1. Mistaken identity at April Taylor crash
Breaking news out of Indiana today: one student declared dead in the April 26 van crash that killed four Taylor University students was misidentified with one of the students injured and in a coma. The family of  Laura VanRyn, who had been declared injured, announced on their weblog today that the girl in the hospital bed is actually Whitney Cerak. "Over the past couple of days, as Whitney had been becoming more aware of her surroundings, she'd been saying and doing some things that made us question whether or not she was Laura," the family explained. The Indianapolis Star has details on what is a situation that will certainly be a continuing focus of prayer for many.

2. Aid agencies send assistance to Indonesia after earthquake
Is it news that aid agencies are aiding, or just business as usual? The question is irrelevant to the agencies and to the folks in Java after Saturday's 6.3 earthquake that has left at least 6,234 dead and more than 30,000 injured. "News" or not, they need help. Among the agencies responding: World Vision, Samaritan's Purse, World Relief, the Salvation Army, and Compassion International. These agencies were also among the responders to the Christmas 2004 tsunami.

3. In East Timor, the only safe place is in church "Machete-wielding youths battled in East Timor's capital Wednesday amid burning and looting as more foreign troops bolstered a force struggling to stop the unrest that has destabilized the country," says the latest Associated Press report. "More than 100,000 residents of Dili have fled their homes to escape the violence, an aid official said." Where many of them have fled, apparently, is to local churches, where priests have put on ...