The number of Russian residents who call themselves Christian has more than doubled according to PewResearch. Between the years 1991 and 2008, Russian adults identifying at Orthodox Christian rose from 31% to 72%, and the share of Russia’s population not identifying with any religion dropped from 61% – 18%, the February 2014 international survey shows. However Read more
For all his ubiquity, the biblical Andrew is a shadowy figure. In one of a handful of scriptural references, he is the apostle who tells Jesus that five loaves and two fishes won’t feed 5,000 people; a miracle soon proves otherwise. Like other widely honoured saints, Andrew himself defies the laws of finitude by appealing Read more
The Vatican has confirmed that Pope Francis will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on November 25. Details are not yet in place, however the meeting comes at a time when the Catholic Church seeks to improve ties with the Russian Orthodox Church. Relations between Russia and the Vatican have been fraught since the 1991 breakup Read more
While most of the Western World turns a blind eye to blasphemy, Russia has just enacted a tough law that imposes heavy fines or even a prison term. The law applies to “public acts that manifest patent disrespect for society and are committed with the aim of offence to the religious feelings of believers”. The Read more
They grew up in the Siberian gulag, travelled thousands of miles in harrowing drudgery across Russia to Persia, then sailed half way around the world to be greeted by thousands of smiling Kiwis. Today their odyssey was remembered on Wellington’s waterfront as surviving Polish refugee children gathered for a wreath-laying with Polish foreign affairs minister Read more
Catholic churches and charities in Russia have been targeted in a wave of raids on organisations with foreign links, which the government has labelled “foreign agents”. The raids on non-government organisations across the country prompted the German and French governments to summon Russian diplomats in Berlin and Paris to express their concern. “The Catholic Church Read more
The leader of the Orthodox Church in Cyprus has said he will mortgage its assets and invest in government bonds to help pave the way for an international bailout of the financially-troubled nation. The offer by Archbishop Chrysostomos II came after the country’s Parliament rejected a bill that would have allowed the government to seize Read more
The head of the Russian Orthodox Church is visiting Poland to meet the nation’s Catholic bishops and sign an unprecedented joint declaration of reconciliation. Patriarch Kirill I will sign the declaration with Archbishop Józef Michalik of Przemysl, president of the Catholic bishops’ conference, at Warsaw’s Royal Castle on August 17. “The purpose of this document Read more
Remember when Russia was ruled by godless communists who persecuted believers? How times have changed: In the latest Moscow show trial, three punk rockers (Pussy Riot) who sang a protest song in a church face prison time for insulting religion. The one constant between then and now is a state hostile to free minds and free Read more
There are signs that Russia is buying support from Pacific nations according to Australia’s parliamentary secretary for Pacific Islands Affairs, Richard Marles. He says there are signs that Russia’s recent aid projects in the Pacific were designed to buy support for its territorial claims in Europe. Russia has made development aid commitments to tiny Tuvalu Read more