Religion news headlines

Members of a church group accused of killing an eight-year-old girl were singing on the front lawn of a house where police were photographing her body, a judge has heard.

An eight-year-old girl watched "joyously" as her father was baptised into a faith that would soon convince him to fatally withhold medical care and await her resurrection, a judge has heard.

The Alabama death row inmate said an autopsy would violate his religious beliefs as a practicing Muslim, a lawsuit says.

Fourteen religious group members charged with murder or manslaughter over a girl's death believed God would heal her diabetes without insulin, a judge heard.

Usman Khawaja has accused the opposition leader of stoking Islamophobia with comments about Muslim candidates potentially winning seats at the next federal election.

Protesters blocked a major highway after Israel's Supreme Court ordered the drafting of ultra-Orthodox youth into the military.

DFAT confirmed they were providing assistance to the family of an Australian who died in the country.

One list circulating online suggested at least 550 people died as temperatures reached up to 47 degrees.

Masses of pilgrims have embarked on a symbolic stoning of the devil in Saudi Arabia under the soaring summer heat, which saw 13 die of sunstroke.

He had used the term in reaffirming the Vatican's ban on allowing gay men to enter seminaries and be ordained priests.

Carlos Acutis was a computer prodigy who became knowns as 'God's influencer' for his work spreading Roman Catholic teaching online, before his sudden death from leukemia in 2006.

The Vatican has tightened up its guidance on recognising supernatural phenomena such as apparitions of the Virgin Mary and seemingly blood-soaked crucifixes.

In a fiery and at-times unruly meeting that stretched late into the night, councillors shouted and members of the public were ejected.

The parent said she was "worried" for the safety of her child and her family and raised concerns about the use of a prayer room.

Whether Pauline Hanson knew fellow senator Mehreen Faruqi was Muslim when she made an allegedly racist tweet is the subject of an 11th-hour twist in their bitter legal battle.

A woman who was suing Hillsong Church after being indecently assaulted eight years ago is on the verge of reaching an agreement with the embattled megachurch.

The 16-year-old has been charged with a terrorist offence over the attack on Monday.

A 16-year-old boy has been charged with committing a terrorist act after allegedly stabbing Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel at a church in Wakeley.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was allegedly stabbed by a 16-year-old in a terror attack at Christ the Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley on Monday night.

There are fears the labelling of the investigation could raise tensions in the community.

While many left the site after being told the vigil was not going ahead, a handful stuck around long enough to light a candle in a symbol of hope and prayer.

NSW Premier Chris Minns confirmed the stabbing of a bishop and a priest will be investigated as terrorism.

NSW Premier Chris Minns held a meeting with faith leaders from multiple western Sydney religious communities at 10.30pm on Monday.

Shots were fired as members of the city's Islamic community attended a religious gathering.

Christians around the world celebrated Easter in different ways, from vigils and parades to processions and egg hunts. Here is a glimpse into how the world marked Easter 2024.

The completion date of 2026 will come 144 years after the first stone was laid.

Millions celebrated by smothering one another in coloured powder or drinking a traditional cannabis-laced paste.

The service marks the beginning of Holy Week, the most sacred week in the church's calendar.

Brian Houston failed in a bid to have his legal costs covered after unsuccessfully being prosecuted for allegedly covering up his late father's child abuse.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is under fresh pressure to prevent discrimination against LGBT teachers and students.

Children play with fairy lights but the hum of Israeli drones cuts through the festivities as a reminder that this is no ordinary Ramadan in Gaza.

Narendra Modi's silence over anti-Muslim violence has emboldened extreme supporters and enabled hate speech against Muslims, critics argue

Millions tuned in across India to watch the opening of a vast Hindu temple, in a ceremony considered to be the crowning moment for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist ambitions months before he seeks to win a rare third term in elections.

The towering flight of rainbow stairs at the Batu Caves in Malaysia has made it popular with Instagrammer tourists.

A controversial spiritual leader, whose supporters believe he is the reincarnation of Buddha, has been arrested in Nepal over sexual abuse charges, according to local police.

A Catholic priest who married a teenager after leaving the country with her this summer has been removed from the priesthood, church officials announced on Friday.

Last year, more than 1.4 million people flocked to the Ramadan Night Markets in March and April.

The blessings may be carried out providing they are not part of regular Church rituals or liturgies, nor at the same time as a civil union, according to a Vatican document approved by the pope.

With a soft voice, barely above a whisper, Francis told the public that "I am not well".

It's a stunning lurch to the far right for a nation once famed as a beacon of tolerance.

Distraught locals and historians fear the immaculately kept 12th century building will now turn into rubble.

Diwali 2023 celebrations reached across India, with millions celebrating.

Joseph M. Czuba, 71, allegedly stabbed the child 26 times before he succumbed to injuries.

The roof of a church has collapsed in northern Mexico during a Sunday mass, killing at least nine people and injuring around 50.

TV footage and videos on social media showed an open area near a mosque strewn with the shoes of the dead and wounded.

A common prayer and a bite of street food was enough to put Lina Lutfiawati behind bars.

It's set to focus heavily on his Christian faith and touch on "cancel culture, identity politics and deep secularisation".

The man has been accused of attacking family members during a house fire.

From the decision to beatify an entire family, to the declaration an unbaptised baby was baptised in its "mother's blood", it's a move without precedent in the history of the Church.

A now-91-year-old disgraced priest has been charged with sexually assaulting a teenage boy in 1975.