BETHLEHEM, West Bank — The annual cleaning of one of Christianity's holiest churches deteriorated into a brawl between rival clergy Wednesday, as dozens of monks feuding over sacred space at the Church of the Nativity battled each other with brooms until police intervened.
The ancient church, built over the traditional site of Jesus' birth in Bethlehem, is shared by three Christian denominations — Roman Catholics, Armenians and Greek Orthodox.
Wednesday's fight erupted between Greek and Armenian clergy, with both sides accusing each other of encroaching on parts of the church to which they lay claim.
The monks were tidying up the church ahead of Orthodox Christmas celebrations in early January, following celebrations by Western Christians on Dec. 25. The fight erupted between monks along the border of their respective areas. Some shouted and hurled brooms.
Palestinian security forces rushed in to break up the melee, and no serious injuries were reported. A Palestinian police spokesman would not immediately comment.
A fragile status quo governs relations among the denominations at the ancient church, and to repair or clean a part of the structure is to own it, according to accepted practice. That means that letting other sects clean part of the church could allow one to gain ground at another's expense. Similar fights have taken place during the same late-December cleaning effort in the past.
Tensions between rival clergy at the church have been a fact of life there for centuries and have often been caught up in international politics.
In the 1800s, friction between the denominations at the church — each backed by foreign powers — became so fraught that Russian Czar Nicholas I deployed troops along the Danube to threaten a Turkish sultan who had been favoring the Catholics over the Orthodox.
Those disagreements threaten the integrity of the church itself, which was originally built 1,500 years ago and parts of which have fallen into disrepair. Although the roof has needed urgent work for decades, and leaking rainwater has ruined much of the priceless artwork inside, a renovation has been delayed all these years by disagreements among the denominations over who would pay.
Only recently, the Palestinian Authority brokered an agreement to move ahead with replacing the roof, and officials hope work will begin in 2012.
The rosters for the 2012 NFL Pro Bowl have been announced and as usual there are some head scratchers as well snubs for both the AFC and NFC teams.
The New England Patriots and San Francisco 49ers led the way by placing eight players apiece on the AFC and NFC rosters.
Notable players who didn't make the team include Mathew Stafford - QB (Lions), Brian Cushing - LB (Texans), Duane Brown - OT (Texans), Aaron Hernandez - TE (Patriots), Marshawn Lynch - RB (Seahawks), D'Qwell Jackson - LB (Browns), Aldon Smith - LB (49ers) and London Fletcher (Redskins).
AFC offensive starters:
Quarterback: Tom Brady (Patriots), Running Back: Ray Rice (Ravens), FB Vonta Leach (Ravens), Wide Receivers: Wes Welker (Patriots) and Mike Wallace (Steelers), Tight End: Ron Gronkowski (Patriots), Tackles: Joe Thomas (Browns) and Jake Long (Dolphins), Guards: Logan Mankins (Patriots) and Brian Waters (Patriots), Center: Maurkice Pouncey (Steelers).
AFC defensive starters:
Defensive Ends: Dwight Freeney (Colts) and Andre Carter (Patriots), Defensive Tackles: Haloti Ngata (Ravens) and Vince Wilfork (Patriots), Outside Linebackers : Terrell Suggs (Ravens) and Von Miller (Broncos), Inside Linebacker: Ray Lewis (Ravens), Cornerbacks: Darrelle Revis (Jets) and Champ Bailey (Broncos), Strong Safety: Troy Polamalu (Steelers).
AFC Special teams:
Punter: Shane Lechler (Raiders), Kicker: Sebastian Janikowski (Raiders), Kick returner: Antonio Brown (Steelers), Special teamer Matthew Slater (Patriots).
NFC offensive starters:
Quarterback: Aaron Rodgers (Packers), Running Back: Lesean McCoy (Eagles), Fullback: John Kuhn (Packers), Wide Receivers: Larry Fitzgerald (Cardinals), Calvin Johnson (Lions), Tight End: Jimmy Graham (Saints), Tackles: Jason Peters (Eagles) Joe Staley (49ers), Guards: Jahri Evans (Saints), Carl Nicks (Saints), Center: Ryan Kalil (Panthers).
