Free Republic

Happy Insurrection Day, everyone! President Biden had planned to deliver his Valley Forge speech on the third anniversary of the January 6, 2021 riot at the Capitol, but bad weather forced him to deliver his speech a day early. And what a speech it was. "We nearly lost America," Biden said of January 6. Then he proudly announced that the "insurrectionists" had been sentenced collectively to 840 years in prison. At the end of all the bluster, Visiting Angel Dr. Jill Biden led her husband by the hand offstage so he wouldn't get lost again. Whenever we hear the word...

Chinese Catholic worshippers kneel and pray during Palm Sunday Mass during the Easter Holy Week at an "underground" or "unofficial" church on April 9, 2017 near Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province, China. Christians across China are prohibited from holding religious funerals for their deceased loved ones as the Communist Party continues to tighten its grip on the regulation of religion and religious activity.Bitter Winter, a magazine documenting human rights and religious freedom abuses in China, reported that authorities throughout the country are enforcing policies that prohibit religious customs and rituals to be used during funerals.In December, the government of Wenzhou city’s...

[Catholic Caucus] Seattle bishops’ response to suicide caused grave scandal, not just ‘confusion’ August 30, 2019 (CatholicCulture.org) — After the publication of an an AP story about a man who received a blessing in a Catholic church just a few days before committing suicide, the Seattle archdiocese released a statement that read in part: The Associated Press story about Mr. Fuller is of great concern to the Archbishops because it may cause confusion among Catholics and others who share our reverence for human life. Confusion? The AP story was not confusing at all; its message was crystal-clear. A man had received a blessing...

An all-black dress code, pallbearers marching in unison, and a steady stream of tears are not often associated with golf courses, zoos and Chinese takeaways. Yet according to the most extensive ever report on UK funeral trends which, the religious funeral is dying a death. Instead of services in crematoriums, churches and cemeteries, Britons are instead opting for increasingly quirky ways to mourn their loved ones. The Co-op, the UK’s largest national funeral provider which conducts more than 100,000 every year, has today published a report revealing that since 2011 there has been a 80 per cent decline in religious...

Traditional favourites are squeezed out as mourners opt for more personalised tributesHymns have been completely squeezed out of the top ten musical choices at funerals, with mourners instead opting for contemporary songs such as Ed Sheeran’s Supermarket Flowers, a new entry to the list. Frank Sinatra’s My Way again topped the latest chart drawn up by the UK’s biggest chain of funeral directors, but for the first time since the biennial exercise began in 2002 not a single traditional hymn made it into the top ten. Data from Co-op Funeralcare, whose funeral directors arrange up to 100,000 ceremonies a year,...

Two large corporations that declined to be named offered to pay for the funerals of all 23 victims who died during Sunday's tornadoes in eastern Alabama. Lee County Coroner Bill Harris confirmed the offer Tuesday, saying "it came out of the blue." "What a wonderful blessing this will be for the families who have lost loved ones!" the sheriff's office wrote on Facebook. "To these corporations we thank you! We're told these are national companies and officials are still working out the details. The names and ages of all 23 victims who died in what is said to be the...

Working in the funeral home business is one of those types of jobs that people don’t think about very much… until they have to. When a loved one passes, they must then confront a reality that exists for every human being. Fortunately, there are people like Joshua Meyer and Kenton LeBlanc ready to help guide a family through an emotionally difficult time. “In a way, it's a calling,” Meyer said. “I kind of liken it to someone becoming a minister. It’s the type of job not a lot of people consider, but for some of us it becomes a passion...

The current situation in our country resembles a poorly written play. Act I: The Democrats and their media-industrial complex force President Nixon to resign and block Robert Bork, who was nominated by President Reagan to the Supreme Court. Act II: The same players try to squeeze Trump out of White House and attempt to prevent nomination to the Supreme Court of Judge Kavanaugh. In this regard, let's recall this quote well known to all students of leftism: "History repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce." This quote exists (in different versions), but nobody knows its origin. Karl Marx had...

Question: What is more cringe-inducing than a celebrity funeral? Answer: Two back-to-back celebrity funerals. The ghoulish twin spectacles last week memorializing Aretha Franklin and John McCain brought out the worst in family, friends and frenemies. No matter your partisan affiliation, these vulgar exercises in self-indulgence should serve as object lessons on how not to depart with dignity. There was the nation's most infamous anti-Semite, Louis Farrakhan, smiling like the Cheshire cat onstage with hate crime hoax godfather Al Sharpton and shakedown con artist Jesse Jackson, who exploited his honored platform to threaten funeral attendees: "If you leave here today and...

