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Grant Parish District Attorney Jay Lemoine pushed back against the ACLU’s letter, telling KALB News “It seems these days it is typical for everyone to rush to want to be offended.” Lemoine said the courthouse already has a secular display, a Christmas tree, inside the building. “The offense would be if the religious symbols were taken out of Christmas,” Lemoine continued.

A 300-pound metal sculpture of a satanic pentagram, erected as an atheist protest to a public park’s Nativity scene, was severely damaged on Tuesday when it was pulled to the ground by protestors. Atheist Preston Smith’s 10-foot tall sculpture lay broken in Sanborn Square at noon. Tire tracks led from the twisted metal to the street. It appeared protestors had attached a chain from a vehicle to the sculpture and yanked it down, dragging it several feet... The sculpture sits about 20 feet from a traditional Nativity scene of Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus, and is backed by a...

A traditional nativity scene will not be put up in a Belgian town this year, amid claims it was scrapped in order to avoid offending Muslims. A former leader in Holsbeek, about 20 miles outside Brussels - claims there will be no manger to mark the festival because it would be 'too provocative'. . . . The decision not to put a nativity scene up was supported by the ruling coalition of the Christian-Democrats and the Green Party. But the Flemish-nationalist N-VA party called for locals to attend the town’s next assembly meeting - and to each bring a nativity...

A NATIVITY play was turned into chaos after an asylum seeker stormed the stage and started preaching from the Koran. The Somali asylum seeker suddenly leapt on stage during the traditional depiction of the Christian story in the Austrian town of Oberndorf near Schwanenstadt in the state of Upper Austria, causing horror and upset amongst the children and parents. At first, no one had reacted when the asylum seeker came to the venue and stood next to the stage where children of nursery school age were performing. The Somali man storms the stage The asylum seeker suddenly leapt on stage,...

And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.(Luke 2:6-7)At the beginning of Luke’s gospel, Joseph and Mary are together in an enclosed place, wrapping Jesus tightly in cloth strips,laying him out on a table/manger. An almost identical scene plays itself almost at the end of Luke’s gospel. True its a different Joseph in the second instance, but the scene repeats, Joseph and...

Militant atheists at the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) are threatening to sue St. Bernard, Ohio, over the city’s Nativity scene — a Christmas display depicting the scene of Jesus’s birth in Bethlehem in the Holy Land. If FFRF follows through and files in federal court, that case could result in a historic restoration of religious liberty nationwide. St. Bernard is a suburb of Cincinnati. For many years, the city has displayed a crèche — i.e., a Nativity scene — during the Christmas season. It is accompanied by non-biblical seasonal holiday displays as well, making this outdoor crèche similar to the...

Christmas Sermon # 1… But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.(Micah 5:2)The story of the birth of Jesus, is perhaps the most familiar and loved portions of the Bible. But the problem with familiar passages of scripture is that people think they know what needs to be known about them and often aren’t open to a fresh look at the same text from another angle. It is...

Sometimes casualties in the “war on Christmas” are the result of friendly fire.All the stories of outcry over greetings, Christmas decorations, or even the use of traditional holiday colors has made many people afraid to be who they are. Fear of being protested, sued, or otherwise hassled for doing something completely innocent may drive more ridiculous decisions than a sincere belief in being politically correct.In Northern Italy a priest has cancelled his parish’s traditional Nativity Scene because it would be visible from a corner of the cemetery reserved for Muslim graves. Father Sante Braggie, chaplain of the Municipal Cemetery of...

Check out the video above. It happened in Rhode Island: Residents at the Jeanne Jugan Residence of the Little Sisters of the Poor in Pawtucket are heartbroken that someone stole the statues from the elder care facility’s nativity scene. According to surveillance footage from about 1:30 a.m. Saturday, three men, two of them wearing hooded shirts, stole the nativity statues from the small manger. “It sort of saddened and dampened the spirit in the home when they know that the first thing that was put up for the Christmas season — because it’s the most meaningful thing — was taken...

