Religion

How much are actions – especially extreme ones – the result of impersonal historical forces and how much are they dependent upon the impulses of individual actors? 

Evidence suggests medieval origins for the Shroud of Turin. One of Christianity’s most venerated relics may not be biblical but its history remains remarkable.

Robert Colls offers a personal reflection upon the religious roots of the Labour Party.

The appalling treatment of women and girls by the soldiers of Islamic State and other jihadist groups raises troubling questions about the historical relationship between military conflict and sexual violence.

Across the Middle East, minority religions are under threat. 

For forty years, writes D.M. Hopkinson, the eccentric Vicar of a remote parish in Cornwall led a richly combative life both in High Church politics and in literature.

Tom Holland speaks to Gerard Russell about religion in the Middle East. 

For nearly a hundred years, travellers and archaeologists have been investigating the mysterious ruins of Angkor. Today, writes Michael Sullivan, much of the mystery has been dispelled; but these relics of a vanished civilization still preserve their beauty and dignity.

After being expelled from Portugal, writes J.S. Cummins, France and Spain, the Jesuit order was suppressed by a reluctant Pope.