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Hate crimes officers investigate explosion outside NY mosque

RONKONKOMA, N.Y. (AP) — Hate crimes officers are investigating after an incendiary device exploded outside a mosque on Long Island, damaging a metallic crescent moon that is a symbol of Islam. A device similar to a Molotov cocktail exploded around midnight Sunday at the Masjid Fatima Al-Zahra mosque in Ronkonkoma, Suffolk County Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison told Newsday. No one was injured, and the only reported damage was to the silvery crescent outside the facility. Imam Ahmed Ibrahim said he was inside the mosque after performing prayers when he heard an explosion and ...

Finding Faith: The essentiality of guarding our hearts

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” (Proverbs 4:23 NIV). Keep, watch, guard your heart ... with all diligence, with all vigilance, above all else. No matter the Biblical translation, this is strong language indicating that the warning and instruction to “guard your heart” is essential. And if something is essential, it’s necessary for life. Some of the most secure and heavily guarded facilities and locations on Earth are places like Fort Knox, Area 51, the New York Federal Reserve, and the Vatican Secret Archives. We guard plans, secrets, ...

Local church briefs

Prayer Shawl Ministry to meet July 6 MILL HALL — The Prayer Shawl Ministry will meet on Wednesday, July 6 at noon with a complimentary lunch. Guests will be representatives from the Pregnancy Resource Center. They will share their mission and plans for a facility in Lock Haven. All skill levels are welcome to join. If you would like to learn to knit or crochet, there are people available to teach you. Yarn is being funded by the Clinton County Community Foundation. The ministry meets at the Bald Eagle United Presbyterian Church, 111 Main St., Mill Hall. All denominations ...

India Hindus begin pilgrimage in Kashmir amid heavy security

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Thousands of Hindu devotees began an annual pilgrimage Thursday through mountain passes and meadows to an icy Himalayan cave in Indian-controlled Kashmir amid heavy security in the Muslim-majority region. Officials say pilgrims face heightened threat of attacks from rebels fighting against Indian rule and have for the first time tagged devotees with a wireless tracking system. They also have deployed drones for surveillance. The religious activity has been the target of past attacks by suspected Muslim rebels who accuse India of using it to reinforce its grip ...

Finding Faith: Re-working our words

Each person on this earth walks about with a vague sense of the people that we have influence over. Most people will vastly underestimate the scope and breadth of their true influence. We are content to live, believing that our influence and our words and our actions remain contained within ...

Local Church Briefs

Christmas in July MILL HALL — Bald Eagle United Presbyterian Church, 111 Main St., Mill Hall, will hold a Christmas in July service on July 10 beginning at 10:30 a.m. Everyone is welcome. The church is handicap accessible with plenty of parking in the rear of the church. The church will be celebrating Christmas in July because Mary, the Lord’s mother, at that point in time was three months pregnant. She went to see her Aunt Elizabeth who was expecting also and the mothers-to-be were joyful months before their children’s arrival. Those who would like to join in the ...