Uttarakhand becomes 7th state in India to pass ‘anti-conversion law’
World Watch Monitor The northern state of Uttarakhand has become the seventh state in India to adopt a so-called “anti-conversion law”. State Governor Krishna Kant Paul signed the ‘Freedom of Religion Bill’ into law on 18th April, just over a month after the bill was approved by the state assembly and allowed to progress to the governor’s […]
STRANGESIGHTS: US-FRENCH TREE MYSTERY SOLVED; ‘PAWFFICER BADGES’; AND, A STONE-STACKING CHAMP…
DAVID ADAMS looks at the odder side of life…
Power-for-all push risks leaving out Africa’s poorest – official
Thomson Reuters Foundation Parts of Africa will get left behind in the global push to provide electric power to all unless national governments and the international community agree on a plan for faster action in places that are lagging, a top energy official has warned. Of the roughly one billion people who still lack access […]
Baylor survey names a dozen who can really preach
RNS A dozen pastors known for their consistently stellar performances in the pulpit made Baylor University’s list of the most effective preachers in the English-speaking world. The list of 11 men and one woman, chosen by scholars of homiletics, or the art of preaching, was released Tuesday. “In a world where talk is cheap and […]
HAITI: UN CRITICISED FOR FAILING ON PROMISE TO HELP CHOLERA VICTIMS
ANASTASIA MOLONEY, of the Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports on the fight against cholera in Haiti in the aftermath of the devastating 2010 earthquake…
ESSAY: HOW DOES US CONGRESS HAVE CHAPLAINS WITHOUT VIOLATING THE SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE?
In an article first published on The Conversation, US scholars WENDY CADGE and LAURA R OLSON – following the controversy over the resignation of House chaplain Patrick Conroy – explain when the tradition of legislative prayer was started and how it has sustained…
At least 15 killed in Central African Republic church attack
At least 15 people including a priest have reportedly been killed and scores more wounded in an attack on a church in the Central African Republic capital of Bangui. Gunmen stormed the Notre-Dame de Fatima church – located in a predominantly Muslim neighbourhood – during Mass on Tuesday, firing guns and using grenades. Moses Aliou, a […]
THIS LIFE: ARE YOU SOWING SPIRITUAL SEEDS?
US columnist CAROL ROUND, in an article first published on ASSIST News Service, looks at the Christian call to sow spiritual seeds…
Immigration controversy draws attention to British ID card policy
Thomson Reuters Foundation An immigration scandal which led to the resignation of Britain’s home secretary and sparked anger over the treatment of some migrants has reignited another debate – national identity cards. Home Secretary Amber Rudd quit on Sunday after acknowledging she “inadvertently misled” parliament by denying the government had targets for the number of […]