World Trade Center Cross

It was found in the ruins of the World Trade Center after the 9/11 attacks. The 2-ton steel beam shaped like a cross was moved close to the oldest Roman Catholic parish in New York City and that's where it has stayed - until now. The cross has been moved into the exhibition area of the museum located at ground zero. Here's how Fox News reported the event:

Large Cross Stolen

A seven-foot-tall cross in the Mojave Desert that sparked a Supreme Court dispute has been stolen. Fox News reports.

High Court: Cross Staysc

The Supreme Court says the a cross in the Mojave desert on public land can stay. It was put there 1934 to honor fallen soldiers. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy said the 1st Amendment called for a middle-ground "policy of accommodation" toward religious displays on public land, not a strict separation of church and state. The justices split 5-4. Roberts and Alito joined Kennedy's opinion. Scalia and Thomas agreed but has different reasoning. Retiring Justice John Paul Stevens spoke for the dissenters saying The government should "avoid endorsement of a particular religious view." Ginsburg, Sotomayor and Breyer agreed.

100 Foot Cross

A church northeast of Birmingham plans to raise a 100-foot cross on its property. The Hunter's Chapel Holy Church of Christ will start construction in February on the $232,000 project, and expects to be finished by June. Motorists will be able to see the cross from the future Interstate 22 near Jasper. Pastor Dale Hyche got the idea from a similar monument in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. A prayer garden will be built at the foot of the cross.

Cross Comes Down

The owners of dogs that killed a teenager forced his friends and classmates to remove a cross placed in his honor. The makeshift memorial for Justin Clinton along Highway 135 in Rusk County, Texas was taken down Saturday. It was originally placed there several months ago after Clinton died. The owners of the dogs said the memorial was placed on private, leased land and demanded that it come down.

High Court Hears Cross Arguments

Observers say the Supreme Court looks divided over the issue of a whether a cross should stay on public land. The 6 1/2-foot monument is a memorial to those who died in World War I. During this morning's questioning, some justices indicated they would favor having Congress transfer ownership of the land to the Veterans of Foreign Wars, removing the issue. Justice Antonin Scalia showed he was at odds with an ACLU lawyer who suggested the cross only honored Christian war dead. Scalia told him it is a “common symbol of the resting place of the dead.” This is the first time the court led by John Roberts will deal with what the First Amendment means when it says "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion." The case is Buono v. Salazar.

High Court Considers Cross

High Court to Rule on Cross

The Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether its constitutional to have an eight foot cross, a memorial to fallen US soldiers, sitting on federal land in California. The cross is located in the Mojave National Preserve in San Bernardino County. The Veterans of Foreign Wars placed a smaller wooden cross there in 1934 and the larger cross was added later. When a group wanted to add a Buddhist shrine along side the cross, they were turned down. That’s when the ACLU sued to get the cross removed. A federal appeals court sided with the ACLU, preventing Congress from transferring ownership of the land to the Veterans of Foreign Wars. This past fall the Bush administration appealed to the Supreme Court.

Crosses in Classrooms

Some Boston College professors are complaining that the Jesuit University has placed some crosses in classrooms. Most of the crucifixes are from students who have returned from trips to Central and South America and to Europe. The issue was intensely debated when to college’s department chairs gathered recently. Meanwhile, the weekly student newspaper has given it’s approval. Georgetown University, also a Jesuit school, has a crucifix in every classroom for many years.

No 90 Foot Crosses

The South Hills Church Community in Las Vegas will not be allowed to put up three 90 foot crosses. The Clark County commission voted against a request from the church’s pastor to allow the crosses to go up. Commissioners did agree to allow much shorter 50 foot crosses.

Crosses for Houston

A Houston church plans to put up a 150-foot crosses at its properties on the south and north sides of the city. Grace Community Church hopes to keeping adding them until every major entrance to Houston has one. Pastor Steve Riggle isn’t sure how much the project will cost, but each cross will have a prayer center inside.

Riggles once served as a missionary to the Philippines where he and his wife were both stabbed while escaping from kidnappers.

The Shroud

The Shroud of Turin will go on display in two years. It has not been viewed in public for eight. Some people claim the Shroud was used in Jesus’ burial. But carbon dating in the 80's indicated it is only a medieval fake. By tradition, the relic is owned by the Pope.

CROSSES DEEMED GANG-RELATED

South Albany High School in Albany, Oregon has suspended two students for wearing crucifixes. The principal called the jewelry “gang-related” because sometime gang members put their colors on rosaries and claim they are religious. The 14-year-old and 16-year-old students say the crosses were just gifts from their mothers.

COLLEGE PRESIDENT RESIGNS

The president of the College of William & Mary has suddenly resigned. Gene Nichol’s tenure included the controversial removal of the permanent display of a cross from the school's chapel on the campus in Williamsburg, Virginia. He said the goal of removing the cross was making non-Christians feel more welcome. The university board had already decided not to renew his contract. Thousands of angry alumni and students signed petitions. One donor rescinded a pledge to give the college $12 million. Eventually, Nichol had the cross returned to the chapel but this time locked away in a glass case near the altar. Last week, William and Mary brought to campus the Sex Workers' Art Show. It offered monologues and performances by actors from X-rated movies and strippers.

RULING ON WEARING CROSS

A court in Britain has ruled against a British Airways worker Nadia Eweida. She took the airline to court after banning her from wearing a small cross around her neck and put her on unpaid leave when she refused. But the judge in the case said it did not constitute religiously discriminated. Eweida plans to appeal the decision even though BA has changed its policy and she has returned to work.

SATANISTS ARRESTED

Two Satanists are behind bars in Phenix City, Alabama. Police say they are responsible for a series of arson and vandalism at rural churches. Graffiti like Teach children to worship Satan!! was scrawled on walls at some of the churches. The two men plead not guilty. A task force of federal, state and local authorities tracked them down when the grandmother of one of the men called police. She had found a brass cross in the home along with other items taken from churches.

CROSS BLOCKED

Ervin Wagner’s plan to build a large cross on his property is being blocked by the St. Joseph, Michigan. The 30-foot cross would sit on property he owns located on a bluff facing Lake Michigan. Wagner wants to stream a shot of the cross over the internet but the city says it’s too big meet zoning standards.