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PeakMetrics / Fact Checks

Religion & belief fact checks

Explore claims publishers have checked about religion & belief. Read their original ratings and follow the evidence.

3,371 published reviews in this topic

Deutsche Presse-AgenturReligion & belief

Op Facebook wordt een afbeelding gedeeld die stelt dat Vaticaanstad een grote reeks documenten verborgen houdt voor de wereld. Volgens de post zou de collectie meer dan 80 kilometer aan documenten bevatten. Maar klopt dat wel?

Publisher’s rating: Het Vaticaans Apostolisch Archief telt inderdaad zo'n 85 kilometer aan boeken, documenten en andere literatuur. Dat archief is echter raadpleegbaar door professoren, academici en studenten. Hoewel het niet volledig uitgesloten is dat het Vaticaan bepaalde documenten niet openbaar vrijgeeft, gaat dat niet over "meer dan 80 kilometer aan documenten".

The Facebook post described in the review claimed that Vatican City was concealing a collection of more than 80 kilometres of documents from the world. The review distinguishes the collection’s size from the claim that it is hidden: the reported 85 kilometres is the combined shelf length of the archive’s shelving and bookcases, containing books, documents and other literature—not a measurement showing that the material is being concealed. The review identifies the institution as the Vatican Apostolic Archive, the pope’s personal archive in his capacity as head of state of Vatican City. It says the archive has been accessible to professional researchers since 1881. In October 2019, Pope Francis changed its name to remove the word “secret”; from March 2020, access extended through the pontificate of Pius XII. The review reports that access is in principle public, with priority for historians and a university degree required. It also qualifies this conclusion: the Vatican may withhold some documents, but that possibility does not establish that the entire collection described in the post is hidden.

YouturnReligion & belief

முருகன் தமிழ்க் கடவுள் என்பதெல்லாம் திராவிடக் கூட்டம் கிளப்பிவிட்ட கதை . கலாச்சார ஏதிலிகளாக காட்டுமிராண்டிகளாக திரிந்த ஆதித்தமிழர்களை பண்படுத்தியது வைதீக வழிபாட்டு முறைகளே – முருகன், பா.ஜ.க தமிழக தலைவர்

Publisher’s rating: Fake

FACTLYReligion & belief

Photo of ‘Mohammed Ansari’ desecrating Hindu temple by stepping on a Goddess idol.

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The claim identifies the man in a photo of someone stepping on an idol inside a Hindu temple as “Mohammed Ansari.” FACTLY’s investigation says it traced the image to an account of an incident at a temple in Kardhana village, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. It reports that the man’s name was Azad Kumar Gautam, not Mohammed Ansari, and gives 24 April 2020 as the date of the incident. To check the photo’s provenance and the man’s identity, FACTLY says it reverse-searched the image and found it in a Sanjeevani Today article. It then looked for further reports and found an Amar Ujala account that also named Gautam and placed the incident in a Varanasi village on 24 April 2020. FACTLY reports that Amar Ujala said local Mirzamurad police arrested Gautam for hurting people’s religious sentiments. The review also says it found a Facebook profile with the same name and a picture of the man shown in the photo. These reported checks point to Gautam, rather than Ansari, as the person in the image. The supplied excerpt does not include the underlying articles, profile, or image for independent comparison, so the explanation here is limited to the investigation and findings FACTLY describes.

APA - Austria Presse AgenturReligion & belief

In einem Schreiben von Wiener Wohnen wird darum gebeten, aus Rücksicht auf andere Mieter und deren religiösen Gebräuche bei der «Verarbeitung und Zubereitung von Schweinefleisch die Fenster geschlossen zu halten».

Publisher’s rating: Das Schreiben ist laut Angaben von Wiener Wohnen eine Fälschung. Es kursiert schon seit fünf Jahren im Internet.

The claim concerns a purported letter from Vienna’s municipal housing authority, Wiener Wohnen, asking tenants to keep their windows closed when handling or preparing pork out of consideration for other residents’ religious customs. The review examined the authenticity of that specific letter, which it said was circulating on Facebook. Wiener Wohnen told the APA and German Press Agency fact-checkers that the letter was false and had first appeared in 2015; the authority said it did not know who was behind it. The review reports two further checks against the letter’s claimed origin. Wiener Wohnen publicly rejected it on Facebook on 23 June 2020, saying it had neither written the letter nor identified with its contents. The authority had also responded to the purported letter on Facebook in 2015. These statements directly address whether the document came from Wiener Wohnen, rather than whether the request in it reflected an actual housing policy. The review also compared the circulating post with material from 2016. It observed that the date on the current version had been obscured. This comparison supports the account that the same purported letter had circulated earlier, while the reported statements from Wiener Wohnen address its authenticity. The excerpt does not identify the letter’s author.

Deutsche Presee-AgenturReligion & belief

Auf Facebook verbreitet sich derzeit ein Posting, in dem ein vermeintliches Schreiben von Stadt Wien - Wiener Wohnen geteilt wird. Angeblich bittet die Hausverwaltung darum, aus Rücksicht auf andere Mieter und deren religiösen Gebräuche bei der «Verarbeitung und Zubereitung von Schweinefleisch die Fenster geschlossen zu halten».

Publisher’s rating: Das Schreiben ist laut Angaben von Wiener Wohnen eine Fälschung.

The claim concerns a Facebook post showing a purported notice from Stadt Wien – Wiener Wohnen. The notice allegedly asked residents, out of consideration for neighbors’ religious customs, to keep their windows closed while processing or cooking pork. The review examined that specific notice and reported that Wiener Wohnen told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur by email and telephone that it was false. The housing authority also said the false story had appeared as early as 2015 and continued to circulate; the review says those responsible for it were not known. The review additionally points to a public statement by Wiener Wohnen on Facebook on June 23. In that statement, the authority said it had neither written the notice nor identified with its contents. This directly addresses the document’s claimed origin: the organization named as its author denied producing it. The review also notes that the fact-checking outlet Mimikama had previously examined the same subject, though the supplied text does not give details of that examination. The evidence described is attribution-based: Wiener Wohnen’s direct responses to the agency and its public Facebook clarification. The excerpt does not describe a forensic examination of the notice or identify who created it, so those details cannot be established from the supplied material. It does, however, report a clear denial from the purported issuing authority and a history of the same false story circulating since 2015.

BR24 FaktenfuchsReligion & belief

"Aufruf für die Kirche und für die Welt an Katholiken und alle Menschen guten Willens": "Mächte der Finsternis" wollen eine "Weltregierung" schaffen, die sich "jeder Kontrolle" entziehe. Jahrhunderte der christlichen Zivilisation sollen "unter dem Vorwand eines Virus ausgelöscht werden, um eine verabscheuungswürdige technokratische Tyrannei aufzurichten".

Publisher’s rating: Ein Verschwörungsmythos. Diese Erzählung von einer angeblichen "Neuen Weltordnung" ist vor allem in rechten Kreisen verbreitet und geht oft mit antisemitischen Motiven einher. Für die Behauptungen gibt es keine Beweise.

YouturnReligion & belief

ஒரு கிறிஸ்தவ பாதிரியார் தவறு செய்தார் என்பதற்காக அனைத்து கிறிஸ்தவ மக்களையும் தவறாக நினைப்பது சரியில்லை கிறிஸ்தவர்கள் போல நேர்மையான மக்களை நான் இந்துக்களில் பார்த்தது இல்லை இந்து சாமியார்கள் அனைவரும் திருடர்கள்.

Publisher’s rating: Fake