The image of the Madonna and child appears on nearly every Christmas card and is at the centre of every nativity scene. But in most of these images, Mary looks European, a white woman with fair hair. Yet there are also Black Madonnas – and they’re often seen as particularly powerful. Liz Adekunle finds out about the rich history of the Black Madonna and her relevance to Christians today as they celebrate the birth of Christ.

Face to face with the Black Madonna

Things Unseen grapples with a spiritual climate that no longer conforms to orderly patterns – with fewer of us attracted to formal religion, but many still believing that there’s more out there than meets the eye. Thought-provoking speech radio for people of faith – and those who just feel intrigued by the spiritual dimension to life.

Religion & Spirituality

Other

Spirituality

Christianity

Buddhism

Hinduism

Judaism

Islam

In this FaithTime episode, Liz Adekunle meets Swarzy Macaly, BBC Radio 1Xtra weekend presenter, voice of BBC Sounds and campaigner for causes ranging from sustainability to the fight against racism. Swarzy opens up about how she found Jesus in the middle of a shoplifting incident, her search for belonging, and how her Christian faith helped her find a path out of hopelessness and insecurity.

Faithtime: Swarzy

Passover is one of the most important Jewish festivals, marking the Exodus of the Jews from Egypt and the start of their journey to the Promised Land – Israel. This year, the celebrations have an extra significance because of the Hamas attack on Israel in October and the subsequent violence unleashed on Gaza by Israel. In this Passover edition of Things Unseen, Amir Suleman, a Muslim, and Orthodox Rabbi Dov Cowan discuss the significance the festival holds this year, with Israel and Gaza at the forefront of everyone’s minds.

Passover: When your enemy falls

Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor who sent Jesus to be crucified, is often seen as the villain of the story. But was he downright evil, or merely weak? In this Good Friday and Easter edition of Things Unseen, the Ven Liz Adekunle hears from a priest, a Christian author and a former homicide detective turned evangelist about how we might see our own actions reflected in Pilate’s story.

Pontius Pilate: A man like us

The retaliation by Israel in Gaza following the Hamas attack in October, has caused deep-seated anger among Muslim communities, including in the UK.

As the Islamic holy month of Ramadan approaches, with its focus on compassion, charity, and prayer, how are Muslims preparing, given the strong emotions triggered by the Israel-Gaza situation?

Gaza will not be far from people’s minds as they get together to break the fast in the evenings, and much of the community’s charitable giving this year will go to help the Palestinians.

In this Ramadan edition of Things Unseen, broadcaster Amir Suleman meets Muslims of different ages to ask how they can find compassion, even for people they might regard as enemies.

Joining the conversation are social psychologist Anita Nayyar, community worker Faisal Mahmood and university student Abdul-Roqueeb Salman.

Ramadan: In the shadow of Gaza

In the film One Life, Anthony Hopkins plays Nicholas Winton, who rescued over 600 Jewish children from Nazi-occupied Prague by sending them on what became known as the Kindertransport. For this podcast, Rosie Dawson welcomes two people who knew Nicholas Winton personally: Rabbi Jonathan Romain from Maidenhead synagogue in Berkshire, and Lord Alf Dubs, who was himself a Kindertransport child and campaigns for the rights of unaccompanied child refugees. Together with Sue Butler from Welcome Churches, a network committed to welcoming refugees and asylum seekers, they discuss what lessons the story of Nicholas Winton holds for us today.

Face to face with the Black Madonna

Download our free app to listen on your phone