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Pakistan drops controversial minority rights bill‍

The Pakistan government has dropped a bill meant to protect the interests of its religious minorities on Aug. 9 amid civil society organizations calling for a stronger law to protect basic human rights. The National Assembly, Pakistan’s lower house, passed the draft law — the National Commission for Minorities Bill, 2023 — on Aug. 7. […]

Seoul after Manila: WYD returns to Asia in 2027

Thirty-two years after Manila, World Youth Day (WYD) will return to Asia. Seoul will in fact host the event in 2027, while Rome (Italy) will organise the jubilee of young people in August 2025. Pope Francis made the announcement this morning in Lisbon at the end of the final Mass of the great gathering that […]

Like the UAE, Saudi Arabia might cancel Friday holiday

Will Saudi Arabia make Friday a working day? A proposal to that effect has sparked heated debates and elicited strong opinions. It is also proof that things are changing in Islam’s birthplace, home to its two holiest cities, Makkah and Madinah. The Okaz newspaper recently published an op-ed titled “Friday is a working day”, breaking […]

Iraqi cardinal sets out conditions for return to Baghdad

Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako said in the Aug. 1 letter that he would only consider returning to the Iraqi capital if President Abdul Latif Rashid formally recognized him as the leader of the Chaldean Catholic Church and the holder of all its endowments. Sako relocated July 21 to Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan Region weeks after Rashid revoked a […]

Pope Francis: ‘Spiritual worldliness’ one of greatest dangers facing priests, the Church

Spiritual worldliness is one of the most dangerous temptations facing priests and the Church because it “reduces spirituality to appearance” while disconnecting it from the Gospel, Pope Francis warned in a recently released letter to the priests of Rome. “[Spiritual worldliness] leads us to be ‘workers of the spirit,’ men clad of sacred forms that […]

Faith leaders warn Kenya is on ‘downward spiral into the abyss’

Faith leaders in Kenya are warning against continued violent demonstrations, saying they could lead the country on the path to self-destruction. Demonstrations this week against the high cost of living have left at least 23 people dead, according to a spokesperson for the UN Human Rights Office, Jeremy Laurence. “The UN Human Rights Office is […]