3+ week, 2+ day ago (700+ words) Published'Nov 07, 2025, 05:15 PM Updated'Nov 07, 2025, 08:37 PM SINGAPORE - Religious organisations in Singapore said they are troubled and saddened by recent'incidents of anti-Semitism here, and have called for mutual respect for all. This comes after Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs K. Shanmugam said on Nov 6 that there had been several incidents of anti-Semitism here. several incidents of anti-Semitism here For instance, some toilets in international schools with Jewish students were vandalised with anti-Israel vulgarities in September. In another case in October, a Jewish man wearing a skullcap on his way to the synagogue in Waterloo Street heard a passing motorist shout "Free Palestine" at him. Mr Shanmugam'cited these examples while speaking to the media on the sidelines of a closed-door engagement session with members of the Jewish community at the Chesed-El Synagogue. These incidents come in the wake of global…...

6+ day, 2+ hour ago (678+ words) During his trip, Pope Leo will promote Christian unity and urge peace efforts amid heightened tensions in the Middle East. Published'Nov 24, 2025, 03:00 PM Updated'Nov 24, 2025, 03:06 PM VATICAN CITY - Pope Leo XIV embarks on his debut overseas trip on Nov 25, travelling to Turkey and Lebanon to promote Christian unity and urge peace efforts amid heightened tensions in the Middle East. The six-day trip is the first major international test for the US Pope, who was elected head of the Catholic Church in May and whose understated style contrasts with that of his charismatic and impulsive predecessor, Pope Francis. his charismatic and impulsive predecessor, Pope Francis. In Turkey, Pope Leo will celebrate the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, where the Creed " a foundational declaration of the Christian faith " was written. While the Chicago-born pontiff's upcoming visit has so far garnered little attention in…...

2+ day, 2+ hour ago (644+ words) Pope Leo meeting bishops, priests, deacons, consecrated persons, seminarians and pastoral workers at Istanbul's Holy Spirit Cathedral on Nov 28. Published'Nov 28, 2025, 02:58 PM Updated'Nov 28, 2025, 06:24 PM ISTANBUL " Pope Leo will meet Christian leaders from across the Middle East in Turkey on Nov 28, and is expected to urge unity among denominations divided for centuries during his first overseas trip as leader of the global Catholic Church. The first US Pope will attend a celebration for the 1,700th anniversary of a landmark early church council, held in modern Turkey. It produced the Nicene Creed, still used by most of the world's 2.6 billion Christians today. The ceremony on Nov 28 is the central impetus for Pope Leo's four-day visit to mainly Muslim Turkey, where he is being closely watched as he makes his first speeches overseas and interacts for the first time with people outside largely Catholic Italy....

1+ day, 1+ hour ago (736+ words) Pope Leo XIV greeting the crowd during the mass in Istanbul on Nov 29. Published'Nov 30, 2025, 12:25 AM Updated'Nov 30, 2025, 12:31 AM ISTANBUL - Thousands of worshippers battled the rain to join Pope Leo XIV as he celebrated mass in Istanbul on Nov 29, the last full day of his visit to Turkey. Earlier, the leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics visited Istanbul's Blue Mosque, huddled with local church leaders and met Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I at his palace on the banks of the Golden Horn estuary. visited Istanbul's Blue Mosque, After two days of blue skies and sunshine, the heavens opened, but the downpour did little to dampen the enthusiasm of those in attendance, some of whom had travelled for hours to see Leo on his first overseas trip as pope. Ahead of the ceremony, the streets were filled with umbrellas as people walked through…...

2+ week, 12+ hour ago (277+ words) Mr Shi Yongxin had his certificate of ordination cancelled in July after fresh claims of bad behaviour unbecoming of a Buddhist monk. Published'Nov 16, 2025, 01:35 PM Updated'Nov 16, 2025, 01:38 PM BEIJING - The former head of the Chinese temple known as the birthplace of kung fu has been arrested over suspicion of embezzlement, local authorities said on Nov 16. Mr Shi Yongxin, the ex-abbot of the Shaolin Temple, was removed in July for "extremely" bad behaviour. Allegations of misappropriating project funds and temple assets saw him placed under investigation and disrobed. Authorities in central Henan province, where the Shaolin Temple is, approved Mr Shi's arrest on "suspicion of embezzlement, misappropriating funds and accepting bribes as a non-state employee", the Xinxiang Procuratorate said in a statement. Mr Shi, 60, took office as abbot in 1999 and in the following decades expanded Shaolin studies and cultural knowledge overseas. He became…...

6+ day, 7+ hour ago (656+ words) Published'Nov 24, 2025, 05:53 PM Updated'Nov 24, 2025, 06:05 PM ISTANBUL " Turkey's Christian community, which hosts Pope Leo XIV this week, was a minority under the Ottoman Empire whose numbers have dwindled due to forced exiles and massacres. hosts Pope Leo XIV this week Today, it counts around 100,000 members spread across five denominations " just a fraction of Turkey's population of 86 million, the vast majority of whom are Sunni Muslim. Most live in Istanbul or in western Turkey. National identity cards have not specified religion since 2016, so the only figures available are those provided by the communities themselves, according to Professor Samim Akgonul, a historian, religious minorities expert and head of Turkish studies at Strasbourg University in France. Here is a brief overview of Turkey's main Christian communities: Armenians who hold Turkish citizenship are the largest community with around 50,000 members, although there are "without doubt" a similar…...

1+ day, 6+ hour ago (558+ words) Pope Leo XIV's first international visit is to Muslim-majority Turkey, with his predecessors all focused on different parts of the globe during their papacies. Published'Nov 29, 2025, 10:52 AM PARIS - The foreign visits of the last three popes illustrate how the Catholic Church's diplomatic priorities have evolved in recent decades, moving increasingly away from Europe. As Pope Leo XIV makes his first foreign visit to Muslim-majority Turkey, using information from the University of Denver Country and Organization Leader Travel (Colt) database and the official Vatican website, AFP takes a look at the foreign travels of his three predecessors: his first foreign visit to Muslim-majority Turkey While Europe has always been a key destination, Argentinian Pope Francis turned papal attention to Asia, including the Middle East. He made nearly a third of his foreign visits to the region, almost as much as Europe (34 per…...