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Fri, 30 Jul 2021
Paul Givan vows to block Westminster move to set up abortion services in NI
Northern Ireland's First Minister has said he will block any move by Westminster to force Stormont to set up full abortion services.
Central Fife Times
Manchester Arena bomber's brother 'refusing to take part in de-radicalisation programmes' in prison
Manchester Arena mass murderer Hashem Abedi is refusing to take part in any 'de-radicalisation' programmes in prison, a new TV investigation claims.
Manchester Evening News
Beijing Winter Olympics: Raab 'unlikely' to attend as calls grow for boycott over China's alleged Uighur abuses
Dominic Raab has said it is "unlikely" that he will attend the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022, amid growing calls for British dignitaries to boycott the event over alleged human rights abuses in China.
Yahoo! Sport
Man admits sharing Islamic State beheading videos
A British man who went to Syria to join the Islamic State (IS) group has admitted sharing beheading videos.
BBC
Canada: Millions meant for residential school survivors spent on Catholic Church lawyers, administration: documents
The Roman Catholic Church spent millions of dollars that were supposed to go to residential school survivors on lawyers, administration, a private fundraising company and unapproved loans, according to documents that formed part of a court record.
CBC News
Winnipeg Catholic priest accuses residential school survivors of lying about abuse for money
A Catholic priest has been banned by a Winnipeg archdiocese from speaking publicly after accusing residential school survivors of lying about sexual abuse to get more money from court settlements, of spreading falsehoods about residential schools, and joking about shooting those writing graffiti on churches, among other comments.
CBC News
US: Ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick is charged for alleged sex abuse of a minor nearly 50 years ago
Former US cardinal Theodore McCarrick has been charged with sexually assaulting a teenage boy, court documents showed Thursday, making him the most senior Roman Catholic official in America to face criminal charges in the massive clergy abuse scandal.
Mail Online
US: Evangelical pastor demands churchgoers ditch their masks
Since the early months of the coronavirus pandemic, Greg Locke, the pastor at a Nashville-area church, has repeatedly called covid a hoax, undermined emergency mandates and refused to comply with guidance from public health officials.
The Washington Post*
New Zealand introduces bill to outlaw LGBT conversion therapy
New Zealand introduced on Friday legislation that proposes up to five years in prison for practices intended to change a person's sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, known as LGBT conversion therapy.
Yahoo! News
Most S. Africans don’t want Covid shot, many rely on prayer
About 54% of South Africans say they are unlikely to get a Covid-19 vaccine and almost half say they believe prayer provides more protection than the shots against contracting the disease, a survey showed.
Bloomberg*
Tunisia opens corruption probes of leading Islamist party
Tunisian local media say prosecutors have opened investigations into alleged foreign campaign funding and anonymous donations to Islamist movement Ennahdha and two other political parties.
The Independent
Russia warns on influx of Isis fighters to Afghanistan
Russia on Wednesday issued a warning about the threat of the Islamic State fighters in Afghanistan, saying they are pouring into the war-torn country from Syria, Libya and elsewhere.
The Independent
Thu, 29 Jul 2021
Catholic church leaders accuse British government of imposing 'an unjust law' over abortion plan in NI
Catholic church leaders have accused the British government of imposing "an unjust law" after it revealed plans to direct the introduction of abortion in Northern Ireland.
The Irish News*
Testimony of teenager raped, forced into Islamic marriage and then abandoned
A victim of childhood sexual abuse in Bradford was raped by multiple men, physically abused and forced into an illegal Islamic marriage while she was still a child.
Yahoo! News
London anti-Semitism increased as Middle East tensions grew
Violence against Jewish people in London spiked in the spring following escalating tensions in the Middle East, new figures show.
BBC
‘The number of children being homeschooled could soon become a serious problem’
As the Parliamentary Education Committee highlights in a new report, no one is exactly sure how many children are being homeschooled – and that is worrying, says James Moore.
