Matt and Sam discuss the passing of Pope Francis, what his papacy meant, why he scandalized the Catholic right, and why his message feels so necessary and so far away.
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I have drafted a Preamble I believe our Founding Fathers should have adopted as the opening statement of the Australian Constitution in 1901. We should vote on it (or a better version) at a Referendum to be held on the same day as Federal Election 2028 so that future Parliaments are required to uphold the …
Continue reading AUSTRALIA MUST HOLD A REFERENDUM TO ADD A PREAMBLE TO OUR CONSTITUTION.
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This post was originally published on My Articles – Everald Compton.
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Pope Francis, who died on April 21, was a rare beacon of hope for many Palestinians in the long months of the Gaza genocide. The pope refused to be silent on Gaza. For 18 months, he made nearly daily video calls in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, including recent calls he made from his hospital bed. He rang the Holy Family Church in Gaza City every night, speaking with church leaders and…
This post was originally published on Latest – Truthout.
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Asia Pacific Report
Activists for Palestine paid homage to Pope Francis in Aotearoa New Zealand today for his humility, care for marginalised in the world, and his courageous solidarity with the besieged people of Gaza at a street theatre rally just hours before his funeral in Rome.
He was remembered and thanked for his daily calls of concern to Gaza and his final public blessing last Sunday — the day before he died — calling for a ceasefire in Israel’s genocidal war on the Palestinian enclave.
Several speakers thanked the late Pope for his humanitarian concerns and spiritual leadership at the vigil in Auckland’s “Palestinian Corner” in Te Komititanga Square, beside the Britomart transport hub, as other rallies were held across New Zealand over the weekend.
- READ MORE: Pope Francis laid to rest after tens of thousands attend Vatican funeral
- Other photos, videos from today’s rally
“Last November, Pope Francis said that what is happening in Gaza was not a war. It was cruelty,” said Catholic deacon Chris Sullivan. “Because Israel is always claiming it is a war. But it isn’t a war, it’s just cruelty.”
During the last 18 months of his life, Pope Francis had a daily ritual — he called Gaza’s only Catholic church to see how people were coping with the “cruel” onslaught.
Deacon Sullivan said the people of the church in Gaza “have been attacked by Israeli rockets, Israeli shells, and Israeli snipers, and a number of people have been killed as a result of that.”
In his Easter message before dying, Pope Francis said: “I appeal to the warring parties: call a ceasefire, release the hostages and come to the aid of a starving people that aspires to a future of peace.”
‘We lost the best man’
Also speaking at today’s rally, Dr Abdallah Gouda said: “We lost the best man. He was talking about Palestine and he was working to stop this genocide.“Pope Francis, as a Palestinian, as a Palestinians from Gaza, and as a Moslem, thank you Pope Francis. Thank you. And we will never, never forget you.
“As we will always talk about you, the man who called every night to talk to the Palestinians, and he asked, ‘what do you eat’. And he talked to leaders around the world to stop this genocide.”
Pope Francis called Gaza’s Catholic parish every night. Video: AJ+In Rome, the coffin of Pope Francis made its way through the city from the Vatican after the funeral to reach Santa Maria Maggiore basilica for a private burial ceremony.
It arrived at the basilica after an imposing funeral ceremony at St Peter’s Square.
The Vatican said that more than 250,000 people attended the open-air service that was held under clear blue skies
Dozens of foreign dignitaries, including heads of state, were also in attendance.
Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re eulogised Pope Francis as a pontiff who knew how to communicate to the “least among us” and urged people to build bridges and not walls.
In Auckland at the “guerrilla theatre” event, several highly publicised examples of recent human rights violations and war crimes in Gaza were recreated in several skits with “actors” taking part from the crowd.
Palestinian Dr Faiez Idais role played the kidnapping of courageous Kamal Adwan Hospital medical director Dr Hussam Abu Safiya by the Israeli military last December and his detention and torture in captivity since.
Palestinian Dr Faiez Idais (hooded) during his role played for courageous Kamal Adwan Hospital medical director Dr Hussam Abu Safiya held prisoner by Israeli forces. Image: APR Another Palestinian, Samer Almalalha, role played Columbia University student leader Mahmoud Khalil, who is also Palestinian and a US permanent resident with an American wife and child.
Khalil was seized by ICE agents from his university apartment without a warrant and abducted to a remote immigration prison in Louisiana but the courts have blocked his deportation in a high profile case.
He is one of at least 300 students who have been captured ICE agents for criticising Israel and its genocide.
A two-year-old child holds a “peace for all children” in Gaza placard at today’s rally. Image: APR The skits included a condemnation of the US corporation Starbucks, the world’s leading coffee roaster and retailer, with mock blood being kicked over fake bodies on the plaza.
The backlash against the brand has caused heavy losses and 100 outlets in Malaysia have been forced to shut down.
Singers and musicians Hone Fowler, who was also MC, Brenda Liddiard and Mark Laurent — including their dedicated “Make Peace Today” inspired by Jesus’ “Blessed are the peacemakers” — also lifted the spirits of the crowd.
Protesters call for an end to the genocide in Palestine, both in Gaza and the West Bank. Image: APR This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.
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By Susana Suisuiki, RNZ Pacific presenter
The doors of St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican have now been closed and the coffin sealed, ahead of preparations for tonight’s funeral of Pope Francis.
The Vatican says a quarter of a million people have paid respects to Pope Francis in the last three days.
Sister Susana Vaifale of the Missionaries of Faith has lived in Rome for more than 10 years and worked at the Vatican’s St Peter’s parish office.
- READ MORE: ‘Ciao Papa’: Rome gears up to bid farewell to Pope Francis – images
- Other Pope Francis reports
She told RNZ Pacific Waves that when she met the Pope in 2022 for an “ad limina” (obligatory visit) with the bishops from Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands, she was lost for words.
“When I was there in front of him, it’s like a blur, I couldn’t say anything,” she said.
Sister Vaifale said although she was speechless, she thought of her community back home in Samoa.
“In my heart, I brought everyone, I mean my country, my people and myself. So, in that time . . . I was just looking at him and I said, ‘my goodness’ I’m here, I’m in front of the Pope, Francis . . . the leader of the Catholic Church.”
At Easter celebration
Sister Vaifale said she was at the Easter celebration in St Peter’s Square where Pope Francis made his last public appearance.However, the next day it was announced that Pope Francis died.
The news shattered Sister Vaifale who was on a train when she heard what had happened.
“Oh, I cried, yeah I cried . . . until now I am very emotional, very sad.”
“He passed at 7:30 . . . I am very sad but like we say in Samoa: ‘maliu se toa ae toe tula’i mai se toa’.. so, it’s all in God’s hands.”
Pope Francis with Fatima Leung Wai in Krakow, Poland in 2016. Image: Fatima Leung Wai/RNZ Pacific Siblings pay final respects
The Leung-Wai family from South Auckland are in Rome and joined the long queue to pay their final respects to Pope Francis lying in state at St Peter’s Basilica.Fatima Leung-Wai along with her siblings Martin and Ann-Margaret are proud of their Catholic faith and are active parishioners at St Peter Chanel church in Clover Park.
The family’s Easter trip to Rome was initially for the canonisation of Blessed Carlo Acutis — a young Italian boy who died at the age of 15 from leukemia and is touted to be the first millennial saint.
Leung Wai siblings in St Peter’s Basilica were among the thousands paying their final respects to Pope Francis. Image: Leung Wai family/RNZ Pacific Plans changed as soon as they heard the news of the Pope’s death.
Leung-Wai said it took an hour and a half for her and her siblings to see the Pope in the basilica and the crowd numbers at St Peter’s Square got bigger each day.
Despite only seeing Pope Francis’ body for a moment, Leung-Wai said she was blessed to have met him in 2016 for World Youth Day in Krakow, Poland.
She said Pope Francis was well-engaged with the youth.
“I was blessed to have lunch with him nine years ago,” Leung-Wai said.
“Meeting him at that time he was like a grandpa, he was like very open and warm and very much interested in what the young people and what we had to say.”
