An Alabama elementary school is banning the word Easter from campus activities because the principal said that even secular symbols such as the Easter bunny relate too closely to religion and would not only offend someone but do something even more serious.

"Kids love the bunny and we just try to make sure that we don't say the 'Easter' bunny so that we don't infringe upon the rights of others because people relate the Easter bunny to religion," said Principal Lydia Davenport of Heritage Elementary School in Madison, Ala.

Davenport informed teachers on Monday (March 25) that the school's plans to have an "academic egg hunt" for kindergarten and second grade students would have to be cancelled. Instead, teachers are being asked to use something else besides eggs and to not mention the word "Easter," according to local news reports. more >>

A new Saginaw, Mich., church targeting the under 40 demographic will be hosting a massive drop of 50,000 plastic Easter Eggs filled with candy and miniature toys on Saturday.

Founding Pastor of Life Church Michigan Jonathan Herron told The Christian Post the drop will be hosted on the campus of the Saginaw Valley State University where his new church has been meeting for services since March 17.

"Things are going fantastic. The whole idea was we are a new church and we love children, we love families, so we are throwing a free party because Jesus loved to connect with people at parties," said Herron. more >>

No one seems to question Tim Tebow's capabilities when it comes to inspirational speeches. So it was with open arms that Wichita State University men's basketball team, fresh off an upset victory over top-seeded Gonzaga during NCAA's March Madness, granted the Jets QB his request to talk to the players on their bus.

"This you will remember for the rest of your lives," said Tebow, whose plane was refueling in Wichita when the Shockers' bus arrived Sunday. "Some of you might go play in the NBA and have great lives, but this is the time you will remember … these are the special times in your lives regardless of what you do in the future."

As the result of Wichita State's 76-70 victory, the Shockers advanced to the "Sweet 16" and are scheduled to play La Salle on Thursday. The Shockers went into the tournament as a No. 9 seed. The team made five consecutive 3-pointers in the win that ousted the West Region's top seed and the nation's No. 1 team during the regular season. more >>

NEW YORK –For a moment during his funeral service on Saturday, nothing could console the mother of 16-year-old Kimani Gray who was shot dead by two undercover officers of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, N.Y., on March 9.

Hundreds of mourners who had crammed the St. Catherine of Genoa Catholic Church in the community watched in helpless silence as Carol Gray removed the shades she had used to cover her eyes, draped her body across her son's coffin that sat before the altar, and disrupted her mostly muted display of grief with a wail that pierced the quiet of the somber service in angry defiance.

"Kimani, Kimani, Kimani," she screamed as if attempting to call him back from the dead. "No! No! No! No! Kimaniii!" New York City Councilman Charles Barron and other grieving family members comforted her until the wave of anguish had subsided. more >>

The United States Commission on Civil Rights held a public briefing Friday in order to take a closer look at how the nation's nondiscrimination principles are coexisting with those of religious liberty.

The half-day meeting between expert panelists and the commission reflected the divided sentiment in the country over such issues as the HHS mandate and college campus access for Christian fellowship groups, InterVarsity National Field Director for the Northeast Greg Jao told The Christian Post.

"It's interesting how partisan and divided both the panel and commission seem to be, which really reflects the conversation we are having in the country about religious liberty," said Jao, who attended the briefing. More than 17 different chapters of InterVarsity have sent in reports to the commission for review and 10 more chapters plan to do the same, he said. more >>

When teens from Florida megachurch Bethel Baptist Institutional talk to their secular peers about God these days, instead of pulling out a familiar tract, they profess their faith through videos of the church's youth group rapping about Jesus or their exuberant interpretation of the popular Harlem Shake.

It's a novel idea that Anthony O'Neal, the youth pastor of Bethel's One Way Youth Ministries, was initially hesitant about. Once he realized the idea was resonating with his young charges, however, the entire church, including Senior Pastor Bishop Rudolph W. McKissick, Jr. gave them their blessings.

When O'Neal joined Bethel's team as youth pastor last summer, one of the first things he did was ask them, "What can we do to make the church more attractive?" more >>