Christians erect cross in town once held by ISIS; St. Benedict's Basilica destroyed by earthquake in Italy...more links

Amazing Video of Christians Erecting a Cross in Town Once Held by ISIS To me, this is like a Christian version of that famous Iwo Jima photograph. It is moving and beautiful.

The video originally aired on France 24 and re-shown on Catholic World Report shows a group of Christian fighters in a town just outside Mosul returning home after having been violently driven from the town two years before...

Earthquake destroys Basilica of St. Benedict in Norcia, Italy
A massive earthquake hit Norcia this morning, destroying the Basilica of St. Benedict, site of the birthplace of the father of Western monasticism and one of the most influential figures in European civilization and culture.

The 6.6 quake hit central Italy at approximately 7:40 am, with the epicenter near the town of Pie del Colle, located 6 miles from the walled Umbrian town of Norcia. The quake was felt strongly in Rome and at the Vatican, where buildings swayed for close to a minute. It was also felt as far north as Bolzano, near the border with Austria.

The local co-cathedral, located just a block from the Basilica, was also destroyed...

Euthanasia tyranny expands in Canada
People who think differently are not even to be allowed into medical school...

Parents slam 'damaging' BBC sex change show aimed at six-year-olds  The BBC has been accused of acting recklessly after targeting children as young as six with a programme about a schoolboy who takes sex-change drugs.

Parents are angry that the show, available on the CBBC website, features a transgender storyline inappropriate for their children.

And concerned campaigners said it could ‘sow the seeds of confusion’ in young minds. The programme, Just A Girl, depicts an 11-year-old’s struggle to get hormones that stunt puberty, making it easier to have sex-change surgery in the future...

Embracing modernity is no answer to falling church attendance  Embrace gay marriage’ - or ‘at the very least blessing services for same-sex couples’ -  is one possible marketing strategy for the Church of England following the release of its profoundly sobering attendance figures for 2015.

The CoE admits that usual Sunday attendance across its churches is down on a decade ago by about 120,000 people to 752,000.

Whoever else may pop into a church for a mid-week activity or group, the usual Sunday congregation is the core that sustains a local church - prayerfully, financially and with their active volunteering.
The situation on the ground is serious. So why not hop onto the politically correct bandwagon to get in some more punters?...