Ex-Vatican Doctrine Chief Dies

EX-VATICAN DOCTRINE CHIEF DIES

(Aka Holy Office of the Inquisition)

by Rodney Pelletier • ChurchMilitant.com • September 27, 2019 

Questions remain about his involvement with sex abuse cover-up

ROME (ChurchMilitant.com) - Cardinal William Levada died at the age of 83 in Rome on Thursday, and while establishment Catholic media is gushing about him, there are still many questions regarding his relationship with the cover-up of homosexual predator priests as archbishop of San Francisco.

Levada was appointed head of the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) by Pope Benedict XVI in 2005 and made a cardinal in 2016. As a priest working in California, he began working at the CDF from 1976 to 1982, having been recommended by Chicago's Cdl. Joseph Bernardin, a suspected homosexual predator satanist.

After returning to California in 1982, he was named secretary of the California Catholic Conference and ordained an auxiliary bishop of Los Angeles a year later.

In 1986, he was appointed chancellor of the archdiocese of Los Angeles under the now-disgraced Cdl. Roger Mahony who covered up for homosexual predator priests and sold off Church property to pay $660 million in payouts to sex abuse victims — the largest in history.

The same year, he was appointed archbishop of Portland, Oregon, where he stayed until 1995, when he was archbishop of San Francisco until 2005.

In 2004, the archdiocese of Portland declared bankruptcy, paying out over $53 million. The archdiocese filed for bankruptcy in July, only hours after two sex abuse trials were supposed to begin. The alleged victims were seeking $155 million in damages against the archdiocese, but the trials were halted after the announcement.

Pastor Jeffress: There Will Be a ‘Civil War-Like’ Fracture If Trump Is Impeached

Countries that make weapons of war foment migration but refuse refugees, Pope Francis says

September 29, 2019 / 7:31 AM / Updated 12 hours ago

Philip Pullella


2 Min Read

Pope Francis attends the unveiling of a sculpture depicting a group of migrants of various cultures and from different historic times, following a mass for World Day of Migrants and Refugees, at St. Peter's Square at the Vatican September 29, 2019. REUTERS/Vincenzo Pinto/Pool

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis on Sunday scolded countries that produce weapons for wars fought elsewhere and then refuse to take in refugees fleeing the very same conflicts.

The 82-year-old Argentine pope, whose parents were of Italian immigrant stock, has made the defense of migrants and refugees a plank of his pontificate and he has often clashed over immigration policy with U.S. President Donald Trump and populist anti-immigrant politicians in Europe.

Francis has also criticized the arms trade repeatedly and his sermon for 40,000 people in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday linked the issues of war and migration as the Roman Catholic Church marked its World Day of Migrants and Refugees.

“Wars only affect some regions of the world, yet weapons of war are produced and sold in other regions which are then unwilling to take in the refugees generated by these conflicts,” Francis said.

Sunday’s Mass was attended by many immigrants and groups helping them. It was also marked by a mix of African, Spanish and Portuguese music as well as traditional Church music.

Francis said the world is becoming increasingly “elitist and cruel toward the excluded”, adding that it is the duty of Christians to look after all those left behind in a “throwaway culture” taking root in society.

“This means being a neighbor to all those who are mistreated and abandoned on the streets of our world, soothing their wounds and bringing them to the nearest shelter, where their needs can be met,” he said.

People could not remain indifferent to “the bleak isolation, contempt and discrimination experienced by those who do not belong to ‘our’ group”, the pope said.

Francis then inaugurated a large statue in St. Peter’s Square, showing dozens of migrants and refugees from different faiths and different periods of history.

Reporting By Philip Pullella; Editing by David Goodman

Source

Why Christians reject Kanye West’s ‘Jesus Is King,’ Sunday Service

By Hannah Frishberg

September 27, 2019 | 8:06pm | Updated September 28, 2019 | 11:56am

 

Getty/NY Post composite

Kanye West may have come to Jesus — but some Christians aren’t buying the born-again “Yeezus.”

On the eve of West’s new gospel album “Jesus Is King,” which is expected to drop in one form or another this weekend following his latest “Sunday Service” performance, the online Christian community has revived its sermon against the 42-year-old rapper’s co-opting of their culture.

Hundreds of hellfire-haters are firing up the Twitterverse — but the controversy about West’s invocation of religious imagery in his work has been around since the early 2000s, critic and self-proclaimed Christian Charlene Kaleina, of Connecticut, tells The Post.

Kaleina, 68, says her faith is constantly mocked “because of the strange and weird behavior of people like this man.”

“He may be trying to understand Jesus in his own limited way and we cannot judge another’s soul,” the commercial real estate professional tells The Post. “People who follow Christ sense something is not right with this scene.”

The Post has reached out to a West spokesperson for a response to critiques such as Kaleina’s.

Online, hundreds of the faithful felt the album title alone was blasphemous.

” ‘Jesus Is King’ is trending on Twitter,” writes another critic who identifies as an Adventist. “They’re talking about the self-proclaimed god Kanye West, who is a mere man.”

Others argue that West — whose famous friends describe as a born-again Christian — has made past statements that show his heart cannot possibly be in the right place.

see also

Kanye teases 'Jesus Is King' album drop Friday night at Detroit theater

Yeezus is coming.

“The way he talks about women in his other/recent albums, I’m skeptical he knows the gospel,” writes one Twitter critic. “I am much more willing to believe Chance [The Rapper] is born again than Kanye.”

There is also the problem of inclusion. Kanye’s “Sunday Service” is invite-only, which is a big problem, according to Premier Christianity magazine columnist Tobi Oredein.

“My major issue with Kanye’s Sunday Services is that they appear to be exclusive clubs for the rich and famous,” Oredein writes. “The average person can’t visit — instead, we’re kept at arm’s length merely watching on screens. A church — or any gathering led in Christ’s name — should be open to everyone.”

Kanye’s church also seems to be more of an ad campaign for his music and fashion brand, Oredein says: “He’s employing a choir of people who are not only singing his songs, but are all dressed in his apparel.

“Is Christ really at the center of this gathering? I’m not sure he is.”

Source

NYC threatens up to $250G in fines for using terms like 'illegal alien,' threatening to call ICE

Published September 28, 2019
Last Update 11 hrs ago

By Sam Dorman | Fox News

New York City's Commission on Human Rights announced on Thursday that residents could face up to $250,000 in fines if they use terms such as "illegal alien ... with intent to demean, humiliate or harass a person."

"Hate has no place here," a tweet from the City of New York read. The city's announcement ticked off a list of offensive ways to address immigrants -- including threatening to call Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), or harassing someone for their "limited English proficiency."

