Sunday Folgen

In his first UK media interview, Ed Stourton talks to John Calvin, grandson of the co-founder of Hamas, whose conversion to Christianity meant he had to flee the Middle East.In 1964 Cassius Clay announced he had given up his name for Muhammad Ali and joined the Nation of Islam. Dr Dawn-Marie Gibson talks about how his faith influenced his life.Ed Stourton talks to the BBC's Bangkok correspondent, Jonathan Head, about what the arrests of monks at the Thai Buddhist temple with links to animal trafficking says about the state of Buddhist monasticism in Thailand today.Trevor Barnes investigates the findings of a report that claims the Home Office is rejecting asylum claims from converts to Christianity because officials are making basic mistakes about the faith and what followers should know.Why is Vimto, a soft drink from Manchester, such a big seller in the Gulf States during Ramadan? Kevin Bocquet reports.Sunday hears from Carly Paoli, the British mezzo soprano, whose version of Ave Maria will be the official song for the Pope's Jubilee Year of Mercy celebrations in Rome.Albert Einstein said: 'Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind.' Three leading scientists, Professor Tom McLeish, Professor Mohamed El-Gomati and Professor Robert Winston, from three different faith traditions join Ed Stourton to discuss the science and religion 'question' in 2016, ahead of the debate at the Cheltenham Science Festival next week.Producers: Catherine Earlam Peter EverettSeries Producer: Amanda Hancox.

With less than a month before the referendum on Britain's membership of the EU, there's a debate growing about the role religious leaders should take when they engage with political issues. Jasvir Singh from the London Faiths Forum and journalist Quentin Letts discuss the role of religion in politics.Professor Mona Siddiqi tells Edward about the review of Sharia law in the UK that the Government has asked her to lead.Why are some historic buildings owned by the Church of Scientology lying empty after they were purchased ten years ago? Geoff Bird has been to see one of the properties in Manchester.In York, the Minster will be the setting for the 2016 Mystery Plays for only the second time in their 700 year history. Kevin Bocquet reports from the final rehearsals.We report on a ground-breaking study which explores links between religion and HIV disease progression. Gail Ironson is Professor of Psychology at the University of Miami.Tom Smith, lecturer in International Relations at Portsmouth University, explains why the Philippine's President elect has called the Catholic Church the 'most hypocritical institution' in the country and says he doesn't need the religion to show his deep Christian faith. Christian and Muslim forces are engaged in a bloody conflict in Africa whilst radical Buddhists in Myanmar attack the Islamic minority. Rabbi David Saperstein is the U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom. He discusses with Edward the future of religious freedom.Bells from over 100 church towers will ring out simultaneously for BBC Music Day. The organiser Mike Orme and the youngest participant, 11yr old Lewis, tell us about their bell ringing passion.Producers; David Cook Helen LeeSeries Producer: Amanda Hancox.

Pope Francis has said that he is open to the possibility of ordaining women as deacons. Are the ranks of the Catholic Church's all-male clergy really going to open up to female members?Next week, two ministers battle it out in the annual Sermon of the Year Competition. They talk to Edward Stourton about their ministry and go head to head in Sunday's very own battle of the sermons.Hazel Southam reports from Jordan on a trauma healing programme that is being offered to tens of thousands of people who have fled the wars in Syria and Iraq.On Thursday, Scottish composer Sir James MacMillan is giving a speech to the Saltire Society in Glasgow in which he will argue that 20th and 21st century composers have never given up their search for the sacred in an increasingly secular society. He explains to Edward his reasons for this belief.Last February, Charles Maung Bo became Myanmar's first-ever cardinal. For many years he has spoken out against the persecution of religious minorities in his country and now that there is a new civilian government, he is carving out a role for himself as peacemaker between different ethnic groups and the Buddhist majority.On the 1st May, the residents of the Canadian city of Fort McMurray became aware of a wildfire on the outskirts of their city. Two days later they had to evacuate. Rev Donalee Williams is the minister of Fort McMurray's First United Church she explains how she is supporting her dispersed congregation.As the Archbishop of York's six month Pilgrimage across the Diocese of York is about to finish, Bob Walker caught up with John Sentamu to discover what he has learnt from his time on the road.Producers: Helen Lee David Cook Series Producer: Amanda Hancox.