A recent study has shown that ‘spiritual boredom’ can deter people from religious practices. This study by the Universities of Vienna and Sussex, was first published in the specialist journal, Communications Psychology. Lead researcher, Thomas Götz advised church leaders to pay more attention to this phenomenon and to counteract it with more appealing sermons. “The…
St John Paul II’s example as a strong bridge-builder between Catholicism and Judaism should be used against enduring antisemitism, especially in the wake of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel that killed 1,200 people, according to a theologian and papal biographer George Weigel. He gave a keynote address to 230 people closing a…
Syria’s top Christian leaders have condemned the recent killing and wounding of hundreds of Alawites, many civilians, by security forces and Islamist gunmen linked to the country’s new rulers. The pontifical charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) issued an urgent appeal for prayers, warning of escalating violence that has targeted innocent civilians, including…
People across Sri Lanka have united to protect elephants, an animal revered in Buddhist culture, after increasing deaths from collisions with passenger trains. The issue garnered widespread attention after a passenger train truck a herd, killing six elephants in Habarana. In response, the Centre for Environmental Justice petitioned Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court urging coordinated efforts…
The ‘ReArm Europe’ plan proposes 800 billion euros of arms spending in the Old Continent. But would this really guarantee our security? The increase in economic resources for armaments has once again become an instrument of relations between states, showing that peace is only possible and achievable if it is based on a balance…
As conflict continues to devastate eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Association of Episcopal Conferences of Central Africa (ACEAC) has warned of potential regional spillover. At a meeting in Tanzania, bishops from Burundi, DRC, and Rwanda called for peace, denouncing what they termed a growing “culture of death.” The M23 rebel offensive, backed by…
Almudena Martínez-Bordiú A new documentary, Ocho Siglos Después (Eight Centuries Later), sheds light on the plight of persecuted Christians in regions like Syria, Nigeria, and northern India, where faith remains a source of resilience amid oppression. The film, produced by Fascina Producciones, was screened on February 25 at Madrid’s Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum. The event featured…
Indonesia’s Minister of Religious Affairs, Prof. KH Nasaruddin Umar, emphasised the importance of religious tolerance and interfaith harmony during a colloquium and book discussion at Atma Jaya Catholic University of Indonesia on February 25. Titled ‘Salve Peregrinans Spei!’, the event focused on perspectives from 33 prominent Indonesian Muslim figures regarding Pope Francis’ visit. In his…
The upcoming inauguration of a Church in Ur of the Chaldeans, four years after Pope Francis’ visit, is a ‘message’ of openness, says Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako, Patriarch of Baghdad. The site, he hopes, will become a place of pilgrimage for Iraqis and believers from all over the world, Christians and Muslims, for Abraham “is…
Gina Christian – OSV Christianity’s decline in the US may have stalled, but signs of a long-term downward trend remain, according to a new Pew Research Centre survey. On February 26, Pew released the results of its 2023-2024 Religious Landscape Study, which polled nearly 37,000 US adults on a range of topics regarding religious belief…