Emotional Biden praises Pope Francis’ style of Catholicism
Rome, ItalyReuters An emotional US President Joe Biden, who has come away from his visit with papal backing in his conflict with conservative US bishops, on Sunday praised Pope Francis for being “everything I admire about Catholicism”. Biden, the second Catholic president in US history, choked up as he spoke about his late son Beau […]
Sight-Seeing: Why your character is more important than your comfort
NILS VON KALM writes about how being challenged by someone can result in a positive change in your walk with Christ…
Mediation efforts seek “way forward” in Sudan after anti-coup protests
Khartoum, SudanReuters A UN official discussed mediation options and possible “way forward” for Sudan with its ousted Prime Minister on Sunday, a day after hundreds of thousands of protesters took to the streets to demand an end to military rule. The outpouring of dissent posed the biggest challenge to General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan since he […]
May “cry of the Earth” be heard at UN climate summit – Pope
Vatican CityAP Pope Francis on Sunday urged people to pray so that “the cry of the Earth” is heard at the UN climate summit getting underway in Glasgow, Scotland. People gather in St Peter’s Square to listen to Pope Francis deliver his blessing as he recites the Angelus noon prayer from the window of his […]
G20 offers little new on climate, leaving uphill task for COP26
Rome, ItalyReuters Leaders of the Group of 20 major economies agreed on a final statement on Sunday that urged “meaningful and effective” action to limit global warming, but angering climate activists by offering few concrete commitments. The result of days of tough negotiation among diplomats leaves huge work to be done at the broader United […]
Woman now thought to be Afghanistan’s last Jew flees country
Jerusalem, IsraelAP For years, Zebulon Simentov branded himself as the “last Jew of Afghanistan,” the sole remnant of a centuries-old community. He charged reporters for interviews and held court in Kabul’s only remaining synagogue. He left the country last month for Istanbul after the Taliban seized power. Now it appears he was not the last […]
Heirs step up as COVID deaths rock Bangkok’s famous street-food stalls
Bangkok, ThailandReuters Each morning, Adulwitch Tangsupmanee brings a cart of crispy pork belly to a run-down cinema in Bangkok’s Chinatown and sets up the same street-food stall his internationally renowned father ran for nearly 50 years before dying of COVID-19 in July. While aromatic pork broth simmers, Adulwitch carefully places a framed picture of his […]
Army shelling in Myanmar blamed for setting 160 homes ablaze
Bangkok, ThailandAP More than 160 buildings in a town in north-western Myanmar, including at least two churches, have been destroyed by fires caused by shelling by government troops, local media and activists reported Saturday. The destruction of parts of the town of Thantlang in Chin state appeared to be another escalation in the ongoing struggle […]
The Long Read: Samaritans number less than 1,000. Here’s how their tradition survives in Israel
GIL ZOHAR, in an article published by Religion Unplugged, sheds light on the modern descendents of the Biblical Samaritans and their long history…
India’s Modi invites Pope to visit after 2017 plan collapsed
Rome, ItalyAP Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday invited Pope Francis to visit the country, extending an official opening after plans for a 2017 papal visit fell apart. “I would like to see you in India,” Modi told Francis as he bade him farewell after an unusually long, 55-minute audience at the Vatican. “On […]