Category Archives: History

Separated at birth: Pope Gregory IX and Sylvester Stallone

Posted on 14/05/2012 by

Here’s the proof: Pope Gregory IX painted by Raphael, and Sylvester Stallone in his ‘Rocky’ role.  I rest my case. Hat-tip to Creative Minority Report for spotting this eerie similarity! Another great separated-at-birth: Separated at birth: Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Humour, Visual Arts | Tagged , , , , ,

Peter Harrison on Christianity and the rise of Western science

Posted on 08/05/2012 by

‘Could modern science have arisen outside the theological matrix of Western Christendom?  It is difficult to say.  What can be said for certain is that it did arise in that environment, and that theological ideas underpinned some of its central … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Sciences, Theology | Tagged , , ,

Are the Gospels based on Pagan myths?

Posted on 19/04/2012 by

Were the Gospels Based on Pagan Myths? No, responds Timothy Paul Jones.  Read his article, linked to above, if you are interested in the subject.  It’s well worth your reading time.  He concludes with some excellent advice: What should you do … Continue reading →

Posted in Archaeology, Atheism, History, Theology | Tagged , , , ,

U.S. Army Chaplain Father Emil Kapaun: Korean prison camp martyr

Posted on 17/04/2012 by

U.S. Army Chaplain Father Emil Kapaun stole, suffered and sacrificed his life for his fellow soldiers in a Korean prison camp.  Six decades after his death, he is being considered for the Medal of Honor – and sainthood On the night … Continue reading →

Posted in Atheism, Christian Churches, History | Tagged , , , , ,

Pic of the day: Theologian Karl Barth as you’ve (probably) never seen him before

Posted on 14/04/2012 by

Karl Barth in the Swiss armed auxiliary, April 1940

Posted in History, Presbyterian, Reformed, Theology, Visual Arts | Tagged , , , ,

Did the Exodus really happen? The Exodus is not a literal historical account, but it doesn’t matter

Posted on 11/04/2012 by

Worth your reading time: Did the Exodus Really Happen?  Knowing the Exodus is not a literal historical account does not ultimately change our connection to each other or to God, writes Rabbi  David Wolpe

Posted in Archaeology, Biblical Studies, History | Tagged , ,

Hot cross buns, Easter eggs, Ishtar and the Emperor Constantine: Is Easter a Pagan festival?

Posted on 06/04/2012 by

Worth your listening time: philosopher Tim McGrew discusses whether Easter is Pagan in this short (less than twelve minutes) radio interview.  Click on the link and give it a listen.

Posted in History, Philosophy | Tagged , ,

Cambridge academic art historian, agnostic Thomas de Wesselow, on the Turin Shroud

Posted on 24/03/2012 by

Turin Shroud linked to Resurrection of Christ: the Shroud has baffled scholars through the ages but in his new book, The Sign, Thomas de Wesselow reveals a new theory linking the cloth to the Resurrection The Vatican, since 1983 the owner of this … Continue reading →

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Fascinating marginal notes in manuscripts and colophons made by medieval scribes and copyists

Posted on 24/03/2012 by

From: Lapham’s Quarterly

Posted in History, Humour, Visual Arts, Writing | Tagged , , , , ,

Barrie Schwortz, a Jewish expert on the Turin Shroud, explains why he is convinced that it is authentic

Posted on 23/03/2012 by

Barrie Schwortz, a Jewish man who was part of a team that conducted the first in-depth scientific examination of the Turin Shroud, explains why he is convinced that the cloth is authentic At the very beginning of my involvement with … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Sciences | Tagged

And now the real facts about the Roman Catholic Church and Dutch castrations

Posted on 22/03/2012 by

Instead of BBC distortions and slack reporting, anyone who wants the facts should read this: We shouldn’t blame the Catholic Church for the shocking Dutch castrations before we know all the facts And this: “Hare, hunter, field” – Castration for deviancy … Continue reading →

Posted in Christian Churches, History | Tagged , , , , ,

“You could hardly have been more anti-Nazi than the Ratzinger family”

Posted on 14/03/2012 by

In the past, we have experienced various attempts to reduce Pope Benedict’s past to the Nazi era.  How does this book [Msgr. Georg Ratzinger’s new book, My Brother, the Pope] help to address that mischaracterization of the Ratzinger family’s values and … Continue reading →

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A beautiful book: The Queen Mary Psalter (c. 1310-1320), rebound for Queen Mary of England (1553-1558)

Posted on 10/03/2012 by

The Queen Mary Psalter (London?, c. 1310-1320: London, British Library, MS Royal 2 A XXII), rebound for Queen Mary of England (1553-1558).

