Good day. It's Monday, December 9th, 2024. Welcome to the Daily Article podcast. I'm Chris Elkins,

narrating today's daily article, written by Denison Forum co-founder and CEO, Dr. Jim Denison.

Note, the Syrian government failed yesterday, ending the 50-year rule of the Assad family.

As more is known, I will be responding later this morning with a daily article special edition.

For a biblical perspective on Syria's ongoing crisis, see Dr. Ryan Denison's Friday Daily Article

Civil War in Syria escalates as rebels take

humah. President-elect Donald Trump joined America's First Lady Jill Biden, Britain's

Prince William, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, and French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday

to formally reopen the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.

The five-year restoration has been beset with controversies, but the cathedral is ready to resume

its status as a symbol of, quote-unquote, the spirit of Paris, the site of notable coronations,

including that of Emperor Napoleon, and a monument to the highest

aspirations of artistic achievement that transcends religion and time, end quote.

The last description caught my attention. Doesn't it seem paradoxical for a church building to transcend

religion? And yet, this disconnect between places of worship and

acts of worship is happening with great cathedrals all across Europe. I have attended services in

England where the choir outnumbered the congregation and visited beautiful historic churches in Germany

and Switzerland where only a handful worship on Sunday.

Many European churches are being repurposed into hotels, rock climbing businesses, dance halls,

and even Muslim mosques. When 60 Minutes recently reported on Notre Dame's reconstruction,

there was virtually no reference to the structure as a place of worship.

Since less than 2% of the people in France attend Sunday Mass and only 44% of the population even believe in God,

...