James Macintyre

• Could the decline in Christianity be coming to a halt?

  The decline of Christianity in Britain could be coming to a halt, temporarily at least, according to new figures from this year's British Social Attitudes Survey (BSA)

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  Swedish church to use drones to drop thousands of Bibles in ISIS-controlled Iraq

  A major evangelical free church in Sweden is preparing to use drones to drop thousands of Bibles into areas of Iraq controlled by Islamic State

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  GAFCON head: Primates meeting failed, leadership weak on gay marriage

  The General Secretary of the conservative Anglican group GAFCON has dismissed January's Primates meeting as pointless and a failure

• Nigeria: Four women hospitalised in riot at Anglican church as synod begins

  Five people are in hospital, two in a serious condition after clashes between soldiers and protesters at an Anglican church in Nigeria where a synod meeting has been overshadowed by calls for a local bishop to resign over "financial recklessness"

• Chile: Church burned down, at least 16 destroyed this year

  Unknown attackers burned the church and destroyed two high-tension electricity towers, the Associated Press news agency reported

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  Australia suspends funding for World Vision after claims of channelling funds to Hamas

  Australia is suspending funding for the Christian relief group World Vision's operations in the Palestinian Territories following claims that its Gaza representative channelled millions of dollars to Hamas

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  ISIS has captured 3,000 Iraqi villagers and executed 12 of them, says UN

  Islamic State fighters reportedly captured up to 3,000 fleeing Iraqi villagers on Thursday and subsequently executed 12 of them, the UN refugee agency UNHCR has said

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  Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof assaulted in prison

  Dylann Roof, who was charged over the massacre of nine black parishioners at a church in Charleston last June, was assaulted by a fellow inmate yesterday

• 14 Irish bishops to send trainee priests to national seminary despite 'gay sub-culture' and Grindr rumours

  Fourteen of the 26 Catholic diocesan bishops in Ireland have said they will continue to send seminarians to the national seminary, despite the decision by the Archbishop of Dublin, Diarmuid Martin to cease sending trainee priests there

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  Mexican Archbishop accused of inciting violence against gay men

  The Catholic Archbishop of Mexico has been accused of promoting violence after strongly attacking homosexual sex in response to a plan by President Enrique Peña Nieto to introduce same-sex marriage nationally.

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  Exclusive: Robert Harris on respecting faith and accessing Vatican for new book Conclave

  The internationally best-selling author Robert Harris has written a new book set inside the Vatican during the election of a Pope after being granted access to key locations by the Catholic Church

• Prisoner in Chile receives letter from Pope imploring her to hold out hope

  A female prisoner in Chile was surprised by receiving a personal letter last week from Pope Francis imploring her to retain "the strength that comes from hope," a year after she wrote to him asking for his prayers