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PHELPS, New York — The remains of a teenage New York soldier killed in the Korean War more than 60 years ago have been identified and are being returned to his upstate hometown.

The state Supreme Court has unanimously upheld the rape and sexual assault convictions against Ernest Willis who is serving a 15-to-30 year prison sentence for forcibly raping his teenage babysitter twice, whom he knew through Trinity Baptist Church in Concord, in 1997. The court issued its ruling this morning. The girl, who became pregnant, was later made to stand before their congregation to apologize by then-pastor Chuck Phelps. A Merrimack County jury convicted Ellis of three counts of rape and one count of felonious sexual assault in 2011. Willis’s attorneys appealed the conviction on several grounds, including the admission of...

Libby Phelps' family and faith told her that homosexuality was a sin and she was helping others find salvation. In the four years since she fled Westboro Baptist Church, her parents have not spoken to her. And her journey is far from complete.

A former member of the Westboro Baptist Church--a fringe group based in Topeka, Kansas that pickets soldiers' funerals--apologized to the mother of a 21-year-old soldier killed in Afghanistan on a talk show Wednesday. Libby Phelps Alvarez, the former Westboro member, apologized to Sherry and Randy Wyatt for picketing the funerals of fallen soldiers like their son on Anderson Live Wednesday. Alvarez is the granddaughter of Fred Phelps, the group's founder, and has recently left the group. (Other members of the shrinking group have recently publicly defected as well.) "I just feel sad...and, I'm sorry," Alvarez said. "I thought I was...

For nearly all of her twenty-seven years, Meganbelieved it:believed what her grandfather Fred Phelps preached from the pulpit; believed what her dad Brent and her mom Shirley taught duringthe family’s daily Biblestudies; believed (mostly) what it said on those signs that have made Westboro disproportionately influential in American life—“God hates fags”; “God hates your idols”; “God hates America.” Megan was the one who pioneered the use of social media at Westboro, becoming the first in her family togo onTwitter. Effervescent andeffusive, she gave hundreds of interviews, charmingjournalists from all over the world. Organized and proactive, she, for a time, evenhad...

Just after 11 last Sunday morning at Old First Reformed Church in Brooklyn, the Rev. Dr. Daniel Meeter is starting the Sunday service as he always does. He runs through the opening salutation and the collect for the day, and then he welcomes everyone to church as he always does, introducing Old First “as a community of Jesus in Park Slope where we welcome people of every race, ethnicity and orientation to love God and love our neighbors as ourselves.” The congregation—some eighty strong on this sunny but cold February morning—is the usual mix of Park Slope churchgoing types:...

Phelps wins another Gold, 21 total medals and 2 triple wins in the same event.

Lord Sebastian Coe, two-time British Olympic gold medalist, revered British Olympic long-distance runner, and chief of the London Olympic organizing committee, has said the unthinkable. Michael Phelps, in his estimation, is not the greatest Olympian of all time. Later today, American officials are expected to announce the termination of all diplomatic relations with Great Britain, withdraw embassy staff from London, and issue a new deck of "most wanted" playing cards with Lord Coe as the joker. For the record, his exact words, as reported by the Associated Press, were: "He is certainly the most successful. That goes without saying.... But...

Many shades of red are normally associated with anger, however, on Thursday, a "wall of maroon" was a show of love and respect in Texas. Lt. Col. Roy Tisdale, a Texas A&M University graduate in 1993, was killed during a training exercise at Fort Bragg on June 28. During a safety briefing in North Carolina, Lt. Col. Tisdale was shot and killed by a fellow soldier who committed suicide. Family members and friends were shocked at the loss, claiming that with all of the deployments Tisdale had, they never thought anything would happen to him at home. The Westboro Baptist...

The troop hating Westboro Church will be at Arlington Cemetery this coming Wednesday, July 11 at 12:15PM. They are usually next to the Metro entrance on the south side of Memorial Drive. If you can make it, you need to bring flags and troop support signs and plenty of water. Meet on the north side (entrance side to Arlington) of Memorial Drive.

