In Kenya, Evangelical churches backed Donald Trump in the elections, but other Christians went for Joe Biden, including Barack Obama’s grandmother, whose village held a mock election in which a “Biden” beat “Trump.”
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Cardinals, archbishops and other clerical leaders of the Catholic Church from around the world have penned a flurry of letters and official statements in the wake of the ground-breaking McCarrick report that concludes while many in the Vatican hierarchy had known for years about sexual abuse allegations against ex-cardinal Theodore McCarrick and not removed him, Pope Francis was not complicit.
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(OPINION) Middle Eastern Islamic scholars are behind mass atrocities committed by Muslims against other Muslims in Northern Nigeria, according to a Nigerian former university imam analyzing the conflict in a forthcoming report.
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(OPINION) Tanzania’s president has ignored science in battling COVID-19, opting for prayer instead. He is strongly criticized by his challenger in Oct. 28 presidential elections.
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A delay in the burial of a prominent Ugandan politician has divided the country’s Muslim community, with many arguing that burial must take place within 24 hours despite relatives needing to travel from abroad during a pandemic.
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(OPINION) The United Nation’s International Day of the Girl Child uplifts young girls in countries where they are historically oppressed, many of them as religious minorities, to rise above gender-based violence, harmful practices and HIV and AIDS. This turns them away from harmful practices like child marriage.
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Despite a conflict with church law, a growing number of priests in Uganda are running for political office ahead of general elections in February. Many Christians in Uganda are dissatisfied with the current government’s protections for religious freedom.
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(OPINION) An uplifting story from The Washington Post about a young Nigerian boy brought hope during times of uncertainty in many religious communities. Other news sources tried to continue telling the story, but the religious angle seemed underdeveloped.
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Uganda allowed houses of worship to reopen this week with COVID-19 guidelines like wearing masks and social distancing. Many churches and mosques had overflow lines outside and multiple services, because the government limited services to 70 people. Clergy say the rules should be adjusted for larger buildings.
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(REVIEW) While 83-year-old Pope Francis is in good health, that hasn’t stopped speculation over who will come next. In his new book, author George Weigel examines the problems affecting the church and what the next pope will need to do in order to address them. Think of it like a very long to-do memo for the next head of the Catholic church.
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In 1977, an archbishop was shot dead for protesting human rights abuses. Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni, in power for 34 years, denounces clergy activism. But this year, several pastors have joined in political activism for an opposition party, with one even running for president. They say Uganda needs leaders who understand religious freedom and Christian values.
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Massive corruption has allowed the embezzlement and theft of funding meant to combat COVID-19 in Kenya and South Africa, prompting the countries’ Christian leaders to speak out.
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(OPINION) Nigerians in diaspora in the UK and America are calling for direct military involvement in peacekeeping in Northern Nigeria, as Christians increasingly bear the brunt of massacres in the region.
Read MoreIn Kenya, vital Islamic pre-burial rituals are prohibited during the coronavirus pandemic. Muslim scholars say such restrictions are justified, but that doesn’t make the pandemic easier.
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Zimbabwean human rights, democracy and Christian groups are rallying behind Catholic bishops in the southern African country after leaders were attacked over the weekend by the government. Government authorities labelled the bishops “evil” after they voiced their concerns over the country’s worsening economic and human rights crisis in a pastoral letter that has given new life to the #ZimbabweanLivesMatter online protest.
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(OPINION) Forgiveness has been crucial throughout history to heal tensions between races after injustice and evil. It’s just as important today.
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Although St. Peter’s Church in Kampala had received their land through a donation, a title was never given, and the donor’s children sold the land. Thirteen people have been arrested so far in connection with the church’s demolition, which took place late at night during the government’s curfew hours for COVID-19.
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Christian leaders in Zimbabwe are cautiously optimistic that a recent government move to pay $3.5 billion compensation to white farmers violently forced off their land in 1999 to resettle black families can revive the southern African country’s struggling economy by boosting its agricultural sector.
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Jim Ryun, an American Olympic runner and former Congressman from Kansas, received the Presidential Medal of Honor the same day his Kenyan rival, who illegally thwarted a race Ryun was favored to win, died. Ryun spoke to Religion Unplugged about how he forgave his rivals and the faith that inspired him to keep running, even when he showed little athletic ability as a kid.
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The charity of American missionary Renee Bach, accused of causing more than 100 child deaths in Uganda, is now dissolved. Bach is accused of performing medical procedures without being a doctor. She settled out of court with two mothers who each lost a son.
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