What a year it’s been for religion in public life. Here, our director Chine McDonald takes a look back at Theos’s work in 2023, as well as highlights some of her favourite religion–tinged films, music and TV out in the world this year. 14/11/2023

January

We kicked off the year with the appearance of singer–songwriter Nick Cave on our podcast The Sacred, alongside journalist Seán O’Hagan. Cave and O’Hagan, who have been friends for 30 years, have been opening up conversations about faith, art, music, grief and love with their growing following. We also released the first of our 2023 reports – Data and Dignity: Why Privacy Matters in the Digital Age in which Theos senior researcher Dr Nathan Mladin made a case for privacy as a form of neighbour love in the digital age.  

What we were watching: Everyone Else Burns (Channel 4)

It’s not often that religion is the subject of sitcoms, so when Everyone Else Burns dropped, we of course tuned in. It explores the life of an ‘average’ family, who happen to be members of a religiously devout doomsday cult known as The Order of the Divine Rod. We are introduced to them as dad David (Simon Bird) carries out apocalypse practice with all the zeal of a designated office fire marshal with a stopwatch during a fire drill.  “Pack your things, Aaron, the end time is here,” David he says to his son. “Finally!” an excited Aaron (Harry Connor) replies. An uncomfortable yet hilarious look at humanity’s fascination with the end times. Read our review here.

February

As the SNP leadership election got underway, Christian candidate Kate Forbes hit the headlines as her views on same–sex marriage came under fire. Although Humza Yousef, a Muslim, was the eventual winner, we took the opportunity to explore public opinion on religious and ideological views of political candidates. We commissioned a YouGov poll, which was featured in The Times, and found that 31 per cent of people thought a politician who opposed same–sex marriage should be allowed to hold a top government job, with 50 per cent saying they should not.

What we were watching: Happy Valley (BBC One)

The final ever episode of the BBC’s gritty drama Happy Valley, starring theology graduate James Norton, had us discussing good, evil, redemption and forgiveness over coffee breaks up and down the country. Ahead of the final episode, Theos’ Hannah Rich interviewed the real–life vicar of Happy Valley about faith and hope in the valley of the shadow of death. Religion also hit the big screen with the release of Women Talking – an ensemble drama and morality tale based on the real–life case of sexual abuse and violence within a religious Mennonite community in Bolivia. Packed with religious references and the exploration of ethics, patriarchy and the nature of suffering and forgiveness, this was a must–watch.

March

Most things we think we know about science and religion are myths or half–truths that were formed in the last years of the 19th century and continue to colour conversations today. In Magisteria: The Entangled Histories of Science and Religion Theos senior fellow Dr Nick Spencer unpacks the complicated relationship, and shows what it says about what it is to be human. The book has received widespread acclaim, including being named in The Economist’s books of the year, as well as being reviewed in The Times, New Scientist, Times Literary Supplement, Financial Times and more.

What we were reading: Four Thousand Weeks (Penguin)

One of the themes we’ve been exploring at Theos this year has been productivity (at individual, economic and spiritual levels), so we were reading Oliver Burkeman’s Four Thousand Weeks – which has been called a theory of ‘time unmanagement’ – ahead of his conversation with Elizabeth Oldfield as for our Sacred Live recording at Unherd in London in April.

April

We released the first of two reports on death in 2023. The first – Ashes to Ashes: Beliefs, Trends, and Practices in Dying, Death, and the Afterlife explored the changing nature of practices around death, especially in light of declining religious belief. The report, written by Theos’ Dr Marianne Rozario and Lia Shimada from the Susanna Wesley Foundation, with a foreword by broadcaster Edward Stourton, found that while the religious landscape is changing, churches and faith communities have an important role to play in offering both pastoral care and theological accompaniment to the dying and the bereaved.

What we were watching: Beef (Netflix)

This dark comedy on Netflix exploring two strangers and their anger issues is a tale of revenge, but what peaked our interest was its exploration of a Korean American church including religion as a way to find belonging, identity and acceptance. 

