An Auckland church has given Kiwis a chance to put their burning queries about life's mysteries to the big man upstairs.

COMMENT: Persecuting religious state gives it power to inspire acts in its name.

COMMENT: I write this as a Muslim even though being a Muslim does not define me.

In the same way, people in 100 years will live with the consequences of the decisions we make now.

She's 17, gay, and was being held against her will. But after her extended family got involved, Sarah was released.

Ahmadi Muslim convert Lee Eastham, 34, has been abstaining from food every Monday and Thursday as a "practice run" for his first Ramadan fast.

One if the most widely translated works in history has been given a very 21st-century update.

The first parts of what will be New Zealand's largest musical instrument have arrived at Auckland's Holy Trinity Cathedral.

Dearly beloved: there's a petition to challenge the dress code for this year's school ball at St Dominic's Catholic College, a girls' high school in West Auckland.

A challenge to religious instruction in state schools on the grounds of direct discrimination could not be legally defended by the Ministry of Education, documents say.

Gay Anglicans are reacting with a mix of fury and resignation after the Anglican Synod today failed to approve the blessing of gay marriages.

Liberal Anglican priest Dr Helen Jacobi says she is ashamed of her Church after it postponed "blessings" for gay marriages for at least two years.

Maori prayers could be banned from the classroom if campaigners are successful in their bid to remove religious instruction from state schools.

It took some time to adjust to the gloom after the bright sunshine outside.

A nurse has described a bizarre community exorcism in Auckland where a travelling pastor allegedly punched her in the face to cleanse her of demons.

Secular education campaigners have faced a significant setback in their legal fight to ban the Bible from public schools.

The moderation and maturity of Muslims in New Zealand was evident once again in their response to the Egyptian initiative.

Egypt is sending imams as part of new drive to reduce radicalisation and counter jihadism.

COMMENT: For me Easter Monday is a great time to reflect on how boring it is to be an atheist.

Shorter fasting days during the Islamic holy month could be the attraction to draw wealthy Muslim tourists to New Zealand, a University of Auckland academic says.

COMMENT: It's time to let Easter go. Its spiritual significance is non-existent and its recreational function an annoyance.

When others let us down the hope present in the Easter story still stands. It's a hope that stands for eternity.

COMMENT: Something remarkable happens tomorrow in countries such as New Zealand.

COMMENT: The tenets of Muslim belief are not compatible with a secular society, writes Alan Duff.

Judas may be one of the hardest of all historical figures to present in a good light, but prominent clerics have lent voices to calls for a reappraisal.

COMMENT: Alan Duff's vitriol and vilification of religion is counter-scientific and unwarranted.

COMMENT: Humans invented God - not vice-versa - as handy tool for manipulating others.

A Russian man is being prosecuted for writing a post on social media that equated the Bible to a "collection of Jewish fairytales".