Religion News Selection
December 27, 2020 – January 3, 2021
A selection of religion news stories from Australia
(Research: Greg Spearritt)
INTERNATIONAL STORIES
Catholic Church
Argentina legalises abortion in historic vote (Sydney Morning Herald)
Dec 30 – Buenos Aires: Argentina on Wednesday became the largest nation in Latin America to legalise abortion, a landmark vote in a conservative region and a victory for a grassroots movement that turned years of rallies into political power.
Vatican says $2.3 billion transferred to Australia ‘like science fiction’ (Sydney Morning Herald)
Jan 1 – Vatican City: The Vatican and the Australian Catholic Church have both denied knowledge of transfers worth US$1.8 billion ($2.3 billion) which Australia’s financial watchdog says have been sent from Rome to Australia in the past seven years.
Islam
Australian citizen and campaigner for ex-Muslim women Zara Kay arrested in Tanzania (ABC News)
Jan 3 – An Australian woman who has renounced her Islamic faith and campaigns globally for women’s rights has been arrested and charged in Tanzania, the country of her birth.
Religious Violence
The obstacles that have made the Afghan peace talks so deadly (The Age, Melbourne)
Jan 2 – Kabul: After four decades of grinding combat in Afghanistan, peace negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban have raised at least a possibility that the long cycle of violence might someday end.
Other
Spirituality is all very well but don’t let it turn you into a smug monster (The Guardian, Australia)
Jan 2 – (Opinion: Barbara Ellen) It would appear that the mindfulness movement is overrun by preening narcissists.
