Clipmarks | Church Clips

Public Funds Nixed For Jesus Statue In Edmond

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 00:34:05 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

The cross, Moses and now Jesus Christ have failed the separation of church and state test in this conservative Oklahoma City suburb with a penchant for trying to incorporate religious art in public spaces.

Edmond Mayor Dan O'Neil said Wednesday he plans to secure private funding to buy out the city's $3,900 commitment to help pay for a 26-inch-tall statue titled "Come Unto Me" planned for a sidewalk outside a downtown Catholic gift shop. It shows Jesus surrounded by children.

A decade ago, Edmond was forced to pay more than $200,000 in legal fees after losing a court battle to keep a cross on its city seal. Last year, the city backed down from a decision to use public funds on a statue of Moses outside a church.

Plans will move forward to have the Jesus statue in place, perhaps by Christmas, but no city funds will be used.

"I'm delighted by this result. Clearly the city has felt some heat and now they have seen the constitutional light."

Tags: religion, government, legal, jesus, church, state, art

Kenyans call for end to shady pastors

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 00:08:11 GMT

clipped by: tommy2balmy
clipper's remarks: "Giving is not bad because it is a mission of the Church, but we should not teach people to give all they have, causing disharmony in their homes," said Pastor Otieno.

Clip Source: allafrica.com

Kenya: Churches Up in Arms Over Shady Pastors

Church leaders have asked the Government to take action against wayward clergy and shadowy pastors.

They said that churches should be regulated to curb the mushrooming of shadowy organisations fleecing worshippers in the name of God.

In Mombasa, church leaders called for books to be audited to avoid mismanagement of offerings and tithes. Father Gabriel Dolan of Bangladesh Catholic Parish said churches had to be accountable.

"There should be structures to ensure that every penny is accounted for," he said.

Responding to an exposé in the Saturday Nation, which reported that pastors of shadowy churches were fleecing worshippers, Fr Dolan said grinding poverty and despair among Christians made them vulnerable to exploitation.

In Kisumu, church leaders called for new laws moderating the operation of churches.

In Nakuru, Bishop Joseph Kimani of Kenya National Evangelism Fellowship warned that churches risked losing their flocks.

Tags: kenya, religion

Church Pastors Dismiss Mental Illness

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 23:25:09 GMT

clipped by: ratilfar

Clip Source: www.livescience.com

In a study of Christian church members who approached their church for help with a personal or family member's diagnosed mental illness, researchers found that more than 32 percent were told by their pastor that they or their loved one did not really have a mental illness.

The problem was solely spiritual in nature, they were told.

Here's the thing: Other studies have found that clergy, and not psychologists or other mental health experts, are the most common source of help sought in times of psychological distress.

Baylor researchers also found that women were more likely than men to have their mental disorders dismissed by the church.

In a subsequent survey, Baylor researchers found the dismissal or denial of the existence of mental illness happened more in conservative churches, rather than more liberal ones.

Tags: church, science, mental illness

Short Term Senator Earmarks funds to family

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 16:00:25 GMT

clipped by: Eaglewings
clipper's remarks: I bet you have never heard that headline anywhere have you? Well the fact of the matter is that in the short time Senator Obama actually WORKED in the Illinois state senate he personally secured over $3 million dollars in earmarks which would appear to have been used to take care of family and campaign contributors. CAN WE SAY ABUSE OF OFFICE?

Clip Source: www.gopusa.com

Blue Gargoyle: Barack Obama helped secure a $25,000 grant for Blue Gargoyle in August 2000, an organization that was headed by Capers C. Funnye, Jr., Michelle Obama's first cousin once removed. (web site)

Community of St. Sabina: Obama helped secure a $100,000 grant for the Community of St. Sabina in July 2000, a church headed by Father Michael Pfleger, a controversial and radical Catholic priest and Obama campaign contributor. Pfleger made news in March 2008, for mocking then-presidential candidate Hillary Clinton from the pulpit of Trinity United Church of Christ, formerly run by Obama's personal pastor the Reverend Jeremiah Wright. (web site)

FORUM: Run by Yesse Yehudah, Barack Obama gave a $75,000 grant to the organization in 2000. Although Yehudah ran against Obama in a 1998 election, five people from FORUM donated $1000 to Obama's campaign after receiving the grant.

the State sued Yehudah for failure to account for hundreds of thousands of dollars he received from Obama's grant.

Tags: obama

McSame Supporting Racism Lives Here At Clipmarks, Too...

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 15:26:17 GMT

clipped by: BartendingBear
clipper's remarks: pkronfield makes racist remarks here on Clipmarks. Racism is wrong on the street and wrong here, too. You're sick, pkronfield.

Clip Source: clipmarks.com

pkronfield says:

Wake up America! Every so often this slippery character lets something slip. Do you want this ultra-liberal to "spread your wealth around"?

He might not raise your taxes per se, but there are many ways your will feel taxed to death. Repeal of Bush's tax cuts. Death tax. Take the FICA cap off. Increase fuel tax. Tax the oil companies (which will result in dramatically higher fuel prices at the pump), etc. etc. It will be a grave mistake to bring this trojan horse into the white house. The only ones who will benefit will be blacks and illegals.

