Myanmar cardinal praises inter-faith harmony at Kolkata meet

On a stopover in Kolkata on the last leg of his first visit to north-eastern India, Cardinal Charles Maung Bo of Yangon, Myanmar, met with leaders of various religions in Kolkata.

The cardinal expressed happiness over interfaith unity, harmony and brotherhood he witnessed among the leaders on November 13.
“I am deeply touched by the religious brotherhood and respect shown by the minority delegation of Muslim and Buddhist leaders who spent fellowship time,” said the cardinal who is known for his leadership among the Religions for Peace movement.

Pope’s cousin, missionary in Thailand, will serve as his translator

Pope Francis’s translator in Thailand will be someone familiar with the nuances and colloquialisms of his Argentine Spanish because she grew up speaking it with him.

Salesian Sister Ana Rosa Sivori, the Pope’s second cousin and a missionary in Thailand for more than 50 years, will translate for Francis during his stay on Nov. 20-23 in Thailand, said Matteo Bruni, director of the Vatican press office.

Christian journalist persecuted, resigns in Pakistan

In yet another incident of religious intolerance in Pakistan, a Christian journalist quit Dunya News after she was allegedly persecuted for her faith by co-workers and insulted for not converting to Islam after marrying a Muslim, media reports said.

Gonila Gill (38), married to Husnain Jamil, was the only Christian journalist registered with the Lahore Press Club, reported AsiaNews.

“People talk rubbish about my faith. But I will not lose hope and remain steadfast in my religion,” Gill was quoted as saying by the news website.

In Pakistan, several incidents of violation of religious freedom have come to fore recently.

According to a recent US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) report, “Extremist groups and societal actors in Pakistan continued to discriminate against and attack religious minorities, including Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, Ahmadis and Shia Muslims.”

Pakistan had failed to “adequately protect these groups and it perpetrated systematic, egregious religious freedom violations,” it said.