Free Republic

[Catholic Caucus] Chicago: the Saga of a Cancelled ParishEditor’s note: the month of August has now passed since the cancellation of the Chicago ICKSP shrine by Cardinal Cupich, while the deadline looms for more cancellations in DC and Arlington in the month of Our Lady of Sorrows. On this month’s First Friday, we offer this retelling of the Shrine’s saga, to prepare the hearts of the faithful to endure yet more for their Roman Catholic birthright. Less than seven years after the faithful parishioners of the Shrine of Christ the King Sovereign Priest, run by the Institute of Christ the...

**SNIP** “I’m ecstatic about the Presidential Center’s location in Woodlawn, especially since Obama was our first African American president,” said Woodlawn homeowner John Odom in an interview with The Maroon during the town hall. “I just hope he doesn’t unintentionally displace his own African American community and cause an influx of Gold Coast residents. 63rd Street was once a thriving, safe African American community, and I would like to see the Obama library bring back some of that.” Patricia Tatum, a longtime Woodlawn homeowner and former nurse at UChicago Medicine, suspects that rising property taxes and pressure from land developers...

Four people died and one was injured in a shooting and explosion Saturday in a townhouse neighborhood in Woodlawn, including the alleged gunman, whom Baltimore County Police said they killed. Neighbors called 911 to report a fire and an armed man in the 7500 block of Maury Road, and officers and firefighters arrived together about 6:40 a.m. to find the man outside the burning homes, county police spokeswoman Joy Stewart said. Four Baltimore County police officers shot at Brown, killing him, Stewart said. “That threat was neutralized,” she said Saturday at the scene. “At that point, firefighters were able to...

A 21-year-old Baltimore man has been arrested for attempting to blow up a military recruitment center in Catonsville with a fake bomb supplied by federal agents. Federal authorities say Antonio Martinez, also known as Muhammad Hussain, attempted to detonate what he believed to be a vehicle bomb this morning at the Armed Forces Career Center in the 5400 block of Baltimore National Pike. Court records paint Martinez as obsessed with Jihad and intent on punishing the military. He praised Nidal Hassan, the U.S. Army major who killed 13 people at Fort Hood, and discussed obtaining weapons and shooting up military...

Barack Obama’s personnel decisions as President-Elect are crushing any hopes that his administration will bring a new spirit of integrity and honesty to Washington. First there was the selection of Clinton attack dog Rahm Emanuel as his Chief of Staff. Then there was the selection of another Clinton crony, John Podesta, to co-chair Obama’s transition team. And now Barack Obama has tapped Valerie Jarrett to partner with Podesta in handling the transition.