Religion (ABC RN)

Religion and ethics: The moral foundations of foreign aid

As the nation counts down the minutes to the budget announcement, RN Drive takes a philosophical look behind the decisions being made.

Belinda Lopez

Belinda Lopez tells of her holy trinity of accident injuries.

PNG's sorcery-related killings: Cultural or cold-blooded?

There are fresh concerns about sorcery-related killing in Papua New Guinea, following reports that a former primary school teacher was beheaded in southern Bougainville.

Call for more sensitive debate about female circumcision

A victim of female circumcision has spoken out against the western description of the procedure, saying the use of the phrase, 'female genital mutilation' is culturally insensitive.

Religion and Ethics with Scott Stephens

The Easter weekend saw a few firsts for two high profile religious figures.

The Bishop and the Atheist, Father and Son

At Easter the Biblical story of Father and Son recounts how Jesus came to accept both the faith and the fate for which God the Father divinely ordained him. Bishop Graeme Rutherford of the Anglican Church raised his son Jonathan in the Christian faith, but at the age of 19 Jonathan started to read Russell, Chomsky and Dawkins. Jonathan became an atheist, and father and son, Christian and atheist, argued about their divergent views. Then they published their dialogue as Beloved Father,...

Fast Food Fact: Origin of the Easter egg

The late Alan Saunders, former presenter of The Philosopher's Zone, ponders the chequered history of the Easter egg and questions our contemporary obsession with it being chocolate.

Sacred Harp Singing

For more than 200 years an American style of folk hymn singing has been kept alive in the Deep South. Known as Sacred Harp singing, it’s a form of shape-note singing with folk tunes, revivalist hymns, odes and anthems sung out loud in a raw four-part harmony. The music takes its name from The Sacred Harp, a songbook of more than 500 hymns published in 1844 and updated continuously ever since. There are no harps in sacred harp singing, just voices and in this special Good Friday edition of...

Attack of the theocrats: Sean Faircloth

Here in Australia the Lord’s Prayer is read at the beginning of each sitting of the federal parliament. For some this breaches the secular principle that state and religion should be kept separate, while others see it as an appropriate tradition.

The Archbishop and the Rabbi on Genesis

Archbishop Peter Jensen of Sydney's Anglican Cathedral interviews Rabbi Jeremy Lawrence of The Great Synagogue on the Jewish understanding of Genesis 1-11 and finds both common ground and wisdom for a secular age. In this delightful conversation, Rabbi Lawrence brings his love of science, his wealth of rabbinical stories, and his anarchic sense humour to promote a belief in the shared redemption of the world based on humanity created in God's image.

Religion and ethics with Scott Stephens

He has been in his new job about a week and as we speak Pope Francis is touring St Peter's square in the Vatican.

Lessons from Ireland's sex abuse coverups

The Australian royal commission into the handling of child sex abuse will hold its first public sitting in early April. Will the commission be able to emulate the achievements of similar inquiries that rocked Ireland over the course of the past decade—and avoid some of the major mistakes?

Cardinals and Popes

The election of Pope Francis contains some ironies, but as second favourite in the last conclave 8 years ago, he is ready to bring Latin American Catholics to a new prominence, according to Maria-Paz Lopez, Vatican correspondent for LaVanguardia, Barcelona, Spain. Cardinals' lives were often far from saintly, but those 'raised to the purple' were the power behind the papal throne. Catholic historian Michael Walsh gives an insight into the Cardinalate past and present. Pope Benedict XVI has...

Geraldine Doogue in Rome

Now that the papal election has concluded, attention in Italy is refocussed on domestic politics and the inconclusive election result from the vote in late February.

Does Pope Francis have what it takes?

Being Pope these days is about more than giving spiritual guidance. Argentina's Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio will have to manage the fallout from various child abuse and corruption scandals, and find ways to win back the faithful.

Regional church leaders reflect on new Pope and...

Leaders in Australia's rural Roman Catholic community are looking to the new Pope to foster a sense of inclusiveness in the church.

Argentinians celebrate Papal election

The election of Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the new Pope sees a number of firsts.

Geraldine Doogue live from the Papal announcement

Geraldine Doogue spoke to RN Breakfast from St Peter's Square as Pope Francis was introduced to the thousands of waiting followers.

Papal election update: Geraldine Doogue in Rome

For those of us eagerly awaiting the announcement of a new pontiff, we'll have to wait for at least another day.

