Throughout Australian history, the Bible has been used by those both asserting colonial power and subverting it, as a tool of oppression and as an instrument of justice.
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A new book explores the complex and nuanced place the Bible has held in Australian culture since hundreds of copies arrived with the First Fleet in 1787.
Members of the senior class of Russell County HIgh School in Kentucky recite the Lord’s Prayer, in defiance of a court ruling, during commencement exercises in 2006.
AP Photo/James Crisp
As the Kentucky Senate considers a bill for school prayer, a scholar explains the violent history of prayer – and a time when Catholic students were sometimes whipped, beaten and worse for not participating.
Title page and dedication from a 1613 King James Bible, printed by Robert Barker.
Private Collection of S. Whitehead
In less than two generations, the proportion of Australians who never pick up a Bible has leapt to seven out of ten. But a robust biblical literacy can help us decode creative works and understand the past.
Jim Caviezel as Luke and James Faulkner as Paul in ‘Paul, Apostle of Christ.’
(2018 CTMG)
‘Paul, Apostle of Christ’ is an enjoyable movie but its sugary message is like a can of soda: easy to swallow but not good for you with ideals that have have been manipulated to project a golden era.
Christ as depicted in the film Jesus of Montreal.
Artificial Eye
For centuries, Mary Magdalene was wrongly depicted as a repentant whore, diminishing her vital role as witness to the resurrection. A new film portraying her life does much to restore her character.
The remains of what has been identified as Isaiah’s seal.
Ouria Tadmor/ Eilat Mazar
The discovery of the signature of Christianity’s favourite prophet has caused a stir, but what does it mean?
Puzzle: fragments of 2,000-year-old scrolls before reassembly.
Shay Halevi, Israel Antiquities Authority, The Leon Levy Library of the Dead Sea Scrolls
In three Gospels, Christ suffers in silence, while in the fourth he speaks out. Either way, the result is the same: crucifixtion and death.
Worshipers pray during an Ash Wednesday Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Philadelphia, on March 6, 2019.
AP Photo/Matt Rourke
Churches started to use ashes early as the ninth century as a symbol of repentance. In 1091, Pope Urban II ritualized their use to mark the beginning of Lent. Today, churches provide ‘ashes to go.’
Forcing people to separate science and religion can lead to damaging denials of science.
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.
Animals are commonly found in creche sets, but surprisingly not in the Bible.
Marco Verch
Family is not a clearly defined structure in the story: It isn’t biological or reflective of some ‘norm.’ It is instead a choice to stick together, come what may.
The ingredients of incense were detailed in the Old Testament.
Shutterstock/wideonet
The four ingredients for holy incense are listed in the Old Testament, but there was much debate over the origin of one of them – onycha. Scientists think they’ve now confirmed the source.
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.
Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity