Justin Brierley is an author and presenter who, for 17 years, hosted the show "Unbelievable?" which brought prominent atheists and Christians together for conversations and debates on all aspects of the Christian faith.

Under Justin’s tenure, the show reached millions on a yearly basis and featured names such as Jordan Peterson, Ben Shapiro, John Lennox, William Lane-Craig, Alex O’Connor, Douglas Murray, Tom Holland, and many more.

In this conversation, we discuss Justin’s new book, “The Surprising Re-Birth In The Belief In God,”  and his new podcast series under the same name.

We talk about the sliding scale of faith and whilst many may see the merits in the story of the Bible, it’s a far way from accepting it. Kierkegaard and Pascal are referenced in their intellectual wrestling with the scriptures and what we can learn from them.

We also discuss the issue of head vs. heart when approaching the problem of God, the potential origins of Islam, the burden of intellect, and whether Richard Dawkins is right in diagnosing Anglicanism.

All that and so much more.

"A Surprising Rebirth In The Belief In God" Book: https://justinbrierley.com/the-surprising-rebirth-of-belief-in-god/

Justin's Website: https://justinbrierley.com/

Surprising Rebirth Podcast: https://justinbrierley.com/surprisingrebirth/

Find me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/joe.reilly/?hl=en

Watch the episode on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@JoeReillyPodcast

0:00 - 0:33 - Intro

0:33 - 5:25 - A Rebirth In Belief In God?

5:25 - 9:08 - Difference Between Acknowledgment & Belief

9:08 - 11:21 - Richard Dawkins On Anglicanism

11:21 - 14:01 - Intelligence To Comprehend The Divine?

14:01 - 18:14 - Kirkergaard & Pascal Wrestling With Faith

18:14 - 22:29 - Head vs. Heart & Intelligence vs. Emotion

22:29 - 28: 35 - Surprising Rebirth Podcast

28:35 - 33:55 - Cultural Values Of Christianity In The West

33:55 - 39:21 - Is Faith Transformational or Transactional?

39:21 - 48:00 - Theory On The Origins Of Islam

48:00 - 51:59 - Justin On Alex O'Connor

51:59 - 54:36 - Justin's Role In The Great Commission

Harry Donoghue is an Oxford graduate, online creator, and educator.

The Aeneid by Virgil is one of antiquity's best-known works. Considered to be the follow-on from Homer's Odyssey and Iliad, the poem charts the story of Aeneas, a Trojan prince who flees the destruction of Troy and finds the first settlement in Italy, which later became Rome.

But why has it stood the test of time? Why should we bother studying it? Who is Virgil and what is his background? Did he steal from Homer? How does the Aeneid echo down the ages? Can we not discard it as 2000-year-old propaganda?

In this episode, we answer all those questions and so many more. After this conversation, you'll be equipped to read the Aeneid for yourself with all the required context and witness firsthand why this text has stood the test of time.

Find Harry on Instagram: www.instagram.com/harryspoetryy/

Find Harry on Substack: https://harrydonoghue.substack.com/

Find me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/joe.reilly/?hl=en

Watch the episode on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@JoeReillyPodcast

0:00 - 0:24 - Welcome 

0:24 - 6:40 - Aeneid’s Background

6:40 - 9:30 - Did Virgil Steal from Homer?

9:35 - 16:59 - Reading Virgil Into The Story   

16:59 - 17:55 - MI6 Recruiting Oxbridge Grads

17:55 - 22:50 -  Human Element To The Aeneid

22:50 - 31:10 - The Role Of Fate in Classical Works 

31:10 - 37:15 -Virgil Wanting The Aeneid Destroyed 

37:15 - 38:50 - Rivers of Blood Speech by Enoch Powell

38:50 - 40:55 - Out of Context Virgil  

40:55 - 44:30 - Should The Aeneid Be Recreationally Read? 

44:30 - 45:44 - The Big Question

Chris Barkley is a writer, novelist, and educator. In this episode, we discuss the purpose and power of fiction, how the lessons gleaned from novels—like a Shakespeare play—aren’t instantaneous but require time and space to sink in, minimalist vs. maximalist styles, and how to write your first novel.

We also discuss and debate if John Ruskin had a pretentious worldview, whether George Orwell’s writing advice was wrong, why Brazilian jus-jitsu is more similar to writing than you think, and what is the superior art form: writing, painting, and photography.

