The Daily Briefing highlights the news of the day and research that reveals the spirit of the day.
The Daily Briefing is a newsletter sent straight to your inbox every morning that provides biblical insight on today's news.
Top News
6. Trump says he's 'not a big fan' of 'weak' and 'terrible' Pope Leo (NBC News)
“President Donald Trump sharply rebuked Pope Leo XIV in remarks to reporters and on social media Sunday, calling the first American leader of the Catholic Church “WEAK on crime” and “terrible for Foreign Policy… I don’t think he’s doing a very good job. He likes crime, I guess,” Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, when he was asked about his lengthy Truth Social post Sunday night criticizing the pope.
“The pope last week criticized Trump's public threats to “wipe out” Iranian civilization, saying “attacks on civilian infrastructure are against international law” and urging people to contact leaders and members of Congress to call for peace. He has urged Trump to end the war in Iran, and he lamented in his Easter message last week that the world is “becoming indifferent” to violence. Leo had also criticized the Trump administration’s immigration policies.”
Can you disagree without deifying? Last night, Pres. Trump posted an AI-generated image of himself seemingly in the role of Jesus, complete with the robe-donning president restoring the health of a sick man with his healing hand while a nurse looked on and an American Eagle soared above. Click here to see.
Was this sacrilegious? This term comes from sacer (“sacred”) and legere (“to steal”). Throughout history, it has meant everything from grave robbers desecrating tombs to stealing sacredness from a religious place, object, or person. King Belshazzar is the epitome of this. At a banquet, he gave “orders to bring in the gold and silver goblets that . . . had [been] taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines might drink from them.” They ended up drinking wines from the cups, praising “the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone” (Dan 5).
Was this blasphemous? This refers to speaking contemptuously about God or being defiantly irreverent. Sennacherib, king of Assyria, epitomized this. Recounting all of his victories in an effort to demoralize Jerusalem, the king concluded by saying: "Who of all the gods of these countries has been able to save their lands from me? How then can the Lord deliver Jerusalem from my hand?" (Is. 36)
A deceitful brook…. In a moment of suffering and frustration, Jeremiah asked God if He would be to him "like a deceitful brook" or "a stream that fails." This was in direct contradiction to the image of God as a "fountain of living waters." As a result, God asked Jeremiah to repent, promising to restore him and make him a "fortified wall of bronze" against his enemies. I assume the president was joking with his post last night, but I know that our God is not mocked. You can disagree with the Pope without jokingly deifying yourself.
5. Trump announces naval blockade of Iran after Islamabad talks yield no deal (WaPo)
“After marathon overnight talks between the United States and Iran failed to yield a deal on U.S. terms, President Donald Trump on Sunday announced the imposition of a naval blockade on Iran — a move that could derail a tenuous two-week ceasefire reached just five days ago.
“Effective immediately, the United States Navy, the Finest in the World, will begin the process of BLOCKADING any and all Ships trying to enter, or leave, the Strait of Hormuz,” Trump posted Sunday on Truth Social, his social media site. The president also said he had instructed the Navy to interdict all ships that have paid a toll to Iran for traversing the strait, calling Tehran’s expanded control of the waterway “EXTORTION.”
“A U.S. official told The Washington Post that the U.S. and Iran failed to reach agreements on several U.S. demands, including that Iran end all uranium enrichment and allow the U.S. to retrieve its highly enriched uranium; the dismantling of all major nuclear enrichment facilities; accepting a broader de-escalation framework involving regional powers; ending funding for terrorist proxies including Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis; and fully reopening the Strait of Hormuz with no tolls for passage. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door negotiations.”
The Tehran toll booth is going to end up costing everyone… to the detriment of the work of Alfred Thayer Mahan. His ideas influenced the past 150 years, creating this sea highway. In his work The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660–1783, as well as its sequel, The Influence of Sea Power upon the French Revolution and Empire, 1793–1812, Mahan analyzed the past to assert the importance of the sea for the future. With the massive amount of industrial and commercial goods being produced domestically at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th, Mahan argued that the US would need new markets abroad. “The tendency to trade, involving of necessity the production of something to trade with, is the national characteristic most important to the development of sea power.”
How to secure such markets? Mahan identified 3 components: a merchant navy to carry these new goods on the “great highway” of the high seas; an American battleship navy to enforce the rules and protect the peace; and naval bases for supplies and logistical measures. “It is said to be harder to keep than to make a fortune. Possibly; but the adventurous temper, which risks what it has to gain more, has much in common with the adventurous spirit that conquers worlds for commerce.”
