The birth of Jesus is an important even for both Muslims and Christians, but there are some key differences in how the nativity story is told. For any Christians expecting to hear about donkeys and asses, innkeepers and shepherds there's disappointment in store: these do not feature in the Islamic nativity story, although Mary and the Angel Gabriel do enjoy a key role! Azim Ahmed explores the Islamic traditions of Jesus, who is regarded not as the Son of God, but as an important prophet. For...

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, signed on 10th December 1948, is seen by many to be a milestone document in human history. Drafted in the aftermath of the Second World War, it set out basic rights that belong to all of us regardless of race, religion, gender or politics. But has the declaration withstood the test of time? Roy Jenkins examines the issues with four people who have dedicated their working lives to fighting for human rights. Professor Sir Malcolm Evans, Principal of...

Our guest today is one of the world’s most widely performed contemporary composers and arrangers, as well as an acclaimed choral conductor. Born in 1955, singing as a choir-boy in his local church ignited a musical spark in Bob Chilcott. Since then, choral music has been at the heart of his life: a chorister, then a choral scholar in the choir of King's College, Cambridge; a member of the British vocal group The King's Singers; and, since 1997, a full-time, prolific composer, arranger and...

Rosa Hunt looks at the ethical and religious implications of AI's growing involvement in our lives. The second of two programmes looks at our relationship with AI in our religious lives. Might Artificial Intelligence become our priest - or even our King? Rosa talks to: Marius Dorobantu, a theologian specialising in the intersection of science and religion at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Zoe Kleinman, BBC News' technology correspondent; Jonas Summerlin, researcher at the University of...

The term 'spiritual abuse' is increasingly used in faith contexts, but what exactly is it, and how does it differ from other forms of abuse? Jonathan Thomas explores the issues. Jonathan hears the testimonies of those who have suffered abuse including Caroline Plant, founder of Replenished Life, a charity based in St David's that supports victims of spiritual abuse. Co-founder Simon Plant explains their personal motivation to establish the charity. Dr Lisa Oakley, Professor of Safeguarding...

At the moment you can’t move in the shops for sales of Pumpkins, and all kinds of Hallowe'en outfits – such as masks, witches’ hats, and luminous skeletons. It’s being reported that spending on Hallowe’en is expected this year to surpass the billion pound mark. Come Hallowe'en there’ll be the trick or treat ring of the doorbell, and spooky parties serving foul-looking broth, witches’ fingers and graveyard chocolate cake. But as far as the church is concerned, there’s little or no engagement...

The shimmering opening chords of 'When You Wish Upon a Star' means just one thing in the minds of many – the start of a magical journey into a 'whole new world', with princesses, princes, tribal chiefs, fairy godmothers, magic carpets, talking snowmen and happy ever afters. This month marks the centenary of the founding of Disney. What began as a small animation studio in California has grown into a multi-billion-pound entertainment conglomerate with an enormous following. And today we...

In light of the conflict in Israel and Gaza, Jonathan Thomas hears the views of members of the Jewish, Muslim and Christian communities affected by recent events. The programme contains personal opinions and reports from Jerusalem and from Wales and further afield, as faith leaders and ordinary individuals try to make sense of what is happening, and question what hope there might be for peace.

Today's guest joins us 6 months into new role as CEO of Cytûn, Churches Together, Wales. He embarks on a key ecumenical role at a challenging time: fewer people in Wales consider themselves Christian, there's a slump in congregations and churches face a crossroads. But Siôn Brynach has put out a clarion call to the organisation to consider how ecumenicalism can serve Welsh Society. Ordained a Priest in 2022, and currently serving as a self-supporting associate priest at Christ Church,...

Rosa Hunt looks at the ethical and religious implications of AI's growing involvement in our lives. The first of two programmes looks at our relationship with AI in our daily lives. Artificial Intelligence might be our helper - can it ever be our friend? Rosa talks to: Zoe Kleinman, BBC News' technology correspondent; Hannah Rowlatt, RNIB Technology for Life coordinator for Wales; Myra Wilson, head of the intelligent robotics group at Aberystwyth University; and John Lennox, Oxford...

This September as part of the new Curriculum for Wales, students across the country will be studying a new Religious Education syllabus. The rebranded 'Religion, Values and Ethics' curriculum is being rolled out on a gradual basis, and the first pupils will take a GCESE in the subject in 2025. Rebranding one of the oldest curriculum subjects is a significant step, and to discuss the issues Delyth Liddell is joined by four guests; Mary Stallard, lead bishop for Education in the Church in...

Today's guest is widely recognised for his hands-on ministry to people in need. During the lockdowns of the pandemic, when many churches in his home community of Burnley in Lancashire closed their doors, he offered ‘Church on the Street’; and it attracted wide media attention. Pastor Mick Fleming had previously spent decades in a life marked by hard crime and addiction. On the verge of an illegal operation, a spiritual encounter began a challenging journey: confronting past trauma and...

