Pope hails Italian Paralympics champ Zanardi’s “lesson of humanity” through disability
Rome, ItalyAP Pope Francis has praised Alex Zanardi as an example of strength amid adversity as the Italian auto racing champion-turned-Paralympic gold medalist recovers from a handbike crash. Francis penned a handwritten letter of encouragement assuring Zanardi and his family of his prayers. It was published on the front page of sports daily Gazzetta dello […]
WHO warns of oxygen shortage as COVID cases set to top 10 million
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters The world faces a shortage of oxygen concentrators as the number of worldwide cases of coronavirus infection nears the 10 million mark, the World Health Organization head said on Wednesday. “Many countries are now experiencing difficulties obtaining oxygen concentrators,” WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news conference. “Demand is currently outstripping […]
Baptists and Walmart criticise rebel-themed Mississippi flag
Jackson, Mississippi, USAP The Confederate-themed Mississippi flag drew opposition Tuesday from two big forces in the culturally conservative state: Southern Baptists and Walmart. Walmart said it will stop displaying the Mississippi flag while the state debates whether to change the design. The Mississippi Baptist Convention said lawmakers have a moral obligation to remove the Confederate […]
Australia reports first COVID-19 death in more than a month
Sydney, AustraliaReuters Australia’s second most populous state on Wednesday said a man in his 80s died overnight from the coronavirus, the country’s first death from the virus in more than a month, as the state logged a double digit rise in cases for the eighth straight day. Victoria state reported 20 overnight cases, Victoria Chief […]
California bishops say protesters “failed the test” of history in toppling Junipero Serra statues
Los Angeles, USRNS The California Catholic Conference of Bishops is denouncing the toppling of Junipero Serra statues that protesters took down in San Francisco and Los Angeles over the weekend. “If this process is to be truly effective as a remedy for racism, it must discern carefully the entire contribution that the historical figure in […]
One metre or two? How social distancing affects COVID-19 risk
London, UKReuters Britain on Tuesday announced an easing of social distancing rules from 4th July, reducing the recommended gap from two metres to “one metre plus” in England as it further loosened lockdown measures meant to curb the COVID-19 pandemic. What do scientists say?Infectious disease experts say the closer people are to someone infected with […]
Probe demanded after 57 girls catch coronavirus in Indian shelter
Lucknow, IndiaThomson Reuters Foundation Dozens of girls at an Indian care home for runaways and sexual abuse victims have tested positive for coronavirus, raising renewed scrutiny over the management of state-run shelters as the country faces a surge of new infections. The shelter in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh has since been sealed, […]
“Buildings are closed but churches are open”: UK churches see lift in interest during coronavirus lockdown
DAVID ADAMS speaks with Peter Lynas, director of the Evangelical Alliance UK, about a new report looking how how British churches have fared during the coronavirus pandemic…
Survey: Most Americans aren’t comfortable going back to religious services
RNS A new study examining Americans’ response to COVID-19 shows that with the exception of white evangelicals, a majority of Americans are not comfortable returning to in-person religious services. The results of the survey suggest that despite political pressure to reopen houses of worship – from President Donald Trump as well as leading conservative Christians and religious […]
Essay: Rethinking white privilege and how we are really blessed
In an article first published on Religion News Service, ALAN CROSS, Southern Baptist pastor and the author of ‘When Heaven and Earth Collide: Racism, Southern Evangelicals, and the Better Way of Jesus’, looks at the idea of blessing in the wake of the recent controversy involving Louie Giglio…