Religion and ethics with Scott Stephens

One billion Catholics across the world are waiting to find out who their next pope will be.

Europe Update

In the last week of February Italians went to the polls and didn't vote in a new government. Instead they voted for a comedian. So was this a protest or does it say something about European politics and austerity? Plus Britain's most senior Roman Catholic has resigned. He didn't do anything illegal and yet his case and the Jimmy Saville case have been linked. Is this easy and sleazy politics or a sign of a more conservative time? Plus is arming the Syrian rebels helping or hindering their...

Borneo invaders still on the loose

An invasion and military standoff involving Filipino gunmen on the Malaysian island of Borneo continues.

Panting and Chanting

Margot Anand, the Sorbonne trained psychologist and Tantric teacher believes sacred sex is the foundation of a fulfilling spiritual life. Trained in Hindu and Buddhist Tantra, Anand has taught Tantric Sky Dancing for 25 years, to students as diverse as married couples and Jesuit priests. The aim is to experience the luminous state of orgasm, and learn to move that energy up the solar plexis into your heart and head. Deva Premal and Miten hold healing workshops of mantra chanting where...

Religion and Ethics with Scott Stephens

Just as the Catholic community were getting used to the idea of a new Pope, there's been another high profile resignation within the Catholic Church.

AGNES OF GOD AND OTHER NUN STORIES

A true story of a novice who became pregnant and killed her child is the basis of a play that pitches a psychologist against a Mother Superior in the search for truth and the meaning of faith. Shona Benson, Director of Agnes of Godfor the Adelaide Fringe, discusses why she is personally drawn to the play, which raises current issues about the tension between scientific and spiritual realities. Richard Leonard SJ, Director of the Catholic Film Office, discusses the changing face of nuns in...

Pope update: Part 2

Pope Benedict has asked the faithful to pray for him and for the next pope as he addressed a crowded St. Peter's Square.

Monastery of the Heart

America's most outspoken Catholic nun, Sr Joan Chittister, breaks down the high walls of the monastery in her extended poem, The Monastery of the Heart. She invites us to 'stop the noise within' and consider a relationship to God which opens to the self and is a bridge to the world. Based on the Rule of Benedict, Chittister's testament is full of wise counsel and spiritual direction that speaks to people of all traditions and none. Yet Sr Joan's role as a leading figure in the Roman Catholic...

The legacy of Pope Benedict XVI

The resignation of Pope Benedict XVI sent shockwaves throughout the globe—he is the first pope to resign in 600 years.

Pope Benedict announces retirement

Pope Benedict XVI has surprised the world by announcing he will stand down at the end of this month because he is too old and frail to cope with the demands of his ministry.

Pope resignation: Robert Mickens

The pontiff says his health now prevents him from performing his duties, and he has decided to resign.

German reaction to Papal resignation

Former priest and friend of Pope Benedict XVI, Frank Ochmann, joins RN Breakfast to discuss the German reaction to the pope's resignation.

The Borderlands of Belief

We celebrate Lunar New Year with music and prayer reflecting the ancient ritual basis to the occasion,from two related Asian cultures who share a common Buddhist heritage, China and Japan. In our main feature we explore the Japanese ritual of remembrance known as kuyo through the eyes of three young Japanese women and the haunting music of the Japanese zither, the koto. We also travel the silk road with a virtuoso of the 2000-year old Chinese lute or pipa, Wu Man, whose Borderlands project...

Ghoulable or Just Paranormal?

Most people have at least one paranormal experience, says psychologist Tony Jinks. The dream that proved predictive, the medium who knew all about your departed mother, the vision at the foot of the bed, the creepy sense that a house was haunted are all experiences that show people are open to non-rational phenomena. Psychologists usually explain them by reducing the experiences to an emotional trauma or dysfunction. But Jinks believes they may be a positive way of living a rich and...

What's halal for you is kosher with me

What's halal to you is kosher with me.

Modern Dilemmas: My daughter and God

This modern dilemma comes from Amy and she writes: My daughter married a Christian fundamentalist and our previously intimate relationship has gone and I only see my daughter when she wants me to look after her 4 children. I am not stupid enough to engage in conversation re: the difference in our beliefs, but my son-in-law does not seem to like my daughter to be alone in my company. Their whole life is consumed by the church - bible study groups, youth groups, etc. My personal belief is that...

Stories from the Hajj

Millions of Muslims from across the world descend on Mecca every year for the Hajj.

