Catholic diocese approved to buy "Hour of Power" church (Reuters)

SANTA ANA, Calif (Reuters) ? A plan to sell Crystal Cathedral, a California mega-church known for its "Hour of Power" broadcasts, to a Roman Catholic diocese for $57.5 million was approved on Thursday by a U.S. bankruptcy judge.

Losing out in a bankruptcy bidding war for the towering 31-year-old church, famed for its 10,000 panes of glass, was a Protestant-affiliated university that offered more money but whose proposal was deemed less favorable for other reasons.

U.S. District Judge Robert Kwan ultimately ruled that the diocese had the best plan for paying off the ministry's entire projected debt, including an annual annuity of roughly $300,000 for its founder, retired televangelist Robert Schuller.

Announcement of the decision capped 14 hours of hearings spanning two days.

Located in the Orange County city of Garden Grove, about 30 miles southeast of Los Angeles, the ministry filed for Chapter 11 protection in October after falling $50 million in debt.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange envisions eventually using the cathedral as a new place of worship for its 1.2 million congregants, but would give the existing Protestant congregation three years to move, court papers said.

Schuller's daughter, Carol Milner, told Reuters the diocese provided the best bid because it would allow for religious services to continue at the site indefinitely, even if it meant the current congregation would have to relocate.

"I don't think it's quite hit me," Milner said in tears, after the ruling. "I'm relieved to know that for decades and centuries the sanctuary will be a sacred place, a place where I can pray and sit down on a bench."

Chapman University, whose proposal initially was considered the preferred bid, had offered to lease back the property to the Crystal Cathedral ministry for 20 years. But Milner said she learned that the school planned in the long run to convert the landmark building into a theater.

Moreover, Milner said, Crystal Cathedral ministry bylaws required any potential buyer of the site to be a religious institution, a stumbling block for Chapman despite its affiliation with the Disciples of Christ denomination.

The bankruptcy marked a sharp blow to a congregation that got its start in 1955 when Schuller and his wife, Arvella, began holding services in a rented drive-in theater.

Schuller went on to become an internationally known televangelist through his "Hour of Power" broadcasts before retiring as senior pastor in 2006.

Testimony during the bankruptcy court proceeding revealed that 70 percent of the church's revenue comes from those "Hour of Power" broadcasts, which continue.

The judge said he expects the sale to be finalized by the end of the year.

Bishop Tod Brown of the Diocese of Orange attended Thursday's court hearing and called the outcome "bittersweet."

"I have the deepest regret and sympathy for the Crystal Cathedral that they had to take this legal action," he said.

Crystal Cathedral's senior pastor, Sheila Schuller Coleman, who now heads the congregation, said that even though her church's board decided to accept the diocese's offer, she still holds out hope for a "miracle" to keep the cathedral.

"If it's God's will for us to move, we believe it will be where He needs us most," she said in a statement. "It does not mean that our ministry will be diminished."

(Writing by Alex Dobuzinskis: Editing by Steve Gorman and Cynthia Johnston)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111118/us_nm/us_crystal_cathedral

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Video: More alleged Sandusky victims come forward

>> program is being hit with allegations of abuse by one of its long-time coaches. this while more victims are coming forward claiming they suffered sexual abuse at the hands of a former penn state assistant coach named jerry sandusky . nbc 's peter alexander is in state college with the latest on this story. peter, good morning.

>> reporter: ann, good morning to you. police in syracuse, new york are investigating whether the men's assistant basketball coach there molested a boy, beginning in the mid 1980s , for more than 12 years. we'll have more details on that in just a moment. but here at penn state university , the man initially named acting president has now officially taken over that title. his name is rodney erickson. and today we're learning new details about the case here, and about a federal investigation, as well. several lawyers tell nbc news that more young men are coming forward to say they're victims of jerry sandusky . many of them empowered the lawyers, say, to begin sharing their stories of abuse in the face of sandusky 's denials. with bob costas on monday night.

