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Jesus

Empty alleyway and two blue doors

Christmas is canceled in Bethlehem

Global Security

Every year, thousands of tourists and Christian pilgrims flock to Bethlehem, the biblical birthplace of Jesus, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. But this year, Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem and across the Middle East will be dramatically toned down.

Two visitors are shown standing a one taking a cell phone photo of the Church of the Nativity with bright white light shining from the windows above.

Jesus’ Bethlehem birthplace gets a makeover. But will it boost tourism? 

Religion
A Christian man, portraying Jesus Christ, is hung on a cross during a re-enactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ on Good Friday in al-Qraya village, in southern Lebanon on April 14, 2017. Muslims also revere Jesus as a prophet. In the Quran, the stor

Muslims revere Jesus too, but this Turkish author sees the Islamic Jesus in a new light

Culture
Father Gregory Collins, Abbot of the Dormition Abbey in Jerusalem, addresses the Jewish audience in his Christmas sermon.

What do you preach to a church full of Jews on Christmas?

Lifestyle & Belief

Archaeologists in Israel discover synagogue dating from time of Jesus

Lifestyle & Belief

Divinity scholar says piece of ancient papyrus includes reference to ‘Jesus’ wife’

Lifestyle & Belief

A tiny scrap of paper, no bigger than a business card, has caused a lot of commotion. According to one expert, the paper may be the first ancient scripture to refer to Jesus as having a wife.

Israeli Archeologists Discover “Jesus’ Synagogue”

Arts, Culture & Media

Father Juan Maria Solana’s dream when he arrived in Jerusalem seven years ago was to build a church and hotel for pilgrims in the Galilee. After four years gathering donations Father Solana had enough to buy the land. And the dig began.

Catholics Praying in Hebrew in the Holy Land

Lifestyle & Belief

Jesus was, of course, Jewish. And he spoke the language of the bible, Aramaic. Both Arabic and Hebrew stem from the same linguistic family. But until now, Hebrew has never really been used to worship the New Testament. The World’s Matthew Bell visits a community of Hebrew-speaking Catholics in the Holy Land.

The Trouble with Depicting God

Depictions of the sacred are everywhere in modern American society: a white, bearded, and haloed Jesus on the cartoon South Park; a painting of The Last Supper in your grandmother’s living room; Mel Gibson detailing the crucifixion in The Passion of the Christ. But America is not removed from conflict over representations of sacred figures. […]

Music Heard on Air for April 4, 2011

Music Heard on Air

Tunes spun on The World between our reports for April 4, 2011. Artists featured are: Jamal Porto, Alison Brown, Ihashi Elimlophe, AfroCubism, Jesus Alemany.