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Historic city churches find new life as neighborhood centers

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The pews were rocking at Holy Trinity on a recent Sunday as worshipers from the Minnesota Swahili Christian Congregation sang and danced beneath the lofty, dark-wood-trimmed ceilings and lively stained-glass windows. Established in the 1920s, the magnificent house of worship once hosted one of the largest Lutheran congregations in the country but has dwindled to just 200 regular Sunday worshippers today. To remain vibrant, the founding congregation has increasingly opened its historic doors to serve a variety of community needs, from the Swahili-language services ...

Dear souls, what would Jesus do?

As I’ve watched the news over recent months and even years, I can’t help but notice all the division among the people of America today. So many issues have recently gotten our attention and caused us to react or respond in one way or another. At times, I feel very certain, myself included, that we have reacted out of heated emotions. Now, maybe we have regret, but should we? While each one has the liberty, yet, of thinking our own thoughts, and believing however we do, shouldn’t we also have the same liberty to express those thoughts? I believe so. There seems to be a stigma ...

Pope on taxes: A sign of equality, justice and legality

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis encouraged tax collectors on Monday to keep working to redistribute wealth and fund social services that help the poor, saying their efforts are a “guarantee of equality” that helps the common good. Francis met with members of Italy’s tax collection agency and recalled that the taxes they gather pay for Italy’s public health care system. Francis urged them to defend that, “because we shouldn’t fall into a health care system that you pay for, where the poor don’t have a right to anything.” “One of the beautiful things that Italy has is ...

Are we prepared to meet our judge

Then Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned safely to his house in Jerusalem. II Chronicles 19:1 We have been looking at the account of Jehoshaphat and Ahab joining together in a military move against Ramoth Gilead. The godly King Jehoshaphat worked with the wicked King Ahab and his desire to recover an area that was once a city of refuge, Deuteronomy 4:43. The fact that it was once an area belonging to the Jewish nation, may have played a part in why Jehoshaphat was willing to join in the battle. At the end of II Chronicles 18 and the beginning of 19 we find a contrast between the ...

The secrets of wise men

Think of the great disappointment they must have experienced. The wise men had traveled many miles by camel to discover that the star they’d followed had come to rest over a stable. They had followed a star and found a stable. Surely, they were expecting something more, perhaps a palace or a stately mansion. Think how they must have felt as they looked down from some nearby Judean hill and came to the realization the king they were seeking was to be found in a stable. Following stars and finding stables is a common occurrence in life. Who among us has not at some time in our life ...

Religion briefs

Editor’s note: To submit a nonprofit announcement to The Sentinel’s Religion section, contact Erin Thompson at (717) 248-6741 or by email at ethompson@lewistownsentinel.com. Items also may be faxed to (717) 248-3481 or sent to The Sentinel, 352 Sixth Street, Lewistown, PA 17044. Items should arrive to The Sentinel by Wednesday afternoon for publication in the Saturday edition. Submissions will be published as space allows. The editor reserves the right to edit all submissions. ¯¯¯ Ministry to support single moms BELLEVILLE — The Mifflin County Single Moms Care and Support ...