(CNN) — Sweden has opened its first neutral cemetery, free of any religious symbols, to cater to the country’s large number of atheists. The founder of the site in Borlänge, in central Sweden, said it is open to believers and non-believers alike as long as they don’t have any religious symbols or markings on their […]
(Christian Concern) — A heterosexual couple has launched the next stage of their court challenge to enter into a civil partnership. Charles Keidan and Rebecca Steinfeld, from London, have said that they want to be “partners in law,” but do not want to get married. Currently, the law only allows same-sex couples to enter into […]
(Morning Star News) – Muslims in a village in eastern Uganda on Sunday (Oct. 30) gutted the home of a Christian family for housing two boys threatened with violence for leaving Islam, sources said. Stephen Muganzi, 41, told Morning Star News that the two teenaged boys sought refuge with him on Oct. 16 in Kobolwa […]
(Open Doors USA) — Early in the morning, on October 13, Kanygul Satybaldiyeva, a 76-year-old Christian woman, died in Sary-Talaa, a village in Kyrgyzstan. According to Radio Freedom in Central Asia, her daughter, Jyldyz Azaeva, was not permitted to bury her mother in the local village cemetery. Only Muslims may be buried there, and Kanygul […]
TURKEY (Morning Star News) – An emergency order issued over the weekend makes it significantly easier for Turkey to deport expatriates, further unsettling foreign Christians after the government this month ordered the deportation two U.S. Christians. The directive eliminates the need for a court decision before a foreigner can be deported, amending sections of the […]
JUBA, South Sudan (Morning Star News) – The future education of more than 1,000 pupils was unclear after authorities closed down a Christian school in eastern Sudan last week, sources said. Civilians who bused in from Khartoum and elsewhere aided armed police in taking over the Evangelical Basic School in Madani, Al Jazirah state on Oct. […]
JERUSALEM (National Geographic) — For the first time in centuries, scientists have exposed the original surface of what is traditionally considered the tomb of Jesus Christ. Located in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Jerusalem, the tomb has been covered by marble cladding since at least 1555 A.D., and most […]
(The Times of Israel) — Israeli archaeologists found the site of a fierce battle where the Roman army bombarded and breached the walls of Jerusalem before conquering the city and destroying the Second Temple almost 2,000 years ago, officials said Thursday. They said that the discovery, made last winter during an excavation of a construction […]
NEW DELHI (Morning Star News) – Hindu extremists in Maharashtra state had severely beaten a pastor, pointed a gun at his head and were sprinkling gasoline on him to burn him to death when he began praying and praising Jesus. Pastor Prashant Bhatnager, 45, is still recovering from broken hand, arm and leg bones, as well […]
Syria (Mission Network News) — At the end of last week, Russian and Syrian forces let up on airstrikes in Aleppo for a few days for humanitarian purposes. There were evacuation corridors opened in eastern Aleppo to allow citizens to leave the city. However, very few took the opportunity to flee, and the UN said […]