Jerusalem’s Holy Sepulchre ‘resurrected’ for Palm Sunday Mass as pilgrims return
Jerusalem, Israel Reuters Prayers in Arabic and Latin echoed in the rotunda of Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre on Sunday as Christians from around the world were once again able to attend Palm Sunday mass after two years of COVID-19 travel restrictions. Around 500 worshippers passed through the huge wooden doors of the church […]
On Palm Sunday, Pope calls for Easter truce in Ukraine
Vatican CityReuters Pope Francis on Sunday called for an Easter truce in Ukraine, and in an apparent reference to Russia, questioned the value of planting a victory flag “on a heap of rubble”. Francis spoke at the end of a Palm Sunday service for about 50,000 people in St Peter’s Square, the first time since […]
Indonesia arrests firebrand cleric’s lawyer over attacks
Jakarta, IndonesiaAP Members of Indonesia’s counterterrorism police on Tuesday arrested the lawyer of a firebrand cleric and accused him of inciting people to commit terrorist acts and of pledging allegiance to the Islamic State group, officials said. Police arrested Islam Defenders Front leader Rizieq Shihab’s lawyer, Munarman, in a raid on his house in Jakarta’s […]
Newlywed militant suspects blamed in Indonesia church attack
Updated: 10pm (AEDT) Makassar, IndonesiaAP Indonesian authorities on Monday identified a newly married couple with suspected militant links as the attackers who used a pressure cooker to blow themselves up outside a Roman Catholic cathedral during Palm Sunday Mass. The attack wounded 20 people, including four church guards, and broke windows at the church and […]
Pope opens Holy Week amid pandemic; says now is the time to serve
Vatican CityReuters Pope Francis marked a surreal Palm Sunday in an empty St Peter’s Basilica, urging people living through the coronavirus pandemic not to be so concerned with what they lack but how they can ease the suffering of others. The service, kicking off Holy Week events leading to Easter, usually attracts tens of thousands […]
UK Government commits £12 million to championing religious freedom
World Watch Monitor The UK Government has committed £12 million to championing freedom of religion of belief worldwide. The UK’s Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, Lord Tariq Ahmad, said the money “will go a long way in bolstering the work of civil society and NGOs to promote respect, and the value of religious diversity […]
Seventeen people sentenced to death for Coptic church bomb attacks in Egypt
World Watch Monitor Egypt’s military court has handed death sentences to 17 people accused of bomb attacks on Coptic churches in 2016 and 2017, the BBC reports. The 17 people sentenced to death in Egypt were involved in bomb attacks on Coptic churches in Cairo, Alexandria and Tanta in 2016 and 2017. PICTURE: World Watch Monitor. […]
Egyptian Copts face Muslim mobs protesting against legalisation of churches
World Watch Monitor The closure of a church in Upper Egypt that sought legalisation has been condemned as illegal by the congregation’s lawyer, and charges made against eight of its congregation, who have been detained for more than a month, as not valid. Coptic Christians of Al-Koumair village in Luxor Governorate had been gathering at the house […]
Palm Sunday celebrations mark revival of life in Qaraqosh
World Watch Monitor Palm Sunday celebrations saw thousands of Christians take to the streets of Qaraqosh. PICTURE: World Watch Monitor. For many Christian families in Qaraqosh, this Easter is particularly special, as they will be celebrating it at home for the first time since fleeing the city in 2014. The city, located in northern Iraq’s […]
Coptic cathedral in Egypt reopens eight months after Palm Sunday bombing
World Watch Monitor A Coptic cathedral has been restored and reopened eight months after a suicide bombing there on Palm Sunday killed 28 and injured 74 others. St George’s Cathedral in Tanta, the capital of the Gharbia governorate north of Cairo, has been renamed the Cathedral of St George and the Martyrs, and its blood-splattered pillars […]