Ogling, groping, racists, racism, accused-rapists, mean-girl snubs, inappropriate rants, cheap shots delivered to humiliate invited guests as the crowd roars its approval… No, this was not a sorority hazing or a prison riot or the last gasp of Ancient Rome; it was how America’s establishment behaved at the funerals for Aretha Franklin and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ). Here we are in an America with a roaring economy, manufacturing jobs are coming back (without a magic wand), the War on Terror feels like ancient history, we’re not launching stupid wars, Putin’s adventurism’s been halted, and North Korea has gone from launching...

Socci: Do the hierarchies in the Church still have the Catholic Faith? Antonio Socci "Libero"       March 10, 2018 The parish priest of Cisterna in Latina,  Don Livio Fabiani caused a bit of sensation with his words at the funeral of the two children killed by their father. Yet perhaps – for Catholics – the homily of Cardinal Giuseppe Betori, Archbishop of Florence, at the funeral of the Fiorentina’s Captain, Davide Astori, who died two Sundays ago of a heart attack, ought to be a source of more amazement. These two tragedies have made us face sudden death, the...

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Kentucky State Rep. Dan Johnson, who was under investigation for alleged sexual molestation, has committed suicide. Bullitt County Sheriff Donnie Tinnell said Johnson shot himself on a bridge on Greenwell Ford Road in Mt. Washington, and the gun was recovered.

CATOOSA COUNTY, GEORGIA (RNN) - A dispute between a funeral home and the family of a deceased veteran went viral after Heritage Funeral Home refused to provide a coffin for the visitation. The Georgia funeral home initially declined the family of George Taylor, a deceased Vietnam War veteran, a coffin due to finances. During the visitation, he was placed on a gurney with a flag draped over him. James Taylor, the son of the deceased George Taylor, told WTVC that his family agreed to the arrangement, but it was a "disgrace" to his father. Ella Moss took to social media...

Veterans are furious over a proposed state budget cut that will eliminate the firing detail at veteran funerals. The Connecticut state military said funding for the gun salutes will run out around April. Meanwhile Connecticut state university and colleges, along with Hartford and New Haven, have declared themselves sanctuary cities. And state employees were given fat raises at the end of December. ... they have money to give to illegals but not to give to soldiers to have a proper and decent burial and celebration of their service. ... At a press conference earlier this month, Malloy said of the...

Funeral Foibles – Problems in the Celebration of Catholic Funerals Msgr. Charles Pope • November 14, 2016 • In this month of All Souls, it is good to reflect on funerals. It concerns me that very few people today seem to understand the real purpose of a funeral. The way in which we conduct ourselves at funerals, the manner of preaching at funerals, and other visible attitudes expressed at funerals not only teach poorly, but are often a countersign of biblical and Church teaching on death, judgment, Heaven, and Hell.There are many problems, both sociological, and liturgical, that combine...

Blessed Good Friday & Easter weekend Everyone; With this being one of the holiest weekends of the year, it got me thinking. We have been discussing a total grid down situation/s where basically everything would have gone to heck in a hand basket. We know that we're not going to live forever. So after the world has totally fallen apart, what are going to do with those who has "passed on before us". There are a lot of different ideas & methods available to us. Everything from building very elaborate concrete & rock tombs, to being cremated, to just leaving...

  U.S. President Barack Obama pulls up his collar as he arrives in the rain with first lady Michelle Obama to attend the Republic Day parade in New Delhi January 26, 2015. REUTERS/Jim Bourg The White House announced on Wednesday that neither President Barack Obama or first lady Michelle Obama will be attending the funeral of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. While Justice Scalia’s funeral apparently doesn’t warrant Obama’s presence, here are six funerals that did. Senator Daniel Inouye (D-HI) Less than two months before the 2012 election, both Obamas took time out of their schedule to attend the...

When a veteran or member of the armed forces dies, he or she is entitled to a ceremony that includes the presentation of a U.S. flag to a family member and a bugler blowing Taps. Most of the time, there is a three-volley rifle salute if requested by family members. But now, if the deceased served in the Air Force, the three-volley salute is not an option because the Air Force can no longer support riflemen for funeral services for veteran retirees. [....] “To me, without the 21-gun salute, it just does not make it complete a proper military burial,”...

President Barack Obama is not scheduled to attend any of the funerals for the victims of the San Bernardino terror attack nine days ago, Breitbart News has learned. He has yet to visit the town in the wake of the deadliest terror attack since 9/11. The White House did not return a request for comment about the president’s schedule. It is unknown to the public whether he will attend any funerals, the first of which took place on Thursday for victim Yvette Velasco. Two were scheduled for Friday morning, which Obama appears to be missing as well.

Some Michigan high school students are redefining the term "extracurricular activity." In addition to club meetings, band practices and football games, University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy teens are also signing up to serve as pallbearers for homeless veterans. Six students recently volunteered to be pallbearers for three dead homeless veterans. Senior Joshua Gonzales is one of the student leaders who helped develop the program. He said this new opportunity for students is "meant to help dignify and respect the human being." The students' initial plan was to carry the caskets for homeless individuals, said the Rev. Karl...