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Hunger Strikes in Iran Protest Upsurge in Harsh Sentences, Treatment of Christians
July 31, 2017: Two Christian prisoners in Iran went on hunger strikes to protest increasingly harsh treatment of those arrested for house-church activities.
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Church in Zanzibar, Tanzania Shaken as Court Supports Muslims’ Opposition to Building
A court on the semi-autonomous island of Zanzibar, off the coast of Tanzania, ruled on Thursday (July 20) that a church cannot continue constructing a worship building it has tried to finish for eight years, sources said.
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Christian Student Killed in Spate of Boko Haram Attacks in Northeast Nigeria
July 25, 2017: Among several Boko Haram bombings that have put northeastern Nigeria on edge this year was a suicide attack on Christian student organization quarters that killed a Christian student, sources said.
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Police in India Arrest Six Christians, Call Worship ‘Unlawful Assembly'
July 25, 2017: Berating and slapping a pastor for reading the Bible instead of Hindu texts, police in Uttar Pradesh state, India last month detained six Christians under "unlawful assembly" laws for worshiping together, sources said.
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Pastor in India Shot Dead in Front of Church by Suspected Hindu Extremists
July 17, 2017: A pastor in northern India's Punjab state was shot dead in front of his church premises two months after Hindu extremists took offense at a gospel event celebrating his church's 25th anniversary, sources said.
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Survey: Hong Kong teens generally identify with traditional Chinese cultural values
In order an effort to promote traditional Chinese culture, the Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong, in collaboration with Macao YMCA, Guangzhou Suigang'ao Teenagers Institute, and the Teacher Chang Foundation of Taiwan, has conducted a survey on teens measuring their cultural awareness. They found that Hong Kong youths generally identify with and support the values of traditional Chinese culture.
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Global Lutherans celebrate Reformation Day, ‘trusting in the power of grace in a merciless time’.
Yesterday, October 31, was Reformation Day, and Lutherans around the world held various events in commemoration. In Singapore, the Lutheran Church advocated for Christian communion, while the German Lutheran Church encouraged believers to face the challenge of “trusting in the power of grace in a merciless time.”
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Many American churchgoers expect their pastors’ sermons to help them understand and address modern cultural issues
American churchgoers are looking for more than biblical explanation from their pastor each week. Many expect the sermons to help them understand and address modern cultural issues.
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2.1M Korean Christians estimated at joint worship service to affirm family, oppose gay marriage, pray for nation
In the afternoon of Reformation Sunday, Oct. 27, some 2.1 million Christians gathered for a joint worship service from 2pm to 5pm in Seoul, Korea to “unite for repentance, revival, and restoration of holiness in our society.” According to organizers, an estimated 1.1 million joined onsite despite the bad weather with another 1 million joining online. The unprecedented joint worship service brought together Korean churches across denominations as they affirmed traditional marriage and family and
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Willow Creek Community Church invites believers to write prayer cards for the next president
This past Sunday, Willow Creek Community Church based in Illinois invited believers to “pray for the next president” during the service. The church not only expressed its concern for the upcoming election but also emphasized the role believers should play in the process and the importance of offering prayers for the nation's leaders.
