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        <title>Christian Daily International | Europe</title>
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            <title>Christian Daily International | Europe</title>
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        <copyright>Christian Daily International © 2026</copyright>
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        <lastBuildDate>Thu, 28 May 2026 12:12:10 -0400</lastBuildDate>
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                <title><![CDATA[German Christian music pioneer Siegfried Fietz marks 80 years]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/german-christian-music-pioneer-siegfried-fietz-marks-80-years</link>
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                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[CDI Staff]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[Siegfried Fietz performs Von guten Mächten wunderbar geborgen, his setting of Dietrich Bonhoeffers final poem.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Siegfried Fietz performs "Von guten Mächten wunderbar geborgen," his setting of Dietrich Bonhoeffer's final poem. ]]>
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                                                                                                                        <pubDate>Wed, 27 May 2026 13:40:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[Siegfried Fietz, one of the most influential figures in German-language Christian music, turned 80 on May 25, according to the German Christian publication Jesus.de.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
Siegfried Fietz, one of the most influential figures in German-language Christian music, turned 80 on May 25, according to the German Christian publication Jesus.de.
Fietz is widely credited with shaping the "New Sacred Song" movement — known in German as Neues Geistliches Lied — and remains active in music and the arts decades after his career began.
He is best known internationally for his musical setting of a poem by Protestant theologian and martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Von guten Mächten wunderbar geborgen ("Wondrously Sheltered by Benevolent Powers"). Other compositions, including "God's Good Blessing Be with You" and "Sometimes You Need an Angel," have become staples in German-speaking congregations.
Born May 25, 1946, in the Siegerland region, Fietz grew up in a Christian household and developed an early interest in music, learning violin, then piano and organ. Before pursuing music full time, he trained as a metalworker and businessman and also passed a church music examination. By age 20, he was already working as a music producer for the Christian publishing house Hermann Schulte Wetzlar.
In 1974, Fietz and his wife founded Abakus, a music publishing company that remains a family business in Greifenstein-Allendorf today. Germany's performing rights society, GEMA, credits him with more than 4,500 compositions. His catalog spans roughly 250 recordings, ranging from choral and congregational works to pop oratorios on biblical figures — including Paul, David, Peter and Mary — as well as a production on Martin Luther and recordings for children.

Among his more unusual projects, Jesus.de reported, was the "Space Symphony," developed in collaboration with Apollo 15 astronaut James Irwin. His other collaborators over the years have included gospel artist Edwin Hawkins, and entertainer Petula Clark, as well as Coretta Scott King.
From 1986 to 1996, Fietz hosted a radio program called "Songs Between Heaven and Earth" on Hessischer Rundfunk, which at times drew up to 150,000 listeners, according to Jesus.de.
Now 80, Fietz shows no sign of slowing down. He continues to give concerts, often alongside his son Oliver. He marked his birthday with a concert at his sculpture park in Allendorf, where he also works as a sculptor.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[BMA backs down: Cass Review right that evidence for youth puberty blockers was weak]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/bma-backs-down-cass-review-right-that-evidence-for-youth-puberty-blockers-was-weak</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/bma-backs-down-cass-review-right-that-evidence-for-youth-puberty-blockers-was-weak</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[Chris Eyte]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[A general view of the NHSs Tavistock Centre in London, England, on June 23, 2023]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Dan Kitwood/Getty Images ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ A general view of the NHS's Tavistock Centre in London, England, on June 23, 2023. The Tavistock's Gender Identity Development Service was the only NHS-funded service in the UK working on gender issues in young people. Following an independent review led by retired pediatrician Dr. Hilary Cass and commissioned by NHS England, the clinic closed after its centralized service model was deemed unsustainable and lacking a safe, evidence-based foundation. ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Mon, 25 May 2026 02:43:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[The British Medical Association has largely reversed its position on the Cass Review into puberty blockers for children — a landmark report the doctors' union had heavily criticized in 2024.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
The British Medical Association has largely reversed its position on the Cass Review into puberty blockers for children — a landmark report the doctors' union had heavily criticized in 2024.
The BMA published its findings after a two-year internal evaluation in a paper titled "Cass Review: Evidence, Interpretation, and Implementation." Report co-author Professor David Strain told The Times the review's author "has been vindicated in the way she approached the data." When asked to name a single one of Hilary Cass's 32 recommendations that the BMA currently opposed, Strain said, "I can't," adding, "she approached an area of significant uncertainty with that prime rule of medicine, of 'first, do no harm.'"
The BMA's shift is significant because its council had, in July 2024, blasted Cass's recommendations as "unsubstantiated," called for a public critique and demanded the lifting of the puberty blocker ban — a move that triggered intense backlash from the BMA's own grassroots medical members. The council subsequently adopted a position of neutrality and launched the internal evaluation group that produced the new paper.
Writing for the Christian Medical Fellowship, Trevor Stammers — a former general practitioner, clinical teacher and past CMF chair — said the BMA's paper amounts to a concession that the evidence base in favor of puberty suppression and gender-affirming hormones for young people is "limited and uncertain."
"Whenever ideology prevails over evidence, people must eventually face up to reality," Stammers wrote. "It's very sad that now the BMA's efforts to discredit Cass' findings have turned out to broadly vindicate them, they still seek to criticise the necessary actions subsequently taken."
That ongoing criticism centers on the BMA's refusal to back a total ban on the treatments. The review group stopped short of endorsing the UK government's absolute statutory ban on the medication, calling it a political "overreach" that threatens the clinical autonomy of prescribing doctors — even as it acknowledged the "known and plausible harms" of puberty blockers.
The Cass Review was an independent analysis of the Gender Identity Development Service run by the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust in London. It was led by retired pediatrician Dr. Hilary Cass and commissioned by NHS England. Its findings ultimately led to the closure of the Tavistock clinic, whose centralized service model was deemed unsustainable and lacking a safe, evidence-based foundation.
The review found that clinical staff internationally reported that adolescents "seem to have more complex presentations" and present "with greater mental health and psychosocial needs, as well as additional diagnoses of ASD and/or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)." Data in the report showed that rates of depression, anxiety and eating disorders were significantly higher among those referred to the gender clinic than in the general population.
Baroness Cass also noted in the report that "it is widely accepted that exposure to sexuality is happening at a younger age," adding that the impact on young people's understanding of their sexuality or gender identity "is an area that warrants better exploration and understanding."
Stammers noted that the Cass Review had faced attacks from activists and some academics, including a non-peer-reviewed paper by McNamara et al. that claimed the review contained "serious methodological flaws." He cited the biblical proverb: "Do not testify against your neighbour without cause."
