Nelson Jones

Belief, disbelief and beyond belief

Pope Francis waves to crowds in St Peter's Square in March 2013.

Is Pope Francis about to launch an anti-gay witchhunt in the Vatican?

By Nelson Jones - 14 June 10:59

The pontiff's remarks about the existence of a "gay lobby" in the Vatican draws on a number of age-old homophobic tropes.

9 Comments

A banner draped over the security barrier outside the Bilderberg meetings.

My brush with Bilderberg

By Nelson Jones - 10 June 16:01

Claims of global conspiracy seem far-fetched but Bilderberg does represent an immense networking and lobbying opportunity, says Nelson Jones. The concerns of rabble-rousing Texan radio host Alex Jones may be risible but those of Labour MP Michael Meacher are not.

13 Comments

Would same-sex marriage pose a threat to "sexual complementarity"?

Equal marriage could only threaten gender roles if it magically turned everyone gay

By Nelson Jones - 04 June 16:12

The modern basis of marriage is partnership and equality rather than innate difference.

15 Comments

Paul Lamb and Jane Nicklinson at the Royal Courts for a hearing on legalising do

Assisted dying isn't contested on religious grounds - it's about power, paternalism and control

By Nelson Jones - 14 May 13:39

A recent YouGov poll has shown that a majority of people - from almost all religious denominations - support doctor-assisted dying. It is our secular and spiritual leaders who are refusing to catch up.

6 Comments

In a political arena largely devoid of obvious talent Michael Gove is a star turn

By Nelson Jones - 10 May 11:29

Nelson Jones <3 Michael Gove.

28 Comments

Goths at the annual Wave-Gotik-Treffen music festival in Leipzig

Are attacks on goths, heavy metal fans and other "subcultures" hate crimes?

By Nelson Jones - 04 April 15:48

A legal and bureaucratic scheme that privileges some types of hate crime as special while ignoring others is dangerous in itself, says Nelson Jones.

18 Comments

The Pope appears on Colombian newspapers. Photograph: Getty Images

Is Pope Francis I's past enough to damn him?

By Nelson Jones - 14 March 18:52

Pope Francis flourished, occupying a prominent position in the Argentine church, at a time when its leaders worked hand in glove with one of the most brutal dictatorships of the 20th century. Is that enough to damn him?

7 Comments

Armin Meiwes at his re-trial in 2006. Photograph: Getty Images

Gilberto Valle: Can you be tried for having fantasies about eating your wife?

By Nelson Jones - 04 March 11:27

The trial of the "Cannibal Cop" forces us to ask the question: when a fantasy crime become a reality?

6 Comments

Nurses dancing at Danny Boyle's Olympics opening ceremony

We are in danger of loving the NHS to death

By Nelson Jones - 21 February 13:30

Universal healthcare is the least citizens should expect. To make the NHS better for patients, politicians, press and public alike need to cultivate a healthly scepticism towards it, not give it unlimited adulation.

25 Comments

An anti-gay marriage protest in France, on January 13. Photo: Getty

Opponents of gay marriage won't face discrimination, says Equality Commission

By Nelson Jones - 14 February 16:39

The advice, given to MPs today, also refutes suggestions that unwilling clergy might be forced by human rights law to marry same-sex couples.

6 Comments

Pope Benedict XVI at the Colosseum during the Way Of The Cross procession

Pope Benedict XVI: a paradoxical pontiff

By Nelson Jones - 11 February 17:14

History may well be kinder to Joseph Ratzinger than his contemporary critics.

24 Comments

Loren Cowley and Michelle Ricketts after their wedding in Sydney

Why is same sex marriage so controversial?

By Nelson Jones - 05 February 10:58

Its opponents may well have a darker motivation than they admit.

50 Comments

British Airways employee Nadia Eweida holds her crucifix

Strasbourg ruling marks a setback for claims of Christian victimisation

By Nelson Jones - 15 January 15:51

But even a defeat can be said to advance campaign groups' narrative that Christians are being "marginalised" by militant secularism.

8 Comments

"Virtually every ginger-haired child will have experienced some degree of name-c

Should ginger-bashing be considered a hate crime?

By Nelson Jones - 10 January 17:34

Being ginger-haired, you're not considered fully human.

80 Comments

Pope Paul VI meets with Michael Ramsey. Photograph: Getty Images.

Are popes being canonised just for doing their job?

By Nelson Jones - 21 December 15:11

Pope Paul VI, who banned Catholics from using contraception, is the latest pontiff to be put forward for sainthood.

14 Comments

No longer the default religion: is being a Christian now a political statement?

By Nelson Jones - 11 December 18:15

The census has shown a big decline in the number of people declaring themselves to be religious, writes Nelson Jones.

8 Comments

The decision to allow same-sex marriages in church will be a headache for Justin Welby

By Nelson Jones - 07 December 17:27

It may end up dominating the new Archbishop of Canterbury's tenure in the way that the women bishops debate has dominated Rowan Williams'.

4 Comments

Did a TV show host set a magician on fire because he thought he was a witch-doctor?

By Nelson Jones - 30 November 14:41

Nelson Jones investigates the attack on Wayne Houchin on Dominican television.

2 Comments

A Natural History Museum employee poses as she looks at a taxidermy exhibit

What Germany outlawing bestiality tells us about changing attitudes to sex

By Nelson Jones - 28 November 12:22

The change in law reflects the contemporary view of sex as something that can only properly be enjoyed on a basis of equality.

1 Comment

An anti abortion protester holds up a placard. Photo: Getty

Ireland's law and Catholic culture allowed Savita Halappanavar to die

By Nelson Jones - 14 November 17:42

The tragic case of a woman who was miscarrying, who died because doctors wouldn't give her a termination, shows the danger of fetishising the life of the unborn child.

1 Comment

Is Tom Watson in danger of fuelling a new paedophile panic?

By Nelson Jones - 09 November 14:50

There is a difference between listening sympathetically to the stories of people who say that they have been abused and uncritically believing every assertion that is made, says Nelson Jones.

0 Comments

Cardinal Keith O'Brien was named "Bigot of the Year" by Stonewall

Stonewall's "Bigot of the Year" Award is offensive and out of date

By Nelson Jones - 02 November 17:01

By continuing to have a Bigot of the Year award, Stonewall is indulging in playground politics that sits ill with its new role as a facilitator of best practice in the public realm.

0 Comments