Conversations: Faith, endurance of civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer revealed in new biography
ADELLE M BANKS. of Religion News Service, speaks with historian Kate Clifford Larson about her new book on Fannie Lou Hamer…
France rebukes bishop who said sex abuse revealed at confession would stay secret
Paris, FranceReuters France’s top bishop has been summoned by the interior minister after saying that the pact of secrecy would prevent a priest from reporting sex crimes against children that were revealed during Catholic confession. Following the publication of a report this week about sexual abuse of children by the clergy, Eric de Moulins-Beaufort, who […]
Remnant of one of the oldest Black churches in US is unveiled in Virginia
RNS Archaeologists believe they have discovered the foundation of the original building of the First Baptist Church in Williamsburg, Virginia, one of the nation’s oldest Black churches. The announcement, shared first with descendants of First Baptist Church members, was officially made on Thursday by Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, which runs the well-known outdoor living museum and […]
Merkel and Pope discuss climate change in farewell visit
Vatican CityReuters Outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday the response to climate change would require a radical change in how people live as she met Pope Francis during a farewell visit to the Vatican and Italy. Francis and other religious leaders made a joint appeal on Monday for next month’s UN Climate Change […]
UN ends Yemen war crimes probe in defeat for Western states
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters Bahrain, Russia and other members of the UN Human Rights Council pushed through a vote on Thursday to shut down the body’s war crimes investigations in Yemen, in a stinging defeat for Western states who sought to keep the mission going. Members narrowly voted to reject a resolution led by the Netherlands to […]
At least 20 killed in earthquake in southern Pakistan
Quetta, PakistanReuters At least 20 people were killed and more than 200 injured when an earthquake struck southern Pakistan, Disaster Management Authority Director General Naseer Nasir said on Thursday. The earthquake with a magnitude of 5.7 struck in the early hours of Thursday while people were sleeping. Rescue workers said the dead were mostly women […]
Hundreds throng passport office in Afghan capital
Kabul, AfghanistanReuters Hundreds of Afghans flocked to the passport office in Kabul on Wednesday, just a day after news that it would re-open this week to issue the documents, while Taliban security men had to beat back some in the crowd in efforts to maintain order. Taliban officials have said the service will resume from […]
Know It All: NFTs
NFT artworks have been setting record prices and making headlines all over the world. But what exactly are NFTs? DAVID ADAMS explores…
Haiti’s diverse faiths bolster it against waves of tragedy
RNS Within hours of the earthquake that devastated Haiti’s Tiburon Peninsula in August, faith-based aid workers were on the scene, comforting victims and helping to pull survivors from the rubble, then providing food and water. “The most important thing in a disaster can be human contact,” said Rev Clement Joseph, head of the state-founded Social […]
New European taskforce takes on Mali’s elusive militants
Ansongo, MaliReuters When the soldiers reached the end of the road, they descended from their trucks and motorbikes and partially deflated the tyres to make it easier going across the soft terrain of eastern Mali. Then they rumbled onwards in the moonlight along a grassy trail that snaked through Islamic State’s stronghold there. “We are […]