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At the crack of dawn ardent believers hit the tarmac and, about halfway, the pain diminishes and enlightenment takes hold. (File photo)

The God Edition | The runner’s high is the smug hill on which I’ll die

We runners, like good churchgoers, are a community, we follow rituals, we try to convert everyone and, best of all, we finally enter the zone

Then Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa and Professor Lee Berger hold a replica of the skull of a Homo naledi during the unveiling of the discovery. (File photo)

The God Edition | Searching among the bones for Homo naledi’s soul

Drew Forrest uses one of South Africa’s most important hominid discoveries to debate the paradoxes and contradictions inherent in the religious doctrine of ‘ensoulment’

It seems ridiculous that with all this fabulous food on offer, many of the people who are strict adherents of these religions still prefer the bitter taste of conflict.

The God Edition | Making a meal of religion

Is reconciliation through food hard to swallow? Perhaps we should emulate John Lennon and give peas a chance

Ancient Stoic texts like Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations have become staples of wellness blogs and chief executive book clubs.

The God Edition | Stoicism, status and the elite illusion of virtue

The asceticism of the elite presents inequality as virtue, while the poor endure real deprivation

The God Edition | On public schools shifting to inclusivity

Eva Haahjem-Gill reflects on the evolving role of religion in Johannesburg’s public schools

The train station in Seversk, Ukraine, after a Russian missile strike. This war and other disruptions are rippling through the world. (Photo: Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP)

The God Edition | Where is God when we suffer?

It’s a valid question often asked by those questioning the existence of the Divine

The God Edition | How faith guides South Africa’s politicians

For this year’s Mail & Guardian God Edition, we asked a number of the country’s prominent politicians what role faith plays in their lives

The writer found that miracles reside within the walls of government hospitals. (File photo)

The God Edition | God lives in public hospitals

Even in the chaos of our health centres, divinity moves through ordinary people doing extraordinary work

Out, out: Goya’s painting St Francis Borgia Helping a Dying Impenitent may seem a little anachronistic today, but perhaps driving out devils is still needed. Photo: Public Domain

The God Edition | In South Africa, a pricey path to becoming demon slayers

When politics resembles possession, the Vatican should offer group rates for exorcising elected officials

Refound belief: Donovan E Williams at his Confirmation at the Mater Dolorosa Catholic Church in Johannesburg at the age of 50. Photo: Velile Mhlungu

The God Edition | Losing my religion to find my faith

One writer’s journey through activism and grief led him back to the altar — on his own terms

A mountain overlooking Mamelodi. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)

The God Edition | Dumpsite to sanctuary: The sacred mountain of Mamelodi restored

Before Ephraim Cebisa Mabena embarked on his mission, the area had become an illegal dumpsite, a cesspool of murder and rape, a chop-shop for stolen cars and a hideaway for drug…