When the Supreme Court issued its landmark June 2020 ruling banning employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, author Justice Neil Gorsuch warned that the court was not reviewing arguments that hiring an LGBTQ worker would violate an employer’s religious beliefs. These arguments may be coming soon. AndRead More →
Cathedral of Cotonou, Benin. Editorial credit: Cora Unk Photo / Shutterstock.com. The Republic of Benin is a West African country bordered by Niger, Burkina Faso, Togo and Nigeria. The population of Benin is approximately 10.8 million, their official dialect being French. Culturally diverse, the people of Benin follow a diverseRead More →
The Great Mosque of Conakry in Guinea, one of the largest mosques in West Africa. Guinea has a population of just over 10 million with 24 ethnic groups. There is freedom of religion in Guinea although Islam is the dominant religion demographically, socially and culturally. Over 85% of Guinea’s populationRead More →
Christians in a local church in South Sudan. Religion is an important social and economic aspect in South Sudan. Socially, religion is seen as a unifying factor in a country ravaged by decades of civil war. Religion has been used to bridge ethnic differences in the country, which is oneRead More →
Catholic Church in Rwanda. The country of Rwanda is a small landlocked country located in East Africa. The country is known for its rainforests, national parks and endangered animal species. Unfortunately, it is also known for its violent and turbulent recent past with the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. This article mentionsRead More →
Saint Barbara Church in Tsumeb, Namibia. Religion in Namibia Namibia is a secular state, which means that the government is religiously neutral and does not support or oppose any religion. The government practices separation of religion and state and treats all residents equally, regardless of their religious beliefs. The constitutionRead More →
The Great Mosque of Niamey, Niger. The country of Niger is located in West Africa and is a landlocked country where more than 80% of the land is covered by the vast Sahara Desert. The country takes its name from the mighty Niger River which flows through the capital NiameyRead More →
The “floating mosque” of Kota Kinabalu on its man-made lagoon in the Malaysian state of Sabah in Borneo. Malaysia is a Muslim-majority country with large religious minority populations of Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, and practitioners of traditional Chinese religion. According to the 2010 population census, 61.3% of Malays are Muslims, 19.8%Read More →
A mosque in Abéché, Chad Chad has a number of widely and freely practiced religions in the country. The constitution grants religious freedom which has allowed various religious groups. Islam and Christianity are the major denominations with millions of adherents. However, several senior government officials tie themselves to the IslamicRead More →
A cross is pictured here in Antigua, Guatemala. Guatemala is a Central American country located south of Mexico and is officially known as the Republic of Guatemala. Its capital, Guatemala City, which is also the largest city, is home to the National Palace of Culture and the National Museum ofRead More →
Founded in 1919 in Kampala, St. Paul’s Namirembe Cathedral is the oldest Anglican cathedral in Uganda. Uganda is a landlocked country located in East Africa with a diverse population of approximately 37.8 million. Residents of this country practice a wide range of religions, a constitutionally protected freedom. The government recognizesRead More →
St. Joseph’s Cathedral, a Roman Catholic church in Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania. Tanzania is an East African country with an estimated population of 51.8 million. The country has two major religious groups, namely Christians and Muslims. Christianity is the predominant religion, with more than half of Tanzania’s population identifying asRead More →
The Great Mosque of Djenne in Mali. Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. France colonized it in 1905. Its capital and largest city is Bamako. It is the 8th largest country in Africa covering an area of 480,000 square miles with a generalRead More →
Basilica of Our Lady of Peace in Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast. Christians slightly outnumber Muslims in contemporary multi-ethnic and multi-religious Ivorian society. Côte d’Ivoire is a secular state and the country’s constitution provides for freedom of religion. Religious identity in Côte d’Ivoire transcends political and ethnic contexts. While tensions and clashesRead More →
All over the world, Christians are persecuted because of their faith. The European Parliament has brought much-needed recognition to victims of persecution and must follow up with concrete tools to protect religious groups around the world, writes Adina Portaru. Adina Portaru is legal counsel in Brussels for ADF International, aRead More →
Spiritualism is rooted in the heritage of India. Indian saints and Greek sages had intellectual and spiritual exchanges thousands of years ago. India’s openness to new ideas is evident in the Rig Veda: “Aano bhadraha kratvo yantu vishvataha (Let noble thoughts come to us from all sides)”. This philosophy hasRead More →