“The Ten Commandments are among the great

For some, doubters and believers alike, the

But perhaps there’s more to the Ten Commandments

In fact, John Dickson says that these ten

“I see clearly that the thing the church needs

– Pope Francis, America: The National

In 2013, Pope Francis famously likened the

“I think in some senses, what Pope Francis

“It’s a response to the kind of one-on-one,

In this episode of Life & Faith, we

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JOIN US at this year’s Richard Johnson

“An equation for me has no meaning unless

Ramanujan was a self-taught mathematical

His story, as told in the movie The Man Who Knew Infinity, not only

“Your theorem is wrong,” Hardy tells

Once described as “the most romantic figure

You’ll hear from a homegrown mathematician

“Why are numbers beautiful? It's like

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According to Hugh Mackay, Australia is in themiddle of a “soft revolution”.

After 30 years of consumerism and theso-called happiness movement, Mackay says people are ready to rid themselves oftheir materialistic and narcissistic characteristics and embrace that there’smore to life.

“Unless there’s something I put my faithin, life is meaningless.”

This is essentially what dozens ofAustralians across the spectrum of faith and spirituality told Mackay as heconducted interviews for his new book, BeyondBelief: How we find meaning, with or without religion.

The book explores Australia’s current spiritualclimate and recent shifts in our religious faith and practice. Mackay openlyadmits, though, that the book probably won’t appeal either to committedbelievers or committed atheists – and in this interview Simon and Hugh findplenty to disagree on, as well as some common ground.

In this episode of Life & Faith, we explore the spiritual landscape of Australian society,challenge some of Mackay’s views on Christian faith, and discuss the role ofreligion and the church in helping people find meaning and purpose.

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Neurons and genetics cannot explain away

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When philosopher Julian Baggini – author of

“They think it’s the view of intelligent

In this episode of Life & Faith, Baggini takes back the reins on the free will

“Freedom isn’t about the ability to just

Can books be a cure for the common cold?  

Can a novel help us navigate a midlifecrisis?

Can reading be a remedy for a broken heart?

These are just some of the questions that bibliotherapyclaims to be able to answer. Whatever your ailment may be, there’s a novel – ortwo – that will supposedly provide temporary relief of your symptoms.

The first instance of bibliotherapy wasrecorded in an Atlantic Monthly articlepublished in 1916. The author writes about bumping into an old friend, Bagster,who has set up the Bibliopathic Institute. Bagster welcomes clients into hisoffice in the basement of his church, and prescribes books to heal a variety ofailments.

In the article, Bagster says:

“Bibliotherapy is such a new science thatit is no wonder that there are many erroneous opinions as to the actual effect whichany particular book may have. … 

A book may be a stimulant or a sedative oran irritant or a soporific. The point is that it must do something to you, andyou ought to know what it is.”

The human brain is the most complex object

This is the thought that Marilynne Robinson

“I want to encourage my young writers to

Human exceptionalism is something that comes

Robinson’s latest offering, The Givenness

“We know that given any possibility, human

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READ Natasha Moore’s review on The

The story of Christianity and Aboriginal culture in Australia, is one of tragedy, loss and deep sorrow.

“It was the church’s decree that they pillage our land and conquer us,” Larissa Minniecon says. “So through Christianity, or churches - we have lost everything.”

Larissa is a Kabi Kabi woman and a Torres Strait Islander. She is also a Christian woman. In fact, her last name may sound familiar - Ray Minniecon, is her father and a prominent Aboriginal Christian leader.

“We deeply believe in the message, we deeply believe in Jesus, and I think because of that we’ve survived all the atrocities that have been thrown to us,” she says. “Being a Christian helps us survive and give grace to a lot of people, and also hope.”

In this episode of Life & Faith, we consider these stories of hope and reconciliation that are found hidden within the darker narrative that charts the relationship between the church and Aboriginal people.

You’ll hear from Larissa Minniecon, who heads up Common Grace’s Aboriginal Justice team, and her colleagues, TanyaRiches and Shane Fenwick.

Grant Paulson, an Aboriginal man, a son of a Baptist minister and a trained clergyman himself, also joins us with a candid interview about his thoughts on reconciliation. He’s also recorded a song for us so listen out for it at the end of the episode.

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It may feel like we’re living in an

According to a recent study, by the year

So, if you’re not religious or if you’re

In this episode, we discuss how to learn

Ivy is 105 years old and she loves music. She

“I usually have the music playing softly,”

The truth is, Ivy hasn’t done that for a

Instead, Ivy has an iPod loaded with a

So, what’s on her playlist? “I like all the

There are more than 353,000 Australians

As part of Dr Beilharz’s program, Ivy -

In this episode, we speak with residents, a