Pope to visit Bahrain for conference in November, Vatican says
Vatican CityReuters Pope Francis will visit predominantly Muslim Bahrain between 3rd and 6th November to attend an international conference, the Vatican announced on Wednesday. The Vatican said the Pope would visit the Gulf island country off the Arabian peninsula to take part in the Bahrain Forum for Dialogue: East and West for Human Coexistence. Pope […]
Russian annexation of Ukraine territory expected within days
Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine Reuters Moscow was poised on Wednesday to annex a swath of Ukraine, releasing what it called vote tallies showing support in four partially occupied provinces to join Russia, after what Kyiv and the West denounced as illegal sham referendums held at gunpoint. On Moscow’s Red Square, a tribune with giant video screens has […]
Solomon Islands tells Pacific islands it won’t sign White House summit declaration – note
Sydney, Australia/Washington DC, US Reuters The Solomon Islands has told Pacific nations invited to a White House meeting with President Joe Biden it won’t sign the summit declaration, according to a note seen by Reuters, prompting concern over the islands’ ties to China. Leaders from the Pacific Island Forum bloc have been invited to the […]
Nigeria’s north-west faces worsening malnutrition – MSF
Lagos, Nigeria Reuters Nigeria faces worsening malnutrition in the northwest due to insecurity, high food prices and the impact of climate change, Medicines Sans Frontiers said on Tuesday, calling for the region to be included in United Nations funding plans next year. Gunmen have terrorised the north-west, killing and kidnapping people for ransom this year. […]
StrangeSights: Rare access to an unusual museum; skydiving as an octogenarian; and, Hollywood sign gets a spruce-up….
DAVID ADAMS provides a round-up of some stories on the odder side of life…
In the US, Adam Greenway resigns as Southwestern Seminary president
United StatesRNS The president of one of the Southern Baptist Convention’s largest seminaries resigned last Friday, less than four years after taking office. Adam Greenway was elected president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2019, in hopes that he would help the school recover from the controversial tenure of former President Paige Patterson, who was […]
Kazakhstan struggles to accommodate Russians fleeing war
Almaty, KazakhstanReuters Kazakhstan is struggling to accommodate tens of thousands of Russians who have fled their homeland since Moscow announced a military mobilisation last week, officials say, but the Almaty government has no plans to close its border. Russian men, some with families, started crossing the world’s second-longest land border en masse after Russian President […]
Gang blockade cripples Haiti fuel supplies, hospitals prepare to close
Port-au-Prince, HaitiReuters A gang blockade of Haiti’s principal fuel terminal has crippled day-to-day activities in the Caribbean nation and now threatens to force the closure of hospitals that rely on diesel generators for electricity. Port-au-Prince gangs in a brazen move this month dug trenches and littered shipping containers at entrances to the Varreux terminal to […]
“Autism acceptance”: Orthodox church in the Hamptons calls people with autism “part of our community”
ADELLE M BANKS, of Religion News Service, reports on how US Autism Homes provides an extended circle of friends through a private-public partnership involving the Dormition of the Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church of the Hamptons…
In the US, White House conference puts spotlight on hunger relief
United StatesChronicle of Philanthropy/AP For months, Catholic Charities of Southeast Texas has had to waitlist families hoping to join a food pantry program, as the non-profit and other charities have struggled to meet soaring demand amid rising food prices and the end of federal pandemic relief aid. The families who frequent the food bank, which […]