Two Hispanic churches and too many tears: 100 COVID-19 deaths
New York City, USAP One is a Roman Catholic church in Queens; the other, a Lutheran church in Manhattan. But the COVID-19 pandemic has united the two Hispanic congregations in grief. Between them, they have lost more than 100 members to the coronavirus, and because of lockdown rules, they lack even the ability to mourn […]
Mexico fears pandemic pushing millions into poverty
Mexico CityThomson Reuters Foundation The economic fallout from coronavirus could add nine million people to Mexico’s poor, according to a government study released on Monday calling for aid like pensions and insurance in the country that provides no federal jobless benefits. Increased hardship could translate to at least 70 million Mexicans, 56 per cent of […]
Report: Anti-Semitic incidents in US hit record high in 2019
Silver Spring, MarylandAP American Jews were targets of more anti-Semitic incidents in 2019 than any other year over the past four decades, a surge marked by deadly attacks on a California synagogue, a Jewish grocery store in New Jersey and a rabbi’s New York home, the Anti-Defamation League reported Tuesday. The Jewish civil rights group […]
Fund set up to benefit family of US megachurch pastor and author Darrin Patrick
RNS A fund has been set up to benefit the family of the late Darrin Patrick, a megachurch pastor and author who died on Thursday, 7th May. Patrick, 49, left behind his wife, Amie, and four children. Pastor Darrin Patrick speaks in a recent video. PICTURE: Video screengrab A link to the fund can be found on the website […]
Pakistani police say armed men damage church in land dispute
Lahore, PakistanAP A group of armed men vandalised a church in eastern Pakistan before fleeing the scene, a local police official said Monday. The incident in the village of Kala Shahkaku in Punjab province took place on Saturday and was apparently not sectarian but connected to a land dispute involving the church, according to police […]
Sitting ducks: UK charity sees surge in calls from stalking victims
London, UKThomson Reuters Foundation British charities for victims of stalking have reported a surge in calls during the coronavirus lockdown, with women isolated at home saying they feel like “sitting ducks”. Paladin, a national anti-stalking service, said on Monday that requests for help jumped 40 per cent since the lockdown was imposed on 23rd March. […]
Canadian Catholic bishop funds research for a safe and efficient coronavirus vaccine
Vatican CityRNS As countries around the world slowly begin to reduce social distancing restrictions, the need for a vaccine against the COVID-19 disease becomes increasingly urgent. One Canadian Catholic archbishop has decided to make a financial contribution to a lab that is working to find a preventive cure. “This is a time when listening to […]
Getting my ‘P’s
I remember getting my P plates. After months of driving – and having to have mum or dad in the car, I could finally drive by myself! PICTURE: Jorgen Hendriksen/Unsplash So with great excitement and anticipation, I went on my first solo drive. I soon discovered, driving by yourself was really boring. I had no-one […]
“No man’s land”: Delhi’s urban villages face uncertain future
RINA CHANDRAN, of Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports from India…
Little Richard: Six examples of how religion played a role in his life
RNS Little Richard – the musician known for singing, shouting and flamboyant showmanship – was more than a little religious at times during his life. The man born Richard Wayne Penniman in 1932 in Macon, Georgia, to a church deacon and a Baptist mother died on Saturday, 9th May, at the age of 87. He […]