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114-year-old Catholic church burns down in Canada: 6 churches on fire in one week
A Catholic church destroyed in a suspicious fire early Wednesday was the “heart and soul” of the town north of Edmonton, where it had stood for more than a century, according to the community’s mayor.
“What’s happened is a terrible and tragic event for our community,” Morinville Mayor Barry Turner told a morning news conference, hours after the St. Jean Baptiste Catholic Church went up in flames.
“It was really the heart and soul of a lot of what went on in our community and, as I’ve said before, we cannot replace what was lost today.”
Bystanders watched as the steeple, engulfed in flames, toppled from the skyline of the town of 10,600 people, 40 kilometres north of Edmonton.
The charred remains of the wooden structure will be levelled.
Morinville residents are reeling from the shock and grief of the loss, Turner said.
The town will look to rebuild on the site, he said.
“I’m confident that our community will respond in a way that we can all be proud of.”
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. RCMP are looking into the possibility of arson.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney visited the scene and condemned the destruction of churches as “hate-motivated arson attacks.”
At least six other Catholic churches on First Nation lands across Canada have burned down in the past week. RCMP say they are treating the other fires as suspicious.
Kenney said the province will work with police and other law-enforcement agencies to increase patrols at churches that could become potential targets.
“This historic church was in the heart of Morinville and a key part of the spiritual life of Alberta’s francophone community,” Kenney said in a statement.
“These attacks targeting Christian churches are attempts to destroy the spiritual sites that are important to people of faith across Alberta, including many Indigenous people.”
Fire crews arrived on scene at 3:20 a.m. local time to find the building fully engulfed and already threatening to collapse.
Surrounding buildings were evacuated. About 50 residents living in the former convent building were forced to leave their homes. That building was damaged by water and smoke. The flames were brought under control by 7 a.m.
The national chief of the Assembly of First Nations says he understands the rage, frustration and pain brought on by the
discovery of unmarked graves at former residential schools, but funnelling that anguish into burning down churches will not bring justice.
“To burn things down is not our way,” Perry Bellegarde said Wednesday. “Our way is to build relationships and come together.”
‘An empty feeling in our hearts’
Phil Schayes, who is Métis, said the church was at the forefront of his upbringing in Morinville.
“We used to be able to see the church steeple and we don’t see that anymore and that kind of leaves an empty feeling in our hearts but that said, I think it’s a time for reflection,” Schayes said.
If the fire was motivated by hate toward the Catholic Church over wrongs committed in residential schools, the loss of the building should be seen as a symbol of the need for reconciliation, he said.
Many of his Indigenous brothers are hurting, he said.
“I feel bad that we’re at this point but it has to come out,” Schayes said. “If we’ve wronged them, which I think that we did, then shame on us.
“Imagine if someone felt so bad inside, so much hate, that they had to burn down a church where so many people found a lot of peace. We can put up another church but a person that is hurting like that, we have to find a way.”
Paul Terrio, bishop of the Diocese of St. Paul, issued a statement urging people to resist speculating on the cause of the fire, and asking that they pray for parishioners.
Parishioner Eileen Vollmer lives a block away and often admired the church from the window of her living room.
She said she cried as she and her husband watched the wreckage burn. Vollmer said many of her family memories are connected to the church.
“My mom was baptized here, had her first communion and confirmation here, got married here and had her funeral here,” Vollmer said. “Our children were baptized there and we always went to church here.”
Vollmer has lived in Morinville since 1960 and attended the church since she was a young girl. She often helped the congregation welcome its newest members, she said.
“I made all the little baptism capes that were given to each baby that was being baptized and I just finishing making 12 little first communion veils for the little girls.”
The church is a landmark in the town and was a frequent gathering place for residents, said Vollmer, one she admired for the history it shared both with the town and her own family.
“It’s just very sad.”
About 50 firefighters were called to the scene, Morinville said in its statement.
Iain Bushell, the town’s general manager of community and infrastructure services, said flames spread quickly through the old wooden structure. The building was already threatening to cave in by the time crews arrived.
“There was already fire in the basement as they attempted to enter the building … it was already charged with smoke. And they could already hear the sounds of collapse on the inside so then they evacuated.”