Bill Donohue comments on the Catholic League’s crèche: Every year there are many news stories on the unconstitutionality of displaying a nativity scene on public property. Some of those stories are simply wrong. There can be a problem when the proposed site for the display of religious symbols is on the grounds of a county courthouse, or near some other municipal building (it cannot appear that the government is endorsing religion). But if the property is a public forum, such as a park, that is different. If the area is available for concerts, artistic displays, rallies, and the like, then...

Family Guy is no stranger to bashing Christianity and Sunday night’s Christmas episode, “How the Griffin Stole Christmas,” was no exception, featuring Jesus not only mocked, but KICKED at the nativity. While the Griffin family longs to go sledding, Lois tells them to get ready so they can attend church. Peter rudely objects, proclaiming Jesus himself loved sledding, calling it his “second passion” – obviously cheapening the Passion of Christ, the period of suffering Jesus underwent leading up to His death on the Cross for our sins. Lois: All right. You guys ready for church? Peter: Church? What are you,...

A massive Satanic pentagram has been placed in a Florida park, causing outrage - with some people calling it 'ridiculous' and 'offensive'. The display was installed in Boca Raton's Sanborn Square and is located next to a nativity scene. Preston Smith got a permit from the the city for the display, WPTV reported. Scroll down for video

Who saw this coming?(By the way, if years had official questions, the official question of 2016 would be “Who saw this coming?”).Anyway, the latest bit of 2016 shock and awe to come out of nowhere is that Starbucks will have cups featuring the Nativity this Christmas season.  Yes, that Nativity – with Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus.Check it out here.So, just another 2016 crazy almost miracle-type thing to wonder at.Oh tidings.

VATICAN CITY — The Vatican’s Christmas tree and Nativity scene will feature unique designs and decorations highlighting several issues close to Pope Francis, including care for the environment, the sick and migrants. An 82-foot spruce tree will be the centerpiece of the Vatican’s Christmas holidays, the governing office of Vatican City said. The tree will be harvested Nov. 13 in the Lagorai forest near Scurelle in the northern province of Trent and will benefit from a unique gesture in keeping with the pope’s call for the care of creation: Elementary school students “will plant nearly 40 new spruce and larch...

According to the Times of Israel, the artifact is made of brass, silver, shells and stones. It was covered in plaster and found near a window in the church that reportedly was built by Emperor Constantine and his mother Helena in the fourth century. Although officials confirmed that the artifact has been cleaned up, it is not on display, and there are no images of it as yet.Ziad al-Bandak, a Palestinian presidential adviser for Christian Affairs, said the artifact is, “of great religious and historical value.” The church itself is built over the cave where the birth of Jesus...

BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) - After two years of painstaking work, experts have completed the initial phase of a delicate restoration project at the Church of the Nativity, giving a much-needed face-lift to one of Christianity's holiest sites. The project, partially funded by the Palestinians and conducted by a team of Palestinian and international experts, is the biggest restoration at the iconic church in some 600 years. The removal of centuries of dust has left Crusader-era mosaics sparkling in sunlight filtering through brand new windows. Structural repairs on the fragile rooftop and windows have been completed and art treasures have...

Msgr. Charles Pope 12/22/2015 Nativity animals Question: I was told that the animals in the Christmas Nativity scene have a symbolic meaning. Is this so, and if so what?— Jennifer Ladd, Buffalo, New York Answer: Yes, the traditional animals of the Nativity scene are chosen for a reason. The ox and the donkey are a reference to Isaiah 1:3 which says, “An ox knows its owner, and an ass, its master’s manger; But Israel does not know, my people has not understood.”So, it’s actually rather an unflattering self-accusation we make of our own human family that, in effect, declares the...

Near the church in Bethlehem’s Manger Square, built over the site where Christians believe Jesus was born, tour guides pace back and forth, waiting in vain for tourist buses that fail to show.

A McDonald’s restaurant in Tennessee is showing its Christmas spirit with a painted nativity scene that has now gone viral. On Monday, Amy Basel posted a photo of a McDonald’s located in Spring Hill, TN with a nativity scene in between the messages “His name is Jesus” and “Rejoice” painted on the windows of the storefront.

And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called Jesus, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord; (As it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord;) And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of...