Leung Wai siblings with their parents, mum Lesina, and dad Aniseko. Image: Leung Wai family/RNZ Pacific
This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by APR editor.This post was originally published on Radio Free.
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Reuters not only had a stand-alone story (4/22/25) about Palestinians’ response to Francis’ death, but included his advocacy for Gaza in its main obituary (4/21/25).
The obituaries for Pope Francis in the leading US newspapers ignored the late pontiff’s commitment to the Palestinian people and the acute suffering in Gaza in the last years of his life. Many of them ran separate pieces that highlighted Francis’ concern for Gaza and the response of Palestinians to his death, but they failed to mention these aspects of his papacy in the lengthy obituaries that summed up his life.
Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Argentina in 1936, Francis was the first Jesuit and the first Latin American to be pope. When he died at the age of 88, his leadership as a social justice pontiff was heralded widely.
“For Francis, the poor are ‘at the heart of the Gospel,’ and throughout his pontificate, he affirmed this by deed and word,” said the Catholic magazine America (4/21/25). His liberal philosophy addressed many pressing issues, “from climate change to global poverty, war and violence, LGBTQ+ people and women’s roles in the church,” said Sojourners (4/21/25).
Toward the end of Francis’ life, the head of the Catholic Church focused his attention on ongoing genocide in Gaza. “He used to call us at 7 p.m. every night. No matter how busy he was, no matter where he was, he always called,” George Anton, spokesperson for the Church of the Holy Family in Gaza, told NPR (4/22/25). Reuters (4/22/25) ran the headline, “Gaza’s Christians ‘Heartbroken’ for Pope Who Phoned Them Nightly.” AP (4/21/25) called these communications his “frequent evening ritual,” noting that this “small act of compassion made a big impression on Gaza’s tiny Christian community.”
Francis was generally sympathetic to addressing political and human rights for Palestinians, and under his watch the Vatican recognized the state of Palestine (BBC, 5/13/15). He “suggested the global community should study whether Israel’s military campaign in Gaza constitutes a genocide of the Palestinian people” (Reuters, 11/17/24). In his final Easter message, issued the day before his death, he called for a ceasefire in Gaza to end a conflict that “continues to cause death and destruction, and to create a dramatic and deplorable humanitarian situation” (Truthout, 4/21/25).
‘Privileged a politicized version’
As well as his call for an inquiry into charges of genocide in Gaza, the New York Post (4/21/25) didn’t like that Francis “took a very standard leftist line on President Trump, decrying his plans for mass deportation of illegal immigrants.”
Not everyone in the press approved of this act of compassion when recalling his life and church leadership. In an editorial, the New York Post (4/21/25) criticized the “leftist” positions of the “deservedly beloved figure,” complaining that Francis “even went so far as to call for an investigation of Israel over its nonexistent genocide in Gaza.”
When it came to Francis’ support for Middle East peace generally, the Jerusalem Post (4/22/25) said in an editorial, “Time and again, Israel expressed dismay at the Vatican’s tendency to elevate Palestinian narratives while brushing aside Israeli concerns.” It complained that “the Vatican’s posture under Francis consistently privileged a politicized version of the Palestinian story over the complex reality on the ground.”
But rather than criticizing Francis’ attention to Gaza, the lengthy obituaries in the most prominent US newspapers ignored his advocacy for Palestinian rights entirely.
‘Excoriated modern-day colonizers’
The New York Times‘ obituary (4/21/25) for Francis was almost 7,500 words long—but none of them were “Gaza.”
The New York Times’ obituary (4/21/25), by Jason Horowitz and Jim Yardley, did note that “he repeatedly denounced violence and, after an initial reluctance to take sides in the war in Ukraine, spoke out in support of Ukraine.”
It also reported that Francis’ travels included “focusing on exploited and war-torn parts of Africa, where he excoriated modern-day colonizers and sought peace in South Sudan.” It continued:
In 2019, Francis got on his hands and knees before the warring leaders of South Sudan’s government and its opposition, kissing their shoes and imploring them to make peace. In 2023, in declining health, he traveled to the capital city, Juba, to upbraid them on their lack of progress.
“No more bloodshed, no more conflicts, no more violence and mutual recriminations about who is responsible for it,” Francis said in the gardens of South Sudan’s presidential palace. “Leave the time of war behind and let a time of peace dawn!”
Yet regarding his outspoken concern for Gaza, the Times found room for not a word.
‘Sometimes took controversial stances’
The Wall Street Journal (4/21/25) said Francis “sought to refocus the Catholic Church on promoting social and economic justice”—but his focus on Gaza could not be acknowledged.
Obituaries at other major US newspapers also failed to include Francis’ Palestine focus. A lengthy obituary in the Washington Post (4/21/25), for example, noted that the pope’s first official trip was to the “Italian island of Lampedusa, a burdened way station for refugees seeking sanctuary in Europe from conflicts in North Africa and the Middle East,” a nod to the fact that he offered a home to migrants in need. But it didn’t mention Gaza.
The Wall Street Journal’s obituary (4/21/25) didn’t say anything about the topic either, though it said that Francis
made a priority of improving ties with the Islamic world, washing the feet of Muslims on Holy Thursday, visiting nine Muslim-majority countries and insisting that Islam was, like Christianity, a religion of peace.
The same is true with AP‘s obituary (4/21/25), which likewise commented instead that he “charted new relations with the Muslim world by visiting the Arabian Peninsula and Iraq.” USA Today’s obituary (4/21/25) said Francis “sometimes took progressive or controversial stances on pressing issues, such as same-sex couples and climate change,” but it didn’t bring up Gaza.
By contrast, it was not hard to find references to Gaza in Francis’ obituaries in major non-US English-language outlets. The British Guardian (4/21/25) noted, “During his recent period in hospital, he kept up his telephone calls to the Holy Family church in Gaza, a nightly routine since 9 October 2023.” The Toronto-based Globe and Mail (4/21/25) included Palestine in a list of war-ravaged places Francis prayed for, and devoted most of a paragraph to his nightly Gaza calls. Reuters (4/21/25), headquartered in London and owned by Canada’s Thomson family, noted that Francis’ last Easter Sunday message “reiterated his call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza—a conflict he had long railed against.”
Though the major US obituaries all ignored Gaza, the same outlets published separate articles on Francis and Gaza. USA Today (4/21/25) ran “Pope Francis Used Final Easter Address to Call for Gaza Ceasefire.” The Wall Street Journal (4/23/25) had “Pope Francis Kept Up Routine of Calling Gaza Until the End.” For the New York Times (4/22/25), it was “Even in Sickness, Pope Francis Reached Out to Gaza’s Christians.” AP (4/21/25) offered “Pope’s Frequent Calls to a Catholic Church Made Him a Revered Figure in War-Battered Gaza,” an article that appeared on the Washington Post‘s website (4/21/25).
These stand-alone pieces are welcome, and spotlight the importance of the Gaza crisis to Francis. But the official obituaries in these major outlets are meant to stand as a permanent record of Francis’ life and career. By relegating Francis’ compassion for Palestine to sidebars, as though it were only of transient interest, US outlets eliminated a central aspect of his papacy from that record.
This post was originally published on FAIR.
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ANALYSIS: By Joel Hodge, Australian Catholic University and Antonia Pizzey, Australian Catholic University
Pope Francis has died on Easter Monday, aged 88, the Vatican announced. The head of the Catholic Church had recently survived being hospitalised with double pneumonia.
Cardinal Kevin Farrell’s announcement began:
“Dear brothers and sisters, with deep sorrow I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis. At 7:35 this morning, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father.”
There were many unusual aspects of Pope Francis’ papacy. He was the first Jesuit pope, the first from the Americas (and the southern hemisphere), the first to choose the name “Francis” and the first to give a TED talk.
- READ MORE: Pope Francis dies one day after first post-hospital public appearance and with final plea for Gaza
- How the next pope will be elected — what goes on at the conclave
- Pope Francis updates: Leader of Roman Catholic Church dies at 88
He was also the first pope in more than 600 years to be elected following the resignation, rather than death, of his predecessor.
