While many American Evangelicals often lose sight of it, the reality is that there are still places throughout the world where it is dangerous to live as a Christian. But where are the most dangerous places?
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NEW YORK, NY — As giant mutant spiders attacked the Big Apple, many concerned experts across the country expressed worry that the giant attacking spiders could lead to a substantial increase in hateful arachnophobia.
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The historic Geigersberg vineyard, northeast of the Sachsenheim district of Ochsenbach in Germany, still retains many of its old dry stone walls and is home to rare plant and animal species.
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O My God,
I love you above all things,
with my whole heart and soul,
because you are all-good and worthy of all love.
I love my neighbor as myself for the love of you.
I forgive all who have injured me,
and ask pardon of all whom I have injured.
Amen.
Read MoreA reading from the Book of Deuteronomy
4:1, 5-9
Moses spoke to the people and said:
"Now, Israel, hear the statutes and decrees
which I am teaching you to observe,
that you may live, and may enter in and take possession of the land
which the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you.
Therefore, I teach you the statutes and decrees
as the LORD, my God, has commanded me,
that you may observe them in the land you are entering to occupy.
Observe them carefully,
for thus will you give evidence
of your wisdom and intelligence to the nations,
who will hear of all these statutes and say,
‘This great nation is truly a wise and intelligent people.’
For what great nation is there
that has gods so close to it as the LORD, our God, is to us
whenever we call upon him?
Or what great nation has statutes and decrees
that are as just as this whole law
which I am setting before you today?
"However, take care and be earnestly on your guard
not to forget the things which your own eyes have seen,
nor let them slip from your memory as long as you live,
but teach them to your children and to your children’s children."
From the Gospel according to Matthew
5:17-19
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.
Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,
not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter
will pass from the law,
until all things have taken place.
Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments
and teaches others to do so
will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven.
But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments
will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.”
In the Gospel of today’s liturgy, Jesus says: “Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfil them” (Mt 5:17). […] Jesus makes us understand that religious rules are necessary, they are good, but they are only the beginning: to fulfil them, it is necessary to go beyond the letter and live their meaning. The commandments that God gave us should not be locked up in the airless vaults of formal observance; otherwise, we are limited to an exterior, detached religiosity, servants of “God the master” rather than children of “God the Father”. Jesus wants this: not to have the idea of serving a God who is master, but Father; and this is why it is necessary to go beyond the letter. Brothers and sisters, this problem was present not only in Jesus’ time; it is there today too. At times, for example, we hear some say, “Father, I have not killed, I have not stolen, I have not harmed anyone…”, as if to say, “I am fine”. This is formal observance, which is satisfied with the bare minimum, whereas Jesus invites us to aspire to the maximum possible. That is: God does not reason with calculations and tables; he loves us as one who is enamoured: not to the minimum, but to the maximum! He does not say, “I love you up to a certain point”. No, true love is never up to a certain point, and is never satisfied; love always goes beyond, it cannot do otherwise. The Lord showed us this by giving his life on the cross and forgiving his murderers (cf. Lk 23:34). And he entrusted to us the commandment most dear to him: that we love one another like he loved us (cf. Jn 15:12). This is the love that gives fulfilment to the Law, to faith, to true life! (Francis – Angelus, 12 February 2023)
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Caught between Hezbollah and Israeli strikes, Lebanon’s Christian villages in the South seek Vatican support.
![Several cardinals show grave concern about Iran war; McElroy says it’s not a just war - #Catholic - Several members of the Catholic hierarchy are expressing grave concerns about the American and Israeli military conflict with Iran, and at least one cardinal said the U.S. decision to launch the initial attacks fails to meet the criteria of a “just war” based on Catholic criteria.President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered joint strikes on Iran on Feb. 28 amid inconclusive U.S.-Iranian negotiations related to uranium enrichment. In response, Iran launched strikes on U.S. bases and forces, Israel, and the Gulf states.“At this present moment, the U.S. decision to go to war against Iran fails to meet the just war threshold for a morally legitimate war in at least three requirements,” Cardinal Robert McElroy, archbishop of Washington, D.C., said in an interview with the archdiocesan Catholic Standard.McElroy noted that the Church recognizes six conditions for a war to be just. The war must be waged by a proper authority, it must have a just cause, it must have the right intention, it must have a reasonable chance of success, it must be a last resort, and the damage caused by the war must not be more harmful than the evil it is meant to destroy.“The criterion of just cause is not met because our country was not responding to an existing or imminent and objectively verifiable attack by Iran,” McElroy said.
