Battle over Florida Megachurch Pulpit

The ex-wife of Zachery Tims is suing the Orlando-area megachurch he founded because she wasn't appointed as pastor. Tims died unexpectedly in August and the church board tapped Paula White as the new pastor. Riva Tims wants the congregation of New Destiny Christian Center to vote on who takes the pulpit and says White is $26 million in debt. Tims was found in a Times Square hotel with a white substance in his pocket, leading to speculation he died of a drug overdose, since he had a history of it in his youth. His mother, Madeline Tims, has filed a lawsuit to stop the City from revealing the cause of death.

Poll on Jesus' Death Yanked

A division of Fox has removed an online poll from its Facebook pages and apologized to the Jewish community for it. The National Geographic Channel, part of Fox Latin America, asked viewers who was responsible for the death of Jesus. The options included Pontius Pilate, The Jewish People, and The High Priests. It was a promotional effort for a Christmas special.

Brawl in Bethlehem

A fight broke out at at the Church of the Nativity between monks who battled with brooms. The groups each claim the right to clean up the church after Christmas celebrations are over. Palestinian security forces intervened between Armenians and Greek Orthodox at the site, traditionally considered the place of Jesus' birth. The Orthodox church holds Christmas celebrations in early January. No serious injuries were reported. It has taken years for an agreement to be worked out between the groups over replacing the roof. Repairs on the deteriorating structure is supposed to begin in the next year.

Charismatic Growth

CNN reports on the growth of the Charismatic movement around the world here.

Maher Goes After Tebow... Again

HBO's Bill Maher is getting backlack from his tweet over the weekend criticizing Denver Bronco's quarterback Tim Tebow. After Tebow threw four interceptions during his team's lose to Buffalo, the comedian sent this message to his 872,000 Twitter followers:

"Wow, Jesus just [screwed] #TimTebow bad! And on Xmas Eve! Somewhere ... Satan is tebowing, saying to Hitler "Hey, Buffalo’s killing them."

Tebow did not respond but his fans are speaking out. Some are calling for viewers to cancel their HBO subscriptions in protest.