Religion and Ethics Report
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A renewed abortion war in the US and Australia
Could a court verdict in the United States and two proposed laws in Australia trigger a new culture war over abortion?
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The cult of money versus the gospel of prosperity
The Pope has attacked "the cult of money". But some religious believers embrace a "prosperity gospel", ensuring the nexus between religion and consumer capitalism couldn’t be stronger.
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Hugh Mackay on what "the good life" really means
Australia's pre-eminent social researcher, Hugh Mackay, says in his new book that "the good life" is not about acquiring material wealth or even finding constant happiness, but in living for others.
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The ups and downs of interfaith marriage in the United...
US author Naomi Schaefer Riley's latest book, 'Til Faith Do Us Part, argues that marriages between couples of different religious backgrounds can often be unhappy and more prone to divorce.
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Who should fund charities: governments or citizens?
If governments give money to charities, does it discourage the citizen from giving?
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Cops and Catholicism: the cultural connection between...
Has a so-called "Catholic mafia" inside the New South Wales Police Force hindered official investigations into allegations of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church?
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The 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King's Letter from...
Jonathan Rieder discusses the enduring lessons of Dr King's famous letter, in his new book, Gospel of Freedom: Martin Luther King, Jr's Letter from Birmingham Jail and the Struggle That Changed a Nation.
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The threat to Australia's foreign aid
With a tight budget expected on May 14, aid agencies worry that the $5 billion overseas development budget could be vulnerable.
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Islam and the elections in Malaysia
With Malaysia's national elections on Sunday (5 May) looking close, could religion tip the balance?
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The Anglican Ambassador to the Vatican offended by...
The departing Anglican ambassador to the Vatican, Australian canon David Richardson, says he was offended by the way the former Pope established an "ordinariate" to lure conservative Anglicans into the Catholic Church.
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The 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King's Letter from...
Jonathan Rieder talks about his new book, Gospel of Freedom: Martin Luther King, Jr's Letter from Birmingham Jail and the Struggle That Changed a Nation.
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The radical Islam behind the Boston marathon bombing
How has the rise of radical Islam in the Russian Caucasus and Central Asia influenced the suspects in the Boston marathon bombing?
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The religious roots of America's extremist groups
Many of America's right-wing extremist and terrorist groups have their origins in the "Christian Identity" movement.
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The religious cult of North Korea's Kim dynasty
Is the leadership of North Korea a quasi religious organisation built around the cult of personality?
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The faith of Tony Abbott
In the second part of our series on the religious influence on the lives of Australia's political leaders, as they head towards the September election, we look at the Catholic faith of Opposition Leader Tony Abbott.
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Mrs Thatcher and her clashes with the churches
Margaret Thatcher's most famous stoushes were with Britain's unions but her most fascinating disputes were with Britain's churches.
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Rupert Shortt on the rise of "Christianophobia"
British writer Rupert Shortt discusses his latest book, Christianophobia: A Faith Under Attack.
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The Jesuits in politics, culture and myth
Australia's most famous Jesuit priest, Fr Frank Brennan, discusses the religious order called The Society of Jesus, of which Pope Francis is a member.
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The Protestant challenge in Pope Francis's homeland
Across Latin America, the once dominant Catholic Church is facing a huge challenge from a burgeoning Evangelical and Pentecostal Christian movement.
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A new Pope AND a new Archbishop of Canterbury
Pope Francis and the new Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, were formally installed in office within two days of one another.
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What do Australians and women hope for from Pope Francis?
The leader of Australia's congregations of nuns, brothers and priests, Annette Cunliffe, speaks about what she hopes Pope Francis will bring to the church.
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Pope Francis on poverty and life under Argentina's...
Will Pope Francis' call for a "poor church for poor people" lead to a whole new order in the Catholic world and what was his role as a religious leader during the dictatorship in Argentina in the late 1970s and early 1980s?
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Australian Anglican leader on the campaign against...
The Anglican Archdeacon of Canberra-Goulburn is at the United Nations to help stem violence against women.
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Mary McAleese on papal power-sharing
The former president of Ireland says the next pope needs to share power with a wider circle of bishops.
