Sunday Folgen

The British raid of 1897 on Benin City in the Southern Nigerian State of Edo, saw thousands of looted items end up in galleries and Museums across the UK. One recipient was the Horniman Museum and Gardens in South-East London. Only this week, they returned six out of seventy-two items, to Nigeria’s National Commission for Museums and Monuments. The remainder will remain on loan for now. Among those items returned are two Benin Bronze Plaques from the Royal Palace of Benin. The BBC’s Peter Macjob tells William Crawley about the spiritual significance of these Plaques for the community of Benin.This week’s Census results drew out some surprising revelations including a ten-fold rise in those identifying themselves as Shaman. But one particular statistic which grabbed a lot of media attention was that for the first time, fewer than half of people in England and Wales described themselves as Christian. William asks what determines whether Britain is or is not a Christian country with guests Dr Scot Peterson, Lecturer in Politics at the University of Oxford, and Rt Revd Dr. Helen-Ann Hartly, Bishop of Ripon. All through Advent we are teaming up with BBC Radio 3 Saturday Breakfast to bring you some of the nation’s favourite Christmas Carol’s. This week Presenter Elizabeth Alker meets with one of the original members of The Temptations, Otis Williams, to discuss ‘Silent Night’. And we want to hear from you, what's your favourite Carol and why is it so important to you. Email us at Sunday@bbc.co.ukPhoto: Benin Bronze plaque of Oba Orhogbua (circa 1550-1578) holding a staff representing authority and power and with Iwu, royal tattoos. Photo Credit: Horniman Museum and Gardens Producers: Jill Collins and Helen Lee Editor: Tim Pemberton

Islam has given the world some exquisite and spectacularly beautiful art. Now, modern Islamic Art is being celebrated at Bayt Al Fann, a two-day international digital festival on 28-29 November. The event will showcase contemporary artists from across the world, who have been inspired by the Islamic tradition. It will also explore how Islamic art might evolve in the future. William Crawley meets two of the artists, British-Bahraini poet Taher Adel, who is a spoken word performer and Samira Mian who uses watercolours to paint sacred Islamic geometry. There are more details about the Bayt Al Fann website at https://www.baytalfann.com/Can faith and politics really mix? William speaks to Tim Farron, the former Leader of the Liberal Democrat Party and sitting MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale about his new book ‘A Mucky Business’ Why Christians Should Get Involved in Politics. What is your favourite Christmas carol, and why do you love it so much? During Advent, we are teaming up with the BBC Radio 3 Saturday Breakfast team to celebrate some of the nation's most popular carols. Today, presenter Elizabeth Alker meets composer and conductor John Rutter, to discuss Once In Royal David's City. Email us and tell us about your favourite carol and why it's important to you: sunday@bbc.co.ukProducers: Jonathan Hallewell and Louise Clark-Rowbotham Presenter: William Crawley(Image courtesy of Samira Mian)

Albania’s Catholic Bishops have raised concerns about the depopulation of their country through migration. Edward Stourton explores the impact of this with Sister Imelda Poole, who works much of the year in Albania and is President of RENATE, an organisation dedicated to combatting human trafficking. Jazz musician Courtney Pine is back on tour across the UK performing material from his new album ‘Spirituality’. He tells the Sunday programme how religion, spirituality and jazz have all come together in this latest work. The National Association of Muslim Police is calling for the word ‘Islamist’ to be dropped from Counter-Terrorism Policing, they say it reflects negatively on Islam in general. Edward explores the nuances with Alexander Gent, Chairman of the National Association of Muslim Police and Dr Stephen Jones from the University of Birmingham Bishop Jude Arogundade, from the Diocese of Ondo in Nigeria, tells Edward of his concerns for the Christian community across the country. Harry Farley reports on ‘ANie’ the breakaway network of churches creating its own formal Anglican denomination, as an alternative for conservative members of the Church of England. Catholic Priest, Father Ray Kelly tells about his ambition to represent Ireland at next year's Eurovision Song Contest.And as the World Cup kicks off in Qatar, we ask whether the FIFA President's claims about the moral hypocrisy of western Journalists in their reporting on the country's human rights record, hold any weight? Our guests Jonty Langley, writer on faith and politics and co-presenter of the Beer Christianity Podcast and journalist Amardeep Bassey, media trainer and consultant.Photo Credit: Alfred BaileyProducers: Jill Collins and Rosie Dawson Editor: Tim Pemberton