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Eastern Europe
Long prison term for Russian Jehovah's Witnesses
Last week, a Russian court gave the longest sentences for Jehovah Witnesses since the group was called “extremist” in 2017. Three men have to serve eight years in prison because of their “extremist actions”. A female member got 3,5 years. The verdict was given by judges in the southern Russia's…
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European Union
Threat of climate change leads to radical actions
Across Europe, religious organisations and individuals have joined hands to speak out to Glasgow's Climate Change Conference (COP26) decision-makers. “Ordinary people are more radical than politicians.” ## Climate pilgrimage 1450 Kilometres. That is the distance a group of so-called climate pilgrims are walking to Glasgow. The ecumenical group started in…
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Central Europe
Renewed debate about Biblical words on Berlin city palace
In Germany, there is renewed discussion about the rebuilt city castle in Berlin. The reason for this is the biblical texts on the monumental dome. The text says that “no other name but Jesus” is given. The discussion about the biblical texts on the dome has been going on since…
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Central Europe
Gender correct language leads to controversies
The need for gender correct language leads in several countries to questions and controversies. Three examples from Europe. ## Norway In Norway, debate around the issue was sparked on Thursday when the Norwegian Broadcasting Council discussed two submitted complaints, newspaper Dagen reported on Thursday. The first complaint came from someone…
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Eastern Europe
Equality gap between men and women barely changes
The equality gap between men and women has barely changed, research of the European Institute for Gender Equality [showed](https://eige.europa.eu/news/gender-equality-index-2021-fragile-gains-big-losses) on Thursday. The institute does not expect this to change in the short term because of the Covid pandemic. Females are still overrepresented in health care jobs, which results in them…
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Central Europe
Man becomes more spiritual but less religious
Spirituality is a huge trend nowadays. However, friction with church and religion increases. It is remarkable that also more and more Christians show interest in Buddhism. That is the conclusion of a special edition of the German theological magazine Herder Korrespondenz, which focuses on the subject “Fromm und Frei? Spiritualität…
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Central Europe
Euthanasia bill Austria leaves questions open
To say that everybody welcomes the new proposal for assisted suicide in Austria is too much. But it seems fair to say that the resistance is not very strong. However, there is still some inconvenience. “Nobody speaks about pain relief”, says palliative care specialist Rudolf Likar to the Katholische Presseagentur…
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Western Europe
Dutch Christians under scrutiny for not taking vaccine
They would be responsible for the rising infection rates and would occupy hospital beds. Unvaccinated people in the Netherlands are under scrutiny. Especially Christians from the so-called Bible belt. In recent weeks, there has been a lot of attention for these people. Reason: a lot of patients in hospitals suffering…
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Southern Europe
Books with LGBT content back in Spanish library
The 32 books with LGBT topics have to go back to the public library of the Spanish city of Castellón. The court in the town decided that. Earlier, another judge ordered that the material had to be withdrawn. The books would not be fit for minors, according to a report…
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Southern Europe
Portugal may face early elections after budget proposal fails in parliament
Portugal may face early elections after parliament rejected the 2022 budget of the minority Socialist government of Prime Minister Antonio Costa. After weeks of negotiations, the moderate Socialists were deserted by their hard-left allies from the Communist party and the Left Bloc. The Socialists hold 108 of the 230-seat parliament…
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