The school board here decided Friday to fire a science teacher accused of burning a cross on a student's arm and teaching creationism in his class. The board, however, will give John Freshwater, 51, of Mount Vernon Middle School two weeks to appeal the decision to end his contract and argue his case before the firing is made official on July 7.

Desperately wanting to see his flock increased by at least three-fold, a German priest has started offering money to his parishioners in exchange for attending mass. Instead of passing out collection trays during church services, Father Burkhard Westphal doles out five-euro notes in envelopes to everyone who attends Sunday mass at his church in Collinghorst, Germany.

Experts in UFOs are trooping to the once quiet farming community in Stephenville, Texas after receiving reports that at least a dozen of its residents have been seeing mysterious lights in the sky lately. Among those who have claimed to have seen the bright lights hovering the skies were a pilot, a policeman and local business owners. Some even claim seeing fighter jets chasing the unidentified craft when the lights appeared on January 8. However, the local Air Force base issued a statement saying none of its planes were in the area at the given time.

A state representative-elect, carrying a Bible and was just sworn into office, kicked a photographer who took a picture of him during a prayer in the statehouse. Douglas Bruce visited the House floor as a guest of a fellow Colorado Springs Republican Rep. Kent Lambert on Monday morning.

Residents of a Texas community found themselves stunned by a celestial scene involving what many believe was a UFO. Eyewitness accounts told of a large, silent, object with flashing lights, with residents insisting that it was lower to the ground than an airplane.