He also praised the “welcoming hearts” of the Lebanese people in accepting both Christian and Muslim families fleeing from conflict in neighbouring Syria.

In a country of 4.4 million people, refugees now compromise almost 25 per cent of the nation’s population.

Francis made the comments during a meeting at the Vatican with delegates from the Maronite Catholic Church in Lebanon.

He thanked the country for “maintaining a creative balance, as strong as the cedar tree,” between Christians and Muslims.

In a light-hearted remark, the Catholic leader compared the influx with the “multiplication of the loaves”, because more families had arrived in Lebanon than he had expected.

Some 6.3 million people affected by ongoing unrest in Syria have been internally displaced.

According to the Pew Research Centre, only Turkey has accepted more Syrian refugees than Lebanon (3.4 million).

But the Human Rights Watch organisation has warned the vast majority of Syrian refugees in Lebanon lack legal status – limiting their rights to travel and work, as well as their access to healthcare and education.

According to the Vatican, the Maronite Catholic Church boasts 3.5 million members – with the majority in the Middle East and the Americas.

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Channel Nine’s 60 Minutes show looked into the church’s handling of the abuse allegations and featured an interview with a victim who accused Brian of not doing enough to expose his father’s crimes.

Brett Sengstock waived his anonymity to talk about the abuse he suffered over a five year period as a child.

Speaking on the programme he said he wanted to know why Brian did not report his father to the police when he found out.

Brian Houston (pictured below) has previously stated that as soon as he became aware of the abuse, he took immediate action by reporting the information to seniors within the Assemblies of God network and ensuring that Frank was removed from ministry. He didn’t inform the police at the request of the victim.

Frank Houston had too served within the Assemblies of God denomination but died in 2004.

In 2015, the Royal Commission investigated the abuse and the subsequent handling of the abuse.

Responding to the TV investigation, Hillsong accused producers of “false statements” and “misrepresentations” and said it “vehemently denies there was a lack of transparency or ‘hiding’ by its leadership.

In an online statement, church leaders then produce of list of the inaccuracies and call for a full redaction to be read out on air.

In further denial of wrongdoing, the statement reads: “Hillsong continues to…

New statistics compiled by the Gambling Commission show the number of eleven-to-16-year-olds affected has quadrupled during two years to 55,000.

The Bishop of St Albans, Rt Rev Alan Smith said: “Today’s findings by the Gambling Commission make worrying reading and serve as a warning to parents.

“After years of progress, it seems the rates of children gambling are creeping back up.

“We need to start taking the dangers of gambling seriously – 55,000 children classed as problem gamblers is a generational scandal.”

According to an audit due to be published on Wednesday, 70,000 youngsters are considered at risk of becoming problem gamblers.

Seen by the Daily Mail, it concludes 450,000 kids are illegally using things like fruit machines, bingo and betting shops regularly – equating to one in seven aged between eleven and 16.

The audit found they spend £16 on average every week.

Bishop Alan continued: “However much the gambling industry says it is not targeting the young, it is clear that a significant minority of teenagers are still being drawn into gambling and it is no coincidence that one-in-six children have seen gambling adverts on social media.

“In-game gambling and loot-boxes are a new phenomenon and so require new answers.

“The world has changed since 2005 when the gambling sector was deregulated and so, sadly, has gambling.

“Therefore, government, local authorities,…

Figures published by the Daily Mail show they typically earn £32,711 a year, compared to the £43,316 median average recorded for men.

They emerge two months after the Archbishop of Canterbury condemned the UK-wide gender pay gap of 8.6 per cent as unfair.

The statistics include almost 500 members of staff working at bodies including the Church of England’s financial wing, the Church Commissioners; and its executive body, the Archbishop’s Council.

They do not include clergy and other workers employed locally by individual dioceses.

A spokesman told the Mail that the gender pay gap had shrunk since last year but there are still fewer women holding senior posts.

They said: “We continue to see a large proportion of females in the lower and mid-lower quartiles compared to the UK average; this subsequently impacts on the average pay for females being lower than males.”

Carole Harden from the National Church Institutions – the collective name for seven national Church of England bodies – told the newspaper: “This year’s results are encouraging as we continue to review pay structures, addressing any imbalances and barriers to females and opportunities for advancement within the NCIs.

“We are committed to improving this further as we focus on reducing the difference in pay between men and women in more highly paid roles, and…

Isabella Chow was dropped as a senator from the Student Action party, whom she had represented at the Associated Students of the University of California (ASUC) student senate.

Speaking to Fox News Channel, she said: “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been called the f-word in person, online, on social media or on the senate floor.

“There are other slurs which I just don’t want to repeat on-camera.”

Chow, who is also facing calls to stand down as a senator completely, abstained from a student senate vote held last month on a motion expressing support for transgender and non-binary identities.

The Queer Alliance Resource Centre started a petition demanding that she resign. It accused her of voicing “blatantly homophobic and transphobic views”.

The business and music student said discrimination was never OK but there were certain lifestyles she, as a Christian, could not endorse.

Chow claimed her words had been “twisted” to accuse her of being a “hater and a bigot”.

Speaking to Fox, she added: “I’ve gotten encouraging prayers from the Christian community. I’ve gotten encouraging support from conservative groups on campus.

“But, besides that, students are afraid to speak out, even if they support me…”

Chow also revealed she is seeking legal advice.

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