CHICAGO, IL (May 2, 2014) — Many Covenanters routinely share links to social media articles and videos with one another that Covenant News Service believes may be of interest to others. Each Friday we post five of them. Following is a sample of those submissions—their inclusion does not represent an endorsement of any views expressed.

Girl Uses Gun Supplied by Uncle to Kill Friend

Go ahead and post “With God on Our Side” rants for or against gun control, but for God’s sake let’s get serious about what in hell is happening here. For those of you who live outside of Chicago and hear about the hundreds of murders in this city, most happen in only a handful of neighborhoods, such as the Back of the Yards area.

This is what happened on Monday. A 25-year-old man paralyzed several years ago in a shooting gave a loaded revolver to his 14-year-old niece—an honor roll student—to take with her when she confronted her friend in a dispute over a boy. A terrible chain of events, in which the murder weapon was passed along by far too many hands, resulted in the death of her friend Endia Martin, also 14.

I can’t help but think about the oft-quoted proverb, “It takes a village to raise a child.” Here’s a different question: What does it take to raise a village?

Hypocrisy and Donald Sterling by the NAACP and Others

Jabbar’s comments were written before the boom was lowered on Sterling but remain among the best I’ve seen. Bill Simmons also wrote a much longer, nice piece on his excellent Grantland site. I know this is supposed to be “Five for Friday,” but think of this as 5 a, b, c.

Christian Conservatives Denounce Palin’s Baptism Metaphor

Joe Carter of the Gospel Coalition wrote, “I hope members of Gov. Palin’s local church will explain to her why her remarks denigrate the Christian faith. Such remarks bring shame on the body of Christ and to our witness in the world.” If you were Palin’s pastor or a member of her church what, if anything, would you say to her? How often do we in the church truly confront people about their public behavior, let alone what is private?

Journalism, Religion, and a Botched Execution in Oklahoma

A reporter who once regularly reported on executions raises important questions following the grisly debacle in Oklahoma this week.

Why We Need “Dinosaurs” Like C.S. Lewis

Sometimes progress isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Lewis remains a man for our post-modern times even if he referenced himself as a dinosaur.