Advertisement
Advertisement
TOPIC

Religion

Religion
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Religion. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
Novelist Salman Rushdie was left blind in one eye after the 2022 attack. Photo: AP
Crime

Rushdie attacker declines to testify in US terror trial

Already serving 25 years for state attempted murder, Hadi Matar faces life in prison if convicted on federal charges.

Singapore

Singapore detains 3 ‘self-radicalised’ teens over planned attacks

India

India’s education minister quits in major win for youth protesters

videocam
Crime

Terrorism trial opens in stabbing of author Salman Rushdie

This is the second trial for Hadi Matar, who was earlier found guilty of attempted murder after attacking the writer on a state in New York.

videocam
Hadi Matar walks into Chautauqua County court in Mayville, New York, in May 2025. Photo: AP
Religion in China

My Take | Churches must ensure that complaints of sexual abuse are taken seriously

As the city prepares for a sex crime legislation overhaul, every community sector should work to ensure that people are free from harassment.

India

1 dead, nearly 100 injured in crush at India chariot festival

Tens of thousands had gathered in the town of Puri for one of the world’s oldest and largest religious processions.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Indonesia

Indonesia’s anti-LGBT education push raises concerns about stigmatising youth

Critics warn the new material to discourage the spread of ‘LGBT culture’ could backfire with consequences for young people.

Protesters march with banners against the LGBT community in Banda Aceh in December 2017. Photo: AFP
Wellness

Indian spiritual leader on finding inner peace and ‘the charm of Hong Kong’

On a recent Hong Kong visit, Chinmaya Mission head Swami Swaroopananda spoke about meditation, mindset and the ‘happening’ city he grew up in.

United States

Battle for the Bible, ballot: Democratic pastors fight US Christian nationalism

‘Christian nationalism is one of the biggest threats to democracy in the US,’ an Arkansas pastor vying for a congressional seat says.

videocam
5
Indonesia

At Indonesia’s sharia frontier, a complicated love affair with flogging

Rights groups call it torture. Aceh’s residents reveal a more nuanced debate than outrage allows.

A man convicted of having sex outside marriage receives 100 lashes from a member of the sharia police during a public caning in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, on May 21. Photo: AFP
Japan

A Japanese city allowed Muslim park prayers for 30 years. Now, there’s unease

The Ichikawa mayor’s decision to restrict the gathering sparks debate on multicultural coexistence in Japan amid discrimination concerns.

videocam
People pray at a mosque in Ichikawa, Japan’s Chiba prefecture, on May 27. Photo: Kyodo
Italy

Pope visits Africa-Europe crossing as anti-migrant policies rise in US, EU

The Catholic Church’s first US pope has clashed with the administration of President Donald Trump over its treatment of migrants.

Thailand

8 monks killed in Thailand after boy, 11, crashes truck into pilgrims

Five monks were killed at the roadside in Mukdahan province, while three others later died in hospital.

videocam
Indonesia

Unmarried Indonesian couple get 21 lashes each over viral live stream kiss

About 100 people witnessed the caning, carried out by a group of people wearing robes and hoods on a stage in Banda Aceh.

A man reacts to lashing in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, on Thursday. Photo: EPA
Holy See

Vatican excommunicates 6 bishops from rebel Catholic group

Holy See responds aggressively to a traditionalist society that consecrated bishops without the pope’s consent.

Newly consecrated bishops pray at the end of their consecration ceremony in Switzerland on Wednesday. Photo: AP
Fifa World Cup 2026

Rima Edbouche – the anti-WAG? Meet Ousmane Dembélé’s modest hijabi wife

Ballon d’Or winner of 2025 and Paris Saint-Germain member Dembélé is repping France at the World Cup 2026 – supported by his low-key wife.

Singapore

Fewer children, more singles in Singapore, new data shows

The increase in proportion of singles was highest among women aged 25 to 29 and men aged 30 to 34.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Indonesia

Asian Angle | Liberal Islam in Indonesia is sliding into irrelevance

Political entanglements and ideological schisms have left the pioneering Liberal Islam Network in disarray.

A boy waves a flag at a rally attended by thousands of Indonesian Islamists in Jakarta in 2018. Photo: AFP
United States

Bible passages to be required reading in Texas public schools

Critics say such decisions are at odds with the Constitution’s ‘establishment clause’, ‌long understood as separating church and state.

Malaysia

Marital duty, faith drive Malaysian women to give in to sex requests: survey

Only 44 per cent of Malay and Muslim women were able to refuse sex, compared with three-quarters of Chinese and Indian Malaysians.

United States

Rastafarian man can’t sue prison guards who shaved him bald: US Supreme Court

Damon Landor, whose religion forbids him from cutting his hair, had locks that reached below his knees after growing them for 20 years.

Damon Landor is seen in an undated handout image. Photo: US Supreme Court
Italy

Pope exalts first US saint as a model for Christians for her care of migrants

Mother Frances Cabrini, patron saint of migrants, is known for caring for Italian immigrants in the US at the turn of the last century.

Pope Leo takes part in Eucharistic adoration in Sant’Angelo Lodigiano, Italy, the birthplace of Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini on Saturday. Photo: Reuters
Africa

Ethiopian PM’s party secures landslide win in national election

Ruling Prosperity Party secures nearly 90 per cent of contested parliamentary seats amid a fractured opposition and widespread security disruptions.

Spain

Pope Leo’s plane grounded, so Spain’s king gives him a ride

The pontiff flew back to Rome on the monarch’s private jet after the papal aircraft’s engine failed to start.

Malaysia

‘I regret it’: Malaysian mother begs for no jail time over attempted affair

Siti Iqbar and Hairul Mokhsin are accused of attempting to have unlawful sex outside marriage under Malaysia’s Islamic law.

A Malaysian mother has pleaded for leniency in a sharia court over an attempted affair. Photo: Shutterstock
Hong Kong society

Board backs proposal to give temple, mosque highest level of heritage protection

Hung Shing Temple in Wan Chai and Stanley Mosque should be classified as statutory monuments, Antiquities Advisory Board says.

Hung Shing Temple is believed to have been built between 1847 and 1852. Photo: Karma Lo
Spain

Pope Leo blesses new tower at Spain’s Sagrada Familia

Spain’s king, queen and prime minister joined thousands inside the world’s tallest church to celebrate mass with the pontiff.

Spain

Standing ovation: Pope warns Spain’s parliament of world’s ‘profound’ crisis

Weapons can impose a temporary silence but can never build lasting peace, he said, hours after Madrid mass for over one million people.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.
SUPPORT NOW
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement