OC

Washington D.C., Jul 24, 2019 / 01:21 pm (CNA).- As some Christian genocide victims rebuild their homes in Northern Iraq, a tenuous security situation still threatens their future in the region.

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(Peter Anderson) Most of the results are now known for the expedited parliamentary elections that were held in Ukraine last Sunday, July 21.  There is, of course, much information available in the secular media concerning the results.  The following are two short articles in English giving a general overview.

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Moscow, July 22, Interfax - The Russian Orthodox Church official believes that the trade war between China and the USA will negatively reflect on availability of Bible in the United States and English-speaking world in general.  --  
"The taxes introduced by President Trump will hit not only Chinese economy, but also the Christian mission and not only in China, but in the United States," Metropolitan Hilarion said on air Church and the World program on Rossiya-24 TV-channel.
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Government restrictions on religion have increased across the globe — and Christians and Muslims are persecuted in more countries than any other religious group, Pew Research Center has found.   --   Pew's report, titled "A Closer Look at How Religious Restrictions Have Risen Around the World," covered a 10-year span, from 2007 to 2017, and studied 198 countries.
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They are sowing “seeds of resilience and peaceful coexistence”; they assist the poor, promote equal rights, foster citizens’ participation in civil society: they are the members of the “Volunteers and Peace Building Programme” promoted by Caritas Iraq with the support of Caritas Italy and Missio Germany, to help Iraq recover from the war that broke out in 2003, followed by ISIS occupation.
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YEREVAN, JULY 17, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan on July 17 received Holy See Apostolic Nuncio to Armenia, Archbishop José Avelino Bettencourt.

By Vatican News

In 2018, more than 820 million people did not have enough food, according to the latest UN report on the state of food security and nutrition in the world. Msgr. Fernando Chica Arellano, Holy See's Permanent Observer to the UN food and agriculture organizations in Rome commented on the report.

WASHINGTON (RNS) — The rabbi of Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue, site of an October mass shooting, tries to avoid using the word “hate” and wishes others would do the same. -- A Muslim man who lost his wife in the March attack on his New Zealand mosque urges love for every human being. --  A Christian woman from Sri Lanka hopes religious leaders will remain compassionate even in the wake of terrorist bombings that killed Christians attending Easter services in the spring.
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WASHINGTON (RNS) — The rabbi of Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue, site of an October mass shooting, tries to avoid using the word “hate” and wishes others would do the same. -- A Muslim man who lost his wife in the March attack on his New Zealand mosque urges love for every human being. --  A Christian woman from Sri Lanka hopes religious leaders will remain compassionate even in the wake of terrorist bombings that killed Christians attending Easter services in the spring.
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Prime Minister Marjan Šarec is on an official visit to the Vatican today. This morning he had a private audience with Pope Francis. He also had a meeting with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin.  --- Prime Minister Šarec and His Holiness Pope Francis emphasised the friendly relations that exist between Slovenia and the Holy See. “We value the dialogue on bilateral relations that has been established and hope to continue it,” was one of the Prime Minister’s key messages on the occasion of this visit. The Prime Minister also took the opportunity to remind Pope Francis that he has an open invitation to visit Slovenia. 
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King Mohammed VI received, on Tuesday at the Royal Palace in Rabat, several new ambassadors and handed them their appointment Dahirs. ---   For the first time, the list of new ambassadors includes the appointment of a woman to the Vatican. Actually, scholar Rajaa Naji Mekkaoui has been appointed to the Vatican and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.

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By Gjergj Erebara  ---   Ahead of hotly disputed local elections in Albania, the Orthodox Church in the country has called on politicians to not use its premises for political activities, following at least two occasions in which mayoral candidates were seen speaking to voters within churches.