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Hugo Chavez and the religion behind the revolution
The late Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, who died recently, used religious symbolism and even claimed Jesus Christ as 'the first commandante'.
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Waiting for the next Pope
Jesuit priest and journalist Thomas Reese speculates on the deliberations of the cardinals as they choose the next Pope.
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Urban planning challenges of new religions
An urban design expert says Australian cities need to plan for the growth of non-Christian religions.
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US churches campaign against the growth of the private...
Is it ethical to profit from crime, even if you run a private prison and it's someone else's crime?
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Cardinals prepare for Papal conclave but no signs of...
About 140 cardinals of the Catholic Church are having preliminary meetings in Rome to prepare for the conclave that will elect the next Pope.
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Mahatma Gandhi's granddaughter on religion as a force...
The granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi, former South African parliamentarian Dr. Ela Gandhi, talks about her role as honorary president of the World Council of Religions for Peace and her grandfather's dream of religious harmony.
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Simone Campbell, "radical" nun, on Pope Benedict and...
The leader of an organisation censured by the Vatican for its "radical feminism" and preoccupation with poverty and economic justice assesses Pope Benedict's legacy and discusses the future of progressives in the US Catholic Church.
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A conservative assessment of Benedict XVI's papacy
Was Benedict XVI all that conservative and orthodox Catholics had hoped he would be?
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The dark side of fly-in, fly-out work in remote Australia
A Uniting Church welfare agency raises some serious questions about the effects of Australia's fly-in fly-out work boom on families and the mental health of workers.
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Religious freedom and the Anglican Church in Burma
The Anglican Archbishop of Melbourne, Philip Freier, leads a delegation to Burma to look at church projects and religious freedom.
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Paul Collins on the implications of Pope Benedict's...
If Pope Benedict has overturned a convention -- if not church law -- by resigning, are there other precedents that his successor could also overturn?
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Jean Bethke Elshstain on Pope Benedict's thinking and...
One of the world’s leading philosophers of religion, Jean Bethke Elshtain, on how this seemingly conservative man actually nurtured quite a radical streak.
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Thomas Reese on Pope Benedict's resignation
Does this resignation change the whole concept of the Papacy as a divinely ordained office?
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The influence of religion - and Aristotle - on the...
One of British Labour's leading thinkers is plundering Catholic teaching on economic justice, and the work of Aristotle, as he drafts his party's new platform.
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The Baptist influence on Julia Gillard
How does the strong Baptist faith of Julia Gillard's childhood and youth influence her today?
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US Cardinal banned from public role
The Catholic archbishop of Los Angeles has relieved his predecessor of all public duties after revelations of a cover-up of clerical sex abuse.
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Freedom of religion in the NSW constitution
A prominent New South Wales Labor MP is pushing to include freedom of religion in that state's constitution.
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Gay Bishops in the Church of England
The Church of England approves the appointment of bishops in same-sex but celibate relationships.
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Religious parties and the Israeli election
What role and influence might the religious parties have in Israel's next government, following the January election?
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Busting the myths about American religion
America’s top political scientist, Robert Putnam, destroys some stereotypes about religion in the United States in his latest book.
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Martha Nussbaum: the new religious intolerance
In this special extended interview, the world renowned philosopher Martha Nussbaum discusses her latest book, The New Religious Intolerance: Overcoming the Politics of Fear in an Anxious Age.
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Has Queen Elizabeth failed 'Christian' Britain?
Queen Elizabeth II has been on the throne for six decades, marking her diamond jubilee this year. One prominent British conservative -- and a strong admirer of the Queen -- is asking if the woman who is also supreme governor of the Anglican Church has done enough to defend the Christian heritage and character of Britain.
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Syria: civil war or religious war?
The situation in Syria is worsening day by day. Is a civil war turning into a religious war, pitting majority Sunnis against a loose coalition of Alawites, Christians and Druze? A world-class expert shares his prediction.
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The Church and the Global Financial Crisis
How should the churches respond to the financial crisis? Is there an ethical obligation to speak against greed? And what if the churches are sometimes complicit? A panel discussion with the priests who preach to Wall Street and the big end of town.
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Life for Australia's nuns after Vatican II
How did Pope John XXIII’s injunction to throw open the windows of the Catholic church change life for thousands of Australian women religious?
