Life & Faith

What does your psychologist, teacher, or pastor think about how AI is transforming their job? “I think we may have created something that will end up shaping us more than we shape it.” Is AI a revolutionary tool or an existential threat? A watershed moment in human history or an over-hyped bubble? Is it radically enhancing or fundamentally degrading our lives – or neither? There’s a lot of confide...

The Sexual Revolution freed us from oppressive tradition right? Wrong, says Louise Perry. Louise Perry is a journalist who has written for many publications, including the New Statesman, the Daily Mail and is now a columnist at the Wall Street Journal. She is the host of the podcast Maiden, Mother, Matriarch. When she was straight out of university Louise worked in a rape crisis centre and it chal...

Loss forces us into barren places. But even there, something new can be born. When life takes a turn – when you’re diagnosed with a chronic illness, when things spiral out of our control – we're forced into some uncomfortable places. Liminal places. The word ‘liminal’ comes from the Latin word meaning ‘threshold’ or ‘doorstep’. When you step over a doorway, you cross the dividing line between the...

John Inazu joins Life & Faith to help us think about how we might live peacefully and productively alongside people with whom deep disagreement is inevitable. In increasingly, polarised times, the art of disagreeing well is one more of us are going to have to learn. And that is a skill that is not easy to master. Law Professor John Inazu is an experienced guide in helping people live well in c...

A butcher, a wife, and a harpist walk into a Life & Faith episode. --- Distant from us in time, place, and culture, is there any way for a 21st-century person to truly access the world of ancient texts? Leviticus, Psalms, and Song of Songs are among the oldest books we have as humans. They’re important to Jews and Christians as part of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament; they’re important to schol...

As Americans celebrate 250 years since the birth of the USA, we ask what the American project has delivered and what its future might be? Life & Faith examines the 250th anniversary of the USA. What were the founding ideals? How much have those ideals been realised? What might the future of the union be? And what about the contribution and implications of the religious layer to this story. Is,...

Ralph Jackman left a successful career in sports broadcasting to become a teacher. He didn’t expect that choice to land him behind bars. Ralph had been a sports reporter for 25 years but felt he needed a change and in his early 50s trained to become a teacher. That might be tough enough of a transition, but Ralph’s first appointment was to Melbourne’s Parkville Youth Detention Centre teaching lite...

Meet winemakers and brothers(-in-law) Daniel and Theo, who make good wine and have thought deeply about why. What’s it like to win best in the world at the ‘wine Olympics’? Do you need a degree to make great wine, or will Google get you through? Is wine only for snobs? And what do grapes suggest about God? Daniel Chaffey Hartwig and Theo Engela are the brothers-in-law behind Chaffey Bros Wine Co....

Author, radio host and columnist Richard Glover talks to Life & Faith about his career, the joys of radio and why ordinary life is so special. Richard Glover was the host of ABC Radio Sydney’s drive program for 26 years, retiring from that role at the end of 2024. He is the author of 18 books including 3 for kids. He has a regular Saturday column at the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age which...

In a world where we are inundated with options, it feels as though everything rides on making the right choice. Enter decision paralysis. LONG From TikTok influencers to productivity bros, there’s no shortage of people today doling out lifehacks. But there’s a difference between generalised advice from online gurus and the specific guidance we want for our lives – especially when we’re faced with...

We think we’re fully human when we’re independent of other people. We couldn’t be more wrong, says Leah Libresco Sargeant. Is dependence taboo? We may be happy to lend a hand to others, but we probably squirm at the idea of asking for help ourselves. In a world that prizes autonomy and independence, it feels almost shameful to be dependent. Which is partly why Leah Libresco Sargeant got pushback f...

Changing careers can be tough. Is it worth the risk? Shifting careers into something completely new, especially if you have been doing a job for a long time, can be a daunting prospect. But it can also be immensely rewarding. In this episode of Life & Faith we speak to three people who made radical changes in their careers and lived to tell the tale! A hairdresser trains to be a nurse. A singe...

