Religion

The Christian Post reports: Exactly how was an Orthodox Christian aristocrat transformed into the most infamous bloodsucking vampire of all time? And is anti-Christian historical revisionism to blame? While most of us have heard the name Dracula at some point, it’s usually in the context of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel or the countless movies and TV shows based on that …

Via press release from the Justice Department: A federal grand jury today charged the leader of the Mexico-based La Luz del Mundo megachurch with two felony counts alleging he produced and possessed child sexual abuse material (CSAM) depicting a 16-year-old victim. Naasón Joaquín García, 54, previously served as a minister for the church in Santa Ana and, from December 2014, …

The National Catholic Reporter reports: The pope on Oct. 24 accepted the resignation of a Polish bishop whose diocese has been rocked for weeks by reports of a gay orgy involving a male prostitute in a priest’s apartment. The Vatican didn’t give a reason for why Bishop Grzegorz Kaszak was resigning as head of the diocese of Sosnowiec, in southwestern …

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports: A local Catholic priest called Westlake Police Department to report “a disturbing incident” involving Luis Jesus Barajas, 76, who was visiting the area and performing spiritual ceremonies in Spanish for Hispanic residents in the area. Barajas was driven to a home in Westlake on Oct. 10 to bless a 15-year-old girl who is undergoing chemotherapy. …

The National Catholic Reporter reports: Fr. Armand D. Garcia appeared in a Philadelphia courtroom Oct. 23 to plead guilty to corruption of a minor and unlawful contact with a minor. He will be sentenced in January 2024. The abuse took place while Garcia was a parochial vicar at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Philadelphia from 2014-2017. The priest had …

Springfield’s CW affiliate reports: A former pastor from McLeansboro has been sentenced to prison for grooming charges. On October 19, 28-year-old Garrett S. Biggerstaff was sentenced to a maximum three years in prison with the Illinois Department of Corrections for one count of grooming. Biggerstaff was also fined $10,000 and must make restitution to the victims in his case. The …

The Decatur Daily reports: A former member of Grace River Community Church in Decatur said Tuesday that he left the church after one of its leaders was arrested and charged with electronic solicitation of a child and violating the Sex Offenders Registration and Community Notification Act. “It seems to me that a background check would’ve caught this,” said Josh Harris, …

The Christian Post reports: Liberty University President Dondi E. Costin [photo] says the private Evangelical institution has been threatened with an “unprecedented” $37.5 million fine by the U.S. Department of Education for alleged Clery Act violations following the publication of a leaked report accusing a former president of rape and other school officials of destroying evidence. The Clery Act is …

Colorado Springs’ CBS affiliate reports: A former youth pastor is now staring down prison time after he was found guilty of sexually exploiting a child. As Fountain police reported last year, Jeffrey Williams was arrested in November of last year for allegedly sending sexually explicit material to one of the kids who attended his youth group. He was booked into …

Cincinnati’s NBC affiliate reports: A pastor from Covington has been arrested and accused of sexually abusing a child at a church, according to Covington police. The investigation began when police received a report of sexual abuse from a child. An investigation revealed the abuse allegedly took place at the Ministerio Jesus Liberta Church in Covington late last month. During the …

The Mississippi Sun-Herald reports: A computer software developer and “Media Ministry” member at a Mississippi Coast church faces federal charges for distributing and possessing child pornography, court papers say. Cameron “Cam” Cotrill, 66, of Vancleave, is jailed without bond pending trial in January. Federal authorities allege he had accessed 9,900 sexually explicit images of children engaged in sex acts on …

“First, approximately one-fourth of the bible was prophetic when it was written. The God of heaven wanted you to know something about this subject. “It certainly behooves every believer to study it, to know exactly what God has planned for our future. It was written by the holy spirit, so obviously he knows more than we. “Secondly, we should study …

The Baltimore Banner reports: The Archdiocese of Baltimore has dismissed the Rev. Paschal Morlino, the celebrated “urban monk” of Southwest Baltimore who led St. Benedict Church for decades, following the recent disclosure that he paid $200,000 to quietly settle allegations of fraud and sexual assault. Morlino’s abrupt removal as pastor of St. Benedict’s was announced Saturday to parishioners, and it …

Click2Houston reports: A prominent Houston pastor has been ordered to pay $2.45 million to a woman that a jury found he gave herpes to. After a three-day trial and six and a half hours of deliberation, the jury unanimously found Rev. Ralph D. West II liable. “You can’t fix it, she’s got it for the rest of her life,” said …

Chicago’s ABC affiliate reports: The 6-year-old suburban boy stabbed to death in an apparent hate crime over the weekend will be laid to rest Monday, in Muslim tradition. Joseph Czuba stabbed Wadea Al-Fayoume and his mother in unincorporated Plainfield Saturday morning because they are Muslim, the Will County Sheriff’s Office said on Sunday. Late Sunday, the Chicago FBI Field Office, …

The Johnstown Tribune-Democrat reports: A priest who was placed on leave by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown in 2017 due to a claim of abusing a minor being made against him was arrested on child pornography charges earlier this week. The Rev. Anthony Petracca Jr., 67, from Allegheny Township, Blair County, faces 31 felony counts of possession of child …

The Salt Lake Tribune reports: Three additional men have come forward to say a therapist recommended and paid for by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints touched them inappropriately during counseling sessions related to struggles with their sexuality. The men’s statements follow allegations by three others, previously reported by The Salt Lake Tribune and ProPublica, that clinical mental …

Manchester’s ABC affiliate reports: The former pastor of a Nashua church is on his way to prison after pleading guilty Thursday to the manufacture and possession of child sex abuse images. Stephen Bates, 48, pleaded guilty to one count of the manufacture of child sex abuse images and 10 counts of possession of such images. Bates was pastor at the …

The Beaverton Valley Times reports: A Beaverton pastor was jailed last week after being accused of inappropriately touching two young girls who were members of his congregation. A Washington County grand jury indicted Christopher Michael Pruitt, 39, of Beaverton on six counts of first-degree sexual abuse and two counts of third-degree sexual abuse Wednesday, Oct. 11. Pruitt allegedly touched two …

Memphis’s Fox affiliate reports: Four Mid-South pastors, including three from Memphis, and several business owners were indicted Tuesday in alleged schemes to steal thousands of dollars in COVID-19 relief money, officials said. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Tennessee, they collectively defrauded more than $950,000 from federal programs, including the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), …