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When the Rev. Kip Banks' family pulls out its nativity scene each Christmas, the African features of the baby Jesus provide lessons on both the Bible and self-esteem. (RNS photo courtesy Rev. Kip Banks)
When the Rev. Kip Banks' family pulls out its nativity scene each Christmas, the African features of the baby Jesus provide lessons on both the Bible and self-esteem.
Banks' 8-year-old son, Kip Jr., has told his father that the Christ child is both "black and white." His father gently corrects
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Martin Freeman as the Hobbit Bilbo Baggins with his sword, Sting, finds a small ring in Gollum's cave in the fantasy adventure "THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY," a production of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), released by Warner Bros. Pictures and MGM. (RNS photo courtesy The Hobbit)
Travel along, if you dare, with Bilbo Baggins in "The Hobbit" -- either in J.R.R.Tolkien's beloved 1937 novel, or through the first installment of Peter Jackson's film trilogy based on th
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U.S. President Barack Obama speaks at an interfaith vigil for the shooting victims from Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 16, 2012 at Newtown High School in Newtown, Connecticut. (Pool/Getty Images North America)
"These tragedies must end. And to end them, we must change," Obama said Sunday night.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you, Governor. To all the families, first responders, to the community of Newtown, clergy, guests -- Scripture tells us: "...do not lose heart. T
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Reuters-young-girl-cross-Newtown-Conn-memorial-photog-Lucas-Jackson.jpgBishop Joseph Mattera says rather than cast doubt on the existence and or goodness of God, evil events such as the massacre in Newtown, Conn., should cause society to pray, repent and bring God back into society.
 
A young girl kisses her hand as she places a wooden cross on a memorial for victims of the recent mass shooting in Sandy Hook village in Newtown, Conn., Dec. 16. Worshippers filled Sunday services to mourn the victims of a gunman's rampage at Sandy Hook elementary school in Newto
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In Interview, RG3 says "I Fear God"

In an interview with NBC Washington, NFL sensation Robert Griffin III ("RG3") told WRC-TV sports reporter Dan Hellie that his biggest fear coming to Washington, D.C. to be an NFL quarterback was God.



Hellie asked the Washington Redskins' star quarterback, "Everybody fears something. What was your biggest fear coming to Washington, D.C., to be an NFL quarterback?
"You try not to fear too many things. I fear God," Griffin responded.
"RG3" also told Hellie that he fears his parents saying, "you
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A woman waits to hear about her sister, a teacher. (Jessica Hill / AP)
A teacher's son clad in black and carrying two guns rampaged through a Connecticut elementary school Friday, killing 20 small children and six adults, including his mother, in the nation's second-worst school shooting, law enforcement officials said.
The gunman, identified as Ryan Lanza, 24, was also found dead at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, a federal law enforcement official said. Lanza's mother is a kinderg
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A boy weeps as he is told what happened after being picked up at Reed Intermediate School. (Lucas Jackson / Reuters)
The first that some pupils heard of the mass shootings Friday at their Connecticut elementary school was when screams started coming over the intercom system, according to accounts from the scene.
Twenty children, all ages 5 to 10, and six adults were killed when a masked gunman opened fire inside Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., authorities said. The gunman wa
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120501085530-robert-champion-famu-hazing-death-story-top.jpgFlorida A&M University, under fire in the hazing death of a drum major and over its finances, was put on probation for one year by an accrediting agency, officials said Tuesday.

Pictured: Florida A&M drum major Robert Champion died during a 2011 hazing incident. Champion's family is suing the university.

