Religious History

It is not uncommon for highlands churches to be situated within caves. Mekina Medhane Alem, built of wood and layered stone, contains 800-year-old paintings but is believed to be centuries older.

A Legendary Photographer Visits an Isolated Christian Community in Ethiopia

High in the mountains of eastern Africa, an ancient way of life continues apace

A fancy moule à gaufres (waffle iron) held by the Musée Lorrain.

These Beautiful Medieval Wafer Presses Are Where Waffles Come From

Leggo my flat, fancy Eggo

A painting of Martin Luther.

Trace Martin Luther's Footsteps Through Germany

It’s 500 years since the start of the Protestant Reformation—here’s what you can still see today

Wearing white with a white headscarf to St. John's Eve is an important part of the celebration.

Voodoo Priestess Marie Laveau Created New Orleans’ Midsummer Festival

Mardi Gras may be the city's biggest party, but St. John's Eve is its most important religious festival

Although scientific discoveries about blood started happening in the seventeeth century, blood transfusions are (mostly) a twentieth-century thing.

350 Years Ago, A Doctor Performed the First Human Blood Transfusion. A Sheep Was Involved

Early scientists thought that the perceived qualities of an animal—a lamb’s purity, for instance—could be transmitted to humans in blood form

A Stunning & Dramatic Irish Island Once Inhabited by Monks

Over seven miles off the Irish coast, lie the sea crags of Skellig Michael, a breathtaking island once home to a community of reclusive monks

These Trees Uncover What Plunged Egypt's Climate Into Chaos

Examining tree rings inside the world's oldest trees reveal a seismic event that took place around 3,500 years ago

A posthumous engraving of Maria Agnesi from 1836.

The Witch of Agnesi

A mistranslation led to the unusual name of this mathematical concept

Some Very Compelling Evidence the Tower of Babel Was Real

Biblical scholars have debated whether the Tower of Babel existed. A remarkable stone tablet never before shown on film appears to settle that question

The Sticky Clue That Links the Tower of Babel to the Bible

Evidence is piling up that the Tower of Babel really existed. It's a conclusion that's partially borne out by an astounding discovery

Why Jesus's Miracles Seemed Apocalyptic to the Gospel Writers

Jesus gained renown as a preacher of a particularly apocalyptic form of Judaism. This was further strengthened by his ability to perform miracles

Did Judas Actually Betray Jesus to Force a Rebellion?

There are numerous theories, from money to the intriguing idea that Judas may have actually been an overzealous believer anxious to provoke a confrontation

Exploring the Ancient Region Where Jesus Rose to Prominence

The Sea of Galilee contains the lowest freshwater lake in the world, and it's the area where a young Jesus of Nazareth first gained popularity

How to Understand the Three Wise Men, Frankincense & Myrrh

The story of the nativity is actually a blend of both the gospels of Luke and Matthew. They reveal the significance of the gifts carried by the three kings

Archaeologists Worked Feverishly to Excavate Colonial-Era Graves at Philly Construction Site

The First Baptist Cemetery was supposed to have been moved in 1859, but as it turned out many of the graves were left behind

First page of the Kempe manuscript

Researchers Decipher Recipe Believed to Treat Medieval Mystic

The find came to light thanks to a multi-spectral analysis on the manuscript of Margery Kempe's autobiography

Statuary inside the salt cathedral.

Step Inside This Underground Cathedral, Carved Into the Walls of an Abandoned Salt Mine

An old mine has transformed into a subterranean worship space, 650 feet underground

Prayer wheels are just one of the sounds preserved and remixed in a new project.

Listen to the Sounds of Sacred Spaces Around the World

A new project documents, then remixes, religious and spiritual sounds

Archeologists found this piece of parchment rolled up in a jug in a cave on the cliffs west of Qumran.

Archaeologists Might Have Found Another Dead Sea Scroll Cave

It could be cave number 12

President Dwight Eisenhower at the annual National Prayer Breakfast in Washington on Feb. 2, 1956.

The History of the National Prayer Breakfast

The tradition began with President Eisenhower and has often been a place for the chief executive to talk about his faith

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