Woman Killed After Priest's Car Plows Into Churchgoers

Both expected to survive

(NEWSER) - Two teenage girls who fell asleep while sunbathing on a quiet rural road in Pennsylvania were struck by a car yesterday. The 13-year-old pals were airlifted to a nearby hospital, and are expected to survive. They were hit by a car driven by a cousin of one of the girls. He had just stopped at a stop sign, and struck the girls as he turned the corner. He was questioned by police and released, reports WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh. More»

Authorities investigating after bruised girl, 14, files complaint

(NEWSER) - County prosecutors are investigating mock "abductions" orchestrated by a Pennsylvania church that left one 14-year-old girl bruised, battered, and terrified, according to authorities. The horrifying ordeal was intended to teach the unsuspecting teens at the Glad Tidings Assembly of God in Middletown about persecution of Christian missionaries, reports the Daily Mail . Some 17 teenagers were snatched from the church, hooded, interrogated, then taken in a van to a pastor's house, where he was apparently being attacked, and was covered with what looked like blood. During the staged kidnapping, men "'pulled my chair out from underneath me, and then they told me to get on the ground," said the terrified girl, who filed a complaint with police. "I had my hands behind my back. They said, 'Just do as I say, and you won't be hurt.''’ More»

(NEWSER) - The hallelujahs are strained in US churches these days as donations plunge at the same time demand for aid is skyrocketing, reports the Wall Street Journal. Congregations across the nation are slashing budgets and even laying off staff, including pastors. Churches and synagogues usually weather downturns well, but not this time. "There has been significant tightening of budgets," said Rabbi Elliott Kleinman, spokesman for the Union for Reform Judaism, which represents some 900 congregations. "People have less money to give." More»