To round off another eventful year in religion and public life, Director Chine McDonald looks back on 2025 from our perspective. 11/12/2025
January: Health, humanity, and a new political era
As is now tradition, as a team, we kicked off the year with a Reading Week, clearing the diary to read, think and reflect. Our theme this year was ‘coming of age’, and we centred our discussion on books including The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt and Of Boys and Men by Richard Reeves. Research–wise, we began the year grounded in neighbourhoods. Our report, Creating a Neighbourhood Health Service by senior researcher Dr Marianne Rozario, demonstrated how churches and faith groups quietly hold together the fragile ecosystems of local health and wellbeing. The launch, in collaboration with Good Faith Partnership, brought together policymakers, practitioners and clergy to imagine what a more relational NHS might look like, and the report was endorsed by Health Secretary Wes Streeting. Out in the world, this month also saw President Donald Trump’s second inauguration, and Harriet Harman proposing removing bishops from the Lords. Commentary from the Theos team included our senior fellow Dr Nick Spencer’s exploration of AI and Genesis, while other team reflections on our blog mused on political centrism and constitutional reform. Our podcast, The Sacred, began the year with conversations with Freya India and James Longman, uncovering the anxieties shaping Gen Z and modern journalism. This was also the year in which assisted dying hit the national agenda again, with much debate and discussion around the issue itself, but also the role and place of religious views within them. I found myself on BBC Radio 4’s Sunday programme debating the ethical and theological threads entwined in that complex question.
And this was all just in the first few weeks.
What we were watching: The Traitors (BBC One), which in this, its third, series featured an undercover vicar Rev Lisa Coupland.
February: Faith and the far–right
February was a reminder that the meaning of religious faith is constantly changing and evolving, taking on new forms of meaning for new ages. This month, we launched Dr Nick Spencer’s book The Landscapes of Science and Religion – the latest in a series of books that formed part of our three–year Templeton–funded project on science and religion. Meanwhile, conversations about far–right extremism – which were to be a defining topic of conversation in 2025 – saw us bring together theologians, activists and practitioners to consider this global trend. The event was in partnership with the Centre for the Study of the Bible and Violence and discussion centred around their book The Church, the Far–Right, and the Claim to Christianity, by Rev Dr Helen Paynter and Dr Maria Power. Media coverage this month continued with our senior researcher Dr Nathan Mladin interviewed for an article in the Economist on TikTok as a religious pulpit, and Dr Marianne Rozario was interviewed on BBC Radio 4 Sunday about the findings from our social prescribing report. Among our guests on The Sacred this month included actor and activist Jameela Jamil and theologian–turned Reform adviser Professor James Orr. With discussion of Pope Francis’ poor health, the world began preparing for a papal transition. This month, we also rehomed our photography exhibition You Cannot Pour from an Empty Cup in the Houses of Parliament’s Upper Waiting Hall, following the opening of the exhibition by Stephen Timms MP. The exhibition by Ruth Samuels accompanied a report by Hannah Rich entitled Love’s Labours: Good work, care work, and a mutual economy.
What we were watching: The long–awaited second season of the chilling workplace parable, Severance, explored what happens when we try to split our inner lives from our outer duties: raising sharp questions about identity, agency, and the meaning of being a whole human; and sparking much discussion among the Theos team.
March: Mothers, machines and moral confusion
March saw the launch of our four–part documentary series Motherhood vs the Machine. Co–hosted by me and our head of research Dr Madeleine Pennington, the series explored motherhood in an age of technological advancement, and asked probing questions about what it means to be human. Our polling on artificial wombs – one of the topics discussed in the series – was picked up by media, including the Daily Mail, Unherd and The Times. Our findings threw up questions such as whether the aversion to growing a ‘baby in a bag’ was just a knee–jerk ‘ick’ reaction, or whether there is something deeper to be said about pregnancy as embodied and relational. Elsewhere, Nick’s piece in Comment magazine on The Great Overcorrection, and to mark Social Prescribing Day, Marianne wrote a blog Faith and Health: why collaborate? – summarising the key findings from our report.
What we were watching: Like the rest of the UK, we were gripped by Adolescence – a drama, which probed how a 13–year–old’s murder accusations – and the digital, societal and familial pressures behind it – can force us to ask questions of youth radicalisation, online formation, masculinity and violence.