The Independent
Ireland: Archbishop accuses media of distorted coverage of religion
The Irish media are "being managed to serve distorted and sometimes questionable ends, which are calculated to deprive us of our critical faculties", the Catholic Archbishop of Tuam, Michael Neary, has declared.
The Irish Times*
US: Police officer says Jan. 6 insurrectionists ‘perceived themselves to be Christians’
'I saw the Christian flag directly to my front,' recounted police officer Daniel Hodges. 'Another read 'Jesus is my savior, Trump is my president.''
Religion News Service
US: Designer who won’t make same-sex wedding websites loses case
A US appeals court has ruled against a web designer who didn't want to create wedding websites for same-sex couples and sued to challenge Colorado's anti-discrimination law, another twist in a series of court rulings nationwide about whether businesses denying services to LGBTQ people amounts to bias or freedom of speech.
The Associated Press
Girl ‘beaten to death and hung from bridge’ for wearing jeans during a religious ritual in India
An Indian teenager was killed by members of her family and then hung from a bridge because she wore jeans, it has been claimed.
Mail Online
‘Taliban “has not changed,” say women facing subjugation in areas of Afghanistan under its extremist rule’
The Taliban insurgents continue their deadly war to seize control of Afghanistan after the departure of United States and NATO forces. Afghan women may have the most to fear from these Islamic militants, say Homa Hoodfar and Mona Tajali.
The Conversation
'Spike in Ahmadi persecution in Pakistan'
Attacks and blasphemy cases against Pakistan's Ahmadi sect spike, driven by the rise of a far-right group and a religious campaigner.
Al Jazeera
Wed, 28 Jul 2021
‘The meaning of the Speaker's Corner stabbing’
Offensive or irresponsible speech should never be met with violence.
UnHerd
Dignity in Dying campaign group says Britain should change law after man’s death
The inquest of Torbay businessman Juan De Vere Whiteway-Wilkinson has been highlighted by campaigners as an example of the British public's need for choice.
Plymouth Live
Church of England school construction gets go-ahead
A plan to build a 1,200-pupil secondary school in Oldham for The Cranmer Education Trust has been given the go-ahead.
Construction Enquirer
‘A homophobe’s dream’: Ghana draft law could criminalise LGBT+ people, allies and advocates
Leaked legislation, which is reported to have cross-party support in the largely conservative Christian country, would make it illegal for citizens not to report sexual minorities to the police.
The Independent
MP in Victoria calls for recital of the lord's prayer before every sitting of parliament to be scrapped
An MP in the Australian region has said the reciting of the lord's prayer before parliamentary sittings should be scrapped and replaced with a 'moment of reflection'.
Daily Mail Australia
Hindu girl back home after forced marriage in Pakistan
A Hindu girl abducted and forced to marry a Muslim man in Sindh province of Pakistan has been reunited with her parents by local authorities.
UCA News
'Noor Mukadam's murder exposes toxic misogyny in Pakistan'
A 27-year-old woman was first shot and then slaughtered by a male acquaintance in Islamabad last week. Experts say Noor Mukadam's brutal murder puts a spotlight on toxic misogyny in Pakistani society.
DW
‘Historic Vatican trial may change Catholic Church’s finances forever’
A historic trial of 10 companies and individuals, including a cardinal, on charges including corruption and fraud may reconfigure everything about how the Vatican runs its finances.
Religion News Service
Tue, 27 Jul 2021
MPs call for national register of home-educated children
A committee of MPs is calling for a national register of home-educated children in England, saying there is an "unacceptable level of opaqueness" surrounding the issue.
BBC
Ireland: Ex-Christian Brother jailed for ‘morally reprehensible’ abuse
A former Christian Brother who in the early 1970s took young boys to the front of his class to put his hands down their trousers and sexually assault them has been jailed for three years.
The Irish Times*
‘My escape and recovery from life as ‘sex cult girl”’
Bexy Cameron spent her childhood in the Children of God cult, expecting to die as a teenager.
