News

Pilgrims to Seek 'Face of God' on Vatican Charters

A new Vatican-approved Italian flight charter service is trying to win the hearts of travellers with the campaign slogan "I'm Searching for Your Face, Lord".

Sixty Feared Dead in India Himalayas Landslide

Around 60 people are thought to have died in the Indian Himalayas after a cloudburst caused a landslide that buried an entire village, officials said on Wednesday.

Up to 300,000 Homeless in North Korea Floods

North Korean authorities have indicated flooding may have left up to 300,000 people homeless, a U.N. aid agency spokesman said on Wednesday, and crop losses may be severe in the impoverished state that has battled famine.

WCC Head Meets Families of Korean Christian Hostages

The Rev Dr Samuel Kobia, General Secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), has visited the families of the Korean hostages being held by the Taliban in Afghanistan in a gesture of support while on a trip to South Korea this week.

India Marks 60th Anniversary Urging War on Poverty

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, speaking on the 60th anniversary of independence from British rule, said the country needed to work harder to fight poverty, ignorance and disease despite fast economic growth.

Toll 36 after China Bridge Collapsed

A bridge that collapsed in China killing at least 36 people broke apart like a pat of "beancurd" because there were apparently no steel reinforcement bars, state media said on Wednesday, quoting a rescuer.

FEATURE - Sudanese Gangs Take to Cairo Streets

Marc wears a New York Yankees cap, loves rap music and has "Los Angeles" scrawled in black ink across his forearm, but he will probably never see the United States.

Russia's North Pole Seabed Flag Heralds Global Ocean Ownership Battle

A Russian flag on the seabed beneath the ice of the North Pole is among the few signs that states are waking up to a 2009 deadline for what may be the last big carve-up of maritime territory in history.

Three Germans Killed in Bomb Attack Near Afghan Capital

Three Germans travelling in a diplomatic convoy were killed and one was wounded in a roadside bomb blast near the Afghan capital Kabul on Wednesday, the local police chief said.

Survey Reveals Biggest Spiritual Challenges for Christian Parents

The biggest spiritual challenges Christian parents identified are related to the spiritual development of their children, a new survey found...

Churches to Shadow Korean Six Party Talks

A proposal for a parallel meeting of churches from nations involved in the Six Party Talks on the Korean peninsula was endorsed by a broad range of churches over the weekend at a conference in Seoul.

Catholics, Protestants Map Out Ethical Conversion Code

Dozens of theologians from a wide range of Christian traditions recently gathered to map out a common religious conversion code that would affirm religious freedom while dissuading unethical means of conversion.

Leonardo DiCaprio 'Proud' to Support Climate Change March

Popular actor and environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio has pledged his support for Christian Aid's Cut the Carbon march. DiCaprio's documentary film, The 11th Hour, which explores issues of global warming and climate change, will be released on Friday 17 August in the United States.