Decisions of courts of law can both prevent and generate violence. The fathers of the Greek tragedy already knew it, as does—unfortunately—Tai Ji Men.
Massimo Introvigne
U.S. Ninth Circuit: State Should Not Deny Grants to Organizations That Hire Christians Only
Youth 71Five Ministries is a Christian organization that serves at-risk youth of all faiths. Oregon tried to withdraw $410,000 grants citing discrimination.
Kasur, Pakistan, Emerges as the Capital of Fabricated Blasphemy Accusations
A criminal case has been filed against two women in a city where in the past Christians had their houses destroyed and were even burned alive.
Why Are Several African Countries Attacking Freedom of Religion?
The deaths in Kenya of members of a congregations practicing extreme fasting are used as a pretext to severely limit freedom of religion in various countries.
Pakistan, Council of Islamic Ideology Asks for Even Harsher Persecution of the Ahmadis
While the legal saga of Mubarak Ahmed Sani remains subject to conflicting interpretations, what is clear is that Sunni authorities want the repression to continue.
Russian Anti-Cultist Blames “Cults” for the Ukrainian Counter-Offensive
Ukrainians, anti-cultist-in-chief Novopashin argues, only achieve some success because of “cults” that “destabilize society” in Russia with American support.
Injustice Is Served in Taiwan: A Wrong Administrative Decision Against Tai Ji Men
The Tai Ji Men case might have been solved by the Taichung High Administrative Court on August 2. The court missed the opportunity.
Two Falun Gong Practitioners Detained in Krasnodar Krai, Russia
Russian authorities and media continue to spread fake news, accusing the spiritual movement to conspire with the U.S. intelligence to incite “color revolutions.”
USCIRF Warns Against Fake News About Religious Minorities Spread by Governments
An excellent report focused on disinformation produced by non-democratic states such as Russia (quoting “Bitter Winter”) and China. It could have added that some democratic states do just the same.
Bangladesh, Religious Minorities, Including the Hare Krishna, in Danger
As it often happened in the country’s history, political unrest results in violence against non-Muslim communities.
Massimo Introvigne
Massimo Introvigne (born June 14, 1955 in Rome) is an Italian sociologist of religions. He is the founder and managing director of the Center for Studies on New Religions (CESNUR), an international network of scholars who study new religious movements. Introvigne is the author of some 70 books and more than 100 articles in the field of sociology of religion. He was the main author of the Enciclopedia delle religioni in Italia (Encyclopedia of Religions in Italy). He is a member of the editorial board for the Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion and of the executive board of University of California Press' Nova Religio. From January 5 to December 31, 2011, he has served as the "Representative on combating racism, xenophobia and discrimination, with a special focus on discrimination against Christians and members of other religions" of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). From 2012 to 2015 he served as chairperson of the Observatory of Religious Liberty, instituted by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in order to monitor problems of religious liberty on a worldwide scale.