CUBA – Historic meetingRussia Orthodox head to join Pope in asking for end to Christian persecution The Vatican and the Moscow Patriarchate have both announced that Pope Francis will stop in Cuba on 12 Feb on his way to Mexico to meet with Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox church. This historic meeting,...
International community urged to protect historic Christian sites from ISIS – priests speak out Last week The Associated Press confirmed that exclusive satellite images published early on January 20 showed that the ancient monastery of St Elijah on the outskirts of Mosul had been totally destroyed. ISIS militants had turned Iraq’s oldest Christian monastery...
More help needed from Europe to sustain Middle East Christians By Clare Creegan and John Newton THE head of the Middle East’s Franciscans said more help is needed to keep Christians in the region – as an international conference on Syria’s refugee crisis got underway in London. Speaking to Catholic charity Aid to the...
Pope asks Protestants and Catholics to forgive each other for past persecution At a prayer service concluding the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Pope Francis asked for God’s mercy upon divided Christians “We ask most of all for forgiveness for the sin of our divisions, which are an open wound on the body...
UPDATE – voting decision MEPs call for urgent action to protect religious minorities against ISIS MEPs urge the international community to take urgent action to counter the systematic mass murder of religious minorities by the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) or Daesh, in a resolution voted on Thursday. The text wraps...
“A symbol of our presence” Christians in Iraq are distressed at the destruction of Iraq’s oldest monastery by IS On Wednesday the American news agency AP announced that Islamic State had razed St. Elijah’s monastery to the ground. An analysis of satellite pictures of the site conducted on behalf of the agency had...
Pakistani Christians fleeing Muslim persecution are dying in Thai migrant camps Pakistani Christians are dying in Thailand’s immigration center due to the deplorable conditions inside. Detainees are even denied treatment and medication for serious medical conditions such as heart or kidney problems and high blood pressure, which has led to several deaths. The Thai...
“We are praying for those who hate us” The Abbey of the Dormition in Jerusalem has once again been targeted by vandals. Jewish extremists are most likely behind the attack. On Saturday night, unknown persons defaced the walls and doors of the German-speaking Benedictine monastery on the outer edges of the Old City of...
INDONESIA Jakarta bombings –need to recognise danger of terrorism Bomb attacks in Jakarta – Indonesia needs to recognise the danger of terrorism “This attack should serve as an alarm bell for all Indonesians, and above all for Muslims. They need to recognize the danger of terrorism.” So says Father Franz Magnis-Suseno, a Jesuit and...
Combating Islamic State by bringing the Gospel to deaf communities in the Middle East To combat Islamic State‘s effort to recruit marginalised deaf people in the Middle East with false promises, the Deaf Bible Society has launched a new initiative. The aim is to bring the story of Jesus in sign language to the...
