The latest in Europe

US study says Christians one third of world population

2011-12-19T18:30:39Z

A major US study released Monday put the total number of Christians worldwide at 2.18 billion -- almost a third -- of the estimated global population of 6.9 billion.

Christians make up as big a proportion of the world's population as they did a century ago, but whereas two-thirds of them in 1910 were in Europe, they now are spread more widely throughout the world, the NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Angry Indian lawmakers forced parliament to close Monday and protesters gathered outside a Russian consulate over a Siberian trial calling for one of Hinduism's most holy books to be put on a list of banned literature that includes Hitler's Me...

Church of England against 'gay wedding' use

2011-12-03T13:30:33Z

The Church of England will not permit gay civil partnership ceremonies on its premises without the express permission of its general assembly, it said on Saturday.

New laws allowing same sex "weddings" to be conducted in places of worship in England and Wales come into force on Monday, though no religious...

Irish Church reports reveal horrific child abuse

2011-11-30T17:31:30Z

A new series of reports into Irish Catholic dioceses on Wednesday revealed horrific child sex abuse by priests and mistakes by Roman Catholic Church authorities in dealing with them.

Some of the cases detailed by the Church's own child protection watchdog occurred as recently as August 2010, and the Irish republic's Minister for Children Virgin Mary left Russia Monday after a tour that saw it worshipped by three million people in a potent display of the power of the Russian Orthodox Church.

The Belt of the Virgin Mary attracted a million people in London 2012 Olympic sites, organisers said Sunday.

Security will be tight at all Games venues, with Britain prepared to deploy surface-to-air missiles to protect London during the event, Defence Secretary MOSCOW (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of Russians lined up outside Moscow's central cathedral Saturday for a chance to kiss a relic of the Virgin Mary brought from a Greek monastery a few weeks before a parliamentary election.

The Cincture of the Virgin Mary, believed by the faithful to be the...

Polish students delve into forgotten Jewish past

2011-11-18T07:30:35Z

Annihilated by Nazi Germany and largely forgotten by Poles, lost Jewish culture is re-emerging in Poland as youngsters scour their communities, searching for traces of Jewish life as it once existed.

In Konskie, a small town of 20,000 people located 130 kilometres (80 miles) south of Warsaw, a parking lot and a supermarket now stan...

Cairo Islamists protest French paper's prophet cartoon

2011-11-11T13:30:40Z

Hundreds of hardline Islamists protested outside France's embassy in Cairo on Friday against a French satirical newspaper that published pictures of the Muslim prophet, the state MENA news agency reported.

The news agency quoted Khaled Said, the spokesman of the Salafi group that organised the protest, as...

Germany marks 'day of shame' on pogrom anniversary

2011-11-09T15:30:37Z

Germany on Wednesday marked the 73rd anniversary of the Nazi pogrom that paved the way to the Holocaust with solemn ceremonies throughout the country and the opening of a new synagogue.

The Kristallnacht pogrom, also known as the Night of Broken Glass, saw Nazi thugs plunder Jewish businesses throughout Germany, torch about 300 synagogues and round up some 30,000 Jewish men for deportation to concentration camps.

DUBLIN (Reuters) - In the week that Ireland announced it was closing its embassy to the Vatican, the pews at Dublin's main Roman Catholic church are less than a third full for Sunday morning mass...

Bosnia imams speak out after attack on U.S. embassy

2011-11-04T10:30:38Z

SARAJEVO (Reuters) - Imams across Bosnia issued a rare joint message during prayers on Friday condemning violence in the name of Islam, a week after an extremist attack on the U.S. embassy shook the country's overwhelm...

Vatican stunned by Irish embassy closure

2011-11-04T07:30:22Z

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Catholic Ireland's stunning decision to close its embassy to the Vatican is a huge blow to the Holy See

Bosnia U.S. embassy attacker says he acted alone: lawyer

2011-10-30T14:00:13Z

SARAJEVO (Reuters) - A gunman who opened fire with an assault rifle on the U.S. embassy in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo Friday said he had acted alone, his lawyer said on Sunday.

Lawyer Senad Dupovac said that 23-year-old Mevlid Jasarevic said he had no accomplices but he ex...

