Christianity

Boo! Telling ghost stories on Christmas was a tradition for hundreds of years. Here, Marley's ghost surprises Ebenezer Scrooge in an illustration from the first edition of the classic tale.

Why Do People Tell Ghost Stories on Christmas?

Christmas ghost stories are a tradition going back much farther than "A Christmas Carol"

The National Menorah and one of the state Christmas trees near the White House in 2009.

Someday, Maybe We’ll Have Hanukkah in July

Hanukkah and Christmas fall on the same day this year because not everyone follows the same calendar

Nazi Christmas ornaments

The Nazis Fought the Original War on Christmas

As they rose to power, party leaders sought to redefine the holiday to suit their own political needs

The Beckery monastery as it would have looked in the fifith century

Oldest Community of Monks in U.K. Discovered

The find was thanks to a community training dig

The Edicule which houses the remains of Jesus' tomb

Walls of "Jesus' Tomb" Exposed for the First Time in Centuries

During repair work, archaeologists removed the marble slabs that covered the walls of the limestone cave where Jesus was purportedly laid after crucifixion

Five Things to Know About Evangelical Cartoonist Jack Chick

The controversial artist died after 50 years of publishing comics

Karen L. King, the Hollis professor of divinity, believes that the fragment's 33 words refers to Jesus having a wife

The Inside Story of a Controversial New Text About Jesus

According to a top religion scholar, this 1,600-year-old text fragment suggests some early Christians believed Jesus was married—possibly to Mary Magdalene

Brother Guy Consolmagno, a staff astronomer and the curator of meteorites at the Vatican Observatory

Guy Consolmangno, the Vatican’s Chief Astronomer, on Balancing Church With the Cosmos

The MIT graduate speaks to how he ended up studying the stars for the Catholic Church

"The Last Communion of Joan of Arc" by Charles Henri Michel

French Theme Park "Battles" British Government to Keep Joan of Arc's Ring

After buying a ring purportedly owned by Joan of Arc, a French history park owner defies UK demands

The Aunslev Crucifix

Rare Crucifix Suggests Christianity May Have Come Earlier to the Vikings

The 10th-century Aunslev Crucifix is currently being analyzed by the Viking Museum at Ladby

A modern baptismal rite takes place in the same Paravur pond in which the Apostle Thomas reputedly baptized Indian nobility in the first century.

The Surprisingly Early History of Christianity in India

Modern Syrian Christians of Kerala believe that the Apostle Thomas visited in A.D. 52 to baptize their ancestors

Overlooking the Sea of Galilee, Bethsaida was a day’s walk from Nazareth. When Jesus returned to his boyhood hometown to preach, the Gospels say he was rejected by a mob.

Unearthing the World of Jesus

Surprising archaeological finds are breaking new ground in our understanding of Jesus’s time—and the revolution he launched 2,000 years ago

Jefferson Church, Walton Avenue at Jefferson, Los Angeles, 2012

The Passion of Christ, As Seen in Murals Around America

Photographer Camilo Jose Vergara looks at depictions of Jesus in murals across America

There’s More to Frankincense and Myrrh Than Meets the Eye

Frankincense and myrrh have interesting medicinal properties

A Coptic depiction of Christ and of Abbot Mena dating to around the same time as the recently translated book of rituals.

An Ancient Egyptian Spellbook Has Been Translated

It's like the researchers have never seen a horror movie

Noah's Ark by Edward Hicks, 1846.

Could Noah’s Ark Float? In Theory, Yes

Basic physics suggests that an ark carrying lots of animal cargo could float, but science doesn’t support other facets of the biblical tale

Noah's Ark on Mount Ararat, by Simon de Myle

Ten Ancient Stories and the Geological Events That May Have Inspired Them

If you dig deep enough, say scientists, you can find some truth to legends and creation stories

Your Weekly Sermons, Illustrated

Artist John Hendrix finds divine inspiration every Sunday when he goes to church

The World’s Third Oldest Bible, the Codex Washingtonianus, Is Making a Rare Museum Appearance

When the Codex was first published publicly in 1912, it caused a controversy because it contained an extra passage in the Gospel of Mark

The "Mary" in the controversial text, King says, may be Mary Magdalene, who was present at the Crucifixion.

UPDATE: The Reaction to Karen King’s Gospel Discovery

When a divinity scholar unveiled a papyrus fragment that she says refers to Jesus’ “wife,” our reporter was there in Rome amidst the firestorm of criticism

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