The structure, completed in 1907, is a “complete loss,” Bushell said.
“The St. Jean Baptiste Church is an iconic church,” he said.
“It’s part of the landscape.”
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കാത്തിരിപ്പ് സമയം വെട്ടിക്കുറയ്ക്കും; ഇന്ത്യക്കാർക്ക് ആശ്വാസമായി 2025-ൽ പുതിയ യുഎസ് വിസ നിയമനം
യുഎസിൽ ജോലി ചെയ്യാനും യാത്ര ചെയ്യാനും ആഗ്രഹിക്കുന്ന ഇന്ത്യക്കാർക്ക് പുതുവർഷം ആശ്വാസം പകരും. 2025 ജനുവരി 1 മുതൽ, ഇന്ത്യയിലെ യുഎസ് എംബസി, നോൺ-ഇമിഗ്രൻ്റ് വിസ അപ്പോയിൻ്റ്മെൻ്റുകൾ ഷെഡ്യൂൾ ചെയ്യുന്നതിനും റീഷെഡ്യൂൾ ചെയ്യുന്നതിനുമുള്ള പുതിയ നിയന്ത്രണങ്ങൾ അവതരിപ്പിക്കും.
ഡിപ്പാർട്ട്മെൻ്റ് ഓഫ് ഹോംലാൻഡ് സെക്യൂരിറ്റി (DHS) H-1B വിസ പ്രക്രിയ നവീകരിക്കുന്നതിനുള്ള പുതിയ നിയമങ്ങൾ വെളിപ്പെടുത്തിയതിന് തൊട്ടുപിന്നാലെയാണ് ഈ പ്രഖ്യാപനം.
രണ്ട് പ്രഖ്യാപനങ്ങളും ഇന്ത്യക്കാർക്ക് അനുകൂലമാണ്, കൂടാതെ നടപടിക്രമങ്ങൾ കാര്യക്ഷമമാക്കാനും അപേക്ഷകരുടെ നീണ്ട കാത്തിരിപ്പ് സമയം കുറയ്ക്കാനും ലക്ഷ്യമിടുന്നു.
Sources:azchavattomonline.com
ചിക്കാഗോ: ചിക്കാഗോ ലേഡീസ് ഫെലോഷിപ്പിന്റെ രണ്ടു വര്ഷത്തെ കോര്ഡിനേറ്ററായി സിസ്റ്റര് മോളി എബ്രഹാമിനേയും, ജോയിന്റ് കോര്ഡിനേറ്ററായി സിസ്റ്റര് ഗ്രേസി തോമസിനേയും തെരഞ്ഞെടുത്തു.
സിസ്റ്റര് മിനി ജോണ്സന്റെയും,സിസ്റ്റര് റോസമ്മ തോമസിന്റെയും പ്രവര്ത്തന കാലാവധി പൂര്ത്തിയായതിനെ തുടര്ന്നണ് പുതിയ ഭാരവാഹികളെ തെരഞ്ഞെടുത്തത്.ഫെലോഷിപ്പ് ഓഫ് പെന്തക്കോസ്തല് ചര്ച്ചസ് ഇന് ചിക്കാഗോയുടെ കണ്വീനര് ഡോ.വില്ലി എബ്രഹാമിന്റെ ഭാര്യയാണ് മോളി എബ്രഹാം.ഗുഡ് ഷെപ്പേര്ഡ് ഫെലോഷിപ്പ് ചര്ച്ചിലെ അംഗമാണ്.
ഗില്ഗാല് പെന്തക്കോസ്തല് അസംബ്ലിയിലെ സീനിയര് ശുശ്രൂഷകന് പാസ്റ്റര് സാം തോമസിന്റെ ഭാര്യയാണ് ജോയിന്റ് കണ്വീനറായ ഗ്രേസി തോമസ്.
Sources:onlinegoodnews
An Israeli entrepreneur on a mission to highlight biblical artifacts has brought his “treasures from the Holy Land” to America.
Oded Golan’s “Discovering the World of Jesus: Ancient Treasures From the Holy Land” experience opened Dec. 3 at Atlanta’s Pullman Yards, with hundreds of ancient artifacts surrounding the New Testament on display.
