There are times in our lives when words escape us and the only comfort we can offer is that of prayer, caring and reminder of faith. Those are the times when Inspirations By Micco can help you to speak without words with a precious Christian gift.
And that gift is Virgin Mary Windchimes:
The handcrafted quality of each Inspirations By Micco Wind Chime perfectly captures the grace and compassion of the Blessed Mother. The handcrafted statue of the Blessed Mother is placed between a dove of peace and a prayer inscribed teardrop pendant that the lightest breeze will brush against silvery chimes to produce delicate music that echoes with a reminder of faith.
She is available as Our Lady of Medjugorje, Our Lady of Guadalupe, Our Lady of Fatima, Our Lady of Lourdes, or Our Lady of Grace and in a choice of Rust, Patina and Weathered finishes. All for a mere $59.95 (US).
Is Saddam Hussein in cahoots with extraterrestrials? Pravda doubts it—This story seems to be absolutely unlikely. As we see, the source of the information is just a Russian colonel, some Petrokov
, but still draws our attention to an article in Joseph Trainor's UFO Roundup from mid December.
According to Jack Sarfatti, on Friday night, December 6, 2002,a caller into the Art Bell (radio) show, who claims to have a connection to the military, said a UFO crashed in Iraq in recent years. The U.S. is searching for any public pretext to invade Iraq, but its greatest fear is that Saddam will reverse-engineer the crashed alien spacecraft.
The craft allegedly crashed during the Gulf War (1990-1991) or more recently (possibly December 1998). This will be Iraq's Roswell. The U.S. is currently reverse-engineering the Roswell craft and fears Saddam's scientists will catch up with or even go beyond the U.S. in one or more areas. These areas of research include zero point, over-ratio or gravimetric tenchology, which would allow for a tremendous advance, allowing Iraq to become a leading power.
Another caller explained that it was the work of Nazi engineers who had escaped to Iraq, connected with the Occult SS
, Thule and the Templars. Trainor's contacts in the region came up with some interesting tales:
Mohammed Hajj al-Amdar wrote,There are some very strange stories coming out of that valley. They say Saddam has given the aliens sanctuary, so they won't be captured by the Americans. Nobody will go near the citadel of Qalaat-e-Julundi at night. They say the aliens have created 'watchdogs' for Saddam. The aliens take simple desert scorpions and use their bio-engineering to grow them to giant size. Scorpions as large as cows! They have implants to control them.
The scorpions are the perfect guards. They blend in with the desert, move swiftly and silently and zero right in on their warm-blooded prey. The luckless intruder hears a strange skittering noise on the stones. Then a pincer crushes his neck, and another (pincer) his legs, and he is slammed to the ground, and the barbed tail strikes six or seven times. Death comes quickly...
I hear that Saddam says the mission of these creatures is 'to discourage guests who have not been invited.' He has a strange sense of humor, that fellow.
Is Hussein Owner of Crashed UFO?—Pravda, 31st January 2003; "Saddam's Area 51"—UFO Roundup, volume 7, number 51, 17th December 2002 (Beware - broken JavaScript. Turn if off first).
A Feng Shui practitioner has been jailed by a Hong Kong court for having sex with a 14-year-old girl. He told her he was performing 'mystical rites' that would pass on his power to her. Fengshui master jailed for sex 'rite' on teen - IOL, 31st January 2003.
This LASER ETCHED PICTURE OF JESUS would make a tasteful addition to any Christian home:
Laser ethced rectangle glass. The etching is a picture of Jesus. There is an optional light base that illuminates it from the bottom. The light base realy enhances the etching. The light base can be ordered for an additional $5.00 U.S.
An Australian Jehovah's Witness was attacked by a ram after he ignored a private - keep out
sign and entered a farm with the intention of annoying the owners. He was apparently unaware that rams are not undead and shooing the animal away with a briefcase full of Bibles had no effect. The ram, inappropriately nicknamed 'Shit for Brains', had never attacked anyone before. The Jehovah's Witness successfully sued, and also tried suing his church for not warning him that farms might be dangerous. Ram butts Bible man - Herald Sun, 23rd January 2003.