Judge rules religion in schools not discriminatory

Religion in public schools has been a hot topic this year. A Victorian tribunal has ruled that children who choose not to receive religious education in state primary schools are not being discriminated against. Parents of children who opted out of these classes argued that the schools were in breach of the state's Equal Opportunity Act since the children were 'segregated' from classmates on the basis of religion.

Riddles and Revelations

Guessing riddles was a lethal game in the ancient world, but Jesus spoke in riddles and parables to challenge his listeners to think in a new way and shake them out of their complacency, says John Dominic Crossan, author of The Power of Parable. Receiving divine revelations was part of the early Christian experience, but only one Book of Revelation among many that were discovered was included in the New Testament. Why the others were excluded is explained by Elaine Pagels, author of...

Service not Servitude: Women in the Church

Women's equality was widely accepted when the Anglican Church of Australia was still barring women from the priesthood. Twenty years later there are almost 500 Anglican women priests in Australia. Elaine Lindsay and Janet Scarfe, editors of Preachers, Prophets and Heretics: Anglican Women's Ministry (2012) give a ringside perspective on this unique struggle in Australian history. Mimi Haddad, President of Christians for Biblical Equality (CBE), argues that the early Evangelical Christians...

Religion and ethics Scott Stephens

In our weekly look at religion and ethics Scott Stephens ponders life after Rowan Williams who gave his final major address as Archbishop of Canterbury.

The Life and Death of Democracy

If you were told that the Islamic world was the birthplace of the democratic system would you believe it? What about the claim that South Australia played a leading role in the development of democracy?

Religion and ethics: Secular grief

It was described as the silent mass demonstration -- an estimated 30,000 people gathered in Melbourne's Sydney Road on the weekend road to quietly honour Jill Meagher, the Irish ABC colleague who was raped and murdered last week.

Father Cares: the last of Jonestown

As part of RN's 'Perfect Worlds' special focus—a chilling and visceral portrait of utopian idealism’s dark counterpoint—dystopia.

Religion and ethics with Scott Stephens

The ongoing debate over same-sex marriage reached a climax of sorts with last week's vote in the Federal Parliament.

Jewish philosophy: Martin Buber

Martin Buber was born in pre-Nazi Austria and emigrated to Israel in 1938 where he spent much of the rest of his life. He grappled with Zionism, Jewish thought, secular philosophy and politics and the result is a body of thought very much based on relationships.

Jewish philosophy: Maimonides

Rabbi Moshe Ben Maimon, also known as Maimonides, became a hugely important figure in that great era of Moorish cultural flourishing, 12th century Spain (Cordoba). Maimonides adapted the ideas of Aristotle, was a significant influence on Thomas Aquinas, and became one of the leading Rabbinical scholars of his time, and perhaps of all time.

Challenge to school chaplaincy program gearing up for...

In June, Ron Williams, a Queensland father, challenged the constitutional validity of the federal government's national school chaplaincy program. The High Court ruled that the chaplaincy program exceeded the Commonwealth executive's spending powers. Legislation was then rushed through parliament to quarantine grants and funding arrangements managed by the executive. Now, Ron Williams and his legal team are getting ready to challenge the federal government's hasty legislative response.

Pure Gyuto - Tantric Chant

Grammy nominees in 2011, the Gyuto monks are regarded as masters of Tibetan Buddhist tantric ritual and are famous for their deep-voiced harmonic chant. We hear an exclusive recording of the Gyuto monks with commentary from Gyuto House Australia’s Maureen Fallon and Sonam Rigzin, and meet John Doggett-Williams, the director of a new documentary about the Gyuto Tantric University, Pure Sounds.

How Crowds Behave

They say two’s company, three’s a crowd. How about three million? That’s the number of pilgrims who’ll converge on Mecca this year for the hajj. It’s one of world’s great crowd management challenges. So what’s it like to be in this enormous mass of bodies? And what are the latest theories and models that are being applied to this and other large-scale public events such as the London Olympic Games?

Should priests report crimes revealed in confessions?

Catholic priests could be ordered to report crimes revealed to them in confessions, under a proposal before a Victorian parliamentary inquiry. The inquiry is looking into how religious groups handle cases of child abuse and a guide, released by the inquiry, asks whether mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse should be extended to include priests hearing confessions. Victims groups have welcomed the suggestion, but not priests.

Religion and ethics with Scott Stephens

In the light of Tony Abbott's recent assertion that asylum seekers are un-Christian for entering Australia illegally, Scott Stephens discusses how religion intersects with this vexed issue of public policy.