>> i say that i am innocent of those charges.

>> there's comfort in numbers. and i think that they now understand that we're not alone.

>> reporter: ben and riazi represents at least two alleged victims, one of them not included among the eight listed in the grand jury report. and riazi says that man was told by authorities he is victim number 11 . and he's claiming there was yet another sexual assault on campus.

>> my client was sexually assaulted by mr. sandusky in the early '90s. and he was sexually assaulted on the grounds of penn state university .

>> reporter: and federal investigators are now examining the sandusky case. nbc news' national investigative kpobl correspondent michael isikoff .

>> reporter: federal prosecutors and fbi agents are looking hard at whether to open up their own investigation because of allegations that jerry sandusky crossed state lines to commit child abuse . one of the pennsylvania state charges against sandusky alleges that he flew one boy, victim number four, to the outback bowl in tampa in 1998 . and then again to the alamo bowl in san antonio in 1999 . starting when the boy was about 13 years old, sandusky is charged with repeatedly abusing him, including at the bowl games . the feds are also trying to determine whether sandusky used the internet to recruit alleged victims, also grounds for the fbi to become involved. and the new york-based charity, the fresh air fund , confirmed this week that it sent a half dozen children across state lines to live with sandusky . one high-level official said it would be inconceivable that we couldn't find grounds to make this a federal case.

>> reporter: penn state 's board of trustees has hired a large pittsburgh-based law firm to advise it during this sex abuse scandal. two penn state administrators already face charges they lied to a grand jury , and didn't alert authorities when given a report of suspected abuse. they deny the charges. and with a new wave of heightened awareness on college campuses late thursday, syracuse university announced it had placed assistant men's basketball coach, bernie fine , on administrative leave. after a former ball boy told the media fine molested him, beginning in the 1980s . fine denies the allegations, and the university says it investigated the complaint in 2005 and immediately alerted police, who found no evidence to support the claims and no charges were ever filed. and back here at penn state , obviously, this entire community has been affected by the allegations here. the allegations that jerry sandusky molested and abused, assaulting as many as eight if not more boys. so students and alumni have launched a fund-raising effort here, ann, trying to show their support for the victims of child abuse , already raising more than $420,000.

>> well, that at least is a little bit of good news in what is really i tragic story. peter alexander ,

Source: http://video.today.msnbc.msn.com/today/45353501/

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Syrians would accept Turkish intervention: Brotherhood (Reuters)

ISTANBUL (Reuters) ? A leader of Syria's outlawed Muslim Brotherhood said on Thursday the Syrian people would accept military intervention by Turkey, rather than Western countries, to protect them from President Bashar al-Assad's security forces.

Mohammad Riad Shaqfa, who lives in exile in Saudi Arabia, told a news conference in Istanbul the international community should isolate Assad's government to encourage people in their struggle to end more than four decades of Assad family rule.

Hundreds of people have been killed this month, one of the bloodiest periods in the revolt that began in March. The United Nations says more than 3,500 people have died in the unrest.

If Assad's government refused to halt its repression, Shaqfa said Turkish intervention would be acceptable.

"If the international community procrastinates then more is required from Turkey as a neighbor to be more serious than other countries to handle this regime," Shaqfa said.

"If other interventions are required, such as air protection, because of the regime's intransigence, then the people will accept Turkish intervention. They do not want Western intervention," Shaqfa said.

The Syrian authorities have banned most independent media and blame the unrest on armed terrorist gangs and foreign-backed militants who they say have killed 1,100 soldiers and police.

SPECULATION ON CONTINGENCIES

NATO-member Turkey had close ties with Assad, but now says the Syrian government cannot be trusted after it ignored Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's repeated entreaties for a halt to violence and swift enactment of political reforms.

Ankara is considering imposing economic sanctions that would target Assad's government without harming the people, and is working with Arab governments to increase pressure on Damascus.

