Tag Archives: Washington D.C.

Construction Begins Next Month On Historic Bible Museum

The new Bible museum scheduled to open in Washington, D.C. in 2017 is scheduled to begin construction next month.

The museum, which will feature many ancient Bibles and manuscripts owned by the Green family who owns the Hobby Lobby chain, will be located on D Street SW.  The building is two blocks away from the Capitol building.

“Our intent is for this museum to showcase both the Old and New Testaments, arguably the world’s most significant pieces of literature, through a non-sectarian, scholarly approach that makes the history, scholarship and impact of the Bible on virtually every facet of society accessible to everyone,” said Museum of the Bible spokesperson Mark DeMoss.

The Green family hopes the location of the museum near the Capitol will help the legislators remember the foundation of the nation comes from Biblical principles.

Steve Green also hopes the museum will help Biblical illiteracy.

“We have probably the most ignorant population we’ve ever had in our society [about the Bible] because it’s been taken out of our schools,” he told the Baptist Press. “We want to be able to, in a simple way, explain to them, ‘Here’s what the Bible is.’ Ultimately, it’s about the fact that we are sinners, we need a Savior and Christ was that. And He came to die for us that we might have life.”

Pastor Mark Batterson Says The Power of Prayer Is Underestimated

The lead pastor of National Community Church in Washington, D.C. says that Christians have been losing sight of the power of a single prayer.

Mark Batterson was speaking at LiderVision, a Christian leadership conference for Hispanic pastors, when he shared with the pastors how his church exploded because of the power of God working through a consistent, single prayer.

Batterson said he and his wife started the church with 20 people during a 1996 blizzard that shut down the nation’s capital for days.  For the next five years, he preached every Sunday and the church’s faithful members prayed for one thing:  for God to provide the growth in whatever way He saw fit to do.

Then a reporter from the Washington Post came to attend a service and asked if she could do a quick interview with Pastor Batterson.  He expected it to be buried in the religion section but hoped a few people could see it and visit.  Instead, the article appeared on the front page of the Washington Post.

Immediately, the church’s attendance doubled.

“God can do more in one day than we can accomplish in a thousand lifetimes. One day, God is going to show up and He’s going to show off His power in our lives,” Batterson said.  “The more I pray, the more coincidences happen and I don’t believe they’re coincidences, they’re providences because there’s a God that orders my footsteps and when I pray like it depends on God and work like it depends on me, look out!”

Batterson says Christians need to remember the power of a single prayer and take steps of faith to allow God to answer those prayers.

“If you want God to do something, you’ve got to do something different; you’ve got to take that step of faith. Here’s the challenge, we want God to reveal the second step before we take the first step because that doesn’t require any faith. In fact, we wish the Lord ‘s Prayer said, ‘Give us this year, our yearly bread’ but He gives the one day and one step revelation.”

Earthquake Rattles Richmond

An earthquake rattled Virginia’s capital on Wednesday night, felt as far north was Washington D.C.

The quake, which measured 3.2 on the Richter Scale, was significantly smaller than the quake in the same region 2 ½ years ago that caused the Washington Monument to be closed until last week.

Virginia officials say over 1,300 people in the region reported feeling the impact of the quake.  Quake reports came in from as far away as Maryland and the District of Columbia.  No major damage was reported and no one was injured.

Residents told the Washington Post the quake reminded them of a big truck driving past their home or a very powerful thunderstorm.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was centered only 7/10th of a mile underground about 30 miles west of Richmond.

St. Patrick’s Day Snowstorm Blasts D.C.

Winter ends on Thursday but it’s not going out quietly.

Another winter storm struck the nation’s capital on Monday dumping over 7 inches of snow and shutting down all federal offices because of the road conditions.

The storm was the third highest snowfall in history for the second half of March.  The official snowfall for the city was 7.2 inches, the highest amount since 1942.  The record is 12 inches set in 1891.

The storm was also the largest March snowstorm since 1999.

The storm also raised the amount of snowfall in Philadelphia this winter to the second highest in the city’s history.  The city has officially recorded 67.4 inches of snow.

