Bishops round on Government benefit cuts
Are clerical criticisms of Cameron welcome, or should faith leaders stay out of politics?
Faith & Religion
Vatican rejects UN’s child abuse report
“Outdated, interfering and ideological”. This is how the Vatican reacted to the UN Committee on the Right of the Child (CRC) report on the Holy See’s handling of Catholic Church’s…
On the importance of the right to offend
This article is cross-posted from Kenan Malik’s blog Pandaemonium ‘Thank you @Channel4News you just pushed us liberal Muslims further into a ditch’. So tweeted Maajid Nawaz, prospective Liberal Democratic parliamentary…
Book review: No Place Like Home by Judah Passow
The most pious may be the most photogenic, but both religious and secular Jews are thriving in 21st-century Britain, writes Anthony Clavane
Northern Irish theatre cancels play after pressure from Christian politician
A theatre in Co Antrim has cancelled two performances of a “blasphemous” play following complaints from a Christian politician. The play, entitled “The Bible: The Complete Word of God (abridged)”,…
Why our beliefs matter
Secularism would have us place disagreements about the existence of God to one side. But when that disagreement sits at the heart of our disputes over more worldly issues, ignoring…
The Independent profiles Britain’s ex-Muslims
It was good to see an article in the Independent this weekend on the growing number of British atheists from Muslim backgrounds. In the piece, several ex-Muslims discuss their experiences…
The world’s most dangerous places to be atheist
After the UK granted asylum to an Afghan man on the ground of his atheism, Anna Vesterinen surveys the countries where a lack of belief can put your life at…
Vatican facing UN showdown on sex abuse record, and other stories – our morning round-up
Vatican facing UN showdown on sex abuse record The Vatican is gearing up for a bruising showdown over the global priest sex abuse scandal, forced to defend itself publicly for…
Is there such a thing as a “Muslim birthrate”?
Some people are Muslim. Many of those people will have children. It’s possible to measure the rate of births among people who are Muslim and compare it to the rate…