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Orthodox Christmas: Why it’s celebrated by some believers 13 days after Dec. 25

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:56:21 GMT

While much of the world has Christmas in the rearview mirror by now, people in some Eastern Orthodox traditions will celebrate the holy day on Sunday.Certain Eastern Orthodox churches, including those in Russian and other traditions, follow the ancient Julian calendar, which runs 13 days later than the Gregorian calendar, used by Catholic and Protestant churches as well as by much of the secular world for everyday use. Other Orthodox, including those in the Greek tradition and, now, some Ukrainian churches, celebrate Christmas on the same date as Western churches.Why are there different dates for Christmas?Technically, there aren’t. All Eastern Orthodox agree that Dec. 25 is the date of Christmas, or the Feast of the Nativity, as they call it. The question is whether Dec. 25 falls on Dec. 25 or Jan. 7. That requires a little unpacking.The ancient church set its religious feasts based on the Julian calendar, but after more than a millennium, that calendar had increasingly gotte...

Taiwan says Chinese balloons are harassment and a threat to air safety

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:56:21 GMT

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan’s Defense Ministry accused China on Saturday of harassment and trying to affect public morale by repeatedly sending balloons over the self-governing island.A ministry analysis found that the paths of the balloons posed a serious threat to international passenger flights, according to a report by Taiwan’s official Military News Agency. The ministry called for an immediate end to the activity to ensure flight safety, “The ministry urged the people (of Taiwan) to clearly understand the Chinese Communist Party’s cognitive combat methods and face it rationally and calmly so as to avoid being affected by it,” the report said.The purpose of the balloons is unclear, and a Chinese state media outlet has accused Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party and Taiwanese and American media of hyping what it says are harmless weather balloons. The balloon incidents come ahead of a Jan. 13 presidential election in Taiwan in which the island’s relati...

Deaths from western Japan earthquakes surpass 100; rain and snow imperil already shaky ground

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:56:21 GMT

WAJIMA, Japan (AP) — Aftershocks threatened to bury more homes and block roads crucial for relief shipments, as the death toll from the earthquakes that rattled Japan’s western coastline last week surpassed 100 people on Saturday. Among the dead was a 5-year-old boy who had been recovering from injuries after boiling water spilled on him during Monday’s 7.6 magnitude earthquake. His condition suddenly worsened and he died Friday, according to Ishikawa prefecture, the hardest-hit region.Officials warned that roads, already cracked from the dozens of earthquakes that continue to shake the area, could collapse completely. That risk was growing with rain and snow expected overnight and Sunday.Reported deaths had reached 98 earlier Saturday, and two more deaths were reported in Anamizu city as officials were holding their daily meeting to discuss strategy and damages. Within a couple of hours, 10 more deaths were reported in Wajima, putting the latest count at 110 people. Wajima city has...

Warriors’ Chris Paul to undergo surgery for fractured left hand

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:56:21 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Chris Paul fractured his left, non-shooting hand during the Warriors’ win against the Detroit Pistons on Friday and will undergo surgery next week, the Warriors announced. It’s expected that Paul will return sometime this season, but there is no timeline for his return.Paul, 38, injured his hand mid-way through the third quarter going after a loose ball, where it appeared Paul’s hand collided with Jaden Ivey in transition. Paul exited for the locker room immediately and was ruled out shortly after.The injury leaves Golden State without a key playmaker indefinitely. Guards Cory Joseph, Brandin Podziemski and Moses Moody, who had fallen out of the rotation, are expected to fill the 30 minutes Paul leaves behind.Related ArticlesGolden State Warriors | Warriors squeak out win against lowly Detroit Pistons at end of back-to-back Golden State Warriors | Warriors coach Steve Kerr reacts to report of Jonathan Kuminga’s frust...

Stanley’s 30 points power Boise State past San Jose State,

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:56:21 GMT

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — O’Mar Stanley posted a double-double with 30 points and 11 rebounds and Boise State converted 12 of 14 free throws over the final five minutes to overcome San Jose State 78-69 to win its Mountain West Conference opener Friday night. Myron Amey Jr. hit three straight 3-pointers to give San Jose State a 19-10 lead and the Spartans held onto it until Stanley hit the first of two free throws to knot the score at 65-65 during a 10-0 run that saw the Broncos take a 72-65 lead.Stanley hit 11 of 17 from the field and 8 of 10 from the line to lead Boise State (10-4, 1-0 Mountain West). Tyson Degenhart was 8 of 15 from the floor and finished with 21 points. Chibuzo Agbo scored 15 points and Max Rice added 12. Amey hit 5 of 10 from long range and finished with 30 points to lead San Jose State (7-8, 0-2). Trey Anderson added 13 points and Adrame Diongue had 10.Boise State plays host to No. 13 Colorado State Tuesday. San Jose State plays host to San Diego State Tues...

