Holy Smoke

By The SpectatorSociety & Culture Religion & Spirituality Christianity Philosophy Religion

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Holy Smoke episodes

April 27, 2025 What can we expect from the papal conclave?
Earlier this year Dr Kurt Martens, Professor of Canon Law at the Catholic University of America, joined Damian Thompson on Holy Smoke to unpack what happens during a papal conclave. There was heightened interest in the process due to the film Conclave, which swept the awards season, but also because Pope Francis was hospitalised at the time.

Despite showing some signs of recovery – including being able to meet world leaders such as King Charles III and J.D. Vance – Pope Francis died on Easter Monday.

Here we reissue the episode with Dr Martens, looking at what happens when a pope dies, with a new introduction from Damian. Writing the cover article for the Spectator this week, Damian writes: ‘the next Vicar of Christ will face challenges that dwarf those that confronted any incoming pope in living memory. The Church is mired in doctrinal confusion; its structures of government are fragmented; sexual scandals have been hushed up at the highest level; and it is staring into a financial abyss’. What can we expect from the upcoming conclave?

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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54 min
April 21, 2025 Pope Francis dies – what will his legacy be?
Pope Francis, the head of the Roman Catholic Church, has died.
The Argentinian, the first Latin American – and the first Jesuit – to lead the Church, has been the head of the Holy See for 12 years, succeeding Pope Benedict XVI who resigned in 2013. Francis presided over the funeral of his predecessor, who died in 2022 – a first in modern history. But Francis’s leadership has been historic for many other reasons. In fact, says Damian Thompson, his reign has been ‘one of the most memorable, if controversial – not just in recent years but in recent centuries’. Liberals lauded his position on a number of social issues, while Conservatives saw the papacy as over-reaching and out of touch with every-day Catholics. But is it really that simple?
Catholic priest and theologian Father Alexander Lucie-Smith joins Damian to react to the news of the Pope’s death. Fr Alexander says that while Francis ‘defies summary’, it is incredible to consider how far the papacy has changed when comparing him to his predecessors, even those of the 20th Century like Pope Pius XII. What will his legacy be?

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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30 min
April 18, 2025 Easter special: in praise of faithful dissent, a conversation with Nigel Biggar and Mary Wakefield
The Easter issue of the Spectator includes two provocative articles exploring aspects of Christianity.

Nigel Biggar, Regius professor emeritus of moral theology at Oxford University, now a Conservative peer, celebrates the heroic ‘faithful dissent’ of Christian heroes such as Thomas More and Helmuth von Moltke, who lost their lives rather than defend injustice.

Meanwhile Spectator columnist Mary Wakefield interviews Roman Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury. She’s inspired by his holiness but depressed by his use of ‘C of E bureaucratese’ to uphold liberal orthodoxy on subjects such as gender ideology. But, she says they can share an uncomfortable space together within faith.

In this episode of Holy Smoke, Nigel and Mary join Damian Thompson, who asks them: how can Christians embrace ‘faithful dissent’ in an era of conformist Christian leaders who parrot the platitudes of secular opinion?

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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24 min
April 09, 2025 Was Simeon of Jerusalem the first Christian in recorded history?
In Luke's Gospel, an ancient inhabitant of Jerusalem named Simeon meets Mary and Joseph when they bring Jesus to be presented at the Temple on the 40th day after his birth. He has been promised that he will not die until he has seen Christ, and as he takes the baby into his arms he utters the words, 'Lord, now let your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.'
This prayer, known down the centuries by its opening Latin words Nunc dimittis, explains the title of Quentin Letts's novel Nunc!, a delightfully quirky retelling of the story of Simeon and his friends. It's framed by the experience of a 21st-century corduroy-wearing Englishman who, after receiving bad news about his cancer, wanders into his local cathedral and hears the Nunc dimittis sung at evensong. In this episode of Holy Smoke, Quentin touches on the real-life inspiration for his tale – and suggests to Damian Thompson that old Simeon, venerated as a saint, might be the first Christian in recorded history.

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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28 min
April 01, 2025 The tin ear of Justin Welby
The former Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, is back in the news following his interview this week with the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg. The interview – his first since he resigned last November – was clearly Welby's attempt to draw a line under the abuse scandal that cost him his job.

The 2024 Makin report concluded that the Church of England missed many opportunities to investigate the late John Smyth, one of the most prolific abusers associated with the Anglican Church. However, the biggest headline from the interview was that Welby would 'forgive' John Smyth were he alive today. Albeit unintentionally, the former Archbishop of Canterbury ended up cementing his reputation as an inflexible micro-manager with a tin ear for the views of abuse survivors and his own clergy.