April: Death, resurrection and a farewell to Pope Francis
Holy Week and Easter provided an opportunity for space and reflection across the team, but April quickly turned towards global grief as Pope Francis died. Our blogs – on his legacy, the meaning of peace, and the media’s misunderstandings of conclave – sought to offer analysis, insight, and depth at a sombre moment, which also sparked discussion about the place of the Church in public life. Elsewhere, debates on assisted dying continued; our open letter signed by more than 100 women of faith and published in the Guardian explored the gendered risks such legislation could pose. In one of our most popular blogs of the year, researcher George Lapshynov debunked the common claim that Easter originated as a pagan festival, in light of the publication of English Heritage’s new children’s booklet
What we were watching: Sinners – Ryan Coogler’s 1930s southern gothic vampire drama uses a period horror story about twin brothers confronting ancient evil in their Mississippi hometown to explore themes of community, cultural heritage, redemption, and the spiritual costs of survival.
May: A new pope and signs of a quiet revival?
May was a month of beginnings. After all eyes were on the white smoke, the world welcomed Pope Leo XIV and explored what his papacy might mean – from the symbolism of his chosen name to the challenges awaiting him. Nick Spencer asked why young people seem to be flocking to religion, revealing both complexity and some signs of hope. This month, we held a live recording of The Sacred, with host Elizabeth Oldfield in conversation with columnist and author Caitlin Moran, exploring men, women and the great gender divide. Meanwhile, our commentary on integration responded to the government’s new White Paper, insisting that neighbourliness must be at the heart of policy, not fear. And as AI debates continued, Nathan Mladin’s reflection on transhumanism offered a much–needed theological grounding.
What we were reading: Don’t Forget We’re Here Forever by Lamorna Ash – an exploration of a new generation’s search for faith, from the outside in.
June: Refugees, democracy and the ethics of endings
What role should religion play in public debate? In particular, what role should it play in complex political debates like that over assisted dying? Nick’s essay on religion and the assisted dying debate, which was also distributed to parliamentarians and church leaders at the National Parliamentary Prayer Breakfast, sought to answer a question that is more assumed than understood: what even is a “religious reason”? Elsewhere, our report From Strangers to Neighbours – launched with a roundtable discussion in the House of Lords – showcased churches’ extraordinary work integrating refugees, and we were delighted to partner with award–winning photographer John Boaz in capturing some powerful imagery to illustrate the findings. Our photography exhibition highlighting the importance of care work You Cannot Pour from an Empty Cup was also on display in Southwark Cathedral this month, as part of Carers’ Week. This month, I also appeared on Free Thinking discussing faith, politics and culture – threads that, in 2025, felt increasingly impossible to separate.
What we were watching: The latest season of The White Lotus satirized wealth, privilege, and moral emptiness at a Thai resort, mixing dark comedy with social critique. Uncomfortable viewing.
July: Suffering, memory and the Scopes centenary
This was a month of confronting uncomfortable truths. MP Chris Coghlan’s denial of the Eucharist because of his support for assisted dying triggered widespread debate about communion, conscience and church authority. Members of the team gave their views in this blog. Twenty years after the 7/7 bombings, I reflected on how the attack reshaped our sense of belonging and fracture in Britain. Nick travelled to Tennessee, where he spoke at events marking 100 years since the Scopes “Monkey” Trial, reminding us – as outlined in his book Magisteria – that science and religion have never simply been enemies. This month, The Sacred podcast welcomed journalist and author Christine Emba, and political commentator David French, while Reading Our Times guests included Rupert Shortt on the future of Christianity in the West, and Sophia Rosenfeld on choice.
What we were watching: James Gunn’s fresh retelling of the classic Superman story moved away from the DC cinematic universe’s darker aesthetic to new, hopeful horizons and asked what it means to be a hero amid conflict and political corruption. Another hope–filled moment we can’t ignore was England’s victory in the Women’s European Football Championship.
