Spain's Association of the Sovereign Order of the Temple of Christ could theoretically demand compensation in the order of billions of euros -- but they claim that this is not their main motivation.

"We are not trying to cause the economic collapse of the Roman Catholic Church, but to illustrate to the court the magnitude of the plot against our order," read a statement from the order.

These knights of today may be attempting a bloodless form of retribution -- but they now have to contend with an intractable enemy in the form of the Spanish legal system.

The current petition is in the form of an appeal after authorities rejected their first attempt.

The original Knights Templar were a powerful group of warrior monks founded by the French knight Hugues de Payens to protect pilgrims to Jerusalem during the Crusades.

They provided services including shipping and banking -- by employing an early form of travellers cheque, the Templars are credited with laying the foundations for modern European banking.

But their amassing of tremendous wealth brought unwelcome attention from their enemies -- and an unholy alliance between Pope Clement V and King Philip IV of France brought about their demise in 1307.

Many Templars were tortured and burnt at the stake as heretics, including the Grand Master Jacques de Molay.

The death of de Molay has inspired a legend linking the dissolution of the Templars with the French revolution.

According to a passage in The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail: "When the king's head fell beneath the guillotine, an unknown man is reported to have leaped onto the scaffold."

"He dipped his hand in the monarch's blood, flung it out over the surrounding throng and cried, "Jacques de Molay, thou art avenged!"

Now the order must wait and see if they can expect satisfaction from the Spanish courts.

The Vatican have yet to comment on this reminder of their bloody past.

Although many of the sightings can be dismissed as false alarms, a minority elude proper explaination.

"Most of the UFO sightings here are probably misidentifications of aircraft lights and meteors," said Nick Pope, the man responsible for investigating the sightings at the MoD.

"But some are more difficult to explain, and include UFOs seen by police officers and pilots, and cases where UFOs have been tracked on radar."

Folklore expert Dr David Clarke of Sheffield Hallam University has been assisting the National Archives in the release of the documents.

As one of the few academics to take UFOs seriously, Dr Clarke has in-depth knowledge of UFO encounters that cannot be dismissed easily.

One of the reports in the archives was filed from an anonymous small airport near the east coast of England.

Experienced air traffic controllers described how they were guiding a small plane coming in to land, when they saw a brightly lit object approach another runway without clearance.

"Everyone became aware that the object was unidentified," the report reads.

"SATCO [code name for a controller with 14 years experience] reports that the object came in 'at speed,' made a touch and go on runway 27, then departed at 'terrific speed' in a 'near vertical' climb."

"They were absolutely astonished," Dr Clarke said.

"It was a bright, circular object, flashing different colors, and after it touched down it disappeared at fantastic speed."

Dr Clarke is convinced that the report should be taken seriously as the men involved were air traffic controllers with eight years experience on the job.

"The report comes from very qualified people, and it's one of the few that remained unexplained."

The MoD has always maintained that there has never been any contact with aliens, despite a plethora of conspiracy theories to the contrary.

A ministry memo from 1983 says: "The sole interest of the Ministry of Defence in UFO reports is to establish whether they reveal anything of defence interest (e.g. intruding aircraft)."

"The Ministry of Defence does not deny that there are strange things to see in the sky."

"It certainly has no evidence that alien spacecraft have landed on this planet."

Having examined the documents in the archives, Dr Clarke can find no physical evidence for alien contact.

"The Ministry of Defense doesn't have any evidence that our defences were breached by alien craft," he said.

"They never found one, no bits of one."

"That's all we can say."

“We received 350 e-mails on Wednesday. Most of them were spam, some of them we skimmed, but this one really stood out and required a response,” said Peter Gilmore, high priest of the Church of Satan.

"I thought it could be a joke, but with recent events in Colorado and Nebraska, I thought it was better to play it safe."

The email stated 18-year-old Andrew Culver's intentions to 'kill in the name of our unholy lord Satan.'

When questioned by local police, he claimed that it was all a 'joke.'

"To send an email making specific threats, to sign your name, that to me is not a joke," said Bazetta Township police Chief Charles Sayers.

Sayers claimed that Culver was arrogant during questioning and laughed openly at the police.

‘‘I didn’t detect any respect for authority,’’ he said.

The Church of Satan was founded in 1966 by Anton LeVay and has attracted devotees from all walks of life, including celebrities ranging from Sammy Davis Jr to Marilyn Manson.

LeVay eventually handed over control of the Church to Gilmore, the man responsible for alerting the FBI to Culver's death threats.

Culver is now in police custody whilst charges relating to the case are prepared.

During his incarceration, he may do well to use the time and study the Satanic creed with greater care.

The Church of Satan lists nine acts that it considers to be sins.

They include stupidity, lack of perspective, and counterproductive pride.

The museum will feature sit at the foot of the Acropolis and will open next year.

A stone carving from the Parthenon was the first to be removed for transfer to the new museum -- the slab portrays four youths leading bulls to be sacrificed for Athena.

"I am trembling, it touches my soul," said a tearful onlooker, 71-year-old Pelagia Boulamatsi.

"This is an ancient civilization that is the foundation of the world."

The cranes are relaying the carvings and other objects from the existing 130-year-old museum on the Acropolis itself.

Moving to the foot of the Acropolis will save millions of tourists from an arduous climb.

A floor of the museum will be dedicated to the Parthenon, with replicas in place of the carvings taken from the ancient temple by Lord Elgin in the 19th century.

The Greeks hope that the opening of the museum will encourage the British to return the missing sculptures.

"This museum protects and promotes the monuments in the best possible way and the request naturally re-emerges," said Michael Liapis, minister of culture.

Criticism of the project has come from Athenians objecting to the location of the new museums, along with architects disdainful of the museum's modern look.

"Some people said it should be built in the style of the Acropolis. I said there was no way you could match it," said Bernard Tschumi, the museum's architect.

"I'm very happy with its quality."

The moving of the first carving attracted protesters, resentful of the fact that two historic buildings are being knocked down to improve the view from the museum's restaurant.

"You don't demolish a city's history to build something new. This is just unacceptable," said Angelos Tsekeris, one of the protesters shouting slogans.

"It's a shame, they plan the ugliest intervention at the city's prettiest spot."

A total of 1.81 million yen (£7,000) was found across 18 mailboxes in a Tokyo apartment.

"The money was in identical plain envelopes, which were unsealed and carried no names or messages," a police spokesperson said.

But far from being gratefully recieved, many residents were unsettled by the gifts and refused to pocket the money -- instead they called the authorities.

"Some people initially suspected they were fake bills. When they realised the bills were real, they reported them to us," the spokesman said.

Tokyo residents have also been spooked by a shower of money, with many refusing to touch the money.

Around 960,000 yen (£4,500) were seen falling front of a convenience store.

"We can just say the money came from the skies," a police spokesperson said.

"There were other passers-by outside and customers in the store but the incident caused no confusion.

"People thought it was too eerie to touch."

The largest mystery donation so far was in Kyoto, where a 67-year-old woman found an envelope containing 10 million yen (£45,000) in her mailbox.

Although one man came forward to claim he was the mystery philanthropist, he was later discredited as a fantasist.

For now, the identity of the mysterious benefactor remains shrouded in mystery.

Hundreds of bones were found in the remains of a hill fort near Prague.

Examination of the remains revealed that the hind legs of the males were eaten exclusively as they were the meatiest.

This indicates that the males would have been deliberately caught during the mating season occurring in the spring.

According the report containing the findings: "It took place most probably in March or April, when frogs are at the height of their mating activity; when they tend to gather in great numbers and are easily captured.

"This is supported by the male dominated sex ratio and the prevalence of adult individuals."

Up until now, archaelogical evidence had indicated that France was the origin for the practice of eating frogs.

The researchers stated that: "The discovery indicates that the dietary use of frogs in prehistory is not limited to the Western Europe only.

"It shows that the small vertebrate could have played an important role in human lives in central European agricultural prehistory."

In a letter to the BBC, he accused the documentary's maker John Sweeney of expressing his 'personal prejudices, bigotry and animosity' and harbouring 'hatred against my religion'.

Scientologists have been following the makers of the documentairy and have produced their own programme which is being distributed on 100,000 DVDs being sent to MPs, civil servants, religious groups, media organisations and business leaders.

The DVD features footage of John Sweeney shouting at a Scientologist after complaining of feeling 'brain-washed' by an anti-psychiatry exhibition created by the group.

Having been followed by Scientologists for six days, one accused Sweeney of giving a Scientology critic an easy ride even though he'd only heard part of the interview.

At this point, Sweeney shouted: 'You were not there at the beginning of the interview! You were not there! You did not hear or record all the interview!'

A BBC inquiry found no misconduct by Sweeney, yet Scientologists have posted the clip to YouTube and are attempting to make capital from the fact that Sweeney 'lost it'.

Sweeney has apologised and attempted to justify his behaviour.

"I am hugely embarrassed," he said.

"I look like an exploding tomato and shout like a jet engine and every time I see it it makes me cringe. The moment it happened I said sorry. I let the side down and the BBC down and I am ashamed. But I felt I was being brainwashed and if people see the full clip I think they will have more sympathy with me."

John Howes, of the Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service, said the plumber was 'very upset'.

"It appears at this stage that this was an unfortunate plumber who was soldering in the roof space of a large building, which was undergoing total renovation," he said.

"For reasons we don't yet know, the fire has flashed up quickly and gone through the whole of a brand new and very expensive roof.

"Our initial investigations indicate that it was not his fault the flames spread so quickly.

"We think a blowtorch may have set light to expanded polystyrene foam in the roof space.

"Investigations will continue but that seems to be the most likely cause at this stage."

The mansion recently underwent a muilti-million pound renovation to open as a luxury hotel this year.

A listed bulding, the mansion was used as a location for several TV programmes and films such as 'The French Lieutenant's Woman'.

The eight-bedroomed home is owned by greetings card magnate Andrew Brownsword.

A spokesman for Mr Brownsword believed that there was no malice involved in the incident.

Phelps first achieved notoriety through his 'God Hates Fags' campaign that not only encompassed gay people but anyone perceived to be a sympathiser.

His church believes that by disobeying God's injunctions against gay behaviour, America has doomed itself.

Hence the pickets at funerals -- the group has no sympathy for the deceased as they were fighting for a Sodomite nation.

Reaction against the funeral protests has been fierce. States all across America are passing laws forcing the picketers to keep their distance -- and diluting constitutional rights to free speech in the process.

A motorcycle club has also been formed that provides a human shield between the picketers and the grieving families.

The church for its part is unrepentant.

A recent BBC documentary portrayed followers as sure of their convictions as they were harsh against non-believers that did not follow theie form of Calvinism.

Even a venerable figure like Desmond Tutu was damned to burn in hell in their eyes.

Parents involved in their cult showed no qualms about involving young children in their protests -- even when they had no understanding of what they were doing.

One scene in the BBC documentary shows a six-year-old boy holding a placard with the message: 'Thank God for 9/11'.

"The reason that we chose pizza is just because it is a very popular food product, not only in the US but worldwide," said Jeffrey Moore, who worked on the study at the University of Maryland.

The study focused on fermentation time for the dough, baking temperatures, and baking time.

Antioxidant levels rose with higher baking temperatures, depending on the type of wheat flour and the antioxidant test used.

The precise mechanisms involved are unclear, according to the findings of the study.

Longer fermentation -- up to two days in some cases -- doubled the dough's antioxidant levels.

This is probably due to yeasts in the dough having more time to release the antioxidant components.

But there is skepticism about the idea of a healthier pizza.

"I would rather people ate their five portions of fruit and vegetables each day, than ate more pizza," said Jacqui Lowdon of the British Dietetic Association.

"They will be getting a high fat intake, and it may make them more likely to choose extra cheese and salami.