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A review of a year of religious upheaval
Two of Australia's leading religious commentators discuss the issues that have rocked the world of religion, at home and abroad, in 2012.
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The legacy of John Nevile and the philosophy of Adam...
How did religion influence the work of Australian economist John Nevile, and what did the moral philosopher Adam Smith have to say about the obligations of capitalism?
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Ross Gittins on ethical economics
Australia's pre-eminent economic commentator Ross Gittins says politicians need to listen to more bishops and fewer economists when making policy.
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Australia's National Church Life Survey
The results of the 2011 National Church Life Survey are in ... with some surprises about who makes up congregations and why they attend.
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Mike Bassous of Lebanon's Bible Society on Syrian...
The General Secretary of the Christian aid agency, the Bible Society of Lebanon, on whether the religious instability in Syria could spill over into Lebanon.
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Vatican II and Jewish Relations
How did the Second Vatican Council, which began in 1962, change relations between the Catholic Church and the Jewish people?
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The sex abuse royal commission and Catholic reform
A former Catholic priest, now a leading scholar, says the planned royal commission into child sex abuse in churches and institutions must provoke profound structural and doctrinal change in the Catholic Church.
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EJ Dionne Jr Part II
In the aftermath of the United States election, the acclaimed American commentator and author E.J. Dionne Jr. discusses his new book about the centuries-old divide between the communitarianism and individualism in American history.
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A new Archbishop of Canterbury
A former high-flying oil executive-turned-Anglican priest, Justin Welby, is the new Archbishop of Canterbury.
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Patrick Parkinson on the Catholic sex abuse crisis
One of Australia's most respected child protection experts abandons his support for the Catholic Church's protocol on dealing with child sex abuse.
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A new Pope for Coptic Christians
A six-year-old Egyptian boy decided the new leader of world's Coptic Christian population, when he reached into a glass bowl and drew out the name of Tawadros II.
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How did religion affect the 2012 US elections?
A first look at how religious factors affected the results of the 2012 US presidential and congressional elections with one of America's top political analysts.
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EJ Dionne Jr Part I
EJ Dionne is one of America’s leading public intellectuals. He says the 2012 election reflects a 300-year-old philosophical divide in the United States. Is America a place of rugged individualism or does it have a communitarian ethos that’s grounded in religion?
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Mitt and Mormonism
With next week’s US election looking so tight, will the Mormon faith of the Republican Mitt Romney cost him a handful of crucial votes?
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African-American preaching and its influence on US...
The African-American churches have bequeathed to US politics a rich legacy of oratory.
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Acton, Obama and the question of religious liberty
The 2012 Centre for Independent Studies Acton lecturer, Ryan Messmore, believes religious freedom is under threat in the United States.
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Pope John XXIII and the 50th anniversary of Vatican II
When Pope John XXIII established the Second Vatican Council 50 years ago, what was his real motive? What do his private papers and diaries reveal?
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Tim Soutphommasane and patriotic multiculturalism
One of Australia's leading young philosophers on whether religion underlines or undermines patriotism.
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Does multiculturalism work in Europe?
A debate continues to bubble away in Germany over whether 'multikulti' has failed.
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Cultural Zionism or Political Zionism? Which way forward...
With the Middle East peace process effectively dead, an orthodox Jewish scholar suggests an unorthodox way out of the impasse.
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Peter Jensen on individualism, communitarianism and the...
When the Anglican Archbishop of Sydney, Peter Jensen, railed against the use of Frank Sinatra’s signature tune, My Way, at funerals, he wasn’t so much a music critic as a social analyst.
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Progressive Jim Hightower on campaigning in America's...
As the United States election campaign picks up, one of America’s most famous progressive politicians tells how he won votes in the conservative bible belt of Texas.
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Vatican power at the United Nations
The Vatican’s influence at the United Nations is under fire ... from within. Some Catholic activists are lobbying to end the Vatican’s special status at the UN.
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Vatican II and the Australian impact
Fifty years after the Second Vatican Council began, how did this central event in modern Catholic history change Australian Catholics?
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Islamophobia: reality or myth?
