The great Christian chronicler of Victorian destitution was also a ‘wicked man’. Matthews Adams talks to biographer Claire Tomalin about the conflicted life that fed his art
As the US enters primary season ahead of the 2012 elections, Abby Ohlheiser assesses the chances of the “God and Guns” Republicans hoping to challenge Obama in November
Where did religion come from? Keith Kahn-Harris reviews a monumental study
We don’t need religion, but mystical traditions still have a lot to teach us, says John Burnside
Anglicanism had always seemed the quaint traditional option for Dominic Hilton until he was forced to see the church through the eyes of his atheist wife-to-be
Long before the New Atheists, believers – from Job to Heinrich Heine – were picking fights with the Almighty, says Jonathan Rée
Rob Deering is unimpressed by his local primary school's reliance on lazy, default Christianity
Legislation aimed at football chants will not tackle Scotland's sectarian violence, argues Padraig Reidy
Al-Qaeda leaders are increasingly in favour of using women in terrorist attacks, reports Mia Bloom
While serving in Afghanistan, Petty Officer Chris Holden has attended numerous memorials to honour the dead. This is what they look like to an atheist