First Sikh peer takes UK House of Lords seat

2011-10-24T12:30:44Z

Britain's first turban-wearing Sikh peer took his seat as an independent member of the House of Lords on Monday.

Indarjit Singh pledged his allegiance to the Queen during an elaborate ceremony in the upper house's chamber.

The 79-year-old journalist and broadcaster, who is the director of the Network of Sikh Organisations UK, will be known as L...

First Sikh peer takes House of Lords seat

2011-10-24T12:30:39Z

Britain's first turban-wearing Sikh peer took his seat as an independent member of the House of Lords on Monday.

Indarjit Singh pledged his allegiance to the Queen during an elaborate ceremony in the upper house's chamber.

The 79-year-old journalist and broadcaster, who is the director of the Network of Sikh Organisations UK, will be known as L...

Putin welcomes Greek 'fertility-boosting' relic to Russia

2011-10-20T18:30:53Z

Vladimir Putin on Thursday welcomed to Russia a highly revered Orthodox relic credited with fertility-boosting powers as his country struggles to halt a population decline.

The relic venerated by believers as the belt of the Virgin Mary arrived on loan from violence-hit

Irish Church launches app for would-be priests

2011-10-17T15:30:38Z

The Catholic Church in Ireland launched a new app on Monday for young men who are thinking of joining the priesthood, taking a technological leap to reverse four decades of declining vocations.

The free "Vocations" app is designed to help users reflect on whether the clerical life is for them, including rating themselves how much they think about others, and questions about celibacy and relationships.

Launching the app, Bish...

Vienna's Jewish museum re-opens with Hollywood exhibit

2011-10-17T14:30:53Z

Vienna's Jewish Museum re-opens its doors this week after a thorough renovation, with a new exhibit dedicated to the first film studio bosses in Hollywood, many of whom were Jews emigrated from eastern Europe.

"(It is) a lively house, a house that will show that after 1945 in Vienna a Jewish community emerged again, a very lively community, a very diverse community," director...

Analysis: Pope disappoints hopes of Catholics and Protestants

2011-09-26T02:00:05Z

BERLIN (Reuters) - Pope Benedict's visit to his German homeland was bound to provoke harsh words from his critics. The surprise of the event was how bluntly he took his own Church to task and disappointed Protestants ready to work with him.

Despite hi...

Pope fails to satisfy on first state visit 'home'

2011-09-25T20:30:19Z

Pope Benedict XVI's first state visit to his native Germany fell far short of the expectations of sex abuse victims and those clamouring for a more open and tolerant Church.

Benedict's four-day marathon, which wrapped up Sunday, taking in Berlin, the former communist East German city of Erf...

Open-air mass wraps up pope's first 'home' state visit

2011-09-25T15:30:18Z

Pope Benedict XVI flew out of his native Germany Sunday after celebrating mass with around 100,000 on the final day of a visit that has disappointed many inside and outside the Church.

The two-hour mass was one of the high points of an exhausting trip, his first state visit home that took the 84-year-old pontiff from Pope Benedict on Saturday met with Orthodox Christians during a tour stop in Freiburg, Germany

Pope Benedict on Saturday met with Orthodox Christians during a tour stop in Freiburg, Germany, the AP reported.

During the third day of a visit to his native Germany, the 84-year-old pope called for a c...

Open-air mass wraps up Pope's first state 'home' visit

2011-09-24T19:30:26Z

Pope Benedict XVI was to hold a mass for around 80,000 faithful in Germany's Catholic heartland amid widespread disappointment over his first state visit to his native country.

Protestants, Jews and groups representing people who suffered abuse at the hands of Catholic priests all expected more from the trip which has taken the 84-year-old pontiff from Pope Benedict XVI was to lead historic prayers Friday with Protestant leaders in the German monastery where Martin Luther studied, on the second day of his trip to his increasingly secular homeland.

The 84-year-old has stressed his goal of unity in the Christian Church during his six-year papacy, and Germany<...

Pope 'understands' those leaving Church over abuse scandals

2011-09-22T18:30:26Z

Pope Benedict XVI expressed understanding Thursday for those who had turned their backs on the Catholic Church after the recent sex abuse scandals, on his first state visit to his German homeland.

At the start of a four-day trip, the pontiff also took a conciliatory tone with thousands of protesters rallying in free-wheeling, increasingly secular Berl...

