Asia - Pacific News

An aerial view of tents installed at Sangam ahead of Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj on Jan. 7, 2025.

Indian bishops mourn stampede deaths at massive Hindu festival attended by millions

Feb 3, 2025

By Anto Akkara

“It is heartbreaking to witness such a calamity during a sacred event that draws millions in devotion,” Cardinal Filipe Neri... Read more

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South Korea priest feeds hungry youth with kimchi stew

Feb 1, 2025

By Daniel Payne

Father Gabriel Lee Mun-su is serving up bowls of rich Korean stew in Seoul via a restaurant ministry as a... Read more

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Church ‘frustrated’ over government takeover of school appointments in Gujarat, India

Jan 29, 2025

By Anto Akkara

The verdict “is frustrating for us. We are sad that it came just ahead of the 75th anniversary of the... Read more

The Minor Basilica and Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Manila, Philippines.

U.S. watchdog launches Philippines database of clergy accused of abuse against minors

Jan 29, 2025

By Kristina Millare

The U.S. group’s co-director launched the online database in the Philippines on Wednesday, urging the country’s bishops to take action... Read more

Supporters of a religious group march during a rally in support of Khalid Khan, who killed a man accused of blasphemy, in Peshawar on July 31, 2020.

Pakistan sentences 4 men to death for alleged blasphemy on the internet

Jan 28, 2025

By Andrés Henríquez

A Pakistani court has sentenced four men to death for allegedly posting blasphemous content against Islam on social media, a... Read more

Servant of God Akash Bashir.

Pakistani youth who gave his life to prevent terrorist attack is symbol of Christian unity

Jan 25, 2025

By Andrés Henríquez

Akash Bashir was a young Pakistani Salesian who sacrificed his life in 2015 to prevent a terrorist attack at his... Read more

A worshipper waves the flag of China as Pope Francis leaves following the weekly general audience on June 12, 2019, at St. Peter's Square at the Vatican.

Pope Francis approves transfer of Chinese bishop to Diocese of Fuzhou

Jan 23, 2025

By Hannah Brockhaus

The Vatican said the bishop’s candidacy was approved by Pope Francis on Jan. 15 under the terms of the “Provisional... Read more

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New Chinese bishop ordained under Vatican-China agreement

Jan 22, 2025

By Jonah McKeown

Pope Francis appointed Father Anthony Ji Weizhong as bishop of Lüliang on Oct. 28, 2024, having approved Weizhong in the... Read more

Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David receives his cardinal’s hat on Dec. 7, 2024.

The Philippines’ newest cardinal shares his conclave criteria

Jan 22, 2025

By Almudena Martínez-Bordiú

Meet Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines and vice president of the Federation... Read more

Women baptized by Prem Bhai climb to his memorial singing devotional songs during a 2018 observance of the Catholic missionary.

Christians in northeast India unfazed by bid to revive 46-year-old anti-conversion law

Jan 14, 2025

By Anto Akkara

The revival of the dormant law has been brought about by the Guwahati High Court, which ordered the state government... Read more

Aerial view from Flores Island, Indonesia.

Indonesian archbishop rejects government energy plans in majority Catholic island of Flores

Jan 14, 2025

By Kristina Millare

Indonesia’s Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry designated Flores a “geothermal spot” in 2017, identifying 16 project sites on the island... Read more

The Vatican on Jan. 10, 2024, announced the confirmation of the election of a new head of the Syro-Malabar Church, the largest Eastern Catholic church in India, Bishop Raphael Thattil.

India’s Syro-Malabar Church reshuffles leadership amid liturgical row

Jan 11, 2025

By AC Wimmer

The appointment, confirmed by Major Archbishop Mar Raphael Thattil on Jan. 11, follows the First Session of the XXXIII Synod... Read more

Filipino Catholic devotees jostle one another to touch the Black Nazarene during its annual procession on Jan. 9, 2025, in Manila, Philippines. The feast of the Black Nazarene is attended by millions of barefoot devotees and happens every Jan. 9.

Black Nazarene procession attracts millions in the Philippines

Jan 9, 2025

By Jonah McKeown

Taking place each year in January, the procession sees devotees carry across Manila a replica of a famous life-size statue... Read more

St. Francis Xavier statue in front St. Joseph Cathedral in Beijing, China, Feb. 25, 2016.

China’s oldest priest dies at 104: a life of faith amid 25 years of persecution

Jan 8, 2025

By Madalaine Elhabbal

Father Joseph Guo Fude was one of the few remaining Catholic priests in China who had been ordained prior to... Read more

People visit the St. Patrick Catholic Church, illuminated with decorative lights on Christmas Eve in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, on Dec. 24, 2024.

Leaders urge India’s Modi to curb spiraling violence against Christians

Jan 7, 2025

By Anto Akkara

“We cry out to you from the depths of our hearts when we are attacked in villages and towns in... Read more

Catholic Shigemi Fukahori stands in front of the former bell tower of the Urakami Cathedral in Nagasaki, Nagasaki Prefecture, on July 17, 2013.

Shigemi Fukahori, Catholic atomic bomb survivor and peace advocate, dies at 93

Jan 6, 2025

By Daniel Payne

In 2020, at a ceremony in Japan, the peace advocate said: “I am determined to send our message to make... Read more

Pope Francis on Jan. 6, 2025, appointed Father George Kolodziej, SDS, a Polish-born priest with extensive pastoral and counseling experience, as the new bishop of Bunbury, Western Australia.

Pope Francis names Polish priest as new bishop for Western Australia diocese

Jan 6, 2025

By AC Wimmer

The Perth-based priest brings decades of parish ministry and psychotherapy experience to his new role leading a diocese 1.5 times... Read more

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Catholics weigh in on Australia’s social media ban: ‘A void in our children’s spiritual lives’

Jan 2, 2025

By Jonah McKeown

Australian lawmakers recently passed a law — the first of its kind in the world — banning children under age... Read more

Altar servers.

Sri Lankan cardinal mandates male-only altar servers in Colombo Archdiocese

Dec 22, 2024

By Tyler Arnold

Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith explained that he issued the order because, he said, serving as an altar server can be a... Read more

A family gathers in a prefabricated house donated by the Philokalia Foundation in Kerala state in India.

Catholic groups offer prefabricated houses for victims of landslides in south India

Dec 17, 2024

By Anto Akkara

The devastating July 30 landslide that virtually wiped out two townships in the mountain areas claimed more than 400 lives... Read more