Is Islamophobia a reality or a myth? As protests continue across the Muslim world against an amateur movie that mocks the Muslim prophet Muhammad, one scholar warns that the charge of Islamophobia is shutting down critical debate.
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German bishops threaten excommunication to those who...
Germany’s Catholic bishops say no pay, no play. Germans who evade their church tax will be, in effect, excommunicated.
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Blasphemy laws in Pakistan
How blasphemy laws in one Muslim country have been turned against religious minorities – and against Muslims who don’t conform.
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Deeper reasons behind the riots in the Muslim world
A provocative Muslim scholar says the protests—including the violence in Sydney at the weekend of 15–16 September—are about much more than a cheap film.
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Sheikh stirs the masses over The Innocence of Muslims
A look at the Saudi-backed sheikh who whipped up the mass anger in the Islamic world about 'The Innocence of Muslims', the film that mocks Muhammad.
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Nuns on the Bus at the Democratic convention
A radical nun brought the Democratic Party convention in the United States to its feet.
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Who owns God?
Can either side of politics -- left or right -- legitimately claim to be closer to Christian doctrine?
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A new 'progressive Christian voice'
A new left-wing Christian organisation has been set up as a counterweight to the generally conservative Australian Christian Lobby.
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The debate over the "submissive" wife
Wives submit to your husbands. Some Sydney Anglicans have drafted a wedding vow in which the bride promises to 'submit' to the groom. But the issue goes a lot deeper than one line in a marriage service.
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Priest charged with concealment of alleged sex offences
In a reminder of a recent US case, an Australian priest has been charged after he allegedly failed to tell police about the alleged sex offences of a fellow priest.
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New CEO for the Oaktree Foundation
A young aid worker explains how faith has inspired her fight against famine in the developing world.
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Church welfare groups and the hazards of state money
What are the dangers of the church taking money from the state? The former head of a major faith-based welfare group has a warning.
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Obama versus the bishops
Is it possible that November’s US presidential election will be Barack Obama versus the bishops? As the leader of America’s Catholics blesses the Republican convention this week, we examine this clash between church and state.
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Religious minorities in the Arab Spring
What became of Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi’s pledge to appoint a non-Muslim or a woman as vice-president and how does that fit in to the general Islamist drift of the Arab Spring?
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Infidelity as a defence for spouse killers
If you find your spouse in bed with someone else, should his or her infidelity be used as a mitigating circumstance if you kill that cheating spouse?
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Is the new 'Pacific Solution' ethical?
Is it ethical to instil in asylum-seekers a fear of spending years on a remote Pacific island, if it stops them endangering their lives at sea in leaky boats?
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Tribute to Robert Hughes and Marvin Hamlisch
Art writer and critic Robert Hughes and composer and songwriter Marvin Hamlisch have died. Both artists drew on their religious backgrounds -- Catholic and Jewish -- for some of their professional inspiration.
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The 2011 Census, ethnicity and religion in Australia
The 2011 census reveals that immigrant communities from Asia are keeping the Catholic Church alive. It’s out with the Irish, the Italians and the Poles, and in with Filipino, Vietnamese and Indian Catholics.
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The Salvation Army discord over chaplains in poker...
Is one of the most venerable welfare and religious organisations in the world being used as a fig leaf for the gambling industry? A decision to trial Salvation Army chaplains inside a poker machine-filled club in NSW has divided the organisation.
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Ramadan and the London Olympics
If you’re one of the estimated 3,500 Muslim athletes attending the London Olympics, can you compete effectively while observing rules on fasting during Ramadan? What about women athletes and the conventions around dressing modestly?
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Civil courts challenge religious authority in Malaysia
Two rulings from Malaysia’s second highest court suggest the country’s civil law is asserting itself over the parallel system of religious law.
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Gun violence and religion in the United States
God and guns. A look at the connection between religion and violence in the United States after the recent gun massacre in a Colorado movie theatre.
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Are free markets a moral force?
Is the 'free market' a moral entity? One of Australia’s best known free-market economists, Ian Harper, rethinks some of his views, in not so much a conversion but a revision on the road to Damascus.
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A brief history of Haredim and military exemption
What's the historical background to the decision to exempt some ultra-Orthodox from military service?
