Religion

The Christian Post reports: Evangelist and author John Ramirez was once entrenched in the occult and satanism. He’s now warning Christians not to get entangled in practices that might seem innocent or alluring, especially during Halloween, but only serve to open the door to dark forces. Ramirez, who says he was demon-possessed for 20 years, takes the work of exposing …

Tulsa’s ABC affiliate reports: A former Wewoka middle school principal was arrested on Thursday, accused of fondling a child. Cody Barlow was taken into custody at his home in Wewoka and booked into the Seminole County Jail. In addition to being a principal, Barlow is a youth pastor at a local church. The male child reported to authorities that Barlow …

Jessica Wolstenholm writes for the Christian Post: Have the best candy so that your house will be the house people come to and linger near. Be warm. Introduce yourself to visitors even if that’s not the typical way neighbors engage in your area.  Have a warm beverage or pumpkin bread for adults so you can engage your neighbors in conversation. …

The BBC reports: Pope Francis has warned priests and nuns about the dangers of watching pornography online, saying it “weakens the priestly heart”. Pornography, he said, was “a vice that so many people have… even priests and nuns”. “The devil enters from there,” the Pope told priests and seminarians. “The pure heart, the one that Jesus receives every day, cannot …

Joplin’s NBC affiliate reports: A former area youth pastor and college instructor is accused of soliciting a 15-year-old girl for sex and paying her $500, according to Arkansas court documents. Daniel Williams Smathers, 44, of 3602 Cherry Lane, Joplin was charged in Benton County, Arkansas Circuit Court with traveling for the purpose of an unlawful sex act with a minor …

The Pensacola News-Journal reports: The family of a teenage girl who was sexually assaulted by a youth director at Gulf Breeze Methodist Church is suing the church, its leadership and the youth pastor. Zarzaur Law, P.A. announced the lawsuit Monday against not only the church but the Alabama-West Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church, Pastor Dan Morris, Executive Pastor …

The Lexington County Chronicle reports: A former West Columbia youth pastor is accused of sexually abusing a teenage boy for more than two years. The Lexington County Sheriff’s Department announced Oct. 21 the arrest of Michael Paul Keech, 41, “charged with three second-degree counts and one third-degree count of criminal sexual conduct with a minor under 16.” John Yorio, pastor …

Charleston’s NBC affiliate reports: The Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office (GCSO) on Friday announced the arrest of an Andrews-area pastor for past criminal sexual conduct with minors. According to GCSO, Thomas Brackett (59) is the pastor of Holy Trinity Pentecostal Church in Andrews. He was taken into custody on 11 warrants that included charges of criminal sexual conduct with two different …

Birmingham’s CBS affiliate reports: A pastor of a Jefferson County church has been arrested and charged with a child sex offense, Blount County Sheriff Mark Moon confirmed. Kenneth Daniel, 64, was booked into the Blount County Jail on the felony charge Wednesday night. A seven-year-old victim told her grandfather that Daniel, who is a pastor at First Baptist Church of …

Columbus’s ABC affiliate reports: A Columbus pastor on trial for several charges committed suicide during a recess. According to the Muscogee County coroner, 51-year-old Christopher Daron Smith was pronounced dead at 1:13 p.m. on Oct. 19 from a self-inflicted gunshot to the head. Smith’s defense attorney, Shevon Thomas, II, says the judge gave a five-minute recess during the trial before …

Houston’s ABC affiliate reports: A one-time Teacher of the Year at Cleveland Middle School and youth pastor is accused of sexually assaulting a student. Alexander Oveal was booked into the Liberty County Jail on Oct. 10, within 36 hours of getting the allegations, and given a $100,000 bond. Shortly after his arrest, the Cleveland Independent School District immediately told parents …

The Christian Post reports: At their fall meeting last week, the trustees at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, unanimously approved a resolution encouraging the seminary’s administration to continue theologically training both men and women, “but with men alone reserved for the office and function, and thereby title of pastor.” “It is further resolved that this Board encourages …

Las Vegas’s NBC affiliate reports: A former photography teacher convicted of forcing a student to pose nude for photos will spend the next five years in prison. The sentence was handed down by Judge Jacqueline Stam. Jeffrey Whiston, 44, was arrested in mid-April after the girl told friends about what happened. The student told investigators she agreed to meet the …

The Joplin Globe reports: The former pastor of a fringe church in McDonald County at the center of a sexual abuse scandal 16 years ago is facing a new charge that he raped an underage girl. Raymond L. Lambert II, 67, of rural Washburn, was arrested and charged last week with first-degree rape of a 10-year-old girl in the summer …

Green Bay’s Fox affiliate reports: A former pastor was sentenced Monday to 16 years in prison for possession of child pornography charges. Rick Haberland, 49, was convicted of four counts of possession of child pornography. He was also placed on extended supervision for 16 years. He was also placed on the sex offender registry. The sentence was extended by another …

From the Justice Department: A retired St. Louis priest pleaded guilty to federal charges Wednesday and admitted possessing thousands of images containing child pornography. James T. Beighlie, 72, pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of child pornography in front of U.S. District Judge Matthew T. Schelp. In his plea agreement, Beighlie admitted that on May 17, 2021, while he …

Click On Detroit reports: A 60-year-old priest has been convicted of child sex crimes in Wayne County. Joseph “Jack” Baker, 60, of Wayne, was convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct sexual penetration with a person under 13. Baker had been a pastor at St. Perpetua Parish in Waterford, Michigan since 2008. Before that, he was a pastor at St. Mary …

Michigan Live reports: A young woman has been relieved of her jury duty following concerns she might have been flirting with a man accused of aiding a plot to kidnap Michigan’s governor. As proceedings continued Friday morning in the jury trial of Joseph Morrison, Pete Musico and Paul Bellar, Judge Thomas Wilson announced that a young woman has been removed …

The Christian Post reports: Southern Baptist Convention President Bart Barber has condemned the idea that the church should be running government and warned advocates of Christian nationalism that pursuing such an agenda will result in the persecution of Christians. “It stands contrary to 400 years of Baptist history and everything I believe about religious liberty. I’m opposed to the idea …

Religion News Service reports: Three Jewish women in Kentucky have filed a lawsuit arguing that their religious rights are being violated by a set of state laws that ban most abortions. The lawsuit, filed in Jefferson Circuit Court in Louisville, is the third such suit brought by Jewish organizations or individuals since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. …