Join Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Archbishop Elpidophoros, Orthodox Church in America Chancellor Very Reverend Dr. Alexander Rentel, Antiochian Orthodox Church Archdiocese Chancellor Very Reverend Thomas Zain, and Bill Marianes for a very special HAGIA SOPHIA Stewardship Calling Ancient Faith Radio program. The discussion centers on the decision in Turkey to turn the historic cathedral into a mosque. For many more resources on this subject including specific things YOU can do visit the Stewardship Calling website.

Join Bill Marianes and Professor Brad Jacobs, Associate Dean and Constitutional Law Professor at Regent University School of Law, for a discussion about religious freedom and the critical legal issues that matter most to our Christian churches, institutions, and faithful.

Kevin's guests are Scripps-Howard columnist and Orthodox Christian Terry Mattingly and Fr. Hans Jacobse of the American Orthodox Institute. They discuss the complex issues surrounding religious freedom as well as the prospects of losing it.

An attorney dedicated to upholding religious freedom stated that he is “greatly disturbed” to see what Michigan has become, warning of a “growing hostility” in the state toward the exercise of religion in the public square. 

South Korean authorities cancel an international event expected to gather 30,000 participants from 78 countries, sparking a global controversy and financial losses.

South Korean local government cancels international event with 30,000 participants from 78 countries, causing international damage

South Korean local government cancels international event with 30,000 participants from 78 countries, causing international damage

South Korean local government cancels international event with 30,000 participants from 78 countries, causing international damage

Paula Reid, CBS News Justice Department Reporter, discusses why a national uproar over religious freedom and gay rights is now focused on Arkansas and Indiana.

U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom - Annual Report - 2012

For the second time, a federal judge has issued a restraining order against Kentucky officials who moved to block church services during the coronavirus shutdown.

U.S. District Judge Gregory Van Tatenhove ruled Friday night in favor of Tabernacle Baptist Church of Nicholasville and against Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear's order ...

Human rights advocates fear the Tasmanian Government's failure to make a submission against the Federal Government's religious freedom draft bill would severely undermine the state's anti-discrimination laws.

CNA Staff, May 1, 2020 / 12:09 pm (CNA).- The Turkish foreign ministry on Wednesday rejected Turkey's inclusion in a report by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, charging that the report comes from a “biased mindset”.

“The report contains baseless, unaccredited and vague allegations as in the past years while trying to portray isolated incidents as violations of religious freedoms through far-fetched accusations,” Hami Aksoy, a spokesperson for the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said April 29.

“The importance attached by Turkey to protect religious freedoms, including those of religious minorities, is expressed at the highest level by our Government officials. Our authorities make it clear that any harm to the religious freedoms of our citizens will not be tolerated,” Aksoy added.

In its 2020 report, USCIRF recommended that the State Department add Turkey, as well as 10 other countries, to a “Special Watch List” of countries where abuses of religious minorities are taking place, but not at a level as severe as in those designated as “countries of particular concern.”

The commission wrote that “religious freedom conditions in Turkey remained worrisome” in 2019, “with the perpetuation of restrictive and intrusive governmental policies on religious practice and a marked increase in incidents of vandalism and societal violence against religious minorities.”

It cited the Turkish government's prevention of the election of board members for non-Muslim religious groups and its limitations on the election of the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople.

The report added that Alevis, a group related to Shia Islam and the country's largest religious minority, “remained unable to gain official recognition for their gathering houses (cemevleri) as places of worship or to exempt their children from compulsory religious classes, despite European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) rulings finding that these policies violated Alevis’ rights.”

According to the US commission, Turkish religious minorities “expressed concerns that governmental rhetoric and policies contributed to an increasingly hostile environment and implicitly encouraged acts of societal aggression and violence.”

The report also drew attention to the permission given for a museum, that was originally a Greek Orthodox church and later a mosque, to be reconverted into a mosque. It noted also that president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has called for the same thing to happen to the Hagia Sophia, which has the same history.

USCIRF also said the Turkish government has “continued to dismiss, detain, and arrest individuals affiliated with, or accused of affiliation with, the U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gülen, for alleged complicity in a July 2016 coup attempt or involvement in terrorist activity.”

Gülen has lived in the US since 1999, and is considered a terrorist by the Turkish government.

The Turkish foreign ministry charged that Gülen's mention in the report “amounts to deliberately turning a blind eye” to the coup attempt, and added: “We invite the US authorities to earnestly examine the evidence we have provided” about the Gülen movement “and to engage in effective cooperation in line with the spirit of alliance in order to reveal the true nature of this terrorist organization.”

Aksoy added that the recommendation of adding Turkey to a “special watch list” for religious freedom “is a clear indication of the biased mindset behind it and the circles under whose influence it was drawn up.”

“In the report that is supposed to include global trends that threaten religious freedoms, the Commission does not mention a single word about xenophobia, Islamophobia and discrimination on religious grounds that is on the rise in the West and the US,” Aksoy stated.

“This clearly reveals that the purpose of the report is not to protect religious rights and freedoms. It is clear that the Commission, which has been accused of being anti-Muslim in the past, has drawn up this report based on its unwarranted agenda and priorities under the influence of circles that are hostile to Turkey, rather than objective criteria. We recommend the authors of this report to look in the mirror and engage in self-criticism.”

Earlier this year, Turkish authorities arrested a Syriac Orthodox priest on terrorism charges after he provided bread and water to members of a Kurdish separatist group that has been deemed illegal.

A powerful American faith rights watchdog has called for India, which claims to be a multi-religious democracy, to be globally blacklisted over concerning major breaches of religious freedoms,...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

A powerful American faith rights watchdog has called for India, which claims to be a multi-religious democracy, to be globally blacklisted over concerning major breaches of religious freedoms,...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

A powerful American faith rights watchdog has called for India, which claims to be a multi-religious democracy, to be globally blacklisted over concerning major breaches of religious freedoms,...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

And really, how self driving cars are an attack on freedom.

Scott Morrison has been slammed for holding a press conference on religious freedom while bushfires caused Sydney's worst-ever smoke day.

The Trump administration is considering tying foreign aid payments to how countries treat their religious minorities.

Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush used a national op-ed column on Tuesday for two tasks - praising Pope Francis and throwing a jab at President Obama.

USCIRF chair Tony Perkins gives CT a behind-the-scenes look at today’s annual report on “systematic, ongoing, and egregious” violations.

A new report aims to “unflinchingly criticize the records of US allies and adversaries alike” on religious freedom.

And there’s a lot to report, with more headlines each month confirming the Pew Research Center’s 10-year analysis that government restrictions and social hostilities involving religion have reached record levels worldwide.

Today’s 21st annual report by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) identifies significant problems in 29 countries—but sees “an upward trajectory overall.”

“Our awareness is going to grow greater, and the problem will appear more pronounced,” USCIRF chair Tony Perkins told CT. “But as we continue to work on it, I think we will see tremendous progress in the next few years if we stay the present course.”

Created as an independent, bipartisan federal commission by the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act, USCIRF casts a wider net than the US State Department, which annually designates Countries of Particular Concern (CPC) for such nations’ violations of religious freedom, or places them on a Special Watch List (SWL) if less severe.

Last December, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced CPC status for Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.

USCIRF now recommends adding India, Nigeria, Russia, Syria, and Vietnam.

And where the State Department put only Cuba, Nicaragua, Sudan, and Uzbekistan on the watch list, USCIRF recommends also including Afghanistan, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Central African Republic, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, and Turkey.

USCIRF’s mandate is to provide oversight and advice to the State Department. ...

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Dewey Library - K3258.B54 2020