Tag: Church News

Church steeple collapses after massive blaze on Martha Avenue Saturday morning

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fire scene

The steeple of a Toledo church collapsed after a massive structure on Martha Avenue early Saturday morning, according to fire officials at the scene. Fire crews were called to the 3000 block of Martha Avenue, near Five Points, around 6:30 a.m. for a structure fire. 13 Action News crews arrived on scene shortly after, finding St. Agnes Church ablaze.

The steeple of the church collapsed soon after our crews arrived. Firefighters on scene said nobody was injured. According to our media partner The Blade, the church was closed in 2005 after consolidation in the Toledo Diocese. We haven’t heard word yet from fire officials on what caused the fire, but we will update this story as we learn more.

Source: Church steeple collapses after massive blaze on Martha Avenue Saturday morning

If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?
1 John 4:20

Plague in Russia?

Russian authorities have sought to allay global worries over the death of a young woman who worked at a Siberian anti-plague laboratory. But moves to isolate her…

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Churches and clergy among targets in anti-Christian incidents across Europe

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Anti-Christian hate crimes remained elevated in Europe during the month of June, with arson attacks continuing to target Christian sites across the continent.  The Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians in Europe (OIDAC Europe) documented 40 anti-Christian hate crimes last month, placing June second only to March (41 cases) for the number of recorded incidents in 2026. The incidents targeted churches, Christian institutions, clergy, religious symbols, converts to Christianity, and individual believers across Europe. According to the report, the cases included 12 arson-related attacks, nine acts of vandalism, eight occurrences of desecration, three incidents of physical violence, three thefts of religious objects, two threats, one case combining vandalism and violence, one incident of disruption to a worship service, and one attempted seizure of a religious site.

France recorded the highest number of incidents with 11, followed by Germany at eight, Italy at seven, Poland at four, and both Belgium and Spain at two.  Three incidents were reported in the UK and one in Switzerland, while additional cases were documented in the Netherlands and Estonia.  Among the incidents highlighted as “particularly serious” were the intentional torching of a liturgical book inside a church in La Chapelle-Caro, France, and an incident in which Catholic worshippers were disrupted while praying in Poissy by protesters shouting “Allahu Akbar” and anti-Christian slogans. The report drew attention to an online threat linked to ISIS calling for attacks on Pope Leo XIV and venues during his forthcoming visit to Spain, and expressed concern about a suspected arson attack that destroyed the former Convent of Mercy in Downpatrick, Northern Ireland, as well as crosses being set alight during a music festival in Poland OIDAC said one of the clearest trends throughout June was the ongoing wave of arson attacks.

“June recorded 12 arson-related attacks, only one fewer than the exceptional peak of 13 recorded in May, making June the second-highest month for recorded arson during the first half of the year,” the report said. Vandalism remained widespread, with nine documented incidents – the highest monthly total since March – ranging from churches being deliberately flooded to objects being fired at church buildings and crosses being damaged or destroyed. The organisation said there was a pattern of repeated targeting.  Cowdenbeath Baptist Church in Scotland came under attack for the eighth time, while Hanau’s Holy Spirit Church in Germany was targeted for a second month in a row, and Belgium’s St Peter’s Church in Lommel was hit by another suspected arson. While churches remained the primary targets, OIDAC said June’s figures illustrated the risks faced by individual Christians. Among the three recorded assaults were violence against a Christian street preacher at Speakers’ Corner at London’s Hyde Park, an attack on a Catholic woman inside a cathedral in France, and the assault on a parish priest during a burglary at his presbytery in Levie, in Corsica. 

The report singled out threats against Belgian Catholic religion teacher Ahmed Yetrib, a convert from Islam, who said he had “never been so worried” after receiving threatening messages because of social media content explaining his conversion. OIDAC said such cases highlighted “the vulnerability of Christian converts from Islam, whose situation remains under-reported but raises significant concerns for religious freedom and security”.  Alongside the hate crimes included in its statistics, the organisation recorded dozens of additional incidents involving thefts, break-ins, fires and vandalism affecting churches where “an anti-Christian bias could not be clearly established” and which were therefore excluded from the official total. The report concluded that “anti-Christian hostility remained at a high level throughout Europe” during June.

“As in previous reporting periods, the figures presented reflect only incidents documented by OIDAC Europe at the time of publication and therefore cannot capture the full extent of anti-Christian hostility in Europe,” it said.  Official figures from the French Ministry of the Interior, cited in the report, documented 843 anti-Christian crimes in France last year – comprising 734 attacks on property and 109 attacks on individuals – representing a 9% increase on the previous year.  Attacks against individuals went up by 70%, including the killing of Iraqi Christian refugee Ashur Sarnaya, who was fatally stabbed in Lyon while livestreaming about his faith on TikTok. The June report follows OIDAC’s May findings, which recorded 37 anti-Christian hate crimes across Europe, including a record 13 arson-related attacks.

Source: Churches and clergy among targets in anti-Christian incidents across Europe – Christian Today

For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
2 Corinthians 5:21

For God so Loved the World

“God loved you enough to send His Son, Jesus loved you enough to give His life, and through faith, you are offered a hope this world can never take away.”…

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2 Timothy 3:12 

Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted Paul was reminding Timothy that following Christ does not guarantee an easy life. When we choose to…

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John 15:18–20

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you…

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Galatians 1:6-10

“When truth becomes negotiable, faith becomes vulnerable so know the Gospel, stand on God’s Word, and seek His approval above the world’s applause.” “I am astonished that you are so…

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Trump’s religious liberty report calls for building ‘bridges’ between church and state

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A draft final report from President Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission released Friday calls for “building bridges between church and state,” a reversal of a long-standing U.S. legal principle.  “Americans must know their rights and stand with courage when those rights are challenged,” the commission’s report read. “To preserve this freedom, we must build bridges, not walls, between the City of God and the City of Man. If we do so, we will pass on a free and prosperous nation to the next generation,” it continues. The argument is a stark reversal of the legal principle that calls for the separation of church and state.

The phrase “separation of church and state” does not explicitly appear in the Constitution, but the Constitution states “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R), who is a vice chair on the president’s commission, argued on Friday that the political left has used the phrase “to batter and hammer people of faith for the last 70 to 80 years.”  “This report will speak very clearly that Americans understand that they can not be attacked by that phrase any longer,” Patrick said, speaking alongside Trump, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and members of the commission.  In addition to calling for “bridges” between church and state, the commission’s report also calls for the scrapping of the tax code provision known as the Johnson Amendment, which prohibits nonprofit groups, including religious organizations, from endorsing or opposing political candidates. 

Trump created his Religious Liberty Commission last year, appointing Patrick and Dr. Ben Carson to serve as vice chairs. Phil McGraw was also tapped by the president to be a part of the commission. 

Source: Trump’s religious liberty report calls for building ‘bridges’ between church and state

A fool’s lips enter into contention, And his mouth calls for blows.
Proverbs 18:6

Isaiah 45:2

“I will go before you and level the exalted places, I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron, This…

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Proverbs 21:23

Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble. This verse emphasizes that people who carefully watch what they say will protect themselves from…

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United Methodist Supports Sex Changes for Children

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rainbow painting

A United Methodist agency has indicated it has all hands on deck to fight for the fake right that children ought to medically transition their gender. Despite this being unbiblical, immoral, and totally deranged, the agency claims this is the official position of the United Methodist Church.

Source: United Methodist Supports Sex Changes for Children – Louder With Crowder

Rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer.
Romans 12:12