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Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew sent to the newly elected Mayor of Constantinople, Ekrem İmamoğlu, for his victory at Sunday’s elections on June 23, a warm congratulatory message on behalf of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Greek expats, wishing

One hundred arrivals a day - after months-long walks and dangers - from the Middle East, Afghanistan, Iran, internal Africa. If the Mediterranean is "closed off", they try to reach Western Europe through Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia. But the Croatian border is sealed, and those attempting to cross it are faced by soldiers and more violence. While the temporary reception centres in the Balkan country lack services and all forms of basic necessities, Caritas reaches out to refugees       read more

Christians in the Holy Land may exist, but they have lost the influence they used to have in international politics, says Patriarch Fouad Twal of Jerusalem.  --  In an exclusive interview with ZENIT in Amman, Jordan, the Patriarch Emeritus of Jerusalem, residing in Jordan, affirmed this.

Kiev (AFP) - The former head of Ukraine's breakaway independent church held a rare conference of clerics Thursday with the aim of restoring his religious leadership, threatening the future of Ukraine's new unified Orthodox Church.

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The diversity of origins and traditions which make humanity unique are being targeted by intolerance, sometimes by brutal violence, and refugees are often on the front line of this assault. Reinforcing the traditional role of faith communities in offering sanctuary to refugees, more than 25 faith-based actors express their further

(Peter Anderson) Filaret’s “Local Council” of the Kyiv Patriarchate was held this morning (Thursday) at his St. Vladimir Cathedral in Kyiv. It was sparsely attended. It appears that journalists were present at the Cathedral before the meeting began but were excluded once the meeting started. According to a BBC journalist, there were present before the start of the meeting two other bishops besides Filaret – namely the two bishops responsible for the UOC-KP inside the

In an exclusive interview with ZENIT in Amman, Jordan, Bishop Krikor Augustin Coussa, Bishop of Alexandria of the Armenian Catholics (Egypt, Sudan, and the African countries), affirmed this.

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In May, Pope Francis issued a detailed ruling on how officials in the Roman Catholic Church must handle cases of clerical sexual abuse, the first official codification of the church’s global policy. --  Though abuse survivors have criticized the pope’s ruling as not strong enough and for being approved only “ad experimentum for three years,” his statement is thorough about how abuse allegations should be handled and powerful given the backing of the head of the Catholic Church.

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In the Christian stronghold of Maaloula people still speak Aramaic – the language of Jesus Christ. The village was captured by Al Nusra terrorists in September 2013. They profaned and plundered churches, ancient sanctuaries and set fire to houses. Most of its inhabitants were forced to flee. Today, after 5 years, the villagers are trying to start anew. The accounts of the Melkite priest and of the Orthodox Archimandrite    read more - foto - video

A 1,400-year-old monastery that was the first Christian site discovered in the UAE has reopened to the public. --     The site on Sir Bani Yas island, about 200km west of Abu Dhabi city, has been covered by a new shelter, information boards added, lighting installed to allow night tours and new roads built to improve access.

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As the council of the Lutheran World Federation met on 12 June, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit shared greetings and appreciation.

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Vatican City — Pope Francis told Jesuits in Romania that tensions and struggles within the church have left it wounded and that the only path forward is through humble dialogue, not futile arguments.

Midelt, Morocco — There are no ghosts at the Notre Dame de L'Atlas Monastery in Midelt, Morocco, but there are memories. It is in this city in the foothills of the Atlas Mountains where the two Trappist monks who survived the massacre of their community in Tibhirine, Algeria, re-established their community.

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The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I strongly criticized the Russian Patriarchate of Moscow on Tuesday regarding the issue of the independence of the Ukrainian Church.  The already-cool relations between the two Christian Orthodox Patriarchates were completely severed a few months ago, when the Ukrainian Church received the status of “Autocephaly,” or Independence, from the Russian Church.
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WARSAW (Reuters) - A Polish court has ordered church authorities to hand over to prosecutors classified files regarding a paedophilia case, in a rare example of a clash between the state and the powerful Catholic Church in deeply devout Poland.
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Communiqué. From 6 to 7 June, within the program “From heart to heart” inaugurating the ministry of the new Metropolitan of Philadelphia, Kyr Borys Gudziak, a conference entitled “The Future of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in North America” was held at the Catholic University of America in Washington D.C.

In the presence of many people, today, Tuesday, June 11, the memory of Saint Apostles Bartholomew and Barnabas was celebrated in the Ecumenical Patriarchate, a day that the name of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is also honoured.
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