Religions Around The World

In the early morning hours, monks can be seen walking on their alms round in Kanchanaburi, Thailand
Showing humility and detachment from worldly goods, the monk walks slowly and only stops if he is called. Standing quietly, with his bowl open, the local Buddhists give him rice, or flowers, or an envelope containing money.  In return, the monks bless the local Buddhists and wish them a long and fruitful life.
Christians Celebrate Good Friday
Enacting the crucifixion of Jesus Christ in St. Mary's Church in Secunderabad, India. Only 2.3% of India's population is Christian. 
Ancient interior mosaic in the Church of the Holy Saviour in Chora
The Church of the Holy Saviour in Istanbul, Turkey is a medieval Byzantine Greek Orthodox church.
Dome of the Rock located in the Old City of Jerusalem
The site's great significance for Muslims derives from traditions connecting it to the creation of the world and to the belief that the Prophet Muhammad's Night Journey to heaven started from the rock at the center of the structure.
Holi Festival in Mathura, India
Holi is a Hindu festival that marks the end of winter. Also known as the “festival of colors”,  Holi is primarily observed in South Asia but has spread across the world in celebration of love and the changing of the seasons.
Jewish father and daughter pray at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, Israel.
Known in Hebrew as the Western Wall, it is one of the holiest sites in the world. The description, "place of weeping", originated from the Jewish practice of mourning the destruction of the Temple and praying for its rebuilding at the site of the Western Wall.
People praying in Mengjia Longshan Temple in Taipei, Taiwan
The temple is dedicated to both Taoism and Buddhism.
People praying in the Grand Mosque in Ulu Cami
This is the most important mosque in Bursa, Turkey and a landmark of early Ottoman architecture built in 1399.
Savior Transfiguration Cathedral of the Savior Monastery of St. Euthymius
Located in Suzdal, Russia, this is a church rite of sanctification of apples and grapes in honor of the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord.
Fushimi Inari Shrine is located in Kyoto, Japan
It is famous for its thousands of vermilion torii gates, which straddle a network of trails behind its main buildings. Fushimi Inari is the most important Shinto shrine dedicated to Inari, the Shinto god of rice.
Ladles at the purification fountain in the Hakone Shrine
Located in Hakone, Japan, this shrine is a Japanese Shinto shrine.  At the purification fountain, ritual washings are performed by individuals when they visit a shrine. This ritual symbolizes the inner purity necessary for a truly human and spiritual life.
Hanging Gardens of Haifa are garden terraces around the Shrine of the Báb on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel
They are one of the most visited tourist attractions in Israel. The Shrine of the Báb is where the remains of the Báb, founder of the Bábí Faith and forerunner of Bahá'u'lláh in the Bahá'í Faith, have been buried; it is considered to be the second holiest place on Earth for Bahá'ís.
Pilgrims praying at the Pool of the Nectar of Immortality and Golden Temple
Located in Amritsar, India, the Golden Temple is one of the most revered spiritual sites of Sikhism. It is a place of worship for men and women from all walks of life and all religions to worship God equally. Over 100,000 people visit the shrine daily.
Entrance gateway of Sik Sik Yuen Wong Tai Sin Temple Kowloon
Located in Hong Kong, China, the temple is dedicated to Wong Tai Sin, or the Great Immortal Wong. The Taoist temple is famed for the many prayers answered: "What you request is what you get" via a practice called kau cim.
Christian women worship at a church in Bois Neus, Haiti.
Haiti's population is 94.8 percent Christian, primarily Catholic. This makes them one of the most heavily Christian countries in the world.

World Religions News

Donald Trump wins reelection, vowing ‘strong, safe, and prosperous America’

Republican presidential nominee former president Donald Trump points to supporters with former first lady Melania Trump during an election night event at the Palm Beach Convention Center on Nov. 6, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Florida. / Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

CNA Staff, Nov 6, 2024 / 05:45 am (CNA).

Donald Trump on Wednesday won his reelection bid for president, defeating Democratic opponent Vice President Kamala Harris and becoming the first president in nearly 130 years to secure a nonconsecutive White House victory. 

Multiple news networks called the race for the Republican president-elect on Wednesday morning. Fox News had called the race for Trump hours earlier.

Early Wednesday morning Trump had posted a 276-219 lead in the Electoral College over Harris as well as a 5 million lead in the popular vote.

“This was, I believe, the greatest political movement of all time,” Trump said in Florida in the early hours of Wednesday morning. “There’s never been anything like this in this country, and maybe beyond.”

“And now it’s going to reach a new level of importance because we’re going to help our country heal,” he said.

“Every citizen, I will fight for you, for your family and your future,” he continued. “Every single day, I will be fighting for you. And with every breath in my body, I will not rest until we have delivered the strong, safe, and prosperous America that our children deserve and that you deserve.”

The victory caps what has effectively been a four-year effort by Trump to retake the White House after he lost his first reelection bid to President Joe Biden in 2020. 

Trump has spent most of Biden’s term shoring up political support among Republicans and conservatives while fending off numerous legal challenges from state and federal prosecutors, one of which ended in a felony conviction. 

The GOP president-elect worked to build a broad coalition of allies and supporters, particularly in the final year of the race, when he drew endorsements from public figures as diverse as Elon Musk, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Buzz Aldrin, and Peter Thiel. 

Trump also appealed aggressively for the Catholic vote, arguing that Harris is “very destructive … to the Catholic Church” and slamming Harris for skipping the annual Al Smith dinner in New York City. 

In July the now-president-elect picked Ohio Sen. JD Vance as his running mate. Vance, a Catholic, is one of the most overtly religious major politicians in America and made faith a central part of his campaign, warning Catholics of Harris’ alleged “anti-Catholic bias” and arguing that many Catholic voters “feel abandoned” by Harris and Biden. 

Vance on Wednesday described Trump’s victory as “the greatest political comeback in the history of the United States of America.”

“We’re never going to stop fighting for you, for your dreams, for the future of your children,” Vance said, vowing also an “economic comeback”under the Trump administration.

Trump himself told “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo” in October that he would continue to back religious liberty in his second term, describing it as “a stance that I’ve taken from the beginning.”

In September, meanwhile, Trump’s campaign launched a “Catholics for Trump” coalition, which emphasized the defense of religious liberty, traditional values, and the sanctity of human life as priorities of his agenda.

Original Source:

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/260279/donald-trump-wins-reelection-defeating-kamala-harris-in-race