There is no Christian priest (hiereus) in the New Testament. Saint Paul pays tribute to more than a dozen Christian ministries, but none of them is the priesthood. He never calls himself or his assistants priests, and never offers sacrifice (the priestly act). Jesus was a layman, not a priest....

Few crimes are more harshly forbidden in the Old Testament than sacrifice to the god Moloch (for which see Leviticus 18.21, 20.1-5). The sacrifice referred to was of living children consumed in the fires of offering to Moloch. Ever since then, worship of Moloch has been the sign of a...

Before the Easter Bunny nibbled its way onto sacred turf, Easter was a very serious business. In early Christian communities -- in fourth century Milan, for instance -- it was the day when, normally, all new Christians were baptized, and it was the deepest spiritual experience most of them would...