BICYCLIST KILLED-BISHOP
Maryland diocese: bishop at wheel in fatal hit-and-run
BALTIMORE (AP) β Court documents show that an Episcopal bishop who was the driver in a hit-and-run crash that killed a bicyclist in Baltimore had been charged four years ago with drunken driving and marijuana possession.
Bishop Suffragan Heather Cook, who is the No. 2 leader for the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland, was driving a car that hit 41-year-old Tom Palermo on Saturday afternoon, according to diocese spokeswoman Sharon Tillman.
Tillman said Cook had disclosed the DUI and marijuana charges from 2010 when she was vetted and ultimately elected as the diocese’s first female bishop.
In an email Sunday, Bishop Eugene Sutton told priests in the diocese that Cook left the scene of Saturday’s accident, but returned about 20 minutes later “to take responsibility for her actions.” Sutton said Cook is now on administrative leave “because the nature of the accident could result in criminal charges.”
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192-v-34-(Carlotta Bradley, AP correspondent)–Court documents show that an Episcopal bishop who was the driver in a hit-and-run crash that killed a bicyclist in Baltimore had been charged four years ago with drunken driving and marijuana possession. AP correspondent Carlotta Bradley reports. (29 Dec 2014)
< MEGACHURCH MELTDOWN-LAST SERMON Seattle megachurch dissolving as 2014 ends SEATTLE (AP) β As 2014 comes to an end, so will Mars Hill Church, whose founding pastor Mark Driscoll resigned two months ago amid controversy over his leadership. The final sermon to the Seattle-based church and its branches in four states was preached Sunday by the Rev. Rick Warren, pastor of California’s Saddleback Church. In recorded remarks, Warren urged Mars Hill members to trust God as their congregations disband or reorganize as independent churches. He also urged them not to be bitter about the conflicts that led to Driscoll’s resignation. The church said it found Driscoll had a domineering style with a quick temper and harsh speech, but noted that he was never charged with immorality or heresy. Attendance at Mars Hill branches had fallen sharply from 12,000 a year ago, but Warren compared Mars Hill Church to a mighty tree that dies and gives birth to new life. Sound: 187-a-13-(The Reverend Rick Warren, pastor of California’s Saddleback Church, in recorded Sunday sermon to Mars Hill churches)-“in the future”-Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren says God has a future for members of Mars Hill churches. (29 Dec 2014) < 189-a-06-(The Reverend Rick Warren, pastor of California’s Saddleback Church, in recorded Sunday sermon to Mars Hill churches)-“out of it”-Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren says Mars Hill was like a mighty tree. (29 Dec 2014) < 190-a-06-(The Reverend Rick Warren, pastor of California’s Saddleback Church, in recorded Sunday sermon to Mars Hill churches)-“gossip, don’t judge”-Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren says Mars Hill members shouldn’t dwell on the events of the past year. (29 Dec 2014) < 188-a-15-(The Reverend Rick Warren, pastor of California’s Saddleback Church, in recorded Sunday sermon to Mars Hill churches)-“challenges and creativity”-Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren says this has been a difficult year for Mars Hill members. (29 Dec 2014) < 191-a-08-(The Reverend Rick Warren, pastor of California’s Saddleback Church, in recorded Sunday sermon to Mars Hill churches)-“used Mark Driscoll”-Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren says Mars Hill members shouldn’t be bitter as their congregations move ahead independently. (29 Dec 2014) < GAY PRIDE-FIREFIGHTERS Court throws out firefighters’ gay pride lawsuits PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) β The Rhode Island Supreme Court has thrown out lawsuits by two Providence firefighters who said their constitutional rights were violated when they were ordered to drive a truck in a gay pride parade. The firefighters, Theodore Fabrizio and Stephen Deninno, argued that they are Roman Catholics and therefore do not support or condone homosexuality. Writing for the high court this month, Justice William Robinson said that the men appeared in the 2001 parade as public servants, and that did not constitute a form of expression. He