Immaculate Conception

The Immaculate Conception, according to the teaching of the Catholic Church, was the conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the womb of her mother, Saint Anne, free from original sin by virtue of the foreseen merits of her son Jesus Christ. The Catholic Church teaches that Mary was conceived by normal biological means, but God acted upon her soul (keeping her "immaculate") at the time of her conception.

The Immaculate Conception is commonly and mistakenly taken to mean the conception of Mary's son Jesus Christ in her own womb, and the Virgin Birth of Jesus. These are covered by the Doctrine of Incarnation, while the Immaculate Conception deals with the conception of Mary herself, not that of her son.

Although the belief that Mary was sinless and conceived immaculate has been widely held since Late Antiquity, the doctrine was not dogmatically defined until 1854, by Pope Pius IX in his papal bull Ineffabilis Deus. The Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on December 8; in many Catholic countries, it is a holy day of obligation or patronal feast, and in some a national public holiday.

Darth Vader

Darth Vader, also known as Anakin Skywalker, is a fictional character in the Star Wars universe. Vader appears in the original trilogy as the primary antagonist, while his past as Anakin Skywalker is central to the plot of the prequel trilogy.

The character was created by George Lucas and has been portrayed by numerous actors. His appearances span the first six Star Wars films, and his character is heavily referenced in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. He is also an important character in the Star Wars expanded universe of television series, video games, novels, literature and comic books. Originally a Jedi prophesied to bring balance to the Force, he falls to the dark side of the Force and serves the evil Galactic Empire at the right hand of his Sith master, Emperor Palpatine (also known as Darth Sidious). He is also the father of Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia Organa, grandfather of Kylo Ren, and secret husband of Padmé Amidala.

The American Film Institute listed him as the third greatest movie villain in cinema history on 100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains, behind Hannibal Lecter and Norman Bates.

Immaculate Conception Church (Amenia, New York)

The Church of Immaculate Conception is a Roman Catholic parish church under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located in Amenia, Dutchess County, New York City. It was established as a parish in 1866.

History

According to tradition, a Father Kelly of Connecticut, was the first priest to minister to Amenia. Settlers ariived about 1847, a number to work in the iron ore beds of Sharon Station.

The Immaculate Conception parish in Amenia, originally included the parishes currently in Dover Plains, Pawling, Pine Plains and Millbrook. Parish records indicate that in 1844 the first priest known to attend the sick and say an occasional Mass in the area of Northeast and Amenia was Fr. Riordan of St. Peter's Church, Poughkeepsie. In Amenia, he first celebrated Mass in the home of Thomas McEnroe. Then, in 1859 Father Charles Slavin became responsible for early Catholics here by being given charge of the whole Harlem Valley. He resided at Dover Plains and built the church there. Fr. John Arsenigo followed him, in 1864, living at Croton Falls. He used to say Mass in the sheds at the railroad station in Amenia and in homes around Millerton. It was he who purchased the land and started to build the churches in Amenia and Millerton. During the pastorate of Fr. Orsenigo, masses were held in private homes around the village while preparations were made to build a church.

Malabon

Malabon, officially the City of Malabon (Filipino: Lungsod ng Malabon), is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila in the Philippines. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 353,337. Located just north of Manila, it is primarily a residential and industrial town and is one of the most densely populated cities in the metropolis. It has a total land area of 15.714 square kilometers.

Malabon is part of the sub-region of Metro Manila informally called CAMANAVA, which consists of CAloocan, MAlabon, NAvotas, and VAlenzuela cities. Caloocan lies to the south and east, Navotas to the west, and Valenzuela to the north. Malabon also borders the town of Obando in the province of Bulacan to the northwest.

History

Malabon, per legend, came from the words maraming labong which means "plenty of labong", the edible bamboo shoots. Originally called the town of Tambobong, Malabon was founded as a “Visita” of Tondo by the Augustinian friars on May 21, 1599 and remained under the administrative jurisdiction of the province of Tondo from 1627 to 1688.