Faith News Network

Pope Francis on Wednesday told leaders of women’s orders from around the world to be “fertile” spiritual mothers in the Catholic Church, not “spinsters.”

The number of people attending Sunday services at Britain’s Anglican churches is continuing to drop, but church officials say there are signs that the decline is starting to stabilize.

Institute on Religion and Democracy (IRD) President Mark Tooley was honored to co-host today’s Christian Israel Solidarity Event at the Israel Embassy in Washington, D.C. Other members of the host committee included Samuel Rodriguez of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, Mat Staver of Liberty University, Gary Bauer of American Values, and Susan Michael of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, among others.

A Catholic monastery and convent in a secluded valley outside Bethlehem lost a seven-year legal battle against the building of Israel’s separation wall on its land on Friday, according to its lawyers.

Internationally known evangelist and founder of Christ for All Nations (CFAN), Reinhard Bonnke, announced Wednesday that for the first time in his 35-year ministry history, he will host crusades throughout the United States, to be called “Good News: A Gospel Crusade With International Evangelist Reinhard Bonnke.”

The ultra-Orthodox rabbi in charge of the sacred Western Wall assured a government emissary on Thursday that Jewish women will not be arrested if they try to recite the mourner’s prayer at the holy site, despite a warning from Israeli police.

As Venezuelans mourn the death of President Hugo Chávez and face an uncertain future, the nation’s evangelical community urges Christians around the world to be in prayer for their country.

Author Joel Rosenberg has a knack for writing fiction that is chillingly close to reality, and he’s done it again in Damascus Countdown, the third and final installment of his Twelfth Imam series.

Christian churches and worship centers were completely shut down on Sunday in the central Nigerian town of Wukari following religious riots that broke out Saturday in the town between Muslims and Christians.

Angola’s government has suspended a Pentecostal church from conducting any activities for 60 days after a New Year’s Eve stampede during an overcrowded religious vigil killed 16 people, the presidency said in a statement.

Daniel Kolenda said of the outpouring of healings, “It was holy chaos! The sick were healed in huge numbers—all in the name and to the glory of Jesus Christ!

Wednesday saw the deadliest violence in Iraq since late November. A series of morning attacks killed at least 31 people across the country. Some reports say it’s a mark of rising tensions between Iraq’s ethnic and religious groups, which could shove the country back into chaos.

Anti-abortion groups from 20 different countries have launched a petition to ask the European Parliament to recognize that life begins at conception.

Oldline church disputes, threats to religious freedom and Middle East proxy battles made news throughout 2012. Below are the Institute for Religion and Democracy’s (IRD) top church news stories for the year.

According to CBS, a church in New Zealand has put up a controversial billboard questioning Jesus’ sexual orientation.

The number of Christians in England and Wales declined by 13 percent over the past decade, while the non-religious population grew from 15 to 25 percent, the most recent national census has revealed.

The proportion of Protestants in Northern Ireland has fallen below 50 percent for the first time, census figures showed on Tuesday, raising the prospect that the growing numbers of Catholics could upset a fragile political balance.

The Palestinians are certain to win U.N. recognition as a state Thursday in a General Assembly vote that Israel and the United States warn could delay hopes of achieving an independent Palestinian homeland through peace talks with Israel.

For 12 years, a prayer marathon has brought Christians together in the South American country of Paraguay. The 24 hours of uninterrupted prayer involves thousands of people from all Christian denominations, in 85 locations around the country.

After decades of debate, the Church of England votes Tuesday on whether it will finally admit women to the ranks of bishops—under a compromise proposal that has angered the faithful on both sides of the argument.