Massachusetts Republican Gov. Charlie Baker has signed Bill H.4930 into law, a measure that establishes abortion and "gender-affirming care" as constitutional rights. The bill passed in a vote of 136-17 in the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives on June 29. The Senate subsequently approved H.4930 in a unanimous vote of 40-0 on July 25. The bill declares that "[a]ccess to reproductive health care services and gender-affirming health care services is recognized and declared to be a right secured by the constitution or laws of the commonwealth" and cautions that "[i]nterference with this right, whether or not under the color of law, is against the public policy of the commonwealth." Massachusetts Family Institute, a social conservative advocacy group, has argued the legislation will turn the state into an "abortion sanctuary." Read more.

The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against Idaho, claiming that the state law banning almost all abortions violates federal law regulating public access to emergency services. The DOJ announced the complaint against Idaho Code § 18-622 on Tuesday. The law, which the department describes as a "near-total ban on abortion," is set to go into effect on Aug. 25. This marks the first time the Biden administration has taken legal action against a state abortion restriction since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in late June. Read more.

The Southern Poverty Law Center is facing allegations that it is promoting a book for elementary school students that normalizes sexual behavior among children. Several conservative Christian groups are speaking out following news website Breitbart publishing a report about the SPLC's "Learning for Justice" project, which includes an "LGBTQ Library" with a list of recommended books and practices that are controversial. Focus on the Family's Jeff Johnston denounced the guide as promoting "false ideologies and damaging behaviors for children of all ages," telling The Christian Post that the guide, which promotes "a variety of 'gender identities' ... encourages schools to violate privacy and safety in restrooms, locker rooms and showers by allowing students who 'identify' as the opposite sex into those spaces. And it urges schools to use curriculums that are radical and sexualized." Family Research Council's Meg Kilgannon also called out the guide, telling CP that SPLC "has been in the business of sexualizing children in the name of 'diversity' for years." One of the books in the guide, Sex is a Funny Word by Cory Silverberg, features an illustration of a girl having an orgasm, with its author being quoted as wanting "a world with no normative pressures around sex." The text is aimed at younger readers. Elsewhere, the guide claims children as young as 2 can "'truly know' their gender identity or sexual orientation." Read more.

Josh Packard and Jeff Neel write about the high rates of loneliness and depression experienced among Gen Zers and why it's important to address mental health in order to reach this younger demographic. Packard, the executive director of Springtide Research Institute, and Neel, the executive director of North Colorado Youth for Christ, discuss the importance of receiving training for mental health issues to reach this generation where they are and building lasting relationships that promote faith and belonging. Read more.

In this follow-up to a previous editorial on the subject, Wallace B. Henley addresses the question: Can we hold to the center? "In this turbulent age, the very foundations are trembling, and it seems many cannot hold to the center of that Kingdom, and the primary institutions whereby its attributes are ministered in the world: the Family, Church, and Education," Henley writes. Read more.

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Lawyers for Barts Health NHS Trust, responsible for 12-year-old Archie Battersbee's care at the Royal London Hospital, informed Battersbee's parents that his life support would be withdrawn as early as Wednesday morning. The announcement came after the U.K. Supreme Court refused permission for Hollie Dance and Paul Battersbee, Archie's parents, to appeal to prevent their son's life support from being withdrawn, according to a Tuesday statement from The Christian Legal Centre. The parents subsequently submitted an 11th-hour application to the European Court of Human Rights just before the 9 a.m. Wednesday deadline set by the lawyers for Barts Health NHS Trust to remove their son's life support. Read more.

Hollywood actress and outspoken Christian Candace Cameron Bure has faced criticism from others in the entertainment industry on social media in recent weeks following artist Jojo Siwa's claim that Bure is the "rudest celebrity" she's ever met. Bure responded with kindness and forgiveness. The husband of actress Hillary Duff, indie rocker Matthew Koma, also slammed the "Fuller House" actress for a patriotic Fourth of July video she posted. "The Lord is my salvation. I will trust Him and not be afraid for He alone is my strength and my defender," Bure subsequently shared on Instagram while reading Isaiah 12:2. Watch her Instagram story here.