Cardinal Robert McElroy of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. speaks at the University of Notre Dame Forum event on ‘Healing Our National Dialogue and Political Life’ on Oct. 17, 2025. | Credit: Courtesy of Michael Caterina / University of Notre Dame
Just prior to the attack, Omanʼs Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, a key mediator in the negotiations between the two countries, told CBS News that Iran was prepared to make major concessions, including a lower level of enrichment, a reduction of its enriched uranium stockpile, and inspections. On March 3, three days after the attack, Trump said “it was my opinion [Iran was] going to attack first.”McElroy said the “right intention” criterion is also not met: “One of the most worrying elements of these first days of the war in Iran is that our goals and intentions are absolutely unclear, ranging from the destruction of Iran’s conventional and nuclear weapons potential to the overthrow of its regime to the establishment of a democratic government to unconditional surrender.”At times, Trump has said he would potentially work with new Iranian leaders but has also urged the Iranian people to overthrow the government at other times. The previous supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, was killed in a strike and has been replaced by his son, Mojtaba Khamenei. Iran has not shown any interest in returning to negotiations or making more concessions since the war began.McElroy also said “it is far from clear that the benefits of this war will outweigh the harm which will be done.” He called the Middle East “the most unstable region in the world, and the most unpredictable.”“Already the war has had unintended consequences,” McElroy said. “Iran’s morally despicable decision to target its neighbors in the region has spread the expanse of destruction. Lebanon may fall into civil war. The world’s oil supply is under great strain. The potential disintegration of Iran could well produce new and dangerous realities. And the possibility of immense casualties on all sides is immense.”More cardinals echo concernsOther cardinals have also publicly conveyed their concerns about the conflict, including Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin.Parolin told Vatican News that “this erosion of international law is truly worrying: justice has given way to force; the force of law has been replaced by the law of force.”He said people in the Middle East, including Christians, have been “plunged into the horror of war, which brutally shatters human lives, brings destruction, and drags entire nations into spirals of violence with uncertain outcomes.”“The Holy See prefers to recall the need to use all the instruments offered by diplomacy in order to resolve disputes among states,” Parolin said. “History has already taught us that only politics — through the hard work of negotiation and attention to balancing interests — can increase trust among peoples, promote development, and preserve peace.”Cardinal Blase Cupich, archbishop of Chicago, criticized the administration’s characterization of the war, especially an X post from the White House that showed videos of American strikes with the caption “JUSTICE THE AMERICAN WAY” in all capitalized letters.In a statement, Cupich said “more than 1,000 Iranian men, women and children lay dead after days of bombardment,” and added: “A real war with real death and real suffering being treated like it’s a video game — it’s sickening.”
Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago speaks at a Georgetown University forum Oct. 30, 2025. | Credit: Madalaine Elhabbal/CNA
“Hundreds of people are dead, mothers and fathers, daughters and sons, including scores of children who made the fatal mistake of going to school that day,” he added. “Six U.S. soldiers have been killed. They are also dishonored by that social media post. Hundreds of thousands displaced, and many millions more are terrified across the Middle East.”Following the publication of the statement, a seventh member of the U.S. armed forces was confirmed dead.Cupich accused the government of “treating the suffering of the Iranian people as a backdrop for our own entertainment, as if it’s just another piece of content to be swiped through while we’re waiting in line at the grocery store.” He warned that “in the end, we lose our humanity when we are thrilled by the destructive power of our military.”Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, vice president of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC), raised similar concerns as Cupich, and commented on how technology changes how war is conducted.“From distant command centers, military operators stare at screens where maps, radar signals, and algorithm-generated targets move like icons in a computer game,” he told Vatican News. “A cursor moves. A coordinate is selected. A click is made. And a missile is launched."When asked about who benefits from the war and who does not, David said “industries that manufacture weapons” benefit financially from the conflict.“Certainly not the families who bury their dead,” David said. “Certainly not the workers who suddenly find themselves trapped in a war zone far from home. Certainly not the poor nations that will absorb the economic shock.”Cardinal Domenico Battaglia, archbishop of Naples, wrote a critique of the war in poetic form in Italian, addressed to the “merchants of death.”“I write to you from this trembling land,” he wrote. “It trembles under the footsteps of the poor, under the crying of children, under the silence of the innocent, under the fierce noise of the weapons you have built, sold, blessed by your cynicism.”Battaglia asked those perpetuating the war to “stop,” to “convert,” and to listen to the words of Jesus Christ, as expressed in the Beatitudes.“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God,” Christ said in Matthew 5:9.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/several-cardinals-show-grave-concern-about-iran-war-mcelroy-says-its-not-a-just-war-catholic-several-members-of-the-catholic-hierarchy-are-expressing-grave-concerns-about-the-american-a.jpg)
Cardinals in the United States and elsewhere are raising concerns about just war and about the death and destruction caused by the ongoing conflict with Iran.
The one mistake America cannot make in Iran is stopping before the mission is finished.
The post The One Strategic Mistake America Cannot Make in Iran (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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CNN edited a shameful social media post that framed two suspected ISIS-inspired terrorists as throwing a homemade bomb in an attempt to kill protesters at an anti-Islam rally, as a couple of Pennsylvania teenagers who were out to enjoy an unseasonably warm day.
The post CNN Edits Shameful Post Framing Suspected ISIS Inspired Terrorists as ‘Pennsylvania Teenagers Enjoying a Day in NYC’ After Backlash appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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As of March 9th, the Iranian air force and navy have been destroyed, along with thousands of high-value targets, including Iranian command centers, air-defense systems, missile-production facilities, launch platforms, and airfields across the country.
The post US Winning in Iran, Despite False Claims That US Hasn’t Won a War in 80 Years appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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Father Pierre Rahi, a shepherd who refused to leave Southern Lebanon, was killed in Israeli strike.
![Georgia appeals court blocks abuse suit against Atlanta Archdiocese, cites statute of limitations #Catholic A dozen alleged abuse victims suffered a defeat at a Georgia appeals court this week when their lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Atlanta was dismissed on the grounds that the alleged abuse did not fall under an extended statute of limitations. The case turned on whether or not the archdiocese had covered up the alleged clergy sexual abuse, which if true could have “tolled” the time limit for filing abuse claims. “Tolling” occurs when a statute of limitations is extended beyond a normal window, allowing alleged victims to file abuse claims years after they normally would have been barred from doing so. In the Atlanta case, a dozen alleged victims had filed numerous suits against the Archdiocese of Atlanta and numerous churches, claiming that Fathers John Edwards and Jorge Cristancho had abused them over multiple decades from the 1960s to the early 2000s. A lower court had dismissed the cases. The Georgia Court of Appeals on March 9 upheld the dismissal, arguing that the statute of limitations for the filings had expired and that the archdiocese had not committed any malfeasance that could have extended the filing window. The plaintiffs “failed to point to any evidence that the [the archdioceseʼs] actions concealed the Plaintiffs’ claims and prevented or hindered them from filing their lawsuits,” the ruling held. The alleged victims failed to prove