Nate Schmidt helps soaring Jets rally for 3-1 win over Ducks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:56:21 GMT

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Nate Schmidt and Cole Perfetti scored in the third period, and the Winnipeg Jets beat the Anaheim Ducks 3-1 on Friday night to extend their point streak to 11 games.Nikolaj Ehlers also scored for Winnipeg, and Laurent Brossoit made 37 saves. Vladislav Namestnikov had two assists.The Jets earned their fifth consecutive win and improved to 9-0-2 in their last 11 games overall.Mason McTavish scored in the first period for Anaheim, and John Gibson made 24 stops. The Ducks dropped to 4-18-1 in their last 23 games.It was Winnipeg’s second victory at Anaheim in the past month, after the Jets’ Kyle Connor was injured in a knee-on-knee hit by the Ducks’ Ryan Strome on Dec. 10. Connor remains out of action, while Strome was held out because of an upper-body injury.Schmidt snapped a tie with his first of the season 1:57 into the third. Trailing behind a 3-on-2 break, Schmidt got a pass from Dylan Samberg and sent a wrist shot past Gibson on the goaltender’s glove side.Pe...

Domantas Sabonis records another triple-double as Kings hold off Raptors 135-130

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:56:21 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Domantas Sabonis had 24 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists for his second consecutive triple-double, and the Sacramento Kings held off the Toronto Raptors 135-130 on Friday night.De’Aaron Fox also scored 24 for the Kings, who have won four of five. Keegan Murray had 18 points and 12 rebounds, and Harrison Barnes scored 16.Sabonis has eight triple-doubles this season and three in his last four games. He notched the latest one with an alley-oop pass to Malik Monk early in the fourth quarter.The Raptors, with a 40-point third quarter, cut their deficit to 10 to start the fourth and made it a two-point game with under three minutes to play on a 3-pointer by Immanuel Quickley.But with Toronto down by three with nine seconds to go, Quickley missed a long 3 and that sealed it for the Kings.Quickley and Scottie Barnes paced the Raptors with 20 points apiece. Dennis Schroder and Pascal Siakam both scored 18.All five starters on both teams finished in double figures....

No. 2 UCLA routs Oregon 75-49 to stay undefeated at 13-0 behind Angela Dugalic’s 17 points

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:56:21 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — On a night when UCLA’s offense struggled, the second-ranked Bruins were dominant on defense.Angela Dugalic scored a career-high 17 points against her former team and Lauren Betts had 13 points and 11 rebounds in a 75-49 rout of Oregon on Friday night.Kiki Rice added 11 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds with no turnovers for the Bruins (13-0, 2-0 Pac-12), who took 75 shots to 43 for Oregon. “When you shoot as poorly as we did tonight, you should be thankful,” UCLA coach Cori Close said. “That’s why you build your backbone on defense and rebounding because sometimes these nights come.”Already the league’s top rebounding team, the Bruins dominated the boards 46-27, including a 21-1 edge on the offensive glass. Dugalic had nine rebounds.“Our goal for each quarter was to keep them under 12 and the whole game to keep them under 50 which we did by one,” said Dugalic, who helped the Ducks to a Sweet 16 berth in the 2020-21 season.“We preach about defense e...

Marcus Smart hits 8 of Grizzlies’ 23 3-pointers in 127-113 victory over slumping Lakers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:56:21 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jaren Jackson Jr. hit five 3-pointers and scored 31 points, Marcus Smart added 29 points with a season-high eight 3-pointers and the Memphis Grizzlies extended the Los Angeles Lakers’ woes with a 127-113 victory Friday night.Desmond Bane had 24 points and 13 assists while Ja Morant scored 21 points for Memphis, whose starting lineup combined for 21 of a season-high 23 3-pointers on the way to just its second win in six games.Ziaire Williams added 10 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter while the Grizzlies pulled away from the Lakers, who lost their fourth consecutive game.LeBron James scored 32 points and Anthony Davis had 31 in the Lakers’ 10th loss in 13 games since winning the inaugural In-Season tournament.Los Angeles had won six consecutive home games over the Grizzlies in the past 12 months, including three straight in the Lakers’ first-round playoff upset of the second-seeded Grizz last spring.Austin Reaves had 19 points and a career-hig...

Banchero records 1st triple-double, hits go-ahead free throws as Magic hold off Nuggets 122-120

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:56:21 GMT

DENVER (AP) — Paolo Banchero was pleased with his first career triple-double. What made it even better was its central role in a stirring comeback. Banchero hit a pair of go-ahead free throws with 9.7 seconds remaining and the short-handed Orlando Magic rallied Friday night for a 122-120 win over the Denver Nuggets.The young Magic forward finished with 32 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists. He hit four free throws in the last 34.6 seconds in a game where the Magic trailed by as many as 18 points in the third quarter.“Just the power of just positive energy and just pushing each other,” said Banchero, who was 15 of 19 from the free throw line. “We just told each other, ‘We’re all we got. We’re going to live with the result, whatever it is, but we’re not just going to roll over and let these guys blow us out.’” With the game tied at 120, the Nuggets had a chance to take the lead. But Moritz Wagner stole a pass from Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and fed it to Banchero, who drew a...