FIFA overturns Hijab ban

FIFA, the international body governing soccer, has overturned its ban on the hijab, or headscarf, for female players.

Death

Since the earliest times of Ancient Greece and Rome death has been dominant theme in all cultures. Different societies address death and dying in culturally diverse ways and yet there are remarkable similarities. More recently, however, some changes are happening -- think rockets and diamonds and even apps!

Forced adoption class action case mooted

It's believed up to 150,000 babies across Australia were taken from single mothers from the 1950s through the 1970s, under the practice of forced adoptions.

Egypt: Strewn with obstacles

A momentous event took place on the weekend. Mohamed Morsi, was not only sworn in as the first democratically elected President of Egypt but became the first Islamist elected to lead an Arab state. We look at what will happen to democracy’s progress elsewhere in the Arab world if Egypt goes wrong?

My Spiritual Diary: Moira Rayner, From Osho to Iggy

Fighting for human rights and equal opportunity has put Melbourne barrister, Moira Rayner in the limelight, but her life-long spiritual quest has not taken a back seat in her highly demanding life. Even when the chips were down, and she was accused of corruption when she was an Acting Commissioner of the Corruption and Crime Commission of Western Australia, she found solace and support in Christian Meditation. From a Presbyterian childhood, through to the innovative guru Bhagwan Shree...

360documentaries 1 July 2012

Large and small acts of kindness are the theme for today's show. In The Book of Ordinary Kindness a Rupert Bunny painting of the biblical tale of Ruth and Naomi is the inspiration for Lea Redfern's essay about the relationship between mothers and daughters-in-law and the generosity shown to others when we take them into our homes and our communities. Tunnel of Shame walks us through the noisy Devonshire Street Tunnel in Sydney, past the myriad people begging, busking or trying to sell us...

360documentaries 24 June 2012

In My Fear of Poland Natalie Kestecher takes a very personal journey to a Jewish cultural festival in Warsaw and then visits the tiny village where her father's family lived. It was a trip that she'd been planning and postponing for years. As the daughter of Polish Jews who'd lost so many family members during the war she had mixed feelings about going there. It is a powerful program about fear, memory, hope and delight.

Outback padres flying for 50 years: Stephen Cavill

The Outback Aerial Mission is a lot like the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Both serve isolated outback communities that would otherwise be neglected. The only difference is the Outback Aerial Mission tends to the spiritual and emotional -- rather than medical -- needs of outback people. This year it celebrates its 50th anniversary.

In Burma, deadly violence between Buddhists and Muslims

Differences between Burma's Buddhist majority and Muslim Rohingya minority go back centuries, but clashes have been particularly violent over the weekend, with reports of at least seven people killed in riots and arson attacks.

Love in Lancashire

Jeanette Winterson's adopted mum loved God but found it hard to love her child. Jeanette would search for love and wrestle with it, while enduring a harsh faith and an exorcism. In this intimate conversation, Jeanette talks of her Christian upbringing, her love of reading the Bible and the tales of the Holy Grail, which gave her profound hope, grounded her spiritual life, and shaped her into one of England's most acclaimed writers, and, in her words, 'a missionary of a different kind'.

Take Care of Your Belonging

A charming short story about whether you can buy beingness. If you purchase that statue of Buddha sitting on the road outside an antique shop will it bring you peace or Nirvana and can you claim it on tax?

No Gaga show for Indonesia's 'Little Monsters'

There are a lot of disappointed Little Monsters in Indonesia today, because their 'Mother Monster' Lady Gaga has cancelled her sold-out show in Jakarta over security threats.

MORMON YANKEES

They were basketball players and Mormon missionaries who brought the sport to Australia to spread the message of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in the 50s. Historian and film maker Professor Fred Woods of Brigham Young University, Utah, tells the story of their remarkable success, leading up to the ’56 Olympics.

Drawing Room: Monk for a month

The majority of Australians still identify as Christian but a growing number are exploring other religions in a quest for spiritual fulfilment.

360documentaries 20 May 2012

This week we have two stories about family. Kissing Cousins talks to people who fell in love with their first cousin about the taboo, the stigma and the genetic implications for them if they have children. I Carry A Number Seven is a story about identity and family. Janak Rogers meets various new-age healers and seers and the experience leads him to finally allow his Indian mother to read his tarot cards.

