A recent document from the Russian Orthodox patriarchate, reported by L'Osservatore Romano, notes the "profound concern" of its synod at the increase of Christianophobia in the world.
In a significant legal development, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has requested that the British Government state whether they believe that the rights of Christians have been infringed in recent cases where individuals have been penalised for expressing their faith in the workplace.
The media plays an important role in shaping public attitudes towards Christianity. ComRes research reveals the majority of Christians believe current representations of Christians and Christianity in the media is often negative or misleading. According to a BBC survey conducted in 2011, respondents of its own survey said representations of Christians were often ‘derogatory and in some instances, anti-Christian.’
There is cross-party support in the UK for a change in the law that would remove a single word from the Public Order Act 1986 that has allowed Christians to be arrested when they offend the sensibilities of homosexual activists. The amendment proposes to remove the word "insulting".
The European Ombudsman, P. Nikiforos Diamandouros, has closed a case after the European Commission apologised for omitting Christian holidays in a school diary it had published for 2010/2011. This follows a complaint from an Irish priest who submitted that the diary did not mention Easter and Christmas, although it contained certain non-Christian holidays, such as the Jewish and Islamic New Years.
Read here a report of the Observatory's director about the striking discussion at the presentation of the Five-Year-Report on Intolerance against Christians in Europe at Fundamental Rights Platform of Fundamental Rights Agency.
The Christian Institute (CI) has published quotations of journalists and media professionals regarding the BBC anti-Christian policy in the UK.
European Parliament seminar held on March 16th in Brussels concludes: Intolerance and discrimination against Christians exists also in the EU.
Russian Orthodox Archbishop Metropolit Hilarion met with Roman Catholic Cardinal Kurt Koch to discuss cooperation between the two Churches. They mentioned the combat against "Christianophobia" in Europe and other regions of the world as a common key issue.
The Council of the European Union condemned religious intolerance on Feb 21st by saying: „ The Council expresses its profound concern about the increasing number of acts of religious intolerance and discrimination, as epitomised by recent violence and acts of terrorism, in various countries, against Christians and their places of worship, Muslim pilgrims and other religious communities, which it firmly condemns. Regrettably, no part of the world is exempt from the scourge of religious intolerance.“