Beyond Belief

"No-one expects the Spanish Inquisition!" The brilliant Monty Python sketch was able to use an historical reference because the very mention of the Inquisition conjured up images of dark dungeons; cruel monks wielding instruments of torture and consigning thousands of alleged heretics to the flames. The Inquisition has had a bad press. But in fact there were several Inquisitions, some more cruel than others. And it is still active. Nowadays it goes under the name of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and in the 1990s it was run by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. So what does it do? How does its present structure relate to its medieval origins? Does it deserve its sinister reputation?

Joining Ernie to discuss the Inquisition are Dr Gemma Simmons, Lecturer in Pastoral and Social Studies at Heythrop College London and a member of the Congregation of Jesus; Dr Christopher Black, Honorary Professor of Italian History at the School of Humanities, at the University of Glasgow; and Cullen Murphy, Editor at Large of Vanity Fair and author of God's Jury, The Inquisition and the Making of the Modern World.

The history of Islam in Mali is a long one. The faith, brought by traders, was adopted slowly over the centuries until the French colonisers arrived, after which its spread was accelerated. The recent conflict in Mali has been portrayed as a struggle between a home-grown "tolerant" Islam and an aggressive Wahabi influence from outside. How accurate is this picture? Ernie Rea is joined by journalist Celeste Hicks, academic Marie Rodet and the South African Sheik and academic Michael Mumisa.

Ernie Rea and guests discuss the reasons behind rising anti-semitism in Europe. A survey published last year revealed that 24% of the French population holds anti semitic views. The figure for Hungary is 63%. In Spain 72% of the people are willing to admit that they are anti Jew. Just 70 years after Hitler tried to wipe out European Jewry, attacks on Jews are on the increase. What is the cause of this resurgence? What can be done to stop it?

It may surprise you to know that the world's tallest hotel is in Makkah. The Clock Tower which is part of the same complex is the world's largest clock tower. None of this would be all that important were it not for the fact that these building are metres away from the Grand Mosque which, for Muslims, is the world's holiest place. In order to create the space for this expansion, large residential districts have been demolished and the residents evicted; many examples of traditional urban architecture have been destroyed. What is behind this programme? Is it cultural vandalism? Or rampant capitalism? Or does it reflect a legitimate theological concern on the part of the Saudi authorities to prevent idolatry? Joining Ernie Rea to discuss the potential destruction of some of Islam's Holy Sites are Yaqub Zaki, Visiting Professor at the Aga Khan Foundation at Harvard University; Mona Siddiqui, Professor of Islamic and Religious Studies at the University of Glasgow; and Irfan Al Alawi, Executive Director of the Islamic Heritage Research Foundation.

The fundamental message of Sikhism appears to be simple; God is one and all people are equal. But are some more equal than others? If the Sikh scriptures are consistent with a feminist agenda, why do some Sikh women feel that they are second class citizens?

The 1960s and 70s saw a proliferation of New Religious Movements in this country. Perhaps the best known is the Unification Church founded by the Rev Sun Myung Moon which attracted world wide attention because of mass weddings where couples who had often never met were paired together. The Rev Moon died last September and the movement is struggling to come to terms with his departure. So what will happen now? How do New Religious Movements survive when their founder dies?

Joining Ernie to discuss the Unification Church are Professor Eileen Barker, Director of Inform, an Information Network focusing on New Religious Movements, George Chryssides, Honorary Research Fellow in Contemporary Religion at the University of Birmingham and Jack Corley, Director of the UK branch of the Unification Church.

If you get to listen to this programme, it's because the Domesday scenario - according to which the world would end on December 21st - did not happen. The interpretation of the Mayan calendar that arrived at this date was derided by most Mayan scholars, but this hasn't stopped the media camping out in the French village of Bugarach, identified as the only village on earth which was to be spared destruction.

Apocalyptic ideas about the end of the world, as we in the West understand them, have their roots in the Jewish and Christian traditions. The popular imagery - the Mark of the Beast, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the Whore of Babylon - feed the imagination of film makers and writers, who draw upon Biblical imagery.

Joining Ernie Rea to discuss the nature and role of apocalyptic ideas on western religion and culture are Dr Philip Alexander, Professor of Post Biblical Jewish Studies at the University of Manchester; Dr Stefan Skrimshire, lecturer in Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Leeds; and Rev Dr Steve Jeffrey minister of Emmanuel Evangelical Church in North London.

The recent jailing of three young women for staging a political protest in a cathedral in Moscow has highlighted the relationship between the Government and the Russian Orthodox Church. Ernie Rea's guests today are Canon Michael Bordeaux from the Keston Institute for the Study of Religion and Communism, Father Andrew Phillips,a Russian Orthodox priest, and the BBC's former Moscow correspondent, Martin Sixsmith.

In a special edition of Beyond Belief Ernie Rea discusses the morality of the battlefield and the treatment of civilians in armed conflict. Increasingly news reports detail the casualties of civilians caught up in fighting in many countries around the world. Are we witnessing something new as civilians are targeted or used as shields by rebel forces and opposing armies or has this always happened? Will the use of unmanned drones make life safer or worse for civilians? Is it time to rethink the Just War Theory in the light of modern warfare? These are some of the moral and ethical issues Ernie Rea will be debating with Lord Dannatt, former Commander in Chief of the General Staff of the British Army, Canon Dr Alan Billings, former Director of the Centre for Ethics and Religion at Lancaster University, Imam Ajmal Masroor and Dr George Wilkes, Director of the Religion and Ethics in the Making of War and Peace Project at Edinburgh University. The programme was recorded in front of an audience at the Imperial War Museum North for the BBC's RE:Think Festival in Salford.

The story of Ram and Sita - told in the Hindu epic, the Ramayan - is known to every Hindu and - more indirectly - to the millions who have seen the film Slumdog Millionaire. The hero of the film, like Ram, takes control and conquers in adversity. The heroine - the love interest - is a passive figure , in need of rescue.

There are around a million Hindus living in Britain and they take many of their values from the story of Ram. But are some of those values demeaning to women? There are many gods and goddesses in Hinduism but do they provide good role models for modern women? What does Hinduism teach about how women are supposed to live their lives?