Sight-Seeing: Let schoolkids read ‘Maus,’ lest they don’t read at all
KAREN SWALLOW PRIOR, in an article published by Religion News Service, argues that the power books have is not in what they tell, but how they tell…
Benedict XVI takes confessional tone in response to allegations of abuse coverup
Vatican CityRNS Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI took a penitential approach in his response on Tuesday to a report on clergy sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Munich, which he led from 1977 to 1982. While denying accusations that he covered up cases of abuse, he leaned heavily on the language of confession, saying he could […]
Fighting in Ethiopia’s Afar region displaces 300,000, aid blocked to Tigray
Addis Ababa, EthiopiaReuters The government of Ethiopia’s Afar region says more than 300,000 people have been displaced by warfare there since December and it accused Tigrayan forces of killing civilians and looting. The United Nations has said that the fighting in Afar was blocking the delivery of food to neighbouring Tigray region, where several hundred […]
Ukraine’s Catholic leader invites Pope to visit and help bring peace
Vatican CityReuters The leader of Ukraine’s Eastern-rite Catholics said on Tuesday he has invited Pope Francis to visit the country, calling it a huge gesture that would help bring peace at a time of tension with Russia. Speaking to reporters in a video conference from Kyiv, Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk said there was no need […]
Millions facing severe hunger in Horn of Africa – UN food agency
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters The UN World Food Programme said on Tuesday that 13 million people across the Horn of Africa face severe hunger, calling for immediate assistance to avoid a repeat of a famine a decade ago that killed hundreds of thousands of people. Three failed rainy seasons have created the driest conditions since the 1980s, […]
Vegetable shortage adds to Hong Kong’s COVID woes
Hong Kong, ChinaReuters Supplies of vegetables were running low in Hong Kong on Tuesday, with shoppers scrambling to buy whatever they could find, as the government blamed a resurgence of COVID-19 for a drop in deliveries of fresh produce from the mainland. Leader Carrie Lam was due to announce further COVID restrictions later in the […]
Religious discrimination Bill needs amendments, will impact state laws, Australian parliament told
Sydney, Australia The Australian Government’s Religious Discrimination Bill needs to be amended before being passed, according to the Labor Opposition. And Independent Tasmanian MP Andrew Wilkie says he will not back the proposed legislation as it will undermine the state’s “strongest anti- discrimination laws in the country”. Queensland Labor MP Graham Perrett, a practising Catholic, […]
Books: A “roller-coaster” explanation of the Christian faith
DAVID ADAMS enjoys Rory Shiner and Peter Orr’s short yet profound guide to what Christians believe…
US Air Force ordered to pay more than $US230 million in church shooting
San Antonio, Texas, USAP The US Air Force must pay more than $US230 million in damages to survivors and victims’ families of a 2017 Texas church massacre for failing to flag a conviction that might have kept the gunman from legally buying the weapon used in the shooting, a federal judge ruled in San Antonio on Monday. […]
US urges North Korea to focus on needs of its people, not missiles
United NationsReuters The United States called on North Korea on Monday to defund its nuclear and ballistic missile programs and prioritise the needs of its own people, as Russia and China blamed sanctions for worsening the humanitarian situation in the hermit Asian state. Russia put sanctions under the spotlight at the UN Security Council as […]