Despite the rise of the secular state, religion remains a significant force in society. Within Christianity this encompasses a wide variety of beliefs. These range from simple assertions of theism in a cultural context to complex theologies; from liberal emphases on uncertainty and exploration to dogmatic views of divine revelation. How one 'does' good medical ethics depends on these perspectiv...

When I came to UCSD, a professor asked me how I could be a professing intellectual and still be a Christian. The topic came up a few weeks back as well. So I thought I would collect my thoughts about reasons that I personally find helpful when considering whether Christianity makes sense. Note that I do not accept the definition that faith is "belief without reason". Instead I prefer the defini...

The Life of St Columba offers an account of events in the life of the sixth century saint who founded an influential monastic community with strong connections to the peoples of Ireland and Scotland. The text’s relationship to the categories of ‘Celtic Christianity’ and ‘Celtic spirituality’ is critically examined. It is deemed justifiable to locate the Life within these categories because it m...

The revolt commanded by Lucifer in the heaven marked a start in the cosmology of Christianity. Although scholars agree the problem of evilness as one of the most vivid contradictions of Catholic Church, it is clear that God forgives its life. Unlike other traditions or mythologies where the Gods kill the dissidents or inflict unbearable torments, Judaism and Christianity continue the dialectic ...

Reconciling sexual orientation with religious and spiritual beliefs can be challenging for Christian homosexuals, since many Christian churches teach that homosexual behavior is sinful. A qualitative study of 10 male and 10 female Christian homosexuals was conducted via semistructured interviews. This article seeks to explore the potential conflict between Christianity and homosexuality faced b...

Since the 1970s the dynamics of conversion have been a focal point of research with regard to the impact of Christianity on traditional African societies. Much of the scholarly debate about the matter has concentrated on West Africa. Such academic authorities as Elizabeth Isichei, Robin Horton, and Caroline Ifeka-Moller provided different theories about the relative importance of various factor...

the concept of logos is seen figuratively before christianity in ancient greek philosophy and judaism (old testament and some works of filon of alexandria). in ancient greek philosophy, logos is counted as the first principle, at least up to the middle platonism period, and more importantly, until the platonism period; that is to say, as it will be pointed out, logos was the first principle wit...

This article explores the life and importance of Mary in Islam and Christianity, aiming at clarifying the criteria for which Mary has been revered in each tradition. It will be shown that Mary in Christianity is almost merely important because she was the mother of Jesus, while the Muslim reverence for her is based on her own noble characteristics. From the Muslim perspective, even if Mary had ...

Marriage holds a special position in different cultures and religions. Despite differences in the limits and conditions of marriage, religions have many similarities in regard to the issue of marriage. This research paper is a comparative study of marriage in Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. The findings reveal that all three traditions recognize marriage to have a sacred nature, and they all ...