A historic church in Syria dedicated to the one and a half million Armenians murdered by the Turks in 1915 has reportedly been reduced to rubble by Islamists.

According to The Independent, the destruction of the Armenian church in the eastern city of Deir el-Zour appears to have been committed by Jabhat al-Nusra rebels.

Irreplaceable archives dating back to 1841 - shortly before the church's 1846 construction - and which included documents on the Armenian genocide have been reduced to ashes.

In a further act of insult, the bones of hundreds of genocide victims have reportedly been removed from the crypt and strewn on the street outside.

Overseer of the Armenian church in the Deir el-Zour district, Monsignor Antranik Ayvazian, told The Independent's Robert Fisk that the militants tried to use the church as leverage, promising not to destroy the priceless archive if he in return acknowledged them as the legislative authority in the area.

He refused and they set about destroying the church.

"I refused," he said. "And after I refused, they destroyed all our papers and endowments. The only genocide victims' bones leftwere further north in the Murgada sanctuary and I buried them before I left. They destroyed the church there, but now if I could go back, I don't even know if I could find where I put the bones."

He only found out about the church's destruction when a secret photo showing the ruined building was smuggled to him.

It is not only the fact that the bones of genocide victims were stored at the church; its place in Armenian history is poignant because the priest at the time, Father Petrus Terzibashian, was killed by Turks in front of the congregation, says Msr Ayvazian.

"Then they threw his body into the Euphrates," he said. "This time when the Islamists came, our priest there fled for his life."

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Historic Armenian church destroyed by Islamists in Syria

By JENNIFER NOBLIT Wednesday November 12, 2014 10:41 AM

Eric Killian's Eagle Scout project could be a pathway to literacy for some.

The Dublin Coffman High School freshman built and installed eight shelving units at First English Lutheran Church near downtown Columbus.

"I made eight large, wooden book shelves," Killian said.

The member of Boy Scout Troop 299, based out of Indian Run Methodist Church, said he got the idea from his pastor.

"I contacted my church and my pastor didn't have anything he needed done so he directed me to a church we help with food drives," Killian said.

Although he doesn't have a lot of experience building things, Killian decided to construct book shelves the church needed for a library.

"I was able to recruit a lot of people from my troop and people from my family (to help)," Killian said.

Construction, installation and painting were done in three work days over the summer, Killian said, but did not come without a few obstacles.

"One of the challenges was painting taking a lot longer than I thought, but we got some rollers and that sped it up," he said.

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Church gets shelves, books as part of Eagle project

LADY LAKE Lady Lake Church of God was decimated by tornadoes that struck the area in February 2007, but the congregation regrouped and two years later dedicated a new modern $2.1 million sanctuary off U.S. Highway 27-441.

Now, the church, which became a symbol of perseverance in the wake of the killer storm that took 21 lives in the Lady Lake and Lake Mack areas of the county, is moving ahead with plans to build a 5,000-square-foot multipurpose building as part of a major site plan the Town Council approved several months after the tragedy.

The multipurpose building, one of several planned on the nearly eight-acre site, will be located adjacent to the church on Oak Hill Road and will serve church members as well as area residents, the Rev. Larry Lynn said.

The building's final price has yet to be determined because details are still being nailed down, but a church member has offered to pay for half the construction costs, he said.

"It'll be used for all kinds of activities, from senior adults to preschoolers," said Lynn, who has led the church for 17 years. "We're planning on hosting some community events as well."

The 100- by 50-foot building will feature a half-court gym, a caf area and will have video games and game tables, too.

"As soon as we get a permit to build, we'll begin construction," Lynn said.

The church received an outpouring of support in the aftermath of the destruction. Then-Gov. Charlie Crist, who last week lost his bid to become governor again, attended an outdoor Sunday service days after the catastrophe. He returned six months later to the church site, where he signed a tax relief bill for homeowners who sustained damage during twisters.

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Lady Lake church that rebuilt after tornado planning large multipurpose building

Construction is under way Friday at the future home of the Tuscaloosa location of the Church of the Highlands on Rice Mine Road.

Work is under way off Rice Mine Road preparing the site for the new Tuscaloosa campus of Church of the Highlands.

The Rev. Jimmy Bowers, pastor for the Tuscaloosa campus, said site preparation is expected to continue through late December with construction of the building to follow around Christmas.

About 26 of the sites 33 acres will be developed to accommodate the 1,200-seat sanctuary, church offices, childrens spaces and a cafe.

Outside, 964 parking spaces are planned.

And well be landscaping it beautifully to match the area, Bowers said, and were leaving some trees along the river.

In total, the project is expected to reach $21 million and be complete by spring 2016.

The nondenominational Church of the Highlands was founded in February 2001 by the Rev. Chris Hodges as a way for people (to) connect with God in a church without letting structures and programs get in the way, according to its website. Its first service had about 350 congregants in the Fine Arts Center of Mountain Brook High School.

Now, the megachurch has a membership of about 26,000 at 10 church campuses across Alabama, said the Rev. Scott Montgomery, an associate pastor for the Church of the Highlands who oversees the churchs capital projects.

This places the Church of the Highlands in the top 10 of the 2013 Fastest-Growing and Largest Outreach 100 Churches as determined by Outreach magazine, a Christian-based publication.

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Rice Mine Road site being prepared for Church of the Highlands

Church has been part of community since the 1800s

By Katie Mills Giorgio, correspondent

November 10, 2014 | 12:01 am

ATKINS St. Stephens Lutheran Church in Atkins has been a part of the community since 1866.

While the first services were held in homes on farm land surrounding the town, a permanent church was built in 1872. The building where the congregation celebrates today was constructed in 1941, with additions added to the building in 1973 and 2004.

And by the end of this month, the church will grow again.

Some six months ago, church members began construction on an addition that includes a fellowship hall and kitchen, a multipurpose room that will be used by the Churchs quilting group and the choir, and a new entrance with a covered drop off space off the new parking lot.

Pastor Doug Woltemath, who has been with St. Stephens for 14 years, said the project got underway after a survey of church members.

Everyone was very united behind the project, he said. I am amazed at how well the congregation has gotten behind it. And I think everyone is getting something they wanted out of the addition.

Woltemath said he looks forward to using the space for coffee and doughnuts after Sunday services.

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Off the Map: St. Stephens Church growing in Atkins

Our Lady of the Assumption Church, west of Broadview, sits tiny against the broad swath of farmland and endless blue sky, as it did when it opened 101 years ago.

It looks better now than it did back then. A photo taken the day the first Mass was held in 1913 shows wooden posts propped up the unfinished steeple.

Scaffolding covered the front of the building, and the wood exterior was bare of paint. Now the clapboard structure is covered in gleaming white paint, and the interior is restored, thanks to the hard work of volunteers.

One of them is Pat Frey, whose family lived in a house next door to Our Lady of the Assumption. The church has been part of her family history even longer.

I grew up across the pigpen from the church, Frey said, sitting in the dining room of her Broadview home. My dads aunt and uncle donated the land where the church sits, and there were lots of families involved at that time.

Barney and Georgiana Gotken donated the three acres from their homestead, which sits about nine miles west of Broadview. The parish probably began in 1907 or 1908, Frey said, before the church was built.

There were farmers in that area that wanted this church started and they all got together, Frey said.

Her father, Alvan Stiles, helped with the upkeep of the church, and the cemetery down the hill from the church.

The cemetery land was donated by the Newton family, she said.

These days, gravestones are scattered in the sparse field, some decorated with plastic flowers.

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Little church on the prairie: Remote Broadview parish still going

Chengalam St Antony #39;s Parish Church Construction ( 31-10-2014)
Chengalam St Antony #39;s Parish Church Construction ( 31-10-2014)

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Chengalam St Antony's Parish Church Construction ( 31-10-2014) - Video

MANILA, PhilippinesThe Catholic Church is involved in rehabilitation efforts for the survivors of Supertyphoon Yolanda.

Fr. Edu Gariguez, executive secretary of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines National Secretariat for Social Action, Justice and Peace (CBCP-Nassa), on Friday said that the Church has provided P563 million for relief, rehabilitation and recovery efforts that have benefited more than 2 million survivors of Yolanda.

Gariguez said that the amount, mostly donations from 41 various Caritas Internationalis member organizations on six continents, makes up the total budget of the Churchs humanitarian arm for Yolanda recovery.

He said the funds were being used for the implementation of the Churchs integrated human development program REACH Philippines (Recovery Assistance to Vulnerable Communities Affected by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines), particularly in severely damaged communities.

Among these areas are the 35 parishes comprising the Archdioceses of Iloilo, Capiz, Cebu and Palo; the Dioceses of Kalibo, Antique, Borongan and Calbayog; and the Apostolic Vicariate of Puerto Princesa.

Gariguez said the CBCP-Nassa, along with its partner dioceses, was overseeing the construction of permanent houses or disaster-resilient shelters for storm survivors. Around 1,600 of these have been completed and are ready for occupation, he said.

UNDP exec returns

Haoliang Xu, assistant administrator and regional director for Asia and the Pacific of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), is returning to Eastern Visayas today for Yolanda one-year anniversary commemorations.

Xu will visit Tacloban and Palo, Leyte province, today to witness ongoing recovery initiatives, the UNDP said in a statement.

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Catholic Church rolls out aid

MESA, AZ - On June 19, Pastor David Land stood helplessly in the parking lot of his Mesa church, the New Life Assembly of God, as it went up in flames a few hundred feet away.

When we spoke to him afterward he told us, "It's still hard to remember that day and the pain that it caused.

Since June, a lot has changed for the church. The pastor gave me a tour of the construction and said because of this the church has moved its services to another church down the street. There's only one service a week instead of three, which is hurting their bottom line.

"The month of October was an extremely low month for us, on average, about four or five thousand dollars for that month," Land said.

And then there are the repairs. Land says the fire damage came out to close to half a million dollar in damages. Insurance can't cover it all,leaving them $130,000 short.

The pastor says the kitchen isn't used for commercial purposes, so he hopes the city will at least reconsider this code requirement to bring down the costs.

"If we have a potluck, people use the ovens to heat things up, that kind of thing," said Land.

The church has until December to pay for the repairs. To contact the pastor, send him an email at pastorland@mesanewlifeaog.org .

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Mesa church needs financial help for repairs

Saint Ritas Father David and Bishop John from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Nelson offer a blessing as they break ground on the new building.

image credit: Betsy Kline

Betsy kline

Castlegar News

More than a year and a half since their building was destroyed by fire, Saint Ritas Catholic Church has begun construction on a new building.

Settling with the insurance company, getting approval from the diocese and making sure the proper permits were in place has taken much time. The architect of the project is Fairbank Architects from Nelson and Hil-Tech Contracting from Trail will be doing the construction.

The long process has involved much consultation and planning and has been open to the entire parish. Father David John explained, One of my objectives with the design process was that we would not just design a church, but that it would be a church for the people of Castlegar. The congregation was given the opportunity to vote on the final design.

Father David is hoping that they can have their first service on the Feast of Pentecost at the end of May.

He explained the symbolism it would represent, It is the feast of the coming of the Holy Spirit. It is saying we have our new church and we are hoping that it is not just a building, but it will be a place where God resides and where people can come and meet God in some way.

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Church construction begins