Free Republic

[Catholic Caucus] Male drag ‘artist’ dances for kids at Vatican’s World Children’s DaySalerno native Carmine De Rosa performed as one of the official artists for the inaugural World Children’s Day. In his capacity as a quick-change artist or a living cartoon, De Rosa appeared as a woman, wearing multiple outfits in drag.Carmine De Rosa at the Olympic Stadium, May 25, 2024.TikTokCatholics have expressed horror after a male performance artist danced in drag for young children during Pope Francis’ first World Children’s Day this weekend.On May 25, Salerno native Carmine De Rosa performed as one of the official artists for the...

The Great Peacemaker, whose name means "Two River Currents Flowing Together" and is sometimes referred to as Deganawida, was an Iroquois Prophet who convinced five warring Indian tribes to join in peace. He prophesied that a "white serpent" would come to his people's lands and make friends with them, only to deceive them later. A "red serpent" would later make war against the "white serpent." After a season, a "black serpent" would come and defeat both the "white" and "red serpents". According to the prophecy, when the people gathered under the elm tree become humble, all three "serpents" would be...

The serpent (or serpents) of the medical emblems is a reminder of a misdirection of faith, a deception that there is something other than God that is Healer. Have you ever considered why the medical arts are represented by snakes? Serpents, then, just to be polite. Having worked in the field of alternative medicine (in a concurrent career) the question hadn’t really come up. But as the president-elect is expected to deliver on his promise to eradicate Obamacare, that a rod encircled by snakes symbolizes medicine is worth a look. It’s true that the medical arts have made amazing advances...

Jamie Coots, a Kentucky pastor who starred on National Geographic Channel's Snake Salvation — a reality show about Pentecostal preachers who handle serpents as part of their services — died Saturday after being bitten by one of the snakes, Kentucky's WBIR reports.

Vernon Byrd was on an all-terrain vehicle in a field off Johnson Road last Tuesday when he said an 8-foot-long snake reared up beside him – and the serpent's head was about shoulder high to him. "I caught something out of my eye, and this snake comes up beside me and looked at me," Byrd said. "I've seen every kind of snake in this part of the country, but I've never seen a snake like this." He called Freddie Mims, a licensed wildlife rescue agent, who said the description of the snake sounded like a king cobra, the world's largest...

Charles Darwin was fascinated by snakes — in particular, by the tiny hip and leg bones nestled inside boa constrictors and other species. They were some of the most striking cases of evolution's imprint. Snakes descended from walking ancestors, and as they adapted to slithering, their legs dwindled to a few vestiges. It took more than a century after Darwin's death for paleontologists to find fossils of snakes with legs. In the last decade, they have found four species. The fourth, known as Najash rionegrini, was unveiled in the April 20 issue of the journal Nature, and it has reignited...

Pharmacists who "just say no" when asked to fill prescriptions that violate their personal ethics are targeted by proposed state legislation that would mandate all prescriptions be filled. Some local druggists are not happy about the bill, authored by Sen. Deborah Ortiz, D-Sacramento, which would be the first in the nation to require filling emergency contraception prescriptions, even if the pharmacist feels it violates his or her personal morals. The owner of Napa's Family Drug on Old Sonoma Road, Thomas Gracia, has mixed feelings. "I think people should be able to get the prescriptions that they need," he said. "However,...