"Threatening to call ICE when motivated by discrimination, derogatory use of the term 'illegal alien,' and discrimination based on limited English proficiency are unlawful discriminatory treatment under the NYC Human Rights Law," the announcement read.

ILHAN OMAR CRITICIZES TRUMP FOR USING LEGAL TERM ON IMMIGRATION: 'NO ONE IS AN ALIEN''

It clarified that calling ICE with a "discriminatory motive" was a violation. It was not immediately clear what New York City would consider a call to ICE lacking in "discriminatory motive."

"Fines of up to $250,000 can be assessed for each act of willful discrimination, and damages are available to complainants," the city said.

New Yorkers could also face fines if they use similar language towards a lawful resident or citizen whom they perceive to be in the country illegally.

"The NYC Commission on Human Rights ... defines discrimination on the basis of perceived or actual immigration status and national origin under the New York City Human Rights Law in public accommodation, employment, and housing," the announcement read.

The Commission on Human Rights has a history of censoring speech it deemed harmful. Composed of political appointees, the committee previously enacted a ban on employers and landlords using gender pronouns other than those preferred by employees and tenants. Violations of those regulations similarly carried a $250,000 fine if the offenders engaged in "willful, wanton, or malicious conduct."

George Soros Emerges as Key Funder of ‘Global Climate Strike’

GEORG HOCHMUTH/AFP/Getty Images

THOMAS D. WILLIAMS, PH.D. 

28 Sep 2019

George Soros financed radical environmental groups partnering in this week’s “Global Climate Strike” to the tune of nearly $25 million, according to a new report.

At least 22 of the left-wing activist groups listed as partners in the Global Climate Strike received $24,854,592 in funding from liberal billionaire George Soros between 2000-2017 through his Open Society Network, Joseph Vazquez reported Thursday for the Media Research Center.

Though ostensibly ignited by the protests of 16-year-old Greta Thunberg, the Global Climate Strike has borne from the outset the indelible fingerprints of well-funded, radical environmental activists. As it turns out, much of the funding has been coming from professional disrupter George Soros.

Among the organizations receiving Soros funding were Fund for Global Human Rights, Global Greengrants Fund, 350.org, Amnesty International, Avaaz, Color of Change, and People’s Action. Each of these groups has climate-related agendas and goals spanning from reducing global carbon emissions to less than 350 parts per million and 100 percent “clean energy,” to the elimination of new fossil fuel projects and a “green civil rights movement.”

Other major donors have included Democrat presidential candidate Tom Steyer’s NextGen America as well as the Sierra Club, which has reportedly received millions from former Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

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New Statement from Young Catholics

Young Catholics worldwide will raise their voices for change during the climate strikes on September 20 and 27. And as upcoming leaders of the Laudato Si’ Generation, they’re calling the Church to stand with them:

“We’re the young Catholics of the Laudato Si’ Generation, and we’ll inherit the Earth older generations leave us. This Earth could offer a rich heritage, bright with promise, but it has not been protected. We’re scared, and we are motivated by a sense of urgency, and we need your help. We call on all those in the Church to stand with us for the global climate strikes on September 20. March to your town’s park or government center, or set aside time for public prayer. However you take action, make sure you carry signs and banners so others know that Catholics stand together for a clean, safe future. We’re counting on you.”

Learn more and register your event here.

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Teen climate activist Greta Thunberg hits back after Donald Trump mocks her on Twitter

US president retweets her emotional UN summit speech, calling activist a ‘happy young girl looking forward to a bright and wonderful future’

Thunberg responds by changing her social media profile to reflect Trump’s taunt

Reuters


Published: 1:40am, 25 Sep, 2019


Swedish teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg shot back at on Tuesday at US President Donald Trump’s attempt to mock her on Twitter by changing her profile on the social media site to reflect Trump’s taunting remark.

Late on Monday, Trump retweeted a clip of the 16-year-old’s speech at a United Nations climate summit in which she angrily denounced world leaders for failing to tackle climate change by demanding:
“How dare you?”

(Climate Justice) Marketing 1992 vs marketing 2019

Climate strikes

Climate strikes

May 3, 2019


A wave of climate strikes is sounding an alarm on the climate crisis. The strikes’ message is clear–we’re out of time, and we’re taking action now.

The strikes’ inspiration is Greta Thunberg, is a 16-year-old girl from Sweden whose blunt moral clarity has galvanized a movement. Greta recently met Pope Francis and shared a video message with GCCM just after the meeting.




The next strike will take place on May 24–the anniversary of Laudato Si’.

You’re called to join this huge global movement for our future.

Register your participation in a climate strike here.

Use free resources–banners, social media posts, and more–here.





climate strike in Australia


The strikes are ongoing. Smaller strikes are taking place every Friday as part of a #FridaysForFuture effort.

Massive global strikes like the one planned for May 24 are taking place every few months. Approximately 1.5 million people participated in the previous strike, in March. Young Catholics were among them, walking under the banner of Laudato Si’ Generation.

As Laudato Si’ says, we must take “decisive action, here and now.” Register your commitment to climate strikes here.

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Three Decades Ago, America Lost Its Religion. Why?

“Not religious” has become a specific American identity—one that distinguishes secular, liberal whites from the conservative, evangelical right.

DEREK THOMPSON

6:00 AM ET

JAMES STRACHAN / GETTY


The idea of American exceptionalism has become so dubious that much of its modern usage is merely sarcastic. But when it comes to religion, Americans really are exceptional. No rich country prays nearly as much as the U.S, and no country that prays as much as the U.S. is nearly as rich.

America’s unique synthesis of wealth and worship has puzzled international observers and foiled their grandest theories of a global secular takeover. In the late 19th century, an array of celebrity philosophers—the likes of Friedrich Nietzsche, Karl Marx, and Sigmund Freud—proclaimed the death of God, and predicted that atheism would follow scientific discovery and modernity in the West, sure as smoke follows fire.

Stubbornly pious Americans threw a wrench in the secularization thesis. Deep into the 20th century, more than nine in 10 Americans said they believed in God and belonged to an organized religion, with the great majority of them calling themselves Christian. That number held steady—through the sexual-revolution ’60s, through the rootless and anxious ’70s, and through the “greed is good” ’80s.

Read: Elite failure has brought Americans to the edge of an existential crisis

But in the early 1990s, the historical tether between American identity and faith snapped. Religious non-affiliation in the U.S. started to rise—and rise, and rise. By the early 2000s, the share of Americans who said they didn’t associate with any established religion (also known as “nones”) had doubled. By the 2010s, this grab bag of atheists, agnostics, and spiritual dabblers had tripled in size.

