February 1, 2004 Indian, Pakistani churches welcome new dialogue

Thrissur, India Church leaders in India and Pakistan have welcomed the thawing of relations between their countries following meetings of the two rival neighbours at a summit of South Asian countries, held in Islamabad...

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December 1, 2003 Conversions spark violence

New DelhiChurches in Sri Lanka have urged the government to give protection to Christians following recent attacks on churches and increasing demands for a ban on religious conversions in the Buddhist-majority nation. "We are...

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November 1, 2003 Indian churches fight new law on conversions

New Delhi, India Churches in India face a mighty challenge as the nation's government plans to bring in a new law to prevent religious conversions among Hindus across the nation. The law has no approval yet from...

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October 1, 2003 Churches lead Sri Lanka march

New DelhiChurch leaders in Sri Lanka who organized a march in the island nation’s capital, Colombo, have urged the government and Tamil rebels to resume peace talks, which were suspended in April. More than 2,000...

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September 1, 2003 Six Melanesian brothers confirmed dead

Honiara, Solomon IslandsSix members of the Melanesian Brotherhood, an Anglican religious order, were murdered last May while they were held captive by rebel leader Harold Keke and his militia, according to police on the Solomon...

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September 1, 2003 Aussies okay gay ministers

MelbourneThe Uniting Church Assembly, meeting in Melbourne, voted in July to permit the church's presbyteries to accept and ordain practising homosexuals. The majority of the 260 delegates voted in support of the proposal....

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September 1, 2003 Australian viceroy steps down

Australian governor-general Peter Hollingworth, formerly the Anglican archbishop of Brisbane, resigned May 25 amid criticism surrounding a rape claim and his handling of child sex abuse cases when he was archbishop. Although a...

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June 1, 2003 Rebels kill Melanesian brother

Honiara, Solomon Islands A member of the Melanesian Brotherhood, Nathaniel Sado, was killed in late April by a band of rebels on the island of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. A requiem mass for Brother Sado was held by...

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June 1, 2003 Gujarat conversions outlawed

Churches in India expressed shock over the enactment of a law curbing religious conversion that passed without debate in the state of Gujarat.The legislation, called the Freedom of Religious Conversion Bill, carries a penalty of...

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May 1, 2003 First four women ordained

For the first time, the Church in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) has ordained women to the deaconate. On March 2, Bishop Duleep de Chickera, Bishop of Colombo, ordained four women, Malini Devananda, Gunavathany Selvan, Glory Jeyaraj and...

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