Pope Francis has continued his predecessors’ serious commitment to ecumenical dialogue, but he also makes ecumenical gestures that underline that seriousness. Meeting Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria, Egypt, Pope Francis paid tribute to the 21 Coptic martyrs murdered by Islamic State in 2015, noting they were killed for being Christian, not for being Orthodox. And he announced that they would be added to the Roman Martyrology, the book-length calendar of saints and blessed remembered by Catholics at Mass.
… Read more » … lire la suite »

Discrimination, persecution and violence against Christians and churches around the world is set for further exposure after a group representing high profile Christian churches and organizations agreed to pursue together an international response on the issue.

A meeting convened by the Global Christian Forum in Strasbourg, France, including representatives from the Vatican, the World Council of Churches, the World Evangelical Alliance and the Pentecostal World Fellowship, agreed on 9 September to press ahead with a global gathering on the issue of ‘Christian discrimination, persecution and martyrdom’ for late 2015.
… Read more » … lire la suite »