Monthly Archives: December 2008

Vatican recalls fallen Christian martyrs

The Vatican recalled the violent deaths of Catholic priests, religious, and lay volunteers. Asia saw the greatest toll, including Archbishop Rahho of Iraq. As 2008 comes to an end, the Vatican has released a list of the names of pastoral workers, priests and prelates, religious men and women killed during the past 12…

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Vatican agency says at least 20 church workers killed in 2008

By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) — At least 20 church workers were killed in 2008, demonstrating that Catholic men and women — bishops, priests, religious and laity — continue placing their lives at risk in order to proclaim the Gospel and serve the poor, said the Vatican’s Fides news agency.…

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Religion News Summaries

Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world. In today’s edition: Uganda Rebels Accused of Massacre at Church The Associated Press reports that at least 50 civilians are dead after alleged Ugandan rebels attacks churchgoers in a remote area of eastern Congo. Other reports…

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Aramaeans Call Upon the Justness of the President-elect Barack Obama

Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis published December 29, 2008 Aramaeans have been for millennia the moving force of vast empires, like the Achaemenidian Persian, the Arsacid Parthian, and the Sassanid Iranian empires, as well as the Islamic Caliphates, particularly the Abbassid empire of Baghdad. Great Central Asiatic empires like the Kushan and the Uighur empires owe…

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Syria sees no sectarian strife among Iraqis

By Matthew Hay Brown | matthew.brown@baltsun.com | Baltimore Sun reporter SAIDA ZAINAB, Syria – As a Sunni Muslim married to a Shia, Hamid Al Dulayme was threatened by both sides in Baghdad. When militia members broke into his house in 2005, he fled Iraq.…

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Killing of Civilian in Beghdeda

Ankawa.com A civilian was killed in Beghdeda on friday by a shot of one of the checkpoint guards near Behnam and Sara church. Sami Khamo Al-Derekli , officer in the Iraqi army stated to ankawa.com that the dead is called Ziad Hanno killed by a gun shot of one of the checkpoint guards near the…

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Persisting Myths About Iraq

Top Ten Myths about Iraq, 2008 by Juan Cole 1. Iraqis are safer because of Bush’s War. In fact, conditions of insecurity have helped created both an internal and external refugee problem:…

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Slayings cast light on sect’s rich heritage

By Samantha Henry Associated Press NEWARK, N.J. — Their strict intermarriage customs are meant to preserve ancient bloodlines that date back to the fourth century in India and the Middle East, so many families in the Knanayan Syriac Orthodox church know each other, regardless of where they live.…

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Christians face persecution

Iraq (MNN) — Just in the last six weeks, 3,000 Christian families have fled the city of Mosul, Iraq, according to Voice of the Martyrs. VOM sent a team to Iraq to look over its projects distributing Bibles, Christian literature, and Action Packs; and “to talk to believers and get a sense of what is…

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The Sounds of Christmas Mass in Baghdad

By Johan Spanner Listen to the audio below to hear hymns sung during Christmas morning mass in Baghdad. (Photo: Johan Spanner for The New York Times) Listen to hymn (mp3)  http://podcasts.nytimes.com/podcasts/2008/12/25/hymn1.mp3  BAGHDAD — The Cardinal Emmanuel-Karim Delly, patriarch of the Chaldean…

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