France's controversial ban on religious clothing in state schools has come under attack after a 15-year-old Muslim girl was sent home twice for wearing a long black skirt.

West Coast police area commander Inspector John Canning paid a courtesy visit to the Gloriavale Christian Community yesterday.

Secretive Christian community Gloriavale appears to be adding to its coffers by selling a hand-reared African grey parrot on Trade Me.

At least one former Gloriavale member has approached police, and others are considering it, after police urged for ex-members to come forward.

A 200-year-old "golden Koran", which contains pages layered in gold, will be displayed at Auckland's central library next month after some Arabic manuscripts that came with it were....

"It's not a lifestyle I would choose. But in actually talking to a lot of the people that are there I couldn't help thinking, 'They have a happier and simpler life than I do.'

The Grey District Council has refused to enter into a public debate about a plan to close a road near the Gloriavale Christian Community, as the issue heads to the Environment Court.

The secretive Gloriavale religious community owns assets worth $36.6 million, including a dairy farm, deer enterprise and an aircraft repair firm.

The Vatican is refusing to accept President Francois Hollande's ambassadorial choice, who is gay.

The Gloriavale Christian Community wants a public road near its compound closed to prevent attacks from outsiders.

Most of the families living in the Community were unaware of late leader's conviction

Two young couples who quit the Gloriavale Christian Community have revealed what it was like living in the West Coast religious community.

Two families who defied their Gloriavale leaders to leave will tell their story to the nation on the television news show Sunday.

Hundreds of earthworms that were lifted by upcurrents of wind appeared to "rain down" on Norway this week.

Left-wing intellectuals who accused the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo of going too far by publishing drawings of the Prophet Mohammad are guilty of "disgusting paternalism".

The proliferation of "beautiful young vampires" in TV series and Hollywood films including True Blood and the Twilight movies is encouraging young people to dabble with occult forces.

A small religious group with a pre-existing objection to vaccination is the only group exempted from the new "no jab no pay" rule in Australia.

INTERACTIVE: New report shows Muslims will outnumber Christians around the world by 2100 and that atheists and agnostics will outnumber Christians in NZ by 2050.

John Travolta has spoken out to defend Scientology in the wake of a controversial documentary but admits he did not watch the film and has no intention of ever seeing it.

NZ's an increasingly secular country, writes Brian Rudman. The 2013 Census recorded 41.9 per cent of us as having no religion.

All Hallows Methodist Church in Campbells Bay sits on prime land, just 200m from Campbells Bay beach.

Islamic State militants in the northern Syrian province of Raqqa have threatened to jail any young man wearing skinny jeans, smoking or with music on his mobile phone.

The charm of St Patrick’s Cathedral’s Monsignor Bernard Kiely melts folk like Easter bunnies left out in the sun, Michele Hewitson discovers.

Auckland’s church leaders explain why Easter is a time when hope for eternal life emerges from despair.

Hundreds of millions of Christians throughout the world will tonight begin their annual celebration of the events of the holiest and most sacred period in the Christian calendar, the first Easter -....

One of the most watched YouTube clips this year is from Gay Byrne's interview with Stephen Fry for an Irish TV series, The Meaning of Life.

A South Auckland Church Minister who ripped off thousands of taxpayers' dollars has been sentenced to nearly a year in home detention.

It’s the film the Church of Scientology would rather you didn’t see.

A priest has been slammed for telling primary school children that a woman who was raped and murdered would still be alive if she had been more “faith filled”.