WASHINGTON — An annual government report outlining the state of affairs for religious freedom across the globe has found “worsening” conditions worldwide, and urges the U.S. Department of State to designate 16 nations as Countries of Particular Concern (CPC). “Overall, the Commission has concluded that the state of affairs for international religious freedom is worsening in both the […]
(Evangelical Focus) — Evangelical Christians in Northern Italy are determined to find a solution for the closure of their places of worship by local authorities. In the last three years, 27 places of worship were closed in the region of Lombardy, which affected around forty communities, considering that sometimes two or three churches meet in […]
XIAMEN, Fujian (ChinaAid) — Authorities in China’s coastal Fujian province banned a church, accusing its members of “establishing religious sites” without approval and “collaborating with Korea.” In a notice, authorities accused the River of Life Berean Church and the Bereans Research Institute of Theology of having Korean connections and setting up illegal religious meeting places. […]
JUBA, South Sudan (Morning Star News) – A pastor and another Christian serving a 12-year sentence in Sudan were freed today after they were granted a presidential pardon, sources said. Hassan Abdelrahim Tawor had been in prison since his arrest in December 2015, as was Abdulmonem Abdumawla of Darfur. They were convicted on baseless charges of […]
(Reuters) — Jakarta’s Christian governor has been sentenced to two years in jail for blasphemy, a harsher-than-expected ruling critics fear will embolden hardline Islamist forces to challenge secularism in Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation. Tuesday’s guilty verdict for Basuki Tjahaja Purnama comes amid concern about the growing influence of Islamist groups, who organized mass […]
HYDERABAD, India (Morning Star News) – A pastor in eastern India’s Bihar state has lost his hearing after Hindu extremists assaulted him outside his home on church premises last month, sources said. Doctors at a Hajipur government hospital determined the loss of hearing and wounds on Sikandar Kumar’s body were a result of being beaten with […]
(Evangelical Focus) — Dozens of friends, neighbors and Christian leaders supported the relatives of an Afghan woman who was killed in front of her two children, last week in the region of Bayern (Germany). A 29-year asylum seeker (also from Afghanistan) has been accused of stabbing her with a kitchen knife outside of a supermarket, […]
DONGGUAN, Guangdong (ChinaAid) — Police officers raided a house church meeting in China’s southern Guangdong province on Wednesday evening, detaining 30 of the members in attendance including the pastor and an American couple with two children. More than 20 officers broke into Zhongfu Wanmin Church approximately a half hour into their evening service on May […]
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (WKMG) — An arson investigation is underway after a fire caused $5,000 worth of damage at a Volusia County church, the Daytona Beach Fire Department said. Someone intentionally set a fire in Master’s Domain Church around midnight Thursday then put it out, according to a news release. The pastor called the fire […]
DALIAN, Liaoning (ChinaAid) — Authorities in China’s northeastern Liaoning province conducted a massive raid against a gathering of house church pastors on April 26. Pastors in attendance said that there were more than 40 pastors from house churches across China at the “Unity in Christianity” event hosted by Pastor Guo Pingxi from Kunming, Yunnan. During the […]