Lately it seems many of us are caught up in the American election campaign. Even Canadian media channels are flooded with daily accounts and news stories about what each candidate did or said. It’s become a kind of reality show on our televisions and radios, in our magazines and on social media. There is no… Read More
At the recent United Nations Summit for Refugees and Migrants in New York, many participants applauded Canada’s response to the Syrian refugee crisis, especially when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau co-hosted a leaders’ summit. Canada seems to have become, at least among UN leaders, something of a celebrated example of refugee sponsorship. LATEST NUMBERS As of… Read More
By Anita Levesque When I first started working on the issue of International Religious Freedom I had no idea how it would impact my life personally. Before this, I – perhaps like many Christians – heard occasionally about the struggles of believers in areas of the world where religious freedom was curtailed. It’s true that… Read More
By Anita Levesque November 4 was IDOP Sunday (International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church). This global annual effort draws people together to remember and pray for people who are persecuted for their religious beliefs – those who live daily in torment, those who have lost their lives and the families left behind. In… Read More
By Anita Levesque The persecution of Christians is on the increase around the globe. What doesn’t appear to be matching that increase is the concern among media, or at times even Christians, in ”developed” countries. The attack, arrest, imprisonment, torture and murder of Christians in nations that demonstrate intolerance for all faiths, or only select… Read More
The International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church Canada (IDOP.ca) calls Canadians to join with over half a million churches in 150 countries on Sunday, November 13, 2011 to pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ in other countries who are suffering, even dying, for their faith. The persecution of believers has persisted… Read More
“I am determined … to serve the suffering humanity, defend principles of religious freedom, human equality, social justice and rights of minorities.”– Minister Shahbaz Bhatti We woke this morning to the sad and shocking news that Pakistan’s Minister for Religious Minorities, Shahbaz Bhatti, the first Christian invited into the Pakistani Cabinet, was assassinated by gunmen… Read More
Egypt has been the subject of intense global focus over the past week, as protestors demanded the immediate resignation of President Hosni Mubarak after 30 years of his leadership. Years of frustration resulting from increased poverty, unemployment and a lack of social justice boiled over as close to a million people have taken to the… Read More
Every day I scour the news headlines of the world for items about persecution of Christians. Usually, they are stories of Christians who have been attacked or killed because of their faith, Christians who persevere in the most difficult of situations, or of governments who are standing up for the religious liberty of Christians in… Read More
In light of this weekend’s impending referendum the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada’s Religious Liberty Commission today released a report titled Religious Freedom in Sudan: Referendum on the North/South Divide. The report shines a spotlight on the widespread discrimination against Christians in Northern Sudan how this discrimination has contributed to the pitched ideological divisions between North… Read More