Philosopher Meghan Sullivan on why Christianity has a vital role to play in helping us maintain our humanity in the face of AI. With the AI revolution upon us we all face great uncertainty about the future and what this technology will mean for our lives. There will be plenty that we can be grateful for, perhaps excited about. But there are serious concerns being raised as well. What will this tec...

Kutter Callaway on Comedy, Horror and human imagination. Since he first encountered Star Wars as a young boy, Kutter Callaway has been fascinated by film, television and the stories that capture our collective imaginations. With PhDs in theology and also psycho-social science, he applies his skill and experience in these areas to interpret visual storytelling and examine key aspects of being human...

Social researcher and demographer Mark McCrindle tells us how Australia is changing (and sometimes staying the same). What are the likely impacts of generational shifts and trends? Mark McCrindle is a social researcher and demographer who has been studying Australian life for twenty years. He and his team have gathered important insights into who we are, what we love, how we have changed and how w...

Jennifer Powell McNutt has spent years studying Mary Magdalene. She wants us to know who she really is. Mary Magdelene is both well-known and yet not known at all. She has appeared prominently in art and popular culture in things like the musical Jesus Christ Superstar (1973) or in the film The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) or Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code (2003). She has often been inaccuratel...

Brigid Delaney, Australia’s resident expert on Stoicism, draws on ancient wisdom to survive the storm of modern life. --- How do you cope when things seem to be spinning out of control? In recent years, the ancient Greek philosophy of Stoicism has made a comeback. It’s especially big in Silicon Valley, where modern Stoics pore over the writings of the ancient Stoics – Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius...

New York Times columnist and ex-soldier David French on his surprising career trajectory, faith and politics, and what Jesus has to say about power. --- David French has a fascinating life story that has seen him work as a constitutional lawyer for 20 years, a journalist and writer for places like the National Review, the Atlantic, and now the NYT. He is a writer and commentator with a conviction...

Some principles, some practices, and a bit of inspiration for the digitally exhausted. We pick up our phones 150 times per day on average. Three out of four Australians check social media as soon as they wake up. Four out of five check it before they go to bed. These ‘micromoments’ add up – the ways we choose (consciously or not) to spend our time shape us. Many of us find ourselves dissatisfied i...

Life & Faith brings you a conversation with an Aussie icon. “Write the song and just let the song be a mirror on life, and then see if people see themselves in the picture.” You might know Colin Buchanan as an Australian country music star, as a much-loved writer and performer of kids’ music, as a Play School presenter, or from one of the other myriad hats he’s worn ov...

Greg Sheridan on why the early Christians were able to change the world. Greg’s third in a trilogy of books on Christianity examines the “success” of the early Christians in upending the ancient world, and how this story speaks to contemporary life.  Greg Sheridan has been the foreign editor at the Australian newspaper since 1992. He is one of Australia’s leading national ...

Getting inside the Bible, the most published book of all time.   The Bible is the most published book of all time, and not just historically. It continues to be the case today. In fact, in 2024 Bible sales were up by 22%. In Western Countries the Bible is easily accessible but increasingly there are people who have very little contact with or understanding of the Bible. So what even is the Bi...

Youth worker and founder of the Red Frogs, Andy Gourley, tells Life & Faith how a trip to the Gold Coast to look after his skateboarding crew changed his life. The group known as Red Frogs have become a legendary presence at schoolies weeks, at music festivals and wherever large groups of young party-goers congregate. Offering food, assistance, a listening ear, protection and of course, the fa...

With outrage and division at an all-time high, the need for intelligent and respectful persuasion has never been more urgent. Michael McQueen is an author, speaker and social commentator. In an age of intense polarisation and tribalism, he hasn’t given up on the possibility of changing people’s minds. In this interview with Life & Faith, Michael talks about the psychology of stubbornness and h...

That’s what disability advocate Emily Korir OAM calls one of the worst things that ever happened to her. In June 2012, Emily Korir suffered a massive stroke. She was just 37 years old, with two young children. It was unclear whether she would survive; and then, whether she would ever walk or speak again. Her road to recovery was long and gruelling – and surprisingly life-giving, both for her and f...