TACOMA, Wash. - A rabidly anti-gay church known for its loud protests is planning to picket Saturday's funeral for the two sons of missing mom Susan Powell, who died in a raging house fire Sunday. Margie Phelps of the Topeka, Kan.-based Westboro Baptist Church sent out a tweet saying the church will attend the boys' memorial service as a protest against the pending legalization of gay marriage in Washington state. The two boys, Charlie and Braden Powell, were killed Sunday in a gasoline-fueled house fire set by their father Josh Powell after they arrived for a supervised visit. Powell himself...

Antagonists (hardly 'pro-testers'} from the Westboro 'baptist' 'church' (truly neither) left Atchison, Kansas after attempting to picket the funeral of one of the young men killed in the recent grain elevator explosion. This site has video of them leaving mere moments after arrival, having been surrounded by local citizens. Additional video is available at http:/www.fox4kc.com/2011/11/03/federinco-to-be-laid-to-rest-westboro-plans-to-picket/#00id=E0bGF5MjrvalDKdke7Soh1rLIa6Im6g1. The locals from A-town were singing "Jesus Loves the Little Children" when the Spirit moved the antagonists to depart.

click article link to read storyA member of an anti-gay church that pickets at military funerals said via Twitter that church members will come to Carson City in the wake of the shooting deaths of three Nevada National Guard soldiershttp://www.rgj.com/article/20110907/NEWS/110907005/Anti-gay-church-hints-will-protest-funerals-slain-guardsmen-Carson-IHOP-shooting?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|FRONTPAGE|s

GRAND RAPIDS -- The Westboro Baptist Church -- notorious for twisting scripture to justify persecution of homosexuals and picketing at funerals -- have announced their intent to protest this week's memorial services honoring former first lady Betty Ford in Grand Rapids. On the Topeka, Kansas-based church's website, the fringe group said they will picket services on Thursday because Ford divorced her first husband William Warren prior marrying the late president Gerald R. Ford. In Westboro's eyes, that makes Ford an adulterer who "loved to sit with tawdry reporters and blather about sex." The announcement declares the group's intent to picket...

Members of a controversial church plan to protest today's memorial service of a 21-year-old Marine from Gastonia who was killed while serving in Afghanistan. But friends of Lance Cpl. Nicholas O'Brien say they are making plans to drown out Westboro Baptist Church's message. Read more: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/06/20/2392145/group-to-protest-marines-memorial.html#ixzz1PonvdMN2

I just caught a story on WFAA-TV News about the Westboro loons coming to Dallas on Sunday June 5, 2011 from 6:15 PM to 7:00 PM. The site of their event is the American Airlines Center, timed to occur just prior to Game 3 of the NBA Finals between the Miami Heat and the Dallas Mavericks. Their claim is: GOD HATES THE NBA! Fred Phelps and his crew go on to claim: WBC will picket the NBA game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Miami Heat to warn this nation that they need to tear down their idols and worship...

In predictable, yet despicable fashion, members of Westboro Baptist Church of Kansas are spreading their hate around for recent tornado victims. Fred Phelps and company have allegedly been trolling the Facebook pages of missing tornado victims, leaving hateful and taunting comments. While most of those comments have been deleted, they have left family members and supporters shaken and angry. On Monday, when only 89 deaths had been confirmed, WBC posted a scathing and gleeful document on its website, celebrating the deaths as proof of God's anger over rampant homosexuality. The most recent flier, dated May 25, begins by thanking God...

The Westboro Baptist Church (WBC) has found a new group of people to rally against. The Kansas church, most infamous for its hatred of homosexuals, posted a document last Monday on its website celebrating the deaths of the Joplin, Missouri tornado victims. “Thank God for 89 dead & counting in Joplin, Mo & 1 dead in Reading, KS!” the document declared in capital letters. “God’s whirlwind is pounding the enemies of Christ! WBC will picket your raging blasphemous stinky memorials!”

Westboro Baptist Church plans to picket Hilliard school Tuesday, April 26, 2011 03:23 PM By Charlie Boss The Columbus Dispatch The Westboro Baptist Church, known for its anti-gay protests at schools and high-profile events, is making a pit stop at Hilliard Darby High School next month. Hilliard school officials sent an e-mail alert to parents today, alerting them of the group's protest scheduled from 7:10 to 7:40 a.m. on May 10. "While the group does have the right to gather in protest as well as free speech, they will NOT be exercising that right on school grounds," Hilliard Darby Principal...