All Things Considered

Azim Ahmed considers the cultural and religious significance of stars across many different faiths.

Professor George van Kooten from the Faculty of Divinity at the University of Cambridge discusses the Star of Bethlehem and the journey of the Magi, while Conwy Fisherman, Carl Davies, explains celestial navigation.

Author and Mathematician, Professor Sarah Hart, describes what a hexagram is.

Dr Jaclyn Granick from the School of History, Archaeology and Religion at Cardiff University, tells us the origins of the Star of David and how its identity has changed over time.

Senior Lecturer in Islamic Studies at Cardiff University, Dr Mansur Ali, explains why stars feature prominently in Islam.

Plus, Author and Welsh Witch, Mhara Starling, reveals the magic behind the pentagram.

Presented by Azim Ahmed.

As Christmas approaches, schools and churches across Wales are busy making costumes, practising songs, and helping children learn their lines for one of our most enduring traditions: the nativity play. Delyth Liddell visits a range of nativities across Wales, from a drop-in immersive nativity performed in the centre of Aberdare, to a damp but joyful roving nativity in Llanidloes, to primary school children performing their first plays in rural Talgarth and urban Cardiff.

But behind the tea towels, tinsel, and excited children lies something deeper, a story that has shaped cultures, communities and childhoods for generations. We explore why the nativity still matters. Should plays be re-shaped and told for modern audiences or stick with the traditional versions? Why is this retelling of an ancient story so important? Much of the nativity we know so well isn’t true to the Bible - does it matter?

Delyth visits St. Philip Evans Roman Catholic Primary School in Cardiff, Ysgol y Mynydd Du in Talgarth, St. Elvans Church in Aberdare for a performance of 'Christmas a Story' and a roving nativity in Trefeglwys. She speaks to Professor Wyn James from the University of Cardiff and Naomi Johnson from 'Out of the Ark', a leading publisher of children's nativity plays.

Away in a Manger is one of our favourite carols, but what does it mean for a child not to have a bed of their own? Sadly, this is the reality for too many children in Wales and beyond. In this programme Rosa Hunt looks at three stories where Christian communities are trying to tackle this issue, from child bed poverty to children displaced by bitter conflict.

Campbell Edmondson of the Lishon Project in Rhyl talks about addressing the need to supply some children in that area with beds and bedding. Sam Lomas of the Christian charity Home For Good talks about a campaign to get ordinary families to take adolescents and young adults into their homes to provide what they call 'supported lodgings'. Mari McNeill, Head of Christian Aid in Wales, talks about that organisation's Christmas campaign, No Crib for a Bed, drawing attention to the plight of people in the Democratic Republic of Congo where many children have been uprooted from their homes by the bitter violence. Obed Buhendwa, Christian Aid's senior programme officer in the region, reports from Bokavu, a city only 20 km away from the fighting.

Written in the 18th century, with words taken from the King James Bible, it is claimed that Handel's Messiah is 'the greatest piece of participatory art ever created'.

Even today, it is performed and played in churches, cathedrals, theatres and music halls, each and every Christmas.

In this programme, we ask the question: what is the enduring allure of Handel’s Messiah?

Is it just a musical masterpiece, or is there something more going on?

To help us ask this question, Jonathan Thomas is joined by the Gloucester Choral Society, pastoral theological Stephen Roberts, author Charles King, and authors of a new advent devotional on the Messiah, Dave & Sally Gobbett.

Azim Ahmed and guests ask if faith makes a person more susceptible to criminals or if it makes people more resilient in bouncing back afterwards because they're able to forgive? How much does being a victim of fraud test a person’s faith? Could it even break it?

If you’ve been affected by the issues we’ve discussed in this programme you can get help and information by going to bbc.co.uk/actionline

In September the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ rally, organised by far-right activist Tommy Robinson, drew many thousands of people to London. Advertised as the UK’s biggest ‘Free Speech Festival’, speakers made calls to reaffirm Britain’s Christian foundations. Many held wooden crosses and flags with Christian slogans, and the crowds were led in reciting the Lord’s Prayer.

Meanwhile operation ‘Raise the Colours’, a campaign to cover Britain in flags, has seen St. George’s flags appear on lamp posts across England. Some see flying the flag as patriotism, while others are concerned and say the movement is underpinned by far-right nationalists.

Today we’ll explore the issues. Why is it different to fly a Welsh Flag or a St. George’s Cross? What is the difference between patriotism and nationalism? In what way was the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ march unsettling and exclusionary to others? Delyth Liddell is joined by Reverend Rhys Llwyd, leader of a Welsh speaking Baptist Church in Caernarfon, North Wales. The Rt Rev Philip North, Bishop of Blackburn who has recently written an article arguing that the flying of flags is a cry from long neglected communities. Suzanne Philpott lives near Swansea. She attended the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ rally in September and is a Christian. Ross Hendry is from Llanelli and is the CEO of Christian Action Research and Education. He was a joint signatory of the letter “Do not ‘co-opt’ the cross to divide."

In light of the recent appointment of the Bishop of London, Dame Sarah Mullally, as the first female Archbishop of Canterbury, Azim Ahmed and guests examine whether women have shattered the glass ceiling of faith leadership.

To discuss the issues Azim is joined by a panel of female faith leaders; the Very Reverend Dr Sarah Rowland Jones, Dean of St. David’s Cathedral. Chine McDonald who is the Director of the Theos think tank. Zara Muhammed made history as the first woman to lead the Muslim Council of Britain, serving as Secretary General between 2021 and 2025, Rabbi Charley Baginsky is the Co-Lead of Progressive Judaism in the UK and Ireland.

Together they examine the challenges of leadership in faith traditions shaped by patriarchal societies, the qualities women bring to leadership and the hope they have for the future of religious leadership and inter-faith relations.

Jonathan Thomas visits the Torch Fellowship Group in Ammanford, speaks to volunteers of Guide Dogs UK, and interviews others about the experience of sight loss in the church.

He also remembers the life and ministry of Peter Jackson, a blind pianist.

All music performed by Peter Jackson for BBC Radio Wales Celebration in 1995 and 2013.

This summer huge crowds gathered at Glastonbury Festival to sing along to a set of 'Assembly Bangers'; beloved songs from primary school. Musician and music teacher James B. Partridge led the field with classics including 'One More Step Along the World I Go', 'He's Got the Whole World in his Hands' and 'Lord of the Dance'. The popularity of these songs goes beyond music festivals, and this autumn in his Homecoming concert Mal Pope will include an 'Assembly Banger' slot with singer and songwriter Graham Kendrick, composer of 'Shine Jesus Shine'. The popularity of primary school songs has taken many by surprise and this week Azim Ahmed sets out to explore why so many people love singing tunes from their youth.

Azim speaks to James B. Partridge who explains that he began recording ‘Assembly Bangers’ during the Covid lockdown — and was astonished at how popular they became. Alongside his teaching commitments he's also planning a nationwide tour this Christmas. We’ll visit the Freedom Festival in Carmarthen, an event run by the Diocese of St. David's, where the Crowfoot band performs an 'Assembly Banger' slot and we'll hear from the audience there. We'll speak to Mal Pope and Graham Kendrick about the importance of communal singing, and lastly we'll visit Clyro Church in Wales Primary School to find out which songs children love today and which ones could be the 'Assembly Bangers' of the future.

The twenty-first of September is the UN International Day of Peace, and this year’s theme is “Act Now For a Peaceful World.” Delyth Liddell and guests discuss if peace is possible.

Usman Manan is an Imam serving with the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in Cardiff.