Ireland’s humanist president
Padraig Reidy welcomes the election of Michael D Higgins
Politics & Conflict
Looking for Transwonderland by Noo Saro-Wiwa
Natalie Haynes enjoys a Nigerian travelogue
Memory loss
A rewritten Hungarian constitution is part of a Europe-wide process of evading responsibility for the crimes of the past, says Thomas Land
Book review: Rainbow Pie: A memoir of redneck America
Owen Jones enjoys a melancholy protrait of America's underclass
A theocracy on the Nile?
The triumph of the Islamist parties in Egypt's elections has raised fears of a religious takeover of the state. Austin Mackell reports from Cairo
Against the barbarians
Hannah Arendt’s humanism was not the opposite of religion but of self-absorption and totalitarianism, says Finn Bowring
Book review: The Dead Hand by David Hoffman
Michael Binyon revisits Cold War brinksmanship
Return of the moral minority
Fire-and-brimstone evangelists are usually associated with the US. But turn to the BBC at the weekend and you’ll see they’re enjoying a revival on these shores, says Francis Beckett
A time to sow
After a year of revolts in the Arab world, is the region reaping the rewards of freedom? Paul Sims talks to veteran Middle East watcher Fuad Nahdi
Burden of proof: should evidence determine policy?
A growing number of activists are calling for science to play a larger role in policy. But will it work? Richard Wilson asks the experts