Asia
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Beijing urged to relax anti-Church crackdown
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMChina must guarantee its citizens’ rights to freedom of religious belief and expression, a coalition of lawyers, religious leaders and academics have told Beijing as church demolitions and the arrests of Christians stoke fears of a nationwide “anti-church” campaign. -
Bishop election could test Vatican-China ties
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMChina on Thursday, May 8, held its first bishop election since Pope Francis assumed the papacy in March last year, in what will be a key test of relations between Beijing and the Vatican as they decide whether to endorse the candidate. -
Indonesia: Lawyers and Islamic activists contest the application of the Sharia law to non-Muslims
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMA clause in Aceh's new Islamic criminal procedural codes, finally approved in February could see non-Muslims tried in Sharia Court , but lawyers, legal experts and human rights activists in the province contest the application of... -
After two centuries, Henan Jews prepare to celebrate Passover
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMThe first presence of Jews in Kaifeng, China's former imperial capital, dates back to the 10th century AD. The last recognised rabbi died in 1810, and since then the community has lived without knowing the faith of their ancestors... -
Sri Lanka seeks divine help to avoid power cuts
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMSri Lanka's energy minister offered flowers and lit thousands of oil lamps as she prayed for rains to replenish drought-hit reservoirs which are used for hydro-power plants, an official said Tuesday. -
Christian sentenced to death for blasphemy, Islamabad bishop calls for prayers for the persecuted
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMSawan Masih's conviction came at the end of a trial held in prison because of a high risk of Islamist attacks. The Christian man's lawyers announce that they will appeal the verdict. Religious leaders and civil society groups express their anger and outrage over the court decision.... -
Pope Francis: stop to violence in South Sudan
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMPope Francis on Sunday appealed for an end to violence in South Sudan, to ensure access to humanitarian aid and for the promotion of peace. In a letter addressed to Archbishop Paulino Lukudu Loro of Juba, read at Mass on Sunday morning by ... -
The task of protecting India’s child cotton pickers
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMSome 400,000 children work on cotton farms across India. Rada estimates she is 11 years old, but she can’t be certain. She says she has been working in the Indian cotton fields for three years. “My parents stopped me going to school because... -
Teens warned of Valentine's 'love'
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMTeenagers are being encouraged to stay mindful when expressing their "love" for each other on Valentine’s Day. The advice was offered yesterday by Phra Wichit Thammaphon, assistant to the abbot of Wat Saket, as his temple and the National Office of ... -
About 500 Hindu and Buddhist child brides married to a tree
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMEvery year, tribal Newaris celebrate a unique a fertility rite as a step towards the real "marriage". Critics view the practice as "superstition" and consider it a shortcut to child marriage. -
Religious landmark toppled in Thailand
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMA major religious landmark was badly damaged in central Thailand on Thursday when an oil tanker slammed into a river bank, toppling a statue of St Anna. Statue of St. Anna considered a beacon to fishermen... -
"Allah" issue: more than 100 complaints to the Director of the Catholic weekly Herald
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMMALAYSIA - "The situation is quite serious. There is great concern in the Catholic Church , because the story has taken a turn for the worse", explains to Fides Agency Friar Augustine Julian, a missionary of the Brothers of Christian Schools in Kuala Lumpur, former secretary of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Malaysia. -
As India's rivers turn toxic, religion plays a part
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMIndia's rivers, which number more than 400, are the main source of its water, supplying 90 percent of the country. Yet the Central Pollution Control Board has warned that the water in half the nation's rivers is unsafe to drink and at least a quarter of the rivers can not be used for bathing.... -
Govt of Indonesia to celebrate Religious Harmony Day
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMTens of thousands of people are expected to attend the inaugural Religious Harmony Day at the National Monument (Monas) in Central Jakarta on Sunday amid a number of cases of religious intolerance that marred 2013 -
Indonesia - Christian politicians: 'Remove one's religious belief from identity cards'
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMIt is time to remove one’s religious belief from identity cards: is the proposal made by Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, a Christian politician who has the important role of leutenant governor of the district in the capital Jakarta. As reported to Fides, the proposal has sparked much debate in... -
Bangkok, Catholic businessmen focus on Churches' social doctine
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMIn March 2014, the Thai capital will host a conference that will bring together the leaders in the world of business and finance. Not only business but also the ethical and social issues in focus. Also under discussion the new evangelization and pastoral challenges of the future “that affect every sector of human life" -
Asia is in the grip of a diabetes epidemic.