NFC Defensive starters:
Defensive Ends: Jared Allen (Vikings) and Jason Babin (Eagles), Defensive tackles: Justin Smith (49ers) Jay Ratliff (Cowboys), Outside Linebackers: DeMarcus Ware (Cowboys) and Clay Matthews (Packers), Inside Linebacker: Patrick Willis (49ers), Cornerbacks: Charles Woodson (Packers) and Carlos Rogers (49ers), Free Safety: Earl Thomas (Seahawks), Strong Safety: Adrian Wilson (Cardinals).
NFC Special teams:
Punter: Andy Lee (49ers), Kicker: David Akers (49ers), Kick returner Patrick Peterson (Cardinals), Special teamer: Corey Graham (Bears).
New England Patriots (8) * Tom Brady, quarterback * Andre Carter, defensive end * Rob Gronkowski, tight end * Logan Mankins, guard Matthew Slater, special-teamer * Brian Waters, guard * Wes Welker, wide receiver * Vince Wilfork, interior lineman
N.Y. Jets (3) D'Brickashaw Ferguson, tackle Nick Mangold, center * Darrelle Revis, cornerback
Oakland Raiders (3) Sebastian Janikowski, place-kicker Shane Lechler, punter Richard Seymour, interior lineman
Pittsburgh Steelers (5) Antonio Brown, kick returner * Troy Polamalu, strong safety * Maurkice Pouncey, center Ben Roethlisberger, quarterback * Mike Wallace, wide receiver
San Diego Chargers (3) Antonio Gates, tight end Philip Rivers, quarterback Eric Weddle, free safety
NFC TEAM-BY-TEAM
Arizona Cardinals (3) * Larry Fitzgerald, wide receiver Patrick Peterson, kick returner * Adrian Wilson, strong safety
Carolina Panthers (2) * Ryan Kalil, center Steve Smith, wide receiver
Chicago Bears (5) Lance Briggs, outside linebacker Matt Forte, running back Corey Graham, special-teamer Charles Tillman, cornerback Brian Urlacher, inside/middle linebacker
New Orleans Saints (5) Drew Brees, quarterback Jermon Bushrod, tackle * Jahri Evans, guard * Jimmy Graham, tight end * Carl Nicks, guard
N.Y. Giants (2) Eli Manning, quarterback Jason Pierre-Paul, defensive end
Philadelphia Eagles (3) * Jason Babin, defensive end * LeSean McCoy, running back * Jason Peters, tackle
San Francisco 49ers (8) David Akers, place-kicker Dashon Goldson, free safety Frank Gore, running back Andy Lee, punter * Carlos Rogers, cornerback * Justin Smith, interior lineman * Joe Staley, tackle * Patrick Willis, inside/middle linebacker
Posted by ChasinDatPaper on December 28, 2011 at 10:30am
After numerous delays Young Jeezy's fourth studio album, Thug Motivation 103: Hustlerz Ambition, was released on December 20. With final numbers counted the album moved 233,000 units. Good enough to place 3rd on the Billboard 200 chart.
Adele's21 shows no sign of slowing down. The album placed No. 2 on the charts with it's biggest sales week yet, moving 399,000 copies to push it's 2011 total to 5.68 million according to Billboard.
Michael Buble'sChristmas album claimed the top spot on the charts, selling 467,000 copies.
Common's The Dreamer/The Believer sold 69,000 units, landing at the No. 18 spot.
Posted by ChasinDatPaper on December 28, 2011 at 10:00am
It's been a good holiday season for Nicki Minaj and her boyfriend/hypeman Safaree aka Scaff Beezy. The couple plopped down a significant amount of cash for his and hers matching Bentley GTs
"Blurry vision got you seeing double," Safaree wrote on his Twitter page, attaching a pic of the luxury cars.
The rides costs between $200,000 and $300,000 each.
"I got ova 600k in insured jewels," Safaree added on Facebook. "I think I can afford to buy a Bentley I shoulda bought a Civic…. LOL all good"
The youtube video "Sh*t Black Girls Say" has gone viral with over 1.2 million views since being posted on December 16. The clip is a spoof of another popular series of videos "Sh*t Girls Say," but not everyone is laughing.