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Haredi military draft in Israel
In Israel, the grand coalition government has collapsed, after only 70 days. The major reason behind its collapse -- disagreement between the parties over whether young, ultra-Orthodox should serve in the defence forces.
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200 Years of the Wesley Mission
Two centuries in the thick of politics and poverty. The bicentenary of the Wesley Mission in Sydney.
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The Uniting Church assembly tries to manage difference
The Uniting Church of Australia is meeting in Adelaide for its 13th triennial assembly. Can it hold its liberal and conservative factions together?
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America's most influential church on the brink of...
Is the Episcopal Church—which once dominated the top-tier of American society, boasting 10 presidents among its number—on the verge of collapse after bishops walk out of its national convention in Indianapolis?
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Same-sex marriage divides churches
As Federal Parliament prepares to debate same-sex marriage, there’s a widening split between churches over the issue.
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The Holocaust survivor and the African refugee
As anti-refugee sentiment rises in Israel, an elderly Holocaust survivor forges a deep friendship with a young African Muslim asylum-seeker.
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UK Anglicans postpone decision on women bishops ... again
Supporters of women becoming bishops in the United Kingdom have forced the Church of England to delay a decision until November. But have they set back their cause by years?
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Syria: civil war or religious war?
The situation in Syria is worsening day by day. Is a civil war turning into a religious war, pitting majority Sunnis against a loose coalition of Alawites, Christians and Druze? A world-class expert shares his prediction.
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Catholic official faces jail for child endangerment
Monsignor William Lynn of Philadelphia, in the United States, faces up to seven years in jail after a court found he transferred a priest who was a known sexual abuser between parishes.
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Hindus in Australia
As the 2011 census reveals Hinduism to be the fastest growing religion in Australia, we visit Australia’s first Hindu temple.
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2011 Census reveals rise of 'no religion' ... but...
What does the 2011 census data say about belief and unbelief in Australia? Is everyone who ticked the 'no religion' box in the census an atheist?
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Religious violence spirals in Nigeria
Could the escalating violence in northern Nigeria, between the Islamist terror group Boko Haram and retaliating Christians, flare into all-out religious war?
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Busting the myths about American religion: Part II
In the second part of our interview with the legendary American political scientist and author Robert Putnam, he explains why religious people are, in his words, 'nicer'.
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The 2011 Census: has immigration changed religion?
The 2011 census data is out tomorrow. What will it reveal about the state of religion in Australia, especially given the immigration trends of the past decade?
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High Court rules school chaplains program...
The High Court rules that publicly funded school chaplains are constitutionally invalid—but not for the reasons that secularists wanted.
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Busting the myths about American religion
America’s top political scientist, Robert Putnam, destroys some stereotypes about religion in the United States in his latest book.
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Egypt's election: facing Turkey or Iran?
The final round of presidential elections in Egypt is just days away. Will Egypt take the Turkish road or the Iranian road in its journey to democracy?
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A sermon for Queen Elizabeth II
The Archbishop of Canterbury delivers a provocative sermon for a servant queen.
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Religion in the university curriculum
Religion where you don’t expect to find it ... in university courses in engineering and medicine, for example.
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Israel approves Liberal and Conservative rabbis
A court ruling in Israel means semi-official recognition, for the first time, for non-Orthodox rabbis. An Australian rabbi in the reform/progressive tradition gives her response.
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The consecration of a Gnostic bishop
The followers of the Gnostic gospels -- which are considered heretical by mainstream Christian churches -- consecrate their third bishop in the world ... using a Catholic chapel in Australia.
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The Crisis of Zionism Part II
The final part of our interview with controversial Jewish-American writer Peter Beinart, author of The Crisis of Zionism. This week, are radical religious and political leaders in Israel pushing young Jews away from Zionism?
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Papal butler arrested: more Vatican mystery
What’s behind the latest intrigue in the Vatican, as the Pope’s butler is arrested for allegedly leaking secrets?
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Billy Graham's grandson talks about his famous grandaddy
The grandson of evangelist Billy Graham tells why every US president of the past 60 years has wanted to meet his legendary grandfather.
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Christmas Island immigration centre still a 'prison' say...
