Broken Heart Syndrome: A Real Killer

We've all heard tragic stories of elderly, long married couples who, when one spouse dies, the other "heartbroken" spouse dies soon after. But it's not just a sentimental idea—in fact, it is a real cardiovascular condition, new research shows.

A recent study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) revealed that the death of a partner is linked to a heightened risk of developing an irregular heartbeat (also known as atrial fibrillation) for up to a year afterward. This increases the risk of heart attack and heart failure.

Statistics showed that the bereaved partner had a 41 percent higher incidence of atrial fibrillation than those who hadn't experienced a loss and was greater when the death was unexpected.

But can you actually die from a broken heart?

Saudi Arabia Threatens to Sell $750 Billion US Assets if Congress Passes 9/11 Bill

Saudi Arabia has warned that it will sell up to $750 billion worth of U.S. assets held by the oil-rich Kingdom if the U.S. Congress passes a bill that would allow victims of the September 11, 2001, terror attack to sue the Saudi Arabia government.

Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir made a trip to Washington, D.C. last month to personally deliver the message to the American lawmakers, according to The New York Times.

Failed missile launch spurs North Korea's fifth nuclear test

North Korea is likely to conduct its fifth nuclear test in the near future, possibly before its party congress in early May, a media report said on Sunday, citing South Korean government sources based on their reading of activity around the test site.

The news of signs indicating the North is readying a nuclear test comes as Pyongyang is gearing up for a ruling Workers Party congress in early May, where leader Kim Jong Un is likely to boast about his achievements in building a weapons programme.

Ecuador confronts devastation of 7.8 magnitude earthquake disaster

Traumatised Ecuadoreans slept amid rubble while rescuers dug for survivors on Monday after an earthquake smashed the Andean nation's coastal region, killing at least 272 people and flattening resort towns.

Saturday's 7.8 magnitude quake ripped apart buildings and roads, knocked out power, and injured at least 2,068 people in the largely poor Andean country.

30 Crazy Things Scientists Say About Love

• Men who kiss their wives in the morning live FIVE YEARS LONGER than those who don't.

• Scientists suggest that most people will fall in love approximately seven times before marriage.

• Some individuals who claim never to have felt romantic love suffer from hypopituitarism, a rare disease that doesn't allow a  person to feel the rapture of love.

• Getting dumped often leads to "frustration attraction", which causes an individual to love the one who dumped him or her even more.

• Reports suggest that the liquid that surrounds the sperm contains dopamine ("the pleasure chemical") and norepinephrine as well as tyrosine, an amino acid the brain needs to manufacture dopamine. When a person falls in love, the ventral tegmental area in the brain floods the caudate nucleus with dopamine. The caudate then signals for more dopamine; the more dopamine, the higher a person feels. The same system becomes activated when someone takes cocaine.

• When someone looks at a new love, the neutral circuits that are usually associated with social judgement are suppressed...still wondering why it is said that love is blind?

• The apple has historically been the ultimate symbol of love and sexual desire.

• A study of college students who had just been rejected by their sweethearts showed they had strong activity in the brain associated with the insular cortex, the part of the brain that experiences physical pain...

• Antidepressants may compromise romantic love because they enhance serotonin levels. Higher serotonin levels blunt emotions and inhibit obsessive thoughts about the lover, both crucial components of love.

• Some psychologists argue that we fall in love with someone who is similar to the parent with whom we have unresolved childhood issues, unaware we are seeking to resolve this childhood relationship in adulthood.

• Studies show that if a man meets a woman in a dangerous situation (and vice versa),such as on a trembling bridge, he is more likely to fall in love with her than if he met her in a more mundane setting, such as in an office.

Is This Your Fear Factor?

For some, Tax Day—April 15, or officially April 18 this year—instills fear. But there are many more situations Americans are afraid of, circumstances that affect their views on the economy and their own spending, says financial expert and national television and radio host Dan Celia.

Dependence on Foodbanks in danger of becoming 'new norm'

Dependence on food banks is in danger of becoming the new norm for low-income families, according to the UK's largest food bank network.