Joy, protests and apathy await pope in native Germany

2011-09-21T20:30:30Z

Pope Benedict XVI's first state visit to his German homeland begins here Thursday with the threat of mass protests and the lingering taint of Church sexual abuse scandals set to cloud his welcome.

The leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics has a gruelling schedule for the four-day stay, combining official talks with outreach to the faithful, many of whom have grown alienated during his six-year-old papacy.

Supporters of pope's German visit blast boycott

2011-09-21T06:00:07Z

BERLIN (Reuters) - Supporters of Pope Benedict's tour of Germany this week criticized on Wednesday politicians who expressed doubts over his conservative views, his planned speech to parliament and ...

German-speaking Catholics want reform from Rome

2011-09-21T04:30:25Z

Pope Benedict XVI faces a clamour for change as he heads to Germany for his first state visit, with calls for reform on many fronts -- from recognising gays to ordaining women to the priesthood.

Grievances over the Vatican's "out of touch" attitudes towards sexuality and the fam...

Pope 'looking forward' to trip home to Germany

2011-09-17T18:30:14Z

Pope Benedict XVI says he is looking forward to his upcoming trip to his homeland Germany, while stressing that God, not "spectacle," is the focus.

The main aim of his visit, from Thursday to next Sunday, will be to help "God to penetrate our field of vision," the pope said late Saturday.

In a rare move, he made his comments on a German television programme that has...

France bans street prayers

2011-09-16T10:00:15Z

PARIS (Reuters) - A French ban on praying in the street came into force on Friday, driving thousands of Muslim worshippers in northern Paris into a makeshift prayer site in a disused fire brigade barracks, angering a small but vocal minority.

The street-prayer ban has highlighted France's problems assimilating its 5-million-strong Muslim community,...

German pope ventures into land of Luther and Marx

2011-09-16T04:30:14Z

ERFURT, Germany (Reuters) - Indifference, irritation and, inevitably, protest will likely mark a papal trip to the former East Germany that includes an historic meeting in the one-time home of Martin Luther to find ways Catholics and Protestants can work together to sav...

Turban-wearing peer vows to fight prejudice

2011-09-14T05:30:21Z

The country's first turban-wearing Sikh peer has vowed to dispel prejudices about his religion that have increased in the wake of terrorist attacks on the West in the past decade.

Indarjit Singh, whose official title on entering the House of Lords will be Baron Singh of House of Lords will be Baron Singh of The Vatican on Saturday acknowledged "grave failures" in handling a child sex abuse scandal involving priests in southern Ireland as Dublin insisted the Holy See helped block investigations.

In its long-awaited response to an o...

Poland pilgrims' annual trek to honor Black Madonna

2011-08-31T16:30:38Z

Each August for the last 300 years, thousands of Poles have made a spiritual journey to the country's most revered monastery, home to an ancient Catholic icon believed to work miracles.

Carrying rosaries, crosses and hiking poles, believers of every age, entire families, scouts, soldiers, even the disabled, trek hundreds of kilometres -- some more than 600 -- to venerate the Black Madonna of Czestochowa.

The tradition goes back to 1711 when the bubonic plague dec...

One killed in shooting near Copenhagen mosque

2011-08-30T09:30:22Z

A shooting outside a Copenhagen mosque killed one person and wounded another Tuesday as Pakistani worshippers were celebrating the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, police said.

"I can confirm that one person has been killed and another wounded," Copenhagen Police Chief Inspector Lau Thygesen told national daily B.T.

"The incident is related to the people who were...

Bosnia's 'Euro-Islam' on show during Ramadan

2011-08-30T04:30:21Z

In Bosnia, which prides itself as the home ground of "European Islam", religious fervour and relaxed joie de vivre live easily side by side, even during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

While many Sarajevans strictly observe the Ramadan fast, the cafes in the cobbled streets of the Bosnian capital's Ottoman old town still abound with tourists and locals alike.<...

Pope earns rare praise from leading German leftist

2011-08-25T14:30:42Z

PARIS (Reuters) - Pope Benedict has reaped praise before his visit to his German homeland next month from one of the last people one would expect -- the sharp-tongued leader of the former communists from old East Germany.

