WASHINGTON (ABP) -- President Obama has responded to more than a year of speculation and criticism among advocates for international religious freedom by naming an American Baptist pastor and motivational speaker as the nation’s top diplomat for religious freedom.
Religious liberty in China is expanding, and the Chinese Christian community is growing, but American observers continue to hope for more progress.
WASHINGTON (ABP) -- A bipartisan federal panel charged with monitoring religious-freedom questions worldwide blasted current and past administrations -- Republican and Democratic alike -- April 29 for under-emphasizing religious liberty in foreign policy.
WASHINGTON (RNS) -- Researchers say they’ve found the most religious place on Earth -- between the southern border of the Sahara Desert and the tip of South Africa.
HONG KONG (RNS/ENI) -- The Chinese government’s new head of religious affairs has downplayed the role of house churches during his first official visit to Hong Kong, saying they must be registered with the government for their own protection.
WASHINGTON (ABP) -- A new survey finds broad support across party lines and religious groups for comprehensive immigration reform that reflects the rule of law and respects the dignity and wholeness of immigrants and families.
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (ABP) -- A Nigerian Baptist leader says politics is the driving force behind recent religious massacres and riots in central Nigeria.
Baptists generally prefer to handle violations of religious freedom through quiet diplomacy instead of media headlines denouncing “persecution” of Christians, said a freedom-and-justice specialist for the Baptist World Alliance.
WASHINGTON (ABP) -- Nearly 70 percent of the world's 6.8 billion people live in countries with high restrictions on religion, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life.
The last time a president attempted comprehensive reform of America’s health-insurance system, it went over like the proverbial lead balloon. And conservative religious groups were prominent in the coalition that helped