"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths." Northwoods is a ministry dedicated to refreshing Christians and challenging them to search for the truth in Christianity, politics, sociology, and science
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Father God, thank you for the love of the truth you have given me. Please bless me with the wisdom, knowledge and discernment needed to always present the truth in an attitude of grace and love. Use this blog and Northwoods Ministries for your glory. Help us all to read and to study Your Word without preconceived notions, but rather, let scripture interpret scripture in the presence of the Holy Spirit. All praise to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
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The Legault government has unveiled a sweeping new secularism bill that would eliminate prayer rooms in higher-education institutions, restrict religious symbols for some childcare workers and ban public group prayer –measures critics say needlessly target religious minorities.
Secularism Minister Jean-François Roberge tabled what he called “secularism 2.0,” arguing Quebec has “gone too far” in accommodating religious practices in public institutions.
A student performs his afternoon prayer in a prayer room at Concordia University in Montreal, on Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov.
He said prayer rooms at CEGEPs (post-secondary institutions in Quebec that serve as a bridge between high school and universities), used daily by hundreds of students, would be removed if the legislation passes.
“CEGEPs and universities are not temples or churches,” Roberge said.
Stephen Brown, president of the National Council of Canadian Muslims, questioned the premise of the changes. “The real question for me is what problem are we actually solving? Nobody said that this was an issue,” he said.
The bill also bans public group prayer. Roberge acknowledged the measure was prompted in part by pro-Palestinian protesters who held prayers outside Notre-Dame Basilica. “We think that when the state is neutral, Quebecers are free,” he said.
Under the proposed law, new hires in subsidized daycares would not be allowed to wear religious symbols, though existing staff would be protected under a grandfather clause.
Samy Khelefi washes as he performs wudu, a ritual cleansing prior to prayer for Muslims, before entering the prayer room organized by the Muslim Students’ Association, at Concordia University in Montreal, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov
Brown warned the change could worsen staffing shortages. “We need more people to be educators in the daycare system, and this is going to restrict the ability for people to get employment,” he said.
Under Bill 9, people receiving services from daycares or higher-education institutions would be required to keep their faces uncovered. Children would also be prohibited from covering their faces at daycare, though Roberge acknowledged he was unaware of any such case. “We want to prevent some mistakes before they’re done,” he said.
Private schools that focus primarily on religious teachings, such as several Jewish schools in Outremont, would lose public funding if they do not comply within three years.
“They have the time to understand what’s in the law and decide what’s better for them and the community,” Roberge said.
Rabbi Reuben Poupko said stakeholders are still trying to understand the implications. “We’re really early in this game,” he said.
The Liberal opposition criticized the government for embedding the notwithstanding clause in the bill, which would block many potential court challenges.
“People should have the right to seek redressment from the court if they think their rights are infringed,” said Liberal MNA André Morin.
The legislation includes fines for those who break the rules, though Roberge said he is confident Quebecers will comply.
Bill 9 will now undergo detailed study and parliamentary commission hearings in the coming months, with the government aiming to pass it by next spring.
Muslim students say the bill feels like another move targeting the community
Muslim students at Concordia say the closures feel punitive.
“It definitely feels like a personal attack against our community,” said Ines Rarrbo, a first-year engineering student.
Samy Khelifi, president of Concordia’s Muslim Student Association, warned the decision will only push students to pray in hallways and on streets.
“People won’t stop praying because there’s not a prayer space. What happens to those 5,000 people if they all go pray out on random corners?” he said.
Adviser Maryam Laoufi said the bill makes Muslim Quebecers feel increasingly like “second-class citizens.”
Bill 9 would also ban “collective religious practice” –including communal prayer –on public roads and in parks, except for short events authorized by municipalities.
Individuals could be fined up to $375 and groups up to $1,125.
Roberge insisted the rules are applied equally to all faiths, but acknowledged that incidents involving Muslims helped shape the legislation.
Ukraine’s top peace negotiator resigns after anti-corruption raid on home
By Illia Novikov And Isobel Koshiw The Associated Press
Posted November 28, 2025 11:28 am
Updated November 28, 2025 10:12 pm
5 min read
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Friday the resignation of his powerful chief of staff, Andrii Yermak, who was also the country’s lead negotiator in talks with the U.S, after Yermak’s residence was searched by anti-corruption investigators.
The unprecedented search at the heart of Ukraine’s government was a blow for the Ukrainian leader that risked disrupting his negotiating strategy at a time when Kyiv is under intense U.S. pressure to sign a peace deal nearly four years after Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Yermak has long been a trusted confidant of Zelenskyy, who has resisted persistent pressure to replace him.
2:03
Zelenskyy’s top aide resigns after anti-corruption searches
In a nod to the controversy over Yermak’s long stay at his side, Zelenskyy said Russia was waiting for Ukraine to make missteps and upset the delicate and tense peace negotiations.
“We don’t have a right to retreat or argue between ourselves. If we lose unity, we risk losing everything — ourselves, Ukraine, our future,” Zelenskyy said. “We must unite, we must hold on. We have no other choice. We won’t have another Ukraine.”
“To preserve our internal strength, there must be no reasons to be distracted at anything else except for defense of Ukraine,” he added. “I don’t want anybody to be questioning Ukraine, and that’s why we have today’s decisions.”
In his nightly address, Zelenskyy announced that he was “resetting” the presidential office. He said Yermak had submitted his resignation and that he would begin consultations Saturday to appoint a new chief of staff.
Yermak’s name did not appear on a list of officials that Zelenskyy said would make up the Ukrainian delegation for the next round of negotiations with the United States.
1:55
Trump sending envoys to Moscow, Kyiv to discuss peace deal
The delegation will now be jointly lead by Andrii Hnatov, the head of Ukraine’s armed forces; Andrii Sybiha, Ukraine’s foreign minister; and Rustem Umerov, head of Ukraine’s security council, Zelenskyy said. He said negotiations would happen “soon.”
Two national agencies fighting corruption in Ukraine said their search targeted Yermak. Oleksii Tkachuk, a spokesperson for Yermak, said the anti-graft agencies had not served Yermak a notice of suspicion, meaning he was not a suspect in an investigation. Yermak was not told what the searches related to, Tkachuk said.
Yermak confirmed the search of his apartment inside the presidential compound in downtown Kyiv, where checkpoints limit public access. Media reports said Yermak’s office was also searched, but investigators declined to comment on that.
It was not clear where Zelenskyy or Yermak were at the time of the morning raid.
“The investigators are facing no obstacles,” Yermak wrote on the messaging app Telegram. He said he was cooperating fully with them and that his lawyers were present.
In an interview Thursday with The Atlantic, Yermak said that as long as Zelensky is president, “no one should count on us giving up territory. He will not sign away territory.”
Ukraine, he said, is prepared to discuss only the question of what land each side controls, as indicated by the location of the front lines.
“All we can realistically talk about right now is really to define the line of contact,” Yermak said.
Energy sector scandal
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office are leading a major investigation into a $100 million energy sector scandal involving top Ukrainian officials that has dominated domestic headlines in recent weeks.
It was not clear if the searches were connected to the case, and a spokesperson for the NABU, Anton Tatarnikov, declined to comment, citing legal restrictions on revealing details on an ongoing probe.
The head of Ukraine’s parliamentary anti-corruption committee, Anastasiia Radina, said on social media that Yermak’s resignation was “better late than never.”
Mykyta Porturaev, a lawmaker with Zelenskyy’s party who last week called for Yermak’s resignation and for a cross-party government to be established, said the anti-corruption raid deepened Ukraine’s political crisis.
Yermak “definitely had political responsibility,” Porturaev told The Associated Press. “Of course he had to go.”
1:55
Ukrainian ministers quit over major corruption scandal
A spokesperson for the European Commission, Guillaume Mercier, told Ukrainian news outlet Radio Svoboda on Friday that they were following developments closely and that the searches showed that Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies were working. He said fighting corruption was central to the country’s European Union accession.
Investigators suspect that Tymur Mindich, a one-time business partner of Zelenskyy, was the plot’s mastermind. Mindich has fled the country, with any criminal proceedings against him likely to be carried out in absentia. Two top government ministers have resigned in the scandal.
Two of Yermak’s former deputies — Oleh Tatarov and Rostyslav Shurma — left the government in 2024 after watchdogs investigated them for financial wrongdoing. A third deputy, Andrii Smyrnov, was investigated for bribes and other wrongdoing but still works for Yermak.
Political turmoil for Zelenskyy
The scandal has heaped more problems on Zelenskyy as he seeks continued Western support for Ukraine’s war effort and tries to ensure continued foreign funding. The European Union, which Ukraine wants to join, has told Zelenskyy he must crack down on graft.
Zelenskyy faced an unprecedented rebellion from his own lawmakers earlier this month after investigators published details of their energy sector investigation.
Although Yermak was not accused of any wrongdoing, several senior lawmakers in Zelenskyy’s party said Yermak should take responsibility for the debacle in order to restore public trust. Some said that if Zelenskyy didn’t fire him, the party could split, threatening the president’s parliamentary majority. But Zelenskyy defied them.
Zelenskyy urged Ukrainians to unite and “stop the political games” in light of the U.S. pressure to reach a settlement with Russia.
Yermak met Zelenskyy over 15 years ago when he was a lawyer venturing into the TV production business and Zelenskyy was a famous Ukrainian comedian and actor.
He oversaw foreign affairs as part of Zelenskyy’s first presidential team and was promoted to chief of staff in February 2020.
