SourceJHABUA, INDIA, April 5, 2005: (HPI note: This article appeared originally in the Christian Science Monitor.) Biju Verghese believes the end of the world is coming. This faith makes his work urgent: Convert as many Indians to Christianity as possible. Or, as he puts it, “reach the unreached at any cost.” Mr. Verghese is a new breed of missionary, tied…
SourceNEW YORK, NEW YORK, March 15, 2005: When the recent movie “Downfall” portrayed Hitler as a vegetarian, the vegetarian community at large was offended. However, the New York Times recently printed (on March 15th) the following note in its “corrections” box: “A film review about ‘Downfall,’ which looks at Hitler’s final days, referred incorrectly to his diet. Although the movie…
SourceTRINCOMALEE, SRI LANKA, March 25, 2005: Several thousand devotees participated in the water-cutting festival of the historic Trincomalee Pathirakali Amman Temple held in the Back Bay Sea in the east port town Friday early morning. (The “water cutting” festival is a ritual in which water is offered to a river, lake or ocean, then a circle is drawn in the…
SourceKATHMANDU, NEPAL, March 24, 2005: The World Hindu Federation (WHF) is going to celebrate its Silver Jubilee Year for one year by organizing religious, spiritual and social programmes in various parts of the world. This information was given out at the federation’s extensive gathering organized here today with the objective of providing information on the Silver Jubilee celebration of the…
SourceWAHIAWA, OAHU, HAWAII, MARCH 25, 2005: The Gods sometimes make themselves known in unexpected places. In this instance, the situation has left adherents of two different religious traditions struggling for a way they all can worship in peace. Enshrined stones on California Avenue are venerated by some Hawaiians as healing stones, and by some Hindus as earthly representations of Siva.…
SourceSUVA, FIJI, March 27, 2005: Christians can only accept other religions in Fiji if their right of worship is not enshrined in the Constitution, the Methodist Church in Fiji says. The most powerful of all Christian denominations in the country, the church was reacting to statements by Vice President and acting President Ratu Joni Madraiwiwi on Good Friday at a…
SourceSALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, March 31, 2005: (HPI Note: This report is from deseretnews.com, which is associated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, commonly known as LDS Church or the Mormons.) “Anti-conversion” legislation in Sri Lanka could target missionaries and faith-based humanitarian aid workers, according to The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. Among the faith-based groups affected…
SourceNEW DELHI,INDIA, March 26, 2005 : Millions of people in large parts of India Saturday celebrated the Holi festival with music, dance and delicacies to herald the arrival of spring. In the capital, men, women and children took a break from their everyday chores to boisterously join the celebrations by smearing colored powder on each other amid shouts of “Holi…
Paras RamoutarTRINIDAD/TOBAGO, March 24, 2005: Swami Prakashananda has called on the people of Trinidad and Tobago to make decisions based on righteousness. He made this call upon his arrival from India and England. In India, he was initiated as a swami at the Chinmaya Mission in Mumbai. He is Trinidad’s third indigenous swami. “We must make decisions based on dharma…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, March 27, 2005: Till now it was believed that the number of ancient texts and treaties lying neglected and unseen across the country was one to two million. But officials at the National Mission for Manuscripts were taken aback when they launched a survey. They found a staggering five million manuscripts after their pilot survey in three…