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMThe 'silent killer' disease now has 98 million sufferers in China alone. In human and financial terms, the burden is huge and it is hitting the poor especially hard. Often thought of as a disease of the rich, experts say the unabating rise may be fuelled as much by food scarcity and ... -
Last Jew in Afghanistan contemplates his exodus
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMJewish community was once several thousand, now only one man remains -
Typhoon Haiyan survivors begin to rebuild amid reigning confusion and delays in aid
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMFor the mayor of Tacloban looting is not criminal, but dictated by the need to survive. The airport of the capital of Leyte too small to handle the planes carrying aid and leave carrying the displaced. Arrival of aircraft carrier George Washington. Manpower and donations from Japan, Indonesia and China. -
Philippines, PIME superior: Situation after passage of Haiyan increasingly serious
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMFr. Giovanni Re says authorities have reopened some airports and some main roads: "Now they will try to move aid by land". Minor damage in Cebu, where the archdiocese has initiated a program of mutual assistance between the parishes still intact and those affected. A sign of hope: ... -
President Rohani: Iran and the Holy See together in the fight against extremism
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMPresident Hassan Rohani relaunches dialogue between the Islamic and the Christian world, and hopes for an alliance between Iran and the Holy See regarding the major issues that shake humanity such as the fight against radicalism, injustice and poverty. As Fides learns,.. -
Card. Gracias: Shocked by the attack on Nunciature in Damascus
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMThe president of the Bishops' Conference of India expressed "admiration for the courage of Msgr. Zenari" nuncio in Syria. According to the Indian cardinal "peace talks are the only option" to solve the crisis in the Middle Eastern country. -
Some Trends and Possible Future Developments in Asia
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AM11th World Public forum dialogue of civilizations, Rhodes, October 2013. Roundtable on "The Traditions and Future of Asian Civilizations - Politics, Economics, and Religion" -
Malaysia court rules non-Muslims cannot use ‘Allah’
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMA Malaysian court has ruled that non-Muslims cannot use the word Allah to refer to God, even in their own faiths, overturning a 2009 lower court ruling. The appeals court said the term Allah must be exclusive to Islam or it could cause public disorder. People of all faiths use... -
One million displaced by floods in India
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMFlooding in eastern India worsened on Wednesday as more than one million people were displaced when overflowing rivers submerged homes, days after Cyclone Phailin brought torrential rains. Some 2,600 villages in Orissa state were submerged. At least... -
Burmese religious leaders: fight poverty to stop sectarian violence
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMThis is what an interfaith conference on peace held in Yangon said in its final statement. Leaders from five major religions call for better education to strengthen "national identity" in a multi-religious setting, and the recognition of the "need for frequent discussion [. . .] among the leaders of different faiths... -
Chemical weapons inspectors arrive in Syria. Initial signs of dialogue
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMThe experts have nine months to verify and destroy Assad's chemical weapons programme. The UN, the Arab League, Washington and Moscow are preparing a Peace conference. Secret meeting between the Free Syrian Army and the Assad government. -
Xi Jinping calls on religions to help fight corruption
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMThe president and secretary general plan on giving more freedom to Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism to restore morality to the tired Chinese society. But Prof. Liu Peng believes it beneficial to launch a real law for the freedom of all religions, including Christianity and Islam. -
The World Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community Arrives in Singapore
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMThe World Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat and Fifth Khalifa, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, arrived safely in Singapore on the afternoon of 22 September 2013. -
Pakistan quake kills more than 200 people; island appears
By Admin Webmaster 2/6/2016 10:31:10 AMAn earthquake in Pakistan, powerful enough to prompt the appearance of a small island off the coast, has killed more than 200 people, Pakistani officials said. The 7.7-magnitude quake struck in a remote area of southwestern Pakistan on...