laws

Germany to allow Church weddings without civil ceremony

Starting next January, Germans can get married by the Church without also having their nuptials approved in a civil ceremony for the first time in 134 years.

church

German Pope to throw party in New York

The German Pope Benedikt XVI celebrates his third year as the head of the Catholic Church on Saturday at a private party in New York.

Crime

German church seeks return of €1 million in stolen art

German church officials are demanding the return of two pieces of Reformation-era altar art worth an estimated €1 million and stolen out of a village church almost 30 years ago.

Health

Churches warn of fitness craze becoming religion

Germany Protestant and Catholic churches have warned against an exaggerated focus on health and fitness, saying those who don't have an ideal body type or perfect health shouldn't be stigmatized.

church

Nazi church for sale

A church filled with Nazi symbols in the Berlin district of Mariendorf has gone public with its search for an investor. The protestant church, which was built between 1933 and 1935, has door arches adorned with images of SS officers, soldiers on the alter and Hitler youth as decoration, and is in need or renovation.