Despite my own lack of belief in divine providence, Dostoevsky's damning portrayal of the vacuum created in a world where ideas such as religion, spirituality and faith take a backseat made me challenge my own ideas about the source of our moral conduct and made me weigh the benefits of lingering onto faith.

This is indeed a risky business.

Two years ago, I read Fyodor Dostoevsky’s “The Christmas Tree and the Wedding”(1848), and even though I don’t celebrate Christmas in the traditional sense,

This monumental novel speaks of the phenomena that can persuade people to commit crimes, the inner torment that forces people to burn with a feeling of guilt and the ultimate expiation offenders go through while playing cat and mouse with their conscience.