From the very start of his papacy, Francis seemed determined to do things differently and present the papacy in a new light. Even in thinking about his burial, he chose the unexpected: to be placed to rest not in the Vatican, but in the Basilica of St Mary Major in Rome – the first pope to be buried there in hundreds of years.
Vatican News reported the late Pope Francis had requested his funeral rites be simplified.
“The renewed rite,” said Archbishop Diego Ravelli, “seeks to emphasise even more that the funeral of the Roman Pontiff is that of a pastor and disciple of Christ and not of a powerful person of this world.”
Straddling a line between “progressive” and “conservative”, Francis experienced tension with both sides. In doing so, his papacy shone a spotlight on what it means to be Catholic today.
The Pope’s Easter Blessing Video: APThe day before his death, Pope Francis made a brief appearance on Easter Sunday to bless the crowds at St Peter’s Square.
Between a rock and a hard place
Francis was deemed not progressive enough by some, yet far too progressive by others.His apostolic exhortation (an official papal teaching on a particular issue or action) Amoris Laetitia, ignited great controversy for seemingly being (more) open to the question of whether people who have divorced and remarried may receive Eucharist.
He also disappointed progressive Catholics, many of whom hoped he would make stronger changes on issues such as the roles of women, married clergy, and the broader inclusion of LGBTQIA+ Catholics.
The reception of his exhortation Querida Amazonia was one such example. In this document, Francis did not endorse marriage for priests, despite bishops’ requests for this. He also did not allow the possibility of women being ordained as deacons to address a shortage of ordained ministers. His discerning spirit saw there was too much division and no clear consensus for change.
Francis was also openly critical of Germany’s controversial “Synodal Way” – a series of conferences with bishops and lay people — that advocated for positions contrary to Church teachings. Francis expressed concern on multiple occasions that this project was a threat to the unity of the Church.
At the same time, Francis was no stranger to controversy from the conservative side of the Church, receiving “dubia” or “theological doubts” over his teaching from some of his Cardinals. In 2023, he took the unusual step of responding to some of these doubts.
Pope Francis is seen as “one of the most vocal leaders on #Gaza. He was always condemning the war on Gaza, and asking for a ceasefire and … end of this conflict.” #AsiaPacificReport #PopeFrancis #GazaGenocide @palestine @OnlinePalEng @PalestineAusNZ https://t.co/vtuTpIVYmv pic.twitter.com/6EF1wdhgYL
— David Robie (@DavidRobie) April 21, 2025
Impact on the Catholic Church
In many ways, the most striking thing about Francis was not his words or theology, but his style. He was a modest man, even foregoing the Apostolic Palace’s grand papal apartments to live in the Vatican’s simpler guest house.He may well be remembered most for his simplicity of dress and habits, his welcoming and pastoral style and his wise spirit of discernment.
He is recognised as giving a clear witness to the life, love and joy of Jesus in the spirit of the Second Vatican Council – a point of major reform in modern Church history. This witness has translated into two major developments in Church teachings and life.
Pope Francis on respecting and protecting the environment. Image: Tandag Diocese Love for our common home
The first of these relates to environmental teachings. In 2015, Francis released his ground-breaking encyclical, Laudato si’: On Care for Our Common Home. It expanded Catholic social teaching by giving a comprehensive account of how the environment reflects our God-given “common home”.Consistent with recent popes such as Benedict XVI and John Paul II, Francis acknowledged climate change and its destructive impacts and causes. He summarised key scientific research to forcefully argue for an evidence-based approach to addressing humans’ impact on the environment.
He also made a pivotal and innovative contribution to the climate change debate by identifying the ethical and spiritual causes of environmental destruction.
Francis argued combating climate change relied on the “ecological conversion” of the human heart, so that people may recognise the God-given nature of our planet and the fundamental call to care for it. Without this conversion, pragmatic and political measures wouldn’t be able to counter the forces of consumerism, exploitation and selfishness.
Francis argued a new ethic and spirituality was needed. Specifically, he said Jesus’ way of love – for other people and all creation – is the transformative force that could bring sustainable change for the environment and cultivate fraternity among people (and especially with the poor).
Synodality: moving towards a Church that listens
Francis’s second major contribution, and one of the most significant aspects of his papacy, was his commitment to “synodality”. While there’s still confusion over what synodality actually means, and its potential for political distortion, it is above all a way of listening and discerning through openness to the guidance of the Holy Spirit.It involves hierarchy and lay people transparently and honestly discerning together, in service of the mission of the church. Synodality is as much about the process as the goal. This makes sense as Pope Francis was a Jesuit, an order focused on spreading Catholicism through spiritual formation and discernment.
Drawing on his rich Jesuit spirituality, Francis introduced a way of conversation centred on listening to the Holy Spirit and others, while seeking to cultivate friendship and wisdom.
With the conclusion of the second session of the Synod on Synodality in October 2024, it is too soon to assess its results. However, those who have been involved in synodal processes have reported back on their transformative potential.
Archbishop of Brisbane, Mark Coleridge, explained how participating in the 2015 Synod “was an extraordinary experience [and] in some ways an awakening”.
Cardinals use a centuries-old voting process to elect a new pope, complete with smoke signals to indicate the outcome. And the next papal conclave will be the most diverse in Catholic history.
Here’s what you need to know about the process:https://t.co/osfOYKagk9
— The Conversation U.S. (@ConversationUS) April 21, 2025
Catholicism in the modern age
Francis’ papacy inspired both great joy and aspirations, as well as boiling anger and rejection. He laid bare the agonising fault lines within the Catholic community and struck at key issues of Catholic identity, triggering debate over what it means to be Catholic in the world today.He leaves behind a Church that seems more divided than ever, with arguments, uncertainty and many questions rolling in his wake. But he has also provided a way for the Church to become more converted to Jesus’ way of love, through synodality and dialogue.
Francis showed us that holding labels such as “progressive” or “conservative” won’t enable the Church to live out Jesus’ mission of love – a mission he emphasised from the very beginning of his papacy.
Dr Joel Hodge is senior lecturer, Faculty of Theology and Philosophy, Australian Catholic University and Dr Antonia Pizzey is postdoctoral researcher, Research Centre for Studies of the Second Vatican Council, Australian Catholic University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article.
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Asia Pacific Report
Peaceful protesters in Aotearoa New Zealand’s largest city Auckland held an Easter prayer vigil honouring Palestinian political prisoners and the sacrifice of thousands of innocent lives as relentless Israeli bombing of displaced Gazans in tents killed at least 92 people in two days.
Organisers of the rally for the 80th week since the war began in October 2023 said they aimed for a shift in emphasis for quietness and meditation this spiritual weekend.
“This is dedicated to the Palestine Prisoners’ Day and those who have died, innocent of any crime — women, children, journalists, patients, friends, healthcare workers, those buried under rubble, non-military civilians,” said Kathy Ross of Palestinian Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA).
- READ MORE: Israel kills 92 in 2 days as Gaza’s Christians prepare for sorrowful Easter
- Other Israel’s war on Gaza reports
- More images and videos at today’s vigil
“All those starving and needing our help,” she added.
The organisers created a flowers and candles circle of peace with hibiscus blossoms in an area of Britomart that has become dubbed “Palestinian Corner”.
Placards declared “Free all Palestinian prisoners — all 10,000 people” and “Release the Palestinian prisoners.”
Palestinian fusion dancer and singer Rana Hamida, who last year sailed on the Freedom Flotilla boat Handala in an attempt to break the Israel siege of Gaza, spoke about how people could keep their spirits up in the face of such terrible atrocities, and sang a haunting hymn.
Calmness and strength
She also described how the air and wind could help protesters seek calmness and strength in spite of storms like Cyclone Tam that gusted across much of New Zealand yesterday on Good Friday causing havoc.She spread her arms like wings as Palestinian flags fluttered strongly, saying: “The wind is now blowing in exactly the right direction.”
The Palestinian “circle of peace” at today’s spiritual vigil on Easter Saturday in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. Image: Asia Pacific Report Another PSNA organiser, Del Abcede, spoke about the incarceration of Palestinian paediatrician Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, who was kidnapped by the Israeli military last December 27 — two days after Christmas – and has been held in detention without charge and under torture ever since.