“We are bringing [a] once-in-a-lifetime experience to people to look at items that they will probably not have other opportunities to see,” Golan recently told CBN News. “The 350 items that are presented here, most of them are from the time of Christ. They were all found in the Holy Land in Israel, and they are telling the stories that are mentioned in the New Testament, but in first hand.”
He added, “You’re almost touching the history.”
Golan said some of the items are related to Jesus’ family or people living during his lifetime. These elements allow people to explore life during biblical times, seeing the behaviors and practices that unfolded during the New Testament era.
Already, audiences are loving the experience, Golan said, noting that giving a lens into the past illuminates knowledge and understanding.
“It doesn’t change faith, it doesn’t change belief, but it changed, somehow, how do you feel and how do you see the stories that are mentioned in the Bible — in the New Testament,” he said.
Golan’s story is a fascinating one, as he started collecting antiquities when he was just a child.
What started as a passion project grew into something much more — a collection he calls the “biggest and largest … in the world of biblical archaeology items.”
“When I was young, even, you know, until the age of 16, 17, I had in mind that I should be an archaeologist one day,” he said. “But … in life it was changed … but I kept archaeology as a hobby.”
And that hobby grew as he traveled all over the Holy Land and collected artifacts — relics he brings to audiences in “Discovering the World of Jesus: Ancient Treasures From the Holy Land.”
“In this exhibition, we present only items that came from a very short period of time,” Golan said. “We are talking about the early first century AD, the time of Jesus. A few items are from the 3rd, 4th, 5th century because this was the time when the first churches emerged — the cradle of Christianity.”
He believes audiences will be captivated regardless of their age or religious beliefs.
“It doesn’t matter what age you are, and what [religion] you are, and how strong [a] believer you are,” Golan said. “It’s fantastic.”
The entrepreneur also made international headlines in 2012 when he was on trial after being accused by the Israel Antiquities Authority of forging an inscription on the James ossuary, a stone relic believed to hold the bones of Jesus’ brother, James.
He was acquitted after a seven-year legal battle. The ossuary, which has been a source of contention, has an Aramaic line that reads, “James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus.” Proponents argue that the inscription pointed to evidence of Christ’s brother, James.
Ultimately, Golan was absolved of the most serious charges surrounding manufacturing elements of this inscription, among other serious charges. Some have since defended the authenticity of the artifact’s inscription, which would be the earliest reference to Jesus. Read more about the history of the matter.
Golan referred to this case while explaining he was in the “later stage” of his life – over the age of 50 — when he read the New Testament for the first time and started to understand it. Wanting to better comprehend the ossuary in his collection, he turned to the text for understanding.
Speaking about the James ossuary, he heralded the importance of the find, which is included in “Discovering the World of Jesus: Ancient Treasures From the Holy Land.” He’s hoping the collection inspires visitors to think more deeply about the past.
“You’re touching the history — almost physically,” Golan reiterated. “And that makes … a big difference compared to any other kind of exhibition. And, as I mentioned, it’s not only the artifact exhibition. It has much more than that.”
After the Atlanta run, Golan hopes to bring “Discovering the World of Jesus: Ancient Treasures From the Holy Land” to other cities across America.
Sources:faithwire
കാത്തിരിപ്പ് സമയം വെട്ടിക്കുറയ്ക്കും; ഇന്ത്യക്കാർക്ക് ആശ്വാസമായി 2025-ൽ പുതിയ യുഎസ് വിസ നിയമനം
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ചിക്കാഗോ: ചിക്കാഗോ ലേഡീസ് ഫെലോഷിപ്പിന്റെ രണ്ടു വര്ഷത്തെ കോര്ഡിനേറ്ററായി സിസ്റ്റര് മോളി എബ്രഹാമിനേയും, ജോയിന്റ് കോര്ഡിനേറ്ററായി സിസ്റ്റര് ഗ്രേസി തോമസിനേയും തെരഞ്ഞെടുത്തു. സിസ്റ്റര് മിനി ജോണ്സന്റെയും,സിസ്റ്റര് റോസമ്മ...
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An Israeli entrepreneur on a mission to highlight biblical artifacts has brought his “treasures from the Holy Land” to America....
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