BartendingBear

Wow! A McSame supporter making a racist comment right here on Clipmarks. You're sick, pk.

pkronfield

What racist comment?!

Have you examined Obama's extremist history, associating with a racist hate America church for 20 years? Have you looked at his wife's hate white America background? The only racists I see here are you and the Obamas.

Preserving the World's Largest Pipe Organ

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:44:30 GMT

clipped by: presohio

Clip Source: features.csmonitor.com

When you see the Wanamaker organ soar heavenward, you want to look around for the rest of the cathedral. When its sound makes pillars tremble, you know it speaks for the powers above. But where stained glass windows should be – there is ladies apparel. In the would-be pews, people are trying on boots. And that scent wafting through the air is not votive candles, it’s Chanel No. 5.

Wait. This is no church. This is … Macy’s?

Here, occupying prime retail space, there are nearly 30,000 organ pipes in chambers towering up through seven floors, making the Wanamaker the largest operating pipe organ in the world. For precious square footage to be given over thus is rare. Even modest organs tend to be located not in stores but in churches, private homes, or municipal buildings; built by the Los Angeles Art Organ Company, the Wanamaker is one of only two known department-store organs in the world.

Tags: preservation, national, music

Church of the Holy Sepulchre Endangered by Battling Factions &Time

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 07:09:37 GMT

clipped by: BartendingBear
clipper's remarks: Ah, Christian brotherhood and love at it's very best. "Rival denominations often battle for access or space and the congregation at the annual Easter service sometimes resembles the terraces of a boisterous football match. The keys to the main entrance of the church have been held by a Muslim family since the 12th century because the Christians do not trust one another."

Clip Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

A long-running row over the rights to a rooftop section of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre could bring the entire structure tumbling down, destroying Christendom’s holiest site.

While renovations are needed across the church, the small Deir al-Sultan monastery on its roof has reached an “emergency state”, according to engineers who completed an evaluation this month.

The Times has learnt that in 2004 the two chapels and twenty-six tiny rooms that comprise the monastery were pronounced in dire need of reinforcement. They have since deteriorated to the point where engineers now fear that they will crash through the roof and into the church, venerated by millions of Christians as the site of the Crucifixion and burial of Jesus.

The church has been vigilantly managed by six competing and often fractious Christian denominations — Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, Coptic, Syrian Orthodox and Ethiopian — since an agreement reached under Ottoman law in 1757.

chapel of ascension

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 06:15:06 GMT

clipped by: motten

Clip Source: www.goisrael.com

Chapel of the Ascension

There are three Churches of the Ascension built on the Mount of Olives, and this chapel (now a mosque) claims to be the oldest. Its foundations date back to the time of Poimenia at the end of the fourth century, but, like the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the current structure is of crusader origins.

Luke Chapter 24

50 Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. 51 While he blessed them, he parted from them, and was carried up into heaven. 52 And they returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53 and were continually in the temple blessing God.

The Revised Standard Version, (New York: Oxford University Press, Inc.) 1973, 1977.

getjsemane

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 06:14:19 GMT

clipped by: motten

Clip Source: www.goisrael.com

The Garden of Gethsemane

Visitors to of the Garden of Gethsemane are amazed when they learn that the gnarled olive trees they see could have been young saplings when Jesus came here with the disciples on that fateful night after the Last Supper (Matt. 26:36; Mark 14:32; John 18:1). Today the ancient trees rise from manicured flower beds; in Jesus’ time this would have been an olive grove where an olive-oil press – gethsemane in Greek – was located.

The impressive Church of All Nations, built in the 1920s over earlier churches, relates the events of this place in brilliantly detailed floor-to ceiling mosaics: Jesus praying alone (Mark 14:35-36); Judas’ betrayal of Jesus (Matt. 26:48); the cutting off of the ear of the High Priest’s servant (Mark 14:47).

Across the lane is a less-frequented grove, where arrangements can be made for visitors to spend a more private time of worship and contemplation.

Mithras = Christianity

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 04:06:05 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.iranian.ws

This religion, cloaked in mystery and secrecy, has captivated the imaginations of scholars for generations. Many facts discovered sheds vital light on the cultural dynamics that led to the rise of Christianity.

Mithras was a Persian deity. He was also the most widely venerated god in the Roman Empire at the time of Jesus. The Catholic Encyclopedia as well as the early Church Fathers found this religion of Mithras very disturbing, as there are so many similarities between the two religions, as follows:

As you can now see, Christianity derived many of its essential elements from the ancient religion of Mithraism. Mithraism became intertwined with the cult of Jesus to form what is known today as "Christianity."

Of the following (semi) deities legends went around that they were born of a virgin:

So basically, all the pagan religions were alike, including Christianity. It just happens that one of them got the ascendancy, and became the most powerful, and did its best to wipe out all the others.

