persecution
Pope chides world powers for failing to push for peace in Syria
By Rosie Scammell — June 19, 2015
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Pope Francis on Friday said the international community has not done enough to find a solution to the Syrian conflict, and said the country’s Christians had been united by “the blood of the martyrs” lost in war.
Syrian Catholic leader pleads with US Christians not to forget his threatened church
By David Gibson — April 29, 2015
NEW YORK (RNS) “We are in grave danger; we may disappear soon,” Archbishop Jean-Clement Jeanbart said in trying to keep one of the world's original Christian communities from vanishing.
Pope Francis condemns Islamic State’s executions of Christians in Libya
By David Gibson — February 16, 2015
VATICAN CITY (RNS) "Be they Catholic, Orthodox, Copts, Lutherans, it doesn't matter: They're Christian! The blood is the same: It is the blood which confesses Christ," Francis said.
Is James Foley a martyr? A brutal death sparks a faith-based debate
By David Gibson — August 26, 2014
(RNS) James Foley’s murder by terrorists of the Islamic State has prompted many Christians, especially Foley’s fellow Catholics, to argue that he should be considered a martyr, maybe even a saint.
Pope Francis apologizes for persecution of Pentecostals
By Josephine McKenna — July 28, 2014
CASERTA, Italy (RNS) “I am the shepherd of the Catholics and I ask you to forgive my Catholic brothers and sisters who did not understand and were tempted by the devil," Pope Francis told an Italian Pentecostal pastor.
Christian leaders say Middle East Christians must not be forgotten
By Adelle M. Banks — May 7, 2014
WASHINGTON (RNS) “If history has any lesson to teach us about silence, it’s not a good one,” Cardinal Donald Wuerl said.
Supreme Court rejects asylum bid for German home-schooling family
By Sarah Pulliam Bailey — March 3, 2014
(RNS) Advocates for Uwe and Hannelore Romeike and their six children are now looking to Congress to pass a bill allowing the home-schooling family to remain in the U.S.
Christians face increasing persecution, congressman says
By Amanda Murphy — February 11, 2014
(RNS) The global persecution of Christians has gone from bad to worse, said U.S. Rep. Chris Smith at a congressional hearing on Capitol Hill Tuesday (Feb.11).
COMMENTARY: Orthodox bishops chafe at Christian persecution in the Middle East
By David Steinmetz — November 14, 2013
(RNS) With the civil war in Syria and the civil conflict in Egypt, instances of violent repression against minority Christians have increased. This rise was particularly worrying for Orthodox bishops, who lead the largest body of Christians in the Middle East.
State Department names Boko Haram a terrorist organization
By Katherine Burgess — November 14, 2013
(RNS) Boko Haram, which means “Western education is forbidden,” is responsible for thousands of deaths in northeast and central Nigeria, according to the State Department.
COMMENTARY: A call for a more realistic reporting of Christian martyrs
By Judd Birdsall — November 12, 2013
(RNS) It may sound counterintuitive, but it’s better to err on the side of undercounting martyrs than to risk overcounting them. What’s at stake is credible religious freedom advocacy.
Brazil tries to combat religious intolerance of minority faiths
By Janet Tappin Coelho — October 10, 2013
(RNS) The murder of a Candomble practitioner and other incidents of religious intolerance have prompted the Brazilian government to launch a new diversity campaign with the goal of combating religious discrimination.
ANALYSIS: Persecuted Coptic Christians still hopeful
By Monique El-Faizy — September 5, 2013
(RNS) Christians in the West are often quick to claim persecution, while their counterparts in Egypt, whose churches are being burned by the dozens, are lately shying away from the term.
Africa rises, China falls on Christian persecution list
By Lauren Markoe — January 8, 2013
(RNS) The persecution of Christians "vastly rose" in Africa in 2012 as a result of power gains by radical Islamists, according to Open Doors, a Christian missionary organization which publishes an annual list of offending nations. By Lauren Markoe.
Atheists rally for persecuted unbeliever in Indonesia
By Kimberly Winston — July 19, 2012
(RNS) The atheist community has embraced the cause of an Indonesian man, Alexander Aan, who was beaten and jailed after denying God’s existence on Facebook and posting cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. By Kimberly Winston.
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