Foodbank usage remains at record levels, according to the latest figures released by The Trussell Trust, who gave out enough emergency food supplies to feed more than 1.1 million people in 2015-16.

Of this number, 415,866 packages were given to children.

"One million three day food supplies given out by our foodbanks every year is one million too many," said David McAuley, Trussell Trust's chief executive.

Problems with the welfare system, such as delays in benefit payments and sanctions, is the main reason for food bank use, according to the research produced in partnership with the University of Hull.

Notre Dame students holding ‘prayerful protest’ this weekend over Biden award

Notre Dame students will join Bishop Kevin Rhoades in his condemnation of Notre Dame's award of their highest honor to Vice President Joe Biden by hosting an on-campus prayer service at 2:00 p.m. Sunday.

The student groups Notre Dame Right to Life, the Identity Project of Notre Dame, the Irish Rover student newspaper, Militia of the Immaculata, Jus Vitae, the St. Thomas More Society, and the Catholic Graduate Community are sponsoring the event, during which prayers will be offered “for a greater respect for human life, and especially for Notre Dame's commitment to its Catholic identity and to protecting the sanctity of life at all stages.”

60-Y-O Christian Woman Publicly Caned 30 Times for Breaking Islamic Law in Indonesia

A Christian woman was tried and caned 30 times in Aceh, Indonesia's most conservative Islamic region, for selling alcohol and breaking Shariah law.

International Christian Concern reported Wednesday that it is usually Muslims who are punished for breaking the Islamic law, for things such as alcoholic consumption, adultery, gambling, and homosexual acts, but now Christians and members of other religions have been brought under this jurisdiction as well.

Bhutan – A ‘Happy’ Place, But Not For All

The visit of the young UK Royals, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge ("Will and Kate"), to Bhutan is shining a spotlight on a small Himalayan nation perhaps best known for its own King assessing his country's performance by factors which contribute to "Gross National Happiness".

But despite this apparent endeavour from the Buddhist nation to ensure its citizens' felicity, Bhutan's minorities - including around 20,000 Christians (2.8% of the population) - complain that happiness does not filter down to all parts of society.

Will Pope Francis mend ties with the SSPX?

 

Bishop Bernard Fellay, head of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X, has reportedly discussed several positive aspects of his meeting with Pope Francis at the beginning of the month.

Bishop Fellay had visited the Vatican April 1-2, meeting with the Pope and with Archbishop Guido Pozzo, secretary of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei – the Vatican office of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith responsible for doctrinal discussions with the estranged group.

UNICEF reveals 'depressing' level of UK child poverty

Britain has been criticised by the UN, after new research reveals it is lagging behind much poorer countries on reducing inequalities between rich and poor children.

The Unicef report, Fairness for Children, strongly suggested the government should reconsider its cuts to benefits.

The UK ranked 25 out of the 37 wealthy countries included in the report, below Romania, Slovenia and Poland, for its equality levels in children's reading, maths and science skills at 15.

Brexit: Hard choices ahead if Britain votes to leave, says think tank

Britain will need to make choices on trade, labour laws and the environment that could be unpopular with voters if it wants to offset the hit to its economy from any decision to leave the European Union, a think tank said on Wednesday.

Britain's economic output would probably be between 0.5 and 1.5 per cent smaller than it would otherwise be by 2030 if it decides to quit the bloc in a referendum in June, according to Open Europe, a pro-market research unit.

School sports transgender policy bad for students, say Nebraska's bishops

Nebraska’s body governing school athletics has failed to overturn a policy that will recognize gender identity rather than biological sex as a standard for student athletes, and last week the state’s bishops said they “deeply regret” the situation.

“Recognizing the truth about each person’s biological sex, and basing policies upon that fundamental truth, would serve the best interest of Nebraska’s students, families and schools,” they said April 8.

The bishops said that the Catholic member schools of the association will continue to urge it to rescind the policy, and will “require that students participate in NSAA activities according to their sex at birth.”

UK Christian expelled over pro-marriage Facebook posts will appeal to courts

A Christian father of four who has served as a teacher and care worker since coming to Great Britain as a refugee in 2003 has lost the appeal of his expulsion from the Sheffield University Masters of Social Work program for expressing his views on homosexuality.

Francis Ngole, 39, told media reporters he would take the university to court with the help of the Christian Legal Centre, a pro-bono advocacy organization that defends Christian freedom of religion and freedom of expression. “I feel and my legal team feels that the decision reached was strongly discriminatory. But I’m clearly not fighting for myself. I am fighting for other Christians. Christianity is being driven underground.”

Gang Kills Pastor for Preaching the Gospel

Four men confessed to killing a pastor because he was preaching the gospel, according to a statement from police.

The gang "confessed to have been responsible for the kidnapping Pastor Chukwu Ekere of same Ohigha community and killed him for the simple reason that the man of God disturbed them with his preaching of repentance and also for urging them to shun their nefarious activities and accept God," Nigeria's PM News reported.

US presidential election prompts 'alarming' rise of anti-Muslim sentiment in schools

More than a third of US teachers have reported a rise of anti-Muslim or anti-immigrant sentiment in schools as a result of the US presidential election campaign.

This is one of the key findings from a report on the effect of the campaign on school children. On top of that, more than two-thirds of teachers say immigrant students have expressed fears about what might happen to them after the election.

The Trump Effect was compiled by The Southern Poverty Law Centre (SPLC), and says "this year's primary season is starkly different from any in recent memory".

SPLC President Richard Cohen said: "We're deeply concerned about the level of fear among minority children who feel threatened by both the incendiary campaign rhetoric and the bullying they're encountering in school.

"We've seen Donald Trump behave like a 12-year-old, and now we're seeing 12-year-olds behave like Donald Trump."

Nigerian pastor tells MPs of Christian persecution: 'We don't have liberty'

Politicians crammed into a room in the Houses of Parliament on Wednesday afternoon to hear about Christian persecution in northern Nigeria.

More than 35 MPs and peers attended the launch of a report by persecution charity Open Doors, including shadow foreign secretary Hilary Benn, minister for international development Desmond Swayne, and former shadow business secretary Chuka Umanna.

Zoe Smith, head of advocacy for Open Doors, told reporters after the event that politicians were reminded Christans did not just suffer attacks from Boko Haram but also from Fulani tribesman and Islamic local government figures.

Bible Ranks No. 6 on List of Top 10 Most Challenged Books

The American Library Association has revealed that the Bible is among the books most often challenged and called to be banned in libraries.

Pope appoints new Vatican ambassador to the US

Pope Francis has appointed French-born Archbishop Christophe Pierre as the Vatican ambassador to the U.S., replacing Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, the Holy See press office announced Tuesday.

The appointment of the new Vatican ambassador – known as an apostolic nuncio – comes after Archbishop Viganò reached the retirement age of 75 on Jan. 16 of this year. The Italian prelate had served as apostolic nuncio to the U.S. since 2011.

Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Ky., who heads the U.S. bishops’ conference, welcomed the announcement.

Win-win situation: Porn site bans North Carolina

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France passes law cracking down on prostitution by targeting johns

 

French parliamentarians have passed a law punishing the buyers of sexual services with heavy fines while funding the rehabilitation of prostitutes to the tune of 4.7 million Euros annually.

The passage by a vote of 64 to 12 in the National Assembly climaxed but probably has not ended a debate that cuts across ideological grounds dividing feminists, conservatives and left wingers about not only the best way to end or reduce prostitution but over whether it should be reduced at all. The debate is just heating up in the United Kingdom where a parliamentary committee is considering a report recommending a “Sex Buyer Law” like France’s, and been attacked for their troubles as misguided do-gooders influenced by the Christian “rescue industry.”

However, the push behind France’s new law comes not from the country’s religious conservatives but from mainstream socialists. They are following the Nordic model after the Swedish and Norwegian policy of treating prostitutes as victims, who are often illegal immigrants working in slave-like conditions for the men who trafficked them into Europe from Africa and Asia. France will fine those who buy sexual services 1,500 Euros for the first offence and 3,500 Euros for the second.

If You Want to Change Your Life, Here's Where You Should Start

For change to happen in any area of your life, whether it's financial, vocational, educational, mental or relational, you have to begin with the physical.

Why? It's because your body affects your behavior. Your muscles affect your moods and your motivation. Your physiology can actually affect your psychology.

'Sister Wives' Polygamy Case Goes Up in Flames

The polygamist family featured in the reality television show Sister Wives lost its bid to overturn parts of Utah's anti-bigamy law under a federal appeals court ruling issued on Monday.

The case, filed after the show's popularity prompted a criminal investigation into whether star Kody Brown was illegally married to four women, drew international attention and raised questions about whether the state could bar consenting adults from living together as a family.

Pakistan's schools teach children that Christians are 'violent and tyrannical by nature' – report

Textbooks in Pakistan portray Pakistani Christians as "colonial oppressors", revealing a "deeply troubling" intolerant narrative toward religious minorities, according to a new study.

"Pakistan's public school textbooks contain deeply troubling content that portrays non-Muslim citizens as outsiders, unpatriotic, and inferior; are filled with errors; and present widely-disputed historical 'facts' as settled history," said Robert George, chairman of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom which sponsored the study.

Boko Haram's 'devastating impact' leaves one million without education

The full damage wreaked by Boko Haram in Nigeria is yet to be known.

This is according to a report which explores the "devastating impact" the terrorist group has had on education in northeast Nigeria.

The 86-page report from Human Rights Watch (HRW) claims one million children have little or no access to schools as a result of Boko Haram's attacks. This situation is made worse by the Nigerian army's policy of using schools as military bases and therefore increasing the risk of attack.

More than 910 schools have been targeted by the Islamist group, whose name means "Western (or non-Islamic) education is a sin". At least 611 teachers have been deliberately killed and another 19,000 forced to flee. At least 1,500 schools have closed as a result of Boko Haram's attacks.

"In its brutal crusade against western-style education, Boko Haram is robbing an entire generation of children in northeast Nigeria of their education," said Mausi Segun, Nigeria researcher at HRW. "The government should urgently provide appropriate schooling for all children affected by the conflict."

Cardinal Burke: Pope’s exhortation not magisterial, can’t change Church teaching

Cardinal Raymond Burke has said that the Pope’s newly released post-synodal exhortation cannot change Church teaching and practice, emphasizing that the document is not magisterial.

“The Church has historically been sensitive to the erroneous tendency to interpret every word of the pope as binding in conscience, which, of course, is absurd,” he wrote in an article published by the National Catholic Register on Monday. “Pope Francis makes clear, from the beginning, that the post-synodal apostolic exhortation is not an act of the magisterium."

Burke adds that the Church takes care that "a personal reflection of the Pope, while received with the respect owed to his person, is not confused with the binding faith owed to the exercise of the magisterium."

4 Types of Friends That Will Make Your Life Better

We live in this weird time where everything is online to be seen, misinterpreted, exaggerated and envied. If someone posts a picture of his latest culinary creation, night out with friends or time alone at the coffee shop, our first thought is to compare his life to our own.

Even a person's friendships are out there for our scrutiny.

We analyze how many friends someone has, how often they get together and whether they do or don't include their children. The fact is that there is not a magic number of friends a person needs.

Iron Sharpens Iron

There are, however, some key characteristics needed in friendship.

Do your words bring life or death?

I first heard the expression "words of life" from a lovely Christian couple I know with six children. Not only did they make it their goal to speak kindly and encouraging of everyone in their lives, but they also encouraged their children to do so. It had an amazing impact on all their relationships and the atmosphere in their home.

We can probably all remember hurtful words that have been spoken to us in the past. That is because unkind, hurtful, critical or cruel words stick much longer than any other comments. Forget that silly nursery rhyme about sticks and stones. The truth is words can and do hurt, especially when said by people who mean something to us.

How a simple idea helped 7,000 homeless pregnant women

Christopher Bell was in his twenties and living in Times Square when he heard something that sounded like the voice of God.

Bell had been working with homeless and runaway kids in New York City, when he encountered pregnant women with young children who had no homes. At the time, Bell said there were no long-term programs that were ministering to pregnant women with other children.

