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(Daily readings from the USCCB)Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them; his face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, conversing with him. Matthew 17:1–3This was not the first time that the Son of God spoke to Moses and Elijah on a high mountain. Recall that Moses was called up to Mount Sinai (also called Horeb) to be with the Lord for forty days and forty nights, during which time the finger...

This Sunday we are only eleven days into Lent, still very early along on our Lenten pilgrimage. The readings share the theme of beginning the journey of faith, even while giving us a glimpse of our final destination. In all three years of the lectionary cycle (A, B, C), the readings for the Second Sunday of Lent always pair a key pericope from the Abraham narrative (Genesis 12—22) with an account of the Transfiguration from one of the Synoptic Gospels. This is because, in all the Gospels, the Transfiguration marks “the beginning of the end” of Jesus’ earthly life. After...

BEIJING, March 5 (Reuters) - China's state planner underlined a greater role for coal in its power supply on Sunday, saying the fossil fuel would be used to improve the reliability and security of its energy system. The world's second-biggest economy relied on coal to generate 56.2% of its electricity last year, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, but has significantly boosted its use of natural gas and renewable energy in recent years to lower carbon emissions. Fluctuating output from renewable plants, however, has led policymakers to lean on reliable and easily dispatchable coal power to shore...

WASHINGTON, Wednesday, March 4. The closing scenes in Congress to-day were respectable, and not unimpressive. Proper decorum was generally observed, and the immense audience audience in the galleries manifested a decorous interest in the proceedings. The Appropriations made by the Thirty-seventh Congress are as follows: Extra Session, July, 1861, about $264,000,000. Long Session, ending 17th July, 1862, $913,000,000. Short Session, ending March 4, 1863, $1,100,000,000 Receipts from duties on imports, Internal Revenue, direct taxes, sale of public lands, &c., and estimates from March 4, 1861, to July 1, 1864, $320,000,000 -which, deducted from the above sum, will leave the amount...

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Genesis 1:1 King James Version It is time for the millions of top scientists in the world to finally put up or shut up about evolution. Please tell the skeptics of the world how life began in your theory. It should be a simple explanation of how the first building block of the world’s greatest fraud up until the Scamdemic occurred? Please do not give the world the Disney film version of a lightning bolt hitting the primordial goo and instantly life was formed like a drunk hitting the jackpot...

Former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, a fierce critic of Donald Trump, said Sunday he will not run for the White House in 2024, after long positioning himself as a possible alternative to the former president. Hogan, 66, wrote in The New York Times that while he appreciated “all those around the nation who have for many years encouraged me to run for president, after eight years of pouring my heart and soul into serving the people of Maryland, I have no desire to put my family through another grueling campaign just for the experience.”

42 House Democrats voted YEA (216-204) 1 US Senator (Manchin) voted YEA (50-46) 4 US Senators did not vote (predictably) So why is this “Breaking News for FReepers” Could this be the first of many votes that shift power in the Senate to the Republicans? Why did President Biden announce that he will NOT use his VETO power on this vote? More to follow after comments.

Males of a species evolving traits for sexual conflict can cause problems for females, and, ultimately, the whole population. A new model by Imperial College London and University of Lausanne researchers, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows how so-called 'good genes' can sometimes cause a population to collapse. Males of any species may compete for females, either by fighting other males for access or impressing females to win their approval. In both cases, males expressing the most competitive traits—such as the best ornaments, like peacock feathers, or the best weapons, like big body size—access more females....

The Bible In Paintings ~ Encouragement for Applying and Appreciating God's Word ~ •Drawings•Engravings•Facades•Frescoes•Illuminations•Miniatures•Mosaics•Photographs•Reliefs•Statues•Tapestries•Windows• < JESUS THE CHRIST IS CRUCIFIED ֎ Featuring 49 Paintings and 1 Relief ֎ J O H N «Chapter 19*» So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). Here they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle. 1 TINTORETTO "The Crucifixion of Christ" 2 GUSTAVE DORÉ "The Crucifixion" 3 ALBRECHT ALTDORFER "Crucifixion of Christ" 4 MIHALY MUNKACSY "Christ on...

