International

The 50 Countries Where It’s Hardest to Follow Jesus in 2022

Afghanistan is the new No. 1, according to the 2022 World Watch List (WWL), the latest annual accounting from Open Doors of the top 50 countries where it is most dangerous and difficult to be a Christian. “This year’s findings indicate seismic changes in the persecution landscape,” said David Curry, president of Open Doors USA. Since Open […]

Rome church condemns swastika-draped casket at funeral

The Catholic Church in Rome on January 11 strongly condemned as “offensive and unacceptable” a funeral procession outside a local church in which the casket was draped in a Nazi flag and mourners gave the fascist salute. Photos and video of the scene outside St. Lucia church following the Monday funeral service were published by […]

‘Polite persecution’ of Christians gathers pace in Europe

European communities, with their sprawling churches, ancient cities, culinary skills, dance, music, et al, were once proud of their Christian roots. They slowly became secular in the 20th century and the evolution continues to move in a trajectory of despising the Christian faith and its followers. When former German chancellor Helmut Kohl suggested that Turkey […]

Italian bishop bans no-vaccinated priests from distributing communion

A bishop in the southern Italian region of Campania is making waves for his recent decision to ban priests, religious, and lay people who have not been vaccinated from distributing communion at Mass in a bid to curb Italy’s rising infection rate. Bishop Giacomo Cirulli, who leads the Dioceses of Teano-Calvi and Alife-Caiazzo, in the […]

Vatican delays external audit of contracts in Germany’s Cologne archdiocese

The Vatican has said that an external review of contracts in Germany’s Cologne archdiocese must wait until Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki returns from a sabbatical. The archdiocese disclosed Rome’s decision on Jan. 4, less than a month after it announced the review of contracts surrounding a landmark study of clerical abuse, reported CNA Deutsch, CNA’s […]

Pope’s Latin Mass decision hasn’t affected his popularity, survey finds

Pope Francis’ decision in July to re-impose restrictions on the celebration of the older form of the Latin Mass appears not to have affected his standing among U.S. Catholics, according to a report released Oct. 7 by the Pew Research Center. About 83% of Catholics in the country have a favourable view of Francis, based […]

A surge of evangelicals in Spain, fuelled by Latin Americans

When Kent Albright, a Baptist pastor from the United States, arrived as a missionary to Spain in 1996, he was unprepared for the insults and threats, or the fines from the police for handing out Protestant leaflets on the streets of Salamanca. “Social animosity was big — they had never seen a Protestant in their […]

Evangelicals a rising force inside Argentine prisons

The loud noise from the opening of an iron door marks Jorge Anguilante’s exit from the Pinero prison every Saturday. He heads home for 24 hours to minister at a small evangelical church he started in a garage in Argentina’s most violent city. Before he walks through the door, guards remove handcuffs from “Tachuela” — Spanish […]

Indian bishops slam terror attack on tourists in India’s Kashmir

No action taken against police who assaulted Catholic priests in India