Menu Close

Articles on Religion and ethics

Displaying 1 - 20 of 41 articles

Scholars have provided different interpretations of who the ‘wise men’ were who visited Jesus soon after his birth. Christophe Lehenaff/Collection Moment via Getty images

Who were the 3 wise men who visited Jesus?

As Christmas approaches, Nativity scenes showing three wise men visiting the newborn Jesus are put up around the world. A scholar of Christian literature offers an explanation on their identity.
Congress includes people of many faiths – but not many who profess no faith at all. Kent Nishimura /Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

New Congress has a humanist rep and a religiously unaffiliated senator – but why is it so hard for outright atheists to get voted in?

Despite a growing number of non-religious Americans, self-declared atheists are few and far between in the halls of power – putting the US at odds with other global democracies.
Members of the Association of Transgender and Hijra at Bengal light a lamp to mark Transgender Day of Bengal in Kolkata, India, in 2017. AP Photo/Bikas Das

Transgender women are finding some respect in India, but a traditional gender-nonconforming group – hijras – remains stigmatized

A sociologist explains that the ability to claim transgender identities in India may appear progressive, but this can further marginalize historically stigmatized gender-nonconforming groups.
‘Moby-Dick’ inspired the Warner Brothers film starring Gregory Peck as Captain Ahab – and perhaps can inspire readers today amid the climate crisis. Fox Photos/Hulton Archive via Getty Images

The lessons ‘Moby-Dick’ has for a warming world of rising waters

Melville’s epic novel about life aboard a wayward whaling ship holds lessons for the climate crisis today.
In 2013, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, with his brother Tamerlan, put bombs along the Boston Marathon route, killing and injuring many. Jonathan Wiggs/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Death penalty can express society’s outrage – but biases often taint the verdict

Punishment for crimes allows a society to express its values, but a theorist of criminal law and punishment argues it could also reinforce prejudicial stereotypes about racial and ethnic groups.
Consulting with the communities that have suffered the most harm from past acts of mass violence is a key part of a successful reparations process. Steven Senne/AP

Why reparations are always about more than money

From Germany to Georgetown, the Global North has a lot to learn about reckoning successfully with past human rights wrongs.

Top contributors

More