Ali Hussain Sibat, the former host of a popular Beirut television show, has been sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia, following accusations of "sorcery." Sibat, who originally hails from Lebanon, predicted the future on his call-in show, and offered advice to viewers. Saudi Arabia's religious police, the Mutawa'een, arrested him during a visit to the country in 2008, and he was sentenced to death in November 2009. Amnesty International has asked Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah to stop the execution, but judges in a recent appeal said Sibat "deserved to be executed for having continually practiced black magic on his show, adding that this sentence would deter others from practicing sorcery."

Last year, in Sri Lanka, police arrested Chandrasiri Bandara, a popular astrologer after he predicted the ousting from office of President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Bandara said that in September the prime minister would replace Rajapaksa as president, and that an opposition leader would become prime minister.

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Celebrate spring by enjoying the outdoors. Sure, it's still a little chilly out -- and a lot of us still have snow piles in our yards -- but the sun is coming back, and the days are getting brighter and warmer. Mark the turning of the Wheel of the Year by working on projects that bring you back in touch with the outdoors. If you have kids (or even if you don't), build a Spring Weather Station to help mark the changes in the season. If you're ready to start your garden for the year, kick things off by putting your seeds in a Miniature Greenhouse.

Don't forget to sign up for the free Seven Day Ostara Class!

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Spring's here, the days are getting a little longer, and it's time once again for Earth Hour. If you haven't heard of this, it's a growing movement that encourages people to shut off their lights for one hour in an effort to call for action on climate change. It's not a partisan issue, it's not a political one, it's simply a chance to take an hour out of your schedule and cut back on your energy consumption.

This year's Earth Hour is planned for Saturday, March 27, 2010 at 8:30 p.m. local time. Stock up on a few candles, grab a book or two to read, and a blanket to snuggle under, and shut things down for sixty minutes. For more info, be sure to check out Earth Hour 2010.

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The town of Gilbert, Arizona, stirred up a Constitutional poo-storm when they started enforcing a little-known zoning code that prohibited in-home religious assembly. The ordinance was originally created a few years back to help alleviate traffic problems in neighborhoods, but apparently was interpreted by town officials "to mean that small church groups could not meet in their own homes." That caused a problem when the Oasis of Truth Church, which has a whopping seven parishioners, got a cease-and-desist letter saying they could no longer meet in Pastor Joe Sutherland's home.

The code says that "religious assembly uses" are not permitted in single family residential structures. This means, potentially, that if you were holding a Sabbat meeting in your living room, you'd be in violation of the zoning ordinance. Attorneys for Oasis of Truth argued that "the Constitution's Free Exercise Clause does not allow a ban on church meetings where all other meetings are permitted."

At any rate, Mayor John Lewis town officials have been instructed to stop enforcing the ban until permanent changes can be made at the next town council meeting.

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