Stories about Religion from August, 2012
Saudi Arabia: The Best Way to Tell your Wife You Married Another Woman
On Twitter, Adel Abdel Ghafar shares a photograph of a “Cover of a #Saudi book titled ‘ the best way to tell your wife that you married another woman.'”
Ethiopia: Powerful and Political Church Patriarch Dies
The head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Abune Paulos, has died aged 76. Abune Paulos, spent the last two decades as the sole figure of the popular Ethiopian Orthodox Church leading 40 million Ethiopians (half the country's population.) His death has sparked a debate on religion and politics and re-triggered speculation about the whereabouts of Prime Minster Meles Zenawi.
India: Pictures of Varalakshmi Vratham Festival
Anuradha Shankar posts a photo essay on the Varalakshmi Vratham (a festival to propitiate the goddess Lakshmi), which is popular in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamilnadu.
Russia: Pussy Riot's Guilty Verdict
'The judge said one of the reasons for a “real sentence” was to “caution others”. ' - Russian and anglophone Twitter users respond to the guilty verdict and two-year prison sentence handed down to Pussy Riot members.
Malaysia: History of Islamic Education
Azmil Tayeb gives a brief overview of the history of Islamic schools in Malaysia. The author also discussed the role of the state in providing Islamic education in the country.
Pakistan: Shia Target Killings Continue
On August 16, 2012, gunmen stopped a passenger bus in Mansehra, pulled 20 Shia Muslims off and killed them in cold blood. This is the third incident of targeted killing against the Shia community in Pakistan in the last 6 months. A netizen comments: "Imagine if the first target killing incident in #Pakistan was dealt with judiciously, we would not have been mourning #gilgit today!"
Pakistan: Attack on Military Base in Kamra
In the early hours of August 16, 2012, gunmen launched an attack on Minhas, a high value air force base located in Kamra, near the capital Islamabad in Pakistan. After a fierce battle that lasted five hours, Pakistan's military was able to regain control of the base.
Iran: Disparity between conservative opinion blogs
A report in Storify shows the disparity between conservative bloggers in Iran, from Ramadan to murder of Muslims in Myanmar.
Pakistan: Economics And Secularism
Ayusyha Khanna at Pak Tea House argues that if Pakistan truly wants to realize its potential as far as economic performance is concerned, then it should adopt secularism to create an atmosphere of peace.
Russia: “The True Blasphemy” – Slavoj Žižek on Pussy Riot
Russian collective “Chto Delat? // What is to be done?” published an essay by Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Žižek, who considers Pussy Riot “conceptual artists in the noblest sense of the word: artists who embody an Idea,” and fight against the cynicism of power-mongers who strive to return Russia to the...
Zambia: Four Women Murdered in Possible Ritual Killings
A recent spate of murders of women in Lusaka, widely considered to be ritualistic killings, have shocked the nation to the core. Some online have sympathized with the families concerned and others are asking for the blood of the killer/s.
Russia: Church, Lies, & Opulence
A controversial photo blog post recently documented the 70th jubilee of the director of a Church-owned factory, striking a raw nerve in a society charged by the Pussy Riot trial. The details of the affair speak to the ease of creating a narrative through the withholding of information -- particularly online.
Puerto Rico: “Ateorizar” Takes Atheism Online
Finding an absence of online projects in Spanish about atheism, Puerto Rican blogger Manolo Matos started "Ateorizar." The podcast will be going to its third season next October, and the blog has received over 150,000 visits. Matos talks to Global Voices about his project.
Russia: Putin Refuses Controversial Kiss From Priest
"Father Mefodii has shown the way to all citizens, including Pussy [Riot]. In order to be forgiven, all must kiss Putin on the hand." While Putin was greeting local priests in Karelia, one of them suddenly lunged forward and tried to kiss his hand, the President instantly recoiled.
Sri Lanka: Buddhist Priest Robs Statue From Hindu Temple
D. B. S. Jeyaraj informs that a mob led by a Buddhist Priest had forcefully taken away a statue of Pillaiyar, the Elephant faced deity, from a Hindu temple in Panamai on the Eastern coastal district of Amparai in Sri Lanka.
Saudi Arabia: Ramadan Iftar to Say ‘No to Sectarianism’
A group of Saudi men decided to rise above sectarianism and held an Iftar which brought together members of the Sunni and Shia communities. The Riyadh event, held under the theme No to Sectarianism, is encouraging Saudis across the Kingdom to hold similar gatherings
Myanmar: Outrage Over ‘Buddha Shoes’
Myanmar netizens are outraged over the ‘Buddha shoes' created by a United States company called Icon Shoes. They flooded the website and Facebook page of the company with complaints and it seems to have worked because the controversial shoes have been removed from the online store
Zambia: Catholic Priest Deported for ‘Poverty’ Sermon
A Catholic priest from a parish in the rural Eastern Province of Zambia has been deported for a Sunday sermon in which he allegedly preached that the rich in the country were getting richer while the poor were getting poorer.
