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South Carolina priest says message of unity in Psalm 133 is needed now more than ever

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South Carolina priest says message of unity in Psalm 133 is needed now more than ever

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“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down upon the beard, upon the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life for evermore” (Psalm 133:1-3). 

These verses from the book of Psalms comprise the entirety of Psalm 133 – and their message of unity and hope are particularly important in today’s trying times, a Catholic priest told Fox News Digital this week.

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“Every weekend throughout the United States at different houses of worship, Jewish and Christian communities of various traditions turn to the Book of Psalms as a source of prayer,” Rev. Jeffrey Kirby said. 

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Kirby is pastor of Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church in Indian Land, South Carolina. He hosts the morning devotional “Morning Offering with Father Kirby.” 

Psalms, which are sometimes sung by a cantor or chorus, “disclose the inner movements of the human heart as we search to encounter God,” he said, and “are truly a rare collection of snapshots of the human psyche and its desire to see and understand God.” 

The Rev. Jeffrey Kirby of South Carolina reflected on Psalm 133 in the wake of the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, last week. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images; Jeffrey Kirby)

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“The 150 psalms are filled with cries of lament and songs of praise. They express every possible emotion of the human soul,” Kirby said.

They are “spontaneous, fluid and give a profound expression to the beauty and chaos of the human heart,” he said. 

Psalm 133 is especially poignant in light of recent events. 

“In our own times, marked as they are by polarization and division, and recently heightened by the shocking attempted assassination of a former president and leading political candidate, we can follow the lead of countless generations before us and turn to the Book of Psalms,” Kirby said. 

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Psalm 133, he said, “can raise up our hearts and give us guidance and encouragement.” 

Said Kirby, “The psalm was one of the Psalms of Ascent, since it was sung by people as they neared Jerusalem for one of the major feasts. The strength of its call for unity and the conviction of its hope for peace among people, however, jumps out and shakes believers of every generation.” 

“In our own times, marked as they are by polarization and division, and recently heightened by the shocking attempted assassination of a former president and leading political candidate,” said a South Carolina priest, “we can follow the lead of countless generations before us and turn to the Book of Psalms.” (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

“In typical fashion with the psalms,” Kirby said, “which read the human heart and give it words, Psalm 133 expresses the deepest sentiments of many Americans today.” 

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For context, Kirby said, “the use of oil in ancient Israel was a sign of favor and blessing. It was used to designate God’s presence and purpose.”

It is “biblically rich” that the concept of unity was compared to this kind of oil upon the robe of Aaron, “the spiritual father of the temple priests in the Old Testament,” he said. 

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“The psalmist is telling us that unity is a divine gift, attached to the adoration of God and the prayers of humanity.”

“As we pray this psalm, we feel it resonate within our own souls and the soul of our nation.”

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Additionally, Mount Hermon had special significance in biblical times that may not be known to the modern reader, Kirby said. 

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Mount Hermon “is the largest and most visible mountain range in the Holy Land,” he said.

Psalm 133 shares a message of unity, said a Catholic priest in South Carolina. (iStock)

“Due to its height, the dew of Hermon was seen as symbolically falling upon the entire land. Hermon was a sign of God’s blessings and the assurance of his gift of life.” 

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The psalmist likens unity to “the dew of Hermon,” Kirby noted. 

“Unity is also shown to be a shining display of God’s blessing upon us.”

“As the mountain range provided defense, security and fresh springs to God’s people, so unity gives protection, stability and refreshment to society,” he said. 

Just as Mount Hermon was a sign of the blessings of God, “unity is also shown to be a shining display of God’s blessing upon us,” he said.

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“As we pray this psalm, we feel it resonate within our own souls and the soul of our nation,” Kirby said.

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“As Americans, our hearts yearn and pine as we turn and ask God today for ‘the precious oil’ of unity and for the cherished peace that comes with ‘the dew of Hermon.’”

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Virginia murder suspect in bus stop stabbing had lengthy criminal history, multiple dropped charges

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Virginia murder suspect in bus stop stabbing had lengthy criminal history, multiple dropped charges

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A Virginia murder suspect accused of fatally stabbing a woman at a bus stop earlier this week has a lengthy criminal history filled with multiple arrests, but was let back onto the streets nearly every time. 

Abdul Jalloh, 32, is charged with the Monday night killing of Stephanie Minter, 41, of Fredericksburg, at a bus stop shelter, the Fairfax County Police Department said. 

Minter was found by officers with stab wounds to her upper body and pronounced dead at the scene, police said. 

Abdul Jalloh, 32, is accused of killing Stephanie Minter, 41, at a Virginia bus stop.  (Fairfax County Police Department; provided)

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Jalloh, 32, who was seen on surveillance cameras exiting the bus with Minter at Richmond Highway and Arlington Drive, was arrested the next day. 

He was arrested at a liquor store after an employee called 911. At the time, officers arrested him for allegedly shoplifting. Investigators linked him to the murder a day later. 

Authorities were still trying to determine a motive for the killing and what led to the deadly stabbing. 

A search of online court records revealed Jalloh has more than a dozen arrests in northern Virginia, including on charges of petty larceny and malicious wounding. 

In most of the cases, prosecutors dropped the charges, FOX D.C. reported. 

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Abdul Jalloh seen on a bus in Virginia.  (Fairfax County Police Department)

Laura Birnbaum, the chief of staff for Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano, said Jalloh was known to the district attorney’s office and was “acutely aware of the risk he posed to the community.”

“That is why we convicted the defendant of a 2023 malicious wounding charge, and have since made every effort to hold him accountable each subsequent time that he has come in contact with the criminal justice system, including asking him to be held in custody whenever possible,” Birnbaum said. 

