India’s Assam scraps colonial-era Muslim marriage law
Guwahati, India Reuters India’s Assam state has scrapped an 89-year-old law that allowed marriage involving underage Muslims, against opposition from leaders of the minority community who called the plan an attempt to polarise voters on religious lines ahead of elections. Assam, which has the highest percentage of Muslims among Indian states at 34 per cent, […]
Pakistan ex-PM Imran Khan and wife jailed for seven years for unlawful marriage
Islamabad, Pakistan Reuters Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Khan were sentenced to seven years in prison and fined on Saturday by a court that ruled their 2018 marriage broke the law, his party said. It was the third ruling against Khan this week and comes ahead of national elections on […]
Sight-Seeing: Is being rich bad for your soul? Yes, but not for the reason you expect
In an article first published on Religion News Service, CHARLES C CAMOSY says the rich don’t just end up making themselves unhappy. They want us to be unhappy too…
Explainer – Five things the Catholic Church’s document on same-sex blessings does (and doesn’t) say
Vatican CityRNS In an unprecedented opening by the Catholic Church toward welcoming LGBTQ people, the Vatican’s Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith approved the blessing of same-sex couples on Monday in a document titled Fiducia Supplicans, or Requesting Trust. Pope Francis approved the document, formally called a declaration – a term that signals that […]
Retired US Catholic bishop gets married after bid to leave priesthood denied
Albany, New York, USAP An 84-year-old retired Catholic Bishop of Albany, who has been accused of sexual abuse and has unsuccessfully sought to be removed from the priesthood, said this week that he recently married a woman in a civil ceremony. Emeritus Bishop Howard Hubbard made the surprise announcement on Tuesday during a tumultuous time […]
United Methodists: Bishop Scott Jones moves from “extreme centre” of UMC to new Global Methodist Church
He isn’t the first bishop to leave the United Methodist Church for the fledgling conservative denomination. But his exit has arguably caused the greatest stir reports EMILY MCFARLAN MILLER, of Religion News Service…
Church schism: After years of loud debate, conservatives quietly split from United Methodist Church
EMILY MCFARLAN MILLER, of Religion News Service, reports that after decades of rancorous debate over the ordination and marriage of LGBTQ United Methodists, a schism finally came “without fanfare, but full of hope, faith, and perseverance”…
Prominent Ugandan pastor who married second wife under customary law when still married faces criminal charges
Kampala, Uganda A magistrate’s court in Uganda has slapped criminal charges on a prominent pastor who recently married a second wife under customary law before divorcing his official wife. Pastor Aloysius Bugingo, of the House of Prayer Ministries in Kampala, faces several counts of charges together with his newly married wife Suzan Makula. Grade I […]
Pope’s three key words for a marriage: “Please, thanks, sorry”
Rome, ItalyAP Pope Francis sought Sunday to encourage married couples, acknowledging that the pandemic has aggravated some family problems but urging couples to seek help and always remember three key words in a marriage: “Please, thanks and sorry.” Francis penned a letter to married couples that was released Sunday, a Catholic feast day commemorating Jesus’ […]
Switzerland votes to make same-sex marriage legal by near two-thirds majority
Zurich, SwitzerlandReuters Switzerland agreed to legalise civil marriage and the right to adopt children for same-sex couples by a nearly two-thirds majority in a referendum on Sunday, making it one of the last countries in Western Europe to legalise gay marriage. According to results provided by the Swiss federal chancellery, 64.1 per cent of voters […]