“The reason why he was arrested is because he would not leave his hospital or his patients,” she said, adding that he had been held incommunicado for a long time.
“I want to dedicate a special honour and prayer for him and I hope that he will be released soon.”
Beaten in prison
Dr Safiya is suffering from a serious eye injury as a result of being beaten in Israeli prison, his lawyer has revealed to media.According to lawyer Ghaid Qassem, Dr Abu Safiya has been classified by Israeli authorities as an “unlawful combatant” but has not yet been charged or received any court trials.
Despite a global campaign calling for him to be released from prison, Israeli authorities have continued to interrogate and torture Dr Abu Safiya.
Vigil organisers Kathy Ross (left) and Del Abcede speaking at the prayer vigil for Palestine today . . . courageous Dr Hussam Abu Safiya is pictured on the placard. Image: Asia Pacific Report Another speaker at the vigil, Dr David Robie, said he had been a journalist for 50 years and he found it “shameful” that the Western media — including Aotearoa New Zealand — failed to report the genocide and ethnic cleansing truthfully, and in fact was normalising the “horrendous crimes”.
He called for silent prayer for the at least 232 Gazan journalists killed — many along with their entire families — who had been courageously reporting the truth to the rest of the world.
Banners at the vigil referred to “Jesus [was] Palestinian – born in Bethlehem” and “Let Gaza live”. One placard declared “Jesus was an anti-imperialist Palestinian Jew who preached (and practised) radical love for all – not a violent bully bigot”.
Other vigils and protests took place across New Zealand at Easter weekend, especially in Ōtautahi Christchurch.
Journalist Dr David Robie speaking about how Western media has been “normalising” genocide and calling for prayer for the killed Gazan journalists. Image: Bruce King ‘Violating’ religious status quo
Meanwhile, in Jerusalem reports were emerging that Israelis were “taking pride in violating the status quo” with religious traditions at Easter.
A protester carrying her placard proclaiming Jesus as an “anti-imperialist Palestinian Jew” who preached love for all. Image: Asia Pacific Report Xavier Abu Eid, a political scientist and former adviser to the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) from occupied East Jerusalem, explained on Al Jazeera that Jerusalem, “has a very central place” in the history of Palestinian Christians.
“We have to … understand what the Israeli occupation is doing to all Palestinians, because there is a concept. … It’s called the status quo. It’s understood and it’s under a very old agreement, centuries or older than the state of Israel,” he said.
Under the status quo, “the status of Christian and Muslim holy sites, including Al-Aqsa Mosque, for example, and the Holy Sepulchre, would be respected,” Dr Eid explained.
Despite this, he said, “Israeli government officials are taking pride in violating the status quo of Al-Aqsa Mosque compound by allowing Israeli settlers to pray in Al-Aqsa Mosque”.
He said the Israeli authorities are also trying to “turn the Mount of Olives, a very important place for this [Easter] celebration, into an Israeli national park”.
“So you’re talking about a community that feels under threat, not just from a national point of view with the Israeli government, pushing for ethnic cleansing and annexation, but also from the traditions that religiously we have kept here for generations,” he noted.
The UN Palestine relief agency UNRWA reports that after 1.5 years of war in Gaza, at least 51,000 Palestinians have been killed, 1.9 million people have been forcibly displaced multiple times, and the Israel military has blocked humanitarian aid from entering the besieged enclave for seven weeks.
A “Jesus was born in Bethlehem” banner at today’s Britomart vigil for Palestine. Image: Asia Pacific Report This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.
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Lured by promises of an education but allegedly trapped in servitude and self-mortification, the former members are suing the ultra-conservative organisation over their ‘exploitation and abuse’
The first item Opus Dei gave 12-year-old Andrea Martínez was a pink dress. The second was a schedule that detailed every task for every minute of her day. Then, when she was 16, she was given a cilice – a spiked metal chain to wear around her thigh – and a whip.
In the late 1980s, Opus Dei, a secretive and ultra-conservative Catholic organisation, promised Martínez an escape from a life of poverty in rural Argentina. By attending one of their schools, they said, she would receive an education and opportunities.
Continue reading…This post was originally published on Human rights | The Guardian.
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Alfred Deakin was Prime Minister of Australia three times. He was also a powerful founding father of our nation, having a huge influence in drafting our Constitution. It is important to note that he made a significant effort to include a Preamble to the Constitution that would set out what it means to be an …
Continue reading WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE AN AUSTRALIAN?
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This post was originally published on My Articles – Everald Compton.
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By Susana Suisuiki, RNZ Pacific journalist
Pasifika comedy troupe Naked Samoans is facing a backlash from some members of the Pacific community over its promotional poster.
In the image, which has now been taken down, the Naked Samoans depicted themselves as the 12 disciples surrounding Jesus, a parody of The Last Supper.
Several Pasifika influencers condemned the image online, with one person labelling it “disrespectful”.
However, Naked Samoan group member Oscar Kightley told RNZ Pacific Waves he did not anticipate the uproar.
Oscar Kightley talking to RNZ Pacific Waves.
The award-winning writer has addressed the backlash as they gear up to perform at the New Zealand International Comedy Festival in Auckland next month.The Samoan-New Zealand actor said it was never their intention to hurt people.
“This month, 27 years ago, was our first-ever show, and we’ve been offending and upsetting people ever since, really. But we didn’t expect [the backlash].
Checks, balances ‘let us down’
“We saw the reaction [to the poster], and we saw how it was being taken, it was never our intention to mock Jesus or God or the Last Supper. But when we saw that that’s how it was being taken by some in our community, we made the decision to take it down.”“We took it down as soon as we knew that it was causing upset.”
Responding to the online criticism that “they should have known better”, Kightley said “we should have known that some people would take it that way”.
“Our robust system of checks and balances badly let us down in this sense,” he said.
“We could understand how some people would have looked at this and went, ‘you guys have gone too far’, and even though we didn’t mean it, we all went to Sunday school, understand the reverence that that image and that scripture has.
“But we weren’t trying to comment on the scripture.”
He said even though they took the image down, due to the nature of the internet it would remain online “forever now”.
“I think as long as people spread it, people will be raged and raised by it.
“But my message [to those who are offended by it] is, forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.
“And maybe think about Jesus’s teaching in John 8:7.”
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.
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Image: RHR
On 29 March 2025 Rabbis for Human Rights wrote: “This week, we took part in a moving Iftar meal-the traditional dinner that breaks the daily fast during the month of Ramadan-together with residents and activists from the Negev. The event was held in collaboration with the Regional Council for the Unrecognized Villages.
We sat together around one table, broke bread, listened to stories, and felt both the pain-and the hope. It was a moment of deep human connection between communities fighting for justice, equality, and a safer future.
But alongside the warmth and solidarity, we cannot ignore the harsh reality: In just the first half of 2025, more than 2,000 structures in unrecognized villages in the Negev have been demolished-a dramatic increase from previous years. The destruction of Umm al-Hiran last November still echoes-a whole community erased to make way for a new Jewish settlement.
True solidarity is not just a slogan-it is presence, listening, and action. We will continue to stand with these communities, amplify their voices, and work toward a future in which every person can live with dignity and security.
As Jews and as Rabbis, our commitment to justice is unconditional-it is at the heart of our identity.
As Ramadan draws to a close next week, we wish all our Muslim friends and partners a joyous Eid al-Fitr (Eid Mubarak).
May this holiday bring you and your families happiness, abundance, and blessings. We hope these festive days offer moments of comfort, renewal, and peace to all!”
This is not our Judaism.
Every day Rabbis from our organization are taking to the streets to protest against the government and for the protection of democracy. Rabbis for Human Rights’ staff and board members are on the streets every day, raising their voices to end the horrific bloodshed in Gaza, to bring the hostages home, and to call for an immediate ceasefire.
As rabbis and human rights defenders, we believe in the sanctity of every human life. This war must end now!
Read more about Rabbis for Human Rights: www.rhr.org.il/eng
Tags: Rabbis For Human Rights, RHR, Iftar, Holy Land, Israel, Palestine
https://www.indcatholicnews.com/news/52042
This post was originally published on Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards.
