In the history of Western thought, notions of human identity were more fluid and unstable than many realise. And for a long time, the souls of men and women were seen as identical.
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Articles on Heaven
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A professor of religion and science explains different views on immortality, from the religious perspective of President Jimmy Carter to the scientific, secular take of Carl Sagan.
Our dreams of the afterlife need to challenge the idea that only the appearance of youth is worthy.
Following the sexual abuse scandals, there is a push to force the Catholic Church to compromise the confidentiality of the confessional. A Catholic scholar explains why confession is so important.
This doctrine is not for the fainthearted.
In the Bible, heaven is where God resides, rather than a place of eternal life. But over time it has become conflated with ideas of paradise and eternal salvation.
It might appear to many that atheism is a modern idea. However, in parts of Asia, particularly in India, atheism has been part of beliefs for thousands of years.
In their zeal to evangelize the world, at the end of 19th century, young families were sent overseas with little to no training in anything beyond the Bible and no promise of funding.
Hell-themed Halloween attractions play on people’s fears. The early depictions of hell were meant to use fear as a moral guide to help others.
Different cultural groups respond with numerous, often conflicting, answers to questions about life after death. An expert explains the Christian idea of heaven.
Notions of heaven have changed through the ages, from an eternity centred on God to a more secular place where loved ones will reunite.
For medieval cultures, the dying process and death itself was a ‘transition,’ not a rupture.
In many cultures and religions dogs are more than protection and security. But do they have an after-life?
Top contributors
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Emeritus Professor in the History of Religious Thought, The University of Queensland
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Professor of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross
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Associate Professor of Languages and Literature, Nelson Mandela University
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Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity
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Professor of English, University of Montana
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Resident Scholar at the Women's Studies Research Center, Brandeis University
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Associate Professor of Christian Origins, University of Dayton
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Professor of History, Saint Mary's College
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Associate Professor and Department Chair, University of Missouri-Columbia
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Professor Emerita of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross
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Professor Emeritus and Lecturer in Religion and Science, Florida International University