Not religious tat, but an essential accessory for the woman about town, this Mohel's Circumcision Instrument Case is:
a BRAND NEW Stainless steel instrument case. It measures 3.75" wide x 7" long x 1.5" deep. It closes securely with four thumb screw fasteners. Case can be used in steam or dry-heat autoclave. Brushed steel finish looks very nice and you can probably have it engraved with a name or initials. I have been unable to locate a box like this so I had several of these made to my specs. The inside corners have some slight discoloration due to the welding proccess, but I have found it unnoticeable in use. If you are a Mohel, or practice any profession that requires the transport of sterile surgical instruments, this case is for you!
A man who erected a cross on an African-American woman's driveway, scrawled the words This is our property. Tho shalt not take
on his house, called her racist names and hanged a black doll by the neck in his window was apparently practising Wicca, and not being a racist. It's a very weird version of Wicca:
On July 26, Dagenais constructed a wooden cross, placed it on the driveway and poured a liquid over the cross. The report says he was wearing a black skull cap and a black turtleneck. Dagenais said that for years he has practiced Wicca, a belief whose adherents practice a form of witchcraft.I put up a cross. I was sitting out there in black trying to scare them,he said.I didn't dress in a white cloak like the Ku Klux Klan.
On Aug. 15, McIntosh's estranged husband was at her house and saw a black-faced doll clothed and hanging by the neck in a porch window of Dagenais' house, facing toward the McIntosh home. The police report stated that a crucifix had been applied to the window with tape, and the garage door was painted with the number666,a biblical reference to the devil. Subdivision trustees told Dagenais to remove the items. Dagenais said the doll was actually a black cat figure dressed in a brown dress.
FBI may decide whether neighbors' dispute is witchcraft - or racism - St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 26th January 2003.
A pastor at a church in Hyderabad, India, has left from the church without informing any one
after he is alleged to have molested a 13-year-old girl who came to Hallelujah Church alone to pray. She complained to her father who went to the church to discuss the matter, where he was allegedly beaten up by Pastor Subhash. Pastor accused of molesting minor flees - Times of India, 27th January 2003.
A decorative item today - CHALKWARE? 11x11 In. GLOWLITE ELECTRIC ALTAR
This is 11 inches high x 11 inches wide x 4 1/4 inches, It has an electric plug that has to be replaced because wires are exposed on this wire. There are a couple of small chips in finish on right side bottom, 1 large chip on 1st shelf on top that holds a candle, small ones on front edge, It has 14 open holes altogether to hold 14 glass lights I have, All of them have rings around them. Then there are 2 metal 1 3/4 x 1 3/4 inch Candelabras that hold 3 candles each; 2 metal 1 3/4 inch single candle holders and 2 metal 1 3/4 inch urns, All the metal pieces are weighty, could be brass? On the 4 front bottom columns and 2 top columns there is a greenish color going down the center. There is a Picture of The Last Supper right in the front of the Altar and a picture of a Chalice on the top column. This is AS IS! Would have to be rewired and worked on.
A man has been jailed for two-and-a-half years by Cardiff Crown Court after he admitted setting fire to his own home because he thought it had been cursed with voodoo. Arson man had voodoo fears - BBC News, 22nd January 2003.
A Dutch parish council is convinced it is the victim of a deliberate trick after it distributed a hardcore porn video believing it to be a tape of a local church choir. A mix-up seems more likely. Church choir video turns out to be porn - Ananova, 22nd January 2003. (Note: I found the story below while looking for more on this one. It hasn't appeared in any of the Dutch papers as far as I can tell.)
The Dutch elections are today, and the Lijst Pim Fortuyn (LPF) are not expected to repeat their success, partly because of in-fighting and partly because the centre-right Christian Democrats (CDA) seem to be appealing to LPF voters. In Amsterdam, the CDA has said that it would ban the wearing of a burka or chador in the city's schools and colleges. They say that the garment hinders important non-verbal communication between students and teachers. Gijs Weenink told Het Parool (my translation, YMMV):
A chador or burka hinders communication. A good deal of communication is non-verbal. I am a teacher myself. During lessons, you can tell by looking at pupils' faces if they are paying attention , if they understand the material or if I need to give another example.