The Irish Times*
Mississippi asks Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade
The State of Mississippi filed a brief with the Supreme Court on Thursday defending the state's ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy and asking the court to overturn Roe v. Wade when it hears arguments on the case in the fall, raising the stakes of what was already set to be the term's biggest reproductive rights case.
Politico
‘Anti-abortion lawyers are finally being honest about what they want from the Supreme Court’
For decades, abortion opponents urged the Court to lie about abortion restrictions. They don't need to anymore, says Ian Millhiser.
Vox
‘Don’t exempt religious objectors from vaccine mandates’
Policies requiring vaccination against COVID-19 need not include, and should not include, exceptions for those who have religious objections to vaccinations, says Erwin Chemerinsky.
Los Angeles Times
New Zealand accepts return of Islamic State-linked citizen
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday she has agreed to a request from Turkish authorities to accept the return of a New Zealand citizen accused of having links to the Islamic State, and her two young children.
Reuters*
Police: IS sympathisers behind attempt on ex-Maldives leader
Maldives police say a local group that sympathizes with the Islamic State group carried out an assassination attempt in May on former President Mohamed Nasheed.
The Independent
Israeli government wants more ultra-Orthodox men to work, but faces pushback
Israel's new government is looking to take advantage of a rare political opportunity to push more ultra-Orthodox Jewish men into the workforce to boost the economy, a measure that could pit powerful religious leaders against politicians.
Yahoo! News
Mon, 26 Jul 2021
Woman wearing Charlie Hebdo T-shirt attacked with knife at Speakers’ Corner
A woman has been slashed with a knife at Speakers' Corner in London's Hyde Park, police have said. Footage shared on social media shows someone dressed in black approaching a woman wearing a Charlie Hebdo T-shirt.
BBC
Christian street preacher successfully contests fine for evangelising during lockdown
Magistrates in London have ruled a Christian street preacher, who was fined and prosecuted, was entitled to evangelise and gather during lockdown.
Premier Christian News
Contraceptive pill can be bought over the counter in UK pharmacies for the first time
Purchasers will need to have a consultation with pharmacists before being sold two types of progesterone-only, so-called "mini pills - but will not require a prescription from their GP.
Sky News
Thousands tell Boris Johnson to ‘stop stalling on LGBT+ rights’ at Reclaim Pride march
Thousands of people demanded that Boris Johnson "stop stalling on LGBT+ rights" in the UK at Saturday's Reclaim Pride march.
Pink News
‘Will Boris Johnson surrender his role in appointing the Archbishop of Canterbury?’
The PM is intimately involved in the governance of the Church of England. So this question of conscience is a public interest question, says Robert Peston.
ITV
Ireland: Justice committee recommends further examination of assisted dying bill
The Oireachtas justice committee has recommended the establishment of a special committee to examine the law on assisted dying.
Irish Legal News
Vatican reveals it owns more than 5,000 properties
The Vatican has released information on its real estate holdings for the first time, revealing it owns more than 5,000 properties, as part of its most detailed financial disclosures ever.
The Guardian
France’s parliament approves anti-separatism bill against Islamist extremism
The French National Assembly on approved the controversial "anti-separatism" bill despite strong criticisms from parliamentarians from the Left and the Right.
RFI
Popular Afghan comedian has throat cut by Taliban
A popular comedian was among several people summarily killed by Taliban forces in Afghanistan where tens of thousands of refugees are fleeing the advancing insurgents.
The Times*
Mozambique: fears of escalating conflict as foreign troops clash with Islamists
Foreign troops sent to reinforce local security forces in Mozambique have clashed with Islamist militants for the first time, as the conflict in the east African country moves into a new and potentially dangerous phase.
The Guardian
‘US churches reckon with traumatic legacy of Native schools’
More than 150 boarding schools for Indigenous children in the United States were operated by religious groups between the mid-19th and mid-20th centuries — and churches are now reckoning with their traumatic legacy.
ABC News
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