All that and so much more. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and give the show a five-star rating. This will allow me to bring you more episodes like this. 

The Man on the Endless Stair by Chris Barkley, coming in June 2025.

PRE-ORDER YOUR COPY HERE: 

https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-man-on-the-endless-stair/chris-barkley//9781846976896 

https://birlinn.co.uk/product/the-man-on-the-endless-stair/ 

Follow Chris on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tufferbarkley/profilecard/?igsh=YTFqODQ1NzdjdXNl

Find me on Instagram: ⁠www.instagram.com/joe.reilly/?hl=en⁠ 

Watch the episode on YouTube: ⁠www.youtube.com/@JoeReillyPodcast⁠ 

0:00 - Why Bother Reading Fiction?

3:00 - Does a book’s length indicate value?

6:10 - Lessons from Fiction

14:00 - How To Become a Writer 

16:30 - Brizillian jus-jitsu Is Like Writing

21:10 - The Role Of Editing 

23:20 - Importance of Silence & Solitude 

28:30 - The Need To Create   

29:20 - Extinct vs. Intrinsic 

31:09 - Tolkien & CS. Lewis 

38:00 - Writers Block Is A Myth 

39:40 - Writing vs. Painting? 

46:50 - John Ruskin vs. George Orwell

49:25 - Importance of  Writing Set Up

51:40 - You Need An Online Following

55:30 - The Man on the Endless Stair

Marcus Janssen is the Managing Director of Schöffel Country. Schöffel is an international outdoor and ski brand and Marcus tells the hilarious tale of how they got into the niche world of British fieldsports. Marcus then takes us through the ages of Schöffel Country and details their target audience to immense precision,he speaks on how to navigate modern sensibilities, why the Facebook Group shadow banned their content, what Schöffel’s aims are with their business and how that one gilet changed everything.

Marcus also gives me his best pitch on why you and I should take up fly fishing and tells the tale of how he completed a McNab. 

All that and so much more. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and give the show a five-star rating. This will allow me to bring you more episodes like this. 

In the meantime, enjoy the show.

Find Marcus on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcus-janssen-01a19025/?originalSubdomain=uk 

Find Marcus on Instagram: www.instagram.com/marcusljanssen/ 

Find Your Next Outfit: www.schoffelcountry.com/ 

Find me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/joe.reilly/?hl=en 

Watch the episode on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@JoeReillyPodcast 

Brian Hess is an author, podcaster, and pastor. In todays episode we skip through the Bible to dive and delve into what it says, its context and its application. Why were there two trees in the Garden of Eden? Was Eden a physical or psychological place? How the modern mind may struggle to read the text, why were Adam and Eve even created, The Golden Calf, The Great Commission, Discipleship and Carl Jung, all in 55 minutes.

If you enjoyed this episode, please do consider subscribing and giving it a five-star review wherever you listen to your podcasts, it’s the best way to support the channel and allows me to continue to bring you episodes like this. 

In the meantime, enjoy the show. 

Brian’s Book: https://www.amazon.com/Gods-Not-Good-You-Think/dp/B0CLY6P1WP/ref=sr_1_1? 

Making Hesstory Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/7yHKvepbY9sRpPmiBPK9jT 

Making Hesstory Website: https://makinghesstory.com/ 

Brian’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brian_p_hess/ 

Watch the episode on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@JoeReillyPodcast

Find me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/joe.reilly/?hl=en

Nick Compton is a former cricket player and England batsman who is now an author and photographer. In today's episode he lifts the curtain behind the scenes of international cricket. From training routines, the evolution of the game, and players' wages, to explaining the background of the fielding pitch named “silly mid-off”. Nick then opens up about his struggle from professional to retirement, how he’s tried to fill the hole of cricket, his love of photography and its correlations to the game, and so much more. 

Nick is brutally honest about his journey and this is a seriously insightful conversation. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d highly recommend picking up Nick’s book called “Legacy” as he delves into the topics we discussed in further detail and makes for a riveting read. 

In the meantime, enjoy the show. 

