What does it mean to be human?

Pope Leo XIV addresses this question in his encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, a letter addressed not only to all the Catholic faithful but to "all men and women of goodwill". In addressing the challenges, threats and possibilities of AI, how do we ensure we do not lose what matters most about human life?Human limitations, suggests the letter, are not weaknesses to be corrected but inherent to creative communion and human flourishing. How do we, in a fast moving technological landscape, design how AI could serve human dignity rather than work against it? And how do we protect truth, freedom, work, social justice and human rights?

Father Frank Brennan SJ AO, Jesuit Priest and human rights lawyer joins the podcast to discuss AI, Magnifica Humanitas and the wisdom and clarity it offers humanity and the Church in our time. 

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There has been interest and renewal of contemplative practice amongst the Christian church in recent decades. Rather than just a comfortable solace in a busy world, there is an urgency in such practices that seek transformed and transforming ways to be and to live in a time of such complexity and rapid change. What habits and practices might enable us to relate truthfully to ourselves and to the world, attending deeply to that which is most real? Contemplative church, centred on silence and listening, places the greater emphasis not on knowing about God but being known by God, on letting go rather than possessing.

The Rev’d Dr Sarah Bachelard rejoins the podcast to explore how contemplation can suffuse all of our life and worship. She is the founding Director of Benedictus Contemplative Church, a theologian and teacher with the World Community for Christian Meditation and author of several books, including her latest book, Pools of Grace: The Gift and Call of Contemplative Church.

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How does faith show up in the everyday? How might we bring intention and focus to living out our faith in the everyday micro-moments of our lives and relationships?

It is easy to remain in relational habits that are encultured or habituated by social patterns that are so often 'win-lose' and resistant to change. Restorative Practices are broadly a set of processes that enable people to work together to make decisions about what matters most to them and respond to situations of harm in ways that set relations right. Seeking to understand each context and bringing individuals safely into processes to make sense of what is happening in group relationships can help everyone involved move forward together with greater understanding.

While sometimes to talk about things can seem daunting, as we learn the skills, the great gifts of deeper community and stronger relationships emerge. At the heart of restorative practices is intentional attention to one another, practicing curiosity and sharing what gives us life. 

David B. Moore and Alikki Vernon are consultants and facilitators who work in a variety of contexts  in Australia and many other parts of the world. Their book is titled "Setting Relations Right in Restorative Practice" and is published by Routledge as part of the global series, Contemporary Issues in Restorative Practice.

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Where is the Church calling Australian society to accountability in the face of experiences of escalating racism and hatred against First Nations people?

This is a question Professor Anne Pattel-Gray asks as she recalls the times of church support for land rights and justice for the Stolen Generations, leaning into a Gospel message that proclaims equality and the dignity of all. Anne joins the podcast with a summons to a renewed commitment to addressing historical injustices and speaking truth to power. As the first Aboriginal person to gain a PhD in religious studies from an Australian University, Anne's prophetic voice has for decades been calling on the churches to own their past and present complicity in colonisation and commit to a reconciliation based on truth-telling and justice. 

Professor Anne Pattel-Gray teaches a theology founded on Aboriginal sovereignty and shaped by her experience as a Bidjara follower of Jesus. Author of the acclaimed text, 'The Great White Flood: Racism in Australia', Anne's new book, 'Red Ochre Theology' has just been published by ATF Press and is available now. 

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Often we hear colonialism spoken of as something that happened in the past. At other times in public discourse the term attracts heated resistance and the voices of the colonised are frequently not heard. If colonialism is not just the past but remains in the air we breathe, we can miss the ongoing effects in areas of diverse as class, economy, gender relationships and race. Dr Kwok Pui-lan joins the podcast to bring a global perspective to how colonialism is at play in political, religious and domestic relationships of power and in the legacy of social harm and intergenerational trauma. This means that colonialism is a current dynamic to which we need to be alive and alert if we are to work towards the healing of relationships through the ways of peace and justice. Dr. Kwok Pui-lan is a Scholar at Episcopal Divinity School, past president of the American Academy of Religion and has authored and edited numerous books on Asian and Asian American feminist theology, biblical interpretation, and postcolonial criticism. 

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There are plenty of reasons right now that we may feel inclined to despair. The news brings to us all the violence of the world and a sense that the all we have known is fundamentally changing. Dom, Sue and Peter gather for this 'check in' conversation on how we are adjusting to the shifting of the powers in the world and the unmasking of systems that have been for some time working against life and the flourishing of all. How do we find ways to navigate this time in life-affirming ways resting on a spiritual foundation that insists on the love and dignity of all in the midst of crisis? This conversation is a reminder of the power of community and of the love that holds us, and which faith reminds us, will  have the last word. 

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What soil did you come from? There is no self-made person and perhaps this is a lesson that emerges with greater clarity in the garden than in many of the other spaces and ways we live and work.  Our sacred texts are rooted in agrarian cultures and the Gospels are full of Jesus' stories of green and growing things, yet we often hear a Christianity preached that seems more comfortable with the spiritual world than our embodied lives. 

Jeff Chu left his job as a magazine writer and found himself at Princeton Theological Seminary's "Farminary"-a working farm where students learn to cultivate the earth while examining life's biggest questions. In his book "Good Soil: The Education of an Accidental Farmhand" Jeff writes about how such rhythms of death and life, growth, decay and regeneration can be our greatest teachers, revealing the grace of our interdependence and the love at the heart of everything. Jeff joins the podcast for this live conversation during his recent visit to Australia. 

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What if reconciliation is resistance? John Na'em Snobar, a Palestinian Christian and former Australian Diplomat, joins the podcast to speak from his lived experience both in diplomatic circles and on the ground in Israel/ Palestine of how speaking the truth is, in itself, a nonviolent response.  John speaks of the whole truth as that which names antisemitism as a centuries-old vile and violent hatred, along with its complex impact in the region, and shares his story to shed light on the current plight of Palestinians in Gaza.

John Na'em Snobar is a former Australian Diplomat and the Director of Advocacy for Palestinian Christians in Australia. He also is the grandson of the first Palestinian Bishop of the Episcopal Church of Jerusalem. In the tradition of Christian liberation theologies, John shines a light of hope on the steadfast refusal to dehumanise even enemies in living out nonviolent resistance and working for peace with justice.

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To be human is to find oneself bound to multiple things that are conflictual yet at the same time compelling. The interplay of desire and morality creates one such 'double bind'. It is possible to follow desire and disregard the claims of morality in such a way that you can ruin your life. Equally it is possible to devote oneself to morality and disregard the voice of desire and ruin your life. Desire is fundamentally central to being human, forming in unique ways in each of us, and we are also responsible fundamentally for others in the choices we make. Dr Peter Kline rejoins the podcast for a conversation that explores the unresolvable tensions of the human condition, why the idea of balance is so unhelpful and how freedom and joy can be found within the anxieties and complexities that attend every human life.

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While society has advanced in its understanding of mental health, with advances in treatment, wider awareness and a reduction in stigma, there seems to be no abating of the mental health crisis. Tracing the history of modern psychotherapy, and the systematic approach taken by the medical sciences, Jim Schirmer returns to the podcast to reflect on the academic heritage of psychotherapy and the therapeutic direction of our understanding of human mental health and wellbeing.While recognising the enormous gains and gifts of medical precision, diagnosis and classification systems, is it possible that something could be gained from greater inclusion of other traditions that think deeply about the human condition?  And how does Christian faith with its central image of the cross speak to an age which seems to pursue the goal of eliminating suffering and pursue individual happiness as the highest good? And where, in all of this, is there space for the mystery of the human soul?

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