In the lead up to September 11, Western nations took their collective eye off the ball when they relegated religion to the realm of the menial and sentimental. Studying fringe, fundamentalist theologies is key to understanding the nature and origins of contemporary religious extremism, writes Prof Matthew Ogilvie.

Abstaining from meat on Fridays was the only way a Catholic could fulfill their penitential obligation until 1985 in Australia. Almost three decades on, some of the Church’s leaders believe we’ve lost a unique mark of Catholic identity, as Matthew Biddle explains…

A friend recently lent me a book by a Spanish nun named Sr Josefa Menendez, which I am finding very inspirational. I would like to know whether she and her writings have been approved by the Church.

Children need to be given a balance between being shielded from the world’s harsh realities and being exposed to them…

Aimee Jones found Catholicism in searching for something to guide her family in an increasingly materialistic world.

In a world of instant communication, the tragic and historic events occurring on the streets of Kyiv and in other Ukrainian cities are more immediate to non-Ukrainian Australians than ever. The antecedents of the horrifying events of this year and last, including the sniper killings of 100 protesters in Independence Square on February 20, are little understood by the populations of other Western countries, writes Dr Andrew Kania, but need to be grappled with if the fledgling country is ever to move forward and become again the place of great civilisation it has historically been.

I have several questions regarding impure thoughts. Can they be mortal sins? How should I confess them? Do I need to go into detail?

An impersonal faith is a borderline worthless faith, when ours is a God who calls us to the most intimate of communions.

Sister Anna always wanted to be a nun and neither obstruction, nor injury, have been able to halt her pursuit of God.

The West Australia priest who was the inspiration for Geoffrey Rush’s character in the blockbuster musical Bran Nue Day has gone to his eternal reward. Mark Reidy discovers that inspiring a film character was perhaps one of the least remarkable things about the man.