God Forbid ABC listen
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- Religion & Spirituality
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Religion: it’s at the centre of world affairs, but profound questions still remain. Why are you here? What happens when you die? Does God matter? God Forbid seeks the answers.
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The fascinating phenomenon of consciousness
How is it that the physical brain can give rise to our subjective, intangible conscious experience? Why and how are we aware of being aware? It remains one of the great philosophical and scientific questions, and our God Forbid panel are here to discuss it.
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Spiritualism
More than half of Australians believe in life after death. Some even believe we can communicate with the dead. In the nineteenth century, the Spiritualist movement claimed to speak with the dead through mediums and seances.
This American movement attracted many women; and at a time when they had few rights, Spiritualism gave women a voice as mediums who could take messages from the dead to the living.
It used to have followers in the millions, though the escape artist and illusionist Harry Houdini insisted they were frauds – and he lobbied the US Congress to ban the practice.
So what made it so controversial and influential? And why do we remain intrigued by what happens – if anything - after we die? -
Making peace
Freud said humans are instinctively aggressive, and as a result, war is inevitable. But could peace be inevitable too?
Today, there are more than 100 armed conflicts of one kind or another taking place around the world. In the first decade of this century – war killed around 20,000 people a year. It’s now ten times that number, and it’s happening around the world – it’s not just because of Gaza and Ukraine.
How do we make peace amid our instinct for war? And what can Australia do to dial down tensions? -
The ethics of keeping pets
Many of us regard our pets as part of the family, but can an animal be its best self in a human home?
For much of human history, we’ve kept animals primarily to do jobs – to hunt, herd, plough and pull carriages... or just to keep mice out of the hay shed.
The idea of keeping an animal as a "pet” - an emotional companion is relatively new. And religion, it turns out, played a part in that historical shift.
Of course, pets can enrich our lives, but how we breed, feed and keep these animals raises questions even for the most loving, well-meaning pet owners. It's a passionate issue, full of blurry lines and moral grey areas. But philosophy, religion and science offer some guidance. -
How do you mend a broken heart?
Falling in love is one of life’s great thrills, but it leaves you open to heartbreak – one of life’s great miseries. Romantic heartbreak has inspired countless works of literature, art and music through the ages. It’s a uniquely painful yet universal experience – so, how do you get over it?
Do science, faith and philosophy provide some answers? -
Will evangelical voters be Trump's salvation?
As the US election approaches, presidential candidate Donald Trump has been doubling down on the religious language - selling bibles, preaching retribution and styling himself as a persecuted saviour. Trump enjoys the support of the overwhelming majority of white evangelical voters, but will that be enough to return him to the White House?
Guests:
D Stephen Long, theologian, Cary M. Maguire University Professor of Ethics at Southern Methodist University
Sarah McCammon, NPR Political Correspondent, author of Ex-vangelicals: Loving, Living and Leaving the White Evangelical Church
David Smith, Associate Professor in American Politics and Foreign Policy at the United States Studies Centre, and the School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Sydney
Customer Reviews
So funny!
Gotta love the Quiz.
James Carleton is amazing.
Diverse ideas and speakers
I’ve consistently listened to this podcast every weekend for years - and I’ve been non-religious my whole life.
It’s at its best when the guests are from diverse religious backgrounds and when the topic isn’t obviously religious: it is so interesting to hear how people consider different things to be spiritual and how they approach them in their own ways, according to their religious upbringing. So many similarities but so many differences as well!
Neurodiversity
Congratulations on curating such a wonderful collection of people to share their stories of neurodiversity. Kudos to James Carleton for the wisdom to skilfully weave the eclectic speakers stories together with an understated restraint, so that their voices remained centre and James’s comments were elegant in their minimalism. As someone with ADHD I very much appreciated this episode, and could closely identify with much of what was said. The selection of speakers, the structure of the episode, the compassion & curiosity evident in Jame’s questions and comments, the editing process; all these have delivered without doubt the absolutely best podcast episode I have listened to on neurodiversity.
Thank you to everyone at the ABC involved in making this episode, I will be sharing it with friends and family as it illuminates the topic of neurodiversity with authentic humanity, like the warm golden light of a sunrise, in contrast to the harsh cold fluorescent light of a dehumanising laboratory. Congratulations on creating such good journalism.