Tags: christianity, religion, old religion, persia, jesus, mithras, pagan

typical palin

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 00:52:53 GMT

clipped by: prin1

Clip Source: www.thenation.com

On April 29, 2008, 14 leaders of Alaska's black community met with Gov. Sarah Palin to voice discontent with her minority hiring record. Palin's response, which was first reported by journalist Earl Ofari Hutchinson, only compounded her icy relationship with her African-American constituents.

Gwen Alexander, the president of the African-American Historical Society of Alaska, told me that Palin stated defiantly that she had no intention to hire any minority staffers. And according to Bishop Dave Thomas, senior pastor of Anchorage-based African-American church Jesus Holy Temple, the Palin administration excluded black business owners from the Alaskan oil and gas pipeline board. "We wasn't even able or allowed to go into the meetings" to seek contracts for the pipeline, Thomas told me.

gotta love roseanne cash!

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 00:43:43 GMT

clipped by: prin1
clipper's remarks: she is hilarious! there's not enough room for all of them on here so if you feel like a laugh go read the entire thing

Clip Source: www.thenation.com

I'd like to formally submit myself to replace Sarah Palin on the GOP ticket. I feel confident that John McCain will see that the very attributes he desired in his VP choice can be met, and even exceeded in some areas, by me. For your consideration, my big, fat résumé:

1. Focus on the Family

I am the mother of five children, just like Governor Palin. I have known the demands of managing a full-time career and motherhood at the same time. I have juggled a breast pump and a BlackBerry, and I know when to put the BlackBerry down. (To be perfectly honest, I did once send a text to the baby and tried to nurse my bass player. You learn from your mistakes.)

2. Reproductive Issues

3. Church and State

4. Environment

(Okay, that is a bold-faced lie, but I've been paying really close attention to the campaign stump speeches, and I feel certain I am allowed a generous allotment of bold-faced lies.)

5. Foreign policy

6. Legal Experience

7. Higher Education

8. Ethics

9. Iraq

10. Executive Ability

Sedamsville Church Demolished

Tue, 14 Oct 2008 04:32:37 GMT

clipped by: presohio

Clip Source: www.building-cincinnati.com

Demolition began today on the historic St. Martin's German Evangelical Church in Sedamsville.

Bulldozers began tearing off the back wall of the High Victorian Gothic structure, which has stood at 2654 River Road since 1892.

The landmark is being razed by Arlon Brown and Collins Riverside Development, who have proposed a $50 million condominium project for the site called Harbor Lights.

The project would require the demolition of up to 30 Sedamsville properties.

So far only a handful have been razed, but this building is the most prominent.

St. Martin's is widely considered the centerpiece of the proposed Sedamsville River Road Historic District, which includes 58 properties on the northwest side of River Road and southwest of Ansonia Avenue.

On August 1, the Ohio Historic Site Preservation Advisory Board recommended the historic district for placement on the National Register of Historic Places.

Tags: preservation, demolition, cincinnati

Obama Friends Call Character into Question

Tue, 14 Oct 2008 04:25:48 GMT

clipped by: jatfla
clipper's remarks: A wise friend once said that "we learn from whom we are yoked". I believe that is so true. Whether a spouse, a business partner, a pastor, or friend. There's a reason why we are drawn to them and allow them to influence us....for good or bad. These associations speak volumes to me about the ideals, opinions, world-view, values of Obama...regardless of what he says. Words are easy & cheap. History reveals the inner man.

Clip Source: www.ibdeditorials.com

Obama Friends Call Character Into Question

Convicted felon Tony Rezko. Unrepentant terrorist Bill Ayers. And the race-baiting Rev. Jeremiah Wright. It is hard to think of any presidential candidate before Barack Obama sporting associations with three more execrable characters.

Yet let the McCain campaign raise the issue, and the mainstream media begin fulminating about dirty campaigning tinged with racism and McCarthyite guilt by association.

But associations are important. They provide a significant insight into character

He found these men useful, and use them he did. Would you attend a church whose pastor was spreading racial animosity from the pulpit? Would you even shake hands with — let alone serve on two boards with — an unrepentant terrorist, whether he bombed U.S. military installations or abortion clinics?

Amnesty International condemns ‘widening persecution’ of Catholics in Vietnam

Tue, 14 Oct 2008 00:31:38 GMT

clipped by: Efrain Alvarado

Clip Source: www.catholicnewsagency.com

Hanoi, Oct 11, 2008 / 10:55 am (CNA).- The global humanitarian group Amnesty International on Thursday issued a statement condemning the government of Vietnam’s “widening persecution” of Vietnamese Catholics who are demonstrating to secure the return of confiscated church lands.

Catholics began their protests in December 2007 seeking the return of several properties including the former papal nunciature in Hanoi and also property formerly belonging to the Redemptorists.

Negotiations between the Church and the government stalled in February. In August and September thousands of people, some from other parts of the country, joined in peaceful protests at the properties. At the end of September authorities had sealed off the disputed areas.

“Authorities are also using criminal law to stifle free expression of opinion,” Amnesty international continued, stating that four protesters have been detained and charged while numerous protesters have been called in for questioning in recent days.

Tags: catholic, church, persecution, vietnam