Local places of worship for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day in the Jackson area

Reuters
Hungary seeks removal of eight people from EU sanctions on Russia
Hungary wants to remove eight individuals from the European Union's Russia sanctions list and receive fresh guarantees on Ukraine gas transit talks before agreeing to renew the restrictions, EU diplomats said. EU sanctions on Russia - imposed over Moscow's war against Ukraine - must be renewed every six months by a unanimous vote and Budapest has often used these renewals as bargaining opportunities. On Monday, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto wrote on Facebook that Budapest would "not consent to rushing ahead" with the sanctions extension on individuals.
AFP
Iran rules out 'direct talks' with US on nuclear issue
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Tuesday dismissed the possibility of direct negotiations with the United States on his country's nuclear programme."There will be no possibility of direct talks between us and the United States on the nuclear issue as long as the maximum pressure is applied in this way," Araghchi said during a joint presser with his visiting Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.
Yahoo Finance
Stock market today: Stocks waver, bitcoin tumbles below $90,000 for first time since November
Tech stocks are poised for more losses as uncertainty over tariffs and risks to Nvidia take hold.
Yahoo Finance
Coinbase, Strategy lead crypto stocks lower as bitcoin tumbles below $90,000 for first time since November
Crypto stocks sank across the board Tuesday as bitcoin fell below $90,000 for the first time since November. Crypto heavyweights Strategy and Coinbase led the declines.
USA TODAY
A seven-planet alignment happens in late-February, but it could be tricky to see it
While all seven planets could appear in some form in parts of the U.S., not all of them will be visible to the naked eye. Here's what to know.
Politico
‘There will continue to be a CFPB’: Trump administration says it won't shut bureau
The bureau — long a big target of Republicans — is at the center of the Trump administration’s effort to slash the federal bureaucracy.
Reuters
Mexico says U.S. has not responded to request to return accused drug lord
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Mexican Attorney General Alejandro Gertz said Tuesday that the U.S. government has not yet responded to Mexico's request to extradite accused senior drug lord Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada back to Mexico, after he was flown to the U.S. and arrested there last year. Gertz noted that late last year the U.S. government confirmed it had received the Mexican government's extradition request for Zambada, the co-founder of the powerful Sinaloa Cartel along with jailed kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.
NBC News
Chinese company withdraws notice setting deadline for single workers to get married
A company in China has rolled back a policy threatening never-married and divorced employees with termination if they were still single by the end of September, after pushback from the public as well as government officials.
AFP
In Brazil's Amazon, dolphin therapy aids people with disabilities
Floating in the Rio Negro river in the Brazilian Amazon, Luiz Felipe, who has Down Syndrome, beams as he hugs a pink dolphin during a special therapy session.The pink river dolphins -- known as boto -- approach the group out of curiosity, swimming between their legs and floating among them, eager for human attention.
Associated Press
Carlyle Group co-founder Bill Conway’s $1 billion plan to end the nursing shortage
Bill Conway didn’t start out wanting to make a big impact on the nursing profession. Most were sob stories, but some people had good ideas, he says, and several suggested backing bachelor’s degree nursing programs. “It was along the lines of: If we support potential students to get a nursing degree, then they’ll always be able to get a job and take care of themselves, their families, and the rest of us,” remembers Conway.
NBC News
U.N. vote on Russia-Ukraine war and Lester Holt leaving 'Nightly News': Morning Rundown
Some Republican lawmakers plan to share their constituents’ frustrations with Elon Musk.
Reuters
US house prices increase strongly in December
U.S. single-family house prices increased solidly in December, despite improving supply, which together with elevated mortgage rates will continue to erode affordability. House prices rose 0.4% on a month-on-month basis after an upwardly revised 0.4% increase in November, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said on Tuesday. The strong increase in prices was despite rising housing supply, which is being driven by ebbing demand amid higher mortgage rates.
NBC News
They were told to get extra breast cancer screenings. Then they got stuck with the bill.
Increasing numbers of women are getting additional screenings to rule out breast cancer. But such screenings cost money, out of pocket, for most women.
Time
Musk Says Federal Workers Will Be Given ‘Another Chance’ at Email Ultimatum
The request for employees to outline their job accomplishments has been met with pushback from departments and agencies.
TODAY
What happened to Gabby Petito? New Netflix docuseries explores her story
Netflix released a three-part documentary series about Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie, featuring Petito's family/friends sharing her story before her murder.
The Conversation
Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting prioritizes ‘real’ independence from the US − but what does that mean and is it achievable?
Friedrich Merz has expressed a desire to ‘strengthen Europe as quickly as possible’ in the face of a growing rift between EU countries and the Trump administration.
Associated Press
Freed Israeli hostage held onto faith to get through months of captivity in Gaza
An Israeli hostage freed in the current ceasefire between Israel and Hamas said Tuesday that faith sustained her in captivity and that she used the few means that were available to observe Judaism. In what appeared to be the first media interview by a captive freed in this ceasefire, Agam Berger told Israeli public radio Reshet Bet that she was moved around multiple times during the nearly 16 months she was held in the Gaza Strip. Berger was a military spotter who was captured along with other female surveillance soldiers on Oct. 7, 2023, from a base in southern Israel.
The Conversation
A hazy legal landscape means people can get high on hemp products, even where pot is prohibited
The 2018 farm bill legalized hemp products that offer a high similar to marijuana nationwide. Experts worry that lax regulations present a public health risk.
The Conversation
Butchers, bakers, candlestick-makers − and prostitutes: The women working behind the scenes in papal Avignon
Women’s work may not have been glamorous, but it was vital to the workings of the pope’s court and surrounding city.
The Conversation
500 years ago, German peasants revolted – but their faith that the Protestant Reformation stood for freedom was dashed by Martin Luther and the nobility
The German peasants were among the first to try to unlock the revolutionary potential of Reformation teachings to fight social and economic injustice.

Local places of worship for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day in the Jackson area

First Baptist Church of Jackson

Christ United Methodist Church

Galloway Memorial United Methodist Church

St. Andrew’s Episcopal Cathedral

St. James Episcopal

Broadmoor Baptist Church

First Baptist Church of Madison

Madison United Methodist Church

Latest Stories

Hungary seeks removal of eight people from EU sanctions on Russia

Iran rules out 'direct talks' with US on nuclear issue

Stock market today: Stocks waver, bitcoin tumbles below $90,000 for first time since November

Coinbase, Strategy lead crypto stocks lower as bitcoin tumbles below $90,000 for first time since November

A seven-planet alignment happens in late-February, but it could be tricky to see it

‘There will continue to be a CFPB’: Trump administration says it won't shut bureau

Mexico says U.S. has not responded to request to return accused drug lord

Chinese company withdraws notice setting deadline for single workers to get married

In Brazil's Amazon, dolphin therapy aids people with disabilities

Carlyle Group co-founder Bill Conway’s $1 billion plan to end the nursing shortage

U.N. vote on Russia-Ukraine war and Lester Holt leaving 'Nightly News': Morning Rundown

US house prices increase strongly in December

They were told to get extra breast cancer screenings. Then they got stuck with the bill.

Musk Says Federal Workers Will Be Given ‘Another Chance’ at Email Ultimatum

What happened to Gabby Petito? New Netflix docuseries explores her story

Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting prioritizes ‘real’ independence from the US − but what does that mean and is it achievable?

Freed Israeli hostage held onto faith to get through months of captivity in Gaza

A hazy legal landscape means people can get high on hemp products, even where pot is prohibited

Butchers, bakers, candlestick-makers − and prostitutes: The women working behind the scenes in papal Avignon

500 years ago, German peasants revolted – but their faith that the Protestant Reformation stood for freedom was dashed by Martin Luther and the nobility