Nearly 50 employees of the Vatican Museums have initiated a labour dispute with the Holy See over what they allege are poor, unfair and unsafe working conditions, which could result in a class action lawsuit against Pope Francis’s administration. First reported by Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, the complaint has been lodged by 49 out…

This year’s International Charlemagne Prize goes to Pinchas Goldschmidt, Chairman of the European Rabbinical Conference. He uses his acceptance speech to make a fiery plea in favour of human rights. Aachen (KNA) The Chairman of the European Rabbinical Conference (CER), Pinchas Goldschmidt (60), has called for a resolute fight for democracy and human rights and…

In the wake of the brutal slaying of three police officers in Chile, an act that shocked the conscience of the South American nation, the country’s Catholic bishops stressed the themes of violence and public fear in an April 30 meeting with Chilean President Gabriel Boric. Archbishop René Rebolledo of La Serena, who heads the…

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released a new report last week highlighting the countries with the worst religious persecution in the world. This year, the countries topping USCIRF’s list of the world’s most egregious religious freedom violators were Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Burma, China, Cuba, Eritrea, India, Iran, Nicaragua, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,…

For the first time, an Arab Christian woman has been elected as the rector of an Israeli university — the University of Haifa. The announcement of Professor Mouna Maroun’s appointment was made earlier in April amid tensions with Iran and while anti-Israel protests were mounting at universities around the world. Ms Maroun belongs to the…

Muslim extremists set on fire several homes of Christians in Minya, a province in southern Egypt, in a continuation of anti-Christian violence less than two weeks before Orthodox Christians celebrate Easter. According to The New Arab, when anti-Christian fanatics failed to dispossess Christians of their homes in retribution for attempting to build a church in…

The Archbishop of Kinshasa, Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo, a consistent critic of the Congolese government and adviser to the Pope, has evoked the wrath of the Public Prosecutor General’s Office in the country as a consequence of several statements in sermons about the running of the country. The cardinal, who does not hold back with his…

In a wide-ranging interview, Pope Francis’s top diplomat said a recent vote by the European Parliament to style abortion as a fundamental right constitutes a “radical attack” on human life. “When life is attacked in such a radical way, you truly have to ask what kind of future we want to build,” said Italian Cardinal…

Muslim extremists set on fire several homes of Christians in Minya, a province in southern Egypt, in a continuation of anti-Christian violence less than two weeks before Orthodox Christians celebrate Easter. According to The New Arab, when anti-Christian fanatics failed to dispossess Christians of their homes in retribution for attempting to build a church in…

Fr Shay Cullen   It was a shocking and painful ‘no’ vote by the United States to veto a draft declaration at the United Nations (UN) Security Council recognising Palestine as a full member of the United Nations. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the US veto and said it was “unfair, unethical, and unjustified”. Some…