The Nagaland Baptist Church Council has voiced strong opposition to any directive making the singing of 'Vande Mataram' compulsory, especially for Christians. They argue that patriotism should not be reduced to forced conformity and that India's constitutional values of liberty, pluralism, and freedom of conscience must be respected. The council also called for dialogue and sensitivity from state institutions.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended a Christmas morning service at the Cathedral Church of the Redemption in Delhi, joining a large congregation. The service included prayers, carols, and a special prayer for the Prime Minister. The Vice President also extended Christmas greetings.
Christmas was celebrated with devotion and festive gaiety across India, with churches decked in lights, midnight masses, and community events spreading cheer. Leaders extended greetings, and celebrations took place in various states with prayers for peace and harmony.
Former head of the Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church and the longest-serving bishop in India Dr Philipose Mar Chrysostom died of age-related ailments on Wednesday, a church spokesman said.
Besides, Rs 360 crore will be allocated for Chief Ministers' Special Development Programme and Minorities Colony Development Programme in the year, he said.
'We have 150 institutions under us and not one is involved in conversions. If anyone is saying that we are indulging in conversions, then come before us and prove it. Each one has a right to follow a religion, but we are against forcible conversions.'
He also added that 2005 was the 100th anniversary of the first revival in Mizoram.
The 22-year-old from Almora, who had come close to winning an Olympic medal in Paris before finishing fourth, will undergo a series of tests at the Red Bull Athlete Performance Centre in Salzburg to get a detailed evaluation to rev up his fitness and game.
A bench of Justices DY Chandrachud and Hima Kohli said an attack on individuals does not mean it is an attack on the community but it needs to verify the claims of any such incident if it is made in the public interest litigation.
Along with the suggestions on how to tackle the pandemic, Dr Fauci -- the chief medical advisor to the Biden Administration and US' top epidemiologist -- also mentioned that victory against the virus declared by the Indian government was "premature".
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday hosted a delegation of lawmakers, civil rights activists and some of this country's leading musicians, including jazz great Herbie Hancock, on the eve of their setting off on a trip to India to retrace the late Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr's visit 50 years ago, and to commemorate the influence Mahatma Gandhi had on this civil rights icon and the passive resistance movement he founded.
Considered to be the worst ever civil unrest in the US in decades, the violent protests have engulfed at least 140 cities across America in the days following the death of Floyd, a 46-year-old man who was pinned to the ground in Minneapolis on Monday by a white police officer who kneeled on his neck as he gasped for breath.
What we know -- what we have seen -- is that India can change. That is the true genius of this nation.
Floyd died in Minneapolis on Monday after a white police officer pinned him to the ground. Video footage showed the officer kneeling on Floyd's neck as he gasped for breath. His death has triggered nationwide protests.
Rich tributes were paid to civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr across the United States on Monday even as there were protests over the deaths of unarmed black men and boys at the hands of police around the country.
The private funeral service at the University Church of St Mary the Great near Gonville and Caius College at Cambridge University was chosen by Professor Hawking's children.
Purvi Patel is the first woman in America to be sentenced to prison for foeticide. Chaya Babu/Rediff.com reports on the verdict and the ripples of shock and fear it set off.
'This can lift us out of confusion, misery, melancholy and failure, and indeed guide us when it is contacted.' 'For us to ignite our spirituality, we need to look inward and transcend our egos. We need to recognize, connect with and integrate the eternal spirit within,' says A P J Abdul Kalam in his latest book, Transcendence.
