Christian world

Pope Francis takes his first steps in Colombia

Pope Francis has arrived in Colombia. The papal plane touched down in the military area of Bogotà’s airport just after 4pm local time, where a large delegation of Church and State authorities – including President Santos - welcomed him as he stepped onto the tarmac.

A crowd of eager Colombian faithful was also there waving flags, cheering and clapping to the rhythm of traditional music and dance while a little boy who was born in captivity – the son of former FARC hostage Clara Rojas – hugged him and handed him a handcrafted ceramic dove, symbol of peace.

Pope visits Colombia 'to support peace and promote reconciliation'

Pope Francis is set to travel to Colombia from 6 to 11 September. He will be the third Pope to visit the Latin American nation in the footsteps of Pope Paul VI in 1964 and Pope Saint John Paul II in 1986.

Francis begins his trip in the capital Bogota and also will visit the cities of Villavicencio, Medellin and Cartagena.

Коптски патријарх осветио прву цркву у Јапану

There may be three million Christians in Japan, one percent of the population. They now have a Coptic Orthodox Church among their options. Egypt’s Pope Tawadros arrived on August 26 to consecrate Japan’s first Coptic Orthodox congregation, the Church of St. Mary and St. Mark.

International Conference in Bose, Italy

Two Patriarchs will attend the Ecumenical International Conference on Orthodox Spirituality in Bose, Italy.

His All Holiness Bartholomeos, Ecumenical Patriarch, and His Beatitude Theodoros II, Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, are among the guests of the event which will take place on September 6-9, 2017.

Wooden cell dating to time of St. Columba discovered on Iona

Archaeologists have used carbon dating to prove that samples of hazel charcoal unearthed in a dig on the island of Iona 60 years ago originate from the lifetime of St. Columba, the enlightener of Scotland and perhaps the greatest Celtic saints who was born in 521 and reposed in 597. The structure, believed to be the saint’s cell where he prayed and studied, dates to between 540 and 650, reports The Telegraph.

Festival of the Syriac Song

His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II inaugurates the “Syriac Song Festival” at Mor Gabriel Hall in Qamishly.