Several thousand Syrians, including army defectors who have taken up arms against Assad, have fled to Turkey, which has also hosted meetings of the opposition Syrian National Council.

The council is the foremost opposition group, bringing together people ranging from exiled dissidents to grassroots activists and members of the Muslim Brotherhood.

After mobs attacked Turkey's diplomatic missions in Syria at the weekend, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu hosted representatives of the Syrian opposition at dinner on Sunday.

Turkish officials have repeatedly denied media speculation that one of the contingencies being planned is the creation of a buffer zone inside Syrian territory to protect civilians and to make it easier for members of the Syrian military to desert.

On Thursday, Turkish officials denied a report in Sabah, a newspaper regarded as close to the government, that Syrian opposition representative had requested Turkey make plans for a no-fly zone a few kilometers (miles) inside Syrian territory that would gradually be expanded to cover the city of Aleppo.

Sabah said Turkey told the Syrian opposition that three conditions would have to be met: the no-fly zone must have a U.N. mandate, Arab League support and guarantees from the United States and European Union.

NO PLANS FOR RELIGIOUS STATE

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe told French BFM Radio on Thursday that France was helping Syrian opposition groups become more organized. Juppe was due to visit Turkey for talks on Thursday and Friday that would focus on Syria.

Shaqfa said members of the opposition council would meet British Prime Minister David Cameron within days.

"They (British officials) have told us that they will soon recognize the Syrian National Council as a representative of the Syrian opposition and the Syrian people," he said.

Shaqfa expressed admiration for the progress Turkey's democracy has made since Erdogan's Justice and Development Party (AK Party) swept to power over a decade ago, and said the Muslim Brotherhood would not seek to impose a religious state in Syria if it ever joins a government.

"We and our people admire the Turkish experiment. If we reach power, we will deal with everyone. We will make laws .. that focus on freedom, justice and equality.

"These are all taken from principles of the Muslim religion. We will benefit from the instructions of Islam to make laws to achieve freedom, but it will not be a religious state."

The AK Party government, whose leaders came from a banned Islamist party, has overseen a period of unprecedented prosperity in Turkey.

It has also introduced reforms that have reduced chances for military coups that have dogged Turkey in the past, without making any overt moves to roll back the republic's secularism.

(Reporting by Khaled Yacoub Oweis and Omer Berberoglu; Editing by Alistair Lyon)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/asia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111117/wl_nm/us_syria_turkey_brotherhood

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Global Village School Educates Refugee Teen Girls: How You Can Help

Bertha Nibigira, a Burundi student, says she had never read a book before being enrolling at Decatur, Georgia's Global Village School .

Nibigira is one of 30 girls at the nonprofit private school that provides opportunity and safety to young refugees, Fox Atlanta News reports. Many of the students have suffered terrible tragedies in their devastated, war-torn countries and speak very little English.

The students range in age from 12 to 20, from 12 countries ranging from Afghanistan to Burma and Sudan, according to the school's website.

The school respects all cultural differences and allows girls to open up about their experiences as they wish.

"In these cultures, everybody would be paralyzed if they thought about and talked about their past experiences," Kelley Provence, the Global Village School's academic director, told CNN.

But by the end of their time, the young women are fluent in English, and most move on to their local public schools as straight A students, reports Fox Atlanta News.

The school doesn't receive any funding and is in need of donations and basic supplies such as markers and books. See how you can help here.

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/16/refugee-teen-girls-find-s_n_1095584.html

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Iran increases prison term for traveling to Israel (AP)

TEHRAN, Iran ? Iranians traveling to Israel could go to prison for up to five years instead of only three months, after Iran's parliament revised an existing ban for such trips.

The measure reflects Tehran's security concerns over archenemy Israel. Iran claims to have dismantled several purported Israeli spy rings in recent years and arrested Iranians with alleged links to Mossad.

Iranian state TV on Monday reported that parliament passed a new amendment, expanding the current prison term for travel to Israel to between two and five years.

