Who was the real Mary of Nazareth and how did Christians come to believe she was a virgin?
Rite & Reason: Challenge today is to extricate the historical, fully human Mary from theological baggage heaped upon her over centuries
Jesus Christ
This year is the 1,700th anniversary of a great church controversy
Rite & Reason: The Council of Nicaea, held in 325, concerned the disputed view that Jesus was not coeternal with God
Three things we give up when we turn away from Catholicism
Unthinkable: Asking whether we have lost something from our lapsed Catholicism is not about rushing back to the past. It’s about facing the future with greater self-awareness
On Christmas Day, what family and friends believe about Christ will be irrelevant
Rite & Reason: What makes Christmas religious is that regardless of their specific beliefs, people come together to celebrate the mystery and beauty of life
Bethlehem cancels Christmas celebrations
War means there will be little visitor presence in the birthplace of Jesus this Christmas
New evidence for the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin
So far nobody has come up with a credible explanation of how the the relic might have been forged
God help us all, Russell Brand has found religion
Christianity has been around for some time and will weather this particular trend cycle, no matter Russell Brand’s risible public display. And these online Christian gurus will find a new cause celebre
There may have been two St Patricks, and St Brigid might not have existed. But there are no doubts about Jesus
Rite & Reason: The self-sacrifice of Jesus affects us more than you might think, and more than any saint ever did.
Is ‘wokeness’ really the new religion? I find that hard to believe
Crucially, by comparing one’s opponents to dogmatic zealots, it becomes unnecessary to engage with them
‘Don’t despair ... We were honest people’: Alexei Navalny’s message from prison has a lesson for us all
Rite & Reason: Where Mary stood by the cross, Navalny’s mother took her stand by the gates of the bleak Arctic prison to plead for the body of her son
‘It’s called looking after each other’: we will all be a burden at some point in our lives
Thinking Anew: Christ himself was a burden, becoming a liability to his friends when he was arrested and executed
Was Jesus Christ the first real feminist?
Rite & Reason: Jesus did not send female disciples to proclaim him because it would have been culturally impossible
From the bloody to the blasphemous: 10 of the best novels about Jesus
Takes from Anne Rice, Norman Mailer, Kahlil Gibran, Robert Graves, Philip Pullman and more Jesus as, variously, divine, mortal and conflicted
‘Would you like to visit my grave?’ The farmer planning a home burial
Martin Neary has permission to be buried on his own lands in Co Mayo when he dies
Roe v Wade: Is the US on the cusp of overturning abortion rights?
A court decision this summer will determine whether the landmark ruling is struck down
We need a more democratic process of electing bishops
Important changes can happen if thinking Catholics express their real concerns
Christianity is about love, not authoritarianism
Unity of church composed of different individuals and their diverse gifts
‘The light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it’
Thinking Anew: Solzhenitsyn’s ‘ways of goodness’ cannot be stopped
Run at Down Royal a sign of Samcro’s sad lot
Former Cheltenham star has not lived up to hype and could be pipped here by Agusta Gold
Thinking Anew – ‘I will fear no evil, for you are with me’
God’s promise is a way through trouble rather than a way to avoid it
At the Pink House: the front line in America’s battle over abortion
Clinic in Mississippi at centre of supreme court case which could overturn Roe v Wade
Do differences in Christian doctrine or dogma matter anymore?
People have died for their belief in transubstantiation or papal infallibility
When Jesus met John the Baptist – a new exhibition of 16th-century art
Displays include Renaissance works, and art by Mick O’Dea, Sam Keogh and Fergus O’Ryan
Former US Senate majority leader Harry Reid dies at 82
‘A crucial, pivotal figure in the development of his beloved home state’
From annuals to zeds: Your ultimate A-Z guide to Christmas
Is it Chris Kringle? Or Kris Kindle? Or just plain old Secret Santa?
Up to 17 US missionaries and their families kidnapped in Haiti
Men, women and children captured by armed gang as they left orphanage in capital
Charity must pay rates due to having ‘advancement of religion’ goals
Organisation has Bible at heart of work to alleviate poverty in developing countries
Crosswords & Puzzles
Crosswords & puzzles to keep you challenged and entertained
Common Ground
How does a post-Brexit world shape the identity and relationship of these islands
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