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Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’ v. the Green New Deal

April 26, 2019

By: Charles C. Camosy

Pope Francis arrives for his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 24, 2019. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)


(RNS) — In my previous column, I argued that Pope Francis’ approach to climate change — one focused on culture — is far superior to moving immediately to legislative approaches like the recently floated Green New Deal, which has zero chance of passing.

According to climate science experts, we have 12 years to dramatically curb our carbon emissions before we reach a tipping point, after which climate change is not only inevitable but disastrous. In light of this emergency, I argued that we need to take the next decade or so to work on changing culture — and then, in the final few years, work to pass dramatic legislation in a changed cultural and political environment.

Right now, attempts to shove the Green New Deal down the throats of an unwilling public do little but push them further away from embracing the culture change we need.

One might rightly wonder about the specifics of what Francis has in mind. Laws demand certain specific actions. “Culture change,” in addition to often being more difficult to name and define, takes more work and patience to bring about.

Francis’ prescription for ecological culture change occurs primarily in his May 2015 encyclical Laudato Si’. In this magisterial document, Francis rightly insists that the “existence of laws and regulations” won’t work to curb the behaviors producing climate change by themselves. In order for laws to bring about the necessary long-term effects, “the majority of the members of society must be adequately motivated to accept them, and personally transformed to respond.”

This, in his view, requires what he calls a “profound interior conversion.” At times he calls it, more specifically, a kind of “ecological conversion.”

The cover page of Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical, Laudato Si’.

Such a conversion, the pope says, must be both individual and communal. But it must be a fundamental change of life — much like that of the saint best known for his spiritual emphasis on God’s creation, St. Francis of Assisi.

Before totally transforming his life, St. Francis was a rich, privileged young man who was addicted to consumption and the superficial pleasures of life. After encountering the poor and having a life-changing spiritual experience, however, Francis reoriented his life away from consumerism, to the point of embracing poverty and direct service to the poor.

Not all of us are called to be saints, but the pope (who took has name from the great saint of Assisi) insists that the planet now requires a similar kind of conversion from its inhabitants. We must take on a “less is more,” anti-consumerism approach to life that will lead us to transcend unhealthy anxieties caused by being trapped in consumer culture. We must also celebrate rest, especially from buying and selling, by returning to a focus on keeping the sabbath.

As it did for St. Francis, Pope Francis argues that this kind of conversion can restore “ecological equilibrium, establishing harmony within ourselves, with others, with nature and other living creatures, and with God.”

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A green new home

A Green New Deal would touch our lives at every level, including at home

By Kate Wagner 

on September 25, 2019 8:00 am

Illustrations by Paige Vickers

Climate change isn’t coming—it’s already here: increasingly severe weather, climbing temperatures, and fires raging across not only California, but the Arctic, too. The U.N. says we have 12 years to avert climate change, otherwise we’ll push Mother Earth to the brink. If this sounds scary to you, you’re not alone. A variety of politicians and political organizations, most notably Sunrise Movement and Bernie Sanders, have rallied around a plan to avert this crisis: or, rather, a variety of plans all given the moniker the Green New Deal.

The “official” Green New Deal is the House of Representatives Bill 109, “Recognizing the duty of the Federal Government to create a Green New Deal,” which was introduced by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Ed Markey in January. The Sanders campaign has given its climate plan the same name, and individual cities have their own green building initiatives as well. Rather than being one specific bill or initiative, the Green New Deal is better understood as a framework for a massive public works and jobs program aiming to decarbonize the economy and transition workers in the fossil fuel industry to new, greener work.

Named after the New Deal, implemented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as an economic recovery plan from the Great Depression, a Green New Deal is an economic—and environmental—recovery plan for the anthropocene. Though the plan has earned headlines primarily for its proposals to transition workers in the fossil fuel industry to new green jobs and to decarbonize and revitalize our energy systems, a Green New Deal would touch our lives at every level, including at home.

One of the key elements of the Green New Deal is a call to make our homes more energy efficient through weatherization. Homeowners and building owners would receive incentives from the federal government to weatherize buildings by replacing energy-inefficient windows, doors, insulation, and service systems such as electricity and plumbing. Not only would this boost homeowners’ equity, but it would also reduce the cost of utility bills and make our housing stock resilient against the weather changes a warming world brings. And speaking of energy, we’re also going to be installing solar panels, and a lot of them.

Proposed changes in transportation are an underestimated element of the Green New Deal. All of the proposals see building robust, sustainable public transit systems and weaning us away from car reliance as keys to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. As critics have noted, none of the proposed Green New Deal plans go far enough in this regard. But even these limited initiatives would have architectural effects: Imagine not having to waste so much square footage on a place to park your car. We could see a renaissance of the garage band, the garage workshop, and even the (properly weatherized) garage bedroom or apartment. Without car dependence, the aesthetics of new housing would be transformed by eliminating parking lots and decks on multifamily residential housing, and relegating the “snout house” (a house dominated by a front-facing garage) to the dustbin of history. Not only is this sustainable, it saves architects and homebuilders from the tricky task of trying to aesthetically integrate a massive garage.

Jesuit Theologian Predicts that ‘Laudato Si’ will become Law in 10 Years or Less

September 25, 2019 by Andy Roman




Dr. Charlie Camosy is part of the Theology Department at Fordham University, a premier Jesuit institution in New York City. [1] He recently published an article in which he stated that our world has around 10 years to “dramatically curb our carbon emissions before we reach a tipping point.” Jesuit professor Dr. Charlie Camosy argues that in “light of this emergency” we must work to “pass dramatic legislation” to prevent the coming climate “disaster.” [2]

What “legislation” is he referring to? He says that the “Green New Deal” being proposed by Democratic politicians has “zero chance” of passing, but he claims that Pope Francis’ Laudato Si encyclical is “far more superior” for “immediate legislative approaches.” In other words, this Jesuit agent is saying that the Pope’s green Sunday law (Laudato Si) is the best solution for the climate crisis and should be legislated right now!

After a lengthy praise and assessment of Laudato Si, Dr. Charlie Camosy says that the Pope’s document is the only answer to all our problems. He also revealed that he believes in about “10 years” or “perhaps even faster” Laudato Si will be embraced through legal enactment. He calls it “life changing legislation,” and compares the Pope’s encyclical to the “power” of changed “hearts” during the legalization of “same-sex marriage.”