CDA wil burka totaal kwijt bij lessen - Het Parool, 22nd January 2003.
A Welsh virus writer who included Wiccan elements in tempting messages spread by his code has been jailed for two years.
Another message alluded to Vallor's interest in an ancient British pagan religion, which read: Bide ye the Wiccan laws ye must, in perfect love and perfect trust.
Ancient? Never mind. He was caught after boasting about it in a chat room. Computer virus author jailed - BBC News, 21st January 2003.
Tired of being woken up suddenly in the morning? What you need is a Zen Clock. You won't be woken by the sound of one hand clapping though:
The Zen Alarm Clock's long-resonating Tibetan bell-like chime makes waking up a beautiful experience. Once you use a Zen Clock, nothing else will do! When the clock's alarm is triggered, the alloy chime strikes just once, reverberating for nearly a minute.... 3-1/2 minutes later it strikes again... chime strikes become more frequent over 10 minutes.... eventually striking every 4 seconds until shut off. During this progressive awakening, you can work on dreams and affirmation sin the Alpha State. The Zen Alarm Clock allows you to time and guide meditations, and it's also a gentle way to start or end meetings on time.
The clocks are available in a number of designs including Zodiac, Labyrinth and one representing a raked Zen garden.
Nine people have been arrested in Yokohama, Japan, on suspicion of fraud. The nine are alleged to be members of a much larger 'psychic' group that police think have swindled around 150 million yen (€1,200,000) from 1,700 people by stopping them on the street and offering to drive out evil spirits.
The nine, who called their group,Ijuin, spoke to eight women in their 20s to 50s at railway stations and department stores in Kanagawa Prefecture and Tokyo between December 2000 and last March, police said. The Ijuin members falsely told their victims that they were possessed by an evil spirit, and that they would die unless they were exorcised, according to investigators.
They then took the victims to a Tokyo hotel, or what they called achapelin Kamakura, and received a combined 5.12 million yen to expel the evil spirits that had invaded the women's bodies.
Psychic phonies exorcise millions from 'possessed' women - Mainichi Daily News, 21st January 2003.
Projects are under way in many parts of India to counter superstitious beliefs in witchcraft (see Witch-hunting in India - Prattle, 3rd October 2002), but it can't help that some parts of the country still have statutes against it. Raseeq Khan, brother of famous Punjabi singer Kuldeep Khan, has been arrested. Khan is a tantrik guru, and had been called in to help a boy with an illness, his parents believed, caused by witchcraft. He said that the house was full of evil spirits.
Khan told her that he would come to their house and drive away all the spirits. When Khan reached Ravinder's house at 6 pm on Monday, her husband was not at home.
Khan insisted on waiting for him. Ravinder after finishing some household works went to take bath.
She alleged that Khan then barged into the bathroom and had rubbed ash all over her body.
Punjabi singer's brother held for witchcraft - Times of India, 20th January 2003.
Churches in the Pacific Islands regularly publicise donations in a cynical attempt to pressurise their poorer congregants into giving more than they can afford. The money is spent on extravagant church buildings. Islanders shamed into giving to church - Stuff, 21st January 2003.
Bethlehem's Best Hot Sauce is Filled with the Spirit!!
. Each label includes Bible verses of an evangelical and threatening nature. The hottest product, Firey Furnace Hot Sauce cheerfully reminds the recipient:
They will throw them into the firey furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 12:42.
Jams, BBQ sauces, syrups, marinades and speciality butters are also available.
Today we have a non-fattening treat in the form of 12 religious toy filled pastel plastic eggs - Each egg filled with one religious toy and one sticker. Assorted toys, stickers and egg colors. A great educational tool!
But no chocolate.
The Indonesian cannibal (see Eat Thy Neighbour - Prattle, 16th January 2003) now says he has killed and eaten at least two other people in his quest for a 'peaceful soul'.
Sumanto, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, claimed his goal was to eat at least seven human bodies to gain supernatural powers and ensure a peaceful soul.
He also saved and dried the penis of one man to use as an amulet. Indonesian confesses to cannibalistic quest - IOL, 20th January 2003.
Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor has told the Daily Telegraph that Britian is a Pagan country in which people will believe anything and everything. No doubt he hopes this attitude will extend to his claims that the Roman Catholic Church is doing something effective to deal with priests who abuse children. Britain is a pagan society, says Cardinal - Daily Telegraph, 20th January 2003.
A small Bible college in Kentucky wants its phone number changing because the 666 prefix is putting off potential students. So far, it's taken the phone company six months to get around to it. Bible college shuns beastly 666 phone number - Ananova, 18th January 2003.
A scammer claiming to be a Dutch psychic is distributung letters around the North East of England claiming that someone hates the recipient and that something terrible will happen unless she is paid £7. She asks people to send personal details which are enough to allow her access to people's bank accounts.
Trading Standards have received a number of complaints and Durham council have urged recipients to file them in the bin. Fortune teller's threats - icNewcastle, 15th January 2003.
I really can't wait 20 minutes to tell you all about this exciting game from Family Life Ministries - Simply Romantic.
uncover God's desire for your marriage. Are you romantically challenged, ? through a short book relationship experts will explain how God generously gives sexual freedom to every married couple.
Discover inmacy in a new light!
Put sizzle and anticipation into your marriage!
Reveal your spouse's romantic language!
Unveil passionate creativity!
inside are 24 sealed envelopes. Every month, you and your spouse will each pick a romantic adenture, like "Monday Night Touch Football" to rekindle the flames!
Also included is a special anniversary celebration.
Just what we need as a wedding present.
The trial is underway of a group of three South African men on charges of sabotage. It is allleged that they planned to blow up the Vaal Dam. The three are described as Boer right-wingers and had, at six stages of the plot, recited an oath:
The oath declaressolemnlythat the takers will establish ahouseholdfor God if he should givethe Boer peoplevictory in the comingbattle.
The plot would have been put into action on the seventh recitation. One of the three men claims to be a former devil worshipper who had been converted by another member of the gang:
It was earlier testified that Peacock converted Rautenbach from Satanism to Christianity after driving his devils out. Rautenbach lived with the Peacock family and was like a son to Leon Peacock, the court was told.
Would-be bombers took 'Blood River' oath - News24, 17th January 2003.
Public health workers have become increasingly concerned about the use of mercury in rituals associated with Santeria, a syncretic magical religion of Caribbean origin.
There had been much talk in the public health world of practitioners of Santeria, Vodun and other underground religions of Caribbean origin contaminating their homes and vehicles by sprinkling mercury. But so far, no one had been able to document just how far-reaching this practice might be.
Unfortunately, the only person who would speak to researchers was a rather confused owner of a New Age shop, who misheard them and thought they said "salt water":
In fact, the only merchant who would even admit to knowing anything about mercury was the owner of a New Age store in New Hope, Pennsylvania, who told them mercury is part of some pagan rituals of European origin.
The mostly 'Latino' practitioners are naturally concerned about being scapegoated if they co-operate with the investigation.
But these large-scale federal investigations are being greeted with some misgivings by practitioners of Santeria and Vodun as well as community groups working in Latino communities in the region--even among some of the people who will actually be working on the new efforts to educate and inform the public on mercury's hazards. They are concerned not only that any findings will be ripe for more sensationalistic headlines, but that the focus on household poisoning singles out an exotic-seeming practice--and a single, relatively powerless group of people. Why, they ask, are other contributors of mercury to the environment, which may be just as devastating to human health, not getting the same attention?
It has been shown by the EPA and other people that the biggest source of mercury is from coal-burning power plants. How many articles do you see about that?asks Marian Feinberg, health plan coordinator for the South Bronx Clean Air Coalition, an environmental justice group that is participating in the NIH project.It is very easy to lay blame on an individual--much harder to consider the larger physical environment that people live in.
Mercury Rising - City Limits, February 2003.
A Book of Shadows is supposed to be a Wiccan's personal book in which they write down, by hand, their rituals and lore. It's continually updated and should be a life-long labour. But in this day and age, all that learning and copying is tedious. Why bother when you can just get this Authentic Book of Shadows e-book for your special consecrated Windows computer?
Malaysia is suffering a spate of fraud by people pretending to be shamans, mediums and sorcerers, and several gullible people have lost their life savings as a result.
