NEW YORK — Ferguson, Missouri, — and perhaps the entire nation — is bracing for a grand jury decision on whether or not police officer Darren Wilson will be indicted for the fatal shooting of Michael Brown. At least one Christian and social justice activist is calling on people of faith to pray, for whatever might ensue once the verdict is revealed, while local churches are planning for overnight vigils.

If news headlines are any indication — “Missouri Governor Outlines Ferguson Preparations;” “Gun sales spike as Ferguson area braces for grand jury decision;” “New Riot Gear at the Ready in Ferguson” — the atmosphere in the 21,000-person St. Louis suburb is taut with anxiety.

Although no one knows for certain when the grand jury’s decision will come, St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch, whose office will make public the decision, has said in a statement that he does not expect the grand jury to give word “until mid to late November.”

Whether the grand jury completes its work days or weeks from now, city and state officials and residents have the same expectations — that failure to indict Wilson for shooting unarmed 18-year-old Michael Brown will result in wide-scale protests or even rioting, as was the case in the immediate aftermath of the teen’s killing. There were further concerns that the aggressive and militarized response shown by law enforcement during early days of protests, and which garnered international attention, might again rear its head…Read More

Source and Original Content by Christian Post

Montgomery County schools in Maryland will no longer recognize Christian or Jewish holidays on school calendars after members of the Muslim community campaigned for their holy day of Eid al-Adha so to receive equal treatment.

Fox News reports that starting in the 2015-2016 academic year, students will still have days off from school for holidays such as Christmas and Easter, but the calendar will refer to the days as “Winter Break” and “Spring Break.” For Jewish holidays such as Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah, the school calendar will be marked as “no school for students and teachers” but not be associated with the religious holidays.

The decision was voted upon by the school district’s board. Montgomery County Schools Superintendent Joshua Starr reportedly recommended the move after feeling pressure from Muslim leaders to give students the day off of school to observe Eid-al-Adha.

Saqib Ali, the co-chair of the Equality for Eid Coalition said, “By stripping the names Christmas, Easter, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, they have alienated other communities now, and we are no closer to equality. It’s a pretty drastic step, and they did it without any public notification.”

Source and Original Content by Christian Headlines