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Central Europe
Growing number of Christians use tattoo to express their faith
More and more Christians see a tattoo as an expression of faith. But beware, once a tattoo is painted, it is nearly impossible to get rid of it again. Furthermore, some Christians doubt whether tattoos are allowed at all. Artist Silas Becks specialises in religious tattoos, Jesus.de writes. Becks, a…
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Southern Europe
Conservative Serbians demand LGBT ban in literature
Religious and politically conservative Serbians demand the replacement of schoolbooks that “promote LGBT ideology.” They started a formal review that could lead to a textbook ban in schools. Recently, Serbia renewed its textbooks, including descriptions of gender and sexual identities. According to the Serbian Orthodox Church and other conservative actors…
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Central Europe
German Ethics Council: Assisted suicide is justifiable
A person's wish to die in a self-determined way should be respected. That is the opinion of the German Ethics Council, which gave its view on the debate on assisted suicide. The German Ethics Council does not yet give concrete recommendations or feedback on several proposals on the table, the…
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Eastern Europe
Russia violates freedom of religion in Crimea
The Russian authorities have restricted religious freedoms in the Crimean Peninsula since they occupied it in 2014. They have closed churches and fined people for organising unregistered worship services.That is shown by a survey from Forum 18. According to Forum 18, the Russian forces violate human rights and restrict freedoms…
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Northern Europe
More religious education for native Sami in Norway
Religious education of the children of the Sami people will get high priority. That is the promise of the re-elected leader of the Sami Church Council in Norway, Sara Ellen Anne Eira. The Sami children should get new materials and everything else they need to receive decent religious education, Eira…
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Western Europe
Fewer Dutch willing to donate organs
The number of Dutch people who refuse to donate organs after their death grows faster than the number of people who are willing to do so. In the so-called Bible-belt, the willingness is quite low. New statistics from the Dutch Central Desk of Statistics (CBS) show that. Since 2020, the…
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Eastern Europe
Ukraine fathers of large families are not sent to war
Ukrainian fathers with three or more children (under 18) will be dismissed from military service. That is decided by the country's parliament Verkovna Rada, according to the Ukrainian news website HB. The bill's author, MP Oleksiy Goncharenko, said that it is currently waiting for President Volodymyr Zelensky's signature. Goncharenko also…
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Central Europe
Federation of Protestant Churches discusses position on homosexuality
It is not easy to find a unified position on homosexuality for the German Federation of Free Protestant Churches (Freie Evangelische Gemeinde (FeG)). The central council of the FeG discusses the topic, and the debate gets heated at some points. The council gathered on September 23 and 24 in Solingen.…
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Eastern Europe
Dying for your country brings you to heaven, says Russian Patriarch
Russian soldiers who die in the fight for their country will go to heaven, says Patriarch Kirill. He did so after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a partial mobilisation in the war against Ukraine. “Be brave and fulfil your military duty”, the Patriarch said, as reported by Dagen. Kirill has…
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Southern Europe
Pope encourages renewable energy investments
A need for rapid and decisive change makes it necessary to increase investments in renewable energy, Pope Francis said. He did so during a meeting with young economists. “Be role models for us”, the Pope told the young economists belonging to the international movement “The Economy of Francesco” last Saturday.…
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