“I thought there was a need to have longer-term housing for mothers and babies, but I didn’t know what to do,” Bell told CNA.

A Warning for the Last Days

John warns and instructs us in 1 John 4:1-6, "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and is already in the world. You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are of the world, and therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. We are of God, and whoever knows God listens to us. Whoever is not of God does not listen to us. This is how we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error."

To protect ourselves in these last days we are to test the spirits. The enemy's messengers will come especially to those whom they have witnessed do not judge what appears to them, for these people are easy prey for the enemy to devour.

Pakistani Christian 'Butchered Like an Animal' for Protecting Youth From Muslim Drug Dealers

A Pakistani Christian family is coping with the shock of seeing the brutal slaughter of their father, Nazeer Masih, at the hands of Muslim drug dealers.

"This is not the first incident of persecution of Christians in our village, local Muslims are always creating problems for our Christian community. Before and after our church services Muslim drug dealers swarm around our church trying to sell drugs to our vulnerable youth," local Pastor Alfred Azam said, according to the British Pakistani Christian Association.

Top Anglican condemns forgery allegations as 'scurrilous' and 'untrue'

A leading Anglican official has condemned allegations of forgery around a meeting of Anglican leaders in Africa as "scurrilous", "untrue" and "against all biblical principles of appropriate behaviour".

Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon, secretary general of the Anglican Communion, spoke out after the Archbishop of Kenya criticised delegates from the Anglican Church of Kenya for attending an Anglican meeting in Zambia this week.

6 Ways to Deal With Emotional Manipulation

Over the weekend, I posted a Facebook graphic titled "9 Sure Signs You're Being Emotionally Manipulated." Within minutes, it was liked and shared over 1,000 times and has reached well over 1 million people in less than a week.

Gee, I guess manipulation is a big issue in the body of Christ. Of course, that's not all that surprising. I imagine we have all run into emotional manipulators in our Christian walks and have been tempted to manipulate situations in our own right. You can find manipulation in homes, in schools, in workplaces—and in churches. Before we move on to the six ways to deal with emotional manipulators, let's look at the sure signs in the original post:

Pope sends condolences after deadly fire in India

Pope Francis has sent his condolences to the victims and relatives of a fireworks accident on Sunday that killed at least 100 people and injured hundreds of others in India's Kerala state during celebrations of the local Hindu new year.

The Pope was “saddened to learn of the tragic fire at the Puttingal temple complex in Paravur,” said the telegram which was addressed to the victims of the blaze, and was signed by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

Francis also sent his “condolences to the relatives of the deceased and injured.”

Sexual Predator Jailed after Claiming to Be ‘Transgender’ to Assault Women in Shelter

A biological man claiming to be 'transgender' so as to gain access to and prey on women at two Toronto shelters was jailed "indefinitely" last week after being declared by a judge a "dangerous offender."

Pro-family leaders are pointing out that this is exactly the type of incident they warned of as the Ontario government passed its "gender identity" bill, dubbed the "bathroom bill," in 2012.

Christopher Hambrook, 37, leaned on the ever expanding legal "rights" offered to people who "identify" with the sex opposite their biology. Under the name "Jessica," he was able to get into the women's shelters, where he sexually assaulted several women in 2012, the Toronto Sun reports.

Temple fire kills 100 in India

A massive fire swept through a temple in India's southern Kerala state on Sunday, killing nearly 100 people and injuring more than 200 who had gathered for a fireworks display to mark the start of the local Hindu new year.

Thousands of devotees had packed into the Puttingal Devi temple in the coastal district of Kollam. The fireworks display began at midnight and went on for hours.

The fire started when one of the crackers fell onto a shed where the fireworks were stored, said residents near the temple site, about 70 km from the state capital Thiruvananthapuram.

Cameron announces new tax evasion law in wake of Panama Papers row

British Prime Minister David Cameron will say today that new legislation making companies criminally liable if employees aid tax evasion will be introduced this year, as he seeks to repair the damage from a week of questions about his personal finances.

Cameron published tax records on Sunday to try and defuse criticism over his handling of the fallout from the Panama Papers, in which his late father was mentioned for setting up an offshore fund.