Where does the interview leave the Church of England? The appointees to the Crown Nominations Committee, the body which will consider the successor to Welby, will soon be known. How should this scandal influence them? And, with mounting reports that Pope Francis has shielded Catholic sexual predators, how does the handling of abuse allegations by Canterbury and Rome compare?

The Rev Fergus Butler-Gallie, Vicar of Charlbury in Oxfordshire and the editor-at-large of The Fence magazine, joins Damian Thompson to discuss the abuse crises that seem to be engulfing all the mainstream Churches.

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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29 min
March 28, 2025 A sick Pope and a paralysed Vatican: who is actually running the Catholic Church?
A greatly enfeebled Pope Francis is now living in enforced isolation in a suite at his Santa Marta residence that has been converted into hospital accommodation. He won't be resuming public duties for two months, we are told – and even his senior advisors have limited access to him. As a result, it's really not clear who is in charge of the Catholic Church. And, as Damian Thompson reports in this episode of Holy Smoke, it's by no means clear when this paralysis will end; it's significant that there has been so little talk of the Pope making a full recovery. Meanwhile, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State who isn't bothering to hide his ambition to succeed Francis, is continuing to forge alliances...

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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12 min
March 12, 2025 Christianity, culture wars and J.D. Vance: a conversation with James Orr
James Orr was living the life of a young, high-flying lawyer when, after a few drinks at a New Year's Eve party, he asked for signs that God existed. The signs came; among other things, he narrowly avoided a fatal skiing accident. Now he is a passionate Christian and a conservative culture warrior who helped defeat an attempt to impose the tyranny of critical race theory on Cambridge University, where he is an associate professor of the philosophy of religion.

He's also an intellectual mentor to the vice president of the United States; Politico describes him as 'J.D. Vance's English philosopher king'. Dr Orr says Vance is 'extremely articulate, but he takes no prisoners'. As you'll hear in his conversation with Damian Thompson, that's an observation that could easily apply to the man the vice president calls his 'British Sherpa'.

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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1 hr 2 min
February 25, 2025 Conclave – what really happens when a pope dies?
The film Conclave has picked up a host of awards across all the major ceremonies so far, including at the Screen Actors Guild, the Golden Globes, and winning Best Picture at the BAFTAs. Adapted from the novel by Robert Harris, it also has eight nominations at the upcoming 2025 Academy Awards. Full of intrigue, the film has viewers wondering how true to life the process depicted on the big screen is. And, with Pope Francis hospitalised, amidst the award season, this has only heightened interest in Papal conclaves and the election process.

Dr Kurt Martens, Professor of Canon Law at the Catholic University of America, joins Damian Thompson to unpack the process. What really happens when a Pope dies?

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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54 min
February 20, 2025 Holy War and Antichrist: The rise of extremist rhetoric inside the Russian Orthodox Church
The subject of Ukraine shattered the unity of Eastern Orthodoxy long before Russia’s full-scale invasion began. In 2018 the Ukrainian Orthodox Church declared independence from Moscow with the approval of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. In response, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow broke off all relations with Constantinople, creating arguably the greatest schism in Orthodoxy for 1,000 years.

There are now two main Ukrainian Orthodox Churches: one that supports independence and one still loyal to Moscow. As The Spectator’s Ukraine correspondent Svitlana Morenets points out, Ukrainians who previously didn’t care which church they attended now have to decide which to attend.

Meanwhile, Dr Yuri Stoyanov, a fellow at SOAS, describes the alarming escalation of apocalyptic rhetoric encouraged by Kirill, whose talk of a Holy War against the forces of Antichrist is popular with soldiers but means little to the average Russian.

As we approach the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Svitlana and Yuri join host Damian Thompson to discuss the role of the Russian Orthodox Church in perpetuating the conflict. Has Holy War returned to Europe? And is it true that President Putin has secretly been taking part in bizarre quasi-shamanistic rituals?

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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36 min
February 13, 2025 Why militant atheists don’t understand religion: a conversation with Alister McGrath
In his new book Why We Believe: Finding Meaning in Uncertain Times, Prof Alister McGrath rejects the notion that belief is a relic of the past and takes aim at the ‘new atheists’ who attack religion without even knowing what it is.

Prof McGrath, emeritus Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and Religion at Oxford University, has had a unique journey to religion. A former Marxist atheist with a doctorate in molecular biology, he’s now a world-renowned theologian and Anglican priest.

In this lively discussion with Damian Thompson he talks about the boundary between science and religion, something poorly understood by aggressive atheists such as Richard Dawkins and the late Christopher Hitchens. He suggests that, while we all look for meaning, the safety of science doesn’t provide the sense of belonging that we all crave.

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.

For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
36 min