Muslims now outnumber Catholics worldwide, making Islam the most widespread religious denomination, according to the Vatican.
According to official Vatican figures for 2006, Islam has more than 1.3 billion adherents, comprising 19.2 percent of the global population, and the more than 1.1 billion Catholics represent 17.4 percent. Christians of all denominations represent one-third of the world population of 6.5 billion.
The figures, which appear in the Vatican’s latest yearbook, were reported in weekend editions of the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano.
The chief rabbi of Dnepropetrovsk received a top Ukrainian regional honor.
Rabbi Shmuel Kaminetzky, the spiritual leader of the Dnepropetrovsk region, received an award from the governor of the Dnepropetrovsk regional administration, Victor Bondar, for “his prominent contribution to the overall development of the region, interfaith and interethnic accord, and for fostering a united and solid Jewish community.”
Dnepropetrovsk features one of the stronger Jewish communities in Ukraine. “Contributing to a stronger Ukraine, the Dnepropetrovsk region may serve as a model in terms of harmony that exists here between different religious persuasions and national cultures,†Rabbi Kaminetzky said.
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