Easter - Page 4

Mega popstar Mariah Carey and director Tyler Perry joined Pastor Joel Osteen for Lakewood Church’s virtual Easter service on Sunday, providing a boost of star power after a planned performance by Kanye West’s Sunday Service chorus was nixed reportedly due to coronavirus-related concerns.

“This Easter will be much different than others because in many cases, we’ll be separated physically only from our churches,” Trump said.

Jerusalem — A handful of priests celebrated Easter on Sunday at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built on the site where Christians believe Jesus was crucified and resurrected.

The Easter Vigil Mass was celebrated at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC, Saturday evening.

Abilene Christian University’s choir went viral this week when it posted a rendition of “The Lord Bless You and Keep You.” The video, which stitched together virtual performances from 500 vocalists, was the choir’s way of celebrating this year’s Easter holiday during the ongoing Wuhan coronavirus pandemic.

Queen Elizabeth II has delivered what is believed to be the first-ever Easter message of her 68-year reign, offering a message of hope to people confined to their homes throughout the holiday by the coronavirus pandemic.

Officials in Kentucky will document the license plate numbers of individuals attending mass gatherings over Easter weekend and turn the information over to health officials, who will require the individuals to self-quarantine for 14 days, Gov. Andy Beshear (D) announced Friday.

“Lord let the death angel pass over,” Jackson said. “Let there be a mitigation of this plague this disease, let medical science come forth.”

Just before noon on Friday four friars processed down Jerusalem’s Via Dolorosa to commemorate the “Way of the Cross” walked by Jesus before being crucified on Good Friday.

The city of San Fernando, Philippines, canceled its annual Good Friday crucifixions for the first time in decades this year, abiding by Chinese coronavirus quarantine measures. Some towns and cities did mark the holiday with socially distanced processions and acts of flagellation.

Eggs on the table and a toy rabbit on the dresser — with a few decorations, Palestinian Christian Sawsan Bitar attempts to salvage some normality from an Easter overshadowed by coronavirus.

A woman was arrested Wednesday for allegedly putting Easter eggs containing explicit content into residents’ mailboxes in Flagler County, Florida.

A doctor recently brought some much-needed Easter magic to his family and neighbors in Greenville, South Carolina.

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin telephoned Pope Francis on Wednesday to wish him a happy Easter, Vatican News reported.

Trump on Wednesday at the White House reacted to the revised coronavirus data model showing fewer deaths from the virus. “Sixty one thousand … that’s still a big number,” Trump replied.

Pastor Joel Osteen is planning a star-studded virtual Easter Sunday service amid the coronavirus crisis, including Kanye West, Mariah Carey, and Tyler Perry.

Cairo — Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox church has decided to suspend prayers preceding Easter celebrations later this month as part of efforts to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus.

During an interview on MSNBC on Tuesday, Rep. and former HHS Secretary Donna Shalala (D-FL) stated that what President Trump “has been saying about getting back at Easter time is both dangerous and immoral.” Shalala said, “I think that what

“I would love to aim it right at Easter Sunday so we’re open for church services on Easter Sunday, that would be a beautiful thing,” Trump said on Tuesday afternoon on Fox News.

Easter this year is on April 12. 

The Italian bishops’ conference has cancelled the celebration of weekday Masses in areas of the north of the country affected by the coronavirus outbreak, a move that has some Catholics up in arms.

President Donald Trump recognized Ash Wednesday in a statement from the White House. “We join in prayer with everyone observing this holy day and wish you a prayerful Lenten journey,” Trump wrote. “May you grow closer to God in your faith during this blessed season.”

Father Neville Fernando, TOR, froze. He was standing in the middle of St. Sebastian’s Church in Negombo, Sri Lanka, on Easter Sunday, in the immediate aftermath of a jihadist attack that would kill over 250 people and injure 500 others in three churches and three hotels in the Colombo area.

Radical imam and Sri Lanka bombing mastermind Mohamed Zahran Hashim wrote a series of Facebook posts before launching the Easter Sunday attacks that killed hundreds of people, in which he called for the murder of non-Muslims including women and children. The Facebook posts reportedly remained online as of Tuesday night despite numerous complaints from moderate Muslims.

A video of two intoxicated migrants near-totally destroying a church in Italy over Orthodox Easter has gone viral across social media.

The government of Sri Lanka has banned full face coverings, including but not limited to the Islamic burqa and niqab, as an emergency measure following the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks targeting Christians and tourists.

Sri Lankan officials say at least one of the suspected radical Islamic terrorists who targeted Christians and tourists on Easter Sunday studied in Britain and Australia.

Police in Nigeria are investigating a road rage incident that resulted in several deaths and injuries of children participating in an Easter Sunday parade after an angry driver allegedly plowed his car into the procession for blocking the road, several news outlets reported this week.

Sri Lanka may be considering joining a growing number of governments in banning the burqa, an Islamic head covering that leaves no part of a woman’s body visible, local media reported Tuesday in the aftermath of the series of suspected jihadist bombings targeting Christians on Easter Sunday.

President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump shared in Easter Egg Roll festivities with 30,000 visitors on the White House South Lawn Monday.

First Lady Melania Trump was all smiles at the White House’s annual Easter Egg Roll on Monday in an ensemble reminiscent of the 1970s when times were a bit simpler.

‘Game of Thrones’ actress Sophie Turner posted a strange video to social media over the weekend, drinking wine and talking about the Easter bunny engaging in sexual acts.

Over 50 visually impaired Rhode Island children sought beeping Easter eggs on the Statehouse lawn on Thursday.

Police in Sri Lanka found bombs and detonators in two new locations Monday after a jihadist bombing spree on Easter killed at least 290.

Angry Venezuelans burned effigies of Nicolás Maduro and other senior socialist officials on Sunday, as part of a traditional “burning of Judas” celebration during the Easter holiday.

No individual or group has made a formal claim of responsibility as of Monday morning for the horrific Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka, which killed almost 300 people at the latest count, but the Sri Lankan government considers a radical Islamist group called National Towheeth Jamath (NTJ) and its leader, imam Moulvi Zahran Hashim, the prime suspects.