Sunday

Pope Francis is in Cyprus this week where he said that "walls of fear" and nationalism were slowing down Europe's progress. As he moves onto Greece, another country on the frontline of the migrant crisis, we'll hear how this visit is being greeted on the ground. In the aftermath of the crisis of 2015, when thousands of asylum seekers arrived in Greece, the government there toughened its stance on migrants. How do Catholics in Greece, itself not long in recovery after a deep economic recession, view the Pope and his plea to open borders and offer safe haven to migrants?We're celebrating St Columba, or St Colmcille as he's known in Ireland, who was born in County Donegal 1500 years ago this week. He is revered for his miracles and missionary zeal but as a Nobleman with considerable power, he also had a reputation as a warrior and a troublemaker. We'll separate the fact from the folklore and hear how this Saint who is loved on both sides of the Irish border as well as in Scotland and the North of England now represents a shared heritage and future in a post-Brexit world. And as the Church of England releases its first ever single in a bid to be the Christmas number one, we'll be asking what it takes for a religious themed song to make it to the top of the charts.Photo Credit: Andreas Solaro/AFP

Countries around the world are racing to introduce travel bans and restrictions on Southern Africa to contain a new variant of Covid-19. With just ten per cent of Africans having received their first jab, Church leaders on the continent are calling for vaccine justice and faith leaders are working together to challenge vaccine hesitancy. Archbishop Thabo Makgoba, South African Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town and President of the South African Council of Churches, tells us what new challenges the churches face. We hear the extraordinary story of how a rabbi and Kim Kardashian worked together to rescue girls from Afghanistan. And now that local councils are obliged to take in refugee children, we hear about the shortage of Muslim foster parents and how faith helped one young refugee settle into his new life in the UK. The Bible has been translated into many languages but now there is to be a new translation into BSL, or British Sign Language. What will this mean to deaf people? Emily Buchanan talks to Lord Bishop Sentamu of Lindisfarne as he takes over as the first African head of Christian Aid, and we hear how, for the first time, 'Spiritual Abuse' is cited as a definition in the draft statutory Guidance to the Domestic Abuse Act.Producers: Louise Clarke-Rowbotham and Jill CollinsEditor: Helen Grady

In the wake of last weekend’s bomb attack in Liverpool, carried out by an apparent convert to Christianity, Emily Buchanan and guests explore the role of religious conversion in the lives of those seeking asylum in the UK.The Stormont executive has agreed to accept all the recommendations of a panel set up to investigate institutions for unmarried mothers in Northern Ireland. We consider the implications and hear the testimony of one survivor, Adele Johnstone.While sayings of the 13th century Sufi poet Rumi are hugely popular on social media, this week ‘Rumi: The Musical’ premieres in London's West End with the aim of getting to the human and spiritual heart of the Muslim mystic.Producers: Dan Tierney Olive ClancyEditor: Helen Grady.

With thousands of migrants stranded in freezing temperatures, we explore the humanitarian crisis unfolding on Poland's border with Belarus. Wojciech Wilk from the Polish Centre for International Aid gives the picture on the ground and journalist Jonathan Luxmoore explains local Church leaders' response. To mark Remembrance Day, our reporter Vishva Samani joins a group of British Sikhs, Hindus and Muslims as they uncover forgotten stories of sacrifice and valour from their own communities. Could the US President be banned from receiving Communion? Some Catholic Bishops are unhappy that Joe Biden, a practising Catholic, supports abortion rights and believe he and other Pro-Choice politicians should be denied the central sacrament of their Chuch. Will a new Church document agree? William explores the issue with Social Justice Campaigner Sister Simone Campbell and Ed Condon, Editor of the Catholic website ‘The Pillar’. FW. De Klerk was the last leader of apartheid South Africa and the man who freed Nelson Mandela from jail. Following his death this week, William asks if FW. De Klerk’s personal faith can help us make sense of his complex story. We hear from Saul Dubow, Smuts Professor of Commonwealth History at Cambridge University and the Very Reverend Rogers Govender, Dean of Manchester Cathedral. And listeners share what makes their local Cathedral so special - from West Wales to Orkney - as we go on a journey through those magnificent structures that have withstood centuries and still provide focal points in times of national crisis and celebration. Simon Jenkins, Author of ‘Europe’s 100 Best Cathedrals’, shares his favourites too. Producers: Jill Collins and Louise Clarke-RowbothamEditor: Helen Grady