[ State police chief Senior Asst Comm I Datuk Ahmad Fuaad Mohd Sidek] said in most cases thesorcerersapproached the victims and convinced them that their money could increase two or three fold with the help of supernatural beings.
SAC Ahmad Fuaad said the victims would undergo ritual ceremonies where they would be asked to place their savings in black clothes while the shamans chanted magical spells.
He said the wrapped black clothes, which seemed heavier after the ceremony, would be returned to the victims with instructions that they should only be unwrapped after the shamans had left.
Later when the victims unwrap the black clothes they find only ashes inside.
Other scams involved claims made to elderly people that their illnesses could be cured through witchcraft.
Cops: More cases of people being conned by 'sorcerers'—The Star (Malaysia), 17th January 2003.
Parents in the Democratic Republic of Congo are accusing their children of witchcraft in increasing numbers when things go wrong, and they end up in the hands of churches who extract outrageous confessions from them before 'exorcising' them.
Nzuzi, an eight-year-old with a sad face, said she was tricked by some class mates.
They gave me some bread at school. It was poisoned and they came to get it back later.
Nzuzi said that when her family slept, she would sneak out to join her friends to fly in the night sky.
The forced exorcisms are often simply abuse. Ange Bay Bay, a children's rights lawyer, told the BBC
There are children who are ironed with a clothes iron, there are others who are not given food for a whole week - there are these unbelievable things going on.
DR Congo's unhappy child 'witches' - BBC News, 17th January 2003.
Gullibility isn't in the dictionary describes itself as An atheist's weblog of human folly: wishful thinking and fanatacism. Laughter at mankind, its representatives and works
and covers much the same ground as the Prattle, but with more emphasis on silliness and less of the depressing stuff.
You would never see an article in a newspaper which started A man and a woman who had an interest in the Bible were arrested for allegedly starting five fires last summer
unless it turned out that that book has inspired them to commit arson. Yet somehow, in the case of an apparently Christian couple arrested on similar charges, their interest in Paganism is relevant.
Arson investigators learned that Blair and Van Eddy were close friends who had met while attending a church in San Diego.
From gathering information from them, they are kind of into witchcraft and paganism and stuff,said Eidsmoe, who added that he doesn't know if that was a motive for the arsons.
The possibility of a religious motive for the blazes is ruled out when you discover they are alleged to have set fires in forests. Pair arrested for allegedly starting fiveblazes east of San Diego - San Jose Mercury News, 17th January 2003.
A Romanian witch has agreed to pay a refund to a customer who threatened to sue after spells he bought to cure his sick wife and make his 40-year-old son marry failed to work within the time specified by the witch. Witch sued after spell doesn't work - Ananova, 17th January 2003.
The Detroit Free Press has an article about the appeal of religious kitsch and notes that it sells well. (via Holy Weblog )
While conspiracy theorists are likely to make much of the next Harry Potter book being released on 21st June, self-appointed witch king Kevin Carlyon thinks that the book will be cursed because the summer solstice release date will offend 'real' witches. Hurry Potter—Daily Record, 17th January 2003.
A two-in-one bargain can be had in the form of this Jewish Holidays Dominoes Games:
Match The Jewish Holiday Pictures And Play Regular Dominoes, Too!! Two Games In One! Fun and Educational Ages 3 and Up
Friday nights in the pub will never be the same again.
This Goddess Kali Shoulder Bag is An item to inspire you and enlighten
.
12x15 in. Hand Made shoulder Bag with a two-Inch gussett and zipper, two inches wide multicolor cotton/rayon. Shoulder strap. The image of Kaliis in vivid colors, and mother Kali is dancing on Shiva.
I quite like Kali - she's not all twinkly and twee like certain Goddesses I could mention. I feel all inspired to go and stomp all over Charlie until he is enlightened and buys it for me!
Egyptian spiritual leaders have called for a boycott of Ariel washing powder because they believe it is named after Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon. As proof, they have found a Star of David on the packet. Arabs Think that Ariel Washing Powder Is Named After Ariel Sharon, Russia Makes it Funny (Pravda), 16th January 2003.
Police have captured a former Zambian cabinet minister wanted on charges of embezzling millions of dollars from government funds. It took them three months - the police claim he used witchcraft to make himself invisible to them.
When police finally found Kalumba, he was wearing traditional charms from his waist, neck and arms that were intended to make him invisible, police spokeswoman Brenda Mutemba said.
Kalumba also had attached a charmed string with beads to his laptop computer so he could use the machine in the unelectrified village where he was hiding to monitor what was happening in Lusaka and to see anybody entering the village, Mutemba said.
Mutemba maintained police had difficulty arresting Kalumba because he used the charms to disappear whenever they approached. He eventually gave himself up after someone told police he was lying invisible under a shrub, she said.
Cops nab ex-cabinet official - News24, 16th January 2003.
A group of Californian women, aged between 22 and 83, plan a series of protests in which they will spell out peace slogans using their naked bodies. Organiser Donna Sheehan said that the attention-grabbing demonstration came from frustration that pacifist opinions are being ignored in the general clamour for war. Women in the buff bash Bush's naked hostility - IOL, 15th January 2003.
An Indonesian man has been charged after he allegedly exhumed his neighbour and ate her flesh. A psychiatric examination is being arranged after he claimed that eating human flesh would give him supernatural powers. Indonesian law does not recognise cannibalism as an offence, and he will only face up to a year in prison for digging up a corpse. 'Man feeds dead neighbour to unwitting dad' - IOL, 16th January 2003.
German police are taking seriously the allegations of a 34-year-old woman who claims that babies are eaten and women raped as part of Satanic initiation rituals. Similar stories were circulated by Christian fundamentalist groups in the UK during the late 1980s and early 90s, and many children were taken into care as a result of allegations which proved to be totally groundless. The Times reports that German media are linking this with the recent case of a self-confessed cannibal, although there are no indications whatsoever that he credited his (apparently consensual!) act with any religious significance. German Satanists 'ate babies' - The Times , 16th January 2003 (via the rather excellent Gullibility isn't in the dictionary).
A Minnesota sex shop has put up a notice offering a discount to clergy. Pure Pleasure is located next door Midwest Baptist Church in Stewartville:
To people driving towards the church, the sign reads:And God said go out into the world and have great sex. God's gift to women. Amen and amen.
People leaving the church see:No need to mail order. Gay videos in stock. Clergy discount. Have good sex. Hallelujah!
Sex shop beside church under fire for 'clergy discount' sign - Ananova, 15th January 2003.
A mailing list has been set up for the study group proposed on January 9th. If you are interested in studying the material in the MIT OpenCourseWare module Magic, Witchcraft, and the Spirit World with others online, please sign up here.
Please note that the material to be studied is anthropological and historical in nature. The group is not about learning how to cast spells and going through the suggested readings is a process likely to slaughter any sacred cows you might have regarding the history of witchcraft. You do not have to be Pagan to join, nor is any experience of university level study required. It is recommended that you do read up on the MIT OpenCourseWare project to get some idea of what it is, and isn't.
It's a good day on eBay, with lots of exciting religious tat on offer. You can keep a fundie occupied for several years with this lot of Religious Magic Cube Key Chains: each of the 2 new key chains has religious picture on the 6 sides and works like a rubics cube
. Less challenging are these 12-piece jigsaws featuring Moses and the Ten Commandments and The Parting of the Sea.
A puzzle of a different sort is this piece of WATCHTOWER **10 COMMANDMENTS JEWLERY** - just what is it?
I found this with my mothers jewlery things. I dont understand how it's souposto be worn but the 10 commandments are always nice to have - not real gold - To photograph it I just laid it on the scanner but it does have a shine to it.
Want less mentally-challenging entertainment? You could get these 2 NEW 14" Beach Balls in the original sealed package that says SMILE JESUS LOVES YOU. The same vendor has water bottles, harmonicas and tote bags all bearing the same rainbow and smiley sun with the words Smile! Jesus loves you
.
It's as simple as: Point. Click. SAVE!with Easy E-mail Evangelism:
Now YOU can be a successful evangelist for God right from the comfort of your own home.
