For years I have heard about the existence of Rastafari. Like many, I knew it was popular in Jamaica, had a special relationship with marijuana, and refers to something in Ethiopia. What I found was a simultaneously old and young...

Watch this video to learn about Shakespeare’s fascinating world, and its influence on the play The Merchant of Venice. Watch the Elizabethan and Jacobean eras come to life and develop a deeper understanding of attitudes towards race and...

Why do depictions of Jesus always seem to portray him with long hair and a full beard? The reason stretches back to the earliest centuries of Christianity. The first images of Jesus actually depict him as beardless, but by the 4th...

In the mid-3rd century CE, Emperor Decius ordered that everyone in the Roman Empire is to offer a sacrifice to the Roman gods. This caused a controversy among Christian communities as bunches of Christians refused to sacrifice and ended...

Watch this lesson today to discover how Shakespeare explores the complexities of mercy, revenge and finding true justice. When is revenge ever justified? Can we trust the legal system to be fair? Does showing mercy achieve...

When called to battle during the Middle Ages in Europe, soldiers expected to be surrounded by unpleasant, if not downright unspeakable, sights. Much like medieval executioners, medieval soldiers witnessed blood, carnage, and death on an...

It is common knowledge that the Romans killed Christians in the first few centuries of the new religion's history. But we don't often ask why. What was it about Christianity that made the Romans want to persecute it?

Lots of people have heard of Jerusalem Syndrome...the phenomenon of tourists suddenly having religiously-themed psychotic episodes upon visiting Jerusalem. But is this a real mental condition?

In this episode we examine the topic: How Did the New Testament Form?

Standing inside the Cathedral in Cordoba is a confounding experience that forces one to reflect on history, our interconnectedness, and the shared nostalgia of culture.

This video provides an overview of the history and development of Christianity, from the life and teachings of Jesus to the present day. It covers important events and figures, such as the Council of Nicaea, the split between Catholicism...

In this episode we examine the topic: The Origin of Christian Saints

Saint Patrick was a real guy...a 5th century bishop to the Christian communities in Ireland. But the notion that he was the FIRST Christian missionary to Ireland is actually not true. Christianity was in Ireland decades before Patrick's...

This video provides a brief overview of the history of Judaism, the world's oldest monotheistic religion. It discusses the covenant between God and Abraham, the Jewish Bible, the influence of Canaanite polytheism, the Babylonian exile...

Religion and faith are an integral part of people’s lives worldwide. But in many countries the number of people who believe in God is in decline. We examine the changing role of religion around the world.

This video covers some of the Anglo Saxon gods that were worshipped before Christianity arrived and the way their names are still used today.