May

This month we were delighted to be a partner for the philosophy and ideas festival How the Light Gets In – its title taken from the oft–quoted Leonard Cohen lyric: “There’s a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.” At this, the first Theos showing of two in 2023 at the festival, our head of political engagement Paul Bickley took part in a panel discussion on death and the afterlife.

What we were watching: The Coronation

We joined more than 20 million Brits in tuning in to the Coronation of King Charles. There was much to discuss about what the ceremony said about the role of religion in public life. We asked a panel of experts what they thought here. Aside from that we were watching Jewish Matchmaking on Netflix, which did more to highlight the variety of traditions, beliefs and cultures within modern Judaism than some of our theology degrees did. We were also listening to Paul Simon’s new album Seven Psalms.

June

In June, we held an event called Doing God: The past, present and future of religion and public life, marking 20 years since Alastair Campbell – Tony Blair’s then spin doctor – famously said: “We don’t do God.” At the event, we explored how religion in public life had changed over the years and what a future for religious faith might look like in politics, media, the arts and culture. It was great to be joined by my predecessors Elizabeth Oldfield and Paul Woolley, as well as Miriam Cates MP, the BBC’s Tim Pemberton, Sunder Katwala, director of British Future, and journalist Rosie Wright for panel conversations. We explore some of these themes in our beautiful short film, written by novelist Rhydian Brook and created by Owl In Space. In June, I also hosted a conversation at Cheltenham Science Festival with renowned evolutionary psychologist Professor Robin Dunbar, on how religion evolved; and our Sacred interview with Wes Streeting MP was picked up by The Times.

What everyone was talking about: Phil and Holly

The Philip Schofield affair and the fallout and subsequent disintegration of his friendship with co–host Holly Willoughby. What we weren’t prepared for was their colleague Alison Hammond using the Bible to help her navigate how she was feeling, recalling how her mum told her to “use your Bible as a satnav in life” and that he who is without sin should cast the first stone. June also saw some of us (me) attend the Beyonce Renaissance World Tour. As ever, the star’s music is littered with theological references and attendees were treated to a live version of her song Church Girl (check out my commentary on this particular song from the previous year on BBC Radio 4’s Sunday programme).

July

After a year of in–depth research exploring the life, identity and flourishing of the United Reformed Church, we released our new report, on this denomination at a crossroads. We found that as older, historic denominations such as the URC reckon with the reality of decline, now is the time for a renewed sense of identity and purpose expressed locally. Read six lessons we learnt from the report here. From older denominations to Pentecostalism in the 21st century, we explored the fastest growing religious movement in history in an episode of our Reading Our Times podcast with author Elle Hardy.

What we were watching: Barbie, of course.

Like the rest of the world, we were watching the Greta Gerwig film, which apart from being hilarious and unexpectedly profound, asked questions about death, mortality and what it is to be human – topics I was able to explore in a BBC Thought for the Day on the film.

August

In August, I stood in a field in Kettering dancing alongside other festivalgoers who had gathered to shake off their grief and remember loved ones who had died. The ‘grief rave’ – the brainchild of creative public artists at the Loss Project – was brought to Greenbelt festival in partnership with us at Theos as one part of a major project in which we are exploring attitudes, beliefs and practices when it comes to death and mortality in the UK (you can read more about it in this piece in The Independent). Greenbelt this year also saw us host a panel conversation on death and dying with guests including Dr Kathryn Mannix and ecological undertaker Ru Callender. I also chaired a conversation with CEO of Humanists UK, Andrew Copson.

What we were watching: FIFA Women’s World Cup

With the Lionesses reaching the final, England found a glimmer hope this summer, amidst a year that sorely lacked it. Despite losing to Spain in the end, the team displayed “storylines of hope and an unshowy sort of belief that the men’s game has lost” both on and off the pitch. Here’s to more hoping for the Euros in 2025!

September

This month, we were back at How the Light Gets in Festival, where our head of research Dr Madeleine Pennington took part in a panel on productivity and the economy (see her article on rethinking productivity in The New European) and I was in conversation with author and comedian David Baddiel about death, mortality and belief in God (or not, in his case), through exploring his new book The God Desire. We also released our report Volunteering After the Pandemic. Written by Hannah Rich and George Lapshynov, the report showed how both the nature and patterns of engagement in volunteering have changed in recent years.

