Author: Rod McGuirk

Source: The Washington Post

Wire Service: AP

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/27/AR2008102700785.html

The speaker of Australia's Parliament has called for a public debate about whether the country's lawmakers should end the practice of starting each session with the Lord's Prayer.

Lawmakers have started every day of Parliament...

Author: Frances D'emilio

Source: The Associated Press

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/20081026-0514-eu-vatican-christianskilled.html

Pope Benedict XVI decried the killing of Christians in Iraq and India and appealed on Sunday for political and religious leaders to defend them.

In India, anti-Christian riots and rampages by Hindu extremists have claimed at least 38 lives since late August,...

Author: Tim Sullivan

Source: The Associated Press

https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Christians-worship-in-fear-in-eastern-India-3188496.php

They still worship in what remains of...

Author: Bradley S. Klapper

Source: The Associated Press

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/384966_iraq25.html

The U.N. refugee agency said Friday that it was rushing aid to thousands of Christians who fled a northern Iraqi city, while a prominent Shiite cleric appealed for unity as lawmakers consider a U.S.-Iraq security deal.

Some 13,000 Christians have been chased away by threats and extremist attacks in Mosul this month, said...

Author: Staff Writer

Source: World Faith News

http://www.wfn.org/2008/10/msg00124.html

Christian communities should improve their knowledge of Islam, be good neighbours to Muslims and bear witness to their faith in an appropriate manner, according to an international group of church leaders and experts on Christian-Muslim dialogue.

These were some of the recommendations put forward at an 18 to 20 October consultation aimed at developing an ecumenical...

Author: Gregg Krupa

Source: The Detroit News

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081021/LIFESTYLE04/810210382/1041/LIFESTYLE04

When his phone rings, Nabil Roumayah knows it's more bad news from Iraq.

"My friends and family are calling all of the time and telling us that people were shot and killed because they are Christian, and there are cars going around with loudspeakers...

Author: Anto Akkara

Source: Ekklesia

http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/7801

Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh observed that "Christianity is part of our national heritage" when the Rev Dr Samuel Kobia, general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), called on him at his residence in New Delhi on 18 October 2008.

"We are extremely pleased to hear this assertion from the Indian prime minister," Kobia told a news conference after his meeting with...

Author: Staff Writer

Source: The Analyst

http://allafrica.com/stories/200810220870.html

The Ministry of Education is under pressure to put an end to the teaching of Bible in public schools across the country as evidence[d] by a call from a religious advocacy institution which has been praying for religious tolerance.

The group, Muslim and Christian United for Peace and Reconciliation in Liberia (MUCUL) says it has written the authorities of the...

Author: Staff Writer

Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

http://www.iwpr.net/?p=syr&s=f&o=347250&apc_state=henh

A recent TV series has broken taboos by tackling the sensitive topic of Christian-Muslim relationships in Syria.

“Not a Mirage” was a mini-series shown during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which this year coincided with September. The drama, focusing on the secret marriage of a Muslim man and a...

Author: Anto Akkara

Source: Ecumenical News International

http://www.eni.ch/featured/article.php?id=2381

The general secretary of the World Council of Churches, the Rev. Samuel Kobia, has said during a visit to India that "one of the greatest problems facing the world today is religious extremism."

Kobia expressed his concern following a recent outbreak of violence against Christians in Orissa state in eastern India, and while he was visiting...

Author: Mary Warner

Source: Beliefnet/Religion News Service

https://www.beliefnet.com/columnists/news/2008/10/in-key-battleground-state-reli

A group of twentysomethings at the Evangelical Free Church of Hershey...

Author: K S Hari Kumar

Source: Asia Times Online

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/JJ16Df01.html

Christians, who form 20% of the 32 million people living in the southern Indian state of Kerala, are celebrating Sunday's canonization of their beloved Sister Alphonsa, unaware of the controversies that surround the life of the first Indian woman to be elevated to sainthood.

Alphonsa lived in Bharananganam, a remote village 33...

Author: Staff Writer

Source: Middle East Online

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/culture/?id=28338

The Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams blamed "human greed" for the international financial crisis after a meeting of Christian and Muslim religious leaders on Wednesday.

The conference in Cambridge, central England, was also attended by the second most senior figure in the Church of England, Archbishop of York John...

Author: Staff Writer

Source: BBC News

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7671609.stm

At least 1,300 Christian families have fled the Iraqi city of Mosul after an upsurge of violence against them by Muslim extremists, the authorities say.

Thousands of people have sought refuge in outlying villages since last week after a dozen Christians were murdered, said local official Jawdat Ismail.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has...

Author: Staff Writer

Source: The Examiner

http://www.examiner.com/a-1638612~OK_city_funds_3rd_attempt_for_public_religious_art.html

A conservative Oklahoma City suburb with a history of trying to incorporate religious art into public spaces has approved city funds to help pay for a statue of Jesus Christ to be placed downtown for Christmas, likely leading to another court fight.

The Edmond Visual Arts...