Official figures cited during the clinic's operational history show that 382 children aged up to 6 were referred to the service between 2010 and its clinical wind-down. About 70 were 3 or 4 years old.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[Italian evangelicals call for gospel-centred church in times of cultural crisis]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/italian-evangelicals-call-for-gospel-centred-church-in-times-of-cultural-crisis</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/italian-evangelicals-call-for-gospel-centred-church-in-times-of-cultural-crisis</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[CDI Staff]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[Rome, Italy.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Unsplash / kristian Hjuler ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Rome, Italy, where the Italian Evangelical Alliance held its Federal Assembly on May 16, 2026. ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Sat, 23 May 2026 07:05:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[Leaders of the Italian Evangelical Alliance gathered in Rome to reaffirm the biblical Gospel as the foundation of church life and public witness, warning against political, cultural and motivational substitutes that have displaced it in many Christian communities.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
Leaders of the Italian Evangelical Alliance gathered in Rome to reaffirm the biblical Gospel as the foundation of church life and public witness, warning against political, cultural and motivational substitutes that have displaced it in many Christian communities.
The Federal Assembly of the Italian Evangelical Alliance, known by its Italian acronym AEI, drew together pastors and denominational leaders from across Italy on May 16 for a day of reports, theological reflection and panel discussions on mission, church planting and evangelical formation, according to Ideaitalia, a publication of the IEA.
In his presidential report, Giacomo Ciccone grounded the day's theme in Psalm 125, stating that "the church is at the centre of God's care insofar as it places the Gospel at the centre."
Several speakers warned that the Gospel is being displaced in Italian churches. Samuele Pellerito, president of Elim Churches in Italy, cautioned against what he described as a non-Christocentric gospel — one stripped of the cross and of repentance. "Political, cultural, and motivational gospels are being preached today," he said, arguing the church can only occupy its proper place when the biblical Gospel is at its centre.
Doris Meister, secretary of the Union of Christian Biblical Churches, drew a parallel with the biblical account of scrolls of the Law being rediscovered during the reign of King Josiah — a text the people had long possessed but no longer knew. She identified three dangers facing Italian evangelical churches: a gospel that addresses only material needs, a Christianity lived in purely individualistic terms, and the absence of genuine discipleship that produces mature believers.
A theological address by Pietro Bolognesi, a former member of the World Evangelical Alliance's theological commission, set the day's tone. Drawing on Psalm 11, he called for a public theology firmly rooted in the Gospel rather than in civil religion or simplistic answers to social problems. The believer's response to a world where foundations are being destroyed, he argued, begins not with panic or self-sufficiency but with the recognition that God has not relinquished his rule.
The AEI also presented developments in its Forum of Evangelical Theological Formation Bodies in Italy, known as FEFTI, formally established at last year's assembly. The forum currently includes five member institutions and exists to build collaboration among evangelical Bible schools and seminaries. Giuseppe Rizza, who introduced the session, described theological formation as the "necessary infrastructure" for the healthy growth of the church. The forum's first joint initiative — a webinar on the catechetical work of theologian J.I. Packer, marking the centenary of his birth — is scheduled for September 28.
The AEI reported significant activity over the past year, including a religious freedom conference held at the Italian Senate in February 2025 and a letter to the President of the Republic concerning public school involvement in Catholic Jubilee activities. The Alliance also issued a statement following a Constitutional Court ruling recognising two mothers, and expressed solidarity with the Assemblies of God in Italy after what it described as stereotyped media coverage.
The day concluded with a panel on church planting and urban witness, prompted in part by the recent Italian publication of Tim Keller's Center Church. Participants raised concerns about a culture of competition between evangelical communities. Michele Passaretti, a pastor from Aversa, warned against what he called "ecclesial cannibalism," in which churches relate to one another as rivals rather than collaborators. Others pointed to Italian parochialism taking root inside evangelical churches, and to a tendency to plant new congregations out of division rather than missional vision.
The recurring thread across all contributions was a call to build bridges — not only theologically, but at the local and civic level. Healthy collaboration, speakers argued, requires churches to develop genuine roots in their communities, learning to read the spiritual needs and cultural pressures particular to each context. Only then can the evangelical witness move from competition to a shared mission.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[Charges against anti-abortion Christian of breaching ‘buffer zone’ dismissed]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/charges-against-anti-abortion-christian-of-breaching-buffer-zone-dismissed</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/charges-against-anti-abortion-christian-of-breaching-buffer-zone-dismissed</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[Chris Eyte]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[Officer approaches Claire Brennan before arrest outside hospital in Coleraine, Northern Ireland in 2023, before her 2025 arrest at the same site.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Screenshot of Christian Concern video ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Officer approaches Claire Brennan before arrest outside hospital in Coleraine, Northern Ireland in 2023, before her 2025 arrest at the same site. ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Fri, 22 May 2026 12:47:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[A court in Northern Ireland on Wednesday (May 20) threw out a criminal case against a Christian mother who spoke to women about abortion outside a hospital.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
A court in Northern Ireland on Wednesday (May 20) threw out a criminal case against a Christian mother who spoke to women about abortion outside a hospital.
At Coleraine Magistrates’ Court, prosecutors’ evidence collapsed in the case against Claire Brennan, a mother of four from Ballymena, who was charged with breaching the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) Act 2023. 
The Public Prosecution Service alleged she illegally prayed and offered support to women outside Causeway Hospital in Coleraine, County Londonderry. Legal advocacy group Christian Concern said the trial collapsed when key charges were dropped, essential witnesses failed to attend and District Judge Peter King deemed the remaining evidence insufficient to sustain a conviction.
Brennan welcomed the decision, which clears her of the recent set of allegations under the buffer zone legislation.
“This is a huge relief, not just for me, but for everyone who believes that compassion should never be criminalized,” Brennan said. “I have always acted peacefully, praying, offering hope and trying to help women who may feel they have no alternative.”
Authorities accused Brennan of “influencing” people within a 150-meter “safe access zone” around the hospital on three occasions in September, October and November.
The Public Prosecution Service relied on written witness statements and closed-circuit television footage. Prosecutors also called three live witnesses to give evidence. 
The absence of two of those witnesses, however, forced the collapse of the final charge. Without their testimony, the Crown could not prove that Brennan was the one who approached the final complainant.
Brennan consistently denied any wrongdoing throughout the proceedings. She maintained that her actions were peaceful, prayerful and motivated by compassion. Her efforts included offering conversation and small Christian medals to people who were willing to engage with her, according to Christian Concern.
Her legal defense argued that she was guided by the Holy Spirit in her actions and sought only to bring comfort to people experiencing pain.
