Pope “The Church does not need lukewarm Christians” Pope Frances has some stern words for those who claim to be Christians but do not live their faith The Church does not need “cold or lukewarm Christians” who are held back by fear, said Francis . It needs Christians who are on [...]

CHINA - Clergy banned from visiting hospitals in Zhejiang province  In the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang the authorities have banned all kinds of religious activity in Wenzhou's Central Hospital. In a public notice to the patients and their visitors it was announced that "Religious activities are banned in this hospital." [...]

INDIA - Country prepares to celebrate Mother Theresa‘s  canonization  Throughout India preparations are under way to celebrate the canonization of Mother Theresa, the country’s best-loved public figure, on 4 Sep.A global film festival is being organised by the Indian chapter of SIGNIS, the World Catholic Association for Communication.  to mark the [...]

NIGERIA - “Islamic aggression takes different form in Nigeria” Bishop Charles Hammawa is the head of the Diocese of Jalingo, located in the eastern part of Nigeria's so-called "Middle Belt." The population of 2.3 million is about equally divided between Muslims and Christians, 450,000 of whom are Catholic, with 10 percent of [...]

SYRIA - ACN aid kitchen gives hope to Christians and Muslims in Aleppo While the Syrian city of Aleppo is still experiencing terrible violence and conflict, a Catholic Church is providing essential help and hope to both Christians and Muslims who have remained in the city.Jesuit priest Fr. Ziad Hilal of the [...]

Pope Francis to visit Assisi in September for interreligious summit Shortly after  Pope Francis' visit to Assisi a few weeks ago, Mohamed Abdel Qader, the Imam of Perugia and Umbria who met with the Pope during the brief trip, hinted that another visit would take place  soon. The Vatican has now confirmed that [...]

INDONESIA - Muslim youth injures priest in church during Mass in copycat attack In what appears to be a copycat attack inspired by the fatal stabbing of Fr Murat in France last month, an Indonesian Muslim youth wielding an axe attacked a priest during a Sunday service in a church in Medan, northern Sumatra. In [...]

UK - “Churches must prepare for IS attacks “counter-terrorism experts warn  Following attacks by Islamic extremists on Catholic priests in Indonesia and France in recent weeks, counter terrorism experts fear Islamic State supporters will target churches in the UK and other European countries. The attacks prompted counter terrorism experts to rewrite [...]

CHINA -“We will make the Cross flourish throughout China” Since late 2013, more than 1,200 crosses have been removed from the churches in Zhejiang Province, China. But the government's campaign to remove Christian symbols using the excuse of "illegal constructions"  has not succeeded in preventing crosses being displayed in the country.A [...]

EGYPT - Bishop warns of exponential rise in attacks on Christians Bishop Angaelos, head of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the United Kingdom, issued a warning about the exponential rise in attacks on Christians in Egypt:"It is regrettable that the time has come yet again to speak of heightened, targeted attacks against [...]