Posted in History, Visual Arts | Tagged , , , , , , ,

Pope Pius XII praised by former Jewish internees for preventing their deportations to death camps

Posted on 02/03/2012 by

Pope Pius XII praised for preventing Jewish deportations to death camps Pope Pius XII, falsely accused by anti-Catholic bigots of being too compliant towards Hitler and failing to speak up against the Holocaust, was praised by former Jewish prisoners for preventing their deportation … Continue reading →

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Review: ‘The Unintended Reformation: How a Religious Revolution Secularized Society’ by Brad S. Gregory

Posted on 18/02/2012 by

The Unintended Reformation: How a Religious Revolution Secularized Society by Brad S. Gregory, Harvard University Press, reviewed by Harold James There could not be a more propitious moment for a book on greed and the historical roots of capitalism.  Brad Gregory … Continue reading →

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Alexander Schmorell of the White Rose resistance group

Posted on 27/01/2012 by

More: White Rose memorial in front of the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich

Posted in History, Visual Arts | Tagged ,

Pic of the day: White Rose memorial in front of the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich

Posted on 26/01/2012 by

[Click on the image to enlarge it.] Related: Woman who defied Hitler ‘was inspired by Cardinal Newman’ Like Richard Dawkins and the New Atheists today, Hitler wanted to take Christ out of Christmas Christian resistance in Nazi Germany: Sophie Scholl, … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Visual Arts | Tagged , , ,

Quote of the day: Sophie Scholl on combining a hard mind with a soft heart

Posted on 25/01/2012 by

‘A hard mind without a soft heart is necessarily as barren as a soft heart without a hard mind.’ ~ Sophie Scholl Related: Pic of the day: White Rose memorial in front of the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich

Posted in History, Quote of the Day | Tagged , , ,

Are vegetarians heretics?

Posted on 20/01/2012 by

They used to be! Are Vegetarians Heretics? by Sebastian Moll, Theological Faculty of the University of Mainz, Germany There is something true and beautiful in the Christian concept of thankfulness.  For thankfulness has a fascinating double effect: it promotes self-confidence … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Theology | Tagged , , , ,

British nun Mother Riccarda Beauchamp Hambrough hid scores of Jews from the Nazis, on track for sainthood

Posted on 15/01/2012 by

British nun who hid Jews from Nazis on track for sainthood Mother Riccarda helped to save the lives of about 60 Jews by hiding them from the Nazis in her Rome convent, the Casa di Santa Brigida. She born in 1887 … Continue reading →

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Did a future Catholic priest rescue a drowning four-year-old Hitler from death in an icy river?

Posted on 08/01/2012 by

As a philosophy undergraduate I sometimes came across the ‘Drowning Hitler’ scenario cited in discussions of moral dilemmas.  You travel back in time and come across a pre-Third Reich Hitler drowning in a river.  You know what is to come: the horrors of the Second … Continue reading →

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Historian Anthony E. Clark describes his visit to two Roman Catholic villages in China

Posted on 03/01/2012 by

Anthony Clark describes his visit to two Catholic villages in China. At last we walked to the impressive new church, which is now under construction and being modeled after the previous church that was attacked by the Red Guards in … Continue reading →

Posted in Christian Churches, History | Tagged , , , , ,

Religious violence: One of the many topics that the late Christopher Hitchens was wrong about

Posted on 01/01/2012 by

Why Christopher Hitchens was wrong about religious violence by William Cavanaugh

Posted in Atheism, History, Politics, World Events, Secularism | Tagged ,

Update on the latest scientific findings about the Shroud of Turin: image “is impossible to obtain in a laboratory”

Posted on 19/12/2011 by

Italian study claims Turin Shroud is Christ’s authentic burial robe The new study suggests that one of Catholic Christianity’s most prized but mysterious relics, the Turin Shroud, is not a medieval forgery but could be the authentic burial robe of Christ. … Continue reading →

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The Shroud of Turin can’t be a medieval fake — ENEA scientists conclude after five-year study

Posted on 19/12/2011 by

As the saying goes, I don’t have a dog in this race — I have no idea if the Shroud of Turin is a genuine or ”constructed” holy relic.  But the latest scientific findings are very interesting – that they found it … Continue reading →

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