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

Colorado to pay out $5.4 million after court strikes down abortion pill reversal ban

Health care professionals at the Colorado-based pro-life Bella Health and Wellness healthcare clinic. | Credit: Bella Health and Wellness

Jan 9, 2026 / 17:38 pm (CNA).

Here’s a roundup of recent pro-life and abortion-related news:

Colorado will pay out $5.4 million after attempting to ban abortion pill reversal

The state of Colorado will have to pay out a massive $5.4 million sum after it lost in its attempt to ban abortion pill reversal.

The state suffered a decisive loss in federal court in August 2025 when U.S. District Judge Daniel Domenico said that Colorado’s abortion pill reversal ban interfered with the religious rights of nurses Dede Chism and Abby Sinnett.

The Catholic mother-daughter team runs the Denver-area Bella Health and Wellness clinic. Part of their services include administering the hormone progesterone that can counteract the effects of chemical abortions.

The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which represented the two nurses in their suit, said on Jan. 6 that federal law now requires the state to pay attorneys’ fees and court costs, totaling about $5.4 million.

Attorney Rebekah Ricketts said at least 18 mothers have given birth during the course of the lawsuit after receiving abortion pill reversal care at Bella Health.

Abortion pill advocate countersues South Dakota over false advertising threat

A pro-abortion pill company is suing the South Dakota attorney general after the prosecutor threatened to sue the organization over abortion advertising.

State Attorney General Marty Jackley sent a cease and desist letter in December 2025 to Mayday Health alleging the company was instructing women to not seek medical care after taking abortion pills while also implying that the pills were legal in South Dakota. Abortion pills are illegal in that state with limited exceptions.

In an Instagram post on Jan. 8, the pro-abortion company announced that it had sued Jackley in turn, alleging that Jackley was engaging in “government censorship, plain and simple.”

The group claimed its pro-abortion pill speech is protected by the First Amendment. Mayday vowed to “continue [its] mission” in advocating for abortion pills.

Wyoming Supreme Court strikes down state abortion ban

Abortions will continue in the state of Wyoming after the state Supreme Court struck down a ban on the practice there.

In a Jan. 6 decision, the court ruled 4-1 that the state’s ban on abortion did not constitute “reasonable and necessary restrictions on a pregnant woman’s right to make her own health care decisions.”

“A woman has a fundamental right to make her own health care decisions, including the decision to have an abortion,” the court said.

In a dissent, Justice Kari Jo Gray said the state government’s ban on abortion “falls well within the discretion the people expressly granted it.”

The ban allowed the procedure in cases necessary to save the mother’s life, among other extreme circumstances, Gray noted.

“These exceptions respect a pregnant woman’s health care choices while allowing the regulation of nonessential procedures,” she argued.

Original Source:

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/268983/colorado-to-pay-out-usd5-4-million-after-court-strikes-down-abortion-pill-reversal-ban