While Pres. Trump ordered the blockade of the Strait, Hezekiah ordered the blocking of the springs outside the city to prepare for attacks from the Assyrian King Sennacherib. He blocked the springs and diverted the water through an underground tunnel. He wanted his people to have water while the besieging army to have none. In this instance, whether diverting ancient springs or blockading modern straits, these maneuvers highlight the timeless value of critical infrastructure. (2 Chron. 32)
4. US inflation tripled last month on record spike in gas prices (WaPo)
“The White House on Friday received its worst inflation report of President Donald Trump’s second term, as the war in Iran sent consumer prices surging at the fastest monthly pace in four years — handing the administration a significant political problem at a moment when it has staked much of its economic credibility on bringing costs down.
“Consumer prices rose 0.9 percent in March from the month before, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported, the biggest monthly gain since 2022. On an annual basis, prices climbed 3.3 percent, up sharply from 2.4 percent in February. Energy prices drove much of the increase, jumping roughly 11 percent — the largest monthly gain in more than two decades — with gasoline prices posting the biggest single-month spike in the history of the index."
The middle class is being hollowed out… and that is a good thing. New research out of AEI points to this encouraging development. Researchers found that the middle class is shrinking because the upper-middle class is growing, from 10 percent of families in 1979 to 31 percent in 2024, and its share of income doubled. That share of families who income left them short of the core middle class fell from 54 percent to 35 percent.
There are 5 categories of households: poor or near poor (less than 150 percent of the poverty guideline), lower-middle class (150 percent to under 250 percent), core middle class (250 percent to under 500 percent), upper-middle class (500 percent to under 1,500 percent), and rich (1,500 percent or higher). The rich grew from 0.3 percent to 3.7 percent from 1979 to 2024; the lower-middle class shrank from 24.1 percent to 15.8 percent.
“You can’t take it with you— but you can send it on ahead,” according to Randy Alcorn. In his book The Treasure Principle, Alcorn draws on the famous thought from Martin Luther: “I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God’s hands, that I still possess.” We all have varying levels of savings and resources, but we all share a similar role: stewards. Keenly aware of the resources at their disposal (time, talent, treasures, etc.), the steward invests wisely and prudently to make his kingdom come. More simply, we want to remind people, through our words and deeds, of God’s love for us and goodness to us. This news serves as a sobering prompt for all: though prices are surging, divine opportunities are abounding. (2 Cor. 9, 1 Pet. 4)
3. Swalwell suspends campaign for Calif. governor amid growing rancor over sexual misconduct claims (WaPo)
“Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-California) is suspending his campaign for California governor two days after reports that a former staffer accused him of sexual assault and multiple other women alleged sexual misconduct. “To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I am deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past." Swalwell continued to deny allegations of sexual assault against him. "I will fight the serious, false allegations that have been made — but that’s my fight, not a campaign’s,” Swalwell wrote.
“In an article published Friday afternoon, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that a former employee in Swalwell’s congressional office accused him of sexual assault. Hours later, CNN reported that three women alleged him of sexual misconduct.”
You can’t underestimate the role of safety in stories like this, according to Amy Edmondson. In her book The Fearless Organization, the Harvard Business School professor highlights the value of "psychological safety" in organizations. Through her research, she discovered that psychological safety is one of the biggest drivers of team success. Edmondson defined this safety as a “climate in which people are comfortable sharing concerns and mistakes without fear of embarrassment or retribution. They are confident that they can speak up and won't be humiliated, ignored, or blamed."
Psychological safety enables productive disagreement and the free exchange of ideas, according to Edmondson. Google conducted a five-year study called "Project Aristotle" to find out what characteristics made the best teams. "They concluded, 'psychological safety was far and away the most important of the five dynamics we found.' Other behaviors were also important, such as setting clear goals and reinforcing mutual accountability, but unless team members felt psychologically safe, the other behaviors were insufficient." In this instance, people are far from perfect, but one of the roles of an institution is to identify and address such imperfections.
At its core, accountability isn’t meant to just address wrongs but to reveal the significance of doing things right. If we truly believe the biblical and moral way is the road that leads to fullness and goodness, then allowing someone to go another way is a disservice to them and those around them. If a librarian is attempting to put together a bookshelf, but is unknowingly constructing a table, how sad for them and their students if someone doesn’t intervene to redirect their efforts? RC Sproul put it well: “If you’re not accountable in life, that means ultimately that your life doesn’t count.” (Gal. 6:1-5)
News You Can Use
2. John Piper reads a letter his dad wrote him nearly 50 years ago, when he was considering becoming a pastor. Moving.
Watch it here. “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” (James 3:1)
1. The toddler trend that has everyone asking: Who is Jessica?
Watch it here. “I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways.” (Ps. 119:15)