Our Emotional Brain

Pioneering neuroscientist Richard Davidson deepens our understanding of the mind-body connection. He’s identified six unique emotional styles and explains the brain chemistry underlying them. He explains that there are simple strategies and interventions which we can use to change our emotional styles. He believes one effective example is through mindfulness meditation, after studying the brain scans of people who practice it.

After the Arab Spring

The Arab Spring put the Arab world firmly on the path to democracy and a better future, didn't it? Well, maybe not. It was certainly led by liberals and they rallied the Arab masses but then they were drowned out by the slogans of the better organised and more popular radical Islamists.

Sunday 29 April 2012

Radio Muezzin is the story of five men who make the call to prayer from mosques across Egypt. We hear of their lives in villages and in Cairo, their devotion to Islam, their teaching of the Koran and their attitudes to the current political situation in their country. Also their feelings about their impending job loss, they are to be replaced by a recorded voice.

Lead Us To a Place

This week we visit Katanning, a small town in rural Western Australia where the local people and churches have a long history of acceptance and welcome to new arrivals, their faiths and cultures.

Victims of sex abuse and the courts

The announcement of a Victorian parliamentary inquiry into sex abuses in the clergy and non government organisations has received mixed responses. Welcomed as the first in Australia to launch such a probe, it's also criticised as too broad and lacking teeth.

Victorian inquiry into Church sexual abuse

The Victorian government has become the first in Australia to launch a probe into sexual abuse in religious organisations. The announcement of a parliamentary inquiry comes after revelations that at least 40 alleged victims of abuse by Catholic priests had committed suicide. While victims of abuse have welcomed the inquiry, many have expressed disappointment that a Royal Commission has not been appointed.

Sex abuse inquiry to focus on religious groups

The Victorian Government is opening a Parliamentary inquiry that will look into religious organisations' handling of sexual abuse allegations.

Holocaust documents and memorabilia

Just a few thousand pieces of memorabilia remain from the atrocities of the Holocaust. The organisation responsible for managing those items, and the millions of meticulous records kept about Nazi concentration camps, is the International Tracing Service, where Dr Susanne Urban is Head of Historical Research. She will be speaking later today at the Sydney Jewish Museum, as well as handing over a number of wallets which belonged to concentration camp victims.

The Good Book

Most people know that the Bible is a literary classic, whose influence on secular Western culture has been profound. But fewer and fewer people actually read it. Are we disconnecting from our biblical roots, and at what cost? And what are the tensions between reading the Bible as literature, and reading it as a sacred text?

Religion and ethics with Scott Stephens

Time now for our weekly look at the world of religion and ethics with Scott Stephens the online editor of the ABC Religion and Ethics website.

New report on homophobia in Arabic-speaking communities

A report called 'We are family too' will be released today. It explores the effects of homophobia on gay people from Arabic-speaking communities in NSW. It found that gay people from Arabic backgrounds often experience homophobia in their own families in the form of verbal abuse or pressure to act straight.

Christian animal sacrifice in the Holy Land

Jill, Duchess of Hamilton was shocked when she discovered that the practice of ritualized animal sacrifice by Christians in the Holy Land still occurs.

Sunday 08 April 2012

It's Sunday Extra... Easter style! We're talking about the place of God in Australian politics and adding some artificial sweetener to the upcoming federal budget. And, of course, scattering all of your favourite tasty treats throughout the show. Mmmm... gluttonously yummy.

Dutiful sons and daughters

The commandment "Honour thy father and thy mother" is fundamental to family values in the West. But our modern fetish for autonomy makes a practical ethics of caring for parents complicated. This week Encounter explores Christianity, Confucianism and the bonds of filial affection.

Forced marriages

Every year, ten million girls around the world marry before they are 18.

Risk of terrorism in Indonesia

On Sunday, Indonesian anti-terrorism police shot dead five members of a suspected terrorist cell in Bali. Indonesian authorities say they believe the men were from an organisation called Jamaah Ansharut Tauhid and may have been planning an attack on a bar in the tourist area of Semanyak.

Atheist Alom Shaha

Imagine you live in a strict Muslim community. You’re taught not to question your religion.But you don’t actually believe any of it. Your interest lies in the world of science, ideas, and books.This is the world of atheist Alom Shaha, a Bangladesh-born science writer, filmmaker and teacher who’s lived in London since he was young boy. He's in conversation with Paul Barclay.

