Philip Jenkins
Making saints in Africa
Within a decade, a sixth of the world's Catholics will be African—yet the continent has few canonized saints. This is starting to change.
Christians in the Gulf
The Gulf states do not practice religious freedom in anything like the Western sense. Still, Christianity has secured a surprisingly strong foothold.
Florence Li, much beloved
In 1944, an Anglican bishop consecrated a Chinese woman to the priesthood—30 years before women attained that rank in the Episcopal Church.
The saint of Karachi
The title character of Mohammed Hanif's novel Our Lady of Alice Bhatti is a Catholic nurse in Pakistan. Turning the other cheek is not her strong suit.
Mary among the Egyptians
It’s almost certain that historic Christian devotion to the Virgin Mary began in Egypt. The nation’s Muslims often plead for her help, too.
Who owns France’s churches?
Why, asks Dalil Boubakeur, should hundreds of empty churches not be converted to mosques? It's an intriguing question.
Neighboring Faiths, by David Nirenberg
Plenty of scholars have discussed interfaith relations in medieval Spain. What makes David Nirenberg's book distinctive is his emphasis on how each religion's self-image was shaped by its portrayal of the others.
Reconcilers in Madagascar
Search online for Madagascar and you get mostly references to animated films about animals. Dig deeper and you'll find a still more amazing true story.
Global Christianity & American religious history
Christian Higher Education: A Global Reconnaissance, edited by Joel Carpenter, Perry L. Glanzer, and Nicholas S. Lantinga....
The Adventist adaptation
In the 1950s, the Adventists celebrated the milestone of a million adherents, mostly in the U.S. Now they have 18 million, mostly elsewhere.
Restored pilgrim paths
Over the last generation, the institution of pilgrimage has experienced a startling revival across what we often dismiss as secular Europe.
One story, three ways
Robert Gregg traces five scriptural stories as they were later understood by commentators—Jewish, Christian, and Muslim.
The militant Buddhists
Western media treat Asian faiths quite generously in matters of religious conflict. Yet Christians on the ground in Asia face serious issues.
Megachurches in Singapore
Christianity is thriving in Singapore. And in this case, most of the usual explanations for Christian expansion in Asia fall flat.
Faith in ferment
Whatever its connotations, medieval represents half the Christian story to date. Kevin Madigan provides an excellent look at these long centuries.
New churches, old Europe
European churches are currently engaged in an architectural culture war. This is startling given how weak the churches themselves have become.
Europe and the Islamic World, by John Tolan, Gilles Veinstein, and Henry Laurens
Europe and the Islamic World is a grandly ambitious attempt to sketch the interaction of faiths and regions from the seventh century to the present.
Japan’s 1 percent
We rarely think of Japan as a promising land for Christianity. But the murder of Kenji Goto reminds us that believers do exist there.
“They Can Live in the Desert but Nowhere Else,” by Ronald Grigor Suny
Study of the Armenian genocide has attracted many fine scholars, but Ronald Suny's book stands out.
Assyrians under siege
Assyrian Christians call 1915 Sayfo, the Year of the Sword. One hundred years later, they're still being killed.