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By Caleb Fotheringham, RNZ Pacific journalist
Papua New Guinea being declared a Christian nation may offer the impression that the country will improve, but it is only “an illusion”, according to a Catholic priest in the country.
Last week, the PNG Parliament amended the nation’s constitution, introducing a declaration in its preamble: “(We) acknowledge and declare God, the Father; Jesus Christ, the Son; and Holy Spirit, as our Creator and Sustainer of the entire universe and the source of our powers and authorities, delegated to the people and all persons within the geographical jurisdiction of Papua New Guinea.”
In addition, Christianity will now be reflected in the Fifth Goal of the Constitution, and the Bible will be recognised as a national symbol.
Father Giorgio Licini of Caritas PNG said that the Catholic Church would have preferred no constitutional change.
“To create, nowadays, in the 21st century a Christian confessional state seems a little bit anachronistic,” Father Licini said.
He believes it is a “cosmetic” change that “will not have a real impact” on the lives of the people.
“PNG society will remain basically what it is,” he said.
An ‘illusion that things will improve’
“This manoeuvre may offer the impression or the illusion that things will improve for the country, that the way of behaving, the economic situation, the culture may become more solid. But that is an illusion.”He said the preamble of the 1975 Constitution already acknowledged the Christian heritage.
Father Licini said secular cultures and values were scaring many in PNG, including the recognition and increasing acceptance of the rainbow community.
“They see themselves as next to Indonesia, which is Muslim, they see themselves next to Australia and New Zealand, which are increasingly secular countries, the Pacific heritage is fading, so the question is, who are we?” he said.
“It looks like a Christian heritage and tradition and values and the churches, they offer an opportunity to ground on them a cultural identity.”
Village market near a Christian church building in Papua New Guinea . . . secular cultures and values scaring many in PNG. Image: 123rf Prime Minister James Marape, a vocal advocate for the amendment, is happy about the outcome.
He said it “reflects, in the highest form” the role Christian churches had played in the development of the country.
Not an operational law
RNZ Pacific’s PNG correspondent Scott Waide said that Marape had maintained it was not an operational law.“It is something that is rather symbolic and something that will hopefully unite Papua New Guinea under a common goal of sorts. That’s been the narrative that’s come out from the Prime Minister’s Office,” Waide said.
He said the vast majority of people in the country had identified as Christian, but it was not written into the constitution.
Waide said the founding fathers were aware of the negative implications of declaring the nation a Christian state during the decolonisation period.
“I think in their wisdom they chose to very carefully state that Papua New Guineans are spiritual people but stopped short of actually declaring Papua New Guinea a Christian country.”
He said that, unlike Fiji, which has had a 200-year experience with different religions, the first mosque in PNG opened in the 1980s.
“It is not as diverse as you would see in other countries. Personally, I have seen instances of religious violence largely based on ignorance.
“Not because they are politically driven, but because people are not educated enough to understand the differences in religions and the need to coexist.”
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.
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Each and very one of us has an inner personal power and our way of using it determines the quality of our lives. Some of us decide also to add a power to our lives that is beyond our own until we take steps to welcome it. In my case, during the 93 years since …
Continue reading SEARCHING FOR THE GROUND OF OUR BEING
The post SEARCHING FOR THE GROUND OF OUR BEING appeared first on Everald Compton.
This post was originally published on My Articles – Everald Compton.
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By Caleb Fotheringham, RNZ Pacific journalist
Churches in the Cook Islands are pushing for the country to be declared a Christian nation following the discovery of a mosque in Rarotonga.
The Religious Organisation Special Select Committee has heard submissions on Rarotonga and plan to visit the outer islands.
It was initiated by the Cook Islands Christian Church, which has proposed a constitutional amendment to recognise the Cook Islands as a Christian nation, “with the protection and promotion of the Christian faith as the basis for the laws and governance of the country”.
Cook Islands opposition leader Tina Browne said the proposal was in conflict with Article 64 of the Constitution which allows for freedom of religion.
“At the moment, it’s definitely unconstitutional and I am a lawyer, so I think like one too,” Browne said, who is also part of the select committee.
Late last year, a mosque was discovered on Rarotonga.
Select committee chair Tingika Elikana said it was the catalyst for the proposal.
Signatory to human rights conventions
He said the country was a signatory to several human rights conventions and declaring the Cook Islands a Christian nation could go against them.“Some of the questions by the committee is the impact such an amendment or provision in our constitution [would have] in terms of us being parties to most of these international human rights treaties and conventions.”
Elikana said the committee had received lots of submissions both in support and against the declaration.
Cook Islands Christian Movement interim secretary William Framhein is backing it.
“We believe that the country should be declared a Christian country and if anyone else belongs to another religion they’re free to practise their own religion but it doesn’t give them a right to establish a church in the country,” he said.
Tatiana Kautai, a Muslim Cook Islander living in Rarotonga said the country was already considered a Christian nation by most.
However, she was worried that if the proposal became law it could have practical implications on everyone who was not a Christian.
“People have a right to practise their religion freely, especially people who are just going about their day to day, working, supporting their families, not causing any harm, not trying to make any trouble.
Marginalising people ‘unfair’
“To marginalise those people just seems unfair, and not right.”Framhein said he also wanted to see the Cook Islands reverse its 2023 decision which legalised same sex relations. He said this was a “Western concept”, acceptable elsewhere in the world but not in the Cook Islands.
Tatryana Utanga, president of rainbow organisation Te Tiare Association, said it was not clear what the Christian nation submission was trying to achieve.
However, she is worried that it would sideline minority groups.
“Should this impeach or encroach on the work that we’ve been doing already, it would be a complete reverse in the wrong direction.
“We’d be taking steps backwards in our advocacy to achieve love and acceptance and equality in the Cook Islands.”
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by APR editor.This post was originally published on Radio Free.
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“There has almost always been an outright hostility that is shown towards people of the Christian faith,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said on a podcast recently. He was talking with Tony Perkins, a former Louisiana lawmaker and president of the Family Research Council, about freedom of religion and the actions of the second Trump administration. I have to admit that such a statement from this…
This post was originally published on Latest – Truthout.
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Asia Pacific Report
An independent Jewish body has condemned the move by Australia’s 39 universities to endorse a “dangerous and politicised” definition of antisemitism which threatens academic freedom.
The Jewish Council of Australia, a diverse coalition of Jewish academics, lawyers, writers and teachers, said in a statement that the move would have a “chilling effect” on legitimate criticism of Israel, and risked institutionalising anti-Palestinian racism.
The council also criticised the fact that the universities had done so “without meaningful consultation” with Palestinian groups or diverse Jewish groups which were critical of Israel.
- READ MORE: With words they try to jail us — US universities are not citadels of freedom
- Australian universities agree to antisemitism definition that bans calling for Israel’s elimination
- Other university freedom of speech reports
The definition was developed by the Group of Eight (Go8) universities and adopted by Universities Australia.
“By categorising Palestinian political expression as inherently antisemitic, it will be unworkable and unenforceable, and stifle critical political debate, which is at the heart of any democratic society,” the Jewish Council of Australia said.
“The definition dangerously conflates Jewish identities with support for the state of Israel and the political ideology of Zionism.”
The council statement said that it highlighted two key concerns:
Mischaracterisation of criticism of Israel
The definition states: “Criticism of Israel can be antisemitic when it is grounded in harmful tropes, stereotypes or assumptions and when it calls for the elimination of the State of Israel or all Jews or when it holds Jewish individuals or communities responsible for Israel’s actions.”The definition’s inclusion of “calls for the elimination of the State of Israel” would mean, for instance, that calls for a single binational democratic state, where Palestinians and Israelis had equal rights, could be labelled antisemitic.
Moreover, the wording around “harmful tropes” was dangerously vague, failing to distinguish between tropes about Jewish people, which were antisemitic, and criticism of the state of Israel, which was not, the statement said.
Misrepresentation of Zionism as core to Jewish identity
The definition states that for most Jewish people “Zionism is a core part of their Jewish identity”.The council said it was deeply concerned that by adopting this definition, universities would be taking and promoting a view that a national political ideology was a core part of Judaism.