Numinous Cosmos

What is a better tool for gaining knowledge and discovering truth – science or spirituality? Or are the scientific and spiritual approaches not so different after all? A physicist, a Buddhist monk and a biologist talk about the numinous cosmos and enlightenment.

The lucid dreamers

When we sleep, is it possible to dream and think clearly at the same time? Lucid dreamers say yes. They have the ability to realise they’re dreaming, and to control the narrative of their dreams, and even the characters who populate them.

Sex and faith

In his new book ‘Leaving Alexandria: a memoir of faith and doubt’, Richard Holloway, former Bishop of Edinburgh, and now public intellectual and prolific author, candidly discusses the ways in which ‘the battle of the flesh’ has affected his life with the Church and outlook on the world.

Religion and Ethics: Scott Stephens

In RN Drive's weekly look at religion and ethics, Waleed Aly and Scott Stephens discuss proposed reforms of the House of Lords in the United Kingdom.

My Spiritual Diary, Jane Rutter

Emotional honesty and living according to a golden rule of following her inspiration is what drives Jane Rutter, one of Australia's premier flautists. Nature, Sufism, and a profound belief in music as the language of 'Divine Communion,' Jane is frank, forceful and funny about the spiritual values that infuse her life.

Drawing Room: Alom Shaha and Scott Stephens

Atheism is having its moment; Richard Dawkins, the late Christopher Hitchens and Alain De Botton are all big names with a lot of followers.

360documentaries 26 February 2012

Heartbreak is a 4,000 year old story - so why do couples who've separated always feel so unique in their agony? In the Ariadne project we examine the anatomy of love and loss, with moving and insightful stories from you, our listeners, as contributed to ABC Pool, last year. But it's not all darkness and tragedy, at the end of the ancient Greek myth, beautiful Ariadne, abandoned by heroic Theseus on a beach, winds up with Dionysus, the God of wine and desire.

360documentaries 19 February 2012

An unusual childhood spent at a boarding school in the remote Himalayas is remembered by a group of Australian twenty-somethings. Dodging bears in the forest, daily meditation and a patchy but disciplined curriculum were all part of this life-changing experience.

Religion and ethics

RN Drive's weekly look at the world of religion and ethics with Scott Stephens, editor of ABC Religion and Ethics website.

Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens was not a 'religious writer' but his novels expressed his Christian beliefs, which he hoped would result in the upliftment of society. The theological debates of 19th Century England were not as important to Dickens as the example of Christ in the New Testament, which informed his writing. Grace Moore, a specialist in Dickens and the Victorian Era, reveals the complexity of Dickens' religion as portrayed in his characters and novels, from Pickwick Papers to The Tale of Two...

Wednesday 08 February 2012

MY SPIRITUAL DIARY - ROSS FITZGERALD

Do you have spiritual thoughts? Or do they drift away in a fog while you're busy doing something else? MY SPIRITUAL DIARY is a monthly series on The Spirit of Things where people in all walks of life keep a record of their spiritual thoughts and practice. Sharing their feelings and observations, they focus on the things that give meaning to their lives, in the day to day.

Kevin Hart

Many of us don’t really understand ‘forgiveness’—that’s the assessment of Australian poet and philosopher Kevin Hart delivering the Simone Weil Annual Lecture at the Australian Catholic University last year. He takes on some conventional ideas about forgiveness and picks up both on some prevalent versions of Christian forgiveness and on some contemporary philosophical ideas, including those of philosopher Jacques Derrida with the intention to put forgiveness in its place—along with justice....

Life for Christians in Syria

Many Christian leaders have supported the Assad government because they believe it offers their roughly 2 million followers protection.

EMOTIONS AND BELIEFS

Atheists and Believers have different abilities to feel and express their emotions according to a new Canadian study by Psychologists Raluca Petrican of Rotman Research Institute, Toronto and Chris Burris of St. Jerome's University, Waterloo, Ontario. Atheists are more left-brained while Believers are more right-brained, and the latter exhibit alexi-thymia more than the former. Award winning poet and former psychiatric nurse, Sally Read, found it hard to put her conversion experience into...

Food on Friday - Religions promoting occasional...

Many mainstream religions have long traditions focusing on human restraint, fasting, or abstinence so a new campaign in Australia by a multi faith religious organisation to encourage less consumption of meat shouldn't come as a surprise.

A year since the Egypt protests began

Protesters have returned to Tahrir Square in Egypt to mark the first anniversary of the revolt that toppled President Hosni Mubarak.