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By , on June 15th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Ten bedridden terminal cancer patients lie in the dimly lit, quiet hospice ward at the Jingan Temple Community Hospital in Shanghai. Most are cared for by auxiliary workers, who look after a few at a time. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Shanghai’s hospice wards offer terminal patients a better last stop
By , on June 12th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Pope Francis lamented that a “gay lobby” was at work at the Vatican in private remarks to the leaders of a key Latin American church group, a stunning acknowledgment that appears to confirm reports of corruption and dysfunction in the Holy See. The Latin American and Caribbean Confederation of Religious – the regional organisation for priests and nuns of religious orders – confirmed on Tuesday that its leaders had written a synthesis of Francis’ remarks after their June 6 audience. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Pope confirmed Vatican ‘gay lobby’ in remarks to Latin American group
By , on June 12th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> The Russian parliament has passed a bill that imposes a fine for what it calls the propagandising of “non-traditional” sexual relationships among minors, in the latest in a wave of socially conservative new rules here. While the bill does not clarify the meaning of “non-traditional”, in colloquial Russian it usually means gay, and the bill’s intent was clear: to discourage open discussion of homosexuality in public places or in media to which children have access. Homosexuality was illegal until the break-up of the Soviet Union. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Russia passes bill to gag talking about gay issues
By , on June 4th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> More than a third of US marriages begin with online dating, and those couples may be slightly happier than couples who meet through other means, a US study found. Online dating has ballooned into a billion-dollar industry and the internet “may be altering the dynamics and outcome of marriage itself”, said the study published by US researchers in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading People who met online may have happier marriages, says US survey
By , on May 28th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Ethnic minority people in China’s Xinjiang are far more fond of dancing, singing and being good hosts than making trouble, a top official said on Tuesday, dismissing the idea that the far western region is a hotbed of unrest. Many Uygurs, a Turkic-speaking Muslim people who live in energy-rich Xinjiang, chafe at Chinese restrictions on their culture, language and religion, and the region is frequently the scene of deadly ethnic violence. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Xinjiang minorities too busy dancing to make trouble, says Chinese official
By , on May 28th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and Islamic leaders expressed dismay over decisions by authorities in western Myanmar to restore a two-child limit on Muslim Rohingya families, a policy that does not apply to Buddhists and follows accusations of ethnic cleansing. Some Buddhists, however, welcomed the plan for addressing their fear of a Muslim population explosion. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Aung San Suu Kyi slams two-child limit for Muslims in Myanmar
By , on May 27th, 2013 
More than 50 people are killed in a series of car bomb explosions in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, police say, as a spate of violence continues.
Continue reading Wave of Baghdad car bombs ‘kill 50′
By , on May 26th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Authorities placed roadblocks on main roads leading to the small village of Donglu, just a few hours drive from Beijing, where locals – about 90 per cent of whom are Catholic – are fiercely devoted to Mary. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Catholic pilgrims blocked from Chinese village Donglu for Virgin Mary parade
By , on May 24th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> A Sri Lankan monk set himself on fire on Friday to protest the slaughter of cattle, in the country’s first attempt at self-immolation by a monk, police said. The monk doused himself with a flammable liquid and set himself ablaze near a temple in the central town of Kandy during an important Buddhist festival, police said. “Policemen near the temple doused the flames and rushed the monk to hospital,” police spokesman Buddhika Siriwardena said. “Just before setting himself alight, he shouted that his action was to protest the slaughter of cattle.” <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Sri Lanka monk attempts to self-immolate
By , on May 24th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Thousands of Chinese Catholics gathered in Shanghai on Friday for a celebration to honour the Virgin Mary, in a show of religious fervour permitted by the Communist-ruled state. China exercises strict control over religion, requiring followers to worship in state-approved churches. In an annual tradition dating back more than a hundred years, pilgrims walked up Sheshan – or She Mountain – the site of two churches and the seminary for Shanghai’s Catholic Diocese in the city’s southwest. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading China’s Catholics show fervour in Shanghai celebration
By , on May 21st, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Video: The Vatican on Tuesday denied that Pope Francis had performed an exorcism after an Italian religious television channel said footage of the pontiff blessing a boy in a wheelchair showed he had. See for yourself here. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Vatican denies video footage shows pope performing exorcism
By , on May 21st, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Iran’s June 14 presidential election steps up a gear on Tuesday when the Guardians Council releases the approved list of candidates who have passed muster under the vetting process. The unelected council, controlled by religious conservatives appointed by supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, must ensure that all candidates meet certain conditions before being allowed to stand. These conditions include being faithful to the principles of the Islamic republic and its official religion. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Iran to list approved presidential candidates
By , on May 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> You can stop one protest for a time, but you can’t stop another one from starting up if you don’t deal with the problem, says an eminent Buddhist monk. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Hongkonger just want to be heard, says eminent Buddhist monk
By , on May 15th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> The Scottish cardinal who resigned as archbishop after admitting to sexual misconduct will leave Scotland for months of prayer and atonement, the Vatican said yesterday. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Sex scandal cardinal to leave Scotland for months of retreat
By , on May 8th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> The Dalai Lama has implored Buddhist monks in Myanmar and Sri Lanka to put an end to a series of recent attacks on Muslims in their countries. The Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader spoke on Tuesday night about religious violence when asked questions following a speech he delivered to 15,000 people at the University of Maryland in the United States. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Dalai Lama urges Buddhists to halt attacks on Muslims
By , on May 8th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> When Tibetan writer Tsering Woeser protested online this week against a commercial development in her hometown of Lhasa, thousands supported her by reposting her message and sharing their own thoughts on Tibet. Most of the supporters said they had visited Tibet as tourists. Others said they had seen it only in pictures and movies. But few probably knew how difficult it has become for Woeser and other relocated Tibetans to go home to the autonomous region in western China. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Stop modernising Lhasa, pleads Tibetan writer
By , on May 5th, 2013 
Malaysians go to the polls in what is widely seen as the most closely contested general election in their country’s history.
Continue reading Malaysia in closely contested vote
By , on May 3rd, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> The US called on Thursday for North Korea to grant amnesty and immediately release a Korean-American sentenced to 15 years’ hard labour for “hostile acts” against the state. Kenneth Bae, 44, a Washington state man described by friends as a devout Christian and a tour operator, is at least the sixth American detained in North Korea since 2009. The others eventually were deported or released without serving out their terms, some after trips to Pyongyang by prominent Americans, including former presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading US calls for North Korea amnesty for sentenced American
By , on May 2nd, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Tribal members say the man who owns a piece of the Wounded Knee National Historic Landmark on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota is trying to profit from their suffering, asking nearly US$5 million for two tracts of land with an assessed value of below US$14,000. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Sioux decry man’s US$5m price tag for Native American massacre site
By , on April 30th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Police in central Myanmar fired warning shots to disperse a crowd after a mosque and shops were attacked on Tuesday, the president’s spokesman said, in the latest religious unrest to hit the country. The fighting was sparked in the small town of Oakkan, around 100 kilometres north of Yangon, after a woman accidentally bumped into a young novice monk and knocked his alms bowl onto the ground, according to Ye Htut. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Mosque, shops attacked in fresh Myanmar unrest
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Shanghai’s hospice wards offer terminal patients a better last stop
<!– google_ad_section_start –> Ten bedridden terminal cancer patients lie in the dimly lit, quiet hospice ward at the Jingan Temple Community Hospital in Shanghai. Most are cared for by auxiliary workers, who look after a few at a time. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Shanghai’s hospice wards offer terminal patients a better last stop
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