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The Nativity of St. John the Baptist among the Serbs, by analogy with many other festivals, is called Ivanjdan. In some places special church folk traditions are associated with it. Interestingly, not all Serbs know about them, and locals in some regions aren’t aware of their existence. There is a tradition among the Serbs of Vojvodina when on Ivanjdan, girls and women weave large wreaths of grass and flowers, which then decorate houses and churches. And in the village of Sivac even a whole festival of folk traditions takes place, and wreaths are woven in the evening, on the feast’s...

The numbers: The U.S. services PMI fell to a 26-month low of 47 in July from 51.6 in the prior month, based on a “flash” survey from S&P Global Market Intelligence. Readings below 50 signifies contraction. The manufacturing flash PMI slid to 52.3 from 52.7 in June. This was the weakest level in two years. Key details: The services sector continued its downward trajectory since hitting a high in March. Inflation continued to weigh on new sales. In the manufacturing sector, new orders fell and production levels were unchanged. The flash PMI composite output index fell to 47.5 in July....

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) introduced a measure Thursday designed to protect churches and pregnancy centers from “radical pro-abortion activists” in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. The Pregnancy Resource Center Defense Act would essentially strengthen the penalties for attacks on places of worship, as well as pro-life pregnancy centers. According to a summary of the measure from Hawley’s office, the bill would increase criminal penalties “from a misdemeanor to a felony for first-time offenses, and increasing the criminal fine from $10,000 to $25,000” while also increasing the mandatory minimum for arson from five years to seven....

These were Governor Abbott's words when he signed SB 8 into law, essentially banning abortion in the state of Texas. Today Governor Newsom signed SB 1327, California’s answer to Texas’ perverse bill that placed bounties on doctors and patients. If Texas can ban abortion and endanger lives, California can ban deadly weapons of war and save lives. If Governor Abbott truly wants to protect the right to life, we urge him to follow California’s lead.

Since Feb 2020 34 priests have died and just one man has signed up for training. Dublin archdiocese is at a crossroads.The new strategy "Building Hope" sees Dublin parishes sharing assets including finances, personnel and volunteers and could very well see lay-led liturgies at funerals. Due to the aging clergy and lack of new admissions into the seminary, the Catholic archdiocese of Dublin is bringing in new measures, including appointing priests to oversee multiple parishes and sharing assets volunteers and finances. They may even allow lay members of the church to preside over funerals. There are 207 parishes in the...

Pope Francis ruled out the possibility of staying in the Vatican or returning to Argentina in the event of an eventual resignation from the papacy. In an interview with Univisión and Televisa broadcast July 12, Pope Francis said he would “surely not” stay in the Vatican if one day he resigned. He wouldn’t return to Argentina either, he added, because “I am the Bishop of Rome.” He said he would be “the Bishop Emeritus of Rome.” Asked if he would reside at Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran, the Holy Father said “that could be,” since he would like to retire...

More than 100 churches have gone to court, suing the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church (UMC) because they want to leave the denomination immediately.The main reason involves disagreements over United Methodist clergy performing marriages for LGBTQ couples and ordaining LGBTQ people as clergy in the church.One hundred and six Florida churches want to leave the denomination, and take their property with them.The lawsuit says the church leadership is not abiding by the church's Book of Discipline, which deals with Christian doctrine, the denomination's beliefs, and the ownership of church buildings and properties. The Tallahassee Democrat reports the lead...

Lesbian Bar Closed Due To Not Being Woke Enough Doc Marie's Bar in Portland.

Most likely voters say it is “absolutely” necessary for a candidate to share their views on a variety of issues — including guns and abortion — in order to have their support, an Echelon Insights survey released this week found. The survey asked respondents, “When you are deciding how to vote, how important is it that a candidate share your views on each of the following issues?” The survey listed twelve specific topics, including education policy, climate change, abortion, immigration, and guns. Most voters said it is “absolutely” necessary that a candidate shares their views on topics such as guns...

The FReeper Canteen Presents... 90s Country Music! *Video* Brooks & Dunn – My Maria*Video* Talk Talk – It’s My LifePlease remember that The Canteen is here to support and entertain our troops and veterans and their families, and is family friendly.

