A Greek Orthodox ex-bishop recently appeared on national television to confirm the Church’s stance against abortion and then went on to make comments about rape that have sparked outrage throughout the Southeastern European country.
Eighty-three-year-old Metropolitan Chrysostomos of Dodoni, Greek Orthodox Bishop from 1976 to 2011, appeared on Skai TV on September 2. After confirming the Church’s stance against abortion, he explained why there should be no exceptions for rape.
In February 2019, two major newspapers in Texas released the findings of a year-long study on sexual abuse within Southern Baptist churches. The report revealed that over the last 20 years, more than 700 cases have been filed. The church reacted by bringing in the investigative firm, Guidepost Solutions, which reported that church leaders had mishandled claims and mistreated abuse survivors. Now federal officials have launched their own investigation. On August 12, Southern Baptist Convention officials announced the U.S. Department of Justice investigation.
A 70-year-old man and two other gay men were sentenced to death by stoning in Bauchi, Nigeria. The accused were charged and convicted for engaging in acts of homosexuality. They were arrested by the religious police force of the state on June 14.
A woman who sued a police officer for allegedly forcing her to be baptized was found dead in her home on April 13. The 42-year-old Shandele Marie Riley's body was discovered in her home in Log Cabin Lane in Soddy Daisy, Tennessee.
According to Hamilton County Police, Riley's cause of death is still unknown. The police are waiting for the medical examiner's autopsy reports to check for any foul play involved.
A Mexican Muslim woman who was employed to help organize the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar was forced to leave the country after being sexually assaulted. Paola Schietekat worked in Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy when a colleague sexually assaulted her last June.
A 2,500-page report documenting more than 330 thousand cases of sexual abuse was released by a commission headed by France’s Jean-Marc Sauve on October 5, 2021. The document also counted 3 thousand priests and clergy members, including other church servants involved in the coordinated coverup. Victims and advocates believe that the report is long overdue but welcomes it warmly.
On Aug. 1, A 9-year old girl that belongs to the Dalit community, India’s lowest caste, was murdered after being gang-raped. Her body was forcibly cremated by the same men who committed the gruesome crime. The crime occurred in a Delhi Cantonment in southwest Delhi.
On July 15, Rev. Michael Cote, the bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Norwich, announced that the diocese filed for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The announcement was made amidst the string of lawsuits related to alleged sexual abuse at the Academy at Mount Saint John School.
An app called Sulli Deals has been posting personal information and pictures of Muslim women in India, tagging them, and posting them as “deal of the day.” The slew of posts and auctioning happened as early as the first week of July, until recently when the app was taken down.