Following the ruling, Brennan criticized the legislative restrictions surrounding health care facilities.
“These censorship zones are unjust,” Brennan said. “They silence prayer, restrict free speech and prevent women from hearing that there is another option besides abortion.”
Court documents show that Brennan’s legal position relied in part on protections under Articles 9 and 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights. These articles protect rights to freedom of thought, religion and expression.
Her defense team maintained that peaceful prayer, consensual conversation and offering a religious token fall squarely within those protected rights. They argued such actions do not meet the legal threshold of causing harassment, alarm or distress.
Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, said the collapse of the case exposed serious flaws in how authorities enforce the safe access zones.
“Claire Brennan was engaged in peaceful, compassionate activity, praying and offering support,” Williams said. “Yet she faced criminal prosecution for living out her Christian faith. These laws are having a chilling effect across Northern Ireland, criminalizing ordinary people who simply want to offer women real choice, including alternatives to abortion. No society committed to freedom can justify punishing prayer or quiet offers of help.”
Brennan remains actively involved in separate legal challenges regarding censorship zones and freedom of religion and expression in Northern Ireland.
A prior, separate court case against Brennan is on hold for a retrial after she appealed an earlier conviction under the same Act. In that distinct case, authorities arrested her for reciting the Lord’s Prayer and holding a sign against abortion outside the same hospital.
During those appeal proceedings, County Court Judge Ciaran Moynagh recused himself following defense concerns over perceived bias. Christian Concern highlighted that Humanists UK previously named Moynagh “Humanist of the Year” for his public legal activism supporting abortion rights and same-sex marriage.
Brennan’s acquittal comes amid intense scrutiny of the regional buffer zone laws. Earlier this month, Coleraine Magistrates’ Court convicted a retired Baptist pastor, the Rev. Clive Johnston, under the same legislation. 
Authorities prosecuted Johnston after he shared the biblical text of John 3:16 during an open-air sermon outside Causeway Hospital.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[Evangelicals 'distant and remote' to Pope Leo XIV, evangelical theologian writes]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/evangelicals-distant-and-remote-to-pope-leo-xiv-evangelical-theologian-writes</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/evangelicals-distant-and-remote-to-pope-leo-xiv-evangelical-theologian-writes</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[CDI Staff]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[The newly elected Pontiff, Pope Leo XIV is seen for the first time from the Vatican balcony on May 8, 2025 in Vatican City, Vatican.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Christopher Furlong/Getty Images ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ The then-newly elected Pontiff, Pope Leo XIV is seen for the first time from the Vatican balcony on May 8, 2025 in Vatican City, Vatican. ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Fri, 22 May 2026 06:22:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[An Italian evangelical pastor and theologian has offered a wide-ranging assessment of Pope Leo XIV's first year in office, describing a pontiff who has emerged as a combative global voice on peace while carefully managing divisions within the Roman Catholic Church.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
An Italian evangelical pastor and theologian has offered a wide-ranging assessment of Pope Leo XIV's first year in office, describing a pontiff who has emerged as a combative global voice on peace while carefully managing divisions within the Roman Catholic Church.
Writing for Vatican Files, Leonardo De Chirico — pastor of Breccia di Roma church and director of the Reformanda Initiative, an organization that equips evangelical leaders to engage with Roman Catholicism — said it remains too early for a definitive verdict on Leo's papacy but that certain patterns are now clearly visible.
De Chirico, who holds a doctorate from King's College London and has written extensively on post-Vatican II Catholicism, said the most striking development of Leo's first year has been his willingness to engage in direct, unfiltered public confrontation — most notably with U.S. President Donald Trump.
According to De Chirico, Leo's criticism of the Trump administration's handling of undocumented migrant deportations set the stage for a broader clash over the war in Iran. The pope has responded to Trump's attacks directly rather than through traditional Vatican diplomatic channels, a choice De Chirico described as unexpected given Leo's otherwise reserved and controlled temperament.
"For months now, the Trump vs. Leo dynamic has dominated the global political narrative, casting the pope as Trump's ultimate opponent in the name of 'peace,'" De Chirico wrote. He noted that Leo's popularity has grown considerably among secular audiences as a result.
Leo's international travel — to Turkey, Lebanon and across Africa — has reinforced what De Chirico characterized as contemporary Catholicism's focus on the Global South, where the Catholic Church is navigating competition from both Islam and growing evangelical movements.
Internal balancing act
Within the Catholic Church itself, De Chirico said Leo has acted as a pragmatic bridge-builder rather than a reformer or a traditionalist defender. Francis, his predecessor, left behind unresolved tensions over "synodality" — a contested vision of shared church governance — and a church marked by significant internal conflict.
In response, De Chirico wrote, Leo has sought to lower the temperature: holding a firm line on questions such as same-sex unions without breaking with more progressive factions, and moderating enthusiasm for synodality without extinguishing it. No sweeping appointments to senior church positions have been made.
"On the domestic front, Leo has proven himself to be a seasoned and experienced political figure," De Chirico wrote, describing him as someone focused on preserving Catholic institutional integrity rather than driving change.
Distant from evangelicals
De Chirico's analysis in Vatican Files gives particular attention to Leo's ecumenical priorities — and what he sees as evangelicals' effective absence from them.
He wrote that Leo's ecumenical focus tilts toward Eastern Orthodoxy and the Oriental Churches, with a secondary interest in Islam, while liberal Protestant bodies have received a cooler reception. As evidence, he pointed to what he described as a bureaucratic welcome given to the Archbishop of Canterbury during a visit to Rome.
As for evangelicals, De Chirico said they barely register in Leo's thinking. Unlike Pope Francis, who maintained personal friendships with evangelical leaders in Argentina, Leo is said to have cultivated no such relationships — a pattern that reportedly predates his election and goes back to his time as bishop in Peru.
De Chirico described Leo's theological framework as a Catholic Augustinianism shaped by the post-Vatican II tradition, drawing on themes of peace, grace and Mariology.
