Get comprehensive Orthodox Christian news from Crusaders Call. We cover persecution of Orthodox believers, updates from Orthodox patriarchates, theological developments, and challenges facing Orthodox communities worldwide. Our reporting includes coverage of the Russian Orthodox Church, Greek Orthodox communities, Oriental Orthodox churches, and Orthodox witness under hostile regimes.
Middle East
Israel has appointed veteran diplomat George Deek as its first ever special envoy to the Christian world, marking a historic move to repair strained relations with Christian communities across the globe.
Europe
This week in Christian history marks three extraordinary events that span centuries of faith, persecution, and church leadership across Europe and the Soviet Union.
Middle East
Archaeologists excavating the ancient city of Hippos, also known as Sussita, have uncovered a rare marble artifact believed to illuminate early Christian baptismal rites. The site sits on a plateau roughly 350 meters above the Sea of Galilee in Israel.
Middle East
Egyptian archaeologists have uncovered a massive 1,500 year old monastic complex at the Al Qalaya site in Beheira Governorate, located in Egypt's Nile Delta region. The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced the discovery on April 3, 2026, identifying it as the second largest known...
Europe
This week in Christian history marks three pivotal events that shaped the faith across centuries and continents.
Middle East
Dozens of armed men on motorcycles stormed the predominantly Christian town of Suqaylabiyah in Syria's Hama province on March 27, firing guns into the air, smashing vehicles, looting shops, and vandalizing a shrine of the Virgin Mary.
Middle East
Activists are sounding the alarm over what they call the systematic erasure of Syriac Christians in Syria, as the ancient Aramaic language is being removed from public buildings in the northeastern city of Hasakah.
Middle East
Armed gunmen on motorcycles stormed the predominantly Christian town of Suqaylabiyah in Syria's Hama province on the night of March 28, 2026, destroying a shrine to the Virgin Mary, riddling a statue with bullets, smashing cars, and looting shops as terrified residents hid inside their...
UK
Church leaders from across the globe used their Easter 2026 messages to remember the victims of war, with conflicts in the Middle East, Ukraine, and Sudan at the forefront of their statements.
Middle East
For the first time in centuries, Israeli police prevented senior Catholic Church leaders from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem to celebrate Palm Sunday Mass on March 29, 2026.
Middle East
The traditional Palm Sunday procession in Jerusalem has been cancelled for the first time due to war, as the escalating conflict in the Middle East forces unprecedented disruptions to Christian Easter celebrations in the Holy City.
Europe
Patriarch Filaret of Kyiv, born Mykhailo Denysenko, has died at the age of 97 following a period of declining health. He passed away on March 20, 2026, after being hospitalized on March 9.