Thousands of flights throughout the mid-Atlantic were canceled or delayed because of the storm system.

Severe Wind Storm Darkens Capitol

A surprise windstorm that hit Washington, D.C. knocked out power to the U.S. Capitol building and other landmarks.

Winds were gusting over 50 miles per hour as the temperature fell over 45 degrees during the day according to the National Weather Service.  The blast of colder air blacked out power to the Capitol Dome for half an hour in what officials called “a very rare event.”

Residents of West End reported their lights flickering and going out for the first time in years.

Utility companies say at the maximum outage, over 60,000 customers were without power across the region.

Teen Girls Torture Autistic Teen

Two Washington, DC area teenagers are in jail after being arrested on charges related to torturing an autistic boy.

Lauren Bush, 17 and a 15-year-old girl recorded their assaults against the 16-year-old victim.  In addition to forcing him to perform various personal indignities, they stabbed him multiple times and dragged him around by his hair.

They also forced the victim to walk across a partially frozen pond where he fell through the ice multiple times.  The suspects refused to help the boy out of the frigid water and laughed as he struggled to get back onto the  ice surface.

Bush is being charged as an adult.  Both defendants are facing charges of 1st degree assault, 2nd degree assault, production of child pornography and false imprisonment.

Bush and her co-conspirator have not told police why they committed the acts against the boy.

Pro-Life License Plate Approved In D.C.

The District of Columbia announced the beginning of sales for a pro-life license plate.

The plate, saying “Choose Life,” was made available for purchase on Wednesday.

The Children First Foundation submitted the proposal for the plate during the summer. The group told the Christian Post the DMV told them to expect a six to eight week delay before the plate could be manufactured.

Children First Foundation President Elizabeth Rex said that the plate is something that people could join even if they support abortion.

“Adoption is a pro-life choice that all Americans can support. It’s a very important choice for women who are facing an unplanned pregnancy or an unwanted pregnancy or even an unwanted newborn,” said Rex.

The foundation has been successful in making a “Choose Life” plate available in other states including New York and New Jersey.

FOX News: Connecticut woman killed after Capitol Hill chase reportedly had mental health issues

The suspect in the high-speed chase between the White House and the Capitol Building was identified Friday by a law enforcement source as a dental hygienist from Connecticut with a history of mental issues.

The source identified the woman as Miriam Carey, 34, of Stamford, Conn. Carey tried to plow her car into a barricade at the White House, then led cops on a high-speed chase before being shot dead near the Capitol, according to reports.

Other reports suggest that she had a history of mental health issues.

Carey’s apartment in Stamford was swarmed by the FBI and various law-enforcement agencies Thursday evening, with helicopters circling and a bomb squad ready, as they awaited a warrant to search the premises.

Source: FOX News – FOX News: Connecticut woman killed after Capitol Hill chase reportedly had mental health issues

Reuters: Female suspect in U.S. Capitol shooting killed by police -U.S. Official

A woman suspected of being involved in a car chase across central Washington was shot and killed by police outside the U.S. Capitol building on Thursday, a U.S. official said.

The incident, which sparked a lockdown of Congress, began when the woman tried to ram through security barricades outside the White House.

The official said a Capitol policeman was injured when the car driven by the suspect crashed outside the Capitol.

Source: Reuters – Reuters: Female suspect in U.S. Capitol shooting killed by police -U.S. Official

CBS News: U.S. Capitol Shooting: Child found in car of woman who tried to ram barrier near White House, report says

A law enforcement source says a young child was found in the car of a woman who tried to ram a security barrier near the White House before she was shot on Thursday afternoon, CBS affiliate WUSA reports.

U.S. Capitol Police Chief Kim Dine told reporters the woman was in “very, very bad shape.”

“We have no information that this was related to terrorism or that this was anything other than an isolated incident,” said Dine.

Dine said one police officer was “struck in his squad car” and “appears to be conscious and breathing.”

Source: CBS News – CBS News: U.S. Capitol Shooting: Child found in car of woman who tried to ram barrier near White House, report says