Pope Benedict Anti-Gay Marriage Speech Cut Short By Freak Storm

2011-08-22T05:30:12Z

Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday was cut short from delivering a speech on marriage in Madrid, Spain by a freak storm

Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday was cut short from delivering a speech on marriage in Madrid, Spain by a freak storm that delivered strong winds and sheets of rain, the AFP reported.

As many as 1.5...

Pope leaves after youth festival in storm-hit Madrid

2011-08-21T18:30:24Z

Pope Benedict XVI told 1.5 million pilgrims to spread the faith Sunday as he brought to an end lavish Catholic youth festivities in Madrid marked by a violent storm, blistering heat and protests.

After spending a night under the stars, the faithful cheered as the 84-year-old arrived at a vast Madrid airbase, hit by sheets of rain, bolts of lightning and powerful winds the n...

Papal mass ends festivities in storm-hit Madrid

2011-08-21T08:30:14Z

Pope Benedict XVI, emerging into the sun after being lashed by a violent storm, urged 1.5 million pilgrims to share the faith Sunday as he brought lavish festivities in Madrid to a close.

After spending a night under the stars, the faithful cheered as the 84-year-old arrived at a vast Madrid airbase, hit by sheets of rain, bolts of lightning and powerful winds the night bef...

Pope leads service recalling sins, child abuse

2011-08-19T17:30:17Z

Pope Benedict XVI, seated before a sea of young pilgrims in Madrid, led a service Friday recalling Christ's crucifixion and the world's sins, including rape and crimes against children.

The 84-year-old pontiff presided from a vast white stage in city's Plaza Cibeles square over a Stations of the Cross devotion marking the torments of Spain (Reuters) - Pope Benedict warned on Friday that education was more than training for work and said it ought to also lead the young to "love, reason and faith."

On the second day of his trip to Spain for the

Pope starts Spain visit with call for economic ethics

2011-08-18T10:00:22Z

MADRID, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Pope Benedict denounced economic structures that put profits ahead of people Thursday at the start of a trip to recession-hit Spain where the costs of the pontiff's visit have sparked violent protests.

...

John Paul II musical packs crowd ahead of papal visit

2011-08-17T18:30:15Z

About 1,500 people flocked to a musical about John Paul II's life, including his years as a student under Nazi rule in Poland, on Wednesday in Madrid on the eve of Pope Benedict XVI's arrival in the city.

The show, called "No Tengais Miedo" or "Fear Not", is bustlin...

French businessman pays Belgian face veil fines

2011-08-17T06:30:57Z

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - A French businessman paid fines Wednesday for two women in Belgium who wore full-face veils in public and said he would take Belgium and France to court over laws banning Muslim niqabs and burqas.

Property dea...

Priests to forgive abortion in Pope youth festival

2011-08-17T05:00:12Z

MADRID (Reuters) - The Vatican has granted priests the right to forgive the sin of abortion when hearing the confessions of hundreds of thousands of young people attending a Roman Catholic youth festival in Spain<...

Pilgrims attend giant Madrid mass, launch party for pope

2011-08-16T18:30:16Z

Hundreds of thousands of sweltering pilgrims crammed into central Madrid for a giant open-air mass Tuesday, launching a million-strong, six-day Catholic youth party for Pope Benedict XVI.

The rock-festival style celebration of World Youth Day has drawn faithful from 193 nations, according to organisers -- but also criticism in the midst of Madrid on Tuesday, launching a lavish six-day youth party for Pope Benedict XVI.

The faithful will pack into the emblematic central Madrid square of Cibeles for an inaugural mass celebrated by Madrid's archbishop, Cardinal Antonio Maria Rouco Varela.

A massive white stage decorated wi...

Dutch sex abuse panel probes 1950s Catholic deaths

2011-08-16T04:00:12Z

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - A Dutch commission investigating sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests has found an unusually high number of deaths of minors at a church-run hospital in the early 1950s, the public prosecutor said.

A statement by the prosecutor's office on Tuesday reported "a considerably higher number of deaths ... of minors" at the p...

Report shows rise in restrictions on religion

2011-08-09T06:30:11Z

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Nearly a third of the world's population lives in countries where it is becoming more difficult to freely practice religion, a private U.S. research group reported on Tuesday.

The Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion and Public Life said government restrictio...