A church delegation returns from Christmas Island immigration detention centre with their verdict: conditions have improved but it’s still a prison for desperate people who’ve committed no crime in Australia.
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Will Islamists win Egypt's presidential elections?
Will Egypt’s Islamic parties seal the deal on power in presidential elections beginning today? And why are Egyptian liberals leaning towards a man from the Muslim Brotherhood?
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'God botherers' and the Christian roots of Australian law
The former High Court justice Michael Kirby tells 'the god botherers' to shut up—even though Mr Kirby, himself, is a committed Anglican.
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The Crisis of Zionism
Jewish-American author Peter Beinart is the hot provocateur of the moment, with a new book arguing Israeli democracy is fraying.
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The Pope's power grab
If conservatives worry that Queen Elizabeth has not been assertive enough defending her turf, liberals fear Pope Benedict is centralising more power within the Vatican -- 50 years after the Second Vatican Council, which was meant to reform the Catholic Church.
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Has Queen Elizabeth failed 'Christian' Britain?
Queen Elizabeth II has been on the throne for six decades, marking her diamond jubilee this year. One prominent British conservative -- and a strong admirer of the Queen -- is asking if the woman who is also supreme governor of the Anglican Church has done enough to defend the Christian heritage and character of Britain.
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Should the Greens chase the Christian vote?
As the new Greens leader Christine Milne looks for votes among farmers and progressive business leaders, is she ignoring potential support among people of faith?
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The Catholic Church subpoenas victims group
In the United States, some Catholic leaders are lashing out. Two major dioceses are trying to get their hands on the private records of a victim support group, SNAP, which someCatholic conservatives accuse of being a 'menace' to the church.
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Cardinal Pell and the church response to the sex abuse...
While the Victorian government has announced a parliamentary enquiry into the sex abuse crisis in the church, we ask what effect did a decision by the former Catholic archbishop of Melbourne, Cardinal George Pell, not to be a part of the church’s national system for dealing with sex abuse have on the crisis?
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Morals, the language of faith, and evangelical culture...
Did you know that NASCAR has become an evangelical Christian motor sport? When American politicians speak, can you pick up those little phrases from old hymns and scripture? And can you really win the presidency by running a morals campaign against free love and the pill?
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Anzac Day Special: Faith Under Fire
How is the religious faith of soldiers, sailors and airmen tested in the heat of combat and trauma? An expert panel discusses the challenge to religious belief.
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The church and Wall Street: too close for comfort?
Can some churches get too close to the corporate world?
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The church and corporate greed
Leading clergy from churches close to the business community gather in Australia to debate the relationship between religion and the market.
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Coming out in the Arab and Muslim communities
A new report shows it takes enormous courage to come out as gay in the Arab and Muslim communities, even in 21st century Australia.
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Healing a split in the Greek Orthodox Church
As Australian Greeks prepare to celebrate Orthodox Easter, we look at a long-running split in the local Greek Orthodox community – which is only now being healed.
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A leading liberal cleric prepares to quit
As one of Australia’s most prominent progressive church leaders, the Rev. Harry Herbert, announces his retirement, he also speculates on the future of that bastion of liberal theology, the Uniting Church.
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God Versus Science: a 'great' debate?
Is it possible to debate the existence of God? As atheists begin to gather in Melbourne for their convention this weekend, ABC1's "Q & A" program gave it a shot. But did it produce more heat than light?
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Women clergy still struggle for acceptance
As a third woman is made a bishop in the Anglican Church of Australia, a pioneer of the women’s ordination movement says young Anglicans are more conservative in their views of women.
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The sacking of Bishop Morris: the plot thickens
New revelations from Jesuit priest and lawyer Frank Brennan in the case of Bill Morris, the Australian Catholic bishop fired by the Vatican for no clear reason.
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Burmese democracy and the Buddhist monks
Were the seeds of democracy now sprouting in Burma planted by Buddhist monks?
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Genetically screening candidates for political office
What are the ethics of genetically profiling political candidates to screen out those with personality disorders? A leading jurist has problems with the idea.
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New Queensland MP to oppose same-sex civil unions
New Queensland Liberal National MP Trevor Ruthenberg, who until recently headed the Lutheran Church, is ready to vote to repeal civil unions—even though it will mean denying his best friend the chance for a same-sex union.