Under a 1972 ban imposed by U.S.-backed Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, offenders faced possible imprisonment of up to three months.

At the time, the law was designed to mostly avert travel to communist countries.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iran/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111114/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iran_israel

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Occupy movement stays peaceful in cash-poor Vegas (Providence Journal)

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Lady Gaga And Laurieann Gibson: The Way They Were

After meeting in 2007, creative director went on to put her stamp on many of the pop superstar's most memorable creations.
By Jocelyn Vena

Lady Gaga
Photo: Getty Images

On Monday (November 14), Lady Gaga and Laurieann Gibson confirmed their split, ending a creative partnership that dated back to the beginning of the pop star's career.

Gibson first teamed up with Mother Monster in 2007, when the choreographer helped her most famous Dream Warrior with a live routine for her Fame track "Boys Boys Boys." The two ladies shared a similar background, both drawing inspiration from the singer's hometown of New York City, where Gaibson had arrived many years before meeting Gaga, hoping to make it as a dancer. In August, Gibson explained to MTV News that Gaga's Nick Knight-directed "Born This Way" video was meant to pay homage to their love for the city.

"This was the place that we started. This was the place that birthed her. This was the place that birthed my dance," Gibson told us. "New York just has something so real about birthing something specific."

In the years since they first hooked up, the two women have forged one of the most close-knit, high-profile relationships in pop. Gibson has had credits on nearly every Lady Gaga video released so far, including "Poker Face," "Just Dance," "Telephone," "Alejandro," and "Born This Way." But she has also worked closely with the singer on her live performances and massive stage shows.

Among members of Gaga's elusive Haus of Gaga, Gibson is certainly one of the most public. Over the course of the past 12 months, the former "Fly Girl" rose to prominence thanks to her work as creative director for the superstar, starring in not one, but two, of her own reality shows: E!'s "The Dance Scene" and BET's "Born to Dance." And it was during this time that the duo showed the world what they could do as a pair, producing some of Gaga's most talked-about creations, including the clips from the Born This Way album, which was released in May.

"I woke up one night and I got it and I said, 'I got it: We have to birth a new race,' " she recalled to MTV News about the idea for the "BTW" clip. "As genius as [Gaga] is, she then begins to create all of these elements that make her Lady Gaga. When I saw the final edit, I, of course, was loving some stuff and then I was like, 'But oh, here we go.' It was brilliant. Nick is amazing."

While Gibson was outspoken when she disagreed about a creative decision the singer made, she seemed to be always by her side, working on projects like Gaga's Google Chrome commercial, which again pays homage to the star's Big Apple roots. The HBO special "Lady Gaga Presents the Monster Ball Tour at Madison Square Garden" highlighted Gibson's work as creative director and earned Gaga five Emmy nominations.

Laurieann also co-directed the "Judas" video, which she told us had left her satisfied. "I was able to sit in the director's seat and fulfill our vision and see it all the way through. So at the end of the day, you saw how amazing she looks — beautiful — she's dancing again," Gibson said. "And it's just great because I was able to produce the next level: who she is, how many levels she can go and the idea that this artist is a real artist and capable."

Gibson was also onboard for the "Yoü and I" video, which was shot over the summer in Nebraska and features Gaga's male alter ego, Jo Calderone, as well as some interesting "mermaid sex"; the two ladies shared directing duties. She also worked with Gaga on her performance art piece at this year's MTV VMAs, where Calderone was on hand the entire night.

"The idea of her being a performance artist — and it's starting the performance on the red carpet and the idea that the performance never ends for her — is the first time I've experienced this with an artist," Laurianne explained at the time. "I love it. That's something that is specific to her, and the whole night was the performance, and it was important that Jo was a part of the whole night."

What's your favorite Gaga/Gibson collaboration? Share your picks on Facebook!

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1674375/lady-gaga-laurieann-gibson-history.jhtml

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