said it was a legitimate work assignment. The city had argued that the city sent trucks to various parades as a matter of course, including the Columbus Day parade, Purim parade and others. NEW YEAR’S CELEBRATIONS-GUNS Clergy, officials urge gunfire-free New Year’s Eve DETROIT (AP) β Ministers, police and politicians are urging Detroit residents to forgo the dangerous local custom of firing guns into the air on New Year’s Eve. The Rev. Nicholas Hood III hosted Monday’s announcement of the 17th annual campaign called “Ring in the New Year with a Bell, Not a Bang.” Detroit police Chief James Craig, Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon, Deputy Mayor Ike McKinnon and four ministers joined Hood at Plymouth Church of Christ. Hood started the bell-ringing effort after Sandra Latham was killed in 1997 by a stray bullet while sitting in her dining room. Latham’s relatives attended Monday’s program. Napoleon says he’s donating 200 gun safety locks, and organizers say they’re launching a campaign to make the Mother’s Day weekend a gun-violence free holiday. CHURCH THEFT Kansas church reports major theft after Christmas BUCYRUS, Kan. (AP) β A small Catholic parish in eastern Kansas is suffering a blow to its Christmas spirit. The pastor of the Queen of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Bucyrus (Bue-SY’-ruhs) told his congregation Sunday that someone had cleaned out the church’s safe sometime after Christmas. KSHB-TV reports that the Rev. Larry Albertson told his congregation to cancel any checks they wrote to the church. He said someone who knew where things were located in the church opened the safe and walked off with contributions made during five Christmas Masses. The thief then returned the key to the safe. Albertson estimates the loss is close to $15,000. STOLEN JESUS FIGURINE Camera image may help track down thief of Jesus figurine DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) β Someone has stolen a baby Jesus figurine from a church in Dubuque, Iowa, but members of the congregation hope images from a security camera will help police track down the thief. The Rev. Joseph Hauer told the Telegraph Herald that the figurine was stolen Friday night from a manger scene outside the Church of the Resurrection. Members of the congregation noticed it missing before Mass on Saturday afternoon. It was the second-straight year someone has stolen a baby Jesus figurine from the church. Last year, a king figurine also was stolen, but it was found near a hospital. After those thefts, the church installed security cameras that provided an image of someone believed to have stolen the figurine. It also shows the person’s vehicle. Hauer says the figurine cost about $250. ANTI-SMOKING CAMPAIGN Churches, university join in anti-smoking campaign PINE BLUFF, Ark. (AP) β Churches in Pine Bluff and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff are joining in an anti-smoking effort that leaders of the campaign say is aimed primarily at black churchgoers. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that about 47,000 black Americans die each year due to smoking-related illnesses. Pastor Curtis Cook at Joy Community Church told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that the churches are banning smoking on their properties. He calls smoking a scourge and says he considers tobacco as dangerous as marijuana or cocaine. Pine Bluff congregations affiliated with the predominantly black Church of God in Christ and Missionary Baptist Church also are involved in the effort. EGYPT-JEWISH FESTIVAL Egypt court bans festival honoring Moroccan rabbi CAIRO (AP) β An Egyptian court has banned an annual festival in honor of a Moroccan rabbi that was regularly attended by hundreds of Jewish pilgrims, mainly from Israel and Morocco. After the 1979 peace treaty with Israel, Egypt began allowing organized trips to the tomb of Yaakov Abu Hatzira in the Nile Delta north of Cairo. The Culture Ministry declared the site an Egyptian monument. Abu Hatzira was a son of the chief Rabbi of Morocco. He fell ill during a visit to the sacred sites in Jerusalem and died in Egypt in 1879. The Administrative Court of Alexandria on Monday banned the visits and stripped the ministry’s designation. It acted on a complaint filed by local residents who objected to the mingling of men and women and the consumption of alcohol at the festival.