What we were watching: Sex Education (Netflix)

The final series of one of Netflix’s most successful shows went down a storm, and was Netflix’s leading series upon release. “The marketing attempts to draw viewers in with the promise of titillation. It’s a bait–and–switch, though, because Sex Education is not, really, about sex. That is just the hook for a show about human relationships. It centres on old–fashioned character: honesty, kindness and loyalty to those we love even as identities shift”, writes Elizabeth Oldfield.

October

This month saw the launch of a new book marking 50 years of BBC Radio 4’s flagship religion current affairs programme, Sunday. We were delighted to partner with publishers SPCK and the Sandford St Martin Trust to launch the event, which included us hosting a conversation with long–time presenter Edward Stourton and the programme’s former editor Amanda Hancox, who wrote the book together.

What we were listening to: The Rest Is Politics (Goalhanger Podcasts)

Rory Stewart and Alastair Campbell’s popular podcast The Rest Is Politics has been a regular companion through the ups and downs of 2023. But we were particularly interested in this episode, in which Stewart shared his thoughts on Jesus’s radical message.

November

This was a busy month, kicking off with the Theos Annual Lecture, Dying for Beginners, by former palliative care doctor and author, Kathryn Mannix. Held at the Royal Society of Medicine in London, we were also joined by Companion Voices – a group who sing to people at the ends of their lives. Ahead of the annual lecture, we released a new animation, voiced and scripted by Dr Mannix annual lecture, and created by Theos’s Andrew Graystone and Emily Downe. Elsewhere, Theos was pleased to partner in the inaugural summit of the Center for Christianity & Public Life which took place in Washington DC, where I chaired a couple of conversations, including exploring religious trends in the US with Ryan Burge and author Tara Isabella Burton. Meanwhile, as the conflict in Israel and Gaza escalated, we explored the misconceptions about the role of religion in the decades–long war in this blog by George Lapshynov. At the end of the month we held a live recording of our Reading Our Times podcast, with Nick Spencer in conversation with Lord Robert Skidelsky on his new book The Machine Age, exploring humans’ relationship with machines. On the same day, we also launched Love, Grief & Hope: Emotional Response to death and dying in the UK, our second report on death of 2023. This proved to be a very significant piece of research, garnering interest fromThe Times, The Telegraph and The Independent, amongst many other media outlets, both national and international.    

What we were watching: Strictly Come Dancing (BBC One)

As ever, this series of the hit dancing show has been much more than just about foxtrots and waltzes, but has given us insight into friendship, loss, belonging, identity and the nature of fame. One standout moment for us was when contestant Bobby Brazier – the actor, model and 20–year–old son of the late Jade Goody – said “To any young boys out there… if there’s anything to get in your locker, it’s a relationship with God or the Argentine Tango.”

December

We’ll mainly be having a lie down to reflect on what an epic year it’s been at Theos and in the wider world of religion and public life and looking ahead to what’s to come. During these coming days, as we await the birth of the incarnate God in whom we find our hope, do read the Advent reflections from the Theos team. For more commentary on religion in current affairs and public life in 2023, tune in to BBC Radio 4’s Sunday programme on New Year’s Eve, where I’ll be joining others to look back at the year that was.

What we were watching: Squid Game: The Challenge (Netflix)

This larger–than–life reality TV game show sees 456 contestants compete in a series of children’s games with a twist for the chance to win an enormous $4.56 million prize. Packed with ethical and moral questions, theological ideas are never far from the surface as we meet the players, hear their stories and the values that underpin their lives and behaviours. At one point, the contestants recite the Lord’s Prayer, and at another, the divisive Player 432, claims that “Jesus had to compete” – Our Lord clearly being the motivation for him working to become a millionaire. We’re not sure he’s reading his Bible right. Discuss…

Interested in this? Share it on social media. Join our monthly e–newsletter to keep up to date with our latest research and events. And check out our Supporter Programme to find out how you can help our work.