Do we really make choices or our behaviour is predetermined? The debate from antiquity to our days. From the ancient Greeks to the present-day, philosophers have debated whether we have the capacity to freely choose between possible alternatives paths or whether our apparent choices have already been determined long ago by our nature and upbringing. We’ll trace the long history of the debate and outline its present state today.

What is spirituality and how does it differ from religion and philosophy? What is the meaning of identifying as spiritual but not religious? An exploration of spirituality and the evolution of spiritual practices against the backdrop of the major philosophical and religious traditions in the West. Lecturer: John Hamer Streamed live from the History, Philosophy, and Theology Meetup at Toronto Centre Place.

Whether religious or atheist, most people today have a picture and a sense of the character of God. What's the origin of this image and how different is it from the way people envisioned God in Biblical times?

The Gospel of Matthew tells us that "magi" from the East brought gifts to the infant Jesus following a mysterious star. Western Christianity commemorates this event with the feast of Epiphany, on January 6. What do we know about these wise men? Where did they come? Were they kings or Zoroastrian priests? Is there any evidence of a new star? We'll look at all these and other questions to reveal the meaning of this story from a mythological and theological view point.

The Origin of King Arthur's Legend

The Pagan Roots of Christmas

Decrypting Ancient Calendars - How did the Mayans reckon time? What about the Babylonians? The Egyptians? The Persians? Why do Ramadan and Easter move...

Flat Earth, Anglo Israel, and Golden Plates. The Worldwide Church of God preached that Anglo-Saxons were the descendants of the Lost Ten Tribes of Israel...

The Rise and Fall of the Ostrogoths - Gothic barbarians took over Rome after the Empire's fall. The story of what happened next. After the fall of the...

Ritual Healing and the Belief in Miracles - A look at the belief in miracle healing in Ancient and Medieval times and the role it played in society....

Join us every Sunday at 1:00 PM EDT for "Illumination" — Toronto congregation's Beyond the Walls class on the topics of scripture, church history, and theology. The theme this Sunday is "Tricking the Patriarchs: Biblical Matriarchs" part 3. This class will explore the ancient texts of the Hebrew Bible and early Christian communities in light of their historical context. Our goal is to understand the text's meaning by learning about the authors, their audiences, their purposes and goals. We will then discern what value (if any) these ancient ideas have for our own day. By avoiding modern, literalist, and presentist readings of scripture, we hope to allow the text to breath and offer us new insights and value in our own spiritual practices. All are welcome. LGBTQ+ affirming. Jewish and Christ tradition, but open to interfaith and skeptical perspectives.

Join us every Sunday at 1:00 PM EDT for "Illumination" — Toronto congregation's Beyond the Walls class on the topics of scripture, church history, and theology. The theme this Sunday is "The Ten Commandments." This class will explore the ancient texts of the Hebrew Bible and early Christian communities in light of their historical context. Our goal is to understand the text's meaning by learning about the authors, their audiences, their purposes and goals. We will then discern what value (if any) these ancient ideas have for our own day. By avoiding modern, literalist, and presentist readings of scripture, we hope to allow the text to breath and offer us new insights and value in our own spiritual practices. All are welcome. LGBTQ+ affirming. Jewish and Christ tradition, but open to interfaith and skeptical perspectives.