"This isn't teaching people about healthy eating."

The research was funded by the US Government and the US grain industry -- without any input from pizza makers.

Since 1981, rumours have circulated that P&G's logo covertly represented Satan -- it features a bearded crescent man in the moon surrounded by 13 stars.

Fundamentalist Christians claimed that the man had horns and that the 13 stars were emblematic of a satanic cabal.

The company responded by saying that the 13 stars represented the original 13 states of the United States of America and restyled the logo to remove the 'horns' -- all to no avail.

Distributors of products from rivals Amway were not reluctant to pass such rumours along, according to testimony heard in court.

Former Amway distributor Randy L. Haugen circulated the satanic rumour to other Amway salesmen on a common phone-message system, then circulated the retraction.

The original message, however, found its way to Procter & Gamble.

Amway is a notorious multi-level marketing network, described by detractors as being akin to a religious cult.

The company sells its range of toiletries to members of the public who are then encourages to sell to their friends, family, and work colleagues -- bringing them into the Amway 'family'.

Amway itself claims that it acted quickly to quash rumours and the company was dismissed from the case, leaving four ex-distributors to face the music.

As one of the world's largest and most successful companies, the multi-million settlement matters little to them -- and the distributors are covered by liability insurance so will not be personally out of pocket.

But the lawsuit hopefully closes this most bizarre chapter in American corporate history.

The ants have plagued the Hong Hock See Temple for over a year. One devotee had to be treated for severe bites at a hospital last month.

In an effort to eradicate the pests, a temple disciple used a vacuum cleaner to gather up the ants humanely before releasing them into a nearby forest -- to no avail.

“We haven’t found a solution so far,” said Elma Lin, a volunteer at the temple. ”Nothing has worked.”

According to Lin, the decades-old temple has more than 10 monks living there and hundreds of devotees.

Boon Keng, the temple's chief monk, believes that the monks have to 'respect other living things' in the temple.

"When an ant drops on you, you must not flick it away or blow on it," he said. "If you do, it will bite to hold on. You just have to shake it off."

Until a solution can be found, a warning sign has been put up that reads 'Beware poisonous ants. Do not sit under the tree.'

Boon suspects the ants may have some idea of what is going on:

"Maybe the ants like the humans here because they know we cannot kill them."

The police were informed by Scientologists of his 'threatening' posts, and Henson was arrested. Following what has been described as a parody of a trial, he was sentenced to a year in the Riverside jail for 'interfering with a religion.'

But Henson claimed that his life would be in danger from Scientologists if he were imprisoned -- and so he fled to Canada in 2001.

After another tipoff from Scientologists, Henson was swiftly arrested by the Canadian authorities.

Henson was ultimately released from a Canadian jail after filing an application for political asylum. For three years he lived as an expatriate in Canada, awaiting a final decision.

When Canadian officials reached a decision in 2005, Henson was suddenly fearful for his life. He reportedly said, “I’m not going to be shoved across the border into the hands of Scientologists."

He quietly slipped out of the country and evaded capture, until this year. It was in the small town of Prescott, Arizona that the law finally caught up with him.

Henson was taken into custody, and now faces extradition back to the California prison he’s feared for the last six years.

Henson’s wife, identifying herself as a 'soon to be widow,' issued a plea asking the public for legal help, publicity -- “anything but the usual Scientology private eyes who have harassed her for years.”

Greece's Culture Ministry declared the site off-limits, but worshippers defied the edict.

"These are our temples and they should be used by followers of our religion," said Doreta Peppa, head of the Athens-based Ellinais, a group campaigning to revive the old time religion.

Resplendent in modern recreations of ancient garb, worshippers stood near the temple's imposing Corinthian columns and recited hymns to Zeus, "King of the gods and the mover of things," to bring peace to the world.

Ellinais was founded in 2006 and consists of 34 official members, mostly academics, lawyers and other professionals. It recently won a court battle for official recognition of the ancient Greek religion.