 
 

FAMU expects more details of the sanction within the next week, the Tallahassee institution said in a statement.
Administrators learned from the Southern Association of Colleges and School
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Pity Can Be Precious

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by Debbie Wright
Through Gollum, Tolkien illustrated how mercy can change the world
In preparation for the release of Peter Jackson's The Hobbit, I recently watched all three Lord of the Rings films with a small group of friends. We were all, more or less, big Tolkien fans, and during the 12-hour marathon we had many conversations about themes, characters, and the like. One trend I noticed throughout the day was the exclamation of, "They should have just killed Gollum right there!"
Gollum
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Study found victims more likely to repeat history in adult relationships, practice unhealthy behaviors
Teenagers who experience dating violence could be more likely to get involved in violent relationships and have health problems as young adults, a new study suggests.
Researchers analyzed surveys of nearly 6,000 teens across the United States that were taken when the teens were between the ages of 12 and 18, and again five years later. The surveys asked about physical and psychological vio
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Today, my home state of Washington legalizes the recreational use of marijuana. This decision, of course, leads to a host of pastoral questions and issues.
I have been asked these questions for years, as Mars Hill Church has always reached out to a high (pun intended) percentage of single young guys living typical, irresponsible urban lives. These guys are generally not very theological, but curiously they tend to know at least two Bible verses:
 
"Then God said, 'I give you every seed-bearin
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ADVERTISE ON THE ORACLE

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Why Advertise on The Oracle Sites?

The Oracle is one of  the leading Christian Hip-Hop lifestyle networks on the Internet. The Oracle launched in 2008 and has been a daily source of information to the global Christian Hip-Hop community.
We specialize in providing the young Christian community with information relevant to their needs.

The Oracle is now proud to offer tailor-made advertising plans for your business, website, special event, or whatever it is you'd like to promote.

How Much Traffi

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"The Hobbit": One Book to Rule Them All
With the imminent release of the first of Peter Jackson's three-part adaptation of "The Hobbit," I revisited J. R. R. Tolkien's 1937 novel, which I had not opened since I was a teen-ager. Re-reading "The Hobbit" turned out to be something of a revelation. Formerly, I'd seen it as nothing more than an appetizer for the big feast of "The Lord of the Rings." Now, I realized, it was a perfecly balanced meal of its own--one that left you feeling sated rather
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Will Hillary Clinton Run In 2016?

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Hillary Rodham Clinton at a meeting Thursday in Dublin. Repeated insistence that she will not run for president again has not quieted speculation about it. (Kevin Lamarque/Agence France-Presse -- Getty Images)
You're one of the most famous women on earth, and you're jobless for the first time in decades. You'd like to make money, but you don't want to rule out running for president. So what do you do all day?
Right now, aides and friends say, Hillary Rodham Clinton's plan looks like this: exit
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December 5, 2012 – NASHVILLE, TN – Slospeak Records just announced the December 11th release of SONS’ acoustic EP entitled, Keep Quieter. It’s the follow up to January’s full length release, Keep Quiet. The three tracks will be on iTunes and Amazon Mp3 next Tuesday.

To preview the EP, select media outlets will host exclusive online streams of each track: Property of Zack featured “Ghost” on December 4th, Substream Magazine will feature “Believe in Something” on December 6th and Absolute Punk wi

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The orphaned daughter of Jovan Belcher and Kasandra Perkins will receive at least $1 million from the NFL as she grows up.
Under the terms of the league's collective bargaining agreement, Zoey, who will be three months old on Dec. 11, will receive $9,000 per month for the next 48 months, and at least $4,000 per month from age 4 until she turns 18 - or 23 if she goes to college.
Zoey is eligible for the money under the league's Surviving Child benefit.
Belcher's beneficiaries also will receive
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4798Big changes are on their way for most American businesses, courtesy of Obamacare, according to the CEO of the Cheesecake Factory. 

 
 

"It will be very costly," David Overton told CBS This Morning on Monday. "I believe most people will have to do that [raise prices] or cheapen their product." Nearly two-thirds of employers say they will have to pay more for health benefits under Obamacare, according to a recent survey by Mercer.
Overton said he doesn't know whether his own company will need to
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Gabby Douglas leaped her way to gold and stole the show at the 2012 Summer Olympics Games as part of the U.S. women's gymnastics team known as the "Fierce Five."

Her triumph also made the 16-year-old the first African American to be named the world's best all-around gymnast.
 
That accomplishment has led to a post-Olympics life jammed with television appearances, photo shoots, and endorsement deals. The Virginia Beach native also just wrapped up performing for the Kelloggs cross-country
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