Yermak has accompanied Zelenskyy on every trip abroad since Russia’s invasion in February 2022, and the president’s trust in him has made Yermak’s power appear almost untouchable.
Domestically, officials describe Yermak as Zelenskyy’s gatekeeper, and he is widely believed to have chosen all top government appointees, including prime ministers and ministers.
The possibility of corruption in the Liberal Party, whether the provincial Liberals or the Federal party, is not the least bit surprising.
Anti-corruption police looking into allegations against Quebec Liberals
Quebec’s anti-corruption police say they are looking into the internal crisis shaking the province’s Liberals, as their political rivals feast over a steady stream of embarrassing news that is threatening to tarnish the party’s image and is putting pressure on its leader.
Mathieu Galarneau, a spokesperson for the anti-corruption unit known as UPAC, said investigators are working to validate allegations of wrongdoing before deciding whether to open an official investigation.
“Following the analysis of this information, we will be able to decide whether or not to proceed further,” Galarneau said, confirming the police force’s involvement, first reported by Journal de Montreal on Wednesday.
The Quebec Liberals have been in crisis since Marwah Rizqy, the party’s former leader in the legislature, fired her chief of staff without consulting party leader Pablo Rodriguez. In response, Rodriguez then removed Rizqy from her position last week and suspended her from caucus, citing a breach of trust.
Adding to the controversy was a story published last week in the Journal de Montréal revealing alleged text messages from unidentified parties suggesting some members who supported Rodriguez during the leadership race received cash rewards. Rodriguez says he welcomes the involvement of the anti-corruption unit and that he has mandated the party to investigate the allegations.
“I sincerely hope that UPAC will shed light on this matter and, if necessary, file the appropriate charges. I would like to remind you that I have requested an independent investigation to get to the bottom of this. And I am committed to making the report public,” Rodriguez wrote on social media Wednesday night.
Last week, Rodriguez announced his party would be sending a legal letter to the Montreal tabloid in an effort to learn the names of the people involved and the phone numbers associated with the text messages. Rodriguez said he also wanted the Journal to explain how it verified the “authenticity and veracity” of the messages.
Another layer was added Wednesday when La Presse reported that Fayçal El-Khoury, the member of Parliament for Laval—Les Îles, had a discussion with Rizqy on Nov. 14 that caught the attention of Élections Québec because of a possible link to Rodriguez’s leadership bid. Rodriguez won the leadership race in June.
When contacted by The Canadian Press, Elections Québec did not confirm whether they were investigating. Rodriguez said he didn’t know if the elections agency was looking into the matter.
On Wednesday, the Liberal leader confirmed that El-Khoury had solicited donations for his leadership campaign. “He had a solicitation certificate, which is public information. That means he was collecting money like many others,” Rodriguez said.
Rizqy has largely remained silent on the affair. On Sunday, ahead of Rodriguez’s appearance on a popular Quebec talk show “Tout le monde en parle,” she wrote on Facebook that she could not comment publicly because the dismissal of her chief of staff, Geneviève Hinse, was a human resources matter. Rizqy also acknowledged the situation had put her “political family in a delicate position.”
Rizqy has said she won’t seek re-election in 2026 and will focus on her young family.
For his part, upon leaving the federal Liberal caucus meeting on Wednesday, El-Khoury did not respond to reporters’ questions about his involvement in Rodriguez’s leadership race. The federal MP said he would make a statement later, without offering specifics.
The other political parties at the national assembly seized on the series of controversies this week, with Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette calling it a repeat of previous scandals that had dogged the party.
“What we are seeing, once again, with the Quebec Liberal Party, is that it is the same old Liberal party that has not changed. The same illegal practices, the same ethically questionable practices,” Jolin-Barrette said Wednesday.
The government of former premier Jean Charest — in office from 2003-2012 — was badly tarnished by a scandal involving corruption in the construction sector and the illegal financing of political parties. Although no member of the Liberals was charged with a crime, a public inquiry — known as the Charbonneau commission — revealed widespread corruption in the construction industry, often involving organized crime, and the close ties with municipal and provincial politicians.
On Thursday morning, Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon also weighed in. “It’s no surprise that UPAC repeatedly finds itself investigating the Quebec Liberal Party, and it’s not just Pablo Rodriguez; it’s an entire organization.”
North Texas Muslim leader Marwan Marouf — longtime PR and fundraising director for the Muslim American Society (MAS) in Dallas — will be deported after an immigration judge cited evidence tying him to Hamas-linked activity.
