The Conversation

Jesus has been portrayed in many different ways: from a prophet who alerts his audience to the world’s imminent end to a philosopher who reflects on the nature of life. But no one has called Jesus an internet guru – that is, until now.

Summer solstice will be celebrated by followers of Wicca, a form of contemporary Paganism, with a holiday known as Litha.

Buddhist saints are often described as maternally compassionate, with the endless patience of a mother who feeds, cleans and cares for children around the clock. In fact, the Theravada branch of Buddhism holds mothers in such high esteem that two men among the Buddha’s chief disciples, Sariputta and Mogallana, are said to be “like the mother giving birth” and “the nurse raising a child.”

This Ash Wednesday many Christians will arrive at work with a black cross smudged on their foreheads; countless more will slip into a church or a chapel during their lunch break or after work to receive the sign that tells the arrival of the traditional start of the Christian season of Lent.

Many leaders of major LGBTQ+ rights organizations have praised the Respect for Marriage Act. For example, Kelley Robinson, president of the LGBTQ+ advocacy group the Human Rights Campaign, said in November 2022 that the act will allow “the 568,000 same-sex married couples in this country … (to) breathe a sigh of relief that their marriages will be protected from future attacks.” However, the Respect for Marriage Act also has various limitations that have not received a lot of public attention.

As a scholar of Islamic ethics, I’m often asked, “What does Islam say about abortion?” – a question that has become even more salient since the U.S. Supreme Court reversed 50 years of constitutional protection for the right to get an abortion in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling on June 24, 2022.

Christians have engaged in passionate debates over the meaning of the resurrection. Baptists may be distinct in that they believe an external religious authority cannot enforce views on such matters.