The singer Leonard Cohen, who died five years ago, tells the story that a friend once told him: "You never met a religion you didn't like". Listen in to our investigation of his spiritual life and we're fairly confident you'll never hear a Cohen song in quite the same way again. Though he fell out with the Montreal Jewish community he grew up in, his music fuses Judaism and Christianity as well as ideas from Zen Buddism. We hear Cohen's own views on faith from the BBC archive, talk to Harry Freedman author of Leonard Cohen: The mystical roots of genius and of course, hear those songs alongside their inspirations from the Talmud, the Kabbalah and the Bible.Is faith central to the debate about caring for the environment? This week the UK's Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis said religious leaders were left to "scramble around" for the chance to make their voices heard at COP 26, the UN summit aimed at bringing climate change under control. As the conference enters a second week Edward Stourton talks to faith leaders about their experiences, what exactly they have to add to the debate and how they're going to make themselves heard in week two.Also in the programme: the young German Catholics attempting to get the church to spell God with a gender star. They say that the image of a male, white God is putting many young people off religion. And where's Cuthbert? This week York Minster replaced a window dedicated to the influential St Cuthbert. Its one of the largest surviving narrative windows in Europe and the only one telling the story of the saint who was a Medieval superstar. Edward finds out what the window tells us of the hermit and how to pick out Cuthbert himself from a window that is celebrated as a "Lancastrian who's who's".

“I feel like you almost need to perform to prove you are a Muslim” says makeup artist Zainab Hassan as a survey by Muzmatch confirms the discrimination many Black Muslims feel within some Muslim communities. Imam Rakin Niass and Imam Qari Asim discuss how to tackle this.19 out of 20 of the most popular Christian American pages on Facebook were fake. Karen Hao tells Edward about the troll farms set up to exploit Facebook communities in the run up to last year’s Presidential election.As COP26 begins young activists Lucy Gillingham, Harjot Singh and Priya Koria discuss their hopes and fears for the climate change conference.Bhavik Depala talks of his joy as the Neasden Hindu Temple in London opens its doors to celebrate Divali for the first time since lockdown.The never ending cycle of prayer and music – Vishva Samani looks at the Benedictine tradition of the Divine Office.Producers: Amanda Hancox and Jill Collins Editor: Helen Grady

The Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury has called for greater recognition of the last rites as an “emergency service”, following concerns that a priest was unable to reach Sir David Amess, a Catholic, at the scene where he was attacked. Meanwhile in Parliament this week, there was talk of this being reflected in a so-called "Amess amendment" to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. Ed Stourton explores the implications.Sectarian violence on the streets of Beirut last week was the deadliest there for more than a decade. Residents are already living through Lebanon’s worst economic crisis for more than three decades and rebuilding their city after last year's port blast. We examine the religious roots of the crisis.Dune, the latest sci-fi blockbuster, is an adaptation of a 1965 novel by Frank Herbert, in which religion, Islam in particular, looms large. We look at how the film deals with the Islamic themes. (Credit: Warner Bros. UK & Ireland; directed by Denis Villeneuve)As part of Black History Month, we reflect on the origins and controversy of the song, 'Swing Low, Sweet Chariot', with a descendent of the enslaved people who are credited with writing it.Producers: Dan Tierney Louise Clarke-RowbothamEditor: Helen GradyPicture: Fisk Jubilee Singers Credit: Hulton-Deutsch Collection/Corbis