“This is not only inaccurate, but is also dangerous,” said the statement.
“Zionism is a political ideology of Jewish nationalism, not an intrinsic part of Jewish identity.
“There is a long history of Jewish opposition to Zionism, from the beginning of its emergence in the late-19th century, to the present day. Many, if not the majority, of people who hold Zionist views today are not Jewish.”
In contrast to Zionism and the state of Israel, said the council, Jewish identities traced back more than 3000 years and spanned different cultures and traditions.
Jewish identities were a rightly protected category under all racial discrimination laws, whereas political ideologies such as Zionism and support for Israel were not, the council said.
Growing numbers of dissenting Jews
“While many Jewish people identify as Zionist, many do not. There are a growing number of Jewish people worldwide, including in Australia, who disagree with the actions of the state of Israel and do not support Zionism.“Australian polling in this area is not definitive, but some polls suggest that 30 percent of Australian Jews do not identify as Zionists.
“A recent Canadian poll found half of Canadian Jews do not identify as Zionist. In the United States, more and more Jewish people are turning away from Zionist beliefs and support for the state of Israel.”
Sarah Schwartz, a human rights lawyer and the Jewish Council of Australia’s executive officer, said: “It degrades the very real fight against antisemitism for it to be weaponised to silence legitimate criticism of the Israeli state and Palestinian political expressions.
“It also risks fomenting division between communities and institutionalising anti-Palestinian racism.”
This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.
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US vice-president told litany of tales of Europe’s rights infringements in speech to leaders at defence gathering
In JD Vance’s confrontational and pugnacious speech at the Munich Security Conference, the vice-president ran through a series of examples to highlight his claims that Europe has gone off the rails. Here, we look at what he said – and whether it stacks up.
Continue reading…This post was originally published on Human rights | The Guardian.
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Dozens of religious organizations, representing millions of Christian and Jewish believers across the U.S., have filed a joint lawsuit against the Trump administration over its change in policy relating to detaining immigrants in “sensitive locations” — chiefly, in places of worship. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) upended decades of precedent on the second day of President Donald…
This post was originally published on Latest – Truthout.
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The International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) is offering a free online training course for human rights defenders working on cases relating to freedom of religion or belief (FoRB).
Taking place from 17–27 February, the programme is divided into 16 sessions covering all the theoretical and practical knowledge required to promote and protect the fundamental right to FoRB.
The programme will be delivered by leading experts in the field of human rights and/or FoRB, including Dr Nazila Ghanea, United Nations Special Rapporteur on FoRB; Professor Fernand de Varennes, former UN Special Rapporteur on minority issues; the Honourable Hina Jilani, IBAHRI co-chair, member of The Elders and advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan; and Rangita de Silva de Alwis, IBAHRI vice chair and a member of the treaty body to the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
The IBAHRI is delivering the training in collaboration with the Rule of Law Expertise UK (ROLE UK). ROLE UK is a programme of the Advocates for International Development (A4ID), funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. A4ID is a global charity working to strengthen the rule of law in developing countries by supporting partnerships to provide high-quality pro bono legal and judicial expertise.
This post was originally published on Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards.
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On the day I celebrated my 80th birthday I decided to become an author who would write best sellers. I had written a few books about fund raising in my earlier life, as well as a biography for my family, but no serious novels that could find a place on shelves of book shops. So, …
Continue reading WHEN YOU REACH AGE EIGHTY IT’S TIME TO START WRITING BOOKS.
The post WHEN YOU REACH AGE EIGHTY IT’S TIME TO START WRITING BOOKS. appeared first on Everald Compton.
This post was originally published on My Articles – Everald Compton.
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Read more on this topic in Vietnamese
Vietnam barred all three of the country’s delegates from attending a U.S. meeting on religious freedom, stark evidence, activists said, of how little it values its commitment to freedom of worship.
The two-day International Religious Freedom Summit, organized by dozens of non-governmental organizations, began on Monday in Washington.
On Jan. 28, two officials of the Cao Dai religious movement, Nguyen Xuan Mai and Nguyen Ngoc Dien, were barred from leaving the country on their way to the U.S. conference when they tried to fly out of Ho Chi Minh City..
Cao Dai draws from the teachings of Buddha and Jesus Christ. The 1926 Pure Cao Dai group, which one of the delegates belonged to, is not part of the Cao Dai group established by the government in 1997 and is not recognized as a legitimate religious organization in Vietnam.
Vietnamese authorities cited national security concerns for refusing to allow the two to leave, as they did when barring Thich Nhat Phuoc of the Unified Buddhist Sangha from leaving two days earlier. The monk’s religious order is not registered with the government, a legal requirement in Vietnam.
Thich Nhat Phuoc told Radio Free Asia that the government did not allow him to attend the U.S. conference to talk about the government’s destruction of the Son Linh Pagoda in Kon Tum province when he was abbot there.
“The Vietnamese government has blocked all three victim-witnesses of religious persecution from joining the IRF Summit, which highlights the repressive environment faced by non-state-sanctioned religions and religious communities as they practice their faith,” said summit co-organizer and president of human rights group Boat People SOS Thang Nguyen.
“We will make sure that the international community takes appropriate actions in response.”
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More than 30 Vietnamese religious activists living outside the country are taking part in the summit, which has attracted more than 1,000 delegates from around the world, including more than 40 parliamentarians and 71 international civil society organizations.
Nguyen Dinh Thang, the chairman of Boat People SOS said he wanted the conference to pay attention to the state of repression in Vietnam.
“We have two main expectations. First, to make Vietnam a central issue at this international conference,” he told RFA.
“Second is to lobby the U.S. government, with the support of many civil society organizations and leaders in the religious freedom movement, to lobby the U.S. government to apply sanctions against Vietnamese officials who are behind the serious, systematic and long-term repression.”
Minority rights
Activist Vang Seo Gia of the Hmong Human Rights Coalition, who resettled in the United States last year, attended the religious conference with the goal of speaking out about the plight of ethnic minority Hmong people in Vietnam.
“About 100,000 Hmong people are currently stateless. They have lived for nearly 30 years without any identification documents,” he said.
“We came here to lobby the U.S. government to let them know about the stateless Hmong people and work with the Vietnamese government to help these Hmong people claim their right to citizenship.”
Y Phic Hdok is a founding member of Montagnards Stand For Justice, which fights for religious freedom and human rights of indigenous peoples in Vietnam’s Central Highlands. He said the group would speak at the religious summit about prisoners of conscience like one of the group’s founding members, Y Quynh Bdap.
He is being held in Thailand and faces being sent back to Vietnam to serve a 10-year prison sentence for “terrorism” for which he was convicted in absentia despite protesting his innocence. Y Quynh Bdap is planning to appeal against deportation.
RFA emailed the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs with a request for comment on the opinions of Vietnamese activists at the conference but did not receive a response.
Translated by RFA Vietnamese. Edited by Mike Firn.
This content originally appeared on Radio Free Asia and was authored by RFA Vietnamese.This post was originally published on Radio Free.
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The first time I sat down at a Quaker meeting I started to cry. Outside, it was a hot and frenetic summer day in the city. But the quiet, light-filled sanctuary was just that — a refuge. I hadn’t realized how deeply I’d yearned for the calm until I was enveloped in it. I, like many other queer people, have a fraught relationship with organized religion. Still, nearly three years ago…
This post was originally published on Latest – Truthout.
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Many of my friends and followers don’t read books, they listen to them. They do so for many reasons, but mainly its because they just don’t have time to sit down and read. So they enjoy listening to books while they ride on buses trains ferries planes or while driving cars trucks taxis ubers tractors …
Continue reading “WALKING WITH THE MAN” IS NOW AN AUDIO BOOK.
The post “WALKING WITH THE MAN” IS NOW AN AUDIO BOOK. appeared first on Everald Compton.
This post was originally published on My Articles – Everald Compton.
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“Hindu bachhe kabhi Santa nahi banenge. Hindu sanskriti ka apmaan hum nahi sahenge. Jai Sri Ram!” (Hindu children will never be dressed as Santas. We will not tolerate any insult to the Hindu culture.)
