Early in his career, many had hoped A. N. Wilson, a brilliant philosopher, would become the next C. S. Lewis. But as a young man, he began to wonder how much of the Easter story he accepted. By his thirties, he had lost all religious belief and publicly repudiated his Christian faith, becoming an atheist. He soon embraced the role of a harsh, cynical critic of Christianity and any faith in God at ...

A Christian writer named Mike Barrett got interested in the idea of connecting with and learning from those who live a more radical faith. In an article for Christianity Today, he writes about a lesson he discovered along the way:

I began randomly interviewing strangers. Pity those like the woman in her mid-50s who sat on an airplane next to me between Portland and Denver. "What do you think about ...

In a Seinfeld episode entitled "The Engagement," Jerry and his friend, George Costanza (Jason Alexander), have decided it's time to "grow up" and treat the women they date with a little more respect (George has just broken up with a woman because she beat him in chess). The conversation leaves such an indelible mark on George that he immediately looks up an old girlfriend, goes to her apartment, and ...

A 2008 survey by The Barna Group asked 1,008 U.S. adults to list the books they considered holy. The only book to be listed by above 5 percent was the Bible (84 percent). The Koran was listed by 4 percent; the Book of Mormon, 3 percent; the Torah, 2 percent. Other books which were listed by less than 1 percent of those surveyed included the Bhagavad, the Talmud, and the Teachings of Buddha.

A few ...

A 2008 Harris Initiative online poll of 2,513 U.S. adults revealed America's top ten favorite books:

1. The Bible
   
   
2. Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell
   
   
3. Lord of the Rings (trilogy), by J. R. R. Tolkien
   
   
4. Harry Potter (series), by J. K. Rowling
   
   
5. The Stand, by Stephen King
   
   
6. The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown
   
   
7. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
   
   
8. Angels and Demons, by Dan Brown
   
   
9. Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand
   
   
10. Catcher in the Rye, by J. D. Salinger
    
    

When I was a kid, my dad told me two stories all the time. In the first one, a couple goes to Harvard University and asks to see the president, because they want to give a donation to the university. The president agrees to see them, but he doesn't know them, and because they're from somewhere way out west, he treats them curtly. After a few moments, the woman finally turns to her husband and says, ...

Unlike Israel's exile, our process of secularization is not clearly marked by a hostile takeover. We are losing the land by way of a thousand little changes.

—Jo-Ann Badley, U. S. professor

How much do your beliefs affect your actions? Does a belief in God change the way you live? Jon A. Shields, an assistant professor of Political Science at the University of Colorado, writes about a study on giving by Arthur Brooks:

Drawing on some ten data sets, Brooks finds that religiosity is among the best predictors of charitable giving. Religious Americans are not only much more likely to give ...

In Bridge to Terabithia, 10-year-old Jesse (Josh Hutcherson) is befriended by Leslie (AnnaSophia Robb), the new girl in town. Together they create an imaginary world they call Terabithia.

In this scene, Jesse has invited Leslie to attend church with his family, provided she wears a dress. Along with the congregation they sing "The Old Rugged Cross." During the hymn, Leslie gazes at the light streaming ...

Researcher Mark Bellis of Liverpool John Moores University in Liverpool, England, collected statistics concerning 1,064 rock stars from the United States and Europe between the 1950s and the present. His conclusions suggest that, statistically, rock stars really do die younger than the general population. The average age at death for American rockers was 42; for Europeans, 35.

Partying, transportation ...