Notorious non-believer Richard Dawkins will ironically be a godlike presence at the Auckland Writers and Readers Festival as he beams in from England for a video interview. On the other hand, former Bishop of Edinburgh Richard Holloway will appear in the flesh. ... [More]

Quantum mechanics is remarkably weird: even though it is well understood mathematically and can produce accurate, ultra-precise predictions, nobody really knows what it means -- but quasi-religious interpretations are not warranted. ... [More]

Neurobiologist Steven Rose reviews Kathleen Taylor's new book "Cruelty: Human Evil and the Human Brain" and explores evolutionary explanations for man's capacity for cruelty. by Steven Rose Excerpted from The Guardian From Gaza to the streets of Northern Ireland, from... [More]

In a Washington Post op-ed article Friday, columnist Michael Gerson examines the facts related to a recent Newsweek cover story entitled "The Decline and Fall of Christian America." According to Gerson, the Newsweek story overstates the evidence for decline. ... [More]

Channel surf around the television landscape, and it’s not hard to find experts earnestly discussing politics or economics or even home decorating. But you’ll rarely encounter anyone talking about spiritual matters, unless it’s a megachurch pastor with an 800 number scrolling across the screen. ... [More]

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have compiled the first-ever review of the neurobiology of wisdom – once the sole province of religion and philosophy. ... [More]

Once we had evolved the necessary brain architecture, we could "do" religion, brain scans indicate. The research shows that, to interpret a god's intentions and feelings, we rely mainly on the same recently evolved brain regions that divine the feelings and intentions of other people. ... [More]

Fifteen percent of respondents said they had no religion, an increase from 14.2 percent in 2001 and 8.2 percent in 1990, according to the American Religious Identification Survey. ... [More]

A 2-year-old, it turns out, knows the difference between right and wrong. According to psychologist Judi Smetana, the sense of morality begins to develop early in humans. ... [More]

The New School For Social Research just concluded a conference on the Religious/Secular Divide in the United States. The Conference was held for two days, 3/5-6, to standing room only crowds at the Tishman Auditorium in New York City. ... [More]

Believing in God can help block anxiety and minimize stress, according to new University of Toronto research that shows distinct brain differences between believers and non-believers. ... [More]

Religion might not be the only reason people buy into creationism and intelligent design, psychological experiments suggest. No matter what their religious beliefs, college-educated adults frequently agree with purpose-seeking yet false explanations of natural phenomena - finches diversified in order to survive, for instance. ... [More]

Washington University biologist discusses the "sacred nature" of sustainability, as seen from the perspectives of 'ecomorality' and religious naturalism ... [More]