Californians are having fewer babies, and that will profoundly affect public policy for years to come. Local and state governments need to start planning now to handle the demographic shift. In 2021, the most recent year for which data is available, California’s birthrate was barely half of what it was two decades before. This wasn’t a sudden, unexpected dip. Rather, it reflects a long-term decline. Without net in-migration, the low rate will result in population decline over time. Sonoma and Napa counties already have seen a population decrease due to a host of causes, just as California as a whole...

Billionaire investor Mark Mobius told FOX Business he cannot take his money out of China due to the country's capital controls, cautioning investors to be "very, very careful" about investing in an economy under a tight government grip..."I have an account with HSBC in Shanghai. I can't take my money out"..."They say: give us all the records from 20 years of how you made this money...This is crazy."

“It was very friendly with her,” game warden Joann Garza said. She told game wardens she had been caring for it for more than two decades. She told investigators she was volunteering at the Animal World & Snake Farm zoo in New Braunfels, Texas, and stole an alligator egg. Charges for stealing the egg are past the statute of limitations, but she can always visit the alligator here at Animal World & Snake Farm.

The Head of Russia’s State Duma Defense Committee, Andrei Kartapolov, has advised Russian businesses to install air defense systems at their own expense, The Moscow Times reported on March 4. "There are fairly inexpensive means of combating unmanned aerial vehicles that every self-respecting corporation can purchase and install at its facilities," he explained. The lawmaker noted that the locations of Russian air defense systems are known to NATO and Ukraine. The Kremlin primarily protects state facilities "That is, they know roughly where our air defense facilities are located, and it is quite possible to launch a drone along the route...

This list only includes destroyed vehicles and equipment of which photo or videographic evidence is available. Therefore, the amount of equipment destroyed is significantly higher than recorded here. Small arms, ATGMs, MANPADS, loitering munitions, drones used as unmanned bait, civilian vehicles, trailers and derelict equipment are not included in this list. All possible effort has gone into avoiding duplicate entries and discerning the status of equipment between captured or abandoned. Many of the entries listed as 'abandoned' will likely end up captured or destroyed. Similarly, some of the captured equipment might be destroyed if it can't be recovered. When the...

Our black Lab, Bubba, is about 80 pounds and because of being preoccupied with my own physical ailments, we've sort of neglected our best friend and compatriot.

Pray For The Peace of JerusalemMark 8Jesus Predicts His Death31 He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. 32 He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.33 But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”_______________________________________________________New...

Socialist darling Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez threw one of her campaign staffers under the bus after the Democrat apparently flouted House ethics rules by attending the 2021 Met Gala wearing luxurious apparel that included a glitzy gown with “Tax the Rich” inscribed across the back in blood-red letters. The Bronx and Queens rep, 33, claimed to investigators with the Office of Congressional Ethics she was unaware that thousands of dollars for her dress rental, shoes, hair, makeup and other accouterments went unpaid for months after the event, leaving her open to allegations of improperly accepting gifts. “I just never, ever, ever would...

One of the founders of what would become the Green Party of England and Wales has declared "it's too late" to save the environment. Michael Benfield, who helped set up the new political movement in the 1970s, said he believed the "battle for the world's environmental survival" was "at this moment, lost". "I think we have succeeded in helping to educate... but we have failed in dealing with the battle for environmental survival. The scale of the solutions which he believed were necessary would be simply too unpalatable for any political party to propose, he argues. The focus now, he...

ABC’s “This Week” — Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska; Democratic presidential candidate Marianne Williamson. __ NBC’s “Meet the Press” — Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, and Jim Himes, D-Conn.; Gov. Chris Sununu, R-N.H. __ CBS’ “Face the Nation" — Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va.; Gov. J.B. Pritzker, D-Ill.; Rep. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio; former Gov. Larry Hogan, R-Md. ___ CNN’s “State of the Union” — New York City Mayor Eric Adams; Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.; former Gov. Asa Hutchinson, R-Ark. ___ “Fox News Sunday” — Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo; Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va.

During an interview aired on Friday’s edition of “The Issue Is,” White House National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby responded to critics of spending money on Ukraine when there are problems in America by saying that the war is about the very concept of independence, the war “has absolutely had an effect on the American people” by contributing to inflation, and that if Russia gets away with the invasion, the cost “will be exorbitantly much higher than the cost that has been expended to keep Ukraine in the fight and to keep them in that fight successfully.”...