Iraqis hope papal visit can help unify country's diverse communities
- Mar 2, 2021
Ethiopians on Friday welcomed what many people around the world might like to see: the beginning of a new year.
For nearly 200 years, Greek Orthodox faithful have flocked to the Aegean island of Tinos for the August 15 feast day of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, the most revered religious holiday in the Orthodox calendar after Easter.
The 160-year-old palace withstood two world wars, the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the French mandate and Lebanese independence. After the country’s 1975-1990 civil war, it took 20 years of careful restoration for the family to bring the palace back to its former glory.
After a three year halt due to financial problems, work resumed Monday on a Greek Orthodox church being built to replace one destroyed in the attack on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is scheduled to join hundreds of worshippers Friday for the first Muslim prayers at the Hagia Sophia in 86 years, after a controversial high court ruling paved the way for the landmark monument to be turned back into a mosque.