Religion - The Durango Herald

Mormons to spend less time at church on Sundays

Time requirement to drop from 3 hours to 2

DATE: Oct 12, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

Mormon leader: Nicknames for faith are ‘victory for Satan’

SALT LAKE CITY – The president of the Mormon church reiterated Sunday that he wants members, the media and others to use the faith’s full name, saying nicknames are “a major victory for Sata...

DATE: Oct 10, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

Christian TV network enters world of 24-hour news

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – A Christian TV network is entering the crowded world of 24-hour news broadcasting at a time when the mainstream news media is under increasing attack by President Donal...

DATE: Oct 6, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

Mormon no more: Tabernacle Choir renamed in big church shift

SALT LAKE CITY – The world-famous Mormon Tabernacle Choir will be singing the same tune but under a new name. The choir was renamed Friday to strip out the word Mormon in a move a...

DATE: Oct 5, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

Pope opens youth meeting as sex abuse survivors stage sit-in

VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis urged Catholic bishops to dream of a future free of the mistakes of the past as he opened a global church leadership meeting Wednesday amid renewed outrage over t...

DATE: Oct 3, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

Sex abuse scandal: Pope seeks prayers to fight ‘devil’

VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis asked Saturday for daily prayers to protect the Catholic Church from what he says are “attacks by the devil,” in his latest response to the clerical sex abuse and...

DATE: Oct 1, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

Pope defrocks Chilean priest at center of abuse scandal

VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis has defrocked a Chilean priest who was a central character in the global sex abuse scandal rocking his papacy, invoking his “supreme” authority to stiffen an earl...

DATE: Oct 1, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

Catholic faithful demand change after sex abuse scandals

In spirit of #MeToo, grassroots movements gain momentum

DATE: Sep 29, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

Pope: Priestly abuse scandals driving Catholic faithful away

TALLINN, Estonia – Pope Francis conceded Tuesday that priestly sex abuse scandals are outraging the Catholic faithful and driving them away, and said the church must change its ways if it wa...

DATE: Sep 26, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

India bans instant divorce by Muslim men

NEW DELHI – India’s government on Wednesday approved an ordinance to implement a top court ruling striking down the Muslim practice that allows men to instantly divorce. The gover...

DATE: Sep 25, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

Mastery of time topic of free talk at library

The First Church of Christ Scientist of Durango will host a free talk about how to live in the timeless, constant present of the spiritual now from 7 to 8 p.m. Friday at the Durango Public L...

DATE: Sep 23, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

Marriott to put Bible, Book of Mormon in 300,000 rooms

Sheraton, Westin and other Starwood hotels are finding their religion. Marriott International, which bought Starwood two years ago, has begun putting copies of the Bible and the B...

DATE: Sep 22, 2018 | CATEGORY: Religion

Final phases of project underway at Camino del Rio and Main Avenue

Photos: Marching for women’s rightsDurango Women’s March on Saturday starts at Buckley Park, continues down Main Avenue

Durango Women’s March on Saturday starts at Buckley Park, continues down Main Avenue

Photos: Durango High School football DHS beat Vista Ridge 20-14 at home Friday night

DHS beat Vista Ridge 20-14 at home Friday night

Gallery: Animals, super heroes and other creatures take over Main Avenue

Photos: A fun and spooky day at school

Haunted house northeast of Durango gets bigger every yearCody Petersen’s Halloween hobby is his escape from the daily grind

Durango resident Cody Petersen said when he moved into his home at 15 Edgemont Way several years ago, his house on the corner looked lonely and spooky.Today, it’s a madhouse. Halloween decorations are splayed practically on every inch of his lawn, in the trees and up and down his home.

A group of school-aged kids stop in front of his house every day to pose with a little gothic doll in the lawn, he said. It’s the favorite attraction amongst hundreds of decorations Petersen bought locally and online as early as July in preparation for Oct. 31, Halloween.He said he doesn’t want to think about how much money he’s spent on fog machines, animatronics and Christmas lights, but the bill easily totals several thousands of dollars.