According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Marouf overstayed his visa and was denied legal residency because of involvement with a foundation that “provided material support for Hamas.” Judge Abdias Tida also cited Marouf’s donations to the Holy Land Foundation, the Hamas fundraising arm that was shut down after 9/11, and ruled that the “gravity of the evidence” made him ineligible for voluntary departure.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott responded by noting this case as “another example of CAIR Texas’s support for Hamas and terror,” consistent with his recent designation of the Hamas-linked Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations. CAIR, as usual, denied everything and claimed victimhood, filing a lawsuit and insisting that criticism of CAIR amounts to bigotry.
Marouf’s lawyers declined to appeal; he will be deported to Jordan within two weeks.
Once again, CAIR is defending someone tied to Hamas-linked organizations — and once again, media outlets quoting CAIR never mention its own documented record, including the FBI’s cutting of ties with CAIR in 2008 over the same concerns.
Dallas Muslim leader will be deported, judge cites allegations he supported terrorism
by Emmanuel Rivas Valenzuela, KERA, November 20, 2025:
North Texas Muslim community leader Marwan Marouf will be removed from the U.S. after an immigration judge on Thursday denied his request for voluntary departure.
In denying his request, Judge Abdias E. Tida cited donations Marouf made to the Holy Land Foundation, a nonprofit in the U.S. that was designated a terrorist organization by DHS following the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001.
The request for voluntary departure comes as attorneys for Marouf say he is facing immediate health risks….
Marouf, a longtime public relations and fundraising director for the Muslim-American Society in Dallas, has been in ICE custody since September.
During Thursday’s hearing, attorneys for Marouf asked Judge Abdias E. Tida to allow him to receive post-conclusion voluntary departure instead of a standard removal order.
This would have allowed Marouf to remain in the U.S. up to 60 days following his release from custody and reapply for lawful entry back into the U.S. from Jordan, where he maintains citizenship. Attorneys say it would also allow for Marouf to address his cardiac condition Brugada syndrome sooner.
But Tida did not grant Marouf voluntary departure, finding Marouf both ineligible under federal law and that he did not merit of such relief as a matter of discretion….
President Trump says he’ll ‘permanently pause migration’ from all ‘Third World Countries’
President Trump said late Thursday that he intends to “permanently pause” migration from all “Third World Countries,” to allow the US to “fully recover” ina Thanksgiving Truth Social post.
“Even as we have progressed technologically, Immigration Policy has eroded those gains and living conditions for many,” Trump wrote late Thursday night.
“I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover, terminate all of the millions of Biden illegal admissions, including those signed by Sleepy Joe Biden’s Autopen, and remove anyone who is not a net asset to the United States,” he added.
President Donald Trump holds up a photograph as he speaks to reporters after speaking to troops via video from his Mar-a-Lago estate on Thanksgiving, Thursday, Nov. 27, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla.
AP
Trump also said he intends to end all federal benefits and subsidies for “noncitizens.”
He will additionally “denaturalize migrants who undermine domestic tranquility, and deport any Foreign National who is a public charge, security risk, or non-compatible with Western Civilization,” he wrote in the long post.
“Only REVERSE MIGRATION can fully cure this situation. Other than that, HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL, except those that hate, steal, murder, and destroy everything that America stands for — You won’t be here for long!” the post said.
Trump’s comments came following a deadly ambush on two National Guard members near the White House on Wednesday, which investigators say was carried out by Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal.
Lakanwal, 29, entered the US in 2021 from Afghanistan in the aftermath of the Biden administration’s withdrawal as part of the “Operation Allies Welcome” program.
Trump’s comments came following an ambush on two National Guard members near the White House, which left Sarah Beckstrom dead.
REUTERS
The alleged gunman served in the elite NDS-03 counterterrorism unit in Afghanistan, one of at least five paramilitary “Zero Units” that worked with the CIA, according to the group AfghanEvac, a nonprofit run by American veterans helping resettle Afghan allies in the US, but not Lakanwal.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe confirmed Lakanwal worked with the intelligence agency. His service to the US helped him get admittance.
Lakanwal had applied for asylum in December 2024 and later got approval under the Trump administration in April of this year.
Follow the latest on the National Guard shooting in Washington, DC:
U.S. Airmen and U.S. Marines guide qualified evacuees aboard a U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III in support of the Afghanistan evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport (HKIA), Afghanistan, Aug. 21, 2021. U.S. Central Command Public Affairs
In the 24 hours since the shooting — which killed West Virginia National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and left Guardsman Andrew Wolfe, 24, critically wounded — the Trump administration has pursued radical, sweeping immigration provisions. There will be a “full-scale, rigorous reexamination” of every green card holder from countries “of concern” in response to Wednesday’s shooting, US Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Joseph Edlow claimed on X.
Edlow wrote that Trump had requested the gargantuan review, which is expected to encompass green card holders from at least 19 countries.
The Trump administration also announced on Wednesday that it was immediately suspending “processing of all immigration requests relating to Afghan nationals” indefinitely pending review of vetting protocols.