that they “ever requested information from the [archdiocese] about their knowledge and involvement in the abuse, or that the [archdiocese] refused” to provide it. The three-judge panel acknowledged that it was “certainly mindful of the grievous circumstances involving heinous conduct which led to the filing of these cases.”Edwards and Cristancho are both listed by the archdiocese as “credibly accused” of sexual abuse. Edwards died in 1997; Cristancho was laicized in 2003. Statutes of limitations have been a key component of disputes in the U.S. Church for years, with lawmakers in recent years advocating and often passing bills retroactively extending the window for filing abuse claims. In 2023 Maryland passed the state Child Victims Act, which abolished a 20-year statute of limitations for civil child abuse suits. The Maryland Supreme Court ruled in 2025 that the law did not violate the state constitution.Numerous states such as New York, North Carolina, New Jersey, Colorado and others have enacted similar laws allowing for abuse victims to seek restitution for alleged incidents that occurred in decades past. Such legal arrangements are not limited to the United States. In January the Spanish Bishops’ Conference and the national government agreed to a compensation plan for abuse victims that will allow victims to file for restitution even if the alleged abuse falls outside of the standard statute of limitations.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/georgia-appeals-court-blocks-abuse-suit-against-atlanta-archdiocese-cites-statute-of-limitations-catholic-a-dozen-alleged-abuse-victims-suffered-a-defeat-at-a-georgia-appeals-court-this-week-when-th.jpg "Georgia appeals court blocks abuse suit against Atlanta Archdiocese, cites statute of limitations #Catholic A dozen alleged abuse victims suffered a defeat at a Georgia appeals court this week when their lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Atlanta was dismissed on the grounds that the alleged abuse did not fall under an extended statute of limitations. The case turned on whether or not the archdiocese had covered up the alleged clergy sexual abuse, which if true could have “tolled” the time limit for filing abuse claims. “Tolling” occurs when a statute of limitations is extended beyond a normal window, allowing alleged victims to file abuse claims years after they normally would have been barred from doing so. In the Atlanta case, a dozen alleged victims had filed numerous suits against the Archdiocese of Atlanta and numerous churches, claiming that Fathers John Edwards and Jorge Cristancho had abused them over multiple decades from the 1960s to the early 2000s. A lower court had dismissed the cases. The Georgia Court of Appeals on March 9 upheld the dismissal, arguing that the statute of limitations for the filings had expired and that the archdiocese had not committed any malfeasance that could have extended the filing window. The plaintiffs “failed to point to any evidence that the [the archdioceseʼs] actions concealed the Plaintiffs’ claims and prevented or hindered them from filing their lawsuits,” the ruling held. The alleged victims failed to prove that they “ever requested information from the [archdiocese] about their knowledge and involvement in the abuse, or that the [archdiocese] refused” to provide it. The three-judge panel acknowledged that it was “certainly mindful of the grievous circumstances involving heinous conduct which led to the filing of these cases.”Edwards and Cristancho are both listed by the archdiocese as “credibly accused” of sexual abuse. Edwards died in 1997; Cristancho was laicized in 2003. Statutes of limitations have been a key component of disputes in the U.S. Church for years, with lawmakers in recent years advocating and often passing bills retroactively extending the window for filing abuse claims. In 2023 Maryland passed the state Child Victims Act, which abolished a 20-year statute of limitations for civil child abuse suits. The Maryland Supreme Court ruled in 2025 that the law did not violate the state constitution.Numerous states such as New York, North Carolina, New Jersey, Colorado and others have enacted similar laws allowing for abuse victims to seek restitution for alleged incidents that occurred in decades past. Such legal arrangements are not limited to the United States. In January the Spanish Bishops’ Conference and the national government agreed to a compensation plan for abuse victims that will allow victims to file for restitution even if the alleged abuse falls outside of the standard statute of limitations.")
The statute of limitations could not be extended due to a lack of evidence of fraud by the archdiocese, the court said.
Regina Lynch, executive president of ACN, said she fears for the Christian presence in the Middle East amid rising tensions and violence.
Massimo Di Fusco, taken from Ferrara, Italy NGC 2403 is a spiral galaxy in Camelopardalis that bears a strong resemblance to a nearby galaxy — the Triangulum, or M33. Both are rich with bright regions of vigorous star formation. NGC 2403 (also cataloged as Caldwell 7) lies about 8 million light-years away in the M81Continue reading “A Triangulum lookalike”
The post A Triangulum lookalike appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.
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A brain-new image from Webb! What looks like a brain (complete with what appear as left and right hemispheres) is actually a dying star blowing off a shell of gas, and within that shell, a cloud of various gases.
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