Until a few decades ago congregations would regularly wear their smartest outfits to church or chapel every Sunday: women might wear a frock and adorn their heads with exotic hats, and men might don a sober suit and tie, and slather their hair in fragrant hair tonic. Meanwhile, such clergy as used clerical dress - and that's by no means all - tended to restrict themselves to a restricted palette of black, white and maybe grey. Nowadays, attitudes are far more relaxed among congregations; and...

Delyth Liddell follows in St David's footsteps to Glastonbury, one of the most spiritually diverse places in Britain, and a community which David is said to have founded in the sixth century. David famously preached against heresy (the heresy of Pelagianism), so what what would he have made of a community that these days is home to 78 different spiritualities ... and what would they have made of him? Delyth visits the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey, accompanied by an Anglo-Saxon guide - Edgar...

As part of our series of programmes making the 900th anniversary of St David's international recognition, presenter and pastor Jonathan Thomas tries out a day in the life of St David. Jonathan's own contemporary religious traditions are quite different from the ancient practices of a Celtic saint. As he visits key locations in West Wales connected with David, and follows in his footsteps and practices (or their present-day equivalents) - what will he make of life lived in the style of a 6th...

This year marks 900 years since St David’s place at the centre of Welsh identity was given international recognition by Pope Callixtus II. Two pilgrimages to St Davids, it was pronounced, were equivalent to one to Rome; a later version of this claims that three pilgrimages to the Pembrokeshire cathedral were equivalent to one pilgrimage to Jerusalem. But who really was St David, and what does he mean to us in 21st century Wales? For BBC Radio Wales, All Things Considered and Celebration are...

With the National Eisteddfod being held on the Lleyn Peninsula, our focus this week is poetry. Azim Ahmed is in conversation with Hanan Issa, the first female Muslim National Poet of Wales. She’s completed the first year of a three-year tenure of the post, organised by Literature Wales. Hanan Issa is proud of her dual heritage- she’s both Iraqi and Welsh and grew up in Cardiff. She’s has also made films, written short stories and is now embarking on a novel. During the programme, Hanan...

It’s possibly never happened before, but this summer a renowned physicist is in major contention with a plastic doll. The big question for cinema-goers seems to be which of the two to see first: Barbie or Oppenheimer, the biopic about the ‘father of the Bomb’, and a man whose work on nuclear weapons would change the world. In today's edition of All Things Rosa Hunt discusses the work of physicist J Robert Oppenheimer, and his work in developing the atom bomb. For many of us, we thought the...

“I want to build a church in which people can be themselves”. Delyth Liddell is in conversation with one of the most senior figures in the Anglican Church in Wales. The Right Reverend Gregory Cameron, son of a south Wales steelworker, became the 76th Bishop of St Asaph in 2009. Before his consecration, Gregory Cameron held senior roles in the worldwide Anglican Communion; at the time he was described by the Times newspaper as “arguably the most influential clergyman behind the scenes”....

Monastic life may seem remote to many. But beloved films such as the Sound of Music, documentaries, and television dramas like Call the Midwife mean that some will share an idea of what nuns are and what they do, and may even inspire a fascination and curiosity in the mysteries of a contemplative life. Today’s guest, however, has first-hand experience. Much liked the beloved Maria von Trapp, Caroline Leighton is an avid musician. A pianist, a teacher of music and a composer, with two...

Earlier this year in Utah, a western state of the USA, the King James Bible was banned in Elementary and Junior School Libraries in the Davies County school district. The ban was due to what one parent dubbed the ‘violent and vulgar’ content in the Bible. The prohibition caused an uproar, drawing global attention, and the ban was subsequently reversed. Two journalists who closely covered the story, Courtney Tanner from the Salt Lake Tribune and Sam Metz from the Associated Press, offer...

Fr Matthew Roche-Saunders, a Catholic priest from the parish of Aberystwyth is in Rome, following in the footsteps of faithful pilgrims across the centuries. 900 years ago this year, as recorded by the English historian William of Malmesbury, Pope Callixtus II granted a privilege to St Davids to be of significant spiritual importance for pilgrims. As part of our 'In The Footsteps of David' series of programmes celebrating our patron saint, Fr Matthew explores the act of pilgrimage, hearing...

June is Pride Month, dedicated to celebrating people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and more, usually depicted by a plus, the inclusive symbol to mean and others, and includes people of all identities and queer communities globally. Pride is not just a celebration, it's also about protest, designed to get people thinking about acceptance, equality and deeper matters about identity. Today, we turn our attention to that very matter, considering gender. What does...

This week marks the start of the 'Churches Unlocked' festival in South Wales running between the 3rd and 11th of June. During this time thirty churches will be welcoming the public for events; from bell ringing taster sessions to wildlife spotting in churchyards. With the closure rate of churches in Wales increasing, Christopher Catling, Chief Executive of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales, explains why he believes it’s vital to preserve church...

Stuart Bell was once rector of one of the most thriving churches in Wales: St Michael's Aberystwyth. These days, his former curate (now Archbishop) Andrew John commands Anglican clergy to keep him at arm's length, and neither to receive communion from him, nor to invite him to take part in any service except with permission from their relevant bishops. The issue concerns the blessing of gay marriages within the Church in Wales, to which Stuart and some others strongly object. Rosa Hunt...