Behind Our Spin
A friend of mine,while thumbing through a newspaper, recently remarked, “I’m so sick of reading about murders, weather disasters and diseases—just give me the sports section! I’m tired of hearing bad news all the time.”
I can’t really blame him. He’s right. Today’s newspapers and magazines are filled mostly with bad news. But there is a unique publication that delivers good news. This one.
Unlike any other newspaper or magazine currently in circulation, The Philadelphia Trumpet doesn’t just report the news—it explains why the news happens. The Trumpet goes beyond analyzing current events, and dares to forecast what will happen in the months and years ahead.
How do we do it?
Simple. The Trumpet uses the Holy Bible as its primary resource. That’s right! The Trumpet relies on revelation from God.
The Bible is the foundation of all knowledge—past, present and future. Therefore, by using the word of God as a guide, the Trumpet can boldly and accurately proclaim the truth behind today’s news. We are also able to see sharply into the future because we focus information about world events through the dual lenses of biblical history and prophecy.
Some are offended by our frequent references to Scripture. We occasionally receive questions like, “Can’t you write anything without citing a Proverb, mentioning the prophet Jeremiah or the gospel according to John?” “Why does the Trumpet keep quoting the Bible?”
These are good questions! Let us explain.
Every major magazine has a viewpoint. Each approaches the issues of the day from its individual editorial standpoint. Some stand for unobtrusive, conservative values. Others proclaim more radical ideas. Many publications focus primarily on entertainment and “soft news,” while ignoring or downplaying true global trends.
Almost all periodicals, in catering to their readers’ interests, present their material with a certain “spin.” But the Trumpet is different. It strives to avoid “political correctness” and scholarly reasoning. Instead, it accurately explains what God Almighty has to say about current events.
Think about this: Is today’s news—with its reports of homicides, earthquakes and killer viruses—merely a series of isolated happenings, or is there indeed something big going on behind the scenes? If so, how do these apparently unrelated events fit into that pattern?
The answer is found in the prophecies once delivered to the 12 ancient tribes of Israel and recorded by the prophets. Those prophecies, when you really understand them, give semblance and meaning to today’s news. They also give us a vision of the future. We would not presume to help readers of the Trumpet understand what is really going on out there without continually referring to the Bible.
Consider further. What does God say about the moral issues and dangerous social trends in our turbulent society? What is right and what is wrong? Who should decide? If anyone is entitled to say how we should live, surely it is our Creator. He gave instructions that humanity has generally chosen to reject. Those timeless instructions are the perfect laws of God and are recorded in the Book of books. They are bedrock truth.
In our fast-paced and stressful society, people need encouragement, consolation and inspiration. But our pursuit of happiness has taken us in some bizarre directions. The world is full of false hopes and emotional dead ends.
Our readers, bombarded with “relative” or “experimental” values from just about every direction, need to know what God’s principles of living are. Is there anything genuine to believe in and positive to work for? Is there any real hope for the future? Is there indeed any meaning to life at all?
Once again, the answers are available in the pages of God’s instruction book, the Holy Bible. God’s laws, when they govern our lives, bring us long-term peace and lasting joy.
So that’s why we quote the Bible so often. And that’s why this magazine is one of a kind! We never just “add a few scriptures” to make our stories sound nice and pious. And we don’t round off our articles with a biblical passage or verse unless it is truly pertinent to our topic.
As our writers sort through world news from wire services in our news bureau and examine the social issues at hand, those timeless Proverbs, those prophecies of Jeremiah, the gospel of John and the other books of the Bible become irresistibly relevant. God does have much to say about our lives and our world, and the Trumpet would not be true to its founding principles if we didn’t point out what is written in His word.
So the next time you’re tempted to skip right to the sports section of your newspaper, resist. Stop and scrutinize the news reports. Dig deep. Then compare what is happening in the world around you with what God reveals in His inspired instruction book for mankind—and in the pages of this unique magazine.