our sin and the overwhelming love of Christ, who bore judgment so we could receive mercy. As we reflect, repent, and turn back to God, Lent trains us to live in hope, fixing our eyes on the resurrection. From dust to glory, it tells the whole gospel story and prepares us to rejoice in the victory of Jesus.” 

First of all, Christians should not be celebrating the pagan Easter holiday, another Roman Catholic invention plucked from ancient Babylon. Christians celebrate the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ on the third day according to the scripture, that’s our focus. Secondly, to say that “Lent is a season that invites us to…” is pure surrender to the Roman Catholic Church, the inventors of Lent. I am not accepting any invitations to pray to the saints, eat the Eucharist, burn incense, put an ash cross on my forehead or get in the box with a priest. Please have me excused from all of it.

On the surface to the average person, Lent appears harmless. It feels ‘spiritual’. It creates community, and it carries emotional weight. But so does every religious tradition that replaces Bible authority with institutional custom. The early Church did not observe Lent, the apostles did not command Lent, Paul did not teach Lent. Rome developed it at the Council of Nicea, their tradition preserved it, Pope Gregory I added the ashes, and many evangelicals and Baptists now imitate it. Bible believers should reject it across the board.

If a Christian chooses to fast privately before the Lord, that is between them and God, as it should be. But submitting to a Roman system of seasonal ritual complete with ashes, imposed abstinence, and church calendar obligation is not New Testament Christianity. We are not called to ritual, we are called to a risen Saviour, Jesus the Christ.

“And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:” Colossians 2:10 (KJB)

Complete means complete, and Bible believers do not need a Roman Catholic Lent to finish what Jesus Christ has already finished.

Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church

When you contribute to this fundraising effort, you are helping us to do what the Lord called us to do. The money you send in goes primarily to the overall daily operations of this site. When people ask for Bibles, we send them out at no charge. When people write in and say how much they would like gospel tracts but cannot afford them, we send them a box at no cost to them for either the tracts or the shipping, no matter where they are in the world. We have a Gospel Billboard program. We are now broadcasting Bible studies, Podcasts and a Sunday Service 5 times a week, thanks to your generous donations. All this is possible because YOU pray for us, YOU support us, and YOU give so we can continue growing.

nteb-free-king-james-bible-program-750-550

But whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Time is short and we need your help right now. The Lord has given us an open door with a tremendous ‘course’ for us to fulfill that will create an excellent experience at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please pray for our efforts, and if the Lord leads you to donate, be as generous as possible. The war is REAL, the battle HOT and the time is SHORTTO THE FIGHT!!!

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)

“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB

Continue Reading

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