August: Empire wars and the fight for religious education
August wasn’t quiet. Perhaps it never really is? Recent years have seen ferocious battles about ‘empire’: statues toppled, books cancelled, scholars infuriated, insults hurled. This month, Nick Spencer’s long read explored what is going on and, more importantly, why? And asked what is it about our cultural moment that has caused so many people to get so angry about the past? As students prepared to get their A–Level results, I led our open letter defending provision for Theology and Religious Studies in higher education, alongside people in the public eye including Dr Rowan Williams, actor James Norton, and broadcaster Tom Swarbrick. The letter was picked up in a number of places, including Times Higher Education. At Greenbelt Festival, I did a live interview with actor Liz Carr, a vocal member of the campaign against assisted dying.
What we were watching: The Thursday Murder Club but despite the star–studded cast, we were left wanting more. In better news, we were watching the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup in what would soon lead to another sporting success story for England.
September: Flags, fear and the fight for meaning
As St George’s flags fluttered across the country, we asked what it means to belong without turning identity into exclusion, and launched our new two–year project on Christianity, nationhood, and the rise of Christian Nationalism. Also, my earlier piece on race and assisted dying was quoted in the House of Lords, and I joined a group of national leaders questioning the misappropriation of Christian symbols at the “Unite the Kingdom” rally.
Meanwhile, The Sacred continued to reach new audiences with Gen Z social media influencer Jade Bowler’s honest reflections on the pressures of belonging and identity.
What we were reading: Against the Machine – Paul Kingsnorth’s fierce personal manifesto, which challenges the spiritual, ecological and cultural costs of a technocratic age, urging a return to limits, locality and the deep sources of human meaning.
October: Leadership, faith in devolution and a new archbishop
October opened with the announcement of the next Archbishop of Canterbury, and I reflected in the Financial Times on the challenges awaiting Sarah Mullally, as well as the opportunities. This month, we took our Theos Annual Lecture outside London for the first time, with Andy Burnham delivering a lecture in Manchester on faith and devolution, making the case that local leadership and moral imagination are not opposing forces.
Marianne unpacked the significance of King Charles III’s meeting with Pope Leo XIV, while Nick asked what national pride might look like in a wounded, weary Britain. The Sacred Manifesto video was launched this month, too, telling the story of why such a space is needed in a polarizing and overwhelming world.
What we were watching: Nobody Wants This. Season two of this warm but complicated rom–com hit our screens. It follows an agnostic podcaster and a progressive rabbi as they try to turn a whirlwind romance into a real, shared life; wrestling with faith, identity, family and the challenge of merging two very different worlds.
November: Rosalía, religious education and redemption in cricket
We launched Hannah Rich’s report Beyond the Classroom with a roundtable at the National Gallery. The report revealed the surprising places religion is learned: supermarkets, sports clubs, TikTok, galleries, and reality TV.
Esmé Partridge explored what a worldviews–based RE should look like, while Joe Downy explored masculinity for International Men’s Day. Dr Rob Barward–Symmons’ piece ahead of The Ashes on redemption reminded us how often our willingness to offer grace and forgiveness can be driven by tribal loyalties – sporting or otherwise. Nathan took part in a conversation on digital resurrections for BBC Radio Ulster’s Sunday Sequence. Meanwhile, I was delighted to see two of my Thoughts for the Day on BBC Radio 4 picked two weeks in a row on the BBC’s Pick of the Week – we love it when religion breaks out of pre–defined programming boxes.
What we were listening to: Lux by Rosalía – the Catalan singer’s breakout album was woven through with spirituality and sainthood. Hannah Rich unpacked the album’s themes here.
December: a weary world rejoices
This month, Reading Our Times explored topics such as quantum theory and consciousness, and Nick Spencer was interviewed on Times Radio about Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch’s comments on Christianity and the welfare state. We’ve ended the year with a flurry of activity – as is the way – looking ahead to 2026, Theos’ 20th anniversary, when we have much planned. If 2025 taught us anything, it’s that faith isn’t fading. In fact, it’s evolving and taking on new and surprising forms.
From our reports to our podcasts, our media commentary to our events and public interventions, Theos has tried to meet the cultural moment with depth, honesty and imagination. And perhaps, as we step into 2026, the most important lesson is this: even in an age of noise and division, people are still searching for meaning. Faith still speaks. And the sacred still surprises us.
What we were listening to: Mariah Carey’s Merry Christmas album, of course.
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