One thousand Christians have been forced from their place of worship in a city in eastern China after Communist Party officials decided their 10-storey mega-church was an eyesore that needed to be destroyed.

A mosque in Auckland has been shut down indefinitely following violent attacks and the declaration of jihad, or holy war, against private security staff.

A group of 26 Italian women who claim to be having affairs with Roman Catholic priests have written a joint letter to the Pope begging him to end the Catholic Church's ban on priests having sex and getting married.

Boko Haram is prepared to start releasing up to half of the kidnapped schoolgirls in the coming days after dropping demands for the release of top commanders in talks with the Nigerian government, sources close to the group have said.

Haider Lone, immediate past president of the NZ Muslim Association and administrator of the Avondale Islamic Centre, says he fears for his life as he believes the attack was an assassination attempt.

International outrage is growing after a heavily pregnant young woman was sentenced to death in Sudan for renouncing Islam and marrying a Christian man.

The Anglican Church has agreed to look at ways same-sex relationships can be part of church life, but will not marry gay couples.

A Salafist imam who taught two men who were stopped from leaving New Zealand to join the war in Syria says he is no terrorist.

A Muslim imam accused of teaching "extreme Islam" has been barred for a second time from his Auckland mosque sparking a row between worshippers.

Religious leaders in the UK want all halal and kosher meat labelled with slaughter methods. With a large chunk of NZ lamb sold there, are our exports at risk?

The Anglican Church faces a decision about gays and lesbians in the church this coming week.

Last week's newspaper delivered a comical cavalcade of delights.

Nigerian troops were reported to be massing for an assault to try to free hundreds of schoolgirls kidnapped by a militant Islamist group.

It was a total Pope-fest. Two living pontiffs - the incumbent and his immediate predecessor - presided at the canonisation of two deceased vicars of Christ.

A City known as China's Jerusalem has had its holy statues depicting biblical scenes destroyed, removed or "hidden" by authorities, adding to fears of a renewed offensive against Christianity and drawing comparisons with the Cultural Revolution.

A team of Catalan archaeologists believes it has unearthed one of the earliest images of Jesus Christ buried deep in an ancient Egyptian tomb.

200 years after NZ's first service, some churches are riding a resurgence in which theology and pastoral care merge with pragmatic acceptance of sex, booze and rock’n’roll.

Roman Catholic devotees in northern Philippines nailed themselves to crosses as hundreds gathered to watch the annual crucifixion re-enactment.

Shattered, gutted and shocked beyond words, the despondent group of men and women clung to each other for comfort and reassurance.

Easter is coming with eggs and other trivia; Christ will be ignored, writes Bruce Logan.

Only fifty percent of Kiwis reported themselves as 'Christian' in the 2013 census, writes Paul Morris. But what does Easter really mean to most NZers?

This year, Anzac Day closely follows Easter, the most sacredly held period for Christians. One of these narratives is deeply embedded in fact, the other, myth, writes Sam Clements.

Mahatma Gandhi was once asked what was the greatest obstacle to the extension of Christianity. He answered: "Christianity."

No matter how positive a spin Christian leaders put on them, the Census figures on religion are not good news for the Christian church in New Zealand. Decline is loss, not only in numbers but also in influence.

Communist officials in China have denied waging a "demolition campaign" against churches in the country's most Christian regions, after reportedly ordering a dozen to be destroyed.