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Killed and kidnapped in a war not their own: dozens of Thais and Nepalese among Hamas victims

Victims of a conflict that is not theirs. There are also many Asian families among those mourning the dead of the Hamas incursion into the kibbutzim around Gaza or anxious about the kidnapping of loved ones. It is no coincidence: the agricultural settlements of southern Israel are one of the areas where the work of […]

13 Card Francis: inculturation and universality, the challenges for the Church in Malaysia

Bishop Sebastian Fran-cis of Penang (Malaysia) is among the 21 new cardi-nals created by the pontiff on 30 September during a ceremony held in St Peter’s Square. Speaking to AsiaNews, he said, “Pope Francis told me to concentrate and focus my mission on the inculturation of the faith” in his country, promoting the path of evange-lisation in the […]

Indian priest who joined Hindu nationalist party relieved of duties by bishop

An elderly Catholic priest in India’s Kerala state was suspended from priestly duties for joining India’s ruling BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party or Indian People’s Party), which is known for pursuing a Hindu nationalist agenda. The BJP is the party of Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi. The priest’s action took place at a time of rising […]

Religious leaders of Manipur meet for peace in Guwahati

Even as Imphal Valley was in turmoil over the disappearance of two students, Interfaith Forum for Peace and harmony, Manipur, were meeting with Kuki Church leaders searching for ways of peace. While this meeting was the initiative of interfaith forum, it was prompted and supported by Archbishop Emeritus Thomas Menamparampil of Guwahati, who had visited […]

Catholic priest, three others sent to jail in India

A court in a northern Indian state has remanded four Catholics, including a priest, to judicial custody under the stringent anti-conversion law. The court in Prayagaraj district in northern Uttar Pradesh on Oct. 2 sent Father Babu Francis, director of social work of Allahabad diocese, and three other Catholics to jail, a day after their arrest. […]

Journalists urge India’s chief justice to uphold media freedom

Media organizations have urged India’s chief justice to uphold freedom of speech following the arrest of a popular editor and raids on 46 journalists. In a letter to Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, 18 media bodies noted, “The fact is that today, a large section of journalists in India finds itself working under the threat of reprisal.” The […]

Court relief to India’s minority institutions

The top court in a southern Indian state has ruled that education institutions of minorities, including Christians, do not have to implement reservation quotas, which are part of the country’s affirmative action program. In its order,  the Madras High Court in Tamil Nadu said that the government cannot compel educational institutions run by religious and linguistic […]