On December 22, 2024, Sudarshan News Jodhpur posted videos on its Facebook channel in which a man can be heard telling reporters this outside Jodhpur’s Shree Mahesh Shikshan Sansthan, also known as the MSS World School.
He proudly proclaims that once Bajrang Dal learned about Christmas celebrations in the school, they made it stop and had the adornments removed. Bajrang Dal is the youth wing of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), a far-Right Hindu organisation that also has associations with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Another video by the propaganda outlet shows this man inside the school. Addressing the camera, he says, “We will not accept this kind of an event (Christmas),” as other men take down the tinsel and decor. The song “Bharat Ka Baccha Baccha Jai Sri Ram Bolega” plays in the background.
The accompanying caption by Sudarshan News Jodhpur said that “conversion had spread like Cancer” under the previous government and, now, under chief minister Bhajanlal Sharma’s regime, Right-wing organisations will “expose anti-national elements one by one.”
What happened in this school, however, was not an isolated instance. In the days leading up to December 25, 2024, numerous social media accounts that identify as pro-Hindu or associate themselves with the Bajrang Dal took to social media, urging parents across the country to refrain from dressing their children as “jokers” — a crude reference to Santa Claus costumes. Below are some examples:
Click to view slideshow.But it didn’t stop at that. While investigating incidents of targeted hate towards Christians, especially during Christmas, Alt News identified a troubling trend. Many affiliated with or claiming to be affiliated with pro-Hindu organisation Bajrang Dal were targeting schools celebrating Christmas.
District-level social media accounts that identified with Bajrang Dal or the VHP brazenly flexed this intervention by uploading videos showing Christmas decor being stripped off, celebrations being halted and “lessons” being taught to school authorities on what should and should not be celebrated.
Surprisingly, much of the footage that came to our attention was of vigilantes disrupting these celebrations in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state Gujarat.
‘Why Should We Celebrate Their Festival?’
On December 25, the Instagram handle of Vishva Hindu Parishad Gandhidham (@vhp_gandhidham) posted a video showing men wearing saffron stoles with the Bajrang Dal signage claiming that these workers from the Bapunagar district in Gujarat stopped a Christmas program in a school and informed everyone that children are the form of God, not ‘jokers’.
Alt News was able to identify two schools from Ahmedabad in this edited montage — South International School and Rising Kids Preschool in the Naroda and Bapunagar districts, respectively. A ‘Before and After’ comparison in the video by the VHP-associated account showed the schools done up for Christmas taking down all decorations after a conversation between these saffron-clad individuals and school authorities.
An Instagram account going by the name Bajrang Dal Naroda Jila (@bajrang_dal_narodajilla) uploaded multiple videos documenting similar actions by them across various schools in the Naroda district. These videos were deleted after Alt News began reaching out to official members of the Bajrang Dal and VHP for comment.
In one such video posted on December 24, a group of people wearing saffron scarfs with “Jai Sri Ram” written on them in Gujarati are seen speaking to authorities at the Ankur International School. A similar ‘Before-After’ comparison showed decorations previously adorning the primary school being removed. The accompanying caption said that ‘Bajrangi brothers’ went to the school and taught a lesson on Sanatan Dharma in “their own way”.
In another video uploaded by the same Instagram account on December 24, a similar chain of events unfolds at Little Angels’ School. In the video, a saffron-clad man is also seen tearing a hand-painted cutout of Santa Claus to pieces. The caption accompanying the video says that the group protested against celebrations happening on Christmas Eve at the playschool. On the same day, a similar group entered the premises of the district’s Excellent School. A video shows students removing Christmas decorations from the bedecked campus.
Ankur English School in the same area also faced a similar ordeal. In a video shared by the account, a group of people can be seen having an animated discussion with authorities at the academy. One of them says in Gujarati, “They (Christians) comprise only 2% of the population; they don’t celebrate Ram Navami, so why should we celebrate their festival?” He adds that the holiday should not be on account of Christmas but Tulsi Puja Diwas. The caption accompanying this video said that teachers at this school were instructed to teach their students about the values of “Sanatan Dharma” instead of Santa and Christmas.
Meanwhile, another video showed children at Saijpur Sarkari Hindi Medium School being made to chant “Jay Shree Ram” and recite Hanuman Chalisa, a devotional hymn dedicated to the Hindu god Hanuman.
Alt News analysed each of these videos several times to ascertain the schools involved and identify the people in them. We were able to ascertain that while these groups might have been disparate, at least a few faces were common in most of them. All the individuals we tracked from these videos identify as pro-Right on their social media accounts and regularly amplify content linked to the VHP or Bajrang Dal.
Other district-level Instagram accounts associated with the Bajrang Dal or VHP also uploaded similar videos. For instance, on December 25, the accounts of Bajrang Dal Kalol (@bajrangdal.kalol), Bajrang Dal Mehsana (@bajrangdal_mehsana) and Bajrang Dal Nandasan Prakhand (@bajrangdal_nandasan_prakhand) collaboratively uploaded footage of workers directing authorities at Shree Narayana Higher Secondary School in Kathwada to remove decorations. The video clearly shows painted cutouts of Santa Claus with a reindeer and a Christmas tree, likely made by the children there being taken down.
Likewise, on December 24, Bajrang Dal Amaraiwadi (@bajrangdal_amraiwadi) posted footage of a group of saffron-clad men visiting different schools in Ahmedabad’s Hatkeswar locality. The video, which opens with men riding motorcycles and screaming “Jay Shree Ram” on the streets, shows them entering The Mother English School in the area. Here, they have a heated discussion with school authorities and soon after, one of those visibly identifying with the pro-Hindu group can be seen tearing down Christmas and Santa drawings, which looked like they were made by children. In the next shot, another man tears down streamers while a student is seen taking off his Santa Claus costume. The group then goes on to disrupt Christmas celebrations at St. Lawrence Public School.
A deep dive into these videos also led us to the Instagram account of a Pankaj B Nai (@pankajbnai_3636), who identifies as a Bajrang Dal worker. He uploaded the same video claiming, in the caption, that Bajrang Dal workers went to 15 schools in the Hatkeshwar area and put an end to programs deemed contrary to Hindu culture.
Alt News reached out to all of these schools for comment. Four of them anonymously confirmed that these events did happen; people claiming they were from the VHP or Bajrang Dal visited the schools and tried halting celebrations.
“They are little (kids) and we have Christian children studying here as well. We celebrate all festivals. But Bajrang Dal members coerced us into halting the program and sending students home,” a spokesperson from one of the schools said on condition of anonymity. “Humne poocha toh unhone kaha ki upar se order hai.” (When we asked they told us the orders were from higher up.) “We have to live and work here and we have to prioritise the safety of the students and faculty,” this person added when we asked whether they reached out to the police.
Other schools did not comment or elaborate but did not outright deny that it happened.
Alt News also reached out to Vishva Hindu Parishad Gujarat’s spokesperson, Hitendra Rajput, who looked into some of the videos and said that none of the Instagram accounts uploading these videos actually belonged to the VHP or Bajrang Dal. “These are not our workers. These are not verified accounts and we don’t know who these people are, we only have one primary social media account which is for all of Gujarat,” Rajput told Alt News. When asked if the VHP would take any action against these people, Rajput said they would look into it now that it’s come to his attention. He clearly said that the VHP or Bajrang Dal has no official district-level social media accounts.
However, a day after we reached out to Rajput, many of the videos from VHP Naroda’s Instagram account and a few from other VHP and Bajrang Dal-associated accounts were deleted. Alt News had archived them when they were live. Additionally, these accounts that Rajput said were not officially affiliated to VHP or Bajrang Dal regularly share images and videos of VHP-led events and programs.
Gujarat Leads the Charge, Other States Follow
While our investigation primarily focused on Gujarat, we found more such incidents of Right-wing vigilantes teaching schools “a lesson” in other states as well.
One video from Nakur in Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur district shows a group of men entering a school named Our Heaven Academy, where a program is going on and some can be seen wearing Santa Claus hats. When we reached out to the school, they said that Bajrang Dal workers tried to stop a “farewell program” that coincidentally happened to take place on December 25 and asked why students were in school on a holiday.
