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'Disobedient' deftly paints inspiring story of artist Artemisia Gentileschi

Artemisia Gentileschi's painting skills quickly surpass her father's, but society dictates that as a woman, she must stay home and protect her virtue. Art — with its unsavory types and naked models — isn't exactly fit for a good Roman Catholic girl. And when her painting tutor attacks her, it sets off a cascade of seemingly insurmountable problems and impossible choices.

Author Elizabeth Fremantle deftly paints Artemisia's painful but inspiring story in her latest biographical fiction, "Disobedient." Having already established herself as a writer who champions powerful female leads, Fremantle fleshes out the 17th-century artist who defied the limits placed upon her and became one of the best painters of the Baroque period.

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India allows survey to see if 17th-century mosque was built over a Hindu temple

An Indian court on Thursday ruled that officials can conduct a scientific survey to determine if a 17th-century mosque in the country's north was built over a Hindu temple.

The Gyanvapi mosque in the holy Hindu city of Varanasi, an area Prime Minister Narendra Modi represents in India's parliament, is one of several mosques in northern Uttar Pradesh state that some Hindus believe was built on top of demolished Hindu temples.

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Pope urges students in Portugal to fight economic injustice, protect environment

From a university campus to a seaside town, Pope Francis challenged young people on Thursday to make the world a more just and inclusive place, as he focused the second day of his Portugal trip on inspiring students to use their privilege to combat global warming and economic inequalities.

Francis received a warm welcome first at the Catholic University in Lisbon, one of Portugal's top institutions of higher learning. He then had a more intimate, informal encounter with young people in the former fishing village of Cascais, where he was serenaded with a mournful performance of the traditional Portuguese fado, meaning fate or destiny.

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Pope urges students in Portugal to fight economic injustice, protect environment

From a university campus to a seaside town, Pope Francis challenged young people on Thursday to make the world a more just and inclusive place, as he focused the second day of his Portugal trip on inspiring students to use their privilege to combat global warming and economic inequalities.

Francis received a warm welcome first at the Catholic University in Lisbon, one of Portugal's top institutions of higher learning. He then had a more intimate, informal encounter with young people in the former fishing village of Cascais, where he was serenaded with a mournful performance of the traditional Portuguese fado, meaning fate or destiny.

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Russian shelling hits landmark church in Ukrainian city of Kherson

Russian shelling on Thursday damaged a landmark church in the southern city of Kherson that once held the remains of a renowned 18th-century Russian commander.

Ukraine's emergency service said four of its workers were wounded in a second round of shelling as they fought the fire at St. Catherine's Cathedral. Four other people were wounded in the first shelling attack, which also hit a trolleybus, the prosecutor general's office said.

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Booker Prize semifinalists include 4 Irish writers, 4 debut novelists

Author Sebastian Barry, who has received four previous nominations for the Booker Prize and twice been shortlisted for it, was one of four Irish writers to make the long list of semifinalists for the prestigious award.

Barry is up this year for his novel "Old God's Time," about a retired police detective who gets dragged back into a cold case investigation of a murdered priest suspected of sexually abusing children.

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Pope urges Europe to work for peace as he lands in Portugal for World Youth Day

Pope Francis challenged Europe to retake its role as a peacemaker and bridgebuilder as he arrived Wednesday in Portugal to open World Youth Day, hoping to inspire the next generation of Catholics to work together to combat conflicts, climate change and other problems facing the world.

Francis was spending five days in Lisbon, blending a state visit and pilgrimage to the Catholic shrine at Fatima with the raucous trappings of World Youth Day, the Catholic jamboree that aims to rally young Catholics in their faith. More than 1 million young people from around the world were expected to attend the gathering, which culminates with a papal Mass on Sunday.

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'Barbenheimer' memes spark anti-nuclear anger in Japan

Internet memes referencing the films "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" have sparked anger online in Japan, the only country to ever have been attacked in wartime with nuclear weapons.

One film is about a wildly popular children's doll and the other is a biopic about J. Robert Oppenheimer, one of the creators of atomic weapons.

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Do you believe in angels? About 7 in 10 U.S. adults do

Compared with the devil, angels carry more credence in America.

Angels even get more credence than, well, hell. More than astrology, reincarnation, and the belief that physical things can have spiritual energies.

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Morocco's Benzina becomes first senior-level Women's World Cup player in hijab

Stepping onto the field against South Korea in Morocco's second Women's World Cup match, defender Nouhaila Benzina made history as the first player to wear a hijab while competing at a senior-level global tournament.

A FIFA ban on playing in religious head coverings in its sanctioned games for "health and safety reasons" was overturned in 2014 after advocacy from activists, athletes and government and soccer officials.

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