“Unfortunately, the defendant in this case also had a history of selecting victims with no fixed address – some of the most vulnerable members of our community,” she added. “In multiple cases, we were unable to move forward with prosecution because victims could not be located or contacted.”

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Stephanie Minter, 41, was killed on Monday after getting off of a bus in Virginia.  (Provided)

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An obituary for Minter described her as a “happy, jolly” person. 

“A beam of light in dark places,” the obituary states. 

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Dem governor under fire after illegal alien allegedly stabs woman to death at bus stop: ‘Heinous’

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Dem governor under fire after illegal alien allegedly stabs woman to death at bus stop: ‘Heinous’

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EXCLUSIVE: The Department of Homeland Security is calling on Virginia’s Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger to ensure local law enforcement cooperates with federal immigration officials by handing over an illegal immigrant with a lengthy criminal record who allegedly killed a woman earlier this week at a Virginia bus stop.

Police in Fairfax County, Virginia, arrested an illegal immigrant from Sierra Leone earlier this week on charges of second-degree murder after he allegedly fatally stabbed a woman, Stephanie Minter, 41, who was found dead at a local bus stop with several wounds to the upper body. 

The alleged suspect, Abdul Jalloh, 32, also has a criminal history of more than 30 arrests, according to DHS, including for rape, malicious wounding, assault, identity theft, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, assault and pick-pocketing.   

The request from the Trump administration comes after the newly elected Democratic governor of Virginia signed an executive order to end cooperation between federal immigration officials and state and local law enforcement, a move several Democratic Party governors have taken recently amid President Donald Trump’s move to increase deportation operations around the country. 

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The DHS request asking Virginia officials to cooperate with ICE also comes after an illegal immigrant allegedly murdered someone just days after being released from jail for a separate crime in December.

Abdul Jalloh, 32, and Gov. Abigail Spanberger  (Department of Homeland Security/Getty Images)

“We are calling on Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger and Virginia’s sanctuary politicians to commit to not releasing this murderer and violent career criminal from their jail without notifying ICE,” said Deputy Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis. 

“This illegal alien’s murder of an innocent, beautiful American woman came less than 24 hours before Governor Spanberger’s demonization of ICE law enforcement. This heinous criminal is a perfect example of why we need cooperation from sanctuary jurisdictions and the importance of third country removals for the safety of the American people.”

Spanberger’s representatives did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. 

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Jalloh entered the United States illegally in 2012, according to DHS, and immigration officials lodged an immigration detainer against him in 2020, whereupon he was granted a final order of removal by a judge who said he could be removed to any country other than Sierra Leone. 

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DHS indicated that ICE cooperation to ensure Jalloh’s deportation is evident after a case Fox News covered in December when a criminal illegal alien from El Salvador, Marvin Morales-Ortez, 23, allegedly killed a man just a day after Fairfax County jail officials let him go. 

The immigrant from El Salvador had been in custody on charges of malicious wounding and brandishing a gun, but police released him after the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, led by George Soros-backed prosecutor Steve Descano, dropped the charges. 

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Fox News Digital reached out to the Fairfax County Sheriff’s office to inquire about why the man had not been handed over to ICE. 

The sheriff’s office said, “ICE was aware of Morales-Ortez’s incarceration and elected not to seek a judicial warrant to ensure he remained in custody.

Marvin Morales-Ortez, who is living in the country illegally, was released from Fairfax County custody and then allegedly committed a murder the next day. (Fairfax County Police Department/Getty Images)

“The Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office follows all local, state and federal laws when determining whether a person is subject to release from the ADC,” the sheriff’s office told Fox News Digital at the time. “Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is automatically notified any time a person is booked into the ADC.”

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The same sheriff’s office did not get back to Fox News Digital’s media inquiry for this story on DHS urging officials to cooperate with federal officials. 

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Illegal immigrant arrested after showing up to Florida Border Patrol office for contract IT work

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Illegal immigrant arrested after showing up to Florida Border Patrol office for contract IT work

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FIRST ON FOX: An illegal immigrant who reported to a U.S. Border Patrol site in Florida to perform some Information technology contractual work was arrested when authorities were made aware of his citizenship status, officials said. 

Angel Camacho, a Venezuelan citizen, reported to a USBP center in Dania Beach, Florida, Jan. 6 to do some IT work when U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials began vetting him, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) told Fox News Digital. 

During its investigation, it was revealed Camacho was in violation of U.S. immigration laws, authorities said. 

Angel Camacho reported to a Florida U.S. Border Patrol center to perform contractual work when he was arrested, a Department of Homeland Security official said.  (Getty Images )

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“CBP vets all external visitors before allowing them to enter secure facilities to ensure safety and operational integrity,” DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement. 

“During the vetting process, CBP uncovered this individual was a tourist visa overstay in the country for over five years.”

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This photo shows a U.S. Border Patrol patch on a border agent’s uniform in McAllen, Texas, Jan. 15, 2019. (Suzanne CordeiroAFP via Getty Images)

Camacho was arrested and transferred to ICE custody, Bis said. 

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His criminal history includes theft and resisting a Florida Highway Patrol officer, officials said. Federal authorities have nabbed several illegal immigrants in the process of trying to obtain employment in law enforcement and education. 

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One Sierra Leone citizen was recently arrested as he was training to become a Pennsylvania corrections officer. 

Another illegal immigrant, Ian Roberts, served as the former superintendent of Iowa’s largest district, Des Moines Public Schools, before he was arrested by ICE. 

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