On this weekend’s Sunday programme, we continue to explore the future of religious worship, post-pandemic. Our reporter Nalini Sivasthasan looks into the renewed calls to make some Mosques more inclusive spaces for Muslim Women. And our Presenter Emily Buchanan speaks to the Imam and Scholar, Shaykh Ibrahim Mogra. Amidst the growing calls for the restitution of treasures looted from Africa during the colonial era, there sits in the British Museum a contested collection of Sacred Plaques known as Tabots. Campaigners argue that there is no legal impediment to them being restored to their homeland. Father Abate Gobena, a serving Priest and member of the Parish Council at St. Mary’s Ethiopian Orthodox Church in London, explains why these Tabots are so precious to Ethiopians. Author Peter Stanford takes us on ‘church crawl’ across the UK with his latest book ‘If These Stones Could Talk, The History Of Christianity In Britain and Ireland Through Twenty Buildings’. Is a cuddly Deity the best way to help children understand faith and culture? In the run up to Diwali, soft toys of Deities like Ganesha are on offer at Hindu gatherings. Now the range is expanding to include all major faiths as our Reporter Vishva Samani explains. ‘Tsitsit’ is a pun on the Hebrew word for ritual fringes and it’s also the title of a Jewish themed Fringe Festival of comedy, theatre and music, currently on tour around the country. Emily speaks to the Festival’s Director Alastair Falk and Rachel Creeger, the only Orthodox Jewish woman on the British comedy circuit and co-host of the podcast 'Jew Talkin’ to Me’. Picture Credit: 2021 The Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk. Producers: Jill Collins and Louise Clarke-RowbothamEditor: Helen Grady

Following in the footsteps of St Colomba, presenter and adventurer Ben Fogle has been on a pilgrimage across the Hebrides to explore themes of community and spirituality, He joins Edward Stourton to describe a personal journey that can be seen in a four part series on BBC One called 'Scotland's Sacred Islands with Ben Fogle'.A survey by Muslim Census has found that large numbers of Muslim students feel compromised by having to take out non halal student loans. The student loan scheme charges interest on money borrowed and under Islamic law interest bearing loans are forbidden. Sadiq Dorasat from Muslim Census exclusively reveals the results of his research.Ahead of the ‘Day of the Scientist’ on Radio Four, Edward talks to two scientists with a religious backgrounds who reflect on the relationship between religion and science – Dr Yadvinder Malhi is professor of Ecosystem Science at Oxford and Dr Monica Grady is professor of Planetary and Space Science at the Open University.Producers: Helen Lee Olive Clancy

Is it possible for intense suffering to bring about great spiritual growth ? That’s the question our Presenter Emily Buchanan explores with the Psychologist and Author Dr. Steve Taylor in his book ‘Extraordinary Awakenings: When Trauma Leads to Transformation. It covers the stories of those who report transcendental experiences after a major trauma such as bereavement or witnessing violent conflict. Over a thousand Church Leaders are signatories to a letter urging the Government not to remove the £20 uplift to Universal Credit. They are asking Government to choose to build a just and compassionate social security system. Emily explores with Rachel Gregory, Policy Manager at Christians Against Poverty and Mohammed Lockhat, Chair of the Peace Centre in Leicester, just what the removal of this uplift means in real terms. BBC 1’s new primetime Sunday night drama Ridley Road is inspired by the true story of a revival of fascism and neo-Nazism in 1962, and the group of Jewish men and women who formed an anti-fascist resistance movement called the 62 Group. We speak to one of the few surviving members of that Group, Jules Konopinski along with the Historian and Author of ‘We Fight Fascists’ Daniel Sonabend. In the second of our series exploring some of the changing faith practises in Britain, we focus this week on the Church of England. Reporter Harry Farley poses the question ‘Does the Parish Have a Future? with church-goers and non-churchgoers alike. And Emily explores the arguments with Emma Thompson from the Campaign group Save The Parish and the Revd Canon David Male, the Church of England’s Director of Evangelism and Discipleship.Producers: Jill Collins, Amanda Hancox Editor: Helen Grady