Theologians from across the globe have been gathering in Augsburg for a consultation of Lutheran churches – the third largest worldwide Christian confession after the Catholic and Orthodox Churches.

The Christmas message is one of deliveerance from fear, says Giles Fraser. But the approach the Pope has taken to 'human ecology' heads perilously in the other direction.

Measuring the number of times politicians mention or don't mention God misses the point, says Simon Barrow. The issue is whether the subversive language of the Gospel can challenge top-down religious and political systems.

New research published this week by Theos, a church-backed theology think tank, suggests that there is a growing use of 'God talk' by party political leaders in their conference speeches.

The Vatican has announced an upcoming international conference on "Biological Evolution: Facts and Theories. A Critical Appraisal 150 years after 'The Origin of Species'", to mark the Darwin celebrations and build the science-theology dialogue.

The need to "re-frame the religious dimensions" of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a key goal of a 4-day international theological conference which began yesterday in the Swiss capital, Bern.