China deciding the Dalai Lama’s successor would be like Cuba’s Fidel Castro “selecting the next pope,” said the political leader of Tibet’s exiled government. Lobsang Sangay’s criticism follows insistence by the Chinese Communist Party that it alone will decide the reincarnation of the 80-year-old Tibetan spiritual leader.
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Pope Francis Meets Head Of Russian Orthodox Church In Havana
The reported first words of Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill on their historic meeting – for historic it was, however hackneyed the word – were revealing. “Finally” said the Pontiff, adding “we are brothers”. Kirill was equally satisfied but perhaps less effusive: “Yes, things are much easier now”.
The World Interfaith Harmony Week – Annual UN Observance Week: Feb. 1-7
The World Interfaith Harmony Week was first proposed at the UN General Assembly on September 23, 2010 by H.M. King Abdullah II of Jordan. Just under a month later, on October 20, 2010, it was unanimously adopted by the UN and henceforth the first week of February will be observed as a World Interfaith Harmony Week.
Pope Francis visits Rome's Synagogue
Pope Francis has made his first visit to a synagogue as pontiff, greeting Rome’s Jewish community in their house of worship in a show of interfaith friendship. Pope Francis joined a standing ovation when Holocaust survivors wearing striped scarves reminiscent of their camp uniforms were singled out for attention at the start of the ceremony.
Stop making me apologise for the acts of extremists
Horrified by recent terrorist attacks in the name of religion, many Muslims living in the West are keen to explain that the bloodlust of ISIL does not represent either their values or the pulse of mainstream Islam. Despite the West’s many liberal democracies’ public stance against Islamophobia, it remains necessary to publicly state the remarkably obvious point that not all Muslims are alike, writes Dr Yassir Morsi of South Australia.
Rumi: Still a Best Seller
The ecstatic poems of Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi, a Persian poet and Sufi master born 807 years ago in 1207, have sold millions of copies in recent years, making him the most popular poet in the US. Globally, his fans are legion.
Pope Francis Video shares an impassioned call for Interfaith Unity.
On Wednesday 5th January 2016, Francis launched a monthly video prayer series with an emotional call for peace between people of different faiths.
“Many think differently, feel differently, seeking God or meeting God in different ways,” the pontiff said. “We are all children of God.”
Christmas Message from Secretary General
Dr William Vendley, Secretary General of Religions for Peace International sends blessing of Peace on the occasion of Christmas, 2015
Mother Teresa to be a Saint
Blessed Teresa of Calcutta will be proclaimed a saint in 2016. On Thursday afternoon, Pope Francis authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to promulgate a decree regarding a miracle attributed to the intercession of Blessed Teresa (nee Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu). The Pope’s approval for these decrees came during a private audience with Cardinal Angelo Amato SDB, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.
Summary of Vatican's New Document on Catholic-Jewish Relations
The Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews has published today the document “The Gifts and the Calling of God are Irrevocable: a Reflection on Theological Questions Pertaining to Catholic-Jewish Relations on the Occasion of the 50th Anniversary of ‘Nostra Aetate’ (No. 4)”.
Central African Republic: Pope visits Mosque
Pope Francis has visited a mosque under siege from armed Christian militias in Bangui, the capital of Central African Republic, and took the occasion to deliver a message of peace and reconciliation in a show of solidarity.
Pope Francis says Interfaith Dialogue is Essential
On his first full day in Kenya, Pope Francis insisted on Thursday that religion could never be used to justify violence and lamented that “all too often young people are being radicalised in the name of religion to sow discord and fear, and to tear at the very fabric of our societies”. He said interfaith dialogue is not a luxury or optional, but is simply “essential”.