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Eastern Europe
Russian Church starts English news programme
The Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations has recently started producing an English news programme on YouTube called The Orthodox View. According to the Orthodox news site Orthodox Christianity, the program aims to answer several key questions: How does the Christian worldview influence the world? How are religion, culture…
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Eastern Europe
Belarusian Church involved in updating constitution
The Belarusian Orthodox Church (BOC) is actively involved in making draft amendments for the country’s constitution. This was reported by the Belarusian news agency Belta. Earlier this month, the Council of the Republic chairman, Natalya Kochanova, thanked the clergy for their work, saying that she is grateful for the “valuable…
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Central Europe
Swiss Evangelicals reject conversion therapy but don't believe in ban
While the Swiss Parliament has yet to decide whether to ban conversion therapies, the Swiss Evangelical Alliance (SEA) distances itself from these treatments. However, it does not want a ban on it. With the so-called conversion therapies, homosexual people are treated to become heterosexual. “Scientists today are largely in agreement…
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Western Europe
Dutch parliament wants to abolish reflection time for abortion
A majority in the Dutch parliament wants to abolish the mandatory period of reflection for abortion. While liberal parties think this wait time is patronising, confessional parties fear that this abolishment would harm both mother and child.“A special day.” That is how Wieke Paulusma from the governing social-liberal D66 party…
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Central Europe
Unvaccinated pastor in Germany suspended
The protestant pastor of Werl in Germany, Lutz Wolfestieg, has been suspended because he is not vaccinated against Covid-19. The reason given for his suspension is that he forms a risk of infecting worshippers with the virus. “Of course, it hits me hard”, Wulfestieg reacts in Soester Anzeiger. “I'm a…
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Central Europe
Swiss Parliament has to decide about ban on conversion therapy
The canton of Basel brings the topic of conversion bans under national attention. The local government has already approved a ban on conversion therapies for gays and lesbians and hopes that bringing the initiative on the national agenda sends a signal. By the so-called conversion therapies, homosexual people are treated…
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Central Europe
Protestant theologian welcomes abolishment German ban of abortion ads
Margot Käßmann, former chairwoman of the council of the Evangelical Church in Germany, has welcomed the planned deletion of the German advertising ban for abortion. This was reported by Die Tagespost. “It is not about advertising, but simply about information”, Käßmann writes in a column in Bild am Sonntag.. Margot…
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Southern Europe
Catholic politician refutes accusation of islamophobia
Marijana Petir, a Catholic politician from Croatia, has defended herself against accusations of islamophobia in the European Islamophobia Report. She says that the publication is an attack on freedom of speech. The report refers to Petir's speech, held in 2015 at an event for war correspondents. The section asserts that…
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Central Europe
Bavarian churches expect significant loss of members after publication abuse report
After the publication of a report about abuse in the German Catholic church last week Thursday, many members are leaving the church. In one region, the number of exits has doubled. The report on sexual violence against children and young people, commissioned by the Catholic Archdiocese of Munich and Freising,…
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Southern Europe
Number of Catholics in Barcelona drops sharply
The proportion of Roman Catholics in the Spanish city of Barcelona has fallen by over 35 per cent in the last 20 years. The Dutch Christian newspaper Reformatotisch Dagblad writes so based on the Spanish Christian news site ProtestanteDigital. The recent information comes from the city council. In four districts…
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