Ukraine court bars release of defiant Tymoshenko

2011-08-08T12:30:25Z

A Ukrainian court on Monday rejected requests to release detained opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko despite global concern, as the former prime minister defiantly proclaimed her trial was run by the mafia.

Judge Rodion Kireyev threw out two motions to reverse Friday's order to place Tymoshenko under arrest, including an unusual request backed by the head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to put her under...

German footballers may eat during Ramadan: council

2011-08-03T13:30:50Z

Germany's Central Council of Muslims said it was advising Islamic professional football players that they need not fast during Ramadan, ahead of the regular season resuming Friday.

"The professional player can make up the fasting days during periods when there is no match and in that way show his respect for God and the holy...

In Norway, Ramadan begins in the shadow of a massacre

2011-08-01T17:30:21Z

Norway's Muslims, reviled by the far-right extremist behind the twin attacks of July 22, began an emotional Ramadan Monday amid more funerals and ceremonies commemorating the 77 people killed.

The Muslim fasting month "will be filled with emotions and in honour of the the victims and their families," said Methab Asfar, who heads the Islamic Council, an umbrella organisation for Muslim groups a...

Norway Muslims share nation's grief and hope for unity

2011-07-26T11:00:38Z

OSLO (Reuters) - As central Oslo reeled from Norway's worst massacre in modern history, a blond man in the grieving crowd asked Iraqi-born Iman al-Kofi, wearing a headscarf, for a hug.

Kofi, who had a friend in intensive care with three bullet wounds and had learned that at least one other friend...

Norway police say 84 killed in Utoeya shooting

2011-07-23T01:30:04Z

OSLO (Reuters) - Norwegian police said Saturday a gunman, believed to be a fundamentalist Christian, killed at least 84 people at a youth camp on Utoeya island.

"As of now we have 84 dead at Utoeya," deputy police chief Roger Andresen told a news conference. "In Oslo, with the explosion and the impact it had, we are not yet sure if that nu...

Islamic healers treat wounds in Russia's Chechnya

2011-07-21T09:30:41Z

GROZNY, Russia (Reuters) - Lying on a couch with her eyes closed, 26-year-old Milena sips water blessed by an Islamic healer who sits nearby reciting verses from the Koran to cure her depression.

Outside, a long line of patients wait at Chechnya...

German priest arrested, accused of child abuse: police

2011-07-17T16:30:10Z

BERLIN (Reuters) - A German Catholic priest has been arrested on suspicion of sexually abusing a child, police said Sunday.

"The accused priest has admitted the allegations made against him in police questioning," police in the city of Braunschweig said on their website.

The news comes days after the

German priest arrested on abuse suspicion: report

2011-07-17T07:30:07Z

BERLIN (Reuters) - German police have arrested a Catholic priest on suspicion of sexually abusing a child, Der Spiegel magazine reported on its website, citing the prosecutor's office.

The news of the arrest comes days after the Poland this week from as far away as Africa and India for a week-long congress.

Held at Poland's Roman Catholic Jasna Gora monastery, home to the venerated Black Madonna icon, this year's congress "examines the current fashion for v...

Medieval pilgrim's guide missing from Spain church

2011-07-07T09:30:30Z

MADRID (Reuters Life!) - Spanish police are investigating the disappearance of the Codex Calixtinus, a valuable 12th century manuscript, from the Santiago de Compostela cathedral in northwestern region of Galicia, a spokesman said on Thursday.

The manuscript is...

Greek bishop looks to Almighty for country's debt relief

2011-06-23T15:30:25Z

A prominent Greek Orthodox bishop has sought to enlist the aid of the Almighty to help save Greece from its mountain of debt, a report said on Thursday.

Bishop Anthimos of Thessaloniki, the outspoken prelate of the country's second largest city, read the custom debt relief prayer in a televised appearance on Wednesday, Ta Nea daily said.

"Oh Lord, we confess that w...

Anglican Church to allow gay bishops

2011-06-19T19:30:25Z

The Anglican Church was on Monday set to approve controversial guidelines allowing openly homosexual clergy to become bishops.

In a paper due to be published Monday, the Church will seek to move in line with Britain's Equality Act by updating its rules to permit celibate homosexual men to be promoted.

The paper, entitled "Choosing Bishops - The Equality Act 2010", provides legal guidelines for those cons...

