TOKYO (ENI) Japan's Christian Council has decided to establish an office to coordinate relief operations in Japan and from abroad in response to the devastating earthquake that struck in February, causing a tsunami and problems at nuclear power plants.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Special to the Presbyterian News Service) Colombian and U.S. Presbyterians are calling on people in both countries to join a fast in protest of the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement.
Washington (ENI) A New York minister will fill the Obama administration's long-vacant position to oversee international religious freedom after the Senate voted to confirm the Rev. Suzan Johnson Cook for the post.
Contraceptive use by Catholics and evangelicals is the norm, according to a new report by the Guttmacher Institute, which studies reproductive health issues.
HARARE, Zimbabwe (ENI) Hundreds of Zimbabweans from various Christian denominations held prayers on May 25 for peace ahead of possible elections later this year. "We hear threats and rumors of elections, and have seen tell-tale signs of political violence raising its ugly head again,"
BORDEAUX, France (ENI) Leaders of Christian churches and other faiths called on the world's most powerful governments to devise more effective joint solutions to the "interconnected crises confronting humanity" at a May 23-24 summit, organized by the New York-based Religions for Peace.
TOKYO (ENI) The National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) has requested its partners worldwide to pray for them and petition the Seoul government to resume its economic support to starving North Koreans.
 (Episcopal News Service) As Sudan's wanted President Omar al-Bashir insists he will not remove his troops from the disputed oil-producing Abyei region, church and world leaders are insisting that advocacy for the war-torn south and for a lasting peace must continue.
KINGSTON, Jamaica (ENI) Some 1,000 worldwide faith leaders and peace practitioners are exploring the concept of "just peace" and recent advances in peacemaking practices at a weeklong International Ecumenical Peace Convocation (IEPC) in Kingston.
NAIROBI, Kenya (ENI) As independence for South Sudan approaches on July 9, churches there are coordinating efforts to bring lasting peace to a region exhausted by a long civil war.
WARSAW, Poland (ENI) Interfaith initiatives should focus on the practical, non-political task of building grassroots relationships, according to participants at a religious symposium which ended May 15 in Poland.
JERUSALEM (ENI) Lebanese religious leaders have warned against growing internal divisions in their country and urged national leaders to work towards unity and tolerance, following a joint Christian-Muslim meeting convened May 12 in Bkirki by newly appointed Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai.
Geneva (ENI) The largest global grouping of Reformed churches has approved a strategic plan for 2011- 2017 that focuses on youth leadership development, increased collaboration with regional church groups and a call to make visible the connection between Reformed theology and justice concerns.
FT. MYERS, FLA. (WCRC, CRC) The World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) held its first ever justice consultation in early April, hopeful that it had advanced its mission to seek fair treatment for workers and others who are marginalized in the world.
WARSAW, POLAND (ENI) When Shahbaz Bhatti, Pakistan's only Christian cabinet minister, was assassinated on March 2 after criticizing his country’s laws against blaspheming the name of the Prophet Muhammad, it was only the latest act against Christians to provoke outrage worldwide.
‘Submission to the Lordship of Jesus Christ’ replaces ‘fidelity and chastity’
Louisville
While the Office of the General Assembly awaits official tallies, it appears that a majority of the 173 presbyteries of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) have approved a change in PC(USA) ordination standards.
How can an issue, which isn’t really even insinuated in 10A, cause exam-passing pastors and lifelong elders to totally abandon socio-historical approaches and critical thinking when it comes to understanding the Bible?
We may never know why bad things happen to good people, but most white Americans reject the idea that natural disasters are divine punishment, a test of faith or some other sign from God, according to a new poll.
(RNS) Young adults who regularly attend religious activities are 50 percent more likely to become obese when they reach middle age than their nonreligious peers, a new study shows.
(ENI) Zambian nurse Agnes Lisulo Mulemwa has been honored in Geneva for helping women in her rural community raise their standard of living, train to become leaders and support health care.