The Elijah "EK" Griffin directed video features actor Billy Sorrels dressed in drag, playing the role of "Peaches," a black woman who pats her itchy weave and constantly complains.
“We were just trying to amuse ourselves. We didn’t expect it to be viral,” Sorrells told the New York Daily News. “People need to laugh. When we laugh, we see each other better.”
Despite what looks to be an overwhelmingly positive response from most of the video's viewers, two African American women's advocacy groups are not amused.
“While those images are funny to those of us who are well- educated, some young people don’t know how to filter the message,” said Benita Miller, founder of The Brooklyn Young Mothers’ Collective. “Young people don’t know what is real or what is imagined,” Miller said. “When you work with young women they take on these characteristics.”
“You put something on YouTube, the whole world is watching,” added Farah Tanis, executive director of Black Women's Blueprint. “I don’t think it is a man’s place to offer this type of representation of black women.”
Griffin says people need to learn how to laugh and get over themselves.
“To all those people offended out there - it is a simple joke,” said Griffin. “It’s made for people who are easy going.”
Cory Gunz and Meek Mill team up with director John Colombo to deliver official visuals for "YMCMB MMG." The song is featured of Cory's mixtape Son Of A Gun.
In episode 10 of Tyga's "Careless World" web series we get a peek at footage not seen on "Keepin Up With the Kardashians" as Kendall Jenner celebrates her "Sweet 16" birthday party. Tyga is the entertainment for the night and Kendall requests he perform "Rack City" and "Make It Nasty."
Tyga also hits up El Paso, NYC, Toronto and Santa Ana during the clip. Guest appearances from Busta Rhymes, Drake, J. Cole and Waka Flocka.
50 Cent recently went into detail with Vibe about his miscommunication with T.I. earlier this year. The two rap titans briefly butted heads due to comments Fif made regarding Tip's wife Tiny, and the possibility she should take the charge in their 2010 drug bust in L.A.
Tip responded in the December/January issue of Vibe, basically saying it was nobody's business how he handled affairs regarding his family.
50 shot back on Twitter:
“Man I just saw something T.I said in VIBE about a tweet I wrote when he caught his drug case. He just got out a jam and caught a new one. Any other time a n*gga done. Get caught with 10 machine gun an silencer then catch a drug charge. You will f*ck around and get natural life.”
It looked for a minute like 50 and T.I. might be headed towards a beef, but a mutual friend intervened and got them to talk things out over the phone like gentlemen.
In the clip below 50 speaks on the incident and how the media and fans play a role in stirring up controversies between artists.
"He had a lot of legitimate points," 50 said of his phone call with Tip. "Like, the press will ask you questions about things. They'll ask artists that are relevant to the culture things about other artists that are just going through something. Your response impacts harder than it would at any other point. Then you get the people who want the fight. They'll start to champion that like, 'go, go, go!' Then when they find out that it's not going to actually happen, and I'm the source of where they find that out at they go, 'ahh.' They try to make the fight again. They try to say, 'oh he's scared.' Like me, when you known me to back down?"
The L.A. County Coroner's Office said today that the rap pioneer died due to a pulmonary embolism – a blood clot in his lung caused by deep vein thrombosis according to TMZ.
Heavy, real name Dwight Arrington Meyers, had just traveled back from Europe after performing at a Michael Jackson tribute concert in Wales. The long flight back may have played a part in the blood clot forming in his legs and eventually traveling to his lungs.
The coroner's office also said the 44-year old rapper suffered from heart disease.
Heavy died on November 9, 2011 after returning home from a shopping trip. He collapsed at his Beverly Hills home complaining of difficulty breathing. He was rushed to Los Angeles Cedars-Sinai Medical Center where he was later pronounced dead.
In the latest episode of Kanye West's "Watch The Throne" tour vlog a lucky fan wins a pair of tickets to see Ye and Jay-Z live. Watch the lucky fan's excitement as Yeezy's manager, Don C, grants him and a friend free access to the show.
Slim Dunkin was laid to rest Friday (December 23) a week after suffering a fatal gunshot wound during a fight in an Atlanta recording studio. The rapper's friends and associates hit the block in his old neighborhood to pay their final respects to the Brick Squad Monopoly member.
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