The group is now demanding that the government register its offices as a place of worship -- a move that could allow the group to perform weddings and other rites.

"Our message is world peace and an ecological way of life in which everyone has the right to education," said Kostas Stathopoulos, one of three high priests overseeing the event, which celebrated the nuptials of Zeus and Hera, the goddess of love and marriage.

Another priest, Giorgos Alexelis reinforced the message of peace: "Our hymns stress the brotherhood of man and do not single out nations."

One composed by the observer themselves -- the patterns of their walking creating the order. If order is the right word, of course. Which is why I've only reproduced one; it is not my place to impose my interpretation upon the work. If you want to see it for yourself, good hunting.

People walking through urban environments typically walk quickly and avoid looking at the environment as they concentrate on their destination. But if we adopt a more relaxed pace, very quickly we start to see strange textual artifacts. A mysterious alleyway with graffiti saying 'Doctor here won't charge' but no doorway or any other evidence of a surgery.

The word 'Hitler' written in blood red on a Brick Lane flyposter. Around the corner, a dirty window with a smiley faced Hitler etched into the dust. Coincidence? Primal atavisms that stalk the streets?

We will be investigating further the bloody psychogeography of the East End in the next installment, provisionally entitled 'Mithras Hole'.

As for Tracey Emin, when I used to work in Waterloo she had a shop there. I'd often sit in the same tube carriage as her. She would bear a shopping bag with the letters E-M-I-N appliqued upon it. So not too easy to miss.

I've probably walked past many other famous artists but failed to notice them. I saw Gillian Wearing once outside Spitalfields Market. For all I know that could have been the thirtieth time that I'd walked past her. Clearly she prefers her work to speak for her -- or she's pathologically terrified of being examined in the public arena.

But this is the inevitable consequence of living in East London. At the moment, Whitechapel and environs boasts the largest concentration of artists in Europe. Which is why I can go for breakfast at 10am and see Tracy Emin sitting in the corner of the cafe.

She is surprisingly glamourous, considering the hour. Her hair is tied up, she's wearing make-up. she has a fur coat on and is sporting some magnificent gold earrings. Tracy seems to have a feline aura about her. Perhaps her pet cat has given her a bug called Toxoplasmosis, which some scientists believe has behaviour moditying effects.

Although amongst men, it's associated with less interest in seeking novelty, women with Toxoplasmosis are more open-hearted. So maybe it isn't such a bad thing after all.

"At two minutes and three seconds past one on the fourth of May 06
we send a message of love around the world.

We are one world…

At this one moment in time, as the world revolves around the sun, in our digital age, we reach 010203040506. This chronological beauty will repeat itself every one hundred years for a while. With the way we're going, will we still be here in a hundred years? We are living in hard times… we have always survived a hard world. Have we learnt nothing through our survival so far? Our world is constantly at war, the majority of our people are still in poverty. There are too many of us who consume too much. Our Earth is constantly being stripped of it's vital resources. The leaders have led us here… and the path that they lead looks dark.

We need to change…

We are the ones we've been waiting for…"

“May the fourth be with you!

_______________________________________________________

A group of students were asked to list what they thought were the present "Seven Wonders of the World." Though there were some disagreements, the following received the most votes:

1. Egypt's Great Pyramids

2. Taj Mahal

3. Grand Canyon

4. Panama Canal

5. Empire State Building

6. St. Peter's Basilica

7. China's Great Wall

While gathering the votes, the teacher noted that one student had not finished her paper yet. So she asked the girl if she was having trouble with her list. The girl replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my mind because there were so many."

The teacher said, "Well, tell us what you have, and maybe we can help. "The girl hesitated, then read, "I think the 'Seven Wonders of the World' are:

1. To See











2. To Hear











3. To Touch











4. To Taste











5. To Feel











6. To Laugh











7. And to Love.

The room was so quiet you could have heard a pin drop.
The things we overlook as simple and ordinary and that we take for granted are truly wondrous!

A gentle reminder - that the most precious things in life cannot be built by hand or bought by man.

don't be too busy to pass this along