The Pearl Police Department issued the following statement. Pearl Police have arrested Brandon Andrews, 20 of Flowood, after a pursuit Thursday morning. Pearl Officers attempted to make a traffic stop on a Toyota Camry for speeding westbound on Interstate 20 just before 11 a.m. Andrews failed to pull over and officers pursued. Andrews continued westbound on I-20 and onto I-55 south into the Jackson city limits. Andrews crashed into a U.S. Postal Service vehicle on Maria Drive just off McDowell Road. The Postal Service employee was injured and transported to UMMC and died due to his injuries. The suspect fled...

Please pray for the protection of our churches and the Eucharist! The pro-abortion group Ruth Sent Us threatened sacrilegious actions against the Eucharist in a May 7 tweet. The tweet came in response to another individual who said should would offer rosaries to prevent disruption or violence during the Masses over the weekend. Here’s the tweet below: ***TWEET ON LINK*** @trustanddare, Twitter The tweet reads, “I’m offering my Rosaries this weekend for the protection of the clergy and Mass-goers, the police/security, and for the safety and change-of-heart of the pro-abortion protestors. “ Ruth Sent Us then responded with a threat,...

The New York Times published a series of op-eds by its opinion columnists Thursday that began with the phrase "I Was Wrong About." As part of the collection, Bret Stephens admitted he was wrong to label Trump supporters "appalling." Stephens said, "The worst line I ever wrote as a pundit" was the first he ever wrote about Trump: "If by now you don’t find Donald Trump appalling, you’re appalling." "This opening salvo, from August 2015, was the first in what would become dozens of columns denouncing Trump as a unique threat to American life, democratic ideals and the world itself,"...

There are 6,166 state legislative seats up for election on November 8, 2022, across 46 states. This page analyzes incumbents defeated in those state legislative races. An incumbent may be defeated at two points in an election cycle: during a primary election or other nominating contest and during a general election.[1] Twenty-seven states have held state legislative primary elections: eight with a Democratic trifecta, 15 with Republican trifectas, and four with divided governments. Across those states, 138 incumbents lost to primary challengers, 5.0% of incumbents who filed for re-election. Across those 27 states: Thirty Democratic incumbents lost in primaries, 2.5%...

The debate about abortion isn’t merely about abortion. It is way bigger. It is about the fate of the sexual revolution. Abortion is a necessary part of sexual revolution. While mothers whose lives are endangered/rape and molestation cases are often cited, it is abortion as birth control that account for almost all abortions. Those who made billions, if not trillions, over the last several decades pimping the sexual revolution will throw every ounce of money they can to keep the march and the gravy train going forward. Those who support the sexual revolution, which has returned humanity’s sense of the...

It is expected – unless the vote fraud is even worse than usual this time – that the Republicans will win back both the US House and the US Senate in November 2022. This is not certain, and nobody should count their chickens before they’re hatched, though every poll points to it. Even so, it’s not too soon to talk about what the next GOP Congress needs to do. And this time, some of the absolute musts are unusual. First, a few ground rules: 1. Republican legislators have a tendency to say “if we don’t hold the executive branch, there’s...

On April 18, 1521, Martin Luther was on trial and said “Here I stand, I can do no other, God help me”. At the risk of his life, he was standing for the truth of Ephesians 2:8-9, that we are saved by God’s grace alone and not by our good works. What would Luther say if he could see today's Protestant churches? I believe he would cry out against “grace abuse.” Grace abuse says “Because we are saved by grace alone, we can live like the devil.” Luther would say that nothing could be further from the truth. Luther would...

Tiny turtles are undoubtedly adorable creatures, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning people to steer clear of giving them a cuddle and a kiss following a salmonella outbreak. The agency said 15 people have been infected with salmonella with five hospitalized, though no deaths have been reported yet, according to an investigation notice. People can get salmonella by touching a turtle or something in its environment and then touching their mouth or handling food, regardless of the animal’s size, the CDC said.

<p>Pompeo, a former U.S. representative from Wichita, passed over former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach and former federal prosecutor Tony Mattivi in making his pick in the Republican race.</p>

If you’re surprised that the most outspoken Christians on social media for “justice” are not rejoicing over the most important Supreme Court ruling in our lifetime — you shouldn’t be. If you’re surprised that many woke “Christians” are angry that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade — you shouldn’t be. You shouldn’t be surprised many woke “Christians” support abortion. As a pro-life advocate and a critic of woke ideology within the Church — I’ve been warning about Woke Christians’ implicit support for abortion for many years. Three years ago, I said: “One of the biggest indictments against the social...