Hell

Hell

Author: BBC Radio 4 December 21, 2006 Duration: 27:56

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss hell and its representation in literature and the visual arts, through the ages from Ancient Egypt to modern Christianity. Why do certain religions have a Satan figure and others don’t? And why did hell shift from the underworld to here on earth in 20th Century representations?A fiery vault beneath the earth or as Sartre put it, other people - it seems our ideas of hell are inevitably shaped by religious and cultural forces. For Homer and Virgil it’s a place you can visit and return from, often a wiser person for it. With Christianity it’s a one way journey and a just punishment for a sinful, unrepentant life. Writers and painters like Dante and Hieronymus Bosch gave free rein to their imaginations, depicting a complex hierarchical world filled with the writhing bodies of tormented sinners. In the 20th century hell can be found on earth in portrayals of war and the Holocaust but also in the mind, particularly in the works of TS Eliot and Primo Levi. So what is the purpose of hell and why is it found mainly in religions concerned with salvation? Why has hell proved so inspirational for artists through the ages, perhaps more so than heaven? And why do some ideas of hell require a Satan figure while others don't?With Martin Palmer, Director of the International Consultancy on Religion, Education and Culture; Margaret Kean, Tutor and Fellow in English at St Hilda’s College, Oxford; Neil MacGregor, Director of the British Museum.


Melvyn Bragg and a panel of academic experts gather each week to explore the vast and intricate landscape of religious history in In Our Time: Religion. This BBC Radio 4 podcast, a dedicated series within the broader "In Our Time" programme, delves deep into the beliefs, schisms, and social forces that have shaped the world's faiths across centuries. Rather than offering sermons or spiritual guidance, these conversations are rigorous historical inquiries. Listeners will find themselves immersed in detailed discussions about the origins of movements like the Cathars or the Quakers, the philosophical underpinnings of concepts such as the Trinity or Nirvana, and the complex legacies of figures from Maimonides to Martin Luther. Each episode unpacks a single topic with clarity and depth, making profound ideas accessible without sacrificing intellectual rigor. The tone is conversational yet authoritative, driven by curiosity and a genuine desire to understand how these religious ideas emerged, evolved, and fundamentally altered human societies. For anyone fascinated by the powerful role of faith in history, this podcast provides a consistently enlightening and thoughtful exploration, one thoughtful conversation at a time.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

In Our Time: Religion
Podcast Episodes
The Concordat of Worms [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:52
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Concordat of Worms. This treaty between the papacy and the Holy Roman Empire, signed in 1122, put an end, at least for a time, to years of power struggle and bloodshed. The wrangli…
Judas Maccabeus [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:02
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the revolutionary Jewish leader Judas Maccabeus. Born in the second century BC, Judas led his followers, the Maccabees, in a rebellion against the Seleucid Empire, which was attempting…
Shinto [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:09
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Japanese belief system Shinto.A religion without gods, scriptures or a founder, Shinto is perhaps better described as a system of belief. Central to it is the idea of kami, spirits…
Wyclif and the Lollards [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:09
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss John Wyclif and the Lollards.John Wyclif was a medieval philosopher and theologian who in the fourteenth century instigated the first complete English translation of the Bible. One of…
Islamic Law and its Origins [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:14
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the origins and early development of Islamic law. The legal code of Islam is known as Sharia, an Arabic word meaning "the way". Its sources include the Islamic holy book the Qur'an, th…
The Pelagian Controversy [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:15
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Pelagian Controversy.In the late 4th century a British monk, Pelagius, travelled to Rome, where he became a theologian and teacher, revered for his learning and ascetic lifestyle.…
The Bhagavad Gita [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:53
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Bhagavad Gita.The Bhagavad Gita, a 700-verse section of the Sanskrit epic the Mahabharata, is one of the most revered texts of Hinduism. Written in around 200 BC, it narrates a con…
Maimonides [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:13
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the work and influence of Maimonides.Widely regarded as the greatest Jewish philosopher of the medieval period, Maimonides was also a physician and rabbinical authority. Also known as…
Daoism [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:22
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Daoism. An ancient Chinese tradition of philosophy and religious belief, Daoism first appeared more than two thousand years ago. For centuries it was the most popular religion in China…
Foxe's Book of Martyrs [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:08
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss John Foxe and his book Actes and Monuments, better known today as Foxe's Book of Martyrs. Born in 1517, John Foxe was an early Protestant who was forced to flee the persecutions which…