Reports of first church in Saudi Arabia are false

11. March 2014 - 9:39

The Coptic Orthodox Church has issued a statement refuting reports that the Coptic Pope has met Saudi Arabian officials over the creation of the first church in the country.
There are an estimated 1.5 million Christians in the strictly Muslim country but they are not allowed to worship publicly.

The MidEast Christian News agency reported that a meeting had taken place between Pope Tawadros II and Saudi Ambassador Ahmed Kattan about the possibility of setting up a church.

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WCC general secretary expresses concern over Ukraine

4. March 2014 - 13:40

“The World Council of Churches (WCC) is deeply concerned by the current dangerous developments in Ukraine,” the Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC said on Monday, 3 March.

“The situation puts many innocent lives in grave jeopardy. And like a bitter wind from the Cold War, it risks further undermining the international community’s capacity to act now or in the future on the many urgent issues that will require a collective and principled response,” he said.

“Out of concern for the lives and security of all people who are or might in the future be affected by the continuing failure to resolve this situation peacefully, I call urgently on all parties to refrain from violence, to commit to dialogue and diplomacy, and to avoid escalation by rash words or actions. The consequences of failing to do so will inevitably be much greater human suffering in Ukraine, and a deep rift in the social and political fabric of the region and in the wider international community,” Tveit said.

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Episcopal Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of Oceania

3. March 2014 - 11:46

ANNOUNCEMENT
Inter-Orthodox Vespers on Sunday of Orthodoxy

This year, on the evening of the Sunday of Orthodoxy, the Orthodox Churches in Australia, are organizing an Inter-Orthodox Vespers Service, during which all Orthodox Christians in Sydney and District are given the opportunity to pray together and jointly declare their Orthodox Faith with a Procession of ICONS around the Church.

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The John Templeton Foundation meets St. Tikhon Orthodox University

28. February 2014 - 10:36

On January 29th, St. Tikhon Orthodox University opened its doors to a delegation  of the John Templeton Foundation, in order to discuss future cooperation between  the two institutions.

The John Templeton  Foundation was established in Philadelphia in 1987, by John Templeton, to serve  as a philanthropic catalyst for discoveries relating to the Big Questions of  human purpose and ultimate reality. The Foundation encourages “civil, informed  dialogue among scientists, philosophers, and theologians and between such  experts and the public at large, for the purposes of definitional clarity and  new insights”. From 1972, the Templeton Prize honors a living person “who has  made an exceptional contribution to affirming life`s spiritual dimension, whether through insight, discovery,  or practical works”.

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Leaders of Christian Churches from thirteen countries call to peace in Ukraine

27. February 2014 - 12:21

We, representatives of the Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant Christian communities of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, and Estonia, have gathered together to express our common opinion on the issues of vital concern for people in our countries.

These days, our prayers and sincere concern are for the people of Ukraine undergoing hard ordeals. All our communities are praying for those who were killed or injured during the political and social confrontation, as well as for the establishment of lasting peace and mutual understanding among all citizens of the fraternal Ukraine, regardless of their nationality or religion.

We call upon all those on whom the future of Ukraine depends to adhere to the principles of freedom of conscience and religion, as well as to the principle of non-interference of state and political forces in the internal life of religious organizations. Well do we remember to what tragic consequences it had led in the history of our countries. Revolutionary methods or any calls to violence, discrimination and seizure of churches cannot promote the unity of Christians or contribute to the establishment of truly partner relationships between religious organizations and the state for the sake of prosperity of the whole society.

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