Tag: Bahrain

Bahrain: New cathedral to be Catholic headquarters for northern Persian Gulf

July 19, 2018 Bahrain Bahrain, Catholics, Constitution, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Qatar

Bahrain's capital Manama is home to 19 churches according to government's statistics. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)

A new cathedral being built in Bahrain will serve as the ‘seat of government’ of the Catholic Church for the northern Persian Gulf, reports AsiaNews. The Cathedral of Our Lady of Arabia, patron saint of the Arabian Peninsula, to hold 2,000 people, is some 20 km outside the capital Manama, . . . Read More

Egypt’s elections and the man dividing the country’s Copts

March 14, 2018 Egypt Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Arab Spring, Aswan, Asyut, Bahrain, Cairo, Catholics, Churches, Converts, Copts, Egypt, El-Ghad Party, Elections, Faiyum, Hosni Mubarak, Islamic extremism, Islamic State, Minya, Mohamed Morsi, Muslim Brotherhood, Pope Tawadros II, Protestants, Samalut, Sinai, Sohag, Sunni, Tanta, Terrorism, Upper Egypt

Walking around Cairo you would be forgiven for thinking that President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi was the only candidate running in the elections later this month. His is the only grandiose face bearing down on passers-by, while billboards of his rival, Mousa Mostafa Mousa, are nowhere to be seen. Egypt’s 26-28 March presidential elections have . . . Read More

Freedom of thought ‘regressing on a global scale’

December 6, 2017 Global News -- No Particular Country Afghanistan, Apostasy, Asia Bibi, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brunei, China, Comoros, Education, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Human rights, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritania, Morocco, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Qatar, Religious freedom, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, The Gambia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen

There are many Pakistani Christian women like Aasiya Noreen who live in fear of the Blasphemy law in their country and the (potential of) abuse. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)

The 2017 Freedom of Thought Report, presented yesterday (5 December), should be alarming “to all who care about freedom of thought and expression”, as it shows “a pattern of regression on a global scale”, says its editor, Bob Churchill. The report, published by the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) . . . Read More

Bahraini king positions as promoter of interfaith tolerance

September 21, 2017 Bahrain Bahrain, Converts, Islamic extremism, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Religious freedom

The King of Bahrain has sought to promote his country as a global champion of religious tolerance, with a declaration that advocates freedom of religion for all and rejects extremism. In the Bahrain Declaration, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa “unequivocally reject[s] compelled observance”. The one-page pledge, which was co-sponsored . . . Read More

US watchdog adds Russia to its list of worst oppressors of religion

April 27, 2017 Global News -- No Particular Country Bahrain, Religious freedom, Russia, Taliban, USA

Religious freedom is in retreat worldwide, and for the first time Russia is among the world’s worst oppressors, according to America’s most prominent and influential scorecard on the issue. The annual report by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, released 26 April, puts its case plainly in its opening . . . Read More

How easy is it to live as a Christian in the Arabian Peninsula?

February 20, 2017 Global News -- No Particular Country Aden, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tom Uzhunnalil, United Arab Emirates, Yemen

Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque in Muscat, Oman.World Watch Monitor There are currently hundreds of thousands of Christians living and worshipping in the Arabian Peninsula. Millions of labourers from predominantly poor Asian and African countries – many of them Christians – work long-term in the region. Most of the migrants . . . Read More

Coptic priests in Gulf meet to discuss challenges

August 13, 2016 Alexandria, Arabian Peninsula, Bahrain, Cairo, Copts, Egypt, Islamic extremism, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates

Egyptian priests serving in the Arab Gulf region have held their first conference to discuss challenges faced in the heartland of Islam: “Challenges facing Gulf priests and their wives”. The head of the largest group of Christians in the Middle East, Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II led bishops and priests . . . Read More

Religious freedom in the Arabian Peninsula?

September 22, 2015 Arabian Peninsula, Bahrain, Doha, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen

Medina in Saudi Arabia is the heartland of the Islamic faith, attracting millions of pilgrims every year.Wajahat Mahmood / Flickr / CC A recent article in Christianity Today reports that Christianity is booming in the “heart of Islam”, with the “millions” of Christians there not really facing persecution – . . . Read More

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