On the March day that Italy recorded its single biggest jump in coronavirus fatalities, Pope Francis emerged from lockdown to offer an extraordinary prayer and plea to his flock to reassess their priorities, arguing the virus had proved they needed one another. Francis’ words from the ...

My heart sank as we were told that the church must be locked up and closed to the world in the beginning of the pandemic. I won’t lie; I instantly thought the Devil had won, and we had snuffed out the Light of the World to all who need Him. Our churches had become silent memorials to what ...

Since I was a child going off to school, my parents sent me on my way with the instruction, “Do your best!” You probably heard something similar. It was good advice. They probably had school work most in mind, wanting me to focus my attention on what was being taught. They also ...

It was on Paul’s second missionary journey that he visited the city of Philippi, a city about ten miles inland from the shores of the Aegean Sea. Paul had to travel nine hundred miles in order to get to Philippi. What a commitment he made so that he could share the Good News to people who ...

“The Board of Directors of the United Churches of Lycoming County has selected the Rev. Mark Donald Brumbach to replace the retiring J. Morris Smith, Th. D., as Shepherd of the Streets. His ministry as the Shepherd will begin Tuesday,” the Rev. Gwen N. Bernstine, executive director of ...

The Fellowship of Christian Athletes officially began in 1954, when it was founded by Don McLanen, although the idea for the group was conceived years before. According to Bill Morrow, the FCA area representative of the Upper Susquehanna Valley, McClanen, who passed away in 2016, first ...

In 2020, we learned that everyone has an opinion. It started with Covid-19, then, when to re-open schools, and now the Presidential election. In contrast, Esther is a refreshing, godly example of communication that pleases God. May we all take these lessons to heart, and ask God to guard our ...

I went to church faithfully as a boy — because my mother dragged me there. I didn’t find it particularly appealing, but it was a family thing. There were people I saw only once a week. There were clothes I wore only once a week. We moved several times, and we changed churches several times ...

Churches in California and Minnesota, backed by a conservative legal group, filed lawsuits this week against the governors of their states challenging restrictions imposed due to the coronavirus outbreak that they contend are violations of religious liberty. They’re the latest in a long ...

Sunrise of life began on October 13, 1959, for my cousin Michael Thompson, and sunset was on April 17, 2020. He died from COVID-19. Later, I was standing in line at a seafood store, and the attendant finally waited on me. I was upset because she took so long. She said, “May I help you, ...

Daniel’s Closet, a ministry of Redeemer Lutheran Church, which is located at the corner of Washington Boulevard and Sherman Street, will be opening from 8:30 to 11 a.m. Aug. 22. The facility has been closed since the shutdown in March. According to Barb Horn, one of the organizers, masks ...

Andre and Tailynn Davis sat on the edge of their living-room couch, a box of tissues at arms’ reach. Their bodies were weary, their faces drawn with grief as they joined a Facebook Live broadcast of the Sunday service at the Church of Christian Compassion. “You are going to have to learn ...

Many people are saying that the world is rather frightening. There are too many areas of division in our world. From controversies around masks to the societal issues of discrimination, our divisions have ranged from conversations to riots. The two emotions seem to be fear and anger. ...

You would have to have your head in the sand not to know the context in which this statement has been spoken these days. And you would have to be similarly out of the loop to be unaware that - as a rebuttal to a similar saying - it has been a point of contention. From a Christian point of ...

UBAI, United Arab Emirates — Masked pilgrims arrived Thursday at Mount Arafat, a desert hill near Islam’s holiest site, to pray and repent on the most important day of the hajj, the annual pilgrimage in Mecca in Saudi Arabia. The global coronavirus pandemic has cast a shadow over every ...

Today my mission is to ask, is this me. Wow, what happened? It can be so many choices, good or bad. It is up to you. James 1:23-25 might help you come to a decision. “For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in the mirror, for he ...

International students at Lycoming College who are still unable to return home have not been forgotten by the community as they were invited to a barbecue at St. Boniface Catholic Church on Sunday. “It makes me feel like I matter,” said Aseel Tork, a student from Palestine. Although ...

Times like these in human history, when fear pervades and even the coolest and calmest of heads around us seem to not be so cool or calm anymore, we sense our vulnerability. This is not just from this invisible virus but the fallout from it: financial, personal, religious, health; the list ...

VATICAN CITY (AP) — The Vatican said on Monday that in very exceptional circumstances and with special permission, lay Catholics can be allowed to perform marriage rites. In a document issued by the Holy See office for clergy, the Vatican said that could only happen if there are no priests ...