Pope visits tiny San Marino

2011-06-19T09:30:17Z

Pope Benedict XVI voiced concern Sunday at the effects of the economic crisis, especially on the youth, during his first visit to tiny San Marino, nestled on the eastern slopes of Italy's Apennine Mountains.

Twenty-nine years after his predecessor

English religious art threatened by heating: experts

2011-06-15T14:30:47Z

They survived the iconoclasm of Henry VIII and the English civil war, but beautiful examples of early religious art in churches are now under threat from neglect and even heating, experts warned Wednesday.

The painted rood screens -- the stone or wooden structures that divide the public part of a church from the priest's area -- depict saints, prophets and kings and some are viewed as masterpieces of medieval art.

...

Liberal U.S. Catholics say Church not listening

2011-06-12T15:00:09Z

DETROIT (Reuters) - Members of a liberal group of U.S. Roman Catholics on Sunday called on Church leaders to open talks with their members on controversies ranging from the ordination of women to allowing priests to marry.

Members of the American Catholic Council, meeting in Detroit, said they had grown concerned the church's hierarc...

Christian gays ask Vatican to condemn homophobia

2011-06-10T14:30:19Z

Christian homosexuals wrote an open letter to Pope Benedict XVI on Friday ahead of Rome's EuroPride festival, asking the Vatican to defend people who are persecuted for their sexual orientation.

"We ask Your Holiness to condemn violence against lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transse...

Archbishop launches rare attack on government

2011-06-09T06:30:31Z

The leader of the world's Anglicans, Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, launched a rare attack on Britain's coalition government on Thursday for introducing radical reforms "for which no one voted."

In the most outspoken political intervention by a Church of England figure for two...

Pope champions marriage, family on Croatian visit

2011-06-05T18:30:18Z

Pope Benedict XVI left Croatia for Rome Sunday, ending a two-day visit to the staunchly Catholic country where he drew large, jubilant crowds and urged Europe to respect Christian values.

He wrapped up his visit at an open-air mass before hundreds of thousands of faithful, ...

Pope champions marriage, family on Croatia visit

2011-06-05T10:30:16Z

Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday called on Catholics to "be courageous" in defence of the traditional family as he celebrated open-air mass before hundreds of thousands of people in Zagreb.

The pontiff, on the second day of a visit to Croatia, warned couples cohabiting outside wedlock that living together was no substitute for marria...

Pope urges Europe to respect Christian values

2011-06-04T18:30:18Z

Pope Benedict XVI warned Saturday of challenges to Europe's Christian values and said staunchly Catholic Croatia could serve as an example to other EU nations threatened by individualism.

"In the face of the challenges posed by today's culture there is need for ... acti...

Pope heads for Croatia to defend Christian Europe

2011-06-04T02:30:13Z

Pope Benedict XVI sets off for Croatia Saturday for a two-day visit aimed at reaffirming Christian values that he believes are under threat in increasingly secular societies across Europe.

The pope is expected to receive a warm welcome in the 90-percent Catholic country of 4.4 million people that is preparing to join the <...

Putin is saint and saviour for Russian cult

2011-05-25T08:30:27Z

BOLSHAYA YELNYA, Russia (Reuters) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin cultivates the image of a bare-chested macho man, but a nun-like sect in central Russia thinks actually he's the reincarnation of St. Paul, the apostle.

Or, if not that, he may in a past life have been the founder of...

Pope shuts down famous monastery that liked to party

2011-05-24T16:30:31Z

Pope Benedict XVI has shut down a famous community in Rome that organised dances by a former nightclub dancer nun and hosted VIPs like Madonna, earning the disfavour of the Vatican.

The closure of the monastery of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, which holds some of the Church's most pr...

Muslim creationists tour France denouncing Darwin

2011-05-16T06:30:19Z

AUBERVILLIERS, France (Reuters) - Four years after they first frightened France, Muslim creationists are back touring the country preaching against evolution and claiming the Koran predicted many modern scientific discoveries.

Followers of Harun Yahya, a well-financed Turkish publisher of popula...

Russian sect sees Putin as St. Paul

2011-05-11T17:30:32Z

A new Russian religious sect worships Vladimir Putin as the reincarnation of Paul the Apostle whose career follows in the footsteps of the early Christian missionary, a news report said Wednesday.

The sect is based near the Volga River city of Nizhny Novgorod and led by Morther Fotin...

Pilgrims gather for beatification of John Paul II

2011-04-30T13:30:09Z

Thousands of pilgrims thronged Rome on Saturday amid tight security, on the eve of a grand ceremony that the Vatican called a "Feast of Faith" to bring late pope John Paul II close to sainthood.

"May this feast of faith be a precious occasion to open the door to Christ,"

Mugabe in Rome for beatification: report

2011-04-30T08:30:09Z

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe landed in Rome on Saturday to attend the beatification of late pope John Paul II at the Vatican, Italy's Rome on the eve of a ceremony to mark late pope John Paul II's step towards sainthood, as the Vatican geared up for the show.

"I couldn't miss this, I had to be a part of such a historical moment. We've only just arrived but the ...

Poles prepare for beatification of John Paul II

2011-04-26T14:30:46Z

Travelling on a fleet of planes, trains and cars, more than 50,000 Poles are expected to flock to the Vatican for the beatification of "their" saint-to-be, Polish-born pope John Paul II.

The funeral of Karol Wojtyla in April 2005 drew half a million Poles.

While his fast-track beatification -- a key step towards canonisation as a ...

Bitter herbs of Passover sweet for Poland's Jews

2011-04-26T05:30:27Z

The Passover herbs are bitter, but the symbolism is sweet for Poland's Jews, a community which has emerged from the shadow of Nazi German genocide and communist-era anti-Semitism.

As Jews worldwide commemorate the ancient Exodus from Egypt with traditional fare from dry matzoh crackers to herbs in saltwater recalling their forebears' tea...

Belief in a supreme being strong worldwide: Reuters/Ipsos poll

2011-04-25T05:00:09Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - Belief in a god, or a supreme being, and some sort of afterlife is strong in many countries around the globe, according to a new Ipsos/Reuters poll.

Fifty one percent of the 18,829 people across 23 countries who took part in the survey said they were convinced there is an afterlife and a divine entity, while 18 percent said ...

Welcome migrants fleeing strife: Pope

2011-04-24T04:30:06Z

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Benedict, in his Easter message to the world, on Sunday lamented that the day's joy was marred by war in Libya and urged VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Benedict, in his Easter message to the world, on Sunday lamented that the day's joy was marred by war in Libya and urged Europe

Pope begins Easter as John Paul beatification nears

2011-04-23T15:30:28Z

ROME (Reuters) - Pope Benedict led the world's Catholics into Easter on Saturday, ahead of the beatification of his venerated predecessor John Paul II on May 1.

The 84 year-old pontiff presided at an Eas...

Rabbis denounce EU meat label bid an 'insult' to Jews

2011-04-21T13:30:44Z

European rabbis are up in arms over a bid to impose meat labels indicating how an animal was slaughtered, warning it could kill the kosher food business by portraying their ritual as "barbaric."

An European Parliament committee endorsed this week a draft bill that would require meat labels to say whether or not an animal was stunned before being slaughtered.

"Meat from slaughter without stunnin...

Italian book exposes Rome gay priest scene

2011-04-19T16:30:24Z

A new book due out later this month claims to reveal a flourishing gay scene for priests in Rome -- a thorny issue as the Catholic Church imposes chastity on its clergy and condemns homosexuality.

Investigative journalist Carmelo Abbate's book "Sex and the Vatican: a secret journey in the reign of the chaste" will come o...

Jewish synagogue targeted by arsonists in Greece

2011-04-19T05:30:31Z

A Jewish synagogue on the Greek island of Corfu was targeted in a late-night arson attack that damaged books and community documents, local police said on Tuesday.

The unknown assailants broke into the synagogue in the old town of the island's capital after 3.00 am by forcing open a back door into the 19th century building, a senior officer said.

They made a pile of books and documents in front of the rabbi's platform, or bimah, on the synagogue's first floor and set them on ...

Papal beatification stirs pride, hope in Polish Church

2011-04-18T12:02:41Z

WADOWICE, Poland (Reuters) - In the sleepy town of Wadowice in southern Poland, they are sprucing up the main square and renovating the house where its most famous son, the late Pope John Paul II, was born as Karol Wojtyla 91 years ago.