Vatican Files is a project of the Reformanda Initiative, which is based in Rome and works to help evangelical churches understand and engage with Roman Catholic theology and practice.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[Open Doors event draws 9,000 to Karlsruhe for prayer, firsthand accounts of persecution]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/open-doors-event-draws-9-000-to-karlsruhe-for-prayer-firsthand-accounts-of-persecution</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/open-doors-event-draws-9-000-to-karlsruhe-for-prayer-firsthand-accounts-of-persecution</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[CDI Staff]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[Vina, an Indonesian survivor of a 2021 church bombing, addresses roughly 9,000 attendees at the Open Doors Days gathering in Karlsruhe, Germany.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Open Doors Germany ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Vina, an Indonesian survivor of a 2021 church bombing, addresses roughly 9,000 attendees at the Open Doors Days gathering in Karlsruhe, Germany. ]]>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[Participants pray for persecuted Christians during Open Doors Days in Karlsruhe, Germany, May 2025.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Open Doors Germany ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Participants pray for persecuted Christians during Open Doors Days in Karlsruhe, Germany, May 2025. ]]>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[Around 9,000 people gathered in Karlsruhe, Germany, for Open Doors Days, May 14–16, 2025, one of the largest annual gatherings in Germany focused on the plight of persecuted Christians worldwide.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Open Doors Germany ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Around 9,000 people gathered in Karlsruhe, Germany, for Open Doors Days, May 14–16, 2025, one of the largest annual gatherings in Germany focused on the plight of persecuted Christians worldwide. ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Thu, 21 May 2026 08:35:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[A North Korean pastor who survived hunger, forced labor and flight from his country told thousands of German Christians that the Kim dynasty is nearing its end — one of several firsthand accounts of persecution that shaped a three-day gathering in southwestern Germany this month.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
A North Korean pastor who survived hunger, forced labor and flight from his country told thousands of German Christians that the Kim dynasty is nearing its end — one of several firsthand accounts of persecution that shaped a three-day gathering in southwestern Germany this month.
Around 9,000 people attended Open Doors Days in Karlsruhe from May 14–16, according to a press release from Open Doors Germany and reporting by Jesus.de. The event, which drew comparable numbers to the previous year, opened with a Youth Day on Ascension Day, followed by a prayer evening and a main program day on Saturday.
Speakers from Indonesia, Burkina Faso, North Korea, Mexico and Central Asia shared personal accounts of the hardships facing Christians in their countries. A 25-year-old Indonesian woman identified only as Vina said she survived a suicide bombing at her church in 2021 that left her with serious injuries. Jung Jik, a pastor from North Korea, described years of hunger, escape and detention in a labor camp, and said he believes the Korean Peninsula will eventually be reunified.

A pastor from Mexico, identified only as Juan, offered a glimpse of how the event resonated beyond Germany's borders. He told the gathering that he had phoned the leader of his church association that same Saturday and excitedly relayed the news: "Germany is praying for you!"
Following the main program, participants placed prayer cards for persecuted Christians at a large cross erected in the center of the hall. The event featured music from Outbreakband, and recordings are available on the Open Doors Germany website.
Roughly 900 children attended a parallel program organized around the theme "Hidden Kingdom," which introduced younger participants to the realities facing Christians living under persecution.

Open Doors Germany director Markus Rode used the gathering to announce a new initiative called Arise Africa, designed to channel support to persecuted Christians across the African continent.
Open Doors is an international, nondenominational Christian aid organization operating in around 70 countries. The group supports Christians who face discrimination or persecution because of their faith.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[Swedish churches concerned about abortion and euthanasia, few willing to take public stance before national election]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/swedish-churches-concerned-about-abortion-and-euthanasia-few-willing-to-take-public-stance-before-national-election</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/swedish-churches-concerned-about-abortion-and-euthanasia-few-willing-to-take-public-stance-before-national-election</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[Chris Eyte]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[The Parliament House, seat of the Riksdag since 1905.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ CEphoto, Uwe Aranas, Wikimedia Commons ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ The Parliament House, seat of the Riksdag since 1905. ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Thu, 21 May 2026 08:10:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[Few churches are willing to take a public stance on the issues of abortion and euthanasia in Sweden, a leading evangelical leader said, after Catholic voters received guidance on electoral candidates’ perspectives on such ethical issues ahead of the national election on Sept. 13.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
Few churches in Sweden are willing to take a public stance on abortion and euthanasia, a leading evangelical leader said, after Catholic voters received guidance on electoral candidates’ perspectives on such ethical issues ahead of the national election on Sept. 13.
Olof Edsinger, general secretary of the Swedish Evangelical Alliance (SEA), told Christian Daily International that, although evangelicals are concerned about abortion and euthanasia, the issues have not been prominent in the public sphere for churches.
Edsinger explained that before several elections, the SEA conducted surveys of what political parties say on different matters, including abortion and euthanasia. However, the evangelical group has not singled out those two areas as the only, or even most important, issues for evangelical voters.
A leading reason for this, according to Edsinger, is that no political party currently in the Riksdag (parliament) in Stockholm is pushing for stricter abortion laws — “not even the Christian Democrats.”
“Many evangelicals are, of course, grieving over this,” Edsinger said. “But it also reflects the fact that very few churches are willing to take a public stance on abortion in today’s Sweden.”
He said that for him personally, “this is a serious matter.”
“But as the Catholic guide also makes plain, it is impossible to use abortion as a litmus test when no major party seeks to change the present legal situation.” 
“On the contrary, all parties seem to support the proposal to make abortion part of Sweden’s constitutional law,” he said.
In Sweden, abortion is legal on request up to the 18th week of pregnancy, while all forms of active euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide remain illegal under current law.
The Justice and Peace Commission of the Catholic Diocese of Stockholm published guidance on April 10 for Catholics to consider before the general election, titled “Statement and Guidance before the Election on September 13, 2026.”
“The text presents political participation as a legitimate expression of Christian responsibility while encouraging the faithful to be informed, take part in public life, and vote in line with the principles of Catholic social teaching,” reported Catholic World Report.
A section titled “The Two-Step Discernment for Voters” advises Catholic voters to distinguish between the first step of “absolute values” and the second step of “practical wisdom.”
“The first step considers the effect my vote will have on legislation in matters regarding absolute values, particularly those concerning life and death, where faith binds the conscience,” the report says.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[UK police drop investigation against preacher accused of ‘hate speech’]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/uk-police-drop-investigation-against-preacher-accused-of-hate-speech</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/uk-police-drop-investigation-against-preacher-accused-of-hate-speech</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[Chris Eyte]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[Police jailed the Rev. Dia Moodley for eight hours after his November 2025 arrest in Bristol, U.K.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ ADF International ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Police jailed the Rev. Dia Moodley for eight hours after his November 2025 arrest in Bristol, U.K. ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Tue, 19 May 2026 09:57:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[Police in England have dropped a four-month criminal investigation against a street preacher whom they arrested and jailed for eight hours following allegations of “hate speech” regarding Islam and transgender ideology.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
Police in England have dropped a four-month criminal investigation against a street preacher whom they arrested and jailed for eight hours following allegations of “hate speech” regarding Islam and transgender ideology.
