Secularism activists say the removal was an important move in the culture wars.

Source: Oklahoma Ten Commandments Monument Removal Celebrated By Secularism Activists

Rev. Bruce Prescott, a member of Northhaven Church in Norman, OK, initiated the law suit to remove the Ten Commandments. Northhaven Church is a member of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, which formed from a split in the Southern Baptist Convention in the 1990s. You can learn more about the church at their website: northhavenchurch.net.

“It’ll be gone forever,” says the group leader.

Source: End of the world on Wednesday, says religious group

I have never understood the obsession with trying to predict the end of the world based on speculative interpretations of the Bible. I wonder whether anyone has done a comprehensive study of this practice and of what is going on in these groups that makes them come up with such predictions.

The following is the full text of Pope Francis’s speech to Congress delivered Thursday in Washington.

Source: Transcript: Pope Francis’s speech to Congress – The Washington Post

This is the first time a pope has addressed the U. S. Congress.

On a dating web site, Mercer described himself as “Not Religious, Not Religious, but Spiritual.”

Source: Oregon community college shooter was bitter

Although I have seen several articles stating that the Oregon shooter was targeting Christians, this is the first article that gives a source for that information as well as quotations of what the shooter was asking. The statements do not make clear whether the shooter was targeting Christians or whether he was expressing some twisted belief that he was sending them home to the Lord. Very sad. According to a sister-in-law, there were Christians in the shooter’s family.

 

Up to 100 Syrian refugees have arrived in the state this year, with more expected in coming months.

Source: Syrian refugees eager to build new lives in Michigan

Lutheran Social Services of Michigan and Catholic Charities are settling Syrian refugees in Michigan, where the largest concentration of Muslims are located in the U.S. The Lutheran agency is settling the majority of immigrants.

PARIS — Pépite is still in shock. “It’s hard to deal with it,” repeats this mother, whose youngest daughter converted to Islam. Pépite comes from a Catholic family, and never expected this to happen. She didn’t worry when her daughter, Alexandra, became infatuated with a boy who

Source: A Close-Up Look At French Converts To Islam

The article describes several Roman Catholic families whose children, in their teen and young adult years, have converted to Islam. It also explains that the percentage of converts who get involved with radical, jihadist Islam is quite high.

The pope’s American sojourn casts a spotlight on the fact that funding issues are close to the surface even at the most successful Catholic schools in the U.S.

Source: Pope Visit 2015: Catholic Schools’ Enrollment Trends Paint Bleak Picture

The article reports the nearly constant decline of Catholic schools since the 1970s, from 5.2 million to 1.9 million students. No doubt, this is caused in part by the downward trend in births since the Baby Boom. Yet the decline is sharper than demographic changes would indicate.

Is there a ‘war on women’? Yes – but not in the US, the Republican candidate told supporters, promising that immigrants are ‘welcome to come to America, but they don’t get to change who we are.’

Source: Ben Carson: By keeping out Islam, we protect women (+video) – CSMonitor.com

Carson’s comments stirred controversy since he noted how the views of many Muslims currently conflict with democratic and American ideals. Carson is a vocal, practicing Christian.

Urban construction in Milwaukee uncovers the graves of dozens of residents, the remains of whom archaeologists are now studying.

Source: Archaeologists Discover Graves From Milwaukee’s Boom Time

The article describes how Protestant burials and Roman Catholic burials tend to differ due to the absence or presence of grave goods. Also, the graves were oriented to emphasize the people’s faith in the return of Christ and the resurrection.

Source: Review of Biblical Literature

Frans van Liere’s introduction covers canon, interpretation, and use of the Bible from Jerome’s translation (c. 405) to publication of the Gutenberg Bible in 1455.