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Climate change dominates agenda as world leaders convene at United Nations

By Seth Borenstein Sep. 22, 2019


UNITED NATIONS — Saying humanity is waging war with the planet, the head of the United Nations isn’t planning to let just any world leader speak about climate change at Monday’s special “action summit.”

Only those with new, specific and bold plans can command the podium and the ever-warming world’s attention, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.

So sit down, Brazil. Sit down, Saudi Arabia. Sit down, Poland.

“People can only speak if they come with positive steps. That is kind of a ticket,” Guterres said. “For bad news, don’t come.”

As if to underscore the seriousness of the problem, the U.N.’s World Meteorological Organization released a report Sunday showing that in the last several years, warming, sea level rise and carbon pollution have all accelerated.

Brazil’s, Poland’s and Saudi Arabia’s proposals for dealing with climate change fell short, so they’re not on Monday’s summit schedule. The United States didn’t even bother, according to a U.N. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The bar isn’t that high: Leaders from 64 nations, the European Union and more than a dozen companies and banks will present plans at the secretary-general’s Climate Action Summit.

Guterres wants nations to be carbon-neutral by 2050 — in other words, they will not add more heat-trapping greenhouse gases into the air than are removed by plants and perhaps technology each year. On Sunday, 87 countries around the world pledged to decarbonize in a way consistent with one of the international community’s tightest temperature goals.

There is a sense of urgency, Guterres said, because “climate change is the defining issue of our time.”

“For the first time, there is a serious conflict between people and nature, between people and the planet,” Guterres said.

Source

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Religion: A place to rest

By BILL TINSLEY

Religion columnist


We live in a time-crunched world where life is lived on the run. Millions pull out of their driveways in the pre-dawn dark, grab a last-minute breakfast burrito and merge onto freeways while listening to the morning news and traffic reports between cell phone calls. It is a frenzied start to a frenzied day.

Weary from long hours at work, the same drivers re-enter the stream of traffic making their way home past memorized billboards. Weekends are filled with errands, second jobs, T-ball, soccer or football. Church is squeezed into an already full schedule that has no margins.

Richard Foster analyzed it like this: “We are trapped in a rat race, not just of acquiring money, but also of meeting family and business obligations. We pant through an endless series of appointments and duties. This problem is especially acute for those who want to do what is right. With frantic fidelity we respond to all calls to service, distressingly unable to distinguish the voice of Christ from that of human manipulators.”

We are increasingly depressed and suicidal. We have turned to alcohol and drugs in a desperate effort to cope. We know deep down that something isn’t working. There must be a better way.

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Thousands of Swiss protest 5G wireless over health fears

AFP Relax News

•September 21, 2019

People take part to a nationwide protest against the 5G technology and 5G-compatible antennae deployment in front of the Swiss house of Parliament in Bern, on September 21, 2019.



Thousands of people protested in the Swiss capital Bern Saturday over the roll-out of a 5G wireless technology across the country, which they fear could damage people's health.

The protesters, many carrying placards, gathered in front of the Swiss parliament building, in a bid to stop the construction of more 5G-compatible antennae.

"The fact that so many people turned out today is a strong sign against the uncontrolled introduction of 5G," said Tamlin Schibler Ulmann, co-president of Frequencia, the group that organised the rally.

The tiny principality of Monaco became the first country in Europe to inaugurate a 5G mobile phone network in July based on technology from Chinese firm Huawei, which is seen by the US as a major security risk.

But critics in Switzerland argue that the electromagnetic radiation the new system emits poses unprecedented health and environmental risks compared to previous generations of mobile technology.

Online petitions have helped persuade several Swiss cantons -- in Geneva, Vaud, Fribourg and Neuchatel -- to postpone the construction of antennae as a precaution.

The Swiss Federation of Doctors (FMH) has also argued for a cautious approach to the new technology.

Opponents of the new technology are trying to gather the 100,000 signatures they need to force a referendum on imposing a moratorium on the technology until its risks can be properly assessed.

In February, Switzerland attributed 5G frequencies to three major operators, Swisscom, Sunrise and Salt, and the operators have been pushing the cutting-edge technology in television advertisements and on billboards.

By early July, 334 antennae stations for 5G were operational across the country, authorities have told AFP.

There are several studies on the health impacts of the new technology underway, including one by the World Health Organization, which has told AFP it had begun "conducting a risk assessment of health outcomes from radiofrequency fields exposure".

A group of experts was also appointed by the Swiss government last year to probe the risks involved with introducing 5G, and their findings should be published by the end of the year.

Source

Churches burned and worshippers killed in Ethiopia’s ethnic carnage

‘They will murder you’: Churches burned and worshippers killed in Ethiopia’s ethnic carnage

by Jeffrey Cimmino
| September 21, 2019 12:00 AM


Over a year after the ascent of a new prime minister in Ethiopia bred hope for reform, bursting ethnic tensions are sending the country into a spiral of violence that is leaving churches and worshippers subject to property damage and murder.

Thirty churches, mostly Ethiopian Orthodox, have been attacked, 18 have been burned to the ground, and almost 100 worshippers have been killed since July 2018, Tewodros Tirfe, chairman of the Amhara Association of America, an organization that advocates on behalf of Ethiopia's Amhara people, told the Washington Examiner. Christians and non-Christians alike have been caught up in the crossfire of heightened ethnic and political violence. Earlier this month, Ethiopian Orthodox Church leaders and government officials met, while Christians protested the violence directed at them.

The protests and meetings have yet to produce a concrete plan of action from the government, although they are a major problem for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who has struggled to control violence among the country's roughly 80 ethnic groups, despite inspiring optimism across the world when he assumed office last April.

Vice President Mike Pence praised Abiy last July, lauding his "historic reform efforts" and noting his work on "improving respect for human rights, reforming the business environment, and making peace with Eritrea." Abiy oversaw the release of hundreds of political prisoners, and a CNN report from December labeled him the prime minister "who captured Africa's imagination."

Yet while Abiy ushered in a period of greater freedom, his reforms also opened the door to Ethiopians demanding new rights and addressing grievances through violence.

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Andrew Yang: Climate Change May Require Elimination of Car Ownership

Imagines 'constant roving fleet of electric cars' as alternative






Graham Piro - SEPTEMBER 19, 2019 2:05 PM


Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang said the United States may have to eliminate private car ownership to combat climate change during MSNBC's climate forum at Georgetown University Thursday morning.

He told MSNBC host Ali Velshi that "we might not own our own cars" by 2050 to wean the United States economy off of fossil fuels, describing private car ownership as "really inefficient and bad for the environment." Privately owned cars would be replaced by a "constant roving fleet of electric cars."

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NBC News Asks Americans To Confess Their Climate Change Sins

(Michael Nagle/Getty Images)

PETER HASSON

SENIOR REPORTER

September 18, 201912:41 PM ET


NBC News is asking Americans to confess their climate change sins, though at least some people have taken the opportunity to troll the news company.

“Even those who care deeply about the planet’s future can slip up now and then. Tell us: Where do you fall short in preventing climate change?” reads the introduction to NBC’s “Climate Confessions” project.

Many of the responses appear to take the project seriously. One person confessed taking flights to see their son across the country. “I fly to see my son on the west coast. I live on the east,” reads the confession.

“I drive to work even though the bus is almost as fast. I often feel I have good excuses,” another person confessed.

“I wish I had been born a vegan and then maybe it would be easier. I can’t seem to give up meat,” another confession stated.

One person apparently used the project to tout their virtuousness, rather than confess their climate sins. “I LOVE meat. But I love the earth more. Vegan for over 4 years now,” they wrote.

(RELATED: Bernie Sanders, Climate Hawk, Spends Nearly $300K On Private Jet Travel In Month)

(Michael Nagle/Getty Images)

Others appear to have taken the opportunity to troll NBC over the project. One such entry reads: “I require at least half a roll of TP when wiping.”

“I like my house to be 85 in the winter and 55 in the summer. Deal with it, hippies,” one person wrote. “I live on Earth, where even if we achieve carbon neutrality in the first world, that’s only 19.1% of the population,” another stated.

“I don’t do anything for the environment. I don’t care,” reads another entry. “I am eating bacon with breakfast this morning and I’ll have it again tomorrow,” another declared.

One person submitted lyrics about loving plastic straws: “I LOVE plastic straws & I cannot lie. As many as I can get, before I die. Such straight soda with apple pie. Yessir, I’m the guy.”

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Take a Social Media Break Weekly Like This Influencer

Katie Boué started practicing No Social Sundays and reclaimed her time

Katie BouéKatie Boué

Sep 18, 2019


The average American spends 6.5 hours on the internet every day. That’s more than a quarter of our time devoted to staring at screens, absorbing news articles, cat memes, anxiety-inducing politics, and blurry iPhone photos from your second cousin in Florida.

As a social media manager and influencer, I fear my screen time clocks in far beyond the average American. I’m so disturbed by it that I haven’t updated my phone to gain access to that new feature that tells you exactly how much time you spend on your apps. I don’t want to know. Measuring that stat ranks high on the list of what keeps me up at night, right next to climate doom and political dread. So when my former assistant suggested I start logging off social media every Sunday, I decided to listen.

The rules for No Social Sundays are simple: on Sundays, stay off social media. No posting, no scrolling. No Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter. If I break the rules, which I often do, I immediately restart—no shame. No matter how imperfect any No Social Sunday’s practice is, I don’t feel bad about it. These weekly abstinences aren’t graded, scored, or available for anyone else’s judgment. No Social Sunday is my personal practice.

I started No Social Sundays because my assistant was right and I am frustrated by my relationship with technology. The connectivity of my millennial generation (I’m 30 years old) is a powerful tool I believe in deeply—and one that my entire career is built upon—but we need to establish boundaries.

When I think about the times I’ve felt happiest, it’s always when I’m outdoors without cell service. It’s that relieving moment when my car clambers just deep enough into the backcountry for all those little bars of connection to disappear. I’m unhooked from my digital tether and am forced to be present. Whatever is happening in the ether and rest of the world becomes insignificant.

What if you could recreate that feeling at home, too? That’s what No Social Sundays are for.

Most of my days start the same: I wake up, slap glasses on my face, scoot in my bathrobe toward the commode, grab a smartphone along the way, and find myself perched on the toilet, opening my notifications. Emails, Instagram, Twitter, iCal, to-do list. Check.

But not on Sundays.

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Smart TVs, smart-home devices found to be leaking sensitive user data,

"Nearly all TV devices in our testbeds contacts Netflix even though we never configured any TV with a Netflix account," the researchers wrote.




A man using smart TV apps via a digital tablet.Hero Images / Getty Images file


Sept. 18, 2019, 10:22 AM EDT
By Jason Abbruzzese


Smart-home devices, such as televisions and streaming boxes, are collecting reams of data — including sensitive information such as device locations — that is then being sent to third parties like advertisers and major tech companies, researchers said Tuesday.

As the findings show, even as privacy concerns have become a part of the discussion around consumer technology, new devices are adding to the hidden and often convoluted industry around data collection and monetization.

A team of researchers from Northeastern University and the Imperial College of London found that a variety of internet-connected devices collected and distributed data to outside companies, including smart TV and TV streaming devices from Roku and Amazon — even if a consumer did not interact with those companies.

"Nearly all TV devices in our testbeds contacts Netflix even though we never configured any TV with a Netflix account," the Northeastern and Imperial College researchers wrote.

The researchers tested a total of 81 devices in the U.S. and U.K. in an effort to gain a broad idea of how much data is collected by smart-home devices, and where that data goes.

The research was first reported by The Financial Times.

The researchers found data sent to a variety of companies, some known to consumers including Google, Facebook and Amazon, as well as companies that operate out of the public eye such as Mixpanel.com, a company that tracks users to help companies improve their products.

One of the researchers, David Choffnes, a professor of computer science at Northeastern, said that his previous work looking at the data collection and dissemination habits of mobile apps led him to expect similar practices with smart-home devices.

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Jesuit Chief: No Country Has the Right to ‘Reject Migrants’

Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

THOMAS D. WILLIAMS, PH.D. 

24 Aug 2019

ROME — The superior general of the Jesuits declared this week that no country has the right to turn away migrants, claiming the land belongs to everyone.

“The challenge for a country that receives migrants is not only reception, but integration, which means receiving the contribution that immigrants bring,” said Jesuit Father Arturo Sosa Abascal in an interview with Tempi.it.

“They come to make a contribution, which is greater than what they receive from the host country,” he claimed, seemingly without evidence.

“Italians must remember their own experience,” he continued.

“They came to Latin America, including my country of Venezuela, and they were welcomed; they became part of society in the same way as everyone else, and today they are not considered ‘different’,” he said, drawing a somewhat dubious comparison between the largely legal migration of Italians to South America and Europe’s largely unregulated migrant crisis.

“In Europe we must recognize the contribution that migrants make to the societies that receive them and thank them for it,” the Jesuit added.

Then, in one of his more controversial claims, Father Sosa said that nations have no right to enforce their borders because in the end, the land belongs to everyone.

“Those who live in a given territory have no right to turn away migrants,” he said, “because they have no absolute right to that territory. They do not own it; the goods of the land are for everyone.”

“I do not see a conflict of rights — those of migrants and those of those who already live in the place — but the opportunity for a human dialogue to create a universal fraternity through these movements of populations due to various reasons: wars, persecutions, poverty, the search for a better life,” he said.

“Everyone’s rights are the same. The first is to be recognized as human beings equal to all other human beings,” he said.

Turning to the issue of modern political movements, Father Sosa said that populism is dangerous, alleging it is an authoritarian ideology.

“There are various populisms, as well as sovereignisms, that we find within fundamentalism,” he said, “sovereignism” being a term for belief in independent nation-states.

“Populism conceals various forms of authoritarianism under the blanket of the representation of the people. It takes a great deal of political discernment,” he said, adding that it represents an “ideological form.”

“One thing is a political idea, another is an ideology,” he claimed.


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Happy Constitution Day: 5 facts about America’s most important document

Jacob Tierney | Tuesday, September 17, 2019 3:45 p.m.

https://triblive.com/news/world/happy-constitution-day-5-facts-about-americas-most-important-document/

Happy birthday to the U.S. Constitution.


Each Sept. 17 marks Constitution Day, the anniversary of the day in 1787 when 38 founding fathers gathered in the Philadelphia building now known as Liberty Hall to sign the document that still guides America.

Every year, the National Constitution Center answers hundreds of questions about the document and the Founding Fathers from students. Here’s some facts about the constitution, taken from the center’s list of frequently asked questions:


Q: What is the Constitution?

A: The document that set the framework federal government system, including its structure and rights and freedoms protected against government interference.

Q: How long did it take to create the Constitution?

A: Drafting the document took about four months. It would take about nine more months to be ratified by the states.

Q: What was the average age of the delegates?

A: 42. The oldest was 81-year-old Benjamin Franklin. The youngest was 26-year-old New Jersey delegate Jonathan Dayton.

Q: Who wrote the Bill of Rights? When was it added?

A: James Madison. The Bill of Rights contains the first 10 amendments. It was added in December 1791.

Q: Why haven’t we had a Constitutional Convention in recent years ?

A: The Constitution allows Congress to call a convention to propose new amendments to the constitution, but such a convention has never been called. There are 27 amendments to the constitution (the Bill of Rights plus 17 others), but these were all added without a convention. Organizing one would be a complicated, years-long process.

The most recent amendment was passed by Congress in 1789 but not ratified by the states for more than 200 years. It was finally ratified in 1992. The 27th Amendment states that any pay raise Congress gives itself will not take effect until after the next election.


Jacob Tierney is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jacob at 724-836-6646, jtierney@tribweb.com or via Twitter .

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Virgin Mary Statue In New Jersey Desecrated, Covered In Dog Feces By Vandal

September 14, 2019 at 11:08 pm






JERSEY CITY, N.J. (CBSNewYork) – Police are looking for the vandal who desecrated a statue of the Virgin Mary outside a church in New Jersey.

The statue at St. Michael Church in Jersey City had to be cleaned up after its face was found covered in dog feces and a cigarette on Friday.

(Credit: CBSN New York) 

The crime wasn’t discovered until a parishioner arriving for midday mass alerted the pastor to the vandalism.

“It’s heart wrenching to contemplate the anguish and pain that an individual must be experiencing to commit such an act. Our prayers go out to the parish members and staff of St. Michael’s Church and to all the faithful,” a spokesperson for the Archdiocese of Newark said in a statement.

The pastor told CBS2 he forgives the person who did this and even offered help them, if he or she comes forward.


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Mgr. Hollerich to be created Cardinal by Pope Francis

LATEST PRESS RELEASES
Content:
Press Release, 02/09/2019


Fr. Manuel Barrios Prieto, new General Secretary of COMECE, expresses great joy on behalf of COMECE Bishops and staff for the recent announcement given by Pope Francis on the forthcoming appointment of Mgr. Jean-Claude Hollerich SJ, Archbishop of Luxembourg and President of COMECE, as Cardinal.



In a congratulations letter sent to Mgr. Hollerich and to all COMECE Bishops, Fr. Barrios Prieto, on his first day of mandate as General Secretary of COMECE, assured the Cardinal-designate of prayers for “this new responsibility […] for the whole Church and for the Church in the European Union”.

The Holy Father gave the announcement after reciting the Angelus in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday 1st September 2019. “Their origins– he stated – express the missionary vocation of the Church, which continues to proclaim the merciful love of God to all people of the earth”.

Mgr. Hollerich, 61-year-old, has been committed to the common good in Europe and in the world, devoting himself to key-issues including youth, migration and asylum, climate. His appointment can also be seen as a recognition of the important role played by COMECE at the EU level and within the Church.

Mgr. Hollerich will receive the red hat during the Consistory of 5 October 2019 on the eve of the Amazon Synod.

Interviewed by Vatican News immediately after the news came out, the future Cardinal stated:“I hope that I can always listen to the Gospel […], and as a Cardinal be really of service to the Pope, to the Church and to all the women and men who constitute the Church of God”.

On Monday 16 September 2019 Mgr. Hollerich will participate together with Fr. Manuel Barrios Prieto, new General Secretary of COMECE, in a Press Conference organised at the COMECE Secretariat. The time of the press conference will be announced later on.

Journalists and media operators interested in covering the September press conference are invited to send a request to the COMECE Communication Officer by Thursday 12 September 2019. Bilateral interviews can be arranged upon request prior to the above-mentioned date.

A Press Room will be arranged to facilitate the work of journalists. Due to limited space inside the COMECE Secretariat, priority criteria for access may apply.

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Pope Francis and Japan: a wish come true

Statue of Saint Francis Xavier 

POPE

The Holy See Press Office announcement of the Apostolic Journey to Japan in November is a wish come true for Pope Francis who wanted to visit the country as a missionary when he was a young Jesuit.


By Alessandro Gisotti

"Over time, I felt the desire to go as a missionary to Japan, where the Jesuits have always carried out a very important work”. These are the words of Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, as quoted in the book “El Jesuita”, published in 2010.

Japan and the Jesuits

Japan has held a particular attraction for the Jesuits ever since 1549 when Saint Francis Xavier visited the country. In the five centuries following that first mission, the Society of Jesus has dedicated special attention to the Japanese people and culture.