Avon & Somerset Police on April 8 told the Rev. Dia Moodley, 58, that they will take no further action following his Nov. 22 arrest in the Broadmead shopping district in central Bristol. Authorities detained Moodley for “inciting religious hatred” and a Section 4A religiously aggravated public order offense under the Public Order Act 1986.
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) International, a legal advocacy group supporting Moodley, said police jailed the pastor for eight hours, visited his home, interrogated him under caution, and imposed initial bail conditions. Those conditions banned him from entering the city center, which prevented him from preaching there over Christmas.
“I’m glad Avon and Somerset Police decided to eventually do the right thing and drop their criminal investigation,” Moodley said. “This is a win for free speech, but I never should have been arrested, treated like a criminal and investigated for months for peacefully sharing my faith in the public square.”
The police previously arrested the pastor for commenting on Islam and transgender ideology while street preaching. Following his first arrest in March 2024, authorities also dropped that investigation.
“Avon and Somerset Police have arrested me twice because my lawful speech was seen as offensive to some Muslims and people with a progressive worldview,” Moodley said. “Meanwhile, the police have shockingly failed to investigate violence and threats against me, committed by those who object to my speech. This is the definition of two-tier policing and must end. What has happened to this country, that police ignore clearly criminal incidents like this most recent one – which I perceived to be a threat of violence – and choose instead to criminalize Christian speech?”
Police did nothing after bystanders repeatedly threatened Moodley as he preached, according to ADF International.
The most recent incident involved explicit threats from a Muslim bystander against the Christian preacher. On April 4, Moodley preached in the city center regarding the resurrection of Christ, arguing that unlike other religious figures, only Jesus rose from the dead.
“Krishna, Buddha, Muhammad and your favorite philosopher did not rise from the dead, only Jesus rose from the dead,” Moodley said during his street sermon.
A camera captured a Muslim bystander who appeared to warn the preacher.
“If you do that again bro, we’ll send the boys round… we’ll have someone have a word with you,” the man allegedly said.
Avon and Somerset Police told Moodley on May 1 that the threat, although unpleasant, did not constitute an offense.
Jeremiah Igunnubole, legal counsel for ADF International, said the police decision to drop the recent investigation vindicates Moodley’s lawful conduct.
“He has been repeatedly arrested, imprisoned, and told that expressing his Christian views is a criminal matter,” Igunnubole said. “On every occasion, he has challenged this state overreach and prevailed. It is deeply troubling, however, that police treated Pastor Dia’s constructive comments on Islam and gender ideology – remarks which were made in good faith, were an expression of his core Christian beliefs and which explicitly invited dialogue – as a criminal matter, while dismissing a clear and dangerous threat made against him by a Muslim bystander as merely an ‘unpleasant’ incident.”
Igunnubole labeled this approach to law enforcement “two-tiered” and said it produces “unjust and discriminatory outcomes.”
“It can only be addressed by repealing the underlying censorial legislation and renewed efforts to retrain ideologically motivated police forces who too often find themselves unable or unwilling to differentiate between a lawful exercise of fundamental rights and actual violent criminality,” Igunnubole said.
The attorney called for an end to what he described as a “war of attrition against free speech in the U.K.,” citing Moodley’s case as a primary example.
“Censorial laws need to be repealed urgently, and stronger protections, including a Free Speech Bill, are needed to reverse the growing culture of censorship within law enforcement,” Igunnubole said. “We remain fully committed to standing with Pastor Dia as he considers legal action against the police for these violations of his rights and their failure to protect him from serious crime.”
Moodley said he is consulting with his legal team about taking legal action against Avon and Somerset Police for violating his rights.
“I will continue to share my faith publicly, undeterred by the police’s censorship and the threats and violence I have faced, and will stand for free speech not just for myself, but for the rights of all people in the U.K.,” Moodley said.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[Journalists' global body calls for spyware crackdown after landmark surveillance study]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/journalists-global-body-calls-for-spyware-crackdown-after-landmark-surveillance-study</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/journalists-global-body-calls-for-spyware-crackdown-after-landmark-surveillance-study</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[CDI Staff]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[Security cameras in London, U.K.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Unsplash / Levi Meir Clancy ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Tue, 19 May 2026 07:20:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[Hundreds of journalists from around the world have backed a call for the International Federation of Journalists to lead a coordinated campaign against the unlawful use of surveillance technology targeting reporters and their sources, following the publication of a major new study documenting what the IFJ describes as a worldwide infrastructure of digital control.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
Hundreds of journalists from around the world have backed a call for the International Federation of Journalists to lead a coordinated campaign against the unlawful use of surveillance technology targeting reporters and their sources, following the publication of a major new study documenting what the IFJ describes as a worldwide infrastructure of digital control.
The resolution was passed unanimously by delegates at the IFJ's Centenary Congress in Paris, held May 4–7, after delegates heard from Samar Al Halal, the author of "Global Surveillance of Journalists: A Technical Mapping of Tools, Tactics and Threats." The report, commissioned by the IFJ and published April 28 as part of the EU-funded Brave Media project, examines how digital surveillance of journalists has grown into a systemic global problem.
As Christian Daily International reported earlier this month, the study found that monitoring technologies once confined to intelligence agencies are now widely available to governments and security services, including commercial spyware programs capable of silently accessing a device's messages, calls, photos, location data and microphone without the user's knowledge.
Al Halal, a computer and communications engineer who specializes in digital security and rights, told the Paris congress that the threat to journalism goes beyond technology. "When journalists are monitored self-censorship becomes normal," she said. "Even the perception of being monitored is enough to change behaviour."
In a separate interview published by the IFJ alongside the report, Al Halal described surveillance as having shifted from occasional targeted attacks to continuous, systematic monitoring. Journalists are no longer watched primarily because of a specific investigation, she said, but because they exist within data-rich systems — phones, SIM cards, platforms and networks — that generate enough information to track them constantly, often without sophisticated spyware at all.
She warned that in conflict zones the consequences can be lethal. Surveillance data can, she said, "contribute to increased physical risks for those seeking to hold power to account."
The study describes a recurring pattern across its case studies: the convergence of commercial spyware, state intelligence agencies and weak or nonexistent oversight. Al Halal argued this is not a problem limited to authoritarian governments. Democratic states, she said, use the same tools and legal justifications, with responsibility spread so thinly across governments, private vendors and regulators that no single actor is held accountable.
Delegates at the congress also heard from Seamus Dooley of the National Union of Journalists in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and Samira de Castro of the Brazilian journalists' union FENAJ, both of whom described how legal action and public campaigns had helped expose surveillance abuses in their countries.
The congress called on the IFJ to pursue stronger regulation of the spyware industry, greater transparency in spyware exports and government procurement, enhanced accountability for telecommunications providers, stronger protections for encryption and anonymity, greater investment in regional digital forensics capacity, and the integration of security training into journalism education.
IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said the stories heard from delegates worldwide painted a consistent picture. "From delegates across the world we have heard similar stories of abusive, unlawful and unregulated spying on journalists and their sources which threatens media freedom and leads to greater self-censorship and in too many cases physical threats and attacks," he said.
Bellanger said the IFJ would make the issue a priority, committing to expose unlawful surveillance, help journalists understand and respond to digital threats, and press for stronger laws and regulation at both the global and national levels.
Al Halal, in her IFJ interview, said the scale of the problem means individual self-protection can only go so far. Meaningful change, she argued, requires political and legal action — regulating spyware vendors, enforcing export controls, demanding transparency from platforms and telecoms companies, and holding governments accountable. "We cannot ask individuals to defend themselves against an industrial-scale system," she said.
The IFJ represents more than 600,000 media professionals across 148 countries.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[Kazakhstan priest who opposed Russian invasion remains in isolation]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/kazakhstan-priest-who-opposed-russian-invasion-remains-in-isolation</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/kazakhstan-priest-who-opposed-russian-invasion-remains-in-isolation</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[Jack Bethel]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[Shirt won by supporters of Kazakhstan priest Vladimir Yuryevich Vorontsov calling for his release in April 2026.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Forum 18 ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Shirt won by supporters of Kazakhstan priest Vladimir Yuryevich Vorontsov calling for his release in April 2026. ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Mon, 18 May 2026 08:53:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[An independent Orthodox priest in Kazakhstan who publicly opposed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine remains in solitary pre-trial detention on drug charges his supporters call “fabricated.”]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
An independent Orthodox priest in Kazakhstan who publicly opposed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine remains in solitary pre-trial detention on drug charges his supporters call “fabricated.”
Vladimir Yuryevich Vorontsov, 40, appeared at an appeal hearing Friday (May 8) at the Almaty City Court, with the outcome undisclosed. Police arrested Vorontsov on Feb. 13 and later extended his detention until May 23.
His family reports deep distress as authorities continue to deny them contact with the priest.
Attorney Galym Nurpeisov said prison guards forcibly shaved Vorontsov’s beard and confiscated his Bible and prayer book.
“Since the very moment of his arrest, Yakov has been held in total isolation from the outside world, including his family,” journalist Natalya Boiko, who knows him well, told Forum 18. “He has been denied any form of direct contact – no phone calls and no visits whatsoever have been allowed. The family are extremely distressed and worried, and we share their deep concern as it appears he is being kept in forced, absolute isolation from the world.”
Vorontsov previously served as a priest in Kazakhstan’s Orthodox Church under the Moscow Patriarchate. In March 2022 he signed an open letter alongside 293 Russian Orthodox clergy demanding an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine.
This stance contrasted sharply with the pro-war position of Patriarch Kirill in Moscow, and in July 2023, the Diocesan Council of Kazakhstan’s Orthodox Church defrocked Vorontsov.
Following his removal, Vorontsov attempted to register a parish independent of the Moscow Patriarchate, the Independent Community of Orthodox Christians in Honour of the Transfiguration of the Lord. The Almaty City Justice Department rejected his first application in December 2025.
He filed a second application on Jan. 9 backed by 54 church founders, but there has been no response yet from authorities.
“The Moscow Patriarchate supports the war in Ukraine,” Boiko told Forum 18. “This is precisely why Yakov wanted separation...and that is why [the authorities] punish him now.”
The legal pressure intensified after Vorontsov posted on Facebook that the Russian Orthodox Church “has long had nothing in common with Christianity.” While police closed an initial incitement investigation in April 2025, authorities claimed in November that Vorontsov ran a “drug den,” the rights group reported.
On Feb. 13, police from OMON, part of a system of military special units within Russia, raided Vorontsov’s home with dogs at midnight, according to Forum 18. Officers claimed they found a powdered substance and initially sentenced the priest to 10 days for drug use.
“I imagine that [police] planted the powder with the aim of sorting me out and discrediting me,” Vorontsov wrote in a letter from prison, the group reported. “The whole world knows of my choice of the gospel, not of the ‘Russian World’; peace and not war.”
Despite the scheduled appeal, Nurpeisov said that as of Wednesday (May 6), authorities still denied him access to court documents, according to Forum 18.
“I’m not acquainted with the case materials,” Nurpeisov told the group. “We need to thoroughly examine and study a ream of documents before I can give a full account.”
Supporters also expressed alarm over Vorontsov’s health. Geniyat Issin, a supporter, wrote on Facebook that the priest suffered pneumonia after guards forced him to walk through cold corridors following weekly hot showers.
Despite the conditions, Issin noted that Vorontsov continues his ministry behind bars. The priest reportedly talked a cellmate out of suicide recently.
Galym Ageleuov, head of the Liberty Human Rights Group, called the accusations a “litmus test” for Kazakhstan.
“The fate of Yakov Vorontsov is very important,” Ageleuov told Forum 18. “It is an indicator of the state of our country.”]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[Thousands respond to Franklin Graham's Gospel message at historic Belarus evangelical festival]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/thousands-respond-to-franklin-graham-s-gospel-message-at-historic-belarus-evangelical-festival</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/thousands-respond-to-franklin-graham-s-gospel-message-at-historic-belarus-evangelical-festival</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[CDI Staff]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[Franklin Graham addresses a crowd of more than 15,000 at the Chizhovka Arena in Minsk during the Festival of Hope, May 17–18, 2025.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ BGEA ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Franklin Graham addresses a crowd of more than 15,000 at the Chizhovka Arena in Minsk during the Festival of Hope, May 17–18, 2025. ]]>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[Franklin Graham meets with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko at the presidents residence in Minsk, May 16, 2025.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ President Aleksandr Lukashenko’s office / BGEA ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Franklin Graham meets with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko at the president's residence in Minsk, May 16, 2025. ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Mon, 18 May 2026 05:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[Hundreds of people made public commitments to Christian faith last weekend at what organizers described as the largest evangelical gathering in Belarus history, an event that followed an unusual two-hour meeting between American evangelist Franklin Graham and the country's longtime authoritarian president.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
Hundreds of people made public commitments to Christian faith last weekend at what organizers described as the largest evangelical gathering in Belarus history, an event that followed an unusual two-hour meeting between American evangelist Franklin Graham and the country's longtime authoritarian president.
The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association reported that more than 15,000 people filled the Chizhovka Arena in Minsk on Saturday night for the Festival of Hope, with additional crowds spilling into overflow areas and gathering outside the venue to hear Graham preach. A second service was held Sunday. Nearly 700 churches across Belarus helped organize the event.
Belarus is governed by Aleksandr Lukashenko, who has held power since July 1994 — more than 31 years — making him the longest-serving leader in Europe. Critics and Western governments have long referred to him as "Europe's last dictator," citing his suppression of independent media, imprisonment of political opponents and a series of elections widely condemned as fraudulent. Belarus borders both Russia and Ukraine.
Graham met with Lukashenko at the president's residence for more than two hours on Friday, ahead of the festival's opening night, according to the BGEA. Graham said he thanked Lukashenko for permitting evangelical churches to hold a national-scale evangelistic event in the capital.
"Nothing has been done like this in Belarus in modern history," Graham said.
Lukashenko, who grew up under Soviet-era atheism, told Graham he had personal familiarity with Protestant Christians from his time as a collective farm administrator. "The Soviet Union was officially an atheist country, but unofficially, everyone prayed," he said, adding that roughly half the workers on the farm where he served were Protestants. "They are exceptionally kind and incredibly hardworking people."

The Belarusian president also acknowledged receiving humanitarian aid through U.S.-based organizations. According to BGEA, two-thirds of humanitarian aid Belarus received last year came from the United States, including from Samaritan's Purse, which Graham leads as president and CEO.
Before the meeting ended, Lukashenko made a lighthearted remark as Graham offered to pray for him. "Franklin, when you're talking with the Lord about sins, don't forget about mine either," he said.
At the arena, organizers assembled a 1,300-member choir drawn from 43 cities and villages, along with a symphony orchestra and local musicians. A dedication service the night before drew 7,500 participants, Graham said.
Evangelical Christians make up less than 2% of Belarus's population, according to BGEA. One volunteer at the event, identified only as Vlada, said believers in the country can feel isolated. The sight of thousands gathered from across denominational and geographic lines, she said, was itself a kind of confirmation. "I see how God will do something in Belarus," she said.
The BGEA account of Sunday's service described several individuals who responded to Graham's call to come forward for prayer, including a young Minsk woman named Alexandra who said she had struggled with anxiety, and another woman named Irina who said she had grown up in a Christian family but had never personally committed to faith. Both made their way to the front of the arena as Graham gave an altar call.
Graham noted the time as the crowd gathered near the stage. "It's 7:04," he told them. "Write that time down. God heard your prayer today."
On social media after the first night, Graham called on Christians worldwide to pray for Belarusians and credited Lukashenko for making the gatherings possible. "I'm so grateful to President Aleksandr Lukashenko for allowing the evangelical churches to gather on a national scale like this," he wrote.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[Nicaea accelerated Christianity's break from Jewish roots, German theologian argues in essay]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/nicaea-accelerated-christianity-s-break-from-jewish-roots-german-theologian-argues-in-essay</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/nicaea-accelerated-christianity-s-break-from-jewish-roots-german-theologian-argues-in-essay</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[CDI Staff]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[The First Council of Nicaea, as depicted by Cretan painter Michael Damaskinos (1591). The work, originally from Vronitissiou monastery, is now housed in the Agia Collection, Heraklion.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Wikimedia Commons ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ The First Council of Nicaea, as depicted by Cretan painter Michael Damaskinos (1591). The work, originally from Vronitissiou monastery, is now housed in the Agia Collection, Heraklion. ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Sat, 16 May 2026 04:27:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[A recently published scholarly essay contends that the Council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. was a turning point not only in Christian theology but in the institutional separation of the church from its Jewish origins — a separation shaped as much by politics as by Scripture.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
A recently published scholarly essay contends that the Council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. was a turning point not only in Christian theology but in the institutional separation of the church from its Jewish origins — a separation shaped as much by politics as by Scripture.
The essay, written by Dr. Thomas Paul Schirrmacher, German theologian and former Secretary General of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), appears in "Their Lord and Ours: The Enduring Legacy of Nicaea," a collection of scholarly contributions marking the 1,700th anniversary of the council published as part of the World of Theology series by the WEA's Theological Commission. Schirrmacher's contribution titled "Nicaea and the Separation of the Christian Church From Its Jewish Roots" was highlighted in Bonn Profiles on May 15.
While affirming the theological weight of the Nicene Creed, Schirrmacher argues that decisions made at Nicaea — and the broader atmosphere of Emperor Constantine's reign — drove Christianity toward a distinct, non-Jewish identity in ways that were not primarily grounded in biblical reasoning.
A key example, according to the essay, was the council's decision to decouple the date of Easter from the Jewish Passover calendar. Schirrmacher characterizes this as emblematic of a wider effort to define Christian identity in opposition to Jewish practice, driven by anti-Jewish attitudes that were prevalent in the Roman world of the fourth century.
The essay also draws attention to the apparent absence of Jewish-Christian representatives at Nicaea, interpreting this as evidence that institutional leadership in the church had already moved away from its Jewish-origin communities. Schirrmacher points to historical records suggesting that Jewish followers of Jesus continued to exist for centuries after the council, even as the broader institutional church increasingly marginalized them.
Constantine's own policies and public rhetoric toward Jews receive critical attention in the essay. Schirrmacher describes the emperor's posture as openly hostile, and argues it left a lasting imprint on Christian attitudes and legislation in the centuries that followed.
Despite his critique of these historical dynamics, Schirrmacher maintains that the core Christological affirmations reached at Nicaea remain grounded in the biblical tradition. His essay calls for greater scholarly attention to early Jewish-Christian communities and encourages readers to reckon honestly with the historical relationship between Christianity and Judaism.
The volume in which the essay appears brings together multiple scholars examining the Nicene Creed's continuing theological and practical significance for the church.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[German foundation presents Bible adapted for people with dementia]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/german-foundation-presents-bible-adapted-for-people-with-dementia</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/german-foundation-presents-bible-adapted-for-people-with-dementia</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[CDI Staff]]></dc:creator>
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                            <media:title><![CDATA[German foundations dementia-adapted Bible, Encountering Jesus, draws on the Gospel of Luke and includes illustrations designed to evoke memories of faith.]]></media:title>
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                                    <![CDATA[ Marburger Medien Foundation ]]>
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                                    <![CDATA[ German foundation's dementia-adapted Bible, "Encountering Jesus," draws on the Gospel of Luke and includes illustrations designed to evoke memories of faith. ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Sat, 16 May 2026 04:10:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[A Christian media organization in Germany has released a simplified Bible designed for people living with dementia, offering biblical stories in plain language alongside colorful illustrations intended to evoke long-held memories of faith.]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
A Christian media organization in Germany has released a simplified Bible designed for people living with dementia, offering biblical stories in plain language alongside colorful illustrations intended to evoke long-held memories of faith.
The Marburger Medien Foundation unveiled the publication Monday in central Hesse, Germany. Reporting by Media Magazine Pro describes the project as two years in the making and aimed at bringing "faith, hope, and confidence" to those affected by dementia, as well as to caregivers and family members.
The book, titled "Encountering Jesus — Stories from the Gospel of Luke that Stay with You," draws primarily from the Gospel of Luke, chosen for its well-known parables. It also includes the Lord's Prayer and Psalm 23. Illustrations were commissioned from artist Fionn Westermeier and selected, according to the foundation, to make the texts as accessible as possible.
Karsten Hüttmann, chairman of the board of the Marburger Medien Foundation, acknowledged that condensing the biblical material raised theological questions. "But when we consider that people with dementia can immerse themselves in Bible stories and that memories surface, this helps in developing the texts," he said.
Dementia expert Norbert Rose advised on the project. Among his recommendations was printing thematic sections across double pages, since turning a page can signal a new beginning to someone with dementia — making layout a pastoral as well as a practical consideration.
The foundation said the book responds to the growing social reality of aging populations. "Many people with dementia had contact with the church and faith when they were young," Hüttmann said. "The Bible is meant to help awaken memories and open conversations with people living with dementia, to give them courage and offer comfort."
He added: "These are all people who have dignity and who live intensely in the present. A dignity in the here and now."
According to Media Magazine Pro, the first print run was 30,000 copies, supported in part by the Veronika Foundation and the EKD Media Fund. Hüttmann described the undertaking as "uncharted territory" for Marburger Medien.
The foundation says the publication is suited for use in care homes, nursing facilities, pastoral visiting services, senior groups and by family caregivers — anywhere people accompany those in the early stages of the disease.]]></content:encoded>
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                <title><![CDATA[Irish lawmakers reject effort to remove remaining abortion barriers]]></title>
                <link>https://www.christiandaily.com/news/irish-lawmakers-reject-effort-to-remove-remaining-abortion-barriers</link>
                <guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.christiandaily.com/news/irish-lawmakers-reject-effort-to-remove-remaining-abortion-barriers</guid>
                                                            <dc:creator><![CDATA[Chris Eyte]]></dc:creator>
                                                                                                                            <media:content  url="https://www.christiandaily.com/media/original/img/0/46/4603.jpeg">
                            <media:title><![CDATA[Leinster House in Dublin, seat of Dáil Éireann]]></media:title>
                                                            <media:credit role="author" scheme="urn:ebu">
                                    <![CDATA[ Wikimedia Commons ]]>
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                                                                                        <media:description type="plain">
                                    <![CDATA[ Leinster House in Dublin, seat of Dáil Éireann ]]>
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                                                                            <pubDate>Fri, 15 May 2026 11:45:00 -0400</pubDate>
                <description><![CDATA[Irish lawmakers voted down a bill Tuesday intended to remove remaining barriers to abortion access, in a proposal criticized by the leader of the national evangelical alliance as “cynical” and “dishonest.”]]></description>
                <content:encoded><![CDATA[
Irish lawmakers voted down a bill Tuesday, May 12, intended to remove remaining barriers to abortion access, in a proposal criticized by the leader of the national evangelical alliance as “cynical” and “dishonest.”
Members of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of Ireland’s parliament, voted against the Reproductive Rights (Amendment) Bill during its second-stage reading in Dublin. The bill was defeated 85-30, with 36 abstentions.
Holly Cairns, leader of the Social Democrats, introduced the bill “to enact recommendations of the Marie O’Shea report into the operation of legislation on the termination of pregnancy, providing clarity on terminations for medical reasons, removal of the three-day waiting period, and ending the criminalisation of doctors.”
The Marie O’Shea review was conducted in 2023, when attorney Marie O’Shea led an independent assessment of abortion services following passage of the 2018 Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act.
The law currently allows terminations of unborn children up to 12 weeks of pregnancy, and later if there is a risk to the mother’s life or health, or if the child suffers from a fatal fetal anomaly.
O’Shea’s report concluded that while abortion services are generally functioning, significant “legal and operational barriers” prevent many women from accessing terminations.
One recommendation in the report sought to remove the three-day reflection period between confirmation of pregnancy and an abortion. The report argued that the waiting period caused unnecessary delays and distress, particularly for women nearing the 12-week limit.
The review also recommended removing a requirement for doctors to confirm that an unborn child would not live longer than 28 days after birth in cases involving fatal fetal abnormality.
The National Women’s Council on Monday published a statement welcoming a “renewed focus on barriers to abortion” ahead of the parliamentary vote.
The NWC, which describes itself as Ireland’s leading representative organization for women’s rights and equality, said existing barriers to “abortion services are paternalistic, medically unnecessary, and must be removed” in a public letter to lawmakers.
Nick Park, executive director of Evangelical Alliance Ireland, said the rights of all people, including women and unborn children, require protection.
“Evangelical Alliance Ireland is passionate about protecting people’s rights,” Park told Christian Daily International. “That includes the rights of women, of men, and the rights of children — including unborn children.”
Park said supporters of the 2018 referendum that removed Ireland’s constitutional ban on abortion repeatedly emphasized that abortion access would be limited to certain conditions.
“One of those conditions was that anyone seeking an abortion would be subject to a three-day reflection period before proceeding,” he said.
“Those of us who warned that this would subsequently be followed by further widening the access to abortion were accused of scaremongering.”
Park said the promise that abortion would be “safe, legal and rare” in Ireland has already proven false. He said approximately 10,000 unborn children are aborted annually, roughly one in six pregnancies.
“Now there is a concerted attempt to remove the mandatory three-day reflection period,” Park said. “This latest push to remove all barriers to abortion is cynical, dishonest, and cloaks a denial of the fundamental right to life under the guise of ‘reproductive rights.’”
The bill’s defeat is unlikely to end efforts by some lawmakers to expand abortion access under the 2018 law.
In January, Ruth Coppinger, Paul Murphy and Richard Boyd Barrett of the socialist People Before Profit-Solidarity alliance proposed the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) (Amendment) Bill 2026, which would abolish the three-day waiting period for abortions under 12 weeks.
Sinn Féin has also introduced similar legislation. Sinn Féin health spokesperson David Cullinane reportedly said, “We never supported the three-day wait in the first place.”]]></content:encoded>
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