For trick-or-treaters on Halloween, whom he encourages to visit, jumpscares abound at Petersen’s home, featuring animatronic spiders, growling wolves and other monsters, he said.He’s working on his own animatronic coffin, which shakes and rattles, and a pulley system that will push and pull a ghost up and down the yard, but neither will be ready for this year’s Halloween.He said he has fond memories of his parents decorating for the holidays during his upbringing and he’s a huge horror genre fan. So he enjoys going all out on decorations for the spooky season. He justifies his hobby with the logic his kids will only be in high school a few more years, and it isn’t as cool to decorate the lawn for Halloween when one doesn’t have children living at home.But the neighbors enjoy his haunts as much as the rest of the community. He said his Halloween scene has gradually grown larger every year; at least 50 trick-or-treaters turned up at his home last year.“I'm a home inspector, so I do have a lot of tools and no fear of trying things out,” he said.

He said typical Halloween animatronics cost $400 a piece, but they only last one year or so without breaking. That’s frustrating, he said, and he believes he can do better by building his own.He said this year’s display and experience is more organic than past years thanks to his handiwork. Among his myriad decorations, trick-or-treaters can spot easter eggs referencing “Beetlejuice,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “Pet Sematary.”Among the horror props are real animal bones Petersen said he’s found on hikes across the countryside.“I've got ghosts and spiders and witches and that kind of thing,” he said. “Here in Edgemont, we have giant spiders for real. ... We get these huge wolf spiders that are bigger than my hand. I mean, huge, bigger than tarantulas.”

Petersen said he was motivated to make his first decorations within the first month he and his wife moved into the home on the corner at 15 Edgemont Way.A lone pine tree, a typical Christmas tree that would be strung up with lights and ornaments in December, stood out to Petersen in the yard, he said. He just felt compelled to decorate it and light it up.He said he thoroughly decorated the tree and left it lit year-round. Within a month of moving into the house, his neighbor died. The man was old and suffering from Alzheimer's.

Months later, the man’s wife approached Petersen and told him she and her husband’s last salient moments together were spent looking out at Petersen’s lighted Christmas tree, pretending it was Christmas. In the following hours, the man succumbed to delirium. He died several days later.“I don't know why I had that tree, why I lit it, but that's why that tree, even when Halloween is over, all year round, that Christmas tree always stays lit now,” he said.Petersen is a horror movie fan, and in particular he’s always enjoyed the sinister character Michael Myers of the “Halloween” franchise.

He said every year, after thrilling trick-or-treaters at his home, he takes to downtown and East Third Avenue in his Michael Myers costume, bearing a giant bowl of candy, to continue the fun.The highlight of his yard, the creepy doll neighborhood kids like to pose and take pictures with, is Petersen’s “elf on the shelf,” he said. He likes to move the doll around the house, sometimes propping her up to hold animal bones.“I have a real busy and pretty stressful job,” he said. “I just love the fall so much. And to come home, it's just a good way to wind down and, you know, de-stress, just go out and work in the yard.”cburney@durangoherald.com

Cody Petersen’s Halloween hobby is his escape from the daily grind

Reader-submitted photos of Halloween decorationsLast week, we asked readers to submit photos of their Halloween decorations or a neighbor’s decorations. We received dozens of photo submissions. We have selected some of the most spooky, elaborate and fun photos to share in this gallery. Enjoy!

Photos: FLC volleyball returns homeFort Lewis College volleyball took on Adams State University on Tuesday

Fort Lewis College volleyball took on Adams State University on Tuesday

Photos: Expert leathercrafter and collector estate sale near IgnacioItems belonging to the late Alex Pappas were auctioned for sale on Saturday

Items belonging to the late Alex Pappas were auctioned for sale on Saturday

Photos: Pro boxing in DurangoLegends on the Animas boxing showdown took place on Saturday

Legends on the Animas boxing showdown took place on Saturday

Mormons to spend less time at church on Sundays

Mormon leader: Nicknames for faith are ‘victory for Satan’

Christian TV network enters world of 24-hour news

Mormon no more: Tabernacle Choir renamed in big church shift

Pope opens youth meeting as sex abuse survivors stage sit-in

Sex abuse scandal: Pope seeks prayers to fight ‘devil’

Pope defrocks Chilean priest at center of abuse scandal

Catholic faithful demand change after sex abuse scandals

Pope: Priestly abuse scandals driving Catholic faithful away

India bans instant divorce by Muslim men

Mastery of time topic of free talk at library

Marriott to put Bible, Book of Mormon in 300,000 rooms

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