Nick's Book "Legacy": https://www.amazon.co.uk/Legacy-Nick-Compton-ebook/dp/B0BRYT8FPR/ref=zg_bsnr_268084_sccl_89_nodl_nodl/262-9102458-7493611?psc=1&dplnkId=ecd77b94-7e06-4983-b974-925401267de1#immersive-view_1674891982864

Find Nick on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nick.compton/?hl=en

Nick's Website: www.nickcompton.com

Watch the episode on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@JoeReillyPodcast

Find me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/joe.reilly/?hl=en

Eddie The Media Trainer helps businesses and individuals manage all things PR. From curating relationships with journalists to setting up interviews to getting featured in the biggest news outlets in the world. Eddie pulls all his strings in order for his clients to generate more sales through publicity. 

He has some fascinating takes which we delve into the the episode, from why you should never say “no comment”, why you should pitch yourself as David vs. Goliath, the inside track of how media leaks work, the value of off-the-record conversations, why the Forbes 30 under 30 or 40 under 40 is a scam, and Eddie gives a full breakdown on the hugely successful PR glow up of Mark Zuckerberg. 

If you enjoyed this episode, do consider subscribing and leaving a 5-star review.

In the meantime, enjoy the episode. 

Find Eddie on Instagram: www.instagram.com/eddiethemediatrainer/

Find Eddie’s Courses: https://stan.store/eddiethemediatrainer?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaYf2lJkM9s9DxtqQPNe0dl8sGCuCG3_q2hW3AfsDaesePM-fXpWzUhX3wg_aem_SDMpsTxBTeoltKrTKtypJA 

Watch the episode on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@JoeReillyPodcast

Find me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/joe.reilly/?hl=en

Harry Donoghue is an Oxford graduate who runs an Instagram page dedicated to Latin and poetry. 

We discuss a wide range of topics in today's episode, from the two Latin phrases on the Great Seal of the United States and what they mean, why things can be solved by walking, why the 9/11 monument in New York which quotes Virgil is wrong, why Churchill wasn’t clever enough to study Latin, what John Paul Sartre and Achilles had in common, is the Iliad really historically accurate? And so much more.

Harry was engaging, enthusiastic, and erudite and I really enjoyed this conversation, I hope you will too…

Find Harry on Instagram: www.instagram.com/harryspoetryy/

Find Harry on Substack: https://harrydonoghue.substack.com/

Watch the episode on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@JoeReillyPodcast

Find me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/joe.reilly/?hl=en

Cody Townsend is a professional skier and adventurer supported by Salomon, Swatch, and Yeti.

Cody is a mammoth of the outdoor world having forged a career on snow for the best part of three decades, and shows no signs of slowing up or stopping. 

In this episode we discuss where Cody and Winston Churchill share similarities, the next project after The Fifty series which took him five years to complete, awe-inspiring landscapes and how it changes the way Cody views the world, advice on how to become a sponsored athlete, what he means by needing to “impress your bosses boss”, why if you want to ski as much as possible you shouldn’t be a pro skier, and so much more including Hobbes, Rousseau, John Muir, and Alice and Wonderland. You know, the usual stuff.

Cody's Website: www.codytownsend.com/gear/

Cody's Instagram: www.instagram.com/codytownsend/?hl=en

Watch The Fifty: www.youtube.com/codytownsend

Find me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/joe.reilly/?igsh=MW80aGt1MXR1enhsNQ%3D%3D&%3Butm_source=qr

Watch This Episode On YouTube: www.youtube.com/@JoeReillyPodcast

Rylan Schadegg is a 4x DEKA World Champion and a Spartan, HYROX and Obstacle Course Racer (OCR). I spoke to Rylan earlier this year in Episode 26 about his racing, training and background. But since then he’s been hampered with an acute medical issue which has seemingly put a stop to all athletic endeavours and races. 

He lifts the curtain to it all at the start of the episode, and we we delve into the five main things he has been doing to keep as sane and as fit as possible. Zone 1 training, needing grace, focussing on strength training, an eye on the long game, and mental strategies when dealing with an indefinite set-back are all topics discussed amongst faith, wilderness, and trust. 

We’ve all been injured or ill in the past, and we will all be ill or injured in the future; in this episode Rylan lays out pivotal tools and mental models to help maintain and bounce back as best as possible. 

Find Rylan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rylanschadegg/?hl=en

Be Coached By Rylan: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSee6EHXLUJ2vgO2cfrlXaWsR1j1FRdHiIHYbF5-fd3R9i377w/viewform

Find me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joe.reilly/?hl=en