Filipino Roman Catholic devotees, including a woman, were nailed to wooden crosses in a gory Good Friday re-enactment of Jesus Christ’s sufferings that was watched by thousands of spectators but frowned upon by church leaders. At least three of eight devotees wearing crowns of twigs were crucified by midafternoon by …

Easter, also known as Resurrection Sunday, commemorates Jesus’ resurrection, three days after his crucifixion. It’s preceded by Lent, 40 days of fasting, prayer and repentance. While Easter is a solemn holiday for Christians, it’s also a time for families to get together around the festival holiday table, one that has …

The judge in Bill Cosby’s retrial rejected demands Thursday from the comedian’s attorneys to step aside during a hearing in which they made clear they plan to attack his accuser as a greedy liar who falsely accused the comedian of sexually assaulting her to collect a payoff.  Judge Steven O’Neill …

At least three companies said Thursday they were pulling advertisements from a Fox News show hosted by conservative pundit Laura Ingraham, heeding a call from a teenage survivor of the Florida school massacre whom Ingraham mocked on Twitter. Parkland student David Hogg, 17, tweeted a list of a dozen companies …

It looks like “Game Over” for actress Lindsay Lohan in her state court fight against a software company for using what she claims is a likeness of her in a video game. Lohan’s lawyer argued before New York’s top court that Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. violated her right to privacy …

Kentucky has altered a statue of Jefferson Davis in the state Capitol, removing a plaque that declared the only president of the Confederacy to be a patriot and a hero. The plaque adorned a 15-foot (4.5 meter) marble statue, which sits in a corner of the state’s ornate Capitol rotunda …

She’s just spent about eight hours being interrogated by Vietnamese state security officials at the airport after a flight from Europe, but the intimidation hasn’t shaken Mai Khoi’s focus. “I’m busy,” she says on the phone over the clamor of rehearsing musicians hours later. “I can’t talk, I have to …

Prosecutors have selected the five additional accusers they plan to call to the witness stand at Bill Cosby’s April 2 sexual assault retrial. The accusers, including model Janice Dickinson, were chosen from a group of eight women whose allegations date as far back as the early 1980s. Prosecutors listed their …

There are fewer than 2,000 wild pandas in the world. However, as VOA’s David Byrd reports, a new documentary tells how scientists are working to introduce captive-bred panda cubs into the wild. …

Sean Penn, Oscar-winning actor, has other passions these days. “I’m not in love with the job of acting anymore,” says Penn, whose films include “Milk,” “Mystic River,” “Dead Man Walking” and many others. “In fact, what I want to do is write books.” Penn fears the world is so overwhelmed …

Prosecutors in the Minnesota county where Prince died have agreed to share investigative files with attorneys for the musician’s family under strict guidelines. Carver County Attorney Mark Metz says Prince’s death investigation remains active, so the data is confidential. But family attorneys may view it to determine whether to file …

Rapper Fetty Wap handed out gift cards to families at a New Jersey supermarket just in time for Easter. The Record reports the Paterson native visited his hometown Tuesday for a giveaway at ShopRite in Center City Mall. Marie Sweeney-Tevis, ShopRite’s director of public relations, says the organization was excited …

In Ernest Cline’s novel “Ready Player One,” the main character drives a DeLorean because of “Back to the Future,” and uses a grail diary because of “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.” The films of Steven Spielberg loom large in the story littered with pop culture references. That the legendary …

Oscar-winning filmmaker Alex Gibney is to put golfer Tiger Woods under the microscope in an upcoming documentary series based on a new biography of the 14-time winner of the sport’s major tournaments, Gibney’s Jigsaw Productions said Tuesday. Gibney will use Tiger Woods, written by journalists Jeff Benedict and Armen Keteyian, …

Vietnamese singer and activist Do Nguyen Mai Khoi, an outspoken campaigner for free speech, was briefly detained at an airport in the capital Hanoi on Tuesday after flying home from Europe, her husband told Reuters. Often dubbed a Vietnamese version of “Pussy Riot” or Lady Gaga because of her activism …

Extremely rare Chinese musical instruments and works of art dating from 9,000 years ago are on display for the first time in the U.S. The archaeological treasures, mostly found in tombs in central China, give viewers a glimpse of the musical life of the ancient societies. VOA’s June Soh takes …

Members of the Nationals Basketball Association’s Boston Celtics and Sacramento Kings came together Sunday to call attention to the killing of an unarmed black man by police. Players wore warmup t-shirts with the message “Accountability. We are one.” printed on the front and #StephonClark on the back. Clark died March …

Music is changing lives in some American prisons, where guitars and songwriting are sparking creativity in inmates. Mike O’Sullivan reports from a state prison in Norco, California, about the music program Jail Guitar Doors. …

Photo Courtesy: Kohenoor News. Caption: Marvia Malik, Pakistan’s first transgender news anchor …

Thousands of Venezuelans have paid homage to Jose Antonio Abreu, parading past the coffin of the economist turned visionary musical educator who created a network of youth orchestras that has been replicated around the world. His coffin was delivered with military honors Sunday morning to the headquarters of the program, …

President Donald Trump’s favorite TV network is increasingly serving as a West Wing casting call, as the president reshapes his administration with camera-ready personalities. Trump’s new national security adviser, John Bolton, is a former U.N. ambassador, a White House veteran – and perhaps most importantly a Fox News channel talking …

Love from a cheek swab? That’s what founders of a new dating app are promising. There always seems to be another dating app popping up with promises of helping find romance — just answer this, just swipe that — but one new online dating service is incorporating genetics into the …

Australian actress Cate Blanchett says she is bewildered by Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s silence over the atrocities being committed against Rohingya Muslims. More than 670,000 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar have sought safety across the border in Bangladesh since August 2017, after a military campaign against the minority group …

Two Asian-American photographers from New York traveled to the deep south — The Mississippi Delta — to explore the roots of a seldom-mentioned, but long-established Chinese community. Their images explore the diverse contributions and experiences of both native-born and immigrant residents. But the young photographers’ journey is also a story …

We’re on the move with the five most popular songs in the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles chart, for the week ending March 24, 2018. It’s always a good week when we welcome a new song, and this one is already setting records. Number 5: Bebe Rexha & Florida Georgia …