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Religion and the Queensland election
The Queensland election. The votes are in. Labor’s out. Were there religious factors at work in the result?
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An ayatollah talks of sin
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, declares nuclear weapons a sin.
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An archbishop stands down
The retirement of the Archbishop of Canterbury means upheaval for Anglicans.
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Death of a Pope
The death of Egypt’s Coptic Christian leader Pope Shenouda throws much of the country into mourning—and, potentially, into disruption.
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Rupert's religion
How the Presbyterian faith of his forefathers influences the politics of Rupert Murdoch
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Catholics demand rise in the basic wage
The Australian Catholic Council for Employment Relations urges Fair Work Australia to raise the minimum wage.
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The 6th Regional Interfaith Dialogue
A high-level conference in Indonesia addresses religious tension and violence across the region.
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Traditional Anglicans reject Vatican offer to join up
A group of bishops from the Traditional Anglican Communion have declined an offer from the Vatican to join the Catholic Church
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A woman bishop making history
The Rev Genieve Blackwell will make history on 31 March, becoming the first woman bishop in the Anglican Province of NSW.
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Twenty years of female Anglican priests
It is 20 years, to the very day, since the first women were ordained priests in the Anglican Church of Australia.
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Powerful religious blocs in US politics
Which religious groups are the most powerful among US voters and why does a 1973 Supreme Court decision continue to enrage millions of voters?
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Kevin Rudd – a morality tale
Was the rise and dramatic downfall of Kevin Rudd a morality tale about the fate of Christians in modern politics?
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Scripture versus ethics in public schools
The debate over scripture classes versus ethics classes in public schools re-ignites at a parliamentary inquiry.
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The 350th anniversary of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer
The influence of this Anglican text on literature and oratory has been huge and a new version is making a comeback in Australia’s biggest Anglican diocese.
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The impact on religious schools of the Gonski review of...
Could David Gonski’s review of school funding establish two parallel systems of education—one secular, one religious, both funded entirely by the taxpayer?
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Curbing the conscience of Catholics
Australian Catholic bishop Anthony Fisher sets out to put limits on the primacy of conscience in a confronting new book about bioethics.
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A Presbyterian minister, a politician and a same-sex...
The Rev. Dr David Clark, a Presbyterian minister, was elected to the New Zealand parliament last year as a Labour MP, not long after officiating at the same-sex union of his party’s deputy leader.
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Same-sex marriage and the challenge to the churches
Three bills to legalise same-sex marriage are prompting debate within the churches about their positions.
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Barack Obama and his pitch for the evangelical vote
US President Barack Obama said prayers at the White House. But was he really sending a coded message to religious voters that he’s their man?
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The priest in the parliament
When the federal parliament resumed this week, a priest was in charge. But is the controversial new speaker of the House of Representatives, Father Peter Slipper, a priest who is recognised by any major church?
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The battle for the soul of Egyptian Islam
Islamic parties won a clear majority in the parliament in Egypt. What are their plans for the country?
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Rebuilding America's most religious city after natural...
In August 2005, winds gusting at more than 200 km an hour hit the coast of Louisiana in the southern United States. At the same time, 53 levees protecting the historic city of New Orleans broke and flooded up to 80 per cent of the city.
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Life for Christians in Syria
Many Christian leaders have supported the Assad government because they believe it offers their roughly 2 million followers protection.
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Religious diversity in strife-torn Syria
The fall of the regime of Bashar al-Assad now looks increasingly likely. The United Nations Security Council has been debating a resolution from the Arab League calling on President Assad to surrender power.
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Tim Fischer returns from Rome
Former National Party leader Tim Fischer is about to return home after his three-year posting as Australia's diplomatic envoy at the Holy See in Rome
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A sacred enclosure for observant Jews
In the northern Sydney suburb of St Ives an orthodox Jewish community wants to build an eruv, a physical boundary that allows observant Jews to move freely on the Sabbath.
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Religion and the Republican primaries
As the contest between Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich takes shape, religion has become an interesting element. Do conservative, evangelical voters dislike Mormons so much that they’d vote for a thrice-married convert to Catholicism?
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