American actress Patricia Heaton is standing firm in her activism and leveraging her platform as a well-known star to bring awareness to the state of antisemitism across the U.S., especially on college campuses, and encourage Christians to visibly and vocally support Jews around the globe. Heaton formed the October 7th Coalition (O7C) to activate Christians as supportive stewards of Jewish people and the right for Israel to exist and to fight antisemitism in the U.S.

Since founding the grassroots nonprofit, Heaton has partnered with MyZuzah, an international organization that delivers Jewish people mezuzahs free of charge to promote the #Myzuzah/Yourzuzah campaign. “We’ve had such a response, and this isn’t going away anytime soon,” Heaton said of the Israel-Hamas war. A well-received response from Jews around the world who said they feel safe and unified with Christians encouraged Heaton to continue her efforts to promote the movement.

The “Everybody Loves Raymond” actress expressed scorn for federally funded college administrations that allow Jewish students in America to feel their religious rights are under attack by allowing antisemitic acts on campuses.

“What we’ve seen on college campuses from the administration has been horrendous, that they are not willing to support Jewish students,” she told Fox News Digital. “I believe that if a campus allows this to continue that they should lose their federal funding because they’re breaking the law. (Fox News)

Photo: Actress Patricia Heaton is a vocal supporter of the Jewish community around the globe and works with her nonprofit organization

CHILI – The picture shows the dramatic moment a historic church in Iquique, Chile was destroyed by fire. Twelve firefighting units attended the blaze at the San Francisco Church but were unable to save the mostly-wooden structure, local media reported.

It was the first Catholic church built in the country, according to the World Monuments Fund, and was declared a national monument in 1994. Regional officials said that there were no fatalities, and that the cause of the fire was under investigation. (BBC)

AUSTRALIA – King Charles has confirmed that it is up to the Australian people to decide whether the country remains a constitutional monarchy or becomes a republic. Ahead of the King’s visit to Australia next week, the Australian Republic Movement exchanged letters with Buckingham Palace officials, writing on the King’s behalf.

Correspondence from the palace, first revealed by the Daily Mail, says that “whether Australia becomes a republic” is a “matter for the Australian public to decide”. The future of the monarchy in Australia is likely to be an issue during the royal visit by King Charles and Queen Camilla, which includes events in Sydney and Canberra.

The letter sent by palace officials restates the existing position, rather than marking any new change in policy – and Buckingham Palace is not saying anything further to the letter’s contents. But it is an amicable exchange, following a request by a group campaigning for a republic to have a meeting with the King during his visit.

“The King appreciated that you took the time to write and asked me to reply on his behalf,” says the letter from Buckingham Palace to the Australian Republic Movement, written in March. “Please be assured that your views on this matter have been noted very carefully. “His Majesty, as a constitutional monarch, acts on the advice of his Ministers, and whether Australia becomes a republic is therefore a matter for the Australian public to decide.” The letter adds that the King and Queen have a “deep love and affection” for Australia and “your thoughtfulness in writing as you did is warmly appreciated”. Earlier this year Australia’s government said plans for another referendum were “not a priority”. (BBC)…[+]

FRANCE – A woman has died after she went overboard from a cruise ship near the Channel Islands, say rescue services. An alert was sent out at about 02:00 BST for a search for the woman in her 20s north of Les Casquets rocks, west of Alderney. The French search and rescue service said the casualty from the MSC Virtuosa was winched from the sea by a helicopter crew and was later pronounced dead by doctors.

One passenger told the BBC an alarm rang three times to signal a person had gone overboard. The passenger, who only wanted to be called Neil, said those on board were asked to pray for their fellow passenger. “I went up along with lots of other passengers to have a look,” he said. “About half an hour later the cruise director told us they were looking for a missing passenger so we would be delayed into Southampton.” The ship’s owner MSC Cruises said in a statement: “A guest on board MSC Virtuosa went overboard on 12 October, while the ship was sailing to Southampton.”The body was later recovered with the involvement of the authorities. “We are deeply saddened by this tragic event, and our thoughts are with the family during this difficult time. “Out of respect for their privacy, we will not be providing further details.” The investigation into the death is being led by French police. (BBC)