The Origin of Moral Decadence

I said in my last writing that children and animals have soul, but not a functional spirit. And, the spirit is interrelated with the free will.
The spirit of a growing child is made active at a certain stage of its development and maturity. Prior to the time, the best the child can do is to use his imitative instinct as  he can be said to be operating with a dormant spirit.

Around puberty, let us say shortly before it, there is a whole lot of spiritual, transforming and transfiguring changes that take place in the life of every human being. These changes determine the type of individual the maturing person would be as it affects his spirituality and personality through a phenomenon known as generative power.

The 5 Masks of Pride

 

Have you ever asked the Holy Spirit to teach you something and then quickly realized you asked for more than you bargained for?

That's what happened to me a couple years ago when I asked for a revelation on what pride is and asked the Lord to convict me in areas where I was missing it. It all started because one day I was minding my own business reading a book on my Kindle, and I heard in my spirit that I had an issue with pride.

Pope: When giving to the poor, look them in the eyes

In Saturday's address for the monthly Jubilee of Mercy general audience, Pope Francis said almsgiving is not just about the money; it is about being attentive to the actual needs of the person asking for help.

“Almsgiving is a gesture of love which directs us toward those we meet,” the Pope said in his catechesis. “It is a gesture of sincere attention to those who come to us and ask for our help.”

“We should not identify almsgiving simply with a (hastily given) monetary offering” he said, “without looking at the person, and without stopping to talk, to understand what they really need.”

In off-the-cuff remarks, the Pope challenged the faithful as to whether they are able to “stop and look in the face, look in the eyes, of the person who is asking for my help.”

The April 9 gathering in St. Peter's Square was the latest in a monthly series of special audiences for the Holy Year of Mercy, which are held in addition to the weekly general audiences.

Al Qaeda execute 15 in Yemen

Al Qaeda executed 15 soldiers loyal to Yemen's President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi on Saturday.

The soldiers were detained by militants while traveling from the southern port of Aden to al-Mahra province in eastern Yemen via Ahwar, a city in Abyan province under al Qaeda control, according to local officials and residents.

The militants took them to a remote area and killed them by firing squad. Local sources said 17 other captive soldiers were wounded in the incident but were believed to be still alive. Their current status was unclear.

Justin Welby's mother responds to revelations about her affair

Justin Welby has discovered his real father was not Gavin Welby, the former husband to his mother Jane Williams.

Instead it has been revealed archbishop of Canterbury was born out of a brief affair between his mother and Winston Churchill's private secretary, Sir Anthony Montague Brown. Now re-married to Charles Williams, Welby's mother Jane Williams has issued the following statement:

Although, as has already been made public, Gavin Welby and I had a short and, sadly, dysfunctional marriage, neither of us ever doubted that we were the parents of our son Justin, who was born almost nine months to the day after our marriage in America on April 4, 1955. I still recall our joy at his arrival. So this DNA evidence with which I have now been presented proving that Gavin was not Justin's biological father, so many years after Gavin's death, has come as an almost unbelievable shock.

Naturally, my son has deserved an explanation and I have been as open as I can, given the passage of more than sixty years with all the lapses in memory that age entails, in giving it to him. But I accept that what would in normal circumstances be of interest only to those immediately concerned must now, because of my son's position in public life, be given wider circulation. So I write this in order that the matter be put to rest.

Why This Photo of 3 Swim Suits Ignited Intense Debate

Candace Cameron Bure, no stranger to her commenters' fiery Instagram remarks, found herself at the center of yet another debate—this time over swimsuits.

"I got to do a little of this today! Gorgeous #SouthernCaliforniaafternoon! #socalliving #malibu#funinthesun Some bathingsuits are meant for public beaches and others for my own backyard. #KeepingItReal" Bure posted with a picture of three swimsuits: two one-pieces and one bikini.

Commenters quickly jumped into a modesty debate.

Nigeria: Hundreds killed and churches burned in latest Fulani massacre

At least 500 people are reported to have been murdered in new attacks by Fulani herders in more than 10 villages in northern Nigeria.

The villages in Agatu LGA remain under siege by the Muslim herders, according to Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW). The latest attacks came soon after security forces in Benue State drove them out of another five communities they had occupied.

Chief Elias Ekoyi Obekpa, local paramount ruler of the Idoma tribe in Benue State, disclosed the latest attacks.

Senator David Mark, who represents the area and who visited Agatu last month, said at least 500 people died during the attacks. He added: "All the primary and post-primary schools, health centres, worship centres as well as the police station in the area have been burnt down."

Filmmakers Strike at Porn Industry

According to a national poll, 68% of men in church view pornography on a regular basis. In response to the growing epidemic in the Church, a group of filmmakers created the Conquer Series, which is the first of its kind to show men how to retrain a brain that's hooked on porn.

So far, over 300,000 men from nearly forty countries have gone through the Conquer Series, which is a five week course on DVD. These men are finding freedom and seeing their marriages restored. In this cinematic 6-disc set, former marine fighter pilot and pastor, Dr. Ted Roberts, shares powerful tools and Bible-based strategies that he's used to help thousands of men renew their mind and find freedom from porn.

Join the movement and strike a blow against the porn industry.

ISIS Burns 15 Civilians Alive

ISIS has burned 15 civilians to death after they tried to flee Fallujah. Fallujah is ISIS' second-largest stronghold in Iraq after Mosul, according to the Daily Mail.

These acts of violence are unfortunately common in Fallujah. Last month, six men were reportedly executed after they were suspected of being Iraqi spies.

The extremist group also arrested a woman who went on television and begged Western powers to "save us or bomb us." In the woman's speech on TV, she said that people in the city were dying from hunger and lack of medicine.

Azal Obaid, a local governor in the region, told ARA News that ISIS is using Fallujah's citizens as human shields to protect their militant forces. However, he did add that "there is a military plan prepared by the leadership of the Iraqi army and local tribes to liberate the city of Fallujah. The plan cannot be disclosed to the press at the moment for security reasons."

Pray that the innocent civilians would be saved from ISIS' brutal reign.

Here's What Actually Happens When You Fight For Conscience Rights

Greg Storman and his family, devout Christians, who have been operating the small grocery store and pharmacy for the past four generations, decided that they could not sell abortion-related drugs, because it was against their deepest convictions to sell drugs that "promote death", Christian Telegraph reports according to Catholic News.

African American Church Embraces Hispanic Neighbors

At the end of a Black History Month-themed service at St. Stephen Missionary Baptist Church, pastor Anthony Dockery told to the congragation about his recent mission trip to El Salvador, Christian Telegraph reports according to Baptist Press.

The mission team had served in the hometown of Jose Rivas, one of the pastors at St. Stephen. Beyond "good morning" and "God bless you," Dockery had relied on Rivas for Spanish translation while in the Central American country.

The African American congregation enthusiastically applauded the news that 500 people came to the party hosted by St. Stephen in El Salvador.

Nationally, denominations and church networks are looking to bridge the gap between Anglo and African American churches. But in La Puente, Calif., about 20 miles east of Los Angeles, St. Stephen finds itself bridging African American and Hispanic communities.

California’s AG must resign for abusing her office: pro-life groups

Some of the leading voices of the pro-life movement have a simple message for California Attorney General Kamala Harris: You should resign.

The attorney general ordered her agents to search David Daleiden's Huntington Beach apartment on Tuesday afternoon, seizing hundreds of hours of unreleased video footage “that has not seen the light of day yet.”

Harris, who was elected to her current office in 2010, has taken numerous donations from Planned Parenthood and EMILY's List, among others. According to Operation Rescue, Harris has accepted more than $81,000 in all from “Planned Parenthood and other abortion promoters.”

In abortionists’ occult world, truth is turned upside down and nothing ever is as it appears

In the occult, or secret world of abortion nothing is as it appears. In a media article, we read the interview of a woman whose mother worked in an abortion clinic and who has firsthand knowledge of the clinic’s inner workings. According to this insider, the clinic was “pervaded with occult imagery and practices.” The article continued by stating that “the workers considered ‘abortion to be a form of sacrifice,’ would perform the procedure as a sort of ritual, and worshipped deities embodying death.”