This is The Briefing, a daily analysis of news and events from a Christian worldview.Part I (00:13 – 08:44)‘Teens Who Grow Up Checking Social Media Become Hyper Sensitive to Their Peers’: New Study Shows Social Media Use Changes Brain in TeensSocial Media Use Is Linked to Brain Changes in Teens, Research Finds by New York Times (Ellen Barry)Part II (08:44 – 14:29)How Should Christians Think About IVF? — Dr. Mohler Responds to Letters from Listeners of The BriefingChristian Morality and Test Tube Babies, Part One by AlbertMohler.com (R. Albert Mohler, Jr.)Christian Morality and Test Tube Babies, Part Two by AlbertMohler.com (R. Albert Mohler, Jr.)Part III (14:29 – 18:12)Does Life Begin at Fertilization In Utero or at Fertilization Regardless of the Location? — Dr. Mohler Responds to Letters from Listeners of The BriefingPart IV (18:12 – 20:22)If Blood is Such an Important Part of Atonement in the Sacrificial System, Why is Flour Acceptable for Those Who Cannot Afford Turtledoves or a Lamb? — Dr. Mohler Responds to a Letter from a Seven-Year-Old Listener of The BriefingPart V (20:22 – 22:36)Why Do You Think People So Harshly Attack the Doctrine of Penal Substitutionary Atonement? — Dr. Mohler Responds to Letters from Listeners of The BriefingPart VI (22:36 – 26:44)What Does the Bible Say about Education? Why Do We Put Such a Focus on High Academic Achievement in the Modern Age? — Dr. Mohler Responds to Letters from Listeners of The BriefingSign up to receive The Briefing in your inbox every weekday morning.Follow Dr. Mohler:X | Instagram | Facebook | YouTubeFor more information on The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, go to sbts.edu.For more information on Boyce College, just go to BoyceCollege.com.To write Dr. Mohler or submit a question for The Mailbox, go here.

This is The Briefing, a daily analysis of news and events from a Christian worldview.Part I (00:13 – 15:42)Can Government Raise the Birth Rate? The Global Birthrates Are Crashing And It’s Proving Increasingly Difficult to Fix the ProblemCan the Government Get People to Have More Babies? by The New York Times (Motoko Rich)Worldwide Efforts to Reverse the Baby Shortage Are Falling Flat by The Wall Street Journal (Chelsey Dulaney)Part II (15:42 – 21:46)Actually, More Babies IS the Solution to Falling Birthrates: A Look at a Recent Feminist EvasionMore Babies Aren’t the Only Solution to Falling Birthrates by The New York Times (Jessica Grose)Part III (21:46 – 25:17)The More Secular the Society, the Lower the Birth Rate, and It’s Not a Coincidence: Theological Conviction is Key to Human FlourishingSign up to receive The Briefing in your inbox every weekday morning.Follow Dr. Mohler:X | Instagram | Facebook | YouTubeFor more information on The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, go to sbts.edu.For more information on Boyce College, just go to BoyceCollege.com.To write Dr. Mohler or submit a question for The Mailbox, go here.

DOCUMENTATION AND ADDITIONAL READING
PART 1
(0:0 – 4:26):
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The FDA Loosens Regulations on Mail-Order Abortions and Canada Bans Conversion Therapy—Ominous Developments We’ll Be Tracking into the New Year

PART 2
(4:27 – 10:9):
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The News Here is Not the Fact of Secularization, but its Velocity: Pew Research Shows 3 Out of 10 Now ‘Religiously Unaffiliated’

PEW RESEARCH CENTER
About Three-in-Ten U.S. Adults Are Now Religiously Unaffiliated

PART 3
(10:10 – 14:25):
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To Whom Does Christmas Really Matter? To Those Who Believe the Son of God Was Born to the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem

PART 4
(14:26 – 17:6):
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What Does It Mean That Jesus is God’s Son? — Dr. Mohler Responds to Letters From Listeners Of The Briefing

PART 5
(17:7 – 20:49):
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How Should Christian Parents Raise Children in the Culture of Santa Claus? — Dr. Mohler Responds to Letters From Listeners Of The Briefing

PART 6
(20:50 – 26:18):
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Do Nativity Scenes Violate the Second Commandment? — Dr. Mohler Responds to Letters From Listeners Of The Briefing