Wadowice, its streets decked out w...

French niqab law contradicts freedom: Iraq's Sadr

2011-04-14T08:30:41Z

Niqabs, the full-face veils worn by conservative Muslim women, are not required by Islam but banning them by law is an affront to liberty, radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr said Thursday.

His remarks come in response to a draconian new law in France, implemented on Monday, that bars women from wearing the niqab or burka, a head-to-toe body covering, in the stre...

US backs right to wear religious attire

2011-04-12T18:31:02Z

The United States endorsed Tuesday the right of people to "express religious belief through religious attire" after French police fined a woman for wearing a full-face veil.

US State Department spokesman Mark Toner stood up for freedom of religion and expression, but stopped short of criticizing Church of England said on Tuesday it would introduce increased scrutiny of wedding applications in a bid to prevent sham marriages.

Under the new rules, couples will have to apply for a marriage licence if either the bride or the groom is not from a country in the European Economic Area (EEA).

The clergy will also be urged to report any concerns they have that the marriage is only taking place to help illeg...

All invited to John Paul beatification: Vatican

2011-04-05T09:30:26Z

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Vatican urged the faithful on Tuesday not to let reports of huge crowds or unscrupulous hoteliers deter them from coming to Rome for the beatification of the late Britain and the Netherlands after finding the items had been stolen years ago, a police source said on Wednesday.

The icons that date from before the 18th century and could each fetch from 5,000 to 15,000 euros ($7,000-21,000) had been pilfered from unguarded monasteries and churche...

Rome priest sentenced to 15 years for paedophilia

2011-03-03T17:30:17Z

A court in Rome on Thursday sentenced a former Catholic priest to 15 years in prison for child abuse, as a wave of paedophilia cases by clergymen across Europe reaches Pope Benedict XVI's doorstep.

Ruggero Conti, a former parish priest at Selva Candida on the outskirts of the Italian capital, was found gui...

Catholic church ordains married man

2011-02-22T09:00:19Z

BERLIN (Reuters) - A married father of two was ordained as a priest by the Catholic Church in Germany on Tuesday after receiving an exemption to priestly celibacy from Pope Benedict XVI.

Harm ...

German Catholic church ordains married man

2011-02-22T08:30:07Z

BERLIN (Reuters Life!) - A married father of two was ordained as a priest by the Catholic Church in Germany on Tuesday after receiving an exemption to priestly celibacy from Pope Benedict XVI.

Germany opens first reform synagogue since WW2

2011-02-21T08:30:06Z

BERLIN (Reuters Life!) - Germany opened its first new reform synagogue since the Holocaust on Sunday, marking a major step in the revival of Reform Judaism, which traces its roots to the country.

The synagogue in the northern city of Hameln was built on the foundation of its predeces...

Russia to launch Muslim television channel

2011-02-15T14:30:41Z

Russia will launch its first Muslim television channel in April, offering "spiritual and moral education," a spokeswoman for the Council of Muftis of Russia told AFP on Tuesday.

The channel, currently being tested, will "have a civilising aim and will contribute first of all to spiritual and moral education," said a spokeswoman for the council of Islamic leaders, Gulnur Gaz...

Hawks Kings Basketball

2011-01-04T22:01:17Z

Atlanta Hawks guard Jamal Crawford,left, shoots over Sacramento Kings guard Beno Udrih, of Slovenia during the first half of an ...

Blue Jackets Coyotes Hockey

2011-01-04T21:01:31Z

Columbus Blue Jackets' R.J. Umberger (18) scores a goal against Phoenix Coyotes' Ilya Bryzgalov, of Russia, during the second period of an New Jersey Devils' Andy Greene (6) and Minnesota Wild's Martin Havlat (24), of the Czech Republic, compete for the puck during the first period of an Italy's Manuela Moelgg competes during the first run of an alpine ski women's World Cup slalom event, in Zagreb, Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2011. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Russia Schwarzenegger

2011-01-04T09:32:15Z

FILE - In this Monday, Oct. 11, 2010 file photo, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, right, invites then California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger for a ride in his vintage car, a Soviet built Chaika luxury car, during their meeting in the Gorki residence outside Moscow, Russia. The Russian president and the Terminator are tweeting, and m...