On December 20, in Kerala’s Palakkad district, three VHP members entered the premises of Nallepilly Government Upper Primary School, which was decked up for Christmas and proceeded to vandalize the decorations. The school authorities filed a complaint in which they said that VHP members questioned and verbally abused them. Workers of the Right-wing body reportedly asked whether the school observed Krishna Jayanti before calling them out for celebrating Christmas.
The three members, identified as K Anilkumar, V Susasanan, and K Velayudhan, were arrested by the police for harassing the school faculty. Three days after this, a Christmas crib arranged for celebrations at the Government Boys School at Thathamangalam, in Palakkad, was destroyed.
Many of the incidents that Alt News documented were available on social media and in the public domain, easily accessible for all to see. But this also means that there could be more such cases that may never come to light because there is no record of them online or, like in the case of the videos by VHP Naroda Jila, have now been wiped away from the digital space.
The post ‘Why should Indian schools celebrate Christmas?’ Saffron sees red, strikes appeared first on Alt News.
This content originally appeared on Alt News and was authored by Shinjinee Majumder.This post was originally published on Radio Free.
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COMMENTARY: By Nick Rockel
People get ready
There’s a train a-coming
You don’t need no baggage
You just get on board
All you need is faith
To hear the diesels humming
Don’t need no ticket
You just thank the LordSongwriter: Curtis Mayfield
You might have seen Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde’s speech at the National Prayer Service in the United States following Trump’s elevation to the highest worldly position, or perhaps read about it in the news.
It’s well worth watching this short clip of her sermon if you haven’t, as the rest of this newsletter is about that and the reaction to it:
‘May I ask you to have mercy Mr President.’ Video: C-SpanI found the sermon courageous, heartfelt, and, above all, decent. It felt like there was finally an adult in the room again. Predictably, Trump and his vile little Vice-President responded like naughty little boys being reprimanded, reacting with anger at being told off in front of all their little mates.
That response will not have surprised the Bishop. As she prepared to deliver the end of her sermon, you could see her pause to collect her thoughts. She knew she would be criticised for what she was about to say, yet she had the courage to speak it regardless.
What followed was heartfelt and compelling, as the Bishop talked of the fears of LGBT people and immigrants.
Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde’s speaking at the National Prayer Service. Image: C-Span screenshot She spoke of them as if they were human beings like the rest of us, saying they pay their taxes, are not criminals, and are good neighbours.
The president did not want to hear her message. His anger was building as his snivelling sidekick looked toward him to see how the big chief would respond.
The President didn’t want to hear her message. Image: C-Span screenshot Vented on social media
So, how did the leader of the free world react? Did he take it on the chin, appreciating that he now needed to show leadership for all, or did he call the person asking him to show compassion — “nasty”?That’s right, it was the second one. I’m afraid there’s no prize for that as you’re all excluded due to inside knowledge of that kind of behaviour from observing David Seymour. The ACT leader responds in pretty much the same way when someone more intelligent and human points out the flaws in his soul.
Donald then went on his own Truth social media platform, which he set up before he’d tamed the Tech Oligarchs, and vented, “The so-called bishop who spoke at the National Prayer Service on Tuesday morning was a radical left hard-line Trump hater”.
Which isn’t very polite, but when you think about it, his response should be seen as a badge of honour. Especially for someone of the Christian faith because all those who follow the teachings of Christ ought to be “radical left hard-line Trump haters”, or else they’ve rather missed the point. Don’t you think?
Certainly, pastor and activist John Pavlovitz thought so, saying, “Christians who voted for him, you should be ashamed of yourselves. Of course, if you were capable of shame, you’d never have voted for him to begin with.”
Pastor and activist John Pavlovitz responds. I thought it was a bit rich for a man who has used the church and the bible in order to sell himself to false Christians who worship money, who has even claimed divine intervention from God, to then complain about the Bishop not staying in her lane.
Speaking out against bigotry
If religious leaders don’t speak out against bigotry, hatred, and threats to peaceful, decent human beings — then what’s the point?Wow. Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde fearlessly calls out Trump and Vance to their faces. This is heroic. pic.twitter.com/igyKzC8dRo
— MeidasTouch (@MeidasTouch) January 21, 2025
I admired Budde’s bravery. Just quietly, the church hasn’t always had the best record of speaking out against those who’ve said the sort of things that Trump is saying.If you’re unclear what I mean, I’m talking about Hitler, and it’s nice to see the church, or at least the Bishop, taking the other side this time around. Rather than offering compliance and collaboration, as they did then and as the political establishment in America is doing now.
Aside from all that, it feels like a weird, topsy-turvy world when the church is asking the government to be more compassionate towards the LGBT community.
El Douche hadn’t finished and said, “Apart from her inappropriate statements, the service was a very boring and uninspiring one. She is not very good at her job! She and her church owe the public an apology!”
It’s like he just says the opposite of what is happening, and people are so stupid or full of hate that they accept it, even though it’s obviously false.
So, the Bishop is derided as “nasty” when she is considerate and kind. She is called “Not Smart” when you only have to listen to her to know she is an intelligent, well-spoken person. She is called “Ungracious” when she is polite and respectful.
Willing wretches
As is the case with bullies, there are always wretches willing to support them and act similarly to win favour, even as many see them for what they are.Mike Collins, a Republican House representative, tweeted, “The person giving this sermon should be added to the deportation list.”
Isn’t that disgusting? An elected politician saying that someone should be deported for daring to challenge the person at the top, even when it is so clearly needed.
Echoing the teachings of Jesus and calling out Trump’s cruelty, ignorance, and bigotry to his face, Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde delivers a sermon for the ages. Bishop Budde stared down authoritarian fascism and said ‘Not today, motherfucker.’
pic.twitter.com/JDBDa5RAgs— Bill Madden (@maddenifico) January 21, 2025
Fox News host Sean Hannity said, “Instead of offering a benediction for our country, for our president, she goes on the far-left, woke tirade in front of Donald Trump and JD Vance, their families, their young children. She made the service about her very own deranged political beliefs with a disgraceful prayer full of fear-mongering and division.”
Perhaps most despicably, Robert Jeffress, the pastor of Dallas’s First Baptist Church, tweeted this sycophantic garbage:
Attended national prayer service today at the Washington National Cathedral during which Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde insulted rather than encouraged our great president @realDonaldTrump. There was palpable disgust in the audience with her words. @POTUS
— Dr. Robert Jeffress (@robertjeffress) January 21, 2025
Those cronies of Trump seem weak and dishonest to me compared to the words of Bishop Budde herself, who said the following after her sermon:“I wanted to say there is room for mercy, there’s room for a broader compassion. We don’t need to portray with a broadcloth in the harshest of terms some of the most vulnerable people in our society, who are, in fact, our neighbours, our friends, our children, our friends, children, and so forth.”
Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde a courageous stand. Image: https://cathedral.org/about/leadership/the-rt-rev-mariann-edgar-budde/
Over the next four years, many Americans will have to choose between speaking up on issues they believe in or remaining silent and nodding in agreement.The Republican party has made its pact with the Donald, and the Tech Bros have fallen over each other in their desire to kiss his ass; it will be a dark time for many regular people, no doubt, to stand up for what they believe in even as those with power and privilege fall in line behind the tyrant.
Decoding symbolism in Lord of the Flies. Image: https://wr1ter.com/decoding-symbolism-in-lord-of-the-flies In my view Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde is a hero, and she does herself great credit with this courageous, compassionate, Christian stand
First published by Nick’s Kōrero and republished with permission. For more of Nick Rockel’s articles or to subscribe to his blog, click here.
This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.
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Critics are condemning President Donald Trump for his attacks on a bishop who urged him during a religious service this week to govern mercifully, particularly when it comes to LGBTQ people and immigrants. Mariann Edgar Budde, the bishop of the Washington, D.C. diocese for the Episcopal Church, gave a sermon at an interfaith National Prayer Service in that city on Tuesday.
This post was originally published on Latest – Truthout.
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