Easy E-mail Evangelismis the first of its kind to usher in the NEW evolution in sharing the Gospel - Internet Evangelism. This new wave of outreach is quickly extending around the globe to reach people of all nations.
This product makes is so simple to share your faith without fear. It provides you all the information you need (no matter what the situation) and it provides you a very easy way to share the information. Simply click a button (to copy the information you want) and paste it into any program you desire. Paste it into a Word document, an email or even to your own website - it's as easy as 1-2-3.
Well, I suppose it's one way of getting annoying evangelists off the net.
A local saint in Portugal has a sense of humour. St. Goncalo of Murtosa, in the north of the country, has a reputation for curing haemorrhoids if you show him the affected part. He can also help in cases of teenage acne and his festival is particularly relevant to young lovers:
The mischievous Saint Goncalo has a loyal local following. Every June, during a festival in his honour in the nearby town of Amarante, unmarried men and women exchange penis-shaped cakes as tokens of their affection.
Mischievous saint gets to the bottom of parishioners' woes - The Guardian, 15th January 2003.
The Greek Orthodox church is in a tizzy over the film Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. In Thrace, the Orthodox See quoted fundie sources when it claimed that the film and books would turn children into Satanists:
(The books and films) acquaint people with evil, wizardry, the occult and demonology,the announcement said.It is beyond doubt that Harry was made to resemble a young savior. Upon his birth people try to kill him, he is forever subjected to injustice but always supernaturally manages to prevail and save others. Let us reflect, who else... is held to be the unjustly treated God?
Similarly in Cyprus, Bishop Chrysostomos has complained that the highly successful film made children familiar with evil, sorcery and apocryphism
. There is no tradition of children's magical fantasy in Greek-speaking areas. Church: Harry Potter film a font of evil - Kathimerini, 15th January 2003; Church Cross at Potter - Sky News, 15th January 2003.
A woman displaying the classic symptoms of schizophrenia, and side-effects of drugs used to treat it, plans to protest outside a church HQ over what she sees as the unpardonable neglect of people who are possessed by a demon
.
The symptoms started in 1993.I heard hateful voices, I had an involuntary blurb here or there. I had involuntary motions. For example, if I had been cutting a vegetable, the knife would move. My eyes would move without my permission, she said at an interview in her home Tuesday.
A priest in Connecticut convinced her she was posessed by 19 different demons including Masonic spirits from her mother's father, a spirit of "voodoo" associated with occult dabbling by ancestors and a seaman involved in the African slave trade
, but other priests were more sceptical. She claims she travelled from state to state seeking an exorcism, but had difficulty getting one. Sprague woman plans exorcism protest - Norwich Bulletin, 15th January 2003.
A 32-year old man arrested in Kabompo, Zambia, is believed to be the leader of a gang responsible for the murder of a number of elderly people on suspicion they were practising witchcraft.
[North-Western police chief Innocent] Kalebwe said the suspected serial killer who, had no fixed abode used to be paid by people including young boys to kill suspected witches and wizards in the two provinces.
You know in these areas, there is no normal death. They strongly believe that any death of a young person is caused by witchcraft. So, many people have been killed by hired killers on such suspicions.
We tried to infiltrate the villagers, but we could not capture the suspects because they were liked by the young as they were saved from deaths by the hired killers. Even if they knew where the suspect was, they could not reveal to the police, so it was very difficult.
The suspect is in hospital after receiving a couple of bullet wounds when he tried to flee arresting officers. Karavina Gang Leader Arrested - The Times of Zambia (via allAfrica.com), 15th January 2003.
A mystery smudge has appeared on a photograph taken of the the Cardrona Bra Fence in New Zealand. A number of people have since reported seeing a flying saucer at around the same time the picture was taken. Bras were first attached to the fence by persons unknown a couple of years ago, and women from all over the world have sent bras to be added to it. Many share theories over bra fence 'UFO' - Stuff, 15th January 2003.
A Canadian Hindu priest has been charged with with sexual assault and several other offences. The charges relate to alleged assaults on two 14-year old girls who attended a group based at one of the two Toronto temples where Rudy Madho is priest and include sexual assault, sexual interference and sexual exploitation. He also faces one count of invitation to sexual touching.
Hindu priest
