Published on Nov 3, 2012 by AlJazeeraEnglish
Many countries are condemned in the West for organised religion and its effect on peoples lives. Societies throw their arms up in horror if countries like Iran or Afghanistan deny women basic rights. They tend, however, not to mention Ireland. In Ireland, a woman cannot have an abortion if she has been raped. She cannot have an abortion if the man who made her pregnant is beating her. She cannot have an abortion if the baby will die outside her body. She cannot even have an abortion if the fact of being pregnant is in some way threatening to her life. The absolute ban on abortion in Ireland creates some very stark choices for women. The choice has traditionally been for women to travel, often alone, to England for a termination. There is just one small organisation which exists to help women who want an abortion but cannot afford it, but it is in England. Requests for financial help have tripled in three years, mirroring Ireland’s financial crisis, as women discover they are pregnant with a baby they cannot support and with no recourse to help where they live. Al Jazeera’s Laurence Lee reports from Dublin.
US Religious Diversity Prompts Increase in Interfaith Marriage
Oct 5, 2011
Religion researchers estimate that one third to one half of all marriages in the United States are between people of different faiths. Interfaith marriage can present a particular challenge for Jews, who are already inter-marrying at a higher rate than other faiths. As Jews prepare to observe Yom Kippur, their holiest day of the year, on October 8, our reporter went to an interfaith congregation in a suburb of Washington.
Vending Machine Dispenses ‘Morning-After’ Pill
Students at Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania can get the “morning-after” pill by putting $25 into a vending machine. The pill’s availability in a vending machine appears to be rare, if not unprecedented. (Feb. 7, 2012)
Bosnian War – Genocide: History, Key Dates
This war included the longest siege in modern times. http://www.WatchMojo.com looks back at the events that led to the Bosnian War, as well as some of the key dates and events that occurred during this conflict.
Festival highlights the cost of Catholicism
Young and happy, pilgrims from the four corners of the Earth are gathered in Spain for the Roman Catholic church’s third World Youth Day, presided over by Pope Benedict XVI.
However many in Spain are irritated at the invasion of the happy clappers at a time of austerity and a decline in church attendance.
On arrival the young faithful are greeted by the organisers with a veritable goody bag of kit to help them enjoy the festival, a rucksack brimming with discount vouchers for lodgings, transport and food at a total cost of over four million euros.
Priests to forgive abortion at Pope youth festival
There is set to be a big exercise in forgiveness by the Roman Catholic church at its World Youth Day festival in Madrid where 200 white portable confessional cabins have been set up.
The Vatican has said that anyone attending the event who confesses to having had an abortion will be welcomed back into the Church. Abortion is normally a sin punished by excommunication.
Interesting facts about American priests and World Youth Day
Rome Reports:
More than half of the priests who were ordained in the U.S. in 2011 were between the ages of 25 and 34. This according to a report released by the American Conference of Catholic Bishops. About 480 priests were ordained this year and roughly 20 percent of them attended World Youth Day at one time in their lives.
MEGAPOST: Palm Sunday
April 17, 2011
Palm Sunday celebrations
Christians around the country joined others worldwide in celebrating Palm Sunday, which commemorates Jesus Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem and also marks the beginning of the holy week in the Christian Calendar. Church leaders had a unified message of peace and love and asked the political leadership tone down their rhetoric and concentrate on development issues.
Raw Video: Christians Mark Palm Sunday
Christians around the world are celebrating Palm Sunday. In the Christian faith, Palm Sunday marks Jesus Christ’s arrival in Jerusalem. It’s also the start of Holy Week, which commemorates Christ’s crucifixion, burial and resurrection.
March 28, 2010
Raw Video: Palm Sunday Celebrated Worldwide
Palm Sunday marks the start of the Holy Week in the Christian calendar. In the Philippines, Catholic worshippers brought decorated palm fronds to their church services to be blessed by the priests.
Hundreds of catholic faithful across the country this morning turned out for the Palm Sunday celebrations. The faithful participated in the procession along various towns and city streets before attending mass in their various churches. In Nyeri they marched through the towns main streets before heading to Consolata Cathedral Church Where Father James Maina, led mass. The same was witnessed in Mombasa where the faithful participated in the symbolic march in the coastal citys streets before attending a mass. The lead priest asked Christians to remain vigilant in the practice of their faith.
Palm Sunday mass at the Vatican
Catholics arriving for a Palm Sunday mass at the Vatican say they support Pope Benedict XVI amid mounting allegations of sexual abuse by priests in Europe….
Palm Sunday procession in Jerusalem
Hundreds of Christians attended the annual Palm Sunday procession in Jerusalem….
Abuse Scandal Weighs on Vatican Palm Sunday
Pope Benedict XVI opened Holy Week on Sunday amid one of the most serious crises facing the church in decades, with questions about his handling of cases of pedophile priests and the Vatican acknowledging its “moral credibility” was on the line.
April 5, 2009
Raw Video: Pilgrims Celebrate Palm Sunday
Pilgrims celebrated Palm Sunday in Jerusalem and Gaza City on Sunday morning. Palm Sunday commemorates Jesus Christ’s entry into Jerusalem, when he was greeted by the faithful who waved palms and olive branches in a sign of joy and peace.
March 16, 2008
Palm Sunday celebrations in Jerusalem
Marking the annual Palm Sunday celebrations and the start of a week-long visit to the Holy Land, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori made Anglican history on March 16 becoming the first woman bishop ever to preach at St. Georges Cathedral in Jerusalem. During the afternoon, singing, dancing and joyful celebration filled the streets as the Presiding Bishop joined pilgrims and local Christians from every denomination — including the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem — in the Palm Sunday procession from the Mount of Olives.
Anti-abortion ad – Imagine Spot 1 – Rejected by NBC and CNN
The first release of a national media campaign launched by CatholicVote.com titled “Life: Imagine the Potential”
This ad has been rejected by NBC for airing during the Super Bowl, and CNN during coverage of President Obama’s first State of the Union Address.
