Orthodox

Vaccinated faithful throng Jerusalem church for Holy Fire

By Associated Press — May 2, 2021

(RNS) — The scene at the church was a stark contrast to last year's, when only a handful of religious leaders held the centuries-old ceremony in a near-empty setting enforced by the coronavirus pandemic.

New players add volatility in Jerusalem tensions

By Josef Federman — April 26, 2021

(AP) — The fate of Jerusalem and its holy sites is one of the most explosive issues in the conflict.

Likes and prayers: Facebook tests new ‘prayer post’ feature

By Emily McFarlan Miller — April 21, 2021

(RNS) — The idea for prayer posts grew out of the myriad ways users have connected over Facebook while distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the spokesperson.

William Barber preaches at Easter vigil service spotlighting Christian Palestinians

By Daoud Kuttab — April 6, 2021

(RNS) — Barber’s appearance served to recognize Christians in the Palestinian liberation movement, which some American evangelicals paint as an apocalyptic conflict between Christians and Muslims.

Pope Francis’ encyclical now available in Russian thanks to Muslim translators

By Claire Giangravé — March 3, 2021

(RNS) — It is not uncommon for papal encyclicals to be translated into multiple languages, including Russian, but they are rarely recognized officially by the Vatican.

Dozens of houses of worship, one DC street, a 9-year photo project

By Adelle M. Banks — March 2, 2021

(RNS) — People at the first church ‘were so welcoming that it kind of got our project off to a happy start,’ said one photographer.

The pope’s Iraq visit will make headlines. Can it make life better for religious minorities?

By Knox Thames — February 26, 2021

(RNS) — A sense of foreboding plagues efforts to return Christians and Yazidis to their homelands.

Palestinian President Abbas gives Christians outsize voice in new legislature

By Daoud Kuttab — February 22, 2021

(RNS) — Palestinian Christians are ambivalent about the quota, which would allow at least seven Christians with the most votes to sit on the council.

Attacks on ancient religious sites in Ethiopia kill hundreds, reports say

By Fredrick Nzwili — February 18, 2021

(RNS) — A church that claims to contain the ark of the covenant and one of Africa’s oldest mosques have been scenes of mass killing and desecration.

Jordan’s Orthodox archbishop moves to deny evangelicals full legal recognition

By Daoud Kuttab — February 16, 2021

(RNS) — In a Jan. 26 letter to the country's Judicial Council, Greek Orthodox Archbishop Christophoros Atallah called evangelical churches 'a danger' to society.

When the Bible doesn’t make sense

By Jana Riess — February 12, 2021

Kristin Swenson wants to give readers space to understand that the Bible is weird, and a box full of tools to deal with that weirdness.

Christians in Holy Land face bleak Christmas season due to COVID-19

By Michele Chabin — December 18, 2020

(RNS) — A usually festive and economically important time for the Holy Land’s tiny Christian minority has been changed with an absence of pilgrims.

Scholars call out Putin and the ‘escalation’ of persecution against Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia

By Emily McFarlan Miller — October 2, 2020

(RNS) — A group of 50 religion scholars from around the world are calling on President Vladimir Putin and his administration to end the persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia.

Work resumes on church destroyed on 9/11

By Karen Matthews — August 3, 2020

NEW YORK (AP) — After a three year halt due to financial problems, work resumed Monday on a Greek Orthodox church being built to replace one destroyed in the attack on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.