This attention was strengthened in recent decades by the last two Jesuit Father Generals, Fr Pedro Arrupe and Fr Adolfo Nicolás, both of whom lived in Japan for many years. Not to mention the important role played by Jesuit Fr Giuseppe Pittau, in terms of the cultural dialogue carried forward between Japan and the West.

The Jesuits have always followed a policy of patient inculturation, one that "does not trust in rapid success and immediate results, because God goes three miles an hour, that is, according to the pace of man", as Fr Nicolás noted in a 2014 article for “La Civiltà Cattolica”, entitled "Living the mission in Japan".

Shalt thou eat an Impossible Burger?..

Religious doctrine scrambles to catch up to new food technology.

As plant-based and cell-cultured meat reach for greater authenticity, theologians and the devout parse what should be allowed.

Tyson Ventures, Tyson Foods venture capital arm, has announced an investment in New Wave Foods, maker of plant-based shellfish. Shellfish is the most consumed seafood in the world, but it is not deemed kosher, which puts it off-limits for observant Jews. This new product aims to challenge that. (New Wave Foods)

By Laura Reiley 

September 12, 2019 at 5:38 PM EDT


Leviticus 11 contains a zoo’s worth of animals. The hyrax and the monitor lizard. The katydid is there, as is the gecko. And it ends: “You must distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between living creatures that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten.”

Dietary restrictions are woven into religious texts, the Old Testament and the New, the Koran, the Vedas and the Upanishads. Some are mercifully practical, as in the law of necessity in Islamic jurisprudence: “That which is necessary makes the forbidden permissible.”

This month, Tyson announcer it is investing in a company that will launch plant-based shrimp early next year, raising a curious question. Will it be kosher? The short answer is its ingredients — which mimic the verboten crustacean with a proprietary algae blend — could well be both kosher and halal. Once the product launches, the company will seek certification so that Jews who keep kosher and Muslims — certain Muslim groups avoid shellfish — can enjoy a shrimp cocktail, scampi, a po’ boy or ceviche.

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Catholics to gather near Vatican next month to pray for Church in her hour of crisis

St. Peters and the Vatican Shutterstock

Diane Montagna

Fri Sep 6, 2019 - 3:34 pm EST


ROME, September 6, 2018 (LifeSiteNews) — Catholics from around the world are being invited to assemble, on Oct. 5, near St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, to pray for the Church as she lives through what many see as the hour of her “Passion.”

Register for the free live stream of the Historic Amazon Synod Roundtable. Click here.

The announcement came in a letter published on Sept. 6 on Stilum Curae, a blog hosted by respected Italian journalist Marco Tosatti. According to the letter (see full text below), an international public prayer gathering will be held at 2:30pm, on Saturday Oct. 5, 2019, at Largo Giovanni XIII in Rome, located between St. Peter’s Square and Castel Sant’Angelo.

Set to take place on the eve of the Oct. 6-27 Amazon Synod, the event will also coincide with an Oct. 5 Consistory at which Pope Francis will create 13 new cardinals.

The letter’s author, “Fr. Giuseppe,” explains: “This powerful gesture comes in response to a common sentiment: The Church is going through her Passion.”

The letter continues:

This Passion dates back well before 2013, as Benedict XVI himself has said on several occasions. The last two years of his pontificate were also a time of intense suffering for believers; the obstacles placed along his path by open or hidden enemies were evident to all. Yet Benedict somehow acted as a dam (perhaps, in some way, he is still doing so today), but after his resignation the flood arrived.

The Fool in the Vatican

OPINION

The Fool in the Vatican

William Marshall | September 11, 2019






I never thought I would refer to a Pope as a fool, but it has come to that. If in so doing my fellow Catholics condemn me as somehow blaspheming against the Mother Church or God, so be it. But after reading Francis X. Rocca's article in the September 11 edition of the Wall Street Journal, which has the pontiff saying that it would be "an honor that [conservative Catholic] Americans attack me," for not standing up for traditional Catholic teachings on marriage, sexuality and bioethics, while instead opining on climate change and migration, I can't hold my tongue.


Dear God, give me strength.

The photo the Journal chose to accompany Rocca's piece is very fitting. It depicts Pope Francis gesticulating with his left hand with a moronic grin, raised eyebrows and wild eyes, which just screams "I'm in so over my head, you have no idea!"

The article's title, "Pope Francis Doesn't Fear Schism", pretty much sums up how benighted is this man in the Vatican. While he ventures into waters in which he has no expertise, like "man-made climate change," he is making fundamental changes to Catholic doctrine where he presumably does have some expertise, that is sowing confusion and turmoil among tradition-minded Catholics.


One of Pope Francis's most egregious moves was elevating a known homosexual pederast, former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, from the disgraced obscurity to which Pope Benedict had consigned him back to lofty heights within the Church, as one of Francis's top advisors, despite Pope Francis being forewarned of McCarrick’s perversions. The mind reels. Eventually, thankfully, Pope Francis removed McCarrick following a public uproar and Cardinal McCarrick, now Mr. McCarrick, was finally defrocked.

Even Pope Francis's comment, cited in the Journal article, on the potential of a schism within the Church caused by his changes (or confused thinking) evidences a cognitive incoherence that should make the entire College of Cardinals question whether this man is fit to lead the billion-member Church. He said, "There is always a schismatic option in the church," but added that the "path of schism is not Christian."

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Pope Francis accuses critics of stabbing him in the back

10 September 2019 

EPA

Pope Francis made the comments on a flight home to Rome after a three-nation trip to Africa


Pope Francis has accused his critics of stabbing him in the back, and said he is "not afraid" of the Catholic Church splitting.

Speaking after a trip to Africa, the Pope took issue with conservative clergymen who have criticised him.

Those men do not "want good for the Church", but only care about "changing popes, changing styles, creating a schism", he said.

US Catholic leaders have attacked the Pope in the past for his views.

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It is the first time he has spoken so openly about the chance of a split in the Church, which has more than one billion followers worldwide.

What did the Pope say?

Pope Francis made his comments on a flight back to Rome after a trip to Madagascar, Mauritius and Mozambique.

He was asked by a reporter about attacks from conservative Catholic leaders, TV channels and websites in the US.

Megachurch pastor Jarrid Wilson, known for his mental health advocacy, dies by suicide

“Sometimes people may think that as pastors or spiritual leaders we are somehow above the pain and struggles of everyday people,” the church's senior pastor wrote.


Sept. 11, 2019, 7:52 AM EDT
By Ben Kesslen


A megachurch pastor in Southern California known for his mental health advocacy died by suicide on Monday, church officials said in a statement.

Jarrid Wilson had been a pastor with Harvest Christian Fellowship Church for about 18 months. In 2016, he founded Anthem of Hope, a Christian organization meant to “amplify hope” for those struggling with mental health and substance use issues.

Jarrid Wilson, a megachurch pastor from California, died by suicide on Sept. 9, 2019.via YouTube

He was 30, according to Christianity Today.

Open about his battle with depression, Wilson spoke often of his struggles online and in his work as a pastor.

“Loving Jesus doesn’t always cure suicidal thoughts,” Wilson wrote on Twitter shortly before his death. “But that doesn’t mean Jesus doesn’t offer us companionship and comfort.”

On social media, family and colleagues mourned Wilson’s death.

“I love you forever, Thomas Jarrid Wilson, but I have to say that you being gone has completely ripped my heart out of my chest,” Wilson’s wife, Juli, wrote on Instagram. “Suicide doesn’t get the last word. I won’t let it.”

In addition to his wife, Wilson is survived by two sons, Finch and Denham.

Greg Laurie, senior pastor at the Harvest megachurch, described Wilson in a statement as a “vibrant” person, “always serving and helping others.”

“Sometimes people may think that as pastors or spiritual leaders we are somehow above the pain and struggles of everyday people,” Laurie wrote. “We are the ones who are supposed to have all the answers. But we do not.”

Sunday marked the beginning of National Suicide Prevention Week, a weeklong campaign meant to bring awareness to the warning signs of suicide and teach people about the resources available for people in crisis.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255, text HOME to 741741 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional resources.

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Trump administration considers monitoring smartphones of people with mental health problems

Zamira Rahim
1 day ago

© Provided by Independent Digital News & Media Limited

The Trump administration is considering a proposal to combat mass shootings which suggests phones and smartwatches may be used to track people with mental health problems.

The idea began with Bob Wright, a former NBC chairman and longtime Trump confidant, who first proposed creating a government research arm, called the Health Advanced Research Projects Agency (HARPA), to tackle health problems.

After the El Paso massacre, Ivanka Trump asked the team behind the proposal to come up with ways to stop mass shootings, according to The Washington Post.

Mr Wright’s team put together a three-page document titled “Stopping Aberrant Fatal Events by Helping Overcome Mental Extremes”, which links mass shootings to mental health.

Such a view is highly controversial, with experts believing the link between the two is weak.

The document urges the government to explore whether technology could help combat violence.

It suggests that new technology could detect when people with mental health difficulties are about to become violent.

Marisa Randazzo, former chief research psychologist for the US Secret Service, told The Washington Post that the proposal was concerning.

The technology required is yet to be developed and tracking people would also infringe their civil liberties.

Ms Randazzo told the newspaper that the initial premise was itself flawed.

“Everything we know from research tells us it’s a weak link at best,” she said.

The El Paso massacre was carried out by a man with racist motivations but conservatives in the US have repeatedly suggested that mental health was to blame.

“I don’t want people to forget that this is a mental health problem. I don’t want them to forget that, because it is. It’s a mental health problem,” Donald Trump said, following the El Paso massacre and another mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio.

“It’s the people that pull the trigger, it’s not the gun that pulls the trigger,” he continued, echoing a favourite Republican talking point.
http://players.brightcove.net/624246174001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5837728067001
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Statistics show that other countries with stricter gun control measures suffer far lower levels of gun violence than the US.

The president has avoided questions about gun control since the shootings.

In August Mr Trump was asked if he would support banning high-capacity magazines, such as the one used by a shooter in Dayton, Ohio.

He dodged the question, and instead ranted about the closure of hospitals for people with mentally health problems.

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Adventist Volunteers Attend to 3,000 Catholics on Pilgrimage

SEPTEMBER 5, 2019

In Brazil, Living Water Project provides drinking water, medical care, and massages.



By: Renata Paes, South American Division, and Adventist Review

Every year in August, Catholic pilgrims leave Uberlandia and the surrounding towns in the interior of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais and head to the city of Romaria for one of the largest religious festivals in the country.

To cater to pilgrims who have been walking for days, Seventh-day Adventist volunteers set up a tent by a major highway to talk to and assist the weary pilgrims.

During the weekend of August 9-11, 2019, Adventist volunteers offered water, juice, herbal tea, soup, bread, cakes, fruit, massages, and medical care. The action benefited about 3,000 people, organizers reported.





Jhosiane Ferreira (left), Wemerson Castro (purple shirt), and the Adventist volunteers who participated in the Living Water Project in Minas Gerais, Brazil. [Photo: Wemerson Castro, South American Division]



“No matter our religious differences, there is Someone who is beyond all that — Jesus Christ, whom we are serving,” said the church member behind the initiative, Wemerson Castro.

US to commemorate 18th anniversary of 9/11 attacks at WTC site

US to commemorate 18th anniversary of 9/11 attacks at WTC site:



NEW YORK (1010 WINS/AP) — Millions of Americans are commemorating the 18th anniversary of 9/11 with mournful ceremonies, volunteering, appeals to 'never forget' and rising attention to the terror attacks' extended toll on responders.

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Watch Kanye West and Chance the Rapper Perform “Ultralight Beam” at Chicago “Sunday Service”

Rob Arcand // September 8, 2019




CREDIT: Rich Fury/Getty Images for Coachella



Kanye West has been bringing his “Sunday Service” performances on the road for the last few months, with a landmark performance at Coachella in April, a Mother’s Day special in May, and recently, an Ohio tribute performance dedicated to the victims of the recent Dayton shooting. Now, West has brought the entire thing full-circle, returning to his hometown of Chicago with more soulful renditions of his songs.

During today’s set, which was broadcast online at SundayService.com, West was joined by Chance the Rapper for their Life of Pablo track “Ultralight Beam.” The rest of the setlist included a mix of gospel classics, a few Christian covers of popular songs like Nelly Furtado’s “I’m Like a Bird,” as well as Kanye West fan favorites like “Jesus Walks” and “Flashing Lights.”

West recently announced an album of what’s believed to be recordings of his “Sunday Service” songs called Jesus Is King. Last month, Kim Kardashian took to Twitter and Instagram to share the album’s tracklist, which includes a song called “Water” that the group debuted during their Coachella set in April. His upcoming studio album Yandhi is still without a release date, but a few songs that might appear on that album have already leaked online.

While the livestream has officially ended, the entire broadcast is available on SundayService.com, and clips of the performance are already circulating on YouTube. Check out a few clips of the performance below and be on the lookout for West’s upcoming album Jesus Is Coming, which is due out September 27.

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