Wes Mountain/The Conversation
The biblical story of Jesus’s birth is an inherently political story – something that makes many Christians uncomfortable.
A religion sociologist discovers that his criticism of the Church is based on lies.
Shutterstock
The real lessons of Jesus Christ as outlined in the Bible are socialist. But the Church, a veritable old boys club, doesn’t teach us that.
Awaiting revelation.
Africa Studio
The curious case of Bible #1, and how much we actually know about it.
All Saints Episcopal Church, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Carolyn Fitzpatrick
In early Christian texts, God gives birth to Israel and is described as a woman in labor and a mother comforting her children.
Former FBI Director James Comey.
AP Photo/Susan Walsh
Here are three lessons that former FBI Director James Comey, took from the 20th-century American Christian philosopher, Reinhold Niebuhr.
Jesus and Mary, as portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara in Mary Magdalene.
Transmission Films
Mary Magdelene film props up a view of Judaism as archaic, unchanging and out of date.
Rooney Mara as the titular Mary.
Jesus and Mary are white, while an unsympathetic Peter is played with a cod ‘African’ accent.
Christ as depicted in the film Jesus of Montreal.
Artificial Eye
Christ can’t simply be seen as a religious figure when his life and teaching were so political.
The tenth station of the cross: the stripping of Jesus.
elycefeliz / Flickr
Crucifixion was more than just physical punishment, it was also a devastating emotional and psychological act of violence.
Several thousand people gather at a rally in Washington in 1952 to hear Evangelist Billy Graham preach.
AP Photo
Current trends suggest that evangelicalism is out of step with younger Americans. But, a scholar says, evangelicalism has been here before.
Mattia Preti.
via Wikimedia Commons
In three Gospels, Christ suffers in silence, while in the fourth he speaks out. Either way, the result is the same: crucifixtion and death.
Livioandronico2013 / Wikimedia Commons
We may imagine Jesus in long robes with baggy sleeves, but this is far from how he would have dressed.
The nativity scenes celebrated each Christmas bear little resemblance to history.
skepticalview/Flickr
The inn, the shepherds, angels and animals: pretty much everything we think we know about the Christmas story is historically wrong.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump stands during a service at the International Church of Las Vegas in Las Vegas in Oct. 2016.
AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File
Trump embraced evangelicals in his first year as president. Here, scholars provide historical context to how the religious right has shaped American politics over the past decades.
Do you believe in the virgin birth?
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Belief in miracles such as the virgin birth of Jesus are surprisingly persistent – even in the 21st century.
Biblical principles have provided an understanding on how to help the needy.
Lamppost Collective/Shutterstock.com
New economic realities have raised new challenges in applying Biblical principles to economic life. But they could still provide guidance on how to help those in need and how to levy taxes.
A Christmas Carol can be seen as a mirror to biblical parables.
(Bleeker Street Media/Elevation Pictures)
When writing A Christmas Carol, did Charles Dickens get his inspiration for Scrooge, Marley’s ghost and Tiny Tim from the Bible?
It’s big, but it might not feed 5,000.
Greggs
A sausage roll standing in for the Christ Child? It’s not as weird as you might think.
The holy family.
The Alabama state auditor defended Roy Moore, citing Mary and Joseph. A scholar goes back to early Christian texts texts to explain lesser-known beliefs about the relationship.
The Hindu